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David Brown Automotive Speedback sports classic looks, modern performance

A new 510-hp, V8-powered British sports car has broken cover in London, boasting classically inspired styling, a hand-built aluminum body, crafted interior trim and a $400,000 price tag, Created by a new company, David Brown Automotive, the Speedback is a prototype built on a Jaguar XKR platform with the aim of delivering a “vision of a classic-looking sports car without compromising modern convenience and features.” Drive comes from the XKR's supercharged 5.0-liter V8, unmodified and boasting 510 hp and 461 lb-ft, mated to a six-speed ZF automatic transmission. The 3,968 lb. curb weight is very similar to that of the donor car, so performance and economy figures are also similar: 0-60 mph in 4.6 seconds and a top speed limited to 155 mph.

Show Review: Goodwood Festival of Speed 2011

The Goodwood Festival of Speed began 19 years ago. Back then, it amounted to little more than a glorified hill climb for historic racecars. Since then, it has grown to become the biggest event in the UK automotive calendar outside of the Grand Prix, and takes over Lord March's West Sussex Estate annually on the first weekend of July.

Fewer people being killed in car-truck collisions, study finds

Death rates in crashes between big trucks and cars dropped 64 percent in 2008-09 compared with 2000-01, according to an insurance-industry study of government data. The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety cited changes in vehicle design, particularly for SUVs and pickups, as a key factor in the decline. The number of deaths for car and minivan passengers involved in crashes with larger vehicles fell from 44 per million in 2000-01 to 16 deaths per million in 2008-09, the study found.