Ford Gauge Pillar on 2040-parts.com

Retailers urged to cut fuel prices

FUEL RETAILERS have been urged to "immediately" ease pressure at the pumps by passing on a drop in wholesale prices to motorists. The RAC said a litre of unleaded petrol sold wholesale for 6p less since the end of August, while diesel was down by 2p a litre, giving petrol stations the power to lower prices on the forecourt. The car services company explained lower prices were due to a drop in oil prices since Syria agreed to sign an international treaty banning chemical weapons and the pound reaching a seven-month high against the dollar.

(Another) Audi A3 e-tron hybrid at Geneva 2013

The Audi A3 e-tron – a hybrid A3 EV based on the A3 Sportback – will debut at the 2013 Geneva Motor Show as a concept. This Audi A3 e-tron isn’t a pointless electric supercar – like the R8 e-tron – or another rollout of the A3 e-tron BEV, but a hybrid A3 with a proper ICE engine coupled to an electric motor, just like the A3 e-tron concept we saw in Shanghai in 2011 That still means a lot of complicated and heavy technology to game the silly official economy tests and come up with ‘official’ economy figures of 158mpg and 35g/km, but the A3 e-tron would – if it were made – offer big tax breaks for company car drivers. The A3 e-tron gets a 1.4 litre direct injection petrol engine good for 148bhp working with an electric motor good for an extra 100bhp.

De Tomaso Deauville: The De Tomaso formerly known as SLC. And SLS

The new De Tomaso has a name - De Tomaso Deauville So the De Tomaso formerly known as the De Tomaso SLC, and then dubbed the De Tomaso SLS by its octegenarion saviour now has a proper De Tomaso-style name – the De Tomaso Deauville. Which is all fine and dandy – and sounds a lot better than naming the new Tomato* after past and present Mercedes – but seems an odd name to give a cumbersome crossover come SUV come BMW GT wanabee. Why odd, you ask?