A1 Cardone 20-7926f Domestic Power S on 2040-parts.com

Mercedes E300 BlueTEC Hybrid gets 65.7mpg & costs £39,645

Mercedes-Benz has revealed that the Mercedes E300 BlueTEC Hybrid has official fuel consumption of 65.7mpg and will cost from £39,645. There’s no denying that the Mercedes E 300 BlueTEC hybrid is a very clever car, and that it ‘Games’ the daft company car BIK rates to perfection. It’s entire reason to be is to drive down official fuel consumption figures to garner the most benefit possible from company car taxation, and in that it succeeds very well.

2012 Ford Focus ST gets 297bhp

Those clever chaps at SuperChips have given the 2012 Ford Focus ST a bit of an ECU tweak to deliver 297bhp and an extra 85lb/ft of torque. When we reported last week that WTC outfit Arena had in roped Ford’s tuner of choice, Mountune, to give the new Ford Focus a makeover, we were a tad disappointed to discover that they were tweaking the rather journeyman Focus Zetec S. That meant the Zetec S got 200bhp – a handy jump – but we bemoaned the fact that they hadn’t fiddled with the Focus ST to give us a car to fill the void left by the absence of a Focus RS in the current iteration of the Focus.

Mini Cooper (2013) New Mini previewed by Mini Vision Concept

The Mini Vision Concept has given the best indication yet at what the Mini 3, due to be shown this autumn, will look like. Shown at a design event in Germany, the Vision, says Mini, is intended to show the future design direction of the BMW sub-brand, but when compared to scoop images of the car, essentially previews the new model in all its glory. Mini Vision Concept: the need-to-know The Mini 3 will keep the familiar styling cues of the first two generations, but there’s a longer wheelbase and a waistline that’s rising more sharply towards the roofline, which lowers more aggressively than before.