The Daily Car

Making the Ferrari F430 faster and lighter might sound like putting a size-zero model on a diet. But Ferrari today announced the F430 Scuderia, which is both 100kg lighter and 27bhp more powerful than the standard car, and is the replacement for the now-dead 360 Challenge Stradale.

Ferrari say that this weight loss has not led to any decrease in the safety or technology in the car. In fact, the lightweight Scuderia is a showcase to new technology such as a revised gearbox, a snazzy new traction control system, and more.

There’s no word on the pricing just yet, but you should expect a significant price hike for the Scuderia. September’s Frankfurt motor show is set to be the event at which the Scuderia is likely to make its debut; it will be unveiled by Michael Schumacher (provided he isn’t busy selling pies).

Yesterday was Friday the 13th, which means that lots of terrible stuff might have happened. While that was supposedly happening, Nissan told the world of their next X-Trail SUV, which will go on sale in the UK on 1st September with prices starting from £18,795.

That £18,795 price tag refers to the Trek, which is the entry-level model. The Trek - alongside all new X-Trails - will be fitted with lockable all-wheel drive, Bluetooth phone integration, 16″ alloy wheels, climate control, and a CD player

One step up from the Trek will be the Sport. Its pricing will starts at £20,695. The other, most upmarket trim level will be Aventura.

As well as 3 trim levels, 3 new (to the X-Trail) engines will be offered. First of all, there will be 100% new, 100% alloy 2.0-litre petrol engine which will generate 139bhp. The fuel economy of that engine is 32.5mpg.

Then, there is the 2.0 Diesel engine, which will be available with power outputs both 148 bhp and 171 bhp.

As well as the 3 new engines, a 2.5-litre petrol engine will be carried over from the outgoing X-Trail. This engine will only be available on Sport and Aventura models.

Hybrids are not really the answer. The trouble with them is that while they may be fuel efficient and emit little CO2, they take a lot of resources to manufacture. However, that isn’t stopping Lexus, who will launch their next hybrid - the LS600h - in October. And they have told the world some more information about the forthcoming machine.

The basic LS600h model will cost £81,400 whilst the price will increase to £83,645 for the LS600h L model, with a longer wheelbase. While obviously getting a longer wheelbase (and thus more legroom), LS600h L customers will also exclusively get the option of spending £4,355 on a rear seat relaxation package.

All cars are all-wheel-drive and come with a 5.0-litre V8 engine helped along with a powerful and high-output electric motor. This leads to a combination of high performance (0-62mph takes 6.3 seconds) and (to a certain extent) planet friendliness (30.4mpg and 219g/km).