Yamaha 90890-55830-00 Key #461 on 2040-parts.com

Lotus owner Proton tries to quell sale rumours

The Malaysian owners of Lotus have taken the unusual step of quashing rumours circulating of an impending sale of its British sports car division. Several newspaper articles have suggested that the new owners of Proton may divest its loss-making Lotus subsidiary. The ownership structure of Proton has changed in recent weeks, after the Khazanah Nasional Berhad sold its entire stake in Proton to DRB-Hicom.

Ferrari 458 Italia Revealed

The first pictures of the new Ferrari 458 Italia These are the first pictures of Ferrari’s 458 Italia, released this morning ahead of the official reveal at the Frankfurt Motor Show in September. Clearly showing influences from the Enzo and the Mille Chille Concept car, the F430 replacement will undoubtedly go upmarket in terms of price to differentiate it from Ferrari’s entry-level car, the Ferrari California. Featuring a new, 4.5 litre V8 (hence the name – 458) , Ferrari claim the new engine has the highest specific output of any normally aspirated road-car engine, which is a hard claim to dispute as it produces 127bhp per litre.  It produces 562bhp at 9000 rpm, making it the highest revving Ferrari engine to date.

Vauxhall heads off-road with Insignia Country Tourer

VAUXHALL'S new Insignia Country Tourer will cost from £25,349 when it arrives in the UK in January hot on the heels of the revised Insignia hatch and estate models. The Country Tourer is a soft-roader version of the Insignia Sports Tourer estate model and has an added 30mm of ground clearance, as well as front and rear underbody protection to help on rough tracks. Vauxhall has also fitted the car with extra protective covers for the wheelarches and body sides.