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Which cars Britain really bought in 2013: winners and losers

The UK car registration figures for 2013 are now out – and sales have reached their highest figure since 2007. But what’s hot, and what’s not? Some types of car are selling better than ever, while others have nosedived.

Victor Muller sells Spyker sports cars to CPP

Supercar maker Spyker is to be sold. Coventry-based coachbuilder CPP has announced a memorandum of understanding (MOU) to buy Spyker Cars from Spyker Cars N.V, the holding company which owns Spyker and Saab. No. Saab remains under the ownership of Dutch company Spyker Cars N.V. This sale is of Spyker, the manufacturer of flamboyantly detailed mid-engined supercars. CPP has been supplying chassis and body panels for Spyker since the brand was relaunched in 2000, and completed an agreement to handle full manufacturing of the current range in 2009 – the production of Spyker cars moved from the Netherlands to Coventry in 2010.   The MOU, valued at €32m, will mean that CPP Global Holdings Ltd will become manufacturer and owner of Spyker – €15m will be paid straight away, with the remaining €17m paid over a six year 'earn-out' period.

Tesla asks NHTSA to investigate fires

In response to concerns following a recent accident which appeared to result from road debris damaging the underside of a battery compartment of a Tesla Model S, causing a fire in the engine compartment, the company has announced that it has requested that the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration conduct a full investigation into the fire incidents. In a blog post, Tesla CEO Elon Musk wrote the following about the investigation: "While we think it is highly unlikely, if something is discovered that would result in a material improvement in occupant fire safety, we will immediately apply that change to new cars and offer it as a free retrofit to all existing cars. Given that the incidence of fires in the Model S is far lower than combustion cars and that there have been no resulting injuries, this did not at first seem like a good use of NHTSA's time compared to the hundreds of gasoline fire deaths per year that warrant their attention." Tesla has also released a software update to the cars which will maintain their standard ride height at highway speeds, preventing the air suspension from lowering the car an extra inch at highway speeds for greater aerodynamic efficiency.