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EXCLUSIVE………..first shot of the first F430 replica to hit the UK market reached our inbox this week. It comes from DNA Automotive and as the photo shows looks to be coming along nicely.

New F430 replica nearing completion.

We’ve been sworn to secrecy over the donor vehicle but according to the company, it’s abundant and works well. Prices are to be announced along with more details soon.

More from www.dnaautomotive.com or 0121 360 1390 ENDS.

Napier Sports Cars have announced their……….participation in a series of trackdays as part of their new strategy for 2008. After a break of seven years they are also planning a return to the British GT Championship with their own team, Napiersport Racing, which was formerly known as Hennessey Racing

Initial emphasis will concentrate on providing on-track driving experience with the GTE Super Stratos and Napier, so as to give enthusiasts a real ‘hands-on’ opportunity to drive a race-prepared car.

The team’s engineers and instructors will be running these events to ensure that participants will get the maximum possible enjoyment from the overall experience.

For full information contact the company via: lionel@superstratos.com or of course visit www.superstratos.com ENDS.

Superstratos will be at a series of trackdays during 2008.

Viper Performance have become well-known for their universal silicone hose range, and now the company has a range of universal aluminium tubes and elbows to allow any pipework configuration to be produced from the component parts in the Viper Performance range.

The aluminium parts are ideal for hose-joining, custom intercooler pipework and the construction of one-off induction systems, and are made from aerospace quality 6063 grade, T6 heat-treated seamless tubing and then polished to a mirror-like finish.

All bends are done on a mandrel, for smooth, kink-free curves and all ends are roll-beaded for a strong, leak-free hose-fit. Pipes have a wall thickness of 1.6-2mm to withstand the pressures required when used to connect intercoolers, for example.

The range includes – 1 metre straight lengths in 51mm, 60mm, 63mm and 70mm OD, with 100mm and 300mm straight joiners, 45°, 90°, 135° elbows and T-pieces that are CNC-machined with a 5mm wall and TIG-welded.

Prices start at £5.99 inc VAT for a 100mm hose-joiner, while bespoke parts can also be produced subject to minimum order.

More information from www.viper-performance.co.uk or 0845 0953 423 ENDS.

New universal aluminium joiners from Viper-Performance.

Design Engineering Inc…….are now offering Chill Charger™, an additive for water-to-air intercoolers that has been designed to improve heat transfer.

Chill Charger™ will lower air intake temperatures while also protecting the intercooloer core from corrosion, electrolysis and harmful mineral build-up.

By effectively improving the heat transfer properties of the water that circulates through the intercooler, Chill Charger™ reduces liquid heat-soak in high performance turbo and supercharger systems allowing them to operate more efficiently and produce more power.

Chill Charger™ (part no: 040208) comes in a 160z bottle with a price of £11.69 inc VAT and is available from www.nimbusmotorsport.com or 01377 236 170 ENDS.

New Chill Charger from DEI will help keep your intercooler er, cool.

TECHNICLUTCH®……….a leading UK-based specialist and performance clutch provider, is introducing the most up-to-date and innovative clutch technology to the UK market for the first time.

The special clutches, produced by Fidanza® USA, are made from Kevlar® and guarantee high performance delivery to any vehicle.

Kevlar® clutches differ from traditional items in their performance delivery, with it being a friction material originally developed for NASA. It has many properties, making it suitable for use in clutches and is especially beneficial as a friction coefficient without losing its properties when exposed to extreme heat.

A popular choice in America, Techniclutch® is now making these cutting edge performance clutches available to motorists in the UK.

To find out more visit www.techniclutch.com or 0800 0834 142 ENDS

TECHNICLUTCH® are bringing the Fidanza® range of Kevlar® clutches to the UK.

With the cost of motoring in general……going through the roof, it’s quite refreshing to find someone who is actually giving the motorist something for NOTHING!

That’s right. NOTHING! Drop into any participating A1 Motor Store before the end of April 2008 and pick up the following freebies:

FREE 1-litre A1 Motor Oil – when you purchase a 5-litre pack of A1 Motor Oil

FREE 100% Extra Fill Triplewax Car Shampoo – 500ml (1-litre for price of 500ml) £2.99

FREE Out of the Blue Car Wash when purchase Out of the Blue Car Wax £9.99

FREE 500ml CarPlan Wonder Tyres with every 1-litre Wonder Wheels £9.99

Offer ends April 30th, so don’t miss out. More from 0800 526 510 or www.a1motorstores.co.uk ENDS.

Freebies from A1 Motor Stores. Yep, FREEBIES!

Versatility is the keynote of………Laser Tools’ Folding Work lamp (part 4349), with 30 LEDs. Also available with European two-pin mains supply (part 4334).

Rechargeable from 240-volt mains supply or 12-volt output socket, the lamp comes with a stand and two magnets, allowing it to be easily and securely positioned almost anywhere in the workshop or outdoors in an emergency. Its flip function goes through 90° to 180°.

A full charge will last for up to four-hours with five or six hours needed to recharge, while to conserve energy, the light source can be switched to a reduced 10-LED one.

Retailing for around £27.99 the handy lamp meets EN6060825, CE and ROMS requirements.

More from www.lasertools.co.uk ENDS.

Another useful tool from Laser Tools.

Tyre Black from Frost Auto Restoration……….gives a new look to your tyres and is the perfect finishing touch. It is one of the most durable tyre treatment products on the market.

It is a specially formulated black enhancer, and dries to a waterproof protective finish and can be used on its own, or to give a strong contrasting black finish for tyre lettering with a tyre pen.

Tyre Black Gloss (part no: V425) costs £5 inc VAT and is available from www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=9487 or 01706 758 266 ENDS.

Tyre Gloss from Frost will give your tyres, er, Gloss!

That all-round good egg………….Jonothan Bowles, and his Continental Car Tours team have announced details of this year’s Donor Card GT, which will take place on Sunday, July 27 and will be flagged off by rally legend Paddy Hopkirk.

Once again the venue will be Brooklands Museum and will be a rally training day organised by a team of HRCR members, offers a motoring event specialising in the art of regularity driving, tulip navigation and a marked map section.

Entry fee is £95 per car and two passengers with all proceeds going to the Cystic Fibrosis Trust. A great day out and a bloody good cause, to boot.

More from www.continentalcartours.co.uk or 01304 380 244 ENDS.

Continental Car Tours and rally legend, Paddy Hopkirk, are once again teaming up for this year's brilliant Donor Card GT event.

Power Station Open Day ‘A Resounding Success’………Tewkesbury-based tuners, Power Station recently opened their doors for a customer open day. Despite the weather blowing a gale, and a full-on snowstorm, over 350 customers and performance enthusiasts braved the elements to enjoy the attractions on offer. As well as running complimentary dyno runs all day, which proved to be, unsurprisingly, popular, guests also enjoyed a superb display of Subarus, some great tunes and the chance to talk to many of Power Station’s Technical Partners.

In attendance were many of the industry’s major players including Whiteline, Eibach Springs, AST, Milltek, Forge Motorsport, Silkolene, Turbo Dynamics, Redline Oils and Zun Sport. All offering great deals and free advice to anyone who wanted it. The Power Station pit-babes were also a sight for sore eyes throughout the day.

The new Power Supply ‘Subaru Boutique’ was also mobbed all day, with many visiting just to marvel at the full-size half-Impreza mounted on the wall behind the counter. Most wondered how they got it upstairs in the first place!

Director Karl Allen looked delighted with the day. ‘It’s been brilliant!’ he beamed. “I’d like to thank everybody that made the effort to attend. Both our customers old and new - and our trade partners. We’ve booked a lot of work in today, but more importantly we’ve all had a lot of fun. I promise it’ll be even bigger and even better next year!”

For more details on Power Station or Power Supply please visit www.powerstation.org.uk or call them on 01684 292 555 ENDS.

Successful open day for Power Station recently.

Here’s a useful DVD from Frost Auto Restoration…..that will be ideal for kitcar enthusiasts.

MIG welding is widely used these days, but few people really understand how each of the variables affects the finished weld. This DVD can be easily understood by a beginner, but it also covers information that seasoned professionals can learn from,. Too.

Expert, Ron Covell, goes through the entire process, step-by-step, and gives clear descriptions of how each factor affects the weld, including wire-speed, voltage, stickout, gun angle, travel speed and gas flow.

He also covers plug welds, patch panels, welding aluminium and using flux core wire with an entertaining section on plasma cutting.

MIG Welding Made Easy (part no: L722) runs for 70 minutes and is available from www.frost.co.uk/item_Detail.asp?productID=9490 or 01706 758 266 ENDS.

Ron Covell's MIG welding DVD from Frost will give you all the information you need to create your own 'row of pennies'!

Swansea-based DVLA Personalised Registrations……..is riding the crest of Wales’ recent rugby Six Nations success – by teaming up with one of the country’s most famous sporting sons, boxer Joe Calzaghe, to promote its forthcoming WEL 5H-themed auction.

The undisputed World Super Middleweight Champion aptly known as “The Pride of Wales” – arguably the most famous Welshman walking the planet – is promoting the unique registrations, which will go under the hammer at the Celtic Manor Hotel near Newport, Gwent, on April 16-18.

And with WEL 5H, along with the native CY51 MRU (Cymru), going under the hammer, the BOX 33R – a registration also being featured to honour Joe’s involvement, who boasts a phenomenal 44-fight unbeaten record could well be tempted to make a bid himself despite being in America for the final countdown to his latest fight with Bernard Hopkins.

Joe, the reigning BBC Sports Personality of the Year, said: “It’s a knock-out WEL 5H plate and I hope to do my own knocking out for Wales when I face Hopkins.”

The Celtic Manor Hotel auction is DVLA Personalised Registrations’ ‘home coming’ event and though the catalogue will lean towards the Welsh fraternity with plates relating to popular names like BAN 90R, CLW 7D, NEA 7H, CER 7S, FFF 10N, DYL 9N and MEG 44N. In total, there will be a wide selection of around 1500 personal registrations to bid for.

Damian Lawson, marketing manager for DVLA Personalised Registrations, added: “WEL 5H is all about Welsh pride and we couldn’t ask for a better ambassador than Joe to help promote our next auction. He’s a living legend, it’s just unfortunate (for us) he won’t be able to attend the Celtic Manor in person.”

Full details, including the complete list of marks available, reserve prices and guidelines on how to bid, can be found at www.dvlaregistrations.co.uk/auctions

Welsh number-plate sale from DVLA.