03 250ex Head / Valve Cover on 2040-parts.com

Hamilton tops the time sheets as F1 season kicks off

LEWIS HAMILTON recovered from the misery of completing just half a lap on his opening run to move to the top of the timesheets on the first official day of the new Formula One season. Less than five minutes into the year's first practice session at Melbourne's Albert Park, and on his maiden installation lap, Hamilton's Mercedes ground to a halt due to a sensor calibration problem that cut out the power unit. That was it for Hamilton until the start of second free practice, when he more than made up for lost time and underlined his status as championship favourite in the wake of Mercedes' impressive form in pre-season testing.

McLaren reportedly at work on its next big thing

While we're getting ready for the soon-to-be-released McLaren MP4-12C, the British sports-car maker is at work on its next project. McLaren is aiming for a 2014 launch for a sports car that is larger than the MP4-12C, according to the Web site of the U.K.'s Autocar magazine. The magazine says McLaren is working with engineering firm Ricardo to develop a 5.0-liter engine that cranks out nearly 800 hp.

Redesigned 2014 Lexus IS base price increases

Lexus has set the base price of the 2014 IS compact sport sedan at $36,845, including shipping, an increase of $885 from its predecessor, Lexus said. In contrast, the top-level IS 350 with all-wheel drive starts at $42,595, including shipping, which is 2.1 percent lower than the model it replaces, Lexus said in a statement this week. The pricing makes good on Lexus' guarantee to keep the base price attainable for consumers “by narrowing the gap between the 250 and 350,” a Lexus spokesman said.