Westin 40-93785 Sportsman Winch Mount Grille Guard on 2040-parts.com

Akio Toyoda waves family flag, heir makes crisis personal challenge

The reclusive Akio Toyoda is taking the rare step of waving the family flag, as the scion to Toyota Motor Corp.’s founding dynasty tries to steer the world’s largest car company out of a spiraling safety crisis. In testimony prepared for the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee, President Toyoda pursues a rare personal tack on the emergency, saying “my name is on every car.” “As you well know, I am the grandson of the founder, and all the Toyota vehicles bear my name,” Toyoda says in prepared comments circulated ahead of Wednesday’s committee hearing in Washington. “For me, when the cars are damaged, it is as though I am as well.” The intimate reflection is a departure for Toyoda, who has spent most of his career sidestepping public discussion of his lineage.

Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X FQ-440 MR special edition revealed. Costs £50,000

The Mitsubishi Lancer Evolution X FQ-440 MR special edition will cost £50k The Mitsubishi Lance Evo X bit the dust in the UK in 2011 after the Yen’s strength made it impossible for Mitsubishi UK to import the Evo X and sell it at a price buyers could swallow. But the weakening Yen – and Mitsubishi’s 40th anniversary – sees Mitsubishi UK backtracking and delivering a limited run of special edition Evos for the UK – the Lancer Evolution X FQ-440 MR. The Evolution X FQ-440 MR comes with 440bhp, a Janspeed exhaust, Mitsubishi’s SST gearbox, Janspeed intake and cooler piping kit, Motorsport spec high-flow injectors, Alcon brakes, lowered suspension and S-AWC 4WD, with exterior titivations including 18″ BBS alloys, Bi-xenon headlights, front fogs and silicone wiper blades.

Mini Cooper SD (2011): the faster diesel Mini

Mini today finally went official with the high-performance diesels we scooped last year. The Cooper SD trim is available across the Mini range, on the hatch, convertible, Clubman estate and Countryman junior SUV. It's a 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbodiesel generating 141bhp and 225lb ft from 1750-2700rpm.