Fiat UK Prices New Abarth 500C 140HP and Punto Evo 165HP

The new Abarth 500C will cost from £17,500 OTR and the Abarth Punto Evo from £16,500 OTR, Fiat's UK arm announced. Both models will make their UK public debuts at this weekend's Goodwood Festival of Speed, before going on sale in Britain from Saturday 17 July.

The semi-convertible Abarth 500C is motivated by a 140HP 1.4-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine, which provides a top speed of 127mph and a 0-62mph (100km/h) time of 8.1 seconds, while returning 43mpg UK on the combined cycle.

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Audi Confirms R8 Spyder with 4.2-liter V8, U.S. Sales Start in 2011

You knew it was coming ever since Audi released the V10-powered R8 Spyder 5.2 FSI. Now it's official. Ingolstadt's rag-top supercar will soon be available with the coupe's entry-level 4.2-liter V8 powerhouse that churns out 430HP launching the R8 Spyder to 100km/h (62mph) in 4.9 seconds and on to a top speed of 299km/h or 186mph.

In comparison, the 525HP R8 Spyder 5.2 V10 goes from zero to 100km/h in 4.1 sec and achieves a top speed of 313 km/h (195 mph).

The V8 engine is available with either a six-speed manual gearbox or the R tronic semi-automatic while quattro permanent all-wheel drive is standard on all models. Audi said that the V8-powered R8 Spyder consumes on average 14.9lt / 100 km (15.8 US mpg) with the manual gearbox, and 13.9lt / 100 km (16.9 US mpg) with the R-Tronic.

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VIDEO: David Coulthard Takes All-Electric Mercedes SLS AMG E-Cell for a Spin

If anything else, we have to hand it to Mercedes-Benz for its rigorous promotional efforts to hype its new SLS AMG Gullwing supercar and all its derivatives, including the all-electric E-Cell prototype - and we mean that in a positive way.

Among the many guests at the SLS AMG E-Cell presentation in Norway was retired Formula One driver, David Coulthard, who was given the chance to test drive the electric-powered Gullwing model. The Scottish pilot tried out the SLS AMG E-Cell on an airstrip as well as on the road. View the video [in high-definition] after the break.

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Victoria Beckham is Range Rover's New Creative Design Executive

Former pop star Posh Spice, or as she is formally known, Victoria [David] Beckham, has found a new job; she's been appointed creative design executive at Range Rover. The announcement was made yesterday during the 40th birthday celebrations of the Range Rover brand, at The Orangery, Kensington Palace, where Land Rover introduced its new Evoque 'baby' SUV.

In her new role, the pop singer-turned-fashion-designer will lend her trendy input on future special edition Range Rover design projects, starting with a Special Edition of the Evoque.

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New Chevrolet Cruze CS Sport Kit for UK Market Model

Chevrolet has launched a new sport package called "CS" for the UK market Cruze. Available from mid-July on all trim and engine variants of the Cruze, the styling kit includes a set of 18-inch multi-spoke alloy wheels finished in white, a lowered suspension, a boot spoiler, unique CS graphics and matching carpet mats. Chevrolet has priced the sport package at £1,595, which includes VAT and fitment.

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Pogea Racing Tunes Fiat 500 Abarth Ferrari Dealers Edition to 264HP

German tuning firm Pogea Racing believes that there's something fundamentally wrong about a hot hatch carrying the Ferrari nameplate that's powered by an engine producing only 165-ponies . So the tuner decided to do something about it.

The car in question is the extremely rare Fiat 500 Abarth Ferrari Dealers Edition (there's also a non-Abarth model). Starting with the stock engine, Pogea Racing upgraded the 1.4-liter turbocharged unit with a larger turbocharger and intercoolers, new exhaust system, modified downpipe, new catalytic converter and recalibrated ECU.

The result? Output has been inflated from 165HP to 268HP, with torque climbing from 230Nm to 330Nm / 243.4 lb-ft.

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BMW Drops First Official Photo of Megacity EV, Enters Production in 2013

[Updated] We've known for a long time that BMW is developing an advanced, electrically driven model currently known as the Megacity, but today the German automaker released the first official teaser photo of the city car. Granted, the rendering doesn't reveal the Megacity in full detail, but it gives us an idea of what to expect when the car enters production in 2013.

We're still short on details but we do know that the base model shown in this rendering will be a four-seater powered by a rear-mounted electric motor that draws its juice from a set of batteries. BMW has also revealed that the production version of the Megacity will make extensive use of carbon fiber reinforced plastics (CFRP).

If you follow the jump, you can see pictures of an experimental vehicle platform made from CFRP undergoing various tests at BMW's development center. We'll keep you updated on any additional information we receive.

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