Archive for August, 2009

IN the olden days, ride quality used to be great on smooth roads. Soft suspension, coupled with 70-profile tyres, meant it was like riding on space hopper. Rubbery absorption of ...

FORD had an inspirational boss in Walter Hayes. The man who retired from the top job in 1989 rose to the top of the company through ‘exceptional vision and shrewd ...

AIRCRAFT can either show relaxed stability or positive stability. Relaxed stability aircraft are unflyable without computer assistance – fly-by-wire. It’s impossible for a human to compensate for their sheer twitchiness. ...

FASTER cars need better headlights, said an Audi ad in 1988. Particularly models such as the 136bhp Audi 90 (136BHP? Steady…). What’s more, it added, congested roads mean less opportunity ...

Renault engineers have been busy, facelifting the best-selling Clio range. Enter, thus, the Clio 2009. I’ve just waved one goodbye, after a week’s test. Here, via Flickr, is my image ...

VOLKSWAGEN’S Golf MkVI is a delight. Great to drive, obsessively built and more appealingly styled than first appearances reveal, it’s every inch a real Golf. The obvious maturation of the ...

Back in 1987, Ford invested huge amounts into the Sierra Sapphire. Remember it? The booted, four-door version of 1982’s ‘jellymould’? That car replaced the Cortina in spirit… but not in ...

APPLE caught me unawares with the iPhone. Why do you need an iPod to make calls, I first thought? Hmm. I’ll stick with my Nokia. What an idiot. I failed ...

WE’VE sat in the back of them many a time. Far more than some of us can probably remember (damn those cheap shot offers). But what’s an old taxi actually ...

COLOUR coding is ace. Take notes. Important? Orange highlighter. For reference? Green highlighter. Something not vital, but good to skim over? Yellow. This logic is inbred because there’s nothing I ...