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Small but safe: the Fiat 500

By Ben Pulman Motor Industry 31 August 2007 10:29 Fiat’s new baby, the 500, has just achieved a full five-star Euro NCAP rating for adult safety. The 500's score of 35 points puts it ahead of cars like the Mini and Renault Clio while the 500’s closest rival, the Renault Twingo, only achieved four stars in the latest tests. The 500’s 35 points bettered the Twingo’s 28, as did its 14 point to the Renault’s 11 for pedestrian safety (though both ratings are equivalent to two stars).

Bid to cut car insurance premiums

THE COMPETITION WATCHDOG is proposing to impose a cap on replacement vehicle costs following motor accidents as part of a clampdown to help cut premiums for all drivers in the £11 billion private motor insurance market. The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) said the cap on charges passed to the insurer of the driver who is at-fault in an accident for the cost of providing a replacement vehicle to the non-fault driver, would "more closely reflect the costs incurred and remove significant inefficiencies". The watchdog has previously found that the "complex chain" of claim costs following an accident collectively inflates premiums by as much as £200 million a year.

Jaguar XFR Speed Pack

Jaguar has revealed a Speed Pack for the XFR, raising the top speed to 174mph and adding cosmetic tweaks. We have been expecting Jaguar to arrive at the Paris Motor Show next month with an XFR-S, an XFR with the same power boost as the XKR-S to offer an XFR that can hold its own against the new M5. That may still be happening, but perhaps Jaguar are only planning on giving us a low-fat upgrade to the XFR in the form of the XFR Speed Pack, revealed at the Moscow Motor Show?