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Enthusiast demand forces Aston’s hand: V12 Vantage coming America

Thanks to enthusiasts, the most powerful road-going Aston Martin ever is coming to the United States. The British sports-car maker confirmed on Friday that the V12 Vantage--packing 510 hp and 420 lb-ft of torque--will be sold in North and South America. This is a reversal from a year ago, when Aston tantalizingly showed off the car and promptly said it wasn’t coming here.

Smart for-us

The latest addition to the Smart conceptual range is the for-us pickup, which follows on from the forspeed convertibe of Geneva, and the forvision hatchback that was unveiled Frankfurt, delivering another twist on the iconic city car platform. Despite the increase of size to 3547mm in length, traditional Smart iconography such as the tridon safety cell, three-spoke wheels and product-like execution – such as the inner lamp graphics – retain the brand identity. Squarer lamp and grille graphics and knobbly rocker surfacing add a twist of robustness.

New Skoda Octavia vRS costs from £22,990

New Skoda Octavia vRS (pictured) costs from £22,990 Skoda’s take on the VW Golf GTI – the Skoda Octavia vRS – was revealed last month ahead of its debut today at the Goodwood Festival of Speed, and now we know it will costs from £22,990. For your £22,990 you’ll get the Octavia vRS with the 2.0 litre TSI engine delivering 217bhp and 0-62mph of 6.8 seconds. Pay a bit more (£23,260) for the diesel (why would you want to do that?) and you’ll get 181bhp from the 2.0 litre TDI and get to 62mph in 8.1 seconds.