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.

Tesla sues Top Gear over range claims

Popular British television show Top Gear has been sued by electricc-car maker Tesla Motors Inc. over an episode that Tesla says is libelous. Tesla says the show faked a scene showing the electric-powered Tesla Roadster running out of power.

BMW 1 Series dead in US after 2013

With its successor set to bow at the Detroit Auto Show in a couple of months' time, word's come down from BMW that 2013 will indeed be the end of the line for the BMW 1 Series — at least in the US. It will remain available elsewhere in the world as a three-door and five-door hatch. The coupe and convertible, meanwhile, are being replaced by the 2 Series, in convention with BMW's new naming scheme.