Rare line-up

Dutch wood-fibre magnate Dick Van Dijk is putting his collection of 60 exotic cars up for sale in Britain. Described as the "finest collectors' cars of their type ever assembled in Britain", the cars have been housed in a 15th-century house in Kent. Included are a 1935 Auburn Boat-tail Speedster, estimated to sell for NZ$240,000, a 1931 Mercedes-Benz 370S Mannheim cabriolet, one of only a handful made and estimated at $600,000, a 1926 Hispano Suiza H6B Landaulet ($350,000), 1936 Jaguar SS100 ($300,000), 1937 Cord 812 Supercharged Cabriolet ($220,000). The same auction house is also handling the sale of the Aston Martin Lagonda M45 4-litre race car which occupied second place for much of the 1935 Le Mans 24-hour race before dropping out with gearbox problems. It is expected to sell for around $1 million.

McCartney backs hybrid

Paul McCartney will be sponsored by Japanese luxury car brand Lexus on his 37-concert tour of the United States later this year, where he will promote the hybrid petrol-electric Lexus RX 400h four-wheel-drive. It is the first time the former Beatle and environmental advocate has agreed to such a commercial arrangement. "I'm very pleased to partner with Lexus because I think there is a natural fit. Lexus and I share the same philosophy and approach to creating the best work possible - me with my music and art and Lexus with the vehicles they create."

Super sprinter

Lotus has taken the wraps off a new pocket-rocket called the Circuit Car, built solely for club racing events. The lightweight (600kg) racer is based on the Elise sports car and is powered by a supercharged version of the high-tech 1.8-litre engine found in the Elise 111R. Lotus says the new model will sprint to 100km/h in 3.5sec and on to 162km/h in around 9 sec. The first example will appear in Britain in December. Lotus says it will build around 100 a year.

Cayenne's hot stuff

The 100,000th Porsche Cayenne has rolled off the production line at the Leipzig plant in Germany, 18 months ahead of target. Porsche began building the Cayenne in December 2002 and planned on annual sales of 25,000 units. But interest in the four-wheel-drive model has surpassed all expectations. The key market for the Cayenne is still the US, where around 40 per cent of the vehicles are sold. In New Zealand, 275 Cayennes have been sold since its launch just over two years ago.

Minis for Misano

The first International Mini Challenge race series will be held in Italy in October, at the Misano circuit, near San Marino. The organiser, Britain's Works Cooper performance factory, says the field will comprise 20 race-prepared Cooper S cars - four from Britain and the rest from Australia, New Zealand, Bahrain, Belgium, Germany, Switzerland and Scandinavia. The challenge will consist of four driving disciplines: a circuit race, slalom, go-kart race and quad bike trial.

Diamante revs up

Mitsubishi's new V6 Diamante, which will arrive in New Zealand this year, has a 3.8-litre engine with 24-valves and a single-overhead cam and is being built by Mitsubishi Motors Australia. Mitsubishi says it uses only 10 per cent carry-over parts from the current .5-litre engine. It adds: "The result is an engineering achievement without frills, enabling us to focus customer value on to other design areas, such as the advanced trims and finishes."

We are the world

In Hackettstown, New Jersey, police charged Juan Vargas, 29, with drunk driving after he parked at the window of a Dunkin' Donuts drive-in shop and started speaking into his wallet. He told police he thought it was his cellphone.