Porsche 944 S2 Sachs Pressure Plate W/ Starter Ring on 2040-parts.com

Skoda Octavia Combi (2013) first official pictures

Skoda's new Octavia estate, or Combi, as they'd prefer you call it, boasts the biggest boot in its class, claims Skoda. The new car is 90m longer and 45mm wider than the old Octavia estate, a growth spurt made possible by the smaller, Seat Toledo-based Skoda Rapid slotting in lower down the range. t So, is the new Skoda Octavia Combi now a 3-series Touring rival?

BMW 1-series M Coupe (2011) teaser video

BMW is continuing to build up the hype ahead of the launch of its next M car – this is a teaser video giving us our first glimpse of the undisguised BMW 1-series M Coupe What’s new is our first look at this hot 1-series’ butch bodykit, complete with an engorged front bumper and triple air intakes. There are CSL-alike 19-inch wheels too, and sitting between the cross-drilled front discs is a twin-turbo 3.0-litre straight-six, producing 335bhp and 369lb ft. Drive, thankfully, goes to just the rear wheels, and they’ll be a choice of either a six-speed manual or seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox. There’ll be an M diff too, but we hear it might be on the options list as BMW’s money men fight to keep the list price under £40k.   

New Range Rover Hybrid targeted at Europe: Frankfurt 2013

The new Range Rover Hybrid (pictured) has diesel power to target Europe It’s not the biggest news at Frankfurt, but the arrival of the Range Rover Hybrid and Range Rover Sport Hybrid is big news for Land Rover, and for buyers running cars who are subject to taxation on benefits. Surprisingly, Land Rover has gone the diesel route with the hybrid, coupling the 3.0 litre diesel engine to a 46bhp electric motor which, when working together, offers the same sort of performance as the V8 diesel engine but with much better economy and emissions – 44mpg and 169g/km. Logic would perhaps have dictated that the new hybrid should have a petrol engine, rather than a diesel, as the biggest hybrid markets in the world – the US and China – have no real appetite for diesel engines.