Ask anyone with a passing interest in cars to come up with the name of a Mercedes-Benz tuner and they will almost certainly mention AMG, the manufacturer's own performance division. Ask someone unfathomably rich the same question, and they will say Brabus.
The German tuning firm has been turning out some of the world's most powerful cars since the late seventies. Brabus's focus has always been on horsepower, torque and luxury without compromise.
Their latest product is no exception. Brabus has breathed heavily on a Mercedes GL to produce this 650bhp leviathan.
If you see the word 'Evo' attached to a car's boot, you might well expect to be looking at an outrageously fast Mitsubishi Lancer. 'Evo' has long been a performance badge, but that hasn't stopped Fiat seizing it to describe the latest generation of its Punto supermini.
So this is not the result of a partnership with Mitsubishi and 'Evo' is not Fiat's new performance arm– that remains Abarth. Instead, 'Evo' simply signals that Fiat has updated and upgraded its popular supermini.
There is a new look of sorts, the Punto now sharing a few design elements with its baby brother the 500. The front end is where this is most evident, the two cars both featuring what Fiat calls a 'moustache' above the front grille, which is fashioned from chrome. But beyond this new front end and a redesigned back bumper, there is little that has changed in terms of looks.
A Bugatti Type 22 Brescia that lay at the bottom of an Italian lake for 70 years has sold at an auction in Paris for £228,000.
The 1925 Bugatti was estimated to sell for between 70,000 and 90,000 euros, but had attracted a lot of pre-sale publicity after it was salvaged from the bottom of Lake Maggiore in July 2009.
The winning bidder was a European collector representing the Peter Mullin Collection in California, where he intends to display the Bugatti in its current state. The second, unsuccessful bidder had intended to restore the car to its former glory.
Last year was a tough one for the car industry, but we have high hopes for 2010. We're particularly looking arrival of these – our top ten cars to look forward to in 2010...
Gallery: Top Ten for 2010
Aston Martin Cygnet
Launches: September
Price: £25,000 (estimated)
Opinion is divided about Aston's foray into the city car market with the Cygnet - even here in the Autoblog office. Some feel it could be a quirky and memorable attempt by the supercar manufacturer to do something different, while others think re-badging a Toyota iQ is just going to devalue the Aston brand. Whatever you think, the Cygnet is going to be a car to watch closely when it comes out in September.
When it isn't running ill-fated F1 teams and producing efficient diesels, Renault does a good job of making desirable and quick hot hatches.
Now the Renault Clio S joins the Clio Renaultsport 200, the Renaultsport Cup and the Clio GT as its newest 'sporty' variant. But while the other sport-orientated Clio's offer increased performance, the Clio S is only cosmetically-enhanced.
Only available in a three door, the Clio S has 16-inch, white alloy wheels, a white 'GT' rear spoiler, tinted rear windows and an optional white racing stripe down the side. 'S' embossed upholstery and a leather steering wheel complete the package on the inside.
The Clio S comes with the choice of unmodified engines from the standard Clio range – a 75bhp or a 100bhp 1.2-litre petrol or an 86bhp 1.5bhp diesel. This means insurance, at group 3 or 4 should be affordable for younger drivers at which Renault is aiming the Clio S.
Data gathered under the freedom of information act has uncovered the MoT failure rates for a variety of popular cars in the UK.
It reveals the highest failure rate for models first registered in 2004 and tested in 2007 was suffered by the Ford Transit Connect with a 30.5percent failure rate, followed by the Renault Megane (28.1 percent) with the bigger Transit coming third with a 26.3percent failure rate.
Given that these are hard-working fleet vehicles that are quite likely to have been abused this is not so surprising, but the Megane's second place position is further proof that Renaults from this era suffer below average reliability, especially as a large proportion of Meganes are privately owned and likely to be better cared for.
The data, held by VOSA (Vehicle and Operator Services Agency) was requested by the BBC's Martin Rosenbaum as long ago as July 2008, the agency's initial refusal to disclose it overturned by the information commissioner.
With the snow still piled up in most UK towns, Autoblog UK counts down the top ten cars best equipped to take on the big freeze. We've even done it in price order so there should be something to meet every one's budget.
10. Saab 900 – up to £2,000
An old car now, but this traditional Saab was thoroughly engineered for a life in snow, with good traction, predictable front-wheel drive handling and a powerful heater – it proves that you don't always need four-wheel drive to cut a path through the drifts. The 900 was built from 1979-93 and they're still quite plentiful, with good spares back-up. It even qualifies for classic car insurance.
A decent example can be yours for £2,000, and many usable examples come for well under this. We found a 1992 5-door Saab 900 XS in fine fettle for £1,895.
If you're looking for the cheapest four-wheel drive way to tackle a school run blighted by snow, the Grand Cherokee is a good contender. The big Jeep is thirsty and not particularly refined, but it's still well equipped, relatively comfortable and completely unafraid of the slippery stuff.
Alfa Romeo has revealed the prices of the new Mito MultiAir range, due to hit UK showrooms later in the spring.
Only two versions featuring this ground-breaking engine technology will be available from launch, both based on the same 1.4 Turbo engine. The 135bhp version makes it into Lusso and Veloce trims, with an on-the-road price tag of £15,165 and £16,135 respectively.
The top-of-the-range 170bhp variant will carry Alfa's Cloverleaf badge, and its price rises to £17,895.
The UK debut of Fiat's impressive MultiAir is significant as the electro-hydraulic variable valve technology offers the holy grail of engine tuning; better fuel consumption, lower emissions and higher performance.
The Mito may be the only recipient at the moment, but expect to see it rolled out across Fiat's (and eventually, Chrysler's) entire range in the not too distant future.
If you've got a lump of cash burning a hole in your pocket, we reckon you could do much worse than making radio DJ Chris Evans an offer for his 1959 Ferrari 250 LWB California.
The ginger car-nut bought the classic piece of automotive history in 2007, but no longer has room for it in his well-stocked garage following the purchase of a short-wheelbase California in 2008 which hit the record books, selling for a whopping £5.6 million.
While there is no price set on this pristine-condition Italian it's unlikely to go for quite as much. Though its rarity means it will probably still command a price tag with plenty of zeroes on the end.
And there'll be no need to worry about the car's heritage either; the 250 California comes with a certificate of authenticity from the Ferrari factory in Maranello.
On sale at HR Owen in South Kensington it is still in the original Verde Pino Metallizzato colour with a cream leather interior. Definitely one to add to the dream garage.
Prestige car dealer Clive Sutton says the Ferrari 458 Italia is already commanding a premium of £30k over list price before it even hits the streets.The London-based trader says he has a bank of clients ready and waiting to pay over the odds for an early 2010 order for the new supercar.
"The problem is there are a lot of buyers out there that are bored," Sutton explained. "The F430 is relatively old now, and there are buyers in DB9s and Bentley Continental GTs that want a change.
"The problem is getting hold of an order. Some buyers might think they're first on the list at their dealership but in terms of where they are in that list across the country can be very different."
Sutton says the new 458 is a 'stunning car' and that Ferrari is one of the most emotive brands he sells from his St John's Wood showroom.
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