Raybestos Brake Service Guide 72 Pages on 2040-parts.com

New Skoda Octavia vRS hatch & estate revealed

The 2013 Skoda Octavia vRS has been revealed (vRS hatch pictured) The Skoda Octavia vRS – the latest version of Skoda’s quick and appealing take on the VW Golf GTI – has been unveiled ahead of its debut at the Goodwood FoS in July, and it looks a cracker. Available as either a hatchback or estate – and as a diesel or a petrol – the Octavia vRS manages to repackage the Golf GTI and Golf GTD in to one Skoda, offering good performance (the vRS is a bit slower than the GTI to 62mph at 6.8 seconds but has a 2mph higher top speed), good looks and the promise of prices starting not much above £20k. The petrol vRS gets the Golf GTI’s 217bhp 2.0 litre TSI and the diesel vRS the 181bhp 2.0 litre TFI from the Golf GTD, both with a 6-speed manual gearbox as standard and a six-speed DSG as option, sports suspension, XDS differential, quicker steering and multi-link rear suspension.

Caterham Cars up production

Caterham Cars is increasing production as buyers opt for cheaper thrills. Now admittedly, Caterham increasing production is not going to turn the economy around – they make fewer cars in a year than VW make in an hour. But they are obviously doing something right.

Production of Peugeot iOn and Citroen C-Zero EVs halted

Production of the Peugeot iOn and Citroen C-Zero – both the Mitsubishi i-MiEV under the skin – has been halted by Mitsubishi. The Peugeot iOn EV arrived at the Frankfurt Motor Show three years ago and the Citroen C-Zero EV arrived a few months later, heralding PSA’s arrival in the EV market with a car based on the Mitsubishi i-MiEV. But the prices were frankly horrible at £33,155, more than four times what you’d have to pay for a Citroen C1 or a Peugeot 107 with the 1.0 litre petrol engine.