Yesterday, the government started a consultation on reducing the frequency of MOTs. As things stand, a new car needs to have its first MOT after three years, and thereafter the car must be MOT’d once a year. The government is considering (a) extending the new-car MOT period to four years and (b) increasing the time… read more
At first glance, 2023 doesn’t look like an appealing prospect. Everyone’s on strike, the weather is permanently mental, and prices are squeezing many of us like a 500-lb gorilla. Wouldn’t it be best just to fast-forward to 2024? Probably, but that hasn’t stopped us looking for some silver linings in the year ahead. C’mon, let’s… read more
If you’re just returning to Wales from outer space, you may have missed the kerfuffle over the new 20 mph speed limit. Here’s the short version, courtesy of the ever-helpful RAC: In a global first, the Welsh Government has announced that all residential roads in the country will have the speed limit reduced to 20mph…. read more
In Part One, we looked at how trials of ‘noise cameras’ are about to begin, aimed at reducing the nuisance caused by excessively loud vehicles. But will all motorists get even-handed treatment? How do we balance the rights of different groups? And where do soft limiters fit into all this? Off we go… One rule… read more
Trials of ‘noise cameras’ are about to begin, aimed at reducing the nuisance caused by excessively loud vehicles. Will petrolheads be weeping bitter tears? Is another culture war about to break out? It’s time to find out. You’ve probably come across the incredibly popular Carwow YouTube channel. If so, you’ll know that apart from car… read more
“There’s no replacement for displacement,” muscle car addicts are prone to saying. Ah, but it’s not true, is it? Technology seems to replace displacement just fine. Even a warm hatch from the 2020s has more power in its dinky little engine than some of the behemoths of the past. In the second part of this… read more
[Image of Eldorado removed] A 1972 Cadillac Eldorado was a beast of a car. Eighteen-and-a-half feet long, it weighed in at over 2.1 tonnes and was powered by an 8.2 litre V8 engine. Shudder as you imagine the fuel bills. And how much power did this mighty engine generate? A piddling 238 bhp, meaning the… read more
Given that we specialise in servicing, repairing and MOTing VW Group cars, we like to keep an eye on how our favourite manufacturer is doing financially. Here’s our quick, non-technical update. All auto manufacturers, and especially European ones, have faced some real challenges over the last couple of years. Hot on the heels of a… read more
In Part One of this article, we first had a look through the alphabet soup of hybrid types -MHEVs, MEVs, PHEVs – before weighing up one of the big hybrid selling points: their supposed environmental credentials. This time, we’ll look at the economics of hybrid ownership and finish up with some additional considerations. Ready?… read more
The sales figures for hybrid vehicles are going bananas. The June 2022 sales figures for passenger vehicle registrations in the UK were divided up like this: Petrol 44% Diesel 5.7% Battery electric vehicles 16.1% Mild hybrids 28.7% Plug-in hybrids 5.5% Apart from the fact that diesel is now less popular than an infectious disease, what’s… read more
