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TV car trivia quiz: How good are you?

TV car trivia quiz

If TV is your thing, and you know which private detective drove a Ferrari 308 GTS, or can tell a Ford Cortina from a Consul, then try tackling our tricky TV car trivia quiz on cars that have made their mark on the small screen.

Perhaps those hours spent staring at the box can earn you more than just kudos when it comes to pub trivia. If you can answer all these questions correctly, then why not challenge friends and family to have a go, and see how closely they were paying attention to the same TV shows?

So, without further ado, settle into a comfy armchair and cast your mind back to some of the best-loved TV shows, as we take you on a road trip down television’s memory lane.

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How to transport fireworks safely by car

Transport fireworks safely by car

It’s that time of year when children are getting excited and mums are warning dads not to get carried away buying industrial quantities of fireworks that resemble a bunker buster. But while plenty of guidance is given to help everyone have a safe fireworks display at home or in public, little thought is given on how to transport fireworks safely by car.

Fireworks are extremely dangerous. The Government’s last recorded figures on injuries caused by fireworks, from 2005, showed that 990 people were hurt during a four week period around November 5.

However, there are some sensible tips and several essential steps that drivers should take to ensure that carrying fireworks in a car doesn’t result in a serious accident.

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Drivers escaping bans: More car owners than ever keep motoring despite 12 or more points

Drivers escaping bans

Some drivers are keeping their licences despite breaking the law repeatedly

Drivers escaping bans despite reaching the 12-point limit are increasing. The threat has always been that if you accrued 12 points or more for driving misdemeanours you’d be banned for a period of time. But latest figures from the Driver Vehicle Licensing Agency (DVLA) reveal that the number of drivers being allowed to continue driving despite having 12 or more points has grown by a quarter in the past year.

What does the law say?

Currently, if you accrue 12 points or more over a three-year period, you are banned from driving for six months. If you get a second disqualification within three years of that, you are banned for 12 months. Continue reading →

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Used car tourism: Second-hand car buyers travel for cheaper prices

Used car tourism

Car dealers visit auctions all over the country to get the best price. Now private buyers are travelling too (Picture © BCA)

Used car tourism is on the rise with car buyers being urged to travel to take advantage of the regional variation in car prices. Popular used cars can be more than £1000 cheaper depending on where you buy them across Britain.

Used car valuation service CAP HPI has revealed that it found a three-year old Audi A1 selling for £1600 less in Nottingham compared to a similar model in the south east of the country. The result has seen an increase in drivers travelling from one part of the country to another to take advantage of cheaper used car prices elsewhere, according to one expert.

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Mum and Dad’s taxi service is worth up to £28,000 a year

Mum and Dad’s taxi service is worth up to £28,000 a year

It’s a common grumble amongst parents across Britain: life can feel like it’s a constant cycle of Mum and Dad’s taxi service. Now research reveals how much time the typical parent spends ferrying their kids around – and the numbers could cause a family squabble.

A total of 2000 parents who drove were asked to share their driving history. On average every month, Brits clock up nearly 12 hours at the wheel, make 47 car journeys and travel 250 miles. In London, that would be the equivalent to £28,000 a year in taxi bills.

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Pothole plague means a 14-year wait before roads can be repaired

Potholes will take 14 years to fix, says 2016 report

In the time it takes to read this sentence, a local authority would have repaired yet another pothole in Britain’s roads. But the bad news is the pothole plague is spreading faster than they can be patched up, and budget cuts mean most local authorities only have half the money they need to tackle the country’s pitted roads.

That’s the bleak picture painted by a comprehensive survey of local authority highways departments in England and Wales. The survey, carried out by the Asphalt Industry Alliance for the past 21 years, highlights the challenging driving conditions faced by car owners. And it tells drivers what they probably already knew: there isn’t enough money in the bank to fix our broken roads.

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Is Honda’s car key breathalyser the shape of things to come?

Honda and Hitachi's new breathalyser is the size of a smartphone and works like a modern car's smart key.

Honda and Hitachi’s new breathalyser is the size of a smartphone and works like a modern car’s smart key. (Picture © Honda)

As sure as pubs serve cold beer, drinking and driving are a dangerous mix. The most up to date government figures say 240 people were killed by drink-driving in Britain in 2014, and there were over 5,600 accidents estimated to have been caused by having one for the road. In America, over the same period, nearly 10,000 people lost their lives due to ‘alcohol-impaired driving’.

So it’s little surprise that Honda, the Japanese car maker, has asked itself what technology could do to help prevent drink-driving. The answer, it suggests, is a smart key that can detect excessive alcohol consumption and prevent a car’s engine from being started – all before a driver unlocks the car.
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Can you change a wheel? Majority of British drivers say they can’t

55% of British drivers say they can't change a spare wheel

55% of British drivers say they can’t change a wheel

Complaining about the state of Britain’s roads is one of the most familiar grumbles amongst motorists. Whether it’s collapsing verges that can drag cars into hedgerows, potholes that will swallow a wheel whole or drains that seem to do a better job of acting like a plug than, well, a drain, there’s no shortage of hazards that can cause damage to cars.

So the results of a survey of 1000 British drivers paint an alarming picture. Despite our cars most vulnerable parts coming under daily assault, the majority of drivers admit they don’t know how to change a wheel.

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White cars lose money, green cars are likely to be crashed, study shows

White cars

The Ford Focus was the most popular white car with 14,103 sold last year (Picture © Ford)

White cars were the most popular in 2015. But drivers who choose ice-cool white cars may see red when it comes to selling their motors on. White cars could lose their value quicker than other colours, according to used car experts. And drivers who pick green for their next motor are more likely to have it stolen or written off than if it’s in any other shade.

Of the 2.6m cars sold in the UK throughout 2015, more than a fifth were white. It was the third straight year that this has been the nation’s most popular paint colour, according to trade body the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. The SMMT added that demand for white cars grew by 2.2 per cent in 2015. A decade ago, just one per cent of cars were ordered with the neutral tone. Continue reading →

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Advice for new parents: check your car’s tyres before leaving hospital

Parents

Janine McCarthy’s car rolled six times after a tyre burst; she urges mums-to-be to check their car’s tyres (Picture © TyreSafe)

When it comes to offering advice to new or first-time parents, everyone has words of wisdom to speed mums and dads towards a blissful time with baby. From sleep routines to feeding, pushchairs to car child seats, the parenting tips come think and fast. But it’s rare that those who mean well would ever advise checking your car’s tyres.

However, that’s the message to proud parents across the nation, as a safety campaign gets under way, aimed at parents of the 695,000 babies born in England and Wales each year. It suggests that checking the condition of car tyres is just as critical as making sure babies are taken home from hospital in an appropriate child seat if travelling by car.

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Emissions shock: 95% of cars are illegal. What does it mean for drivers?

Emissions shock

New research says nearly every car pumps out illegal levels of toxic gases

It’s not just Volkswagens that allegedly pump dangerous toxins into the atmosphere, according to the latest emissions shock. New research claims nine out of 10 diesel cars on Britain’s roads exceed official limits for illegal gases. The study also found that 10 per cent of petrol cars surpassed nitrogen oxide (NOx) limits, set in 2011. And the majority of petrol cars go beyond EU carbon monoxide (CO) output levels.

According to Which?, part of the Consumer Association: “It’s not just Volkswagen. In fact, it’s not just diesel engines, either. It’s almost everyone. Whether diesel, petrol or hybrid, the majority of cars exceed EU emission limits when faced with our more realistic tests.” So what is the truth behind the latest revelations? And more importantly where, as drivers and car owners, do we stand? Continue reading →

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Queasy rider: How to help stop car sickness

How to prevent car sickness

Poor old Chris Evans. The new front man for the BBC’s smash hit Top Gear television show not only has the unenviable task of taking over the most viewed factual TV programme in the world, but is allegedly finding that he suffers from terrible travel sickness.

Motion, or car sickness to the many who are blighted by it every time they get in a car, is estimated to affect around 20 million people in Britain. As Chris Evans is reported to have found, after riding along side a professional racer in a high performance Audi R8 sports car during filming for the new series of Top Gear, it often strikes when you’re a passenger in a car. But why are so many of us blighted by it? And how can we prevent ourselves becoming, well, queasy riders?

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Cost of replacing lost car keys jumps nearly a third in two years

Lost car keys

Lose your car key and it’ll probably cost more than you think

Replacing lost car keys is getting increasingly expensive. Drivers who get that feeling of dread in the pit of their stomach when they realise their car keys have gone AWOL would be well served to search more thoroughly. If they do have to replace the key to their vehicle it will cost more than in previous years. And ironically, the added expense is down to so-called ‘keyless’ technology.

New figures released by key insurers Keycare have revealed that drivers who mislaid their car keys last year had to pay 29 per cent more than they would have in 2013. Keycare looked into claims from 1482 drivers in 2015 and found that the average cost of replacing a key is now £215. However, that price can escalate to nearly £1500 if you need a new central locking system too.

Why is the price of replacing lost car keys increasing?

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How badly does flooding damage a car?

Flood-damaged car

This might look like a watery write-off but it could be dried out and sold on

Green Flag head of rescue and motor claims response, Neil Wilson, believes one in seven cars rescued by the company in parts of the country hit by flooding will be an insurance write-off. That means six out of seven cars from flooded areas – thousands – will be put back on the road. And some will undoubtedly be sold as used cars. Here are some simple checks to ensure you don’t buy a flood-damaged car.

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Automatic car washes dying out as the hand car wash cleans up

Car wash

The number of mechanical car washes has halved over the last 15 years

A Saharan dust cloud is expected to hit the UK on Thursday. Brits on the east coast are being warned to expect warm weather and high pollution levels as unseasonable temperatures hit us. But if the dust does make it and your car is covered, how will you clean it off? According to a new report, the days of the mechanical car wash could be numbered.

The growing popularity of hand car washes has prompted the decline in so-called ‘rollover machines’. Now the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA) claims the number of automated car washes has halved over the past 15 years. It says that since 2000, the mechanical car washes on UK garage forecourts have plunged from 9000 to 4200 this year.

Why are hand car washes becoming so popular?

A report from five years ago by researcher Datamonitor revealed that the UK spends £523m a year on car washes. But according to the PRA, mechanical car washes are increasingly standing idle because hand car Continue reading →

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Assess your reaction time at the wheel with online instant test

Reaction time test

Drivers think texting at the wheel is a bigger safety threat than drink driving


Did you know that being a regular driver can make your reaction times quicker than not driving? Or that for some people, not having enough sleep has as much of a negative effect on their ability at the wheel as having too much to drink? The startling results come after a new internet game was released to give drivers the chance to test their reactions.

Do you have the reflexes of an 18 year old?
Click image to open interactive version (via JustPark.com).
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Stealth speed cameras offer fast track revenue for cash-strapped police

Stealth speed cameras attacked by critics

‘Police, Camera, Action!’ used to be best known as an ITV television show that screened clips of reckless drivers failing to outrun the police on Britain’s roads. But increasingly the title is being adopted by more cynical drivers who feel that police are treating speed cameras technology to raise revenue.

The mood among motorists changed markedly after Olly Martins, Police and Crime Commissioner for Bedfordshire, revealed to the Home Affairs Select Committee last week that he could raise up to an extra £1million from cameras.

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VW diesel engine crisis: Latest FAQs for owners

VW diesel engine crisis

Cars including the VW Golf 1.6TDI have been affected (Picture © Volkswagen)

The VW diesel engine crisis rumbles on. So we’ve got the answers to the most frequently asked questions for the 1.2 million UK owners of affected cars. In September 2015, news broke that German car maker Volkswagen had fitted a ‘defeat device’ to the engine software of some of its diesel cars. This was designed to cheat emissions tests, primarily in the US, by knowing when the car was being tested and cutting dangerous nitrogen oxide outputs down to a legal level. These were then put back up to be illegal to improve economy when the car was on the road.

VW diesel engine crisis: Which engines are affected?

The engine at the centre of this is the EA 189 engine. This is an engine architecture so it’s not as simple as saying it’s just an engine with a certain capacity. It affects the 1.2, 1.6 and 2.0-litre diesels that comply with EU 5 emissions laws. These have been fitted to models as diverse as the SEAT Ibiza, Skoda Octavia, Volkswagen Golf and Audi A3 Cabriolet. Petrol engines are unaffected.

VW diesel engine crisis: Are other engines involved?

The US environment regulators have now found that the ‘defeat device’ has also been used on the larger 3.0-litre diesel engines. These engines are in models that were built between 2014 and 16. They include cars such as the Volkswagen Touareg, Audi A4 and A6 and Porsche Cayenne. It is currently unclear if UK cars are involved.

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Vauxhall Zafira fire fears: advice and contact information for Zafira drivers

Vauxhall is offering a free safety inspection to owners of the Zafira B (above) built between 2005 and 2012

Vauxhall is offering a free safety inspection to owners of the Zafira B (above) built between 2005 and 2014 (Picture: © Vauxhall)

The Vauxhall Zafira is one of the most popular family cars of its type, bought by drivers who typically need to ferry a small army of children on the school run during the week and then zig and zag their way to dance classes and swimming lessons at the weekend. But owners of the MPV (multi-purpose vehicle or people carrier) have begun a high-profile campaign on social media after their cars burst into flames.

Approximately 130 people have reported overheating problems occurring behind the glovebox. A number of cars have suffered more seriously, bursting into flames as they were being driven, prompting the car maker to examine around 20 burned out Zafiras.

Vauxhall has now responded to the potentially deadly issue. The Luton-based car maker has issued advice to Zafira owners, and if you’re one of them, or have a friend or member of the family who drivers a Zafira, here’s what you need to know.

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Great Scott! It’s Back To The Future day: all about the DeLorean time machine

Back To The Future original artwork

What’s the date? 21 October 2015, of course! (Picture: © Universal Pictures)

Great Scott! It’s Back To The Future day. Which can only mean one thing – we don’t need roads where we’re going. Actually, we do, but that’s just one of the predictions that Back To The Future II, the 1989 smash hit starring Michael J Fox and Christopher Lloyd, didn’t get right.

Fans of the successful Back To The Future franchise, which began in 1985, are getting just a little bit excited. Because today, 21 October 2015, marks the date that Marty McFly (Fox) and Doc Brown (Lloyd) arrived at in the future after travelling through the space-time continuum in Doc Brown’s DeLorean DMC-12 time machine. The famous scene appeared in Back To The Future II.

So for the benefit of all those who missed out on one of the most popular films of the 80s, and those who were there but, ahem, have fuzzy memories of it all, here’s what you need to know about Back To The Future’s star character – the DeLorean DMC-12 time machine.

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