Monday, 30 April 2012

Have A Nice Birthday, Roland Ratzenberger's Ghost

Roland Ratzenberger and his MTV Simtek-Ford S94118 years ago today, the much-liked Austrian Formula 1 driver Roland Ratzenberger suffered a fatal accident at Imola while qualifying for the San Marino Grand Prix, when the front wing - which had become loose on a previous lap - broke off at high speed after turn 1 and got caught under his front wheels, sending him into a concrete wall at 195mph and causing a basal skull fracture, despite the car absorbing...

Sunday, 29 April 2012

Video Sunday - Britain Invades Germany

18/4/12, 23:58 minutes, 147,692 Views (When Posted)People say that the British car industry is dead. Maybe in the mass market - all the names still surviving are owned by someone else - but we make a lot of other people's cars. Honda makes Civics and CR-Vs in Swindon, Nissan builds cars in Sunderland, BMW makes 3-Series and "Minis" in Oxford, the list may even go on. That's not all, though. Aside from MG's quiet return with the MG6, we make a lot of "specialist cars". Cars such as the Caterham 7, the Ariel Atom, the Radical SR# and the BAC Mono....

Friday, 27 April 2012

Formula 1 - Bahrain Grand Prix 2012

Sakhir International Circuit, BahrainFive things about the race:> No major protests, although some protesters set tyres on fire during the race, with no effect on proceedings.> Apparently Lotus are fast when it's hot.> Nico Rosberg defended two drivers off the track between turns 3 & 4, with no penalty.> Sebastian Vettel partied like it was 2011.> The track is still quite boring, even if the horrible section between turns 4 &...

Tuesday, 24 April 2012

Obscure Japanese Sports Car Of The Week: Kuruma (Inter Proto Series)

25/3/12, 3:44, 13085 Views (when posted)Gran Turismo has taught me much about Japanese sports cars, from "Midnight Purple" Skyline GT-Rs and the Toyota Supra to the Honda Beat and Mazda/Autozam AZ-1 and much more besides (JGTC FTW), which has made me something of a fan of them, as you might imagine. As such, this new one caught my eye. The only problem is that it's only reported on in Japan, so bear with me while I tell you what I can work out about...

Sunday, 22 April 2012

Formula 1 - Chinese Grand Prix 2012

Shanghai International CircuitWhilst everyone's twittering on about the situation in Bahrain, let's take a look at the tremendous action that took place in that other haven of human rights, China. Nico Rosberg managed to take the aerodynamically innovative Mercedes W03 and realise its full potential, securing Pole Position for the first time, with Michael Schumacher right behind him due to Lewis Hamilton having a 5-place gearbox penalty. This was,...