AA customers who break down can now give the operator their exact What3Words address when calling for help.
The What3Words app is available to download for free for iOS and Android smartphones, or via the online map at What3Words.com.
The system should be useful if you’re not 100 percent sure where you have broken down, or for duplicate addresses. What3Words has placed similar sounding addresses far apart, and homophones (words with the same pronunciation but different meanings) have been removed to avoid confusion.
If you break down in a rural location, you can guide the recovery truck straight to the car, rather than describing the spot as ‘somewhere between two villages’.
‘Strange but smart’
Edmund King, AA president, said: “Breaking down in an unfamiliar location can be a daunting experience for anyone. This simple solution helps drivers to identify where they are – and helps us find them even faster.
“By using the latest technology we are continuing to enhance our services. Using three everyday words might seem strange but is a smart way to get you back on the road.”
Chris Sheldrick, CEO and co-founder of What3Words added: “Earlier this year, What3words was rolled out by emergency services across the country. One of the key areas that our system proved invaluable was on long stretches of motorways and unnamed rural roads.
“These locations can be incredibly difficult to describe and when responding quickly is crucial to keep people safe, the precision and ease of three words can save vital time in locating someone in need of help. The AA have been quick to see this same benefit, ensuring that their control rooms are trained to use What3Words to locate callers and dispatch help exactly where it’s needed.“
Professional racing driver Ollie Webb, who has previously driven cars on closed circuits at more than 250 miles per hour, has been sent on a speed awareness course.
The Le Mans racer was caught speeding, doing 52 miles per hour in a 50 zone in the middle of the night.
In a post on Instagram, he gave details on the circumstances of his speeding faux pas. “Speed awareness course tomorrow, first one ever and for 52 in a 50 on the M6 at 3am in the truck lane.”
Not to have his festive spirits dampened, he added “nothing will get me down though, as it’s finally starting to feel like Christmas”.
In another previous post, he noted how impressed he was with French hypercar maker Bugatti’s 300 mph record earlier this year, and reminisced about his escapades at 250 mph and beyond.
There is an irony, then, that he should be pulled up for going just 2 mph over the limit. While no speeding offence is necessarily tolerable, ordinarily, there is room for manoeuvre.
Ten percent plus 2 mph is generally the accepted range for discrepancy, meaning you should technically be able to “get away” with 57 mph in a 50 mph zone.
One commenter on his Instagram post shared exacerbation about the strictness of the situation, saying “the world has gone mad. 2 mph over the limit! Where’s the common sense,” to which Webb responded, “exactly”.
Still, there is humour in the darkest of times. Commenters on his Instagram post haven’t wasted any time in having a laugh about it.
The old “who do you think you are, Stirling Moss!?” advert springs to mind.
Ollie has had a varied career in racing, starting with karting, moving through lower-level formula racing, hill climbs and into GT racing. He’s a European Le Mans Series Champion, and a Dubai 24-hour winner. He’s also spent time in the LMP1 hot seat at Le Mans.
While the average police car might be a Vauxhall Astra or Hyundai i30 with a livery and lights, there are many exciting and exotic pursuit vehicles, too. From Autobahn-storming super saloons to blues-and-twos Lamborghinis, these are the police cars you don’t want to see flashing in your rear-view mirror.
ABT Audi RS4-R
The standard Audi RS4 isn’t the sort of car you can be caught in a chase with and still get away. Nonetheless, renowned Audi tuner ABT Sportsline has given the car added muscle befitting an elite member of the force. This 530hp RS4-R was displayed at the Essen Motor Show in 2019. Schnell!
Ford Ranger Raptor
Meanwhile, in the UK, our police force has got something in stock for rural getaways. The new Ford Ranger Raptor is a baja-bashing beast of a truck, with trick Fox Racing shocks and knobbly tyres. You’re not getting away, even if you trade that stolen Golf R for an ATV.
Ford Focus ST Estate
Even if you stick with the Golf, you’ll need to be quite tasty behind the wheel to get away from the new liveried Focus ST wagon that’s just joined the fleet. In days past, it was the fast Fords being nicked and chased after…
Honda Civic Type R
A police force in Australia has taken delivery of a 320hp Honda Civic Type R. The hot hatch will join New South Wales Police officers on the Eyewatch social media initiative, aimed at building relationships between law enforcers and communities. Keep clicking to see other cool police cars from around the world.
Black Badge and ‘blues and twos’
If you’re hoping to add some sparkle to a police station event, it helps when you have the home of the world’s most famous luxury carmaker on your doorstep. Which explains why this one-off Rolls-Royce Ghost Black Badge made an appearance at a Chichester police station open day. Unsurprisingly, there are no plans for it to join the Sussex Police fleet of patrol cars, but it would certainly be a relaxing way to accompany an officer to the station for questioning.
Porsche on patrol
Bad news for criminals in Austria: the country’s police force has taken custody of a Porsche 911 for motorway patrol duties. The turbocharged 991 Carrera has all the equipment it needs for service, including blue lights and a radio system.
BMW X4 by AC Schnitzer
A lifestyle SUV-cum-coupe might be an unusual choice for a cop car, but hey, even the police have to look good, right? This is BMW’s X4 ‘Polizei’ modified by German tuners AC Schnitzer for the Essen Motor Show.
Performance
The German police machine is only an X4 20i, so it’s not packing the triple turbo straight-six from the M3 and M4. Still, AC Schnitzer has tuned the 2.0-litre turbo motor from 184 to 245hp, dropping the 0-62mph time to a respectable 6.7 seconds. Should be enough to keep up with any opportunistic joyriders.
Wales tail
The New South Wales (NSW) Police Force in Australia also uses a fully-liveried Porsche 911 for patrols. Any criminal is likely to think twice before trying to out-run it.
Porsche 911
The 911 can hit 62mph in less than five seconds, although the NSW Police force says that this car will mostly be used to attend community events where “the fascination of a Porsche in police decals is helping to break the ice especially with youths in disadvantaged areas”.
Porsche 911
This is certainly one of the coolest police cars around, but it has more competition than you might imagine. Here, we’ve collected some of the most eye-catching and unusual vehicles ever to wear a police logo and a set of flashing lights.
Dodge Charger Pursuit
This is the Dodge Charger Pursuit, a seriously mean-looking machine that became available to US police forces a few years ago.
Dodge Charger Pursuit
The Charger Pursuit is far from being all show and no go, either – it’s available with a 375hp 5.7-litre Hemi V8 and comes with upgraded suspension and a reinforced chassis.
Police forces with more modest pursuit goals – or greater concern for fuel economy – can opt for the rear-wheel-drive V6 version.
Lamborghini Huracan
The Italians are known for their flair and style, and it seems that extends to the country’s police force, too. Even before many customer orders were fulfilled, the Italian State Police took delivery of its brand new 610hp, 202mph-plus, 5.2-litre V10-engined Lamborghini Huracan police car in spring 2014. Now you’re going to need an Aventador to get away from them…
Chevrolet Tahoe
Named after a Californian lake, the Chevrolet Tahoe is the perfect US cop car. A bull bar ensures chases are over before you can say “stay in the car, sonny”, and its go-anywhere ability means offenders aren’t getting away even if they take a detour through the desert. It looks menacing, too, and there’s a couple of spotlights to help catch suspects in dark alleys.
Greater Manchester Police Pride Hyundai i30
There are plenty of Hyundai i30 police cars dotted around the UK, but none quite as colourful as this. The Greater Manchester Police ‘Pride Police car’ was created to reach out to the LGBT community during Manchester’s Pride Festival and decked out in the event’s rainbow flag colours.
Renault RS Megane
The French are a pretty patriotic bunch when it comes to cars, and that extends to what the gendarmes drive. From Paris to Poitiers the French force can usually be seen driving a battered old blue Megane or Scenic; this racy Renaultsport Megane 265 is a cut above the rest.
BMW 4 Series
German tuner AC Schnitzer regularly toys with police cars and one of its most recent creations is this BMW 428i complete with Polizei graphics and flashing lights on the roof. Before being put into service with Germany’s finest motorway cops, AC upgraded the engine to 294hp so it should be powerful enough to chase down speeders on the Autobahn.
Ferrari FF
First, a Lamborghini and now a Ferrari FF – the Dubai police force is building an impressive fleet of supercars to track speeding motorists in the desert. With four seats, the FF makes more sense than a Lamborghini Aventador as a cop car, and it’s just as potent: the £227k motor has a 6.2 V12 putting out 650hp and capable of 0-62mph in 3.8 seconds and a top speed of 208mph.
Chevrolet Caprice
New York City police officers man a checkpoint in Times Square, using their Chevrolet Caprice cop cars to block the road. Notice the rubber bumper bars to ram other cars off the road. The US cops don’t mess around if they want you to stop.
Lamborghini Aventador
It’s known as the capital of bling, so when it comes to policing Dubai, it takes a special kind of cop car to keep up with the 200mph+ hypercars you regularly see in the Emirate city.
Step forward the Lamborghini Aventador – one of the many jaw-dropping cars on the Dubai police force’s fleet.
Lamborghini Aventador
While it’s clearly more of a marketing exercise, it is expected that the Aventador will have a practical purpose as it tries to reign in the propensity for young male drivers to speed on the quiet desert roads. The Dubai police force has imposed strict new punishments for drivers who speed above 124mph, with hefty fines and even jail sentences on the cards.
Lamborghini Aventador
The £250k Aventador is perfect for the task: its 6.5-litre V12 engine produces 700hp and 508 lb/ft of torque and can hit 62mph in 2.9 seconds. Flat out it’ll reach 217mph. Fast as that is, it will still struggle to keep up with a Bugatti Veyron…
New research has looked at how the result of the EU referendum in 2016 has affected the cost of motoring in the UK. In the years since Britain voted out, motoring costs, including buying, maintainance, fuel and insurance, have all increased.
The increases may be due to both the uncertainty aroundBrexit, and how the pound has weakened as a result. Overall, average vehicle ownership costs are up 9.3 percent. That compares with a 7.3 percent rate of inflation over the same period.
In showrooms, the price of a new car has risen by an average of 12.3 percent, based on figures from the Office for National Statistics.
Vantage Leasing, which originally published the research, cites the Vauxhall Corsa as an example. While a 1.4i Design five-door was £12,480 in November 2016, that rose to £14,025 by June 2019. That’s a 12.4 percent increase in price.
In terms of insuring your car, the cost is also up, although not by an enormous amount. A year’s insurance in summer 2016 cost an average of £737. During the same period in 2019, the cost was £783, or £46 more. That’s a rise of 6.2 percent.
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Looking after your car costs more too. Vehicle maintenance and repairs have risen in price by 9.2 percent over the last three years. Spare parts are up 8.7 percent and tyres are 6.4 percent pricier.
A steady rise in the price of fuel is, however, is a phenomenon much older than the EU referendum. The normal fluctuations combined with the influence of Brexit have seen pump prices higher overall. The average price for a litre of unleaded was £1.16 at the time of the referendum. As of October 2019, the average was £1.27. That’s a jump in price of 9.2 percent.
For a 55-litre fuel tank, that’s an increase of £6.05. Diesel and super unleaded are up 11.1 percent and 11.6 percent respectively over the same period.
“Since the Brexit referendum was held three and a half years ago, there has been a gradual but very tangible increase in the cost of running a car,” said James Buttrick of Vantage Leasing.
“With so much uncertainty around the details of the UK’s departure from the EU, the automotive industry has found itself one of the worst affected. It’s hard to see that getting any better for the industry or the motoring consumer as we finally head towards Brexit.”
Jaguar Land Rover has confirmed that it has acquired all-terrain performance experts, Bowler.
The Derbyshire-based firm is now completely owned by Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), and will form part of its Special Vehicle Operations division.
Originally founded in 1985 by the late Drew Bowler, the company has been responsible for producing extreme off-road competition vehicles.
Powered by Land Rover
The two companies had previously formed a formal brand agreement in 2012, adding “Powered by Land Rover” branding to the Bowler EXR rally car. Bowler has solely used Land Rover powertrains to produce its bespoke off-roaders.
Between 2014 and 2016, Bowler was responsible for running the Defender Challenger competition. This saw teams making use of specially prepared Land Rover Defenders in UK-based rallies, with the aim of readying them for the legendary Dakar Rally.
The unexpected death of founder Drew Bowler in 2016 shocked the company, but other members of the family have helped the business continue.
A key step in strategy
Despite the purchase of Bowler, JLR has stated that the company will continue to operate as normal from its headquarters in Belper.
Michael van der Sande, Managing Director of Jaguar Land Rover Special Vehicle Operations confirmed that the “immediate focus is on ensuring continuity of support for Bowler employees and customers during this transition to Jaguar Land Rover”.
Exact details on what JLR plans for Bowler are yet to be confirmed, van der Sande added that the acquisition is “a key step in our strategy to create an exciting and diverse portfolio of products and businesses within Special Vehicle Operations”.
The motorsport expertise of Bowler could be a precursor to JLR formally entering the Land Rover brand into off-road competition.
“I am a driving God!”
Bowler is perhaps best known to the general public for inspiring one of Richard Hammond’s most infamous Top Gear quotes.
During the second series of the revised format, Hammond drove a V8-powered Bowler Wildcat, leading him to exclaim that he was “a driving God”. Despite the mockery from Jeremy Clarkson and James May, the feature did highlight the incredible abilities of Bowler products.
More recent highlights for Bowler have included winning both the British Baja National Championship, and the French Baja, in 2006. Last year saw Bowler entrants claim first, second and fourth positions overall on the fearsome Tuareg Rallye.
Entries are now open for the 2020 Toyota Parallel Pomeroy Trophy at Silverstone.
Toyotas of all shapes, sizes and ages are invited to attend to the event. Everyone has a chance of driving home in a blaze of glory.
In theory, an ageing Avensis or Camry could upstage a Supra or GT86. Rising Starlets should form an orderly queue…
Entrants must complete the same series of driving tests, but the results are calculated taking factors such as the car’s age and engine size into account.
As a result, a Toyota iQ scooped the Parallel Pomeroy Trophy in 2019. The tiny city car finished ahead of a Toyota Celica GT-Four and a Yaris GRMN in second and third place.
All cars must be road-legal, while all participants must hold a valid UK driving licence. Entries cost £30, with proceeds donated to Guide Dogs for the Blind.
‘There’s no other manufacturer event like it’
Scott Brownlee, head of press and social at Toyota GB, said: “Last year’s event proved a hugely popular success, with all kinds of Toyotas in action.
“This year we’re ready to welcome even more owners to join in the fun and celebrate the amazing variety of Toyota models from across the years. There’s no other manufacturer event like it and we’re keen to see as many cars as possible taking part.”
Next year’s event will take place on 15 February 2020 at the Silverstone circuit in Northampton. In addition to the competition, drivers will be invited to take to the circuit in a special parade lap.
More information, event regulations and downloadable entry forms can be found on the Vintage Sports Car Club (VSCC) website.
The all-new Hyundai i10 is now on sale. With prices starting from £12,495, the firm has repositioned the car within the entry-level segment.
Hyundai is longer chasing bargain-basement sales, and elevating the i10 to a more upmarket and tech-packed specification should give the car a market USP. Or so it hopes.
The i10 has ‘segment leading connectivity and safety features’. All cars come with a forward collision warning system, autonomous emergency braking and lane-keep assist.
Air con, cruise control, Bluetooth and DAB radio are also standard across the range.
Every i10 variant apart from the cheapest SE has an eight-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, voice control and a built-in rear-view camera.
On the top-spec Premium, a £1,000 optional extra pack brings touchscreen navigation, Hyundai Bluelink remote telematics and wireless smartphone charging.
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Hyundai adds that, unlike some four-seat city car rivals, the new i10 is a genuine five-seater, with a trio of three-point rear seatbelts.
Buyers can choose from either a 67 hp 1.0-litre engine, or an 84 hp 1.2-litre. The smaller engine averages 56.5 mpg, while the bigger motor isn’t far behind on 55.4 mpg.
CO2 emissions are also low – 101 g/km and 105 g/km respectively.
The city car lives on
Several brands have withdrawn their smallest city car models in recent months. The Ford Ka+ is no more, Vauxhall has ditched the Adam and Viva, and Renault has withdrawn the Twingo.
Instead of pulling out of the sector, Hyundai Motor UK MD Ashley Andrew says the firm is repositioning the i10 from a pure value-for-money car into something that miniaturises technology and safety from the sectors above.
“We are confident that there is still a significant number of new car buyers looking for a vehicle with city car manoeuvrability and high equipment levels, a combination that the all-new i10 is perfectly positioned to offer.”
And although ditching the base S version does raise entry-level prices, Andrew says improved retained values will help with competitive PCP and contract hire rates – for a “bigger, smarter, safer and better-looking car”.
Hyundai even offers an automatic gearbox option for a meagre £500 – although don’t expect thrilling performance if you combine it with the base 1.0-litre engine: 0-62 mph takes a yawning 17.3 seconds…
Nissan has reduced the price of its Leaf electric car by £1,650 across the range.
As a result, prices now range from £26,345 for the Leaf 40kWh in Acenta trim, rising to £29,345 for the flagship Tekna. These prices include the £3,500 Plug-in Car Grant discount.
Crucially, this puts the entire 40kWh Leaf range within the sub-£30k P11D price point, making it more appealing for company car drivers. From April 2020, there will be a zero percent benefit-in-kind (BIK) tax on electric vehicles.
Nic Verneuil, marketing director of Nissan Motors GB, said: “Nissan is always improving the competitiveness of its vehicles, ensuring customers enjoy a better buying and ownership experience.
“We’ve not only secured additional factory production to make Leaf more accessible, but as a result we’ve also been able to significantly lower the price tag of the car in market.
“If customers are ready to make the switch, they shouldn’t have to wait to get behind the wheel of an electric vehicle.”
Leaf in a fortnight
This is a thinly-veiled reference to the 12 months some customers are forced to wait for their new electric car. Nissan claims the waiting times for a new Leaf are as short as two weeks.
The Nissan Leaf now comes with two rear USB ports, while Tekna models also gain LED fog lights with a cornering function. The lights are optional on N-Connecta versions.
Earlier this year, the Leaf e+ was added to the range. The more expensive model boasts a 62kWh battery to deliver a range of up to 239 miles.
“It could well be the EV that convinces newly-receptive car buyers that electric cars are the way to go. Once you add in low running costs, and retained values that now mirror conventional cars, and Nissan’s feature-packed smartphone app that makes operating one as painless as possible, the advantages over petrol or diesel stretch.
“There are still foibles. Practicality could still be better, for example. The infotainment system is aged, the driving position compromised. But they’re not deal-breaking deterrents. Overall, the new Leaf is an impressive machine that delivers exactly what it needed to do, on time, for a competitive price. The electric car for normal people is here.”
“For 70 years, Honda has provided to customers worldwide motorcycles that make life easier and enjoyable,” said Honda Motor Co CEO Takahiro Hachigo.
Honda is far from resting on its laurels, though. It is pressing ahead developing a range of zero-emissions electric motorcycles, including the lightweight, simple and affordable Honda V-Go.
The ambition is to quickly start selling very high volumes of affordable electric bikes. It is also developing clever swappable battery technology.
“We will continue to do our best to provide attractive products that meet the needs and dreams of our customers worldwide,” said Hachigo-san.
Honda’s first motorcycle was the 1949 Dream D-Type (pictured above). The world-famous (and now trademark-protected) Super Cub was launched in 1958 and, a decade later, it had made 10 million motorcycles.
The 100 million mark was reached in 1997 and Honda hit the 200 million milestone in 2008.
Even today, demand is still rising and Honda continues to develop new machines and factories with its 2030 strategy of ‘expanding life’s potential’.
By which time, it is on course to have built over 600 million motorcycles…
It might seem obvious, but new data has proven that Americans really do still love their pickup trucks.
More specifically, they love buying new ones, and have been doing so at an increased rate throughout the 2010s.
This continued loyalty comes despite the substantial increase in the popularity of SUVs, plus the ever-growing prices of new pickup trucks
Keep on truckin’
The statistical research, undertaken by JATO Dynamics, found that 13.1% of vehicles sold in the United States in 2010 were pickup trucks. Fast-forward to 2019, and the proportion has managed to increase to an impressive 16.8%.
In the same time period, the sales of hatchbacks have dropped from 7.0% to 4.8%, with sedans falling from 38.9% to 22.1%. Somewhat predictably, SUVs have increased their market share from 27.3% to a huge 46.8%.
This trend demonstrates why auto makers like Ford are rapidly abandoning traditional cars, and instead focussing on selling trucks and SUVs.
Ford is still King of the truck world
Ford will be happy with the F-150 being the best-selling vehicle in the United States during the decade. The Blue Oval has found new homes for some 5.2 million units of the popular truck.
That F-150 figure accounts for more vehicles than Subaru has sold from its entire range throughout the same period of 2010 to 2019.
Buyers north of the border have also continued the pickup love, with trucks now accounting for 18.2% of the Canadian new vehicle market.
More money, more luxury
The enhanced proportion of truck buyers come despite the fact prices for new pickups have increased between 2010 and 2019. Whilst a base model truck had an average MSRP of $32,595 at the start of the decade, now buyers can expect to pay $44,039 for the same.
This 35.1% increase in average prices is more dramatic, when compared to the fact that average SUV prices have only been raised by 16.4% in the same timeframe.
JATO does note that leather seats are now standard in 27.3% of all trucks, whilst 18.0% have high-end branded audio systems. A decade ago only 17.8% and 5.1% had the same items fitted respectively.
Not everything has been about excess though. Average engine displacement has fallen from 5.0-liters to 4.9-liters, whilst average gas mileage has improved from 14.6 mpg to 17.8 mpg.
