Now...Let's Motor!

So. Farewell, then, Bernie Ecclestone.
You've always
had it in for
Silverstone.

We're about to head for Luton Airport, to say farewell to a French visitor. With some trepidation, because it's British Grand Prix weekend, and the roads around Buckingham will be stuffed with diverted traffic. As they just said on 5Live: if you live around there, don't go out of your house. Great. Thanks.

When you consider the money that Silverstone have spent in their attempts to keep the Grand Prix: and the new dual carriageway section of the A43 that was put in a few years ago, it's a bit of a slap in the face, to award it to Donington. It'll doubtless hurt some of the local economy, too, especially those farmers who have been letting people camp in their fields. Boo hoo for the farmers, I say.

We'll no longer hear the Grand Prix over here (we're not far as the crow flies), and we'll no longer have 16 million helicopters and light aircraft flying over our house on the big weekend. Ironically, where we used to live, you could sometimes hear the racing at Donington. What I wonder is whether the traffic situation at Donington will be any better than it is in Northamptonshire/Buckinghamshire. Yes, Donington is closer to a couple of motorways, but it's still jammed for the motorcycle racing and (crucially) many of the spectators are on motorcycles themselves, which take up a lot less space.

I had my car booked in for some running repairs this week - took it over on Tuesday afternoon, hoping to pick it up on Wednesday. Unfortunately, it needed a new radiator - among other things - so I didn't get it till Thursday: perilously close to the time when the A43 was to be closed (my closest VW garage is on the A5/A43 roundabout). Anyway, it cost £433 for the work that was done, but the CD player was not attended to, and I've had to opt to live with the "Check Brake Pads" warning that comes on at ignition, because the wiring looms to fix that fault cost around £480 to replace. There's nothing wrong with my brakes, you understand. It's just the warning system for the brakes.

In the end, the more complex the electronic systems of your car, the more expensive the repairs. Mechanically, my car is fine: engine is still returning over 50mpg most of the time, plenty of power for accelerating, brakes and clutch working fine (touch wood). Electrically, it's falling apart.

I'm currently torn between Mazda 6, Citroën C5 Tourer, and VW Golf Estate. The VW is more or less equivalent in size/space to my old Passat. I find the new Passat ugly, and too big. The Mondeo is also too big: a fat person's car. The Mazda is in pole position, though I might go for the hatch over the estate, because the standard boot capacity is only 9 litres smaller in the slightly cheaper hatch. The estate looks better, but I'll be sitting inside it, not looking at it. The Citroën is the wild card. Looks very good (but I'll be sitting inside it), generally positive reviews, and often offered with attractive finance. I'll have to sit in one to be sure.

The VW is the one that'll pull at my emotional attachment to the brand. The Golf Estate also has a Bluemotion option, which is VW's way of cocking a snook at the hybrid brigade. A bog-standard diesel with a few tweaks, and you're getting over 60 mpg. Just standing in the VW dealership the other day, I could feel myself wavering from the Mazda path - which is exactly what happened the last time I was shopping for a new car. I was going to test drive all kinds of cars, and then just went out one lunchtime and impulse-ordered a Passat.

Hypermiling is the new fad sweeping the nation's roads as drivers try and get more miles for their gallon of chosen fuel.

The Top Gear host has been extolling the virtues of hypermiling, presumably that is not whilst he's sipping G&T's behind the wheel.

It means drivers are slowing down, easing forward slowly from rest rather than putting their foot down hard to prove the size of their 0-60 time.

In other words, they're sticking to the speed limits and driving more considerately.

Wonders will never cease. But I can't help thinking this is one trend that doesn't have too much mileage as old, bad driving habits die hard.

Once the price of fuel stabilises again, or popular opinion moves on to the next big issue, then eco-friendly motoring will start to lose its appeal.

One thing is certain about crofting, and indeed farming. 

Every time you find yourself inching ahead, you know you're about to get booted back to your starting point—or beyond.

Today provided ample proof of that maxim.

I've been working on the Land Rover to get it ready for its MoT inspection, but as I'm not a mechanic we get the blokes at our local garage to give it the once over and let me know if I've missed anything.

On her way to work, the Other Half took the Land Rover in this morning and expected to get a list, hopefully short, of work that remained to be done before the inspection.

But when she returned to the garage this afternoon, the mechanic grinned and handed her a new MoT certificate.

All the Land Rover had needed was a new nearside headlamp bulb (yes, another bulb failure since I checked them and replaced a few las tweek), so the garage had put the car through the MoT and it had passed.

It even breezed through the smoke test.

So when the Other Half arrived home, we were both feeling quite good.

We'd saved £500 over the past year to go towards work for the MoT, the MoT itself and the car tax.

We'd spent:

• £78.94 on new seat belts (the front ones were frayed after being caught in the door latches)
• £20.28 on new mud flaps (one was hanging off and the other was about to go
• £7.50 on new bulbs (excluding the headlamp)
• £100.23 with the mechanics (two hours work is not cheap)
• £40 on the MoT
• £185 on car tax

All up, £431.95.

We'd come in £68.05 under budget, but our pleasure at being "flush" with cash lasted about 30 minutes.

...lose a little

The Other Half had arrived home just as I was starting the evening chores so she told me the good news about the car while I fed and watered the chickens, moved the older chicks to their night quarters, checked the latest batch of newly hatched chicks, and fed Dolores, one of our Berkshire sows, in the byre.

I then measured our the feed for Doris and her litter before the OH and I went out to the field to feed them.

As I was banging the bucket on the gate to their pen, I noticed one of the piglets had not joined the others in racing over to see what was happening.

It seem to be alert as its head was poking up out of Doris's wallow, but I grew concerned when it remained utterly still despite all the mayhem—there wasn't even a twitch from its ears.

I gave the feed bucket to the Other Half so I could go in and have a good look without Doris pestering me for her dinner.

As I walked closer, I could now see that the piglet's body had been pushed deep into the mud, with only its head sticking up.

It was clearly dead and it was equally clear it had been rolled on.

While I have no problems losing piglets in the first three days after farrowing—most live, a few die and that's the way it is—it's hard losing a big, healthy and thriving piglet to crushing at 19 days.

It's even worse for the Other Half. She finds it difficult enough when piglets die early, so it's extremely difficult when they die after their characters have started to come through.

I retrieved the piglet, fed Doris and the other pigs, and then brought the carcass down to the steading to tell the boys.

Like me, the boys are quite pragmatic about slaughtering pigs to be eaten, about losing piglets just after they've been farrowed, and even when they have to be put down due to illness.

But, they too find it difficult when a piglet they know is alive one minute and dead the next.

The Big Lad had to go off and have some space to himself, while the Wee 'Un sat and chatted with the dead piglet for a while.

Half an hour later and they were both off playing again, although a little more subdued than earlier.

Meanwhile, I'd had to ring a buyer who'd phoned me two hours earlier to say he'd be taking all three gilts from this litter to tell him that it would now be two.

And that's the other hit for us.

While we need 10 piglets per litter to break even, that assumes few losses as disposing of the carcasses is very expensive at £11.75 per piglet.

We've now lost four piglets from this litter and while the first two were within expectations/costs, the other two were not.

It means we've not only lost £120 (two piglets at £60) but we've incurred an extra £23.50 in disposal costs (over what we'd budgeted for expected losses).

It might not sound much, but it's a big hit for us. I've just spent £150 on straw and the two piglets we lost late should have covered most of that cost.

I'll have to divert £23.50 from the money we saved on the car to pay the additional knacker's costs, put the remaining £44.55 towards the straw, and find £105.45 to pay for the rest of the straw.

And we still have the gap left by Stripe's death. Each litter develops its own collective personality and this one was a particularly "happily boingy" group that will be lessened with the death of one its more lively piglets.

As I always tell would-be crofters, smallholders and hobby farmers, only do it if you're absolutely certain your dreams can survive the onslaught of reality. It bites—hard.

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My esteemable driver, Klippings, first mentioned it after he had been actually factually driving around in the Austin Allegro for a few days.

I thought he was probably exaggeratising to begin with, but now I've had first-handled experience of this phenomenon. Suffices it to say I'm shocked, quite alarmed, a little confused, somewhat moist and very pleased with the impact my exotic, Continental-style Allegro Equipe is having on the villagists.

My wife (Mrs Belm) is less pleased. She believes the way my Allegro is attracting attention of the female kind is both unseemly and unbecoming of a happily married individual such as myself.

But it isn't my fault or anything. The Allegro Equipe is an out-and-out babe magnet, whether I'm sat inside of it or not, as you can see from this shot (taken yesterday) of my curvaceous and enticing new car parked in the reception area of The Shouty Villager:

That's Daphne Flucker, sister of the Rev Tim, who is visiting for a few days and was jogging through the village when she felt a compulsion to drape herself provocatively across the Allegro.

Bob Bastud, the newspaper's photographer, was there for an hour taking shots of Daphne until her sister-in-law (Shouty Villager blogger and local pharmacist Oona Flucker) dragged her away under a blanket. Oona seemed immune to the Allegro's charms, although she did fondle the wing mirrors in a way a vicar's wife probably shouldn't do.

So, should I keep the Allegro and risk further sexualised encounters?

Or, should I ditch it in favour of something less sexually alluring?

'Tis a conundrum and no mistaking. Klippings is vehement in his assertions that I should keep the Allegro and you don't want to upset one of the best wheelmen in the business.

But then Mrs Belm (my wife) has threatened all sorts of retribution - both in her role as my wife (Mrs Belm) and as a magistrate - if I don't sell the Allegro and replace it with something more boring.

Plus, as she pointed out, Christopher the cat hates the colour silver on cars and much prefers more muted tones.

I had planned some actual factual model-making today.

But it seems my day will be dominated by cars and scantily clad ladies instead.

Problem is, digging it out would be a task and a half now as it, as with all of my stuff, is boxed up in a garage and I haven't a scooby as to which box to look in for it. Not that I want to mess with the delicate structure of boxes and furniture pieces.

It's a strange state of flux to find myself in once again and marks the start of 23 months of rigid budgeting to pay off my debts. I'm actually looking forward to it. Especially the last payment.

My lovely Xantia failed her M.O.T today. On the one thing that has always scared my about the car but can't say surprised me - the suspension. The rear spheres are gone. Which accounts for the seasickness Linda endures while travelling in it. Thankfully the lovely people at Citroen - who almost sold me a new C4 last time I went in - didn't rip my arm off as payment or demand the blood of my first born child. The hole repair job for a little over a tonne and it'll cost me less as they're gonna use the LHM fluid I bought last time but didn't need.

Bonus. While in my near-ten years of motoring I've yet to have a car go straight through, it's not as bad as I thought it would be and a lot better than it could have been. I get extremely nervous during the test, I don't mind admitting it. I pace around the waiting area, stick my head out the door and watch the testing... it's one of the longest half hour or so's I go through.

Why? Well, I need my car. I don't live in a big city (yet) where I can get on the Metro (or tube) and get around without the motor. Plus there's the expense. The newer my cars get the more expensive the repairs on them get and always at times when I don't have too much to spare. In this, as with most situations, I tend to over-worry the outcomes in advance so that when the time comes I'm nervously anticipating the worst possible outcome. Of course, while this makes the joy of a good outcome all the better, it's hell on the nerves.

I really should learn to better understand my thought process. If only to stop hurting those I love with it. I'm trying to learn self-control of my mind. It's hard as there's so many things going on within it. I don't want to sound big headed here but my mind is always alive with thoughts and only a small percentage of them are relevant to the subject and so I tend to focus on the wrong things. I've learnt that this hurts people and I can never apologise enough. Only try and focus and let go of the bad thoughts.

When I say 'bad thoughts' I no longer mean those which called the Black Dog to my door. I have, for now, quelled those. I mean those which take my mind away from the feelings of others (her, mainly) and worry too much over the little, tiny details instead. To me these thoughts are worse than those of despair as they threaten to destroy that which I love and am striving for.

Sometimes I wish I could just shut them off and stay in the moment.

Enough, for now.

By establishing a benchmark accident formula, they say that some 1 in 4 British motorways don't meet their standards and almost 1 in 3 have worse than 62 serious or fatal accidents per billion kilometres.

One of the worst roads is apparently the eight mile stretch of road between Macclesfield and Buxton the A537; a single carriageway where there has been 43 fatal or serious collisions in the last 7 years, three-quarters of which involved motorcyclists.

This got me thinking. Where I live in Sussex our summer Sunday morning lie-ins are interrupted by the ear-piercing sounds as bikes whizz by on our village bypass. Very, very fast.

As a community, we have complained to the police about this but nothing seems to be done. Certainly there is no police presence in evidence where needed. Perhaps they can't catch them - but surely they could deter them by either being there or using the dreaded speed cameras...

The British Road Safety Foundation talks about the need for more barriers to stop cars ploughing into trees or building new lanes to make overtaking safer but neither of these seem to address the fact that the casualties may be bikers.

Whilst I keep my eyes open for motoring messages, I seem to have missed specific PR campaigns for bikers reminding them how fragile life and their machines are.

What more can be done?

Is there a 'carrot' message or must it all be 'stick'? Are speed limiters legal, for example?

I remember reading that more bikes failed their first MOT than cars - are they roadworthy or is it mainly rider error? And are these biker casualties young riders or second childhood O50s with money to spare.

The marketing message woulod need to be a different one for each.

FOXY Steph

By SANDY ARANETA
The Philippine Star

Today was sports day, a bummer because it meant I lost my best day of the week, Friday, the day for which I have no lessons to prepare. So instead of catching up on marking and planning, I spent the day standing out on the field doing crowd control and suffering paroxysms of boredom. It's not like the sports day at primary school, with parents cheering on kids (though they can be boring, too). At my school, it's an unrelenting grind of joyless events - few of the 'spectators' actually watching - with endless opportunities for the school smoking club to disappear into the bushes. Then there's the wind, and the sun, and the rain, and the lack of breaks, and the 15-mile walk to go to the loo, and the feeling like it's never going to end.

It's been a quiet week. I took delivery of a big bag o' logs, which were moved (by hand, in baskets) from front to back of the house and stacked neatly. My winter heating confidence is a bit higher than it was, though with gas prices predicted to rise more and more, the price of chainsaw oil is set to rise to new heights. We filled the wood store we built, anyway, with a bit to spare, but I'm still vigilant. Logs are everywhere.

My car is about to inflict more wallet pain on me. A series of faults (detailed below) came to a head this week with an empty coolant reservoir, which could be a leaky hose or something more serious (and expensive). I've had to bite the bullet and contact the local VW garage. My plans for trading it in are on hold for now, but I can't help thinking that money spent on it now will not be recouped.

As I indicate below, time/energy for blogging is in short supply for now, so things will remain quiet round here.

This is a "monthly publication" which you are expected to download and read onscreen (I couldn't see a print option). Okay, so I'm not target market, but I found this a less interactive experience than a printed magazine in many respects.  You could click to any article from the contents, but then it was a linear process of page reading - or click back to the contents (which is over two pages).

The promised benefits of sound were frankly irritating rather than adding to the experience - being monotonous "elevator music" rather than related to, or changing with, individual stories. 

It does looks great - and clearly a lot of work has gone into this 1st edition - but another benefit of online is lost as this is only produced monthly (with a pretty standard blog giving some immediacy). 

Video is included of the new BMW X6, but it didn't excite me much (but I'm not a geeky petrolhead getting turned on by shots of cars down windy roads or close ups of the steering wheel and dashboard).  It wasn't exactly something I'd expect to find on YouTube being more corporate video in style.

Although the first two issues are free, Motor Play will subsequently cost 1 € per issue to download (or 10 € if you subscribe for 12 months).  The question is will anyone pay?

Despite the claims that you can "flip through the pages of the e-zine just like with a normal printed magazine", this isn't really the same type of experience you get with real paper magazines. Admittedly the likes of Car magazine would set you back a few pounds a month (with a current offer of 3 issues for £3).

Motor Play is an interesting development and one no doubt PRs in the UK motoring world will be monitoring closely.  The traditional motor mags already have established presences online where they set out to provide up to date news, as well as blogs and community building activities.  Does the Motor Play concept offer anything new beyond a page turning e-zine?  I'm not convinced.

Ironically, the day this release is issued is one where most of the auto PRs are out of the office as it is the Western Group of Motoring Writers' Driving Day at Castle Coombe.  This offers the PRs the opportunity to drive competitive models on the road and track and the weather today is ideal for such "hard work".  I'll be joining the guys later (as there's a dinner and we've a Meet the Media meeting tomorrow morning).

Surprisingly, neither the Motor Play blog nor the magazine carries any details of real people involved in the project - and I couldn't find anything about the publication via Google - although I'm sure the auto PR world will know who is behind the initiative.  But why so shy?

I dropped the boys at school this morning, rode the Kangaroo Bike down the back alley that leads to the main road passing through the village, and turned left onto the road.

The road has a slight uphill gradient to my next turn, a right on a bend, so I don't cycle that fast along this short stretch.

As I rode towards the intersection, I heard a car coming up behind me so I signalled slightly earlier than usual, glanced behind me and then moved towards the centre of the road ready to turn right, returning my right hand to the handlebars as I did.

Another few turns of the pedal and I signalled right again, applying the brakes to begin slowing.

I glanced back, started to turn right, glanced back again as I crossed the centre of the road, and realised the car behind me had decided not to wait.

The driver was accelerating and, without indicating, pulling out to pass me as I turned right.

As the roads were otherwise clear, the Kangaroo is large in bike terms and I didn't have the boys on board, I kept going and eyeballed the woman driver.

For a few moments I thought she might actually hit me and the bike, but she finally braked hard and stopped.

She wound the driver's window down and started shouting at me to get out of her way.

After checking that the roads were still clear, I stopped to point out to her that she was in breach of Highway Code rule 167 (yes, I'm an anorak!) which states "do not overtake when... a road user is indicating right".

I also pointed out that rule 163 states she's supposed to give vulnerable road users as much space as she would a car when overtaking.

She went a little mental: "What are you? A f****** lawyer? You're only on a bike!"

Mindful of that the fact that I was now obstructing the highway myself, I pointed out that all road users have to abide by the Highway Code and that everyone has the right to its protection before continuing on my way.

The last I saw of her, the driver was red faced, hitting the steering wheel and swearing like a trooper.

Interestingly, while I don't know her, I've seen the driver about the village a few times and she's always seemed quite pleasant.

Until she gets into her car...

On top of playing host to a thick-necked boorish Aussie for a few days and enduring a visit off of my brother's ill-judged eldest daughter, I have received broken wind of some actual factual imposterisation.

It seems someone on a big boys' newspaper believes me to be someone I'm actually factually not. A good name has been bismirched and stuff, so lawyers have been summoned and much stamping of feet has taken place.

Now I'm told by Klippings, my bestest wheelman, that following our recent sojourn down to meet up with the Norse worshippers, the trusty old rusty Maxi might have caused its final pile up.

The car that has been with myself and my wife (Mrs Belm) since our oldest of childs, Fennel, was but a smallish creature, is either in need of a radical overhaul or should be dispatched to the scrappers yard forthwith.

This photographic representation was taken on the day we took actual factual deliverage of the Maxi and went out for a bit of fire-raising as a celebration. There's me unloading stuff whilst Mrs Belm (my wife) hands the accelerant to Fennel:

I am now seeking suggestions for a replacement vehicle and at the behesting of Sammy-Lou, my apprentice, will be looking for a more environmentally friendly form of transportation.

Klippings has already come up with a shortlist of 1 which he maintains actually factually tickles each and every box and he assures myself that despite the name - Hummer - it has nothing to do with music.

He is off to get sales brochure of the vehicle, which he also assures me is ideal for travailing down country lanes and is greener than a lush grassy field of frogs.

Maybe the Hummer will be the silver lineage of the cloudy day I'm harbouring underneath?

It's Monday morning and i wanted to share last week thoughts and feelings with you all...

Why do people judge you when they do not even know you?
Why do people assume that because they heard a story they naturally think its true?

Why are most people so shallow that they do not have the balls to tell you something to your face?

The bottom line is that most people lack the character to establish the truth in order that that can then make an informed opinion based on actual fact.

MOST PEOPLE ARE WEAK, SHALLOW AND LACK THE CHARACTER TO STAND TALL AND SAY THIS IS WHO I AM, THESE ARE THE MISTAKES I HAVE MADE AND THIS IS WHERE I INTEND TO GO!

You can judge me and you can even be my jury but unless you have walked in my shoes then don't execute me. . Do you think because you know someone or you are related to someone that has and Auschwitz prisoner number tattooed on their arm, that you think you know what it was like to actually have Ben there?

Million Impossible was named so because so many people actually want to become a Millionaire and dream of driving the Ferrari up the 2 mile driveway to their home but it was also named so because of the Impossible journey that many of us face not just in business but in our personal lives also.

The next time you ask your friend if they are OK remember one thing.

Most people cannot express or do not wish to share their feelings because to do so leaves them with the feeling of being totally naked and exposed to emotional reprisals. So what do we do? We keep it all bottle up inside which actually compounds the problem.

Don't Judge them, because actually they may be stronger than you think and maybe they are wise enough to know that if they told you what was really going on you would fall apart!

"The True test of man is to resist the temptation"

Regards
Bradley

www.millionimpossible.com - For everyone who is going on an impossible jounrney!

With the recent steep increase in the price of petrol of 41% ,from Rm1.92 to Rm2.70 per liter and 63% increase of diesel from Rm1.58 to Rm2.58, Malaysian motorist will have to learn the new driving techniques to save on their petrol bills.

The findings were based on a European study in busy cities, said a director of the Malaysian Institute of Road Safety Research (Miros).

Do not speed, driving below 100kmh will cut down a substantial amount of fuel .If you reduce your speed from Rm120kmh to 100kmh will save you 20% of fuel.A reduction to 90kmh saves another 10 per cent.

If you are going on the highways , use the auto cruise control if your car is equipped with one. This lessens accelerations and decelerations .

Do not put your foot on the accelerator pedal all the time . Take it off when your car is going down a slope or coast it when you are near the traffic lights , junctions or toll gates.

A driver can reduce fuel consumption by up to 10% by anticipating traffic conditions ahead and adjusting the speed accordingly and thus unnecessary braking and acceleration.

From far away ,decide your speed before you reach the traffic light junctions. It is no point going so fast and braking when you are near the traffic lights. Coast your car from afar ,for you will reach that point even if you do not step on the gas.

Do not have a hard acceleration from stop like you are driving a F- 1 Ferrari car or think that you are Michael Schumacher. The engine will gobbled up more petrol .The vehicle should always be gradually and smoothly accelerated.

Sometimes when I want to travel at 80kmh and my speedometer is showing 90kmh , I will then lift my foot from the accelerator pedal and coast the car till the speed hovers back to around 80kmh. Those few minutes or seconds may save you some fuel.

Many drivers have a bad habit of placing a foot on the brake pedal, especially on highways.This increases fuel use. After braking unnecessarily , you need to accelerate the car and this use up more fuel. Do not follow too closely to the car in front, allow 2 or 3 car's length .

And if you know you would remain stationary for more than two minutes, switch the engine off. Avoid engine idling for long periods where possible. Put your auto gear shift to neutral , if you do not switch off the engine.

Do not overload your small car, remove all unwanted things from your boot.The heavier the car, the more petrol will be consumed . Keep your car light.

Some people may think that shutting down the air-con may save on fuel but with the open windows, the car will not be aerodynamic and causes more drags and more petrol.

You can wind up the windows and use the car's ventilator system. In Malaysia, because of the hot climate, you can do that only at night.

Air conditioners can use about 10 per cent extra fuel when operating. However if you travel at 80kmp, you may enjoy better fuel economy if the windows are closed.

Roof racks and spoilers may cause more drags and hence more petrol.

Change your air filters every 20,000 km.

Clogged air filters increase fuel consumption by restricting airflow to the engine, and thus should be cleaned/replaced when necessary. Clogged air filters can increase fuel consumption by up to 10%

For every 20,000 km traveled , your car will need a major service. You will have to change the engine oil, auto gear oil, air filter,spark plugs, water coolants, and it will cost you around Rm500.00 ++.If you use a 2.0 cc car or above it is more costlier to maintain than those smaller cc cars.

Shop around for your petrol. In the market in Malaysia, I think Esso and Mobile gives a better price at Rm2.62 a liter. Then you have Smiles point and some petrol station owners even give free gifts like mineral water.

Do not use the higher octane or super power fuel.It is just a waste of money . Your car is built to run on regular unleaded gas.

Try to avoid peak hours and other heavy traffic and reschedule your journey or use alternative routes.

My car, a Sonata 2.0 can travel for 1km for RM0.21 at the present price with careful driving . I have a fuel saving gadget installed on the car which was recommended by the company.

If your car is under warranty, make sure that it is allowed under the warranty period or the company may not accept liability if anything is wrong with your engine.

To save on your fuel , you will need to drive smoothly , with as little sudden accelerations or braking as possible ,will improve the fuel efficiency of your car's engine.

With the petrol price increase , this has been a blessings in disguise. There are not many cars on the road and less traffic jams and long queue's. The journey has become smoother and less wastage on petrol.

Sensible driving techniques also help reduce wear and tear on your car’s brakes, tyres and the other mechanical parts. So you’ll save money on running costs for your vehicle as well as on fuel.

The best solution to save on fuel is to sell off your car! LOL!

Use public transport , car pool . walking , bicycle or a battery operated bicycle.

Reference and thanks to ;-

http://motoring.asiaone.com/Motoring/Drivers/Driving%2BTips/Story/A1Story20080616-71079.html

http://www.racq.com.au/cps/rde/xchg/racq_cms_production/hs.xsl/Motoring_Maint_Repairs_Foun_5345_ENA_HTML.htm

http://www.pjnet.com.my/ftopict-624.html

http://www.motorpoint.com.au/saving-cash-on-gas.asp

Yesterday I took delivery of a new car - a Citroen C5 diesel. Up until recently I had a Citroen C6 which was an astonishingly beautiful car but which had depreciated rapidly - after 18 months its value had fallen by around 45%  - and I decided to move on before I lost too much money. The C6 was very exclusive: its shape was unlike any other car on the road and drew admiring glances from both other road users and pedestrians. In the 18 months I owned it, I never saw another one. Unfortunately, it was also quite expensive to run. Its 2.7 litre twin turbo diesel engine mated to automatic transmission meant that it rarely achieved more than 30 miles to the gallon.

The C5 has a smaller, 2.2 twin turbocharged engine generating around 175 bhp, some 30 bhp less than the C6 but it actually performs much the same as the C6 because of its lower weight, even though the C5 is just 4 inches shorter. The C5 also has a manual 6 speed gearbox and I'm expecting the car to achieve around 45 miles per gallon overall.

The interior of the C5 is a very civilised place to be. The leather clad seats are supportive and in pale grey give the car an airy feel. The dash is covered with a textured soft touch plastic which looks and feels good. In motion the car is remarkably hushed, thanks in part to double glazed side windows which keep out road and traffic noise. Technology abounds: the parking brake is electric and engages automatically when the engine is switched off, disengaging automatically again when you lift the clutch to drive away. There is a clever feature which tells you if a parking space is big enough for the car, a tight squeeze or best forgotten and a massage function for the driver's seat. The sound system is first class and unusually in this class of car, features a juke box facility, which allows you to record mp3s onto an internal 10 GB hard drive.

A couple of  Citroen idiosyncracies remain: the hydropneumatic suspension provides a superbly absorbent ride soaking up potholes and bumps effortlessly yet automatically firming up when cornering spiritedly. The rear window is concave like that of the C6 and the CX of years ago; not just cosmetic though, it allows a wide opening to the boot (trunk).

If you want a car that's quiet, comfortable and relaxing on a long journey look no further. If, on the other hand, you're a middle aged boy racer seeking razor sharp handling, hard seats and uncompromising suspension, you'll be better off with a Mercedes C-class 'Sport' or a BMW 5 series! The choice is yours...

Perhaps there are some people who forget to actually use their key to lock their petrol tank and so there are theives just going around having a feel to see if they can find any that are unlocked.  I'm not really all that sure.  Anyway, you can buy locking gas caps that will solve this problem.  Don't understand why anyone would actually need to buy one of these because my car already has a lock.  Who knows...

All in all, I am disappointed.

The new Motor Industry Code of Practice for Service and Repair, run by a division of a leading motor industry body, costs £75 to sign up to. Garages, dealerships and fast fit businesses of all sizes and competence levels alike can buy their certificate to say they have signed up to this code knowing that this is going to be backed with serious promotion equating this to best practice; all this to be read by trusting motorists, female and male alike. And they get this without being vetted.

Is this as good as it might be?

Please judge for yourself.

The code asks them to commit to basic business behaviour such as 'honest and fair services' and 'open and transparent prices' and provides a helpdesk and complaints procedure. Sound familiar? It would if you worked in the industry as there have been other similar models of old.

My point is that many garages and dealerships are SO much better than this already. Granted some others need to be reminded of the basics but there are also those who may well rub their hands in glee at being associated with better businesses for as little as £75, if only to take advantage of the initial communications launch.

This code is not as good as others in existence but how do motorists know this? What about proven and demanding quality schemes like ATA, BSI or OFT approved code status?

The industry has tried this 'one size fits all' approach before. If too many garages/dealerships sign up (and they will because it's too cheap) it will be unsustainable to manage the quality issues. But it's a nice little earner at an estimated minimum 5000 businesses x £75 at start up. A cool £375,000+ for promotion and complaints handling; FOXY could do wonders with that sort of income.

I'd be even more sceptical if I had invested heavily in going the extra mile to prove my professionalism above others through ATA training, completing the BSI Kitemark process (service and repair or bodywork repairs) or was a Bosch Car Service centre, the only UK garage network to have invested serious time, money and effort in achieving and maintaining the rigorous OFT approved code of practice. Some businesses have more than one of these acronyms, a few have all three. They are the best there are today.

Looking at this from the female motorists point of view, which FOXY is unique in doing,  rather than from the industry's point of view, foxy ladies want to know what their local garage choices are and who and where the best ones are.

This code doesn't answer either question but it could have done, with a little more ambition at the outset.

Yet I am sure it will be declared a success and I really do hope it does make a difference... BUT it is too cheap and easy for garages to sign up to a 'me too' undemanding scheme like this one and opt out later if the going gets tough.

The consumer does not understand this yet.

If you are involved in an accident or breakdown whilst driving in France, or assit anyone in an accident or breakdown in France, you are required to wear your reflective saftey jacket.

Read the full driving in France article click here!

http://superbikemalaysia.com/index.php?showtopic=10970&st=165&#entry9803796

Source: http://www.bharian.com.my/Current_News/BH/Monday/Ekonomi/20080616002710/Article/index_html

Naza sasar jual 1,000 unit motosikal Blade

Oleh Ahmad Fiesal Othman

Model ditambah dengan penghadang angin, meter digital


NAZA Bikes Sdn Bhd mensasarkan jualan 1,000 unit motosikal Blade tahun ini susulan pelancaran model baru Blade 250 dan Blade 250R.

Ketua Eksekutif Kumpulan Naza, SM Nasaruddin SM Nasimuddin, berkata model Blade yang menjadi model motosikal berkuasa tinggi pertama keluaran Naza Bikes adalah antara model paling popular dalam rangkaian motosikal keluarannya dengan lebih 2,000 unit dijual sejak dilancarkan pada 2004.

Beliau berkata, model Blade mempunyai pengikutnya tersendiri dan pengenalan model yang diberi wajah baru, jualannya dijangka lebih baik.

"Setakat Mei lalu, 400 unit motosikal Blade dijual dan berikutan pengenalan model yang diberi wajah baru ini serta kenaikan harga minyak baru-baru ini, kami yakin permintaan terhadap motosikal ini akan meningkat," katanya pada pelancaran model terbaru Blade 250/250R itu di Kuala Lumpur, kelmarin.

Naza Bikes yang ditubuhkan kira-kira lima tahun lalu, sudah melancarkan 13 model motosikal serta skuter berkapasiti 110cc hingga 650cc.

Model Blade 250/250R adalah keluaran Hyosung Motor Co yang berpusat di Korea Selatan yang lebih dikenali sebagai Comet 250/250R. Ia banyak dieksport ke pasaran antarabangsa dan amat popular di Australia, Perancis dan beberapa negara Eropah.

SM Nasaruddin berkata, Naza Bikes memberi wajah baru terhadap model Blade 250 itu yang antara lain menyaksikan penambahan penghadang angin di bahagian depan dan menggunakan meter digital yang baru.

Katanya, bagi model Blade 250R, penambahan pada reka bentuk grafik serta diberi kemasan 'cubic printing' pada fender hadapan untuk menyerlahkan lagi imej sporty model itu.

"Blade adalah motosikal yang menjimatkan minyak dengan kapasiti tangki yang boleh menampung 17 liter serta kuasa maksimum sehingga 160 kilometer sejam," katanya.

Model Blade 250R mengekalkan harganya iaitu RM18,100 tidak termasuk cukai jalan, manakala Blade 250 berharga RM14,988 tidak termasuk cukai jalan berikutan penambahbaikan yang diperkenalkan.

Sempena pelancaran model terbaru Blade 250/250R itu, Naza Bikes mengadakan promosi ke seluruh negara dengan menawarkan percuma jaket ekslusif Naza Blade dan topi keledar jenama SOL yang keseluruhannya bernilai RM1,500 kepada 300 pembeli awal model baru itu.