Forget the Goodwood Festival of Speed or England’s third place playoff match against Belgium, because Stowe House was the only place to be on Saturday. The grand setting played host to the Festival of the Unexceptional, a celebration of everyday classics, the mundane and the oft-forgotten. We grabbed our Instamatic camera to bring you the best photos from the extravaganza of the ordinary.

Ford Sierra

Once upon a time, the Ford Sierra was a familiar sight of Britain’s roads, but while your father yearned for a Ghia or XR4i, he probably had to ‘make do’ with something a little more mundane, like a beige 1.6 GL. This Sierra has survived scrappage schemes, the lure of a PCP deal and the British weather, and is, in our humble opinion, as exciting as anything on show at the Duke of Richmond’s garden party.

Vauxhall Astra

Today, this Vauxhall Astra 1.3 L Estate looks to the manor born, which shows how much has changed in three decades. When new in 1989, it wouldn’t have been allowed this close to Stowe House unless it was carrying Gary the window cleaner or Brian the gardener.

Ford Cortina

The Cortina was destined to be called the Consul 325, but Ford bosses decided its family saloon needed a more aspirational and exotic name. Having ruled out Skegness, Paignton or Morecambe, Ford settled on Cortina, after the Italian ski resort and host of the 1956 Winter Olympics.

Austin Allegro

What could be more unexceptional than the Austin Allegro, the car often cited as representing all that was wrong with the British car industry? “It’s easy to like the Austin Allegro just for its looks,” proclaimed the press ad at its launch in 1973. You can decide if the ad man was speaking the truth.

Maestro meets Maxi

Left or right? Given the choice, would you prefer to travel home from Stowe in an Austin Maestro or an Austin Maxi. Waiting for the bus is not an option. For what it’s worth, we’d be happy in either.

Fiat Strada

Now for something a little more exotic. The Fiat Strada – or Ritmo in its domestic market – is known for being the subject of one of the famous car adverts of all time. The ‘Handbuilt by Robots’ advert was set to the rousing soundtrack of Rossini’s Figaro and once filled an entire News at Ten ad break. According to Campaign, upon arrival in Turin, the production team were met by workers protesting about losing their jobs… to robots.

Talbot Matra Rancho

Ahead of its time in so many ways, the Matra Rancho was a ‘lifestyle’ vehicle before marketing people had cottoned on to the fact that people might use their cars for more than just commuting, shopping, school runs and family holidays. It looked like a pre-Discovery Discovery, but the front-wheel-drive Rancho offered little in the way of off-road ability. Cool thing.

Volvo 360

Give yourself 1,000 I-Spy points for spotting a Volvo 360 away from its natural territory of a garden centre or a lawn bowls car park. The 360 was introduced in 1982 and featured a more powerful 2.0-litre engine, which enabled owners to reach the garden centre in record time. You can’t be late for those two-for-one flapjack deals in the tea shop.

Dacia 1310

This is Ian ‘Hubnut’ Seabrook’s Dacia 1310, a recent import from Romania. Ian chronicled the journey home on YouTube, and the adventure is far more exciting than a supercar driving past a wall in Sussex. Probably.

Invacar

This is one of Ian’s other cars: an Invacar. Again, you can catch up on the restoration job via HubNut’s YouTube channel. One day, we hope to see Ian invited to tackle the Goodwood hill in the Invacar. We hear Nick Heidfeld is a tad worried that his record might be broken.

Austin Maxi

AA and RAC badges present and correct, because you can never have enough breakdown cover. In fairness, the Austin Maxi comes in for some unfair stick, but this was a genuinely innovative and spacious family car. Sadly, it was let down by poor build quality and a lack of investment.

Chrysler Alpine

Good enough to be named European Car of the Year in 1976, and yet the Chrysler Alpine – or Simca 1307 – has been all but forgotten. Which is a shame, because the Alpine was an early pioneer of the hatchback bodystyle, offering a compelling blend of space and economy. Today, it’s as rare as many of the cars basking in the sun on the Cartier Lawn at Goodwood.

Triumph TR7

It’s a good job Giorgetto Giugiaro wasn’t at the Festival of the Unexceptional, because if he had, he’d have taken one look at this Triumph TR7, paused for a moment, wandered around to the other side, before proclaiming: “Good lord, a beige Metro.”

Datsun Cherry

In many ways, this photo represents the turning point in the British car industry. A Range Rover and Rover P6 – two of Britain’s greatest cars of the era – flanking a Datsun Cherry, one of the first of new wave of Japanese cars to hit these shores. The subject of derision when new, motorists loved the fact that, unlike many of the British cars of the day, a Japanese car would start in the morning and would almost certainly reach its destination.

Nissan Prairie

The Chrysler Minivan and Renault Espace are credited with kickstarting the rise of the MPV, but the Nissan Prairie was there at the start. Indeed, the Prairie owes much to Giugiaro’s Megagamma concept of 1978.

Citroen GS

Designed to fill the gap between the 2CV and the DS, the GS delivered Citroen’s famous innovation to the masses. Launched in 1970, the GS beat the SM to the European Car of the Year award in 1971 and was, by some margin, the most technically advanced car in its segment. Buy a GS today, while it remains relatively affordable.

Oh, Nicole

A popular, forward-thinking, neatly-packaged and good looking car. Oh, and alongside the Renault Clio you’ll find a Jaguar XJ-S.

Datsun Sunny

Last year, this 1983 Datsun Sunny was named the most unexceptional car at the show. Which, in the case of this event, is a good thing.

Lobster Diecast

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This is Lobster Diecast’s works van, which is one of our favourite cars of the show. Keep clicking for more unexceptional photos of exceptionally brilliant cars.

Read more:

• The show-stopping supercars of Goodwood Festival of Speed 2018
• ‘The Bridge’ Porsche 911 sells for £120,000 over estimate
• Police stop ‘most unroadworthy car’ in Britain

In June 2016, 71 percent of car searches by fuel type on Auto Trader were for diesel vehicles. Petrol was way back on just 27 percent. Just two years on, the tables have been dramatically turned, with the two fuels now neck-and-neck in searches.

Latest Auto Trader data shows a decline in diesel fuel type searches to just 47 percent – and petrol has grown to 46 percent. On current trends, June 2018 could therefore be the last month in many years that diesel holds a search advantage over petrol.

But although diesel was for years marketed as a greener choice, modern alternative fuel vehicles (AFVs) such as hybrids and electric cars are not picking up the slack. Searches for AFVs totalled just 4 percent in June 2018: that’s growth of a paltry two percentage points in two years.

“These figures underline the lack of momentum in electric and hybrid take-up to date,” said Karolina Edwards-Smajda.

“Consumers are hearing negative noises around diesel but confusion and a lack of clarity means they’re responding with either inaction or by shifting to another fuel type that they know and understand – petrol.

“Petrol is the clear winner so far from the campaign to ‘demonise diesel’.”

As for used car values overall, they’re on the up. The Auto Trader data showed the decline in diesel prices are being balanced by an increase in petrol. The average price of a used car is now £12,675, an increase of more than £1,000 over June 2017.

This is a like-for-like basis too, adds Auto Trader: the effects of changes in the mix of cars being sold – for example, more SUVs and fewer hatchbacks – are stripped out. It’s not your imagination: used cars really are getting more expensive. 

• Diesel new car share could plummet to just 5% by 2030
• Diesel still has a ‘valuable role’ says Chris Grayling MP
• Used car values are on the up says Auto Trader

Aston Martin’s expansion in the luxury goods sector could see it move into luxury aircraft, with the reveal of its Volante Vision Concept at Farnborough debuting “an exciting alternative transportation solution for customers across the globe”.

Developed in partnership with Cranfield University, Rolls-Royce and Cranfield Aerospace Solutions, the three-seat flying Aston is billed as a hybrid-electric autonomous vehicle for urban and inter-city travel.

The new aircraft, able to take off and land vertically (like a Harrier Jump Jet) will be fast, efficient, not get jammed up in road congestion and, crucially, be very luxurious and plush inside. It will also give Aston Martin’s ever-broadening design division an entirely new platform to develop its signature look.

Impressively, Aston claims it is a “near future study”, meaning it could start flying in prototype form sooner than we may think.

Explaining Aston’s move to the skies, president and CEO Dr Andy Palmer said: “With the population in urban areas continuing to grow, congestion in towns and cities will become increasingly demanding.  We need to look at alternative solutions to reduce congestion, cut pollution and improve mobility. 

“Air travel will be a crucial part in the future of transportation, the Volante Vision Concept is the ultimate luxury mobility solution.”

We’ve always spent about an hour commuting to and from work, he said, and the distance we live from work has been based on the types of transportation available. Aston’s new aircraft will allow people to live further away from work as they’re able to travel further in that hour.

“Cities will grow, and towns that are today too far away from cities to be commutable will become suburban.” The Volante Vision Concept will “change the future of transportation, giving our customers a new dimension of freedom”.

“With Aston Martin and our ‘dream team’ of British innovation across industry and academia, we are positioned to change the future of transportation, giving our customers a new dimension of freedom”.

Rolls-Royce director of electrical Rob Watson said: “Rolls-Royce has already delivered hybrid-electric systems for other applications including ships and trains, and we’re very excited about the potential of the technology in aerospace.

“This is a great opportunity to collaborate on a pioneering project which will use high performance hybrid-electric propulsion technologies for personal air mobility concepts that could transform the future of transportation.”

• Aston Martin is moving into Silverstone
• The Aston Martin V8 Cygnet is the world’s craziest pocket rocket
• Aston Martin ‘greatly encouraged’ by government Brexit plan

Highways England is to trial a raised speed limit of 60mph through motorway roadworks during quieter times, and if it is successful, the move may become permanent.

This would see the speed limit raised during less busy off-peak times, such as Sundays, while still keeping the current 50mph limit when the roads are busier.

The move is aimed at reducing the frustration motorists feel from driving for miles on end at 50mph through ‘empty’ roadworks on deserted motorways and A-roads. Studies have shown this causes raised stress levels – which are significantly reduced simply by raising the speed limit by 10mph.

Highways England chief executive Jim O’Sullivan said: “People understand roadworks are necessary but are also frustrated by them.

“At the same time, we have to ensure as they drive through them that they, and our road workers, are safe.

“So we are always thinking of new ways to improve journeys at the same time as keeping everyone as safe as we can.”

• Ministers call for an end to lengthy roadworks
• £15 billion roadworks scheme juggled to cut delays
• Roadworks permit scheme helps reduce misery for drivers

Highways England will also assess whether it is safe to raise the speed limit when roadworks are situated further away from the main motorway carriageway – which could result in different speed limits for either side of the motorway, depending on where workers are located.

The organisation does add that it doesn’t intend to compromise safety: figures show that there are 300 incidents of drivers entering coned-off areas, or subjecting road workers to verbal or even physical abuse, every week in the UK.

Ford has revealed PCP finance deals for the highly acclaimed new Fiesta ST, and the headline launch offer is a three-year deal at 2.9 percent APR that prices an ST-2 three-door from £220 a month. 

This includes one of the two £745 ‘exclusive’ colours too, either Ford Performance Blue or Silver Fox (the sole ‘free’ colour is Race Red). Buyers need to find a relatively sensible £4,664 deposit (and £9,254 at the end if they don’t want to keep it). Annual mileage limit? A perfectly decent 9,000 miles a year.

• New 2018 Ford Fiesta ST first drive review

For what almost certainly will emerge as one of the best new cars launched in 2018, it’s an offer that’s sure to prove very tempting. 

The Fiesta ST already caused a stir when prices were revealed: it costs from just £18,995. The best-value pick of the range is the £19,995 ST-2, and it’s this version that the Ford Options PCP deal is based around. There’s also an ST-3 for £21,495, and five-door versions of the new ST for an extra £650. 

Ford’s finance package rubs salt into the wounds of pricier rivals. The new Suzuki Swift Sport, for example, seemed overpriced when it was revealed prices started from £17,999. Suzuki quickly rolled out a deal cutting that to £16,499, but although the related PCP deal was 0 percent finance, it was still £249 a month. 

That deal has since expired: the Swift now costs £199 a month… but on a four-year PCP at 5.9 percent APR, with a £4,396 deposit. 

That loud wail you can hear? It’s coming from the marketing department at Suzuki GB.

Oh, and if you don’t want to own a Fiesta ST outright, Ford will also lease you one for three years on Ford Personal Lease, for a £4,620 advance rental – and the same £220 a month payment. 

Around 18.5 million drivers are expected to hit the roads in the UK this summer, as families head off for their annual holiday. As the chance of a collision increases, parents are being warned to keep their children in rear-facing car seats for longer to reduce the risk of serious injury.

The warning comes from Axkid, the Swedish manufacturer of child car seats, with the company suggesting parents should follow Sweden’s lead in keeping children in rear-facing child seats until the age of four, an approach endorsed by the British Medical Journal.

In 2009, it said: “Rear-facing seats are safer than forward facing seats for children under four-years-old. Parents and guardians should be advised to keep young children in rear-facing seats for as long as possible.”

To turn your child's #carseat too early could mean the difference between life and death. The safest option is to travel #rearfacing as long as possible – all the way up to age of 6 years. #axkid #rearfacing #coolkidsridesafe 📸: Sophia Flygare pic.twitter.com/11nKGmNF3x

— Axkid (@Axkid_Intl) July 5, 2018

Axkid points out that countries that have adopted the concept of keeping children rear facing for longer have the lowest rates of infant mortality on the roads globally. In 2017, a report by Swedish insurance company, Folksam, found that “if a child is placed in a forward-facing seat, the child runs five times higher risk of being injured in a crash.”

In summary, the report said:

If a young child (0-4 years) is facing forward the head and neck will be exposed to a higher load during a crash than a rear-facing child. The mass of the head in relation to the rest of the body is much larger for children than for adults. Furthermore, a child’s neck muscles and ligaments are not fully developed. The advantage of a rear-facing CRS is that the head, neck and the rest of the body are decelerated at the same time and therefore the load to the head and neck is considerably lower than for a forward-facing child during a crash.

The law in the UK