Spectra Premium Industries Inc Vwp24a Oil Pan (engine) on 2040-parts.com

'Transport poverty' rising - RAC

THE LEAST WELL-OFF families are slipping further into "transport poverty", according to an RAC Foundation survey. The poorest car-owning households spent at least 31% of their disposable incomes on buying and running a vehicle in 2012, the foundation said, up from 27% the year before. The figures, based on data obtained from the Office for National Statistics, showed that in 2012 the poorest families had a maximum weekly expenditure of £167, of which £51.40 went on a car.

Mini Boosts Multimedia Appeal With Gopro Filming App

THE Mini has never been camera-shy, but now the brand’s latest models can get themselves on camera easier than ever before. In what’s being touted as a world first for a car brand, a new Mini Connected App enables GoPro cameras to be controlled via the dashboard – meaning shooting a film is now as easy as changing a song on the audio unit. This makes it possible to start shooting with a camera mounted on or inside the car while travelling.

Brabus unveils 850-hp grocery getter

It wouldn't be the Essen Motor Show without German tuning house Brabus introducing its own versions of one or two of Mercedes-Benz cars, with borderline-unbelievable power figures. And this year the Bottrop-based outfit didn't disappoint, rolling out the Brabus 850 6.0 Biturbo based on the 2014 E63 AMG station wagon. For starters, Brabus has increased the V8 engine's displacement from 5,461cc to 5,912cc, installing custom-made forged pistons and a precision balanced billet crankshaft, and replacing the stock turbos with ones of their own design featuring larger compressor units.