In April 2020 the latest James Bond movie No Time to Die was supposed to open. Although postponed until November because of the coronavirus, like every other Bond film it’s bound to feature evil baddies, nail-biting stunts and thrilling car chases.
But for many, the Bond cars themselves will be a vital ingredient to the movie’s success. In the latest film, 007 drives an Aston Martin again. But think back to the motors in the special agent’s previous 24 adventures. How well do you know your Bond cars?
The Royals are rarely far from the headlines. And like the rest of us they use cars to get around. But despite their global fame, how much do you know about the Royal cars? Take our cunning quiz to find out how well you know the motoring habits of the most famous family in the world.
Parking can be the hardest bit about shopping. Follow our top tips (Picture iStock/BrettCharlton)
Whether it’s Christmas shopping or enjoying the Boxing Day sales, Green Flag research shows the largest proportion of people (46 per cent) will drive. And that means having to park in shopping centres or on busy high streets. Here are our 10 car parking tips for ensuring a hassle-free shopping experience, whatever the time of year.
Research before you go
One of the most wasteful bits of parking is using fuel doing laps of a town centre looking for somewhere to stop. Research where you’re going to park before you go and have a list of parking places in order of convenience.
Where you park
Try to choose a car park that’s been approved by Parkmark for its security. If you’re
worried that a car park isn’t safe, try to park near to the lifts or the exit where
there are likely to be more people around.
Ideally you don’t want to be doing laps of a town centre or car park trying to find a space to use (Picture iStock/Bim)
Check parking times
Some councils suspend charges over the Christmas period to
encourage shoppers. Others don’t. You don’t want to be caught out with a parking
ticket at any time of year, least of all Xmas, so make sure you know where and
when charges are enforced.
Have change
Not everyone’s comfortable using the new style parking meters where you pay using a smartphone app. If you’re not, make sure you have change in the car. If you do leave coins in the car, stash it somewhere it can’t be seen.
Don’t be rushed
Don’t allow yourself to be hassled by other drivers. When you spy a free parking spot, indicate early. If you’re parking on the street or in a crowded car park, you may well hold up the traffic behind. But it’s better to take a few seconds longer to park than to damage your car or someone else’s. Always remember, if anyone’s getting impatient with you, they too will hold up traffic when they park. And you will have been held up by other people parking. In this instance, what goes around really does come around.
Reverse in
When you parallel park, it’s much easier to reverse in than
to go in forwards. Equally, in a car park, it’s usually easier and quicker to
reverse into a bay than to go in forwards. The downside of this is boot access may
not be as easy. But there are two big benefits.
It’s safer because when you leave it makes it much easier to spot hazards such as other cars or pedestrians. And if you’re in a car park, as most people park nose in, it’ll mean your driver’s door is adjacent to the next car’s driver’s side. If there are big cars in small bays, this means you can position your car to give yourself room to get out of the car knowing the driver of the car next to you will have room to get in too. And if you are tight to the car on your passenger side, their driver should still be able to get in.
Perhaps don’t park like this… (Picture iStock/simonkr)
Think about others
If everyone parked in the middle of the bay, how easy life would be. But as we’ve reported, parking bay size isn’t keeping up with the ever-expanding girth of our cars. When you’re stopping in a car park, try to position your car in the middle of the bay if you can. If you leave your car right on the white line, chances are, the person in the bay next to you will have to do the same thing. And there will come a point where bays next to walls or bollards become unusable.
When you’re parallel parking next to a kerb, look at how the
cars in front and behind are parked. If you can, leave some space for the car
in front’s owners to put things in their boot.
Keep valuables hidden
Remember: most car crime is the theft of things from vehicles. If you’ve bought some presents and you’re heading off somewhere else to do your shopping, put them in the boot. That should keep them away from prying eyes.
Equally, a fifth of people asked in our survey said they use
their car to hide presents in. If this is you, make sure you hide them in the
boot.
Remember where you’ve parked
It sounds obvious but in the rough and tumble of Christmas
shopping, it can be easy to forget where you’ve left the car. Most smartphones
have a function that will show you where your car is and guide you back there
using a map. Alternatively, in a multi-storey car park, take a quick snap of
the sign by the door; at least that way you’ll know which floor you’ve parked
on.
Use your smartphone
Use your smartphone as your handy assistant once again. If
you’ve parked on the street and have paid for a certain amount of time on the
meter, set your phone’s alarm. It’s easy to get carried away buying presents
and this will remind you to get back to your car before the parking attendant
can get busy with the ticket.
None of us leaves home in the morning wanting to break down. Sadly, thousands of us will. But how much do you actually know about breaking down? Take our quiz to find out what you know – or otherwise – about conking out at the roadside.
There are some great free mobile navigation apps (Picture iStock/Svetikd)
Mobile phone apps are a way of life for many of us. And unsurprisingly
there are loads out there aimed specifically at drivers. Some are better than
others so we’ve chosen 10 that we think are among the best.
All the ones we’ve picked are available for either iPhone iOS or Google Android operating platforms. And all are free. That said, some do have upgrade options that you can pay for if you choose.
Do remember that it’s illegal to hold your mobile phone while you’re driving. You must control it via a Bluetooth headset or voice command, or while it’s safely located in a dashboard or windscreen mount. But we’d advise drivers to program destinations into navigation apps before they set off.
Cars like the electric Kia Soul are becoming increasingly popular. How much do you know about the electric car phenomenon? (Picture Kia)
Drivers are waking up to the cheap running costs and eco benefits of battery-powered motors. But sales of electric models are still lagging a long way behind conventionally fuelled cars.
In the first nine months of 2019, official figures show that
just 1.3 per cent of cars sold are battery electric vehicles. The vast majority
are still petrol or diesel.
However, new research by transport group TRL has revealed that half of us are considering buying an electric car as our main or second motor within the next five years. And if the range increased to 300 miles per charge, 90 per cent would consider buying them.
Take our cunning quiz to find out how much you know about electric cars.
Should you be penalised if you can’t do this and only have cash? (Picture iStock/MartinPrescott)
Drivers who’ve been fined for not being able to pay at cashless
parking meters are being urged to contest the penalty. New research conducted by
the Mail On Sunday has found that around a third of parking meters are now cash
free.
That means drivers must pay with a debit or credit card or
via a telephone hotline or mobile phone app. But what happens if you can’t?
Drivers with Blue Badges can park in privileged positions (iStock/Richard Johnson)
Blue Badges help disabled people park closer to their destination. The idea is that on the street and in special parking bays close to libraries, doctors’ surgeries or other amenities, there is parking for cars that show their driver or passenger is disabled or somehow incapacitated.
Cars have got better but roads have got worse in the last 25 years (Picture iStock/oversnap)
Do you remember what you were doing 25 years ago? What car you were driving, how much you spent on fuel and how congested the roads were?
Even if you don’t, you may recall signing up for cover from a
new breakdown company. It was called Green Flag and caused a splash by sponsoring
the England football team.
Twenty-five years later and Green Flag is still offering the same great service. Motoring, however, has changed significantly. It might not be quite beyond all recognition but things are certainly very different.
Filling up the car with fuel is (sadly) one of the most frequent things we do when driving. But what is the correct fuel station etiquette? We look at some popular dos and don’ts around refilling with petrol or diesel.
All this is computer controlled. The ECU is normally positioned at the top and back of the engine bay (Picture iStock/jaym-z)
Modern cars are more like computers on wheels and central to that is the ECU. If the engine is the heart of the car, the Electronic Control Unit or ECU is its brain. Your car may develop a fault that you think is mechanical but actually the real culprit could be the electronics, caused by a malfunctioning ECU or one of its sensors.
The ECU is now such a crucial and integral part of our cars that I think it’s worth understanding exactly what it does.
Car sickness can turn a dream holiday into a nightmare (Picture iStock/imgorthand)
It’s coming up for holiday time but if there’s one thing that can spoil a long journey for all concerned, it’s car sickness. No one’s quite sure why some people feel it and others don’t. But that won’t be much consolation to whoever the victim is; whoever has to keep pulling over for the sufferer to redecorate the roadside; or other passengers who have their holiday delayed. Here we look at what car sickness is and what you can do about it.
A driving holiday abroad can be great. But there are some strange rules and regulations (Picture iStock/georgeclerk)
Over the summer holidays, thousands of drivers will be either taking their motors abroad or driving a hire car while on holiday. But how well do you know the rules of the road when it comes to driving in Europe? Our cunning quiz poses 10 travel teasers that will help you warm up to driving abroad. And if you get any wrong, try again. Knowing the right answer might save you a few quid!
Tyres give off particles of different sizes. Even the smoke contains tiny fragments of plastic (Picture iStock/Toa55)
We’re frequently told that cars are bad for the planet. That’s why we’re being pushed towards driving electric cars. But exhaust emissions aren’t the only nasties to come from our cars. Every time we drive, tiny bits of rubber fly off our tyres and into the atmosphere. In some cases, these particles are so small they’re considered to be microplastics. Read on to see if they really pose a threat.
50 miles left, 5 miles or completely empty? Fuel gauges vary (Picture iStock/Akchamczuk)
We’ve all driven around with the low fuel light on. Some people
even play fuel station roulette on a regular basis, driving as far as they dare
with the orange light on and their car running on the dregs of its fuel. But do
you really know how many miles of range your car has when the low fuel light comes
on?
Around a quarter of people killed in car crashes aren’t wearing seatbelts (Picture iStock/Skynesher)
Chances are, every time you get into a car you put your seat belt on. More than nine out of 10 of us do. But the small number of drivers who incredibly don’t buckle up in case they crease their clothes are dramatically increasing their chances of dying in a car crash.
The most high-profile victim not properly restrained in a car was Diana, Princess of Wales. But she died in 1997 and road safety campaigners believe drivers need to be reminded of the dangers of driving without seat belts.
This doesn’t have to be you if you’ve had a puncture (Picture iStock/Bobex-73)
Had a punctured tyre recently? If so, how did you deal with it? Chances are you didn’t change the wheel at the roadside. Not because you couldn’t be bothered but because spare wheels are considered old tech by most car makers now.
More than 90 per cent of new cars are sold without a spare wheel as standard. Drivers can often specify one as an optional extra (they cost between about £100 and £300 depending on the car), so it’s worth checking whether that box has been ticked by a previous owner if buying a used car.
If it hasn’t, what are your choices and are they any good? We investigate three puncture solutions.
Think of a pothole that you either hit or narrowly avoided. You probably won’t find it hard to recall because the state of our roads continues to worsen, despite increased government money aimed at tackling our crumbling carriageways.
But while local authorities do their best to patch up the nation’s roads, the annual independent report into their sorry state makes for depressing reading. Here’s what the 2019 ALARM survey found.
The Highway Code will never rank as a right riveting read. So
it’s possibly no surprise that a third say they haven’t read the rules of the
road since passing their driving test. And according to Halfords Autocentres’
research one in five haven’t read it for at least 10 years.
But while the Highway Code is hardly a page turner, it is vital drivers keep up to date with it. Our road environment, not to mention the technology aboard our cars, is changing at an astonishing rate. And the Highway Code is updated on a rolling basis to reflect this. Between 2015 and 2018, the rules of the road have been updated 48 times. Take our quiz to find out how up to date you are.
Driving in Europe is about to get more complicated (Picture iStock/Media Trading Ltd)
Updated 17 December 2020.
While Brexit talks are still going on, and certain things aren’t set in stone just yet, there are a lot of potential changes you should prepare for.
Whether you’re taking a car abroad or planning to drive a hire car once you get to a foreign country it’s likely you’ll have to apply for some paperwork. Read on to find out what you’ll need – if we leave the European Union/European Economic Area (EEA) without a deal.
Green cards: insurance when you’re driving in the EU
