By Christopher Tan

MORNING RIDE

Breakfast With Torque, a regular reader engagement event held by the SPH Magazines - motoring monthly, was once again fully subscribed last Saturday.

Forty-five Torque readers gathered at Cycle & Carriage's Mitsubishi Ralliart Pit and drove to Marina Bay Golf Course, where they took part in a short but adrenaline-pumping car-park rally.

They took their turns in a Mitsubishi Lancer EX 2.0 GT and Colt Version R, courtesy of Cycle & Carriage, and took home goodie bags sponsored by Caltex. The event was capped by high-speed rides in a Mitsubishi Evo X.

SLEEK NEW AUDI

Hot on the heels of BMW's unveiling of its 5-series Grand Turismo, Audi announced that it will make an A5 Sportback, a car "as elegant as a coupe, as practical as an Avant".

Sketches hint of a design sleeker than BMW's segment-busting new model, with short overhangs, a longish wheelbase and rear-quarter windows more familiar on Beemers.

Petrol versions include a 2-litre 211bhp quattro and a 3.2-litre 265bhp V6 quattro.

WINNING ENGINE

Volkswagen's 1.4-litre twin-charged engine has emerged overall winner at the International Engine of the Year awards. Found in cars such as the Golf, Scirocco and Eos, as well as models in VW-owned Seat, the engine was also voted Green Engine of the Year, beating petrol-electric hybrids by Toyota and Honda.

The annual awards took place on June 17 in Stuttgart, and was judged by 65 motoring journalists from 32 countries.

NEW CHEVY CENTRE

Alpine Motors, the exclusive dealer for Chevrolet cars, has rented an 80,000-sq-ft facility in the Ubi motor belt which it will convert into a Chevy sales, service and spare parts centre.

The four-storey building is owned by Sime Darby, and was last used to house its Ford dealership. Alpine is spending $1.5 million to refurbish the place, which will become Singapore's largest one-stop Chevrolet facility ever.

92-OCT PETROL CHEAPER THAN EVER

The latest pump price increase on June 16 pushed 95- and 98-octane fuels up by 4 cents, to $1.767 and $1.87 a litre respectively before discount. But the price of 92-octane remained unchanged.

Thus, the gap between 92 and 95 is now about 8 cents, the widest in recent memory.

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