Posted by Will Dracott on Saturday, July 24, 2010,
In :
Motoring news
A former accountancy student and car enthusiast has turned
his hand to luxury car washes for the super rich. Gurcharn Sahota
charges luxury and supercar owners up to £7,200 per valet, which easily
makes him Britain's priciest car wash. Sahota works from his
parents' garage, which he has lined with special tiles that help to
reflect small dirt particles on the cars. Notable tools of the
trade include wax that costs £8,200 per tub and a £5,000 police
microscope that can detect minisc... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Saturday, July 24, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
The ultimate SUV will make urban traffic jams a thing of
the past - it flies. The AVX Transformer (TX) is the result of a
challenge by the American Government military development agency DARPA.
It asked someone to come up with the ultimate go-anywhere four-seat
vehicle for combat use. American company ATX, a military
helicopter manufacturer from Texas, took up the challenge. Its proposal
for a flying 4x4 is possibly the most mobile SUV ever - and certainly
the most extreme. It's capabl... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Monday, July 5, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
The Terrafugia Transition is about to become the world's
first production flying car. In development since 2006, the
flying car was always hindered by American Federal Aviaton
Administration (FAA) rules. It was developed as a 'light sport'
category aircraft, which means potential pilots need only register 20
hours flying time to legally take it to the skies. Full private flying
licenses are very costly and time consuming to obtain. But
Terrafugia couldn't keep the weight under the 1,... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Sunday, July 4, 2010,
In :
Motoring news
Car clubs are set to benefit from an extra £40,000 of
government funding, Transport Minister Norman Baker announced on 1 July.
The money will be used to support car club development in the UK.
Membership of car clubs allows access to low carbon vehicles for
short periods of time, often by the hour, on a pay-as-you-go basis. The
clubs have increased massively in popularity with the number of members
increasing from just 22,000 in 2007 to more than 127,114 memb... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Monday, June 28, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
What appear to be official images of a future all-electric
Mercedes-Benz supercar have swept the internet, causing a stir amongst
car enthusiasts and speculation on the abilities of the new machine. The
E-Cell is based on the SLS AMG supercar launched at the end of 2009.
However, in place of a V8 petrol engine there's a series of batteries
and four electric motors. Spinning to 12,000rpm, the motors are
thought to produce almost as much power as the 563bhp petrol engine,
though substant... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Thursday, June 24, 2010,
In :
Motoring news
There are plenty of legal protections in place to prevent
people being ripped off when buying a used car from a dealer.
Unfortunately, buy a dodgy used car from a private seller and you're
probably stuck with it. It's a minefield. The vast, vast majority
of car sellers, and their cars, are perfectly legitimate - and that
'new job forces sale' story may well be genuine - but it's easy to get
caught out. According to Vanessa Guyll, Technical Specialist at
the AA, emotional involvement ... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Monday, June 14, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
A 1/18th scale model of the Bugatti Veyron has gone on
sale with a whopping £2 million price tag - the ultimate way to pimp
your mantelpiece. It's fashioned from 24-carat gold and platinum,
and its grille is a single cut 7.2-carat diamond. Only three
will be made, each taking two months to complete. The model is amazingly
intricate, featuring a steering wheel that moves the front wheels,
doors that open and a working roof mechanism. It weighs in at seven
kilos. The golden Veyron is ... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Saturday, June 12, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
A fleet of hydrogen fuel cell cars that emit nothing but
water will be trialled by UK drivers from 2012. The unusual
two-seat city car was designed and developed by British company
Riversimple. It's lightweight, capable of 50mph and can travel up to 200
miles on a tank of hydrogen, giving it the equivalent of 300mpg
economy. Drivers in the Leicestershire area will be invited to
lease the car for around £200 per month. An additional usage cost of
around 15p per mile will be added. The... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Thursday, June 10, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
As boat accessories go, a bespoke supercar is probably the
most extravagant. But that's exactly what millionaire buyers of the
£17m Strand Craft SC122 will get. Beating the Bugatti Veyron hands
down for exclusivity, the supercar has 880bhp from its twin-turbo V12
engine and a claimed top speed of 234mph. Only six will be built, each
capable of hitting 60mph from rest in 3.2 seconds. Designed by
Eduard Gray, the car is so synonymous with the yacht that the company
doesn't seem to have... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Sunday, June 6, 2010,
In :
Car reviews
Summer time and the living is easy, so how about making
your driving just as enjoyable and laid-back with a classic car?
Choose
the right car and all your motoring worries will melt away in the
sunshine and, if you're not keen on a winter's classic motoring, you'll
be able to sell up and maybe even make a profit.
All of our
choices can be had for £10,000 or less in tip-top condition. MGB
Roadster The MGB Roadster is the definition of the ideal
summer classic. There's a massive selection... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Wednesday, May 12, 2010,
Ford to offer
drivers a talking Twitter service
Hands-free tweeting is coming to Britain. New technology being fitted to
some
Ford cars will give drivers Twitter updates read out loud to them
robotically while they’re driving. Future versions will enable drivers
to
dictate their own tweets via a voice recognition system without taking
t... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Monday, May 10, 2010,
Skoda has launched its greenest ever car - the Fabia
Estate Greenline II, which emits just 89g/km of CO2 with
average fuel consumption of 83.1mpg. Along with the new Roomster
Greenline II, the pair marks the start of the second generation of
eco-friendly Greenline Skodas. The bigger Roomster returns 67.3mpg and
emits only 109g/km of CO2. Both are powered by a new
three-cylinder 1.2-litre diesel engine, which uses a supercharger rather
than a conventional turbocharger. It develops 74b... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Sunday, May 9, 2010,
Although Europe is unlikely to ever rely solely on natural gas for
fuelling vehicles, the use of this abundant resource could in part
alleviate the demand on fossil fuels. In other parts of the world,
notably Asia, natural gas based fuels are dominant, with the government
mandating its use in certain transport sectors. You may be
familiar with LPG (Liquefied Petroleum Gas) or Autogas. It has been
around for a while. Many older, large capacity cars have been converted
to run on LPG in ... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Thursday, May 6, 2010,
Chinese manufacturer Geely has unveiled a city car set to
be cheaper than the Tata Nano - which could make it the world's cheapest
car. Known as the Geely IG, it has four seats and could cost as
little as £1,500 when it goes on sale in China in 2012. The Tata Nano,
which has yet to hit the UK but is expected in 2011, costs around
£2,500. Despite the small price tag, the tiny IG is unusually
flamboyant - it has top hinged 'gullwing' style doors, just like the
Mercedes SLS supercar. Ge... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Saturday, May 1, 2010,
Almost half a million car crashes are the result of drivers losing
control after late goals, according to new research. Insurance
company More Than says research suggests football fans lose control at
the wheel when they hear their team score, a problem termed Final Score
Syndrome. "With the Premier League coming to a thrilling
conclusion a lot of fans will either be suffering joy or despair this
weekend," said Pete Markey, from More Than. "Sunday in particular
could prove a peak da... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Friday, April 30, 2010,
The world’s
first ‘neighbour-to-neighbour’ car rental service lets drivers hire the
vehicle parked just down the street, while taking care of the security
checks and insurance. So what’s the catch?
Your expensive motor sits around most of the day doing nothing. You use
it for
only an hour a day on average, yet it sheds around 60% of its value in
the
first three years of its life, and costs between £3,000 and £5,500 a
year to
run. So isn’t it time it started pulling its w... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Sunday, April 25, 2010,
There's no doubt that the cost of motoring is spiralling.
This is especially true of insurance premiums. Research shows that
they've risen by 4.3 percent on average since the start of 2010. But
there's no need to despair, for at the same time small cars are getting
more spacious, greener, cheaper to run and funkier than ever. Here are a
few with plenty of practicality, paucity and prestige (of their own
unique kind). Insurance ratings in the old 1-20 scale are
displayed first with the... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Tuesday, April 20, 2010,
If you have ever experienced the frustration of trying to email a friend
on
your iPhone while parked in a dark lay-by, then car makers are about to
come
to your rescue. A new range of models with internet facilities built
into
the dashboard will enable drivers to surf the net, send emails, use
Skype
and call up sites such as Google Maps to get detailed information about
their route and destination. If all they want to do is check out prices
at
the January sales as they drive to th... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Sunday, April 18, 2010,
The dual carriageway headig up towards Filton is having some work done to it. One lane is out and the cones and new markings mean that the left hand lane is now the slip road to exit. So if you're beig asked to follow the road ahead past the airport, you'll need to be in the right hand lane. However, I've never heard of anyone going down there on a test, so the eft hand lane is what you'll need to double back on yourself and re-join the dual carriageway.  Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Friday, April 16, 2010,
I-kube: The
magic box slashing teen drivers’ premiums
Young motorists
are saving thousands of pounds on their insurance by agreeing to a car
curfew policed by onboard GPS technology
Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Saturday, April 10, 2010,
Cheap as chips luxury cars for £5,000
If you're willing to sacrifice the look of a newer number
plate and spend a little more on fuel, a true luxury car can be yours
for buttons. We're not talking about posh small cars here either, but
genuine executive barges with acres of space and mountains of prestige.
For just £5,000 - about half the price of a basic new Ford Ka. Jaguar
XJ
Search
for Jaguar XJs on Yahoo! Cars The Jaguar XJ might have a
slightly tarnished reputation, having become ... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Wednesday, April 7, 2010,
10 essential things to do before buying a used car
Buying a new car is far less daunting than buying used, so
it seems. For a start, there's the welcoming environment of a shiny
showroom full of gleaming cars. More importantly, there's also the peace
of mind of a brand new car and the long warranty that comes with it. By
comparison, used cars are a minefield of dodgy forecourts, 'sold as
seen' runabouts and suspicious odometer readings. That's not the
reality, mostly, but buying used i... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Friday, March 26, 2010,
£30 million boost for low carbon transport
Low carbon buses and fuel generated from everyday
waste are at the centre of a £30 million government fund to help reduce
emissions from transport.
The plans form part of the Department for Transport’s wider strategy
to encourage a radical shift to low carbon transport and improve air
quality in our cities.
As part of the funding, local authorities and bus operators will have
the opportunity to bid for... Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Friday, March 19, 2010,
Second-hand car warning: know your rights
Consumers are paying an average of £425 each to fix
faults with second-hand cars that are the dealer's responsibility to
correct. A study by the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) also found that
many dealers are using illegal disclaimers like 'No Refund'. Make sure
you know your rights when buying a second-hand car.
Read
the full story on the Directgov newsroom
Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Sunday, February 21, 2010,
Cleaning items (wheel cleaner, instant valet, slick tyre spray etc), car tools and other car related bits and bobs are super cheap at places like motorman (Southmead and Bedminster), What! (Hengrove), Rajanis (Fishponds) and The Range (St.Phillips Causeway). I couldn't believe how cheap they were at "What!" I walked out today with arms full of goods for less than £10! http://www.a-class-driving.com Continue reading ...
Posted by Will Dracott on Thursday, January 28, 2010,
Last year about 1 in 20 drivers were uninsured. With the resession that figure is now closer to 1 in 10! Because of the rise of uninsured drivers and the fake injury claims motorists are seeing a rise in their insurance by up to 20%! How to get around this? Well, first of all, barter. Some of us don't like it, but it works. Use a comparision website, get the best 4 or 5 prices, then call them directly and play them off against one another. I did this last year and brought my quote dow... Continue reading ...
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Will Dracott
| A-Class Driving School |
| Bristol |
|
This blog is for those taking their driving test in and around Bristol. Keeping you in touch with any route changes, diversions on test routes, severe traffic delays, road works, severe weather warnings, cancellations and DSA updates regarding the UK driving test.
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