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Renault Megane Renaultsport 275 Trophy-R Special Edition celebrates Nurburgring record

The Renault Megane Renaultsport 275 Trophy-R (pictured) breaks a Nurburgring record We knew Renault were planning to take the Megane Renaultsport 275 Trophy to the Nurburgring to have a crack at the FWD production car record and wrestle it back from the SEAT Lean Cupra 280. After some extreme weight saving measures – and some chassis tweaks – Renault managed to push the 275 Trophy round the Nordschleife in 7min 53.4 seconds, beating the SEAT’s time of 7min 58.4 seconds to take the record (video below). But not being one’s to miss a marketing opportunity, Renault has decided that they should celebrate the Nurburgring record with a new limited edition Megane – the Megane Renaultsport 275 Trophy-R Special Edition.

Mercedes S-Class Plug-in Hybrid revealed for Frankfurt 2013

We’ve driven the new 2013 Mercedes-Benz S-Class already this year (and loved it), but now the ‘best car in the world’ has added another feather to its cap. The German firm has released details of a super-high efficiency version of its S-Class saloon called the S500 Plug-in Hybrid, ahead of the car’s debut at the 2013 Frankfurt Motor Show next month. It goes on sale in the UK in 2014, and its vital statistics are absolutely astonishing.

BMW ActiveHybrid X6 introduced

BMW has released details and images of the BMW ActiveHybrid X6 BMW claim the X6 ActiveHybrid as the most powerful Hybrid car in production, with its total power output of 480 horses and 575lb/ft of torque. That’s a bit better than a Prius! All this power comes from the BMW 4.4 litre twin-turbo lump, coupled to a pair of electric motors that deliver 91bhp and 86bhp respectively.