Mad About Cars

Although motorists may feel that the road network keeps getting busier and busier, recent statistics from the Department of Transport have shown that traffic levels have actually dropped for the first time since the 1970s.

During a two-quarter period this year, statistics gathered by the Department have concluded that traffic has fallen on Britain’s roads at an average rate of 2.2%. Along with this, journey times on some of Britain most notorious gridlock areas have also improved, with the slowest ten percent of journey times decreasing.

The cause of this drop in traffic is not entirely clear, although it is widely believed that the drastic increase in fuel prices suffered by motorists earlier this year, coupled with the widely publicised credit crunch, have forced many drivers to cut down on their car usage. In addition to this, with fuel prices rising drivers have been driving in a more economical manner, with average motorway speeds falling. This has led to less traffic jams as drivers travel in a more conservative manner.

The new findings have added to the arguments against the Government’s proposed ‘pay-as-you-drive’ toll system. Under the scheme, cars would be fitted with satellite tracking boxes, with drivers being charged depending on the amount of miles covered, with higher rates payable when travelling through known congestion zones.

The RAC has counteracted the Government’s proposal by arguing that more roads should be built. The organisation claims that roads are more cost effective than railways, with road building also benefiting low-income groups. It also argues that new roads do not encourage new traffic to fill them, with the new statistics seemingly backing the RAC’s argument.

General Motors has launched drastic cut-back measures as the company continues to suffer from a cash crisis. The world’s largest car company, which owns brands such as Cadillac, Saab and Vauxhall, has cancelled the launch of its exclusive Cadillac CTS Coupe in a relatively last-minute decision. In addition, the company has also announced that the launch of European models such as the new Saab 9-5 and Vauxhall Meriva will now be postponed until 2010.

The futuristic CTS Coupe was described as being ‘production-ready’, and was seen as a car that would assist Cadillac in competing against BMW and Mercedes.

With the credit crunch taking hold, sales of new cars have plummeted, with car manufacturers forced to respond. With the risk that the company may run out of money, General Motors have lobbied the US government for a financial bail-out. Such a move is controversial amongst US citizens though, as many of General Motors running costs in the US are linked to employee health programmes, meaning that the US taxpayer would effectively be funding a health service for General Motors workers. Meanwhile, further afield in Europe the company has denied speculation that brands including Saab and Vauxhall-Opel may be put up for sale.

Whilst the cancellation of the CTS Coupe may be seen as a rash decision, it is believed that General Motors are simply aiming to save money in order to launch mass-production cars such as the proposed new Vauxhall Astra. In addition Vauxhall’s new large family car, the Insignia, goes on sale in the near future.

The Mark 1 Volkswagen Golf GTi has gone down in motoring history as being the father of the ‘hot hatch’. Initially launched in 1974, the VW Golf was designed as a long term replacement for the Beetle, which was suffering from falling sales, buyers having become fed up with the car’s novelty and choosing more modern, refined vehicles instead.

The new vehicle, a front wheel drive, front engined car, was launched as a success in 1974, but it was the introduction of the GTi in 1976 that would not only create a huge sales success for Volkswagen, but create a whole new genre of performance car.

Prior to 1976, those wanting a sporty car were forced to buy production sports cars such as the MGB, which were not as reliable or as practical as the Golf. However, by fitting a powerful engine to the Golf, and improving the handling to cope with high speed performance driving, Volkswagen engineers developed a car that matched traditional sports cars in terms of performance, yet was reliable, and also practical, having the body of an everyday family car.

The Golf GTi was a huge success, and during the 1970s was virtually unchallenged. However, the early 1980s saw rival manufactures aim to compete against the Golf with rival cars such as the Peugeot 205 GTi and Ford Escort XR3 share the limelight during the 1980s heyday of the hot hatch.

Whilst a sharp increase of insurance premiums would eventually bring the original days of the hot hatch to an end, Volkswagen continued with the Golf GTi, which has since continued to develop along with the Golf.

With the announcement that the British Grand Prix will move to Donington Park from 2010, Formula One will return to the circuit that was the setting for Ayrton Senna’s finest Grand Prix win, the 1993 European Grand Prix.

After much development into the circuit, circuit owner Tom Wheatcroft was to realise his dream of seeing modern Formula One at Donington Park, which had been used for many years as an international motorcycling venue.

At the start of the 1993 season, the Williams team of Alain Prost and Damon Hill were the team to beat, with McLaren rocked by the withdrawal of engine supplier Honda. Following this, the team were forced to use customer Ford V8 engines, which were inferior to the latest Renault V10 engines used by Williams. Because of this, Senna had originally agreed to drive for the team on a ‘race by race’ basis, before committing himself to the remainder of the season.

The race day itself was a dull April day, with overcast skies turning occasionally to showers. Senna had qualified fourth behind the two Williams drivers and the Benetton of Michael Schumacher. As the race started on a wet track, Senna dropped to fifth but was soon back to fourth. What followed was an incredible display of driving on the opening lap as Senna easily passed Schumacher and Hill, before squeezing past Alain Prost at the tight Melbourne Hairpin to take the lead inside the first lap. Senna would later win by more than a minute from Damon Hill, the class-leading Williams being no match for Senna’s superb driving on the day. Despite this, Senna was modest in victory, saying his win was ‘easy’ thanks to his car’s traction control.

The way Senna managed to pass three world champion drivers in one single lap has gone down in Formula One history as arguable the finest display of driving ever seen over a single lap. Following Senna’s death in 1994, a memorial celebrating Senna’s memory was built within Donington’s circuit grounds.

Ford’s next generation Ka is set to be introduced to the market in the following few weeks, wit the hope that the second generation of the popular supermini will prove as much of a hit as the original.

The Ka was first launched in the UK in 1997, and was an all-new car in many aspects. The car featured bold, futuristic styling compared to other models in the Ford range at the time, and whilst Fords at the time were often criticised as being rather dull, the Ka heralded a new era of exciting new models such as the focus. It is argued that the Ka helped kick-start the popularity of the supermini, with the likes of Citroen, Toyota and Peugeot all bringing out successful rivals to the Ka.

The new Ka is to compete against Fiat’s 500, the 2007 European Car of the Year. Whilst the Ka will rival the 500, it infact shares the same underpinnings as the 500 and will be built at the same factory, with both models being produced at Fiat’s car plant in Tychy, Poland.

Ford designers have created a bolder new shape for the Ka to bring it in line with more modern rivals, yet the car still incorporates design features from the original Ka in its design. The new model aims to be far more refined than the original, and by sharing the same underpinnings as the Fiat 500, it is expected the new car will be enjoyable and responsive to drive.

The new car has been eagerly awaited, yet many in the press are not as impressed with the vehicle as they were with original, perhaps with Ford raising the benchmark of their cars in recent years, the new model is not so groundbreaking. However the car has already made its mark on film, making a cameo appearance in the new James Bond film Quantum of Solace.