Triumph Spitfire Valve Cover on 2040-parts.com

MINI Inspired by Goodwood: The MINI Rolls Royce arrives

MINI Inspired by Goodwood - the MINI Roller arrives The MINI by Rolls Royce has been coming for a long time. We first spied the Rolls Royce MINI back in 2009 and even then we were told it would become a production model. Well, it’s taken a while, but the MINI Inspired by Goodwood (for Goodwood is where BMW build the Rolls Royce) will debut at Shanghai this month and then go in to production with firts cars expected to arrive in early 2012.

BMW's Vision EfficientDynamics concept bound for Frankfurt

BMW has revealed a radical vision for its future performance-oriented models in a spectacularly styled concept car whose combination of M3-rivaling acceleration and Mini Cooper-beating fuel economy will likely make it one of the stars of this year's Frankfurt motor show. Called Vision EfficientDynamics, the one-off coupe is a mobile showcase for lightweight construction and plug-in hybrid drive technology, while featuring a variety of futuristic styling, packaging, aerodynamic, lighting and interior ideas under development at the German carmaker's heavily cloaked FIZ development center in Munich. Many of the concepts are planned for use on upcoming BMW road cars, including an exciting Z10 EfficientDynamics range-topping model due by 2015.

Driven: Mazda RX-8

The two most obvious elements of its unusual make-up are its rotary engine and rear-hinged rear doors with integral B-pillars. What became clear during our week with the RX-8 was how these two aspects of its design form the basis of many other unique qualities... Sports coupe and GT coupe The rotary engine of the RX-8 has a very distinct power delivery that is a defining part of the car's character, but it is also a very small lump of metal compared to a similarly powerful conventional reciprocating piston engine, enabling more of the car's overall length to be devoted to cabin space.