As the new Ford Ka breaks cover, rumours are starting about a likely sporty version. If AutoExpress is correct, Ford are already planning a Ka ST that will borrow the 150bhp 1.4-litre powerplant from the Abarth 500. The new Ka has strong links to the Fiat 500, as it’s chassis and underpinnings...

Fans of the Skoda Fabia vRS hot hatch may be disappointed to hear that the new version will be powered by a 1.4-litre TSI petrol unit. The old diesel powered vRS was a popular car that combined discrete looks and 50mpg+ economy with strong performance from its 130bhp 1.9-litre TDI. The new engine i...

So we’ve established that the standard SEAT Leon Cupra is a great car, but how about if you could have one with a race inspired dealer-fitted body kit? Well, how about the SEAT Leon Cupra K1? Supposedly taking inspiration from SEAT’s successful BTCC racer, the K1 gets a new body kit to...

Over at Carscoop there’s a bit of news on the next version of the Ford Ka, due sometime in 2009. Based on the chassis of the Fiat 500 the new Ford Ka has been in the pipeline for a while, and despite lots of ultimately pointless ‘artist renderings’ there have been no official pictu...

In what should be a regular feature, here’s some of the news and stories that caught my eye this week: We Say BMW, You Say… - it’s funny how people associate different things with certain brand names. BMW in particular gets a strong response. Top Gear Series 11 - hurrah, Top Gear w...

I recently got to try out a Roadpilot MicroGo and I have to say, it’s certainly small! Roadpilot claim that it’s the world’s smallest GPS speed camera warning system, and having seen one I don’t think I’d argue with them. It’s barely bigger than the sucker that h...

It must be tough being the SEAT Leon Cupra. Mechanically it’s almost identical to the Golf GTI where it counts, in some areas it’s even superior, and yet the Golf gets all the glory, wins all of the road tests and sells like hotcakes. So isn’t it time the SEAT Leon Cupra got its fa...

Good news for Golf GTI fans! If you’re old enough (ahem!) you may remember that in 1983 Volkswagen brought out a limited edition Golf GTI Pirelli. With its ‘P’ alloys and cosmetic tweaks it was a popular model, and now we’re set to get a new Volkswgen Golf GTI Pirelli edit...

The Suzuki Swift Sport is still one of  my favourite hot hatches, and now the lucky Germans are getting a very smart special edition of the standard 1.3-litre Swift. From June 2008 a limited run of 1200 units of the “Black and White” special edition will be made available to the German...

The price of fuel has, I’m sure you’re aware, well and truly broken through the £1/litre barrier. Diesel is now selling for around £1.20, with unleaded slightly lower at around £1.10. So what’s the actual cause for the increase? The finger of blame is generally pointed at the d...