In case you haven’t ventured out of the front door over the past few days of Feb 2012 (who can blame you either given the apparent sub zero temperatures), we’re now in one of the worst cold snaps this winter has seen. There are currently six severe weather warnings running on the Met Office UK site, flights from Heathrow were halved on Sunday and accidents are abound in areas badly affected.

As always, drive carefully and consider cancelling all non-essential journeys. There isn’t a journey that is worth your life.

Here’s the latest from Motorpoint on some cars that will keep you safe without breaking the bank!

Choosing a car to help keep your family as safe as possible is crucial, especially when it is icy outside! Luckily, Motorpoint enables customers to buy a car without compromising on safety with some of Euro NCAP’s top five-star rated models available now with great savings!

Euro NCAP, which provides motorists with an independent assessment of the safety performance of some of Europe’s best-selling models, has just announced its top five-star rated achievers in 2011 for each category, and Motorpoint has some of these cars in stock now!

The best achiever in the ‘Small Family’ category was the Ford Focus. Motorpoint has a choice in stock, including the five-star safety rated new model ’11 plate 1.6 Zetec 125 which is priced at just £12,999 offering a customer saving of £4,791 and including metallic paint worth £413. With mileages of around 6k and under, this makes the price a real bargain, ensuring your family’s safety needn’t cost you an arm or a leg.

If you have a bigger family then the Volvo V60 is the car for you, topping Euro NCAP’s ‘Large Family’ category in 2011. Motorpoint has a variety of Volvo cars in stock including the new model ’11 plate V60 D3 R-Design five-star rated car, priced at just £19,999 offering a customer saving of £7,411. Coming in white or silver, with mileages of under 20k and offering an impressive 51.4 MPG, these great value buys won’t stick around for long!

To see more deals from Motorpoint, visit the official website.

The new apprentice programme, which is seeking Advanced and Higher Apprentices, launches on Monday February 6th 2012 – coincident with National Apprenticeship week. This year, Jaguar Land Rover is seeking 133 apprentices to join the company which has a portfolio of hugely successful (and attractive) models in the range.

Commenting on the 2012 Apprentice programme, Des Thurlby, Human Resources Director, JLR, said: “Our Apprentice intake has more than doubled in the last 4 years and I am delighted that this year we are committing to take on a record number of apprentices. Apprenticeships provide a valuable and credible career path for the brightest and best and JLR is committed to providing the highest quality practical and academic training to develop the future generation of engineering talent needed to drive our business forward, indeed many of our senior leaders began their careers as apprentices.”

The JLR careers website opens for applications on 6th February 2012 and will close on 8th April 2012. Anyone interested in applying should visit: www.jaguarlandrovercareers.com.

Author: Tony Lewin
Paperback: 540 pages
Publisher: Merrell Publishers Ltd (14 Oct 2011)
Price: £24.95 (RRP)
Recommended? Yes

The A-Z Of 21st Century Cars is being sold as “The most comprehensive guide available to the international automobile industry of the first decade of the twenty-first century“. Whilst this is quite a specific remit, the fact that so much has changed over this time period highlights the importance and necessity of this book for anyone with even a passing interest in cars.

Written by Tony Lewin (a former editor of What Car? and an acknowledged industry expert of over thirty years experience, the breadth of the book covers 300 entries of various vehicles and features over 1500 images. Whilst some of the images are stock, the quality cannot be denied and the sheer number means that the simple turning of the page can offer something new and fresh to the reader.

The book is arranged into three categories; being models, marques and designers. Each are colour coded differently to help you navigate through the book (given the number of pages this proves to be extremely helpful). Cross referencing is simple to follow and where there is another related entry to look up there’s a double arrow (marked >>) to highlight this fact to the reader.

Each vehicle entry covers year of production, engine size, length, layout, horsepower, max speed and the ever present CO2 emission levels. Descriptive text frequently details a brief history followed by a commentary on the design of the car.

To give a flavour of how it really steeps you in the designer’s world, let me provide another small quotation for you: “On the 458 Italia, the visual mass is also reduced by the placing of the engine air intakes under the car, allow smooth sides undistorted by slots or ducts“. It is this language and attention to detail that purveys itself throughout the book, making it a pleasure to read.

The included glossary (based on the terms used by the noted Coventry University) is a particularly welcome addition as it helps the reader understand how the designer thinks when coming up with the aesthetics for a car. Also included are company histories, principal model listings and designer biographies. Finally, a ‘who owns whom’ section rounds out the facts.

So should you buy it? If you are a car enthusiast or have an interest in design, this might well be for you. The scope of the book means that there’s very little left out of any great significance and the photographs are beautiful too. Whether you want to read up for more pub facts or you are more serious about your design knowledge then The A-Z Of 21st Century Cars may well be for you. Definitely recommended.

The Toyota iQ has always been a distinctive car thanks to a world’s first four seat design in a car less than three metres long. It is now set to be even more customisable thanks to colourful decal designs and and leather seat upholsteries, meaning hundreds of possible unique interpretations are available. If you like your iQ fresh and funky then the world has just been opened up to you!

You can find out more about the Toyota iQ at the official Toyota website.

Lighter Later, the campaign to stop the practice of daylight saving, received a massive blow today, which according to road safety supporter, GEM Motoring Assist, could be putting road users lives at risk.

Despite having the support of more than 90 organisations in favour of the bill, and 120 MP’s who all voted to pass the motion, (just 10 attending MPs were against) somehow, due to what might be construed as deliberate acts of sabotage the session ran out of time before the motion could be passed.

Lighter Later proposes that Britain’s clocks are shifted forward by one hour throughout the year, so an hour of daylight moves from the morning to the evening, which campaigners believe will have a significant positive impact on road safety, energy saving, and the general health and wellbeing of the nation.

GEM has backed this campaign from the outset, and is bitterly disappointed that the efforts of so many have been wasted at the point of which should have been a ‘rubber stamping exercise’.

Number one for breakdown cover in the UK, GEM Motoring Assist, offers its commiserations to Lighter Later, but pledges to continuing supporting the campaigns next steps. However, David Williams MBE, GEM Chief Executive, has very grave concerns about what has happened today: “Year on year the evidence shows that the accident rate on the roads increases after the clocks go back and we believe that this unnecessary hold up will cost lives. Poor weather, decreased visibility and bad road conditions are all rife during the winter months and have a serious effect on the rise in accidents and hazardous breakdown situations. Changing the clocks is proven to add further to the dangers for road users.”

Determined to continue with the campaign he added: “Introducing lighter evenings will make our roads a safer place by increasing visibility and in turn will help prevent unnecessary accidents.”

“Setting the clocks so we can enjoy more hours of daylight, will also help the nation save on electricity bills and hugely decrease the amount of pollution caused by electric lights. With numerous benefits, the change is welcomed by GEM.”

GEM provides three levels of recovery service to suit all needs and pockets; full details of all the options can be found on GEM’s website (www.motoringassist.com) along with other useful road safety and driving advice.

Here’s the press release covering the Land Rover ‘Go Beyond’ bursary. If you love adventure, then I suggest you read on as you may just be able to fund the experience of a lifetime.

Calling all expedition enthusiasts! With only weeks to go before the Land Rover ‘Go Beyond’ Bursary 2012 application draws to a close, now is your chance to apply for funding and the loan of a Land Rover Defender 110 to do a journey of a lifetime.

For the fifth consecutive year, the Land Rover ‘Go Beyond’ Bursary, run by the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) is one of Land Rover’s six Global Humanitarian & Conservation Partners.

The award is aimed at those who want to take a journey beyond their limits and boundaries, offering challenges for the team and using a Land Rover Defender 110 as an integral part of the expedition.

Mark Cameron, Global Brand Extension Director for Land Rover said; “It’s brilliant to see such a wide and exciting variety of expedition enthusiasts applying for the ‘Go Beyond’ Bursary 2012 this year.

And for the first time ever, we have also trebled the total amount of Land Rover funding to £30, 000, enabling the winning Bursary team to adventure further afield than ever before.”

Paul Rose, Vice President of Expeditions & Fieldwork, RGS-IBG added; “The Land Rover ‘Go Beyond’ Bursary offers recipients an amazing opportunity to take a journey to promote a wider understanding and enjoyment of people, places and environments.”

“With the use of a Land Rover Defender 110, you can really get off the beaten track and make the most of the vehicle’s capabilities in remote terrain and in demanding environments, helping to turn ideas for challenging and inspiring geographical journeys into a reality.”

The journey may connect the team with schools, local communities or projects but, whatever its aim, the team will be expected to inspire and engage others, both from the field and on return.

A bursary of £15,000 is available and in addition applicants can apply for a discretionary fund of up to £15,000 to support essential expedition-related costs. The application deadline is 3 February 2012 and interviews will take place in March 2012, in London. To apply, please visit; www.rgs.org/GoBeyond.

Additionally, the Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) will also be exhibiting at the Telegraph Adventure Travel Show; Expedition planning zone. The show will provide a collection of extraordinary travel experiences under one roof, at London Olympia on the 28 – 29 January 2012.

The Royal Geographical Society (with IBG) is one of six Global Humanitarian & Conservation Partners with Land Rover which forms part of an integrated approach to sustainability and sits within Land Rovers’ Our Planet.

Finally, it is the information we’ve all been waiting for. Just what is the rocket powered Nissan Juke-R capable of? Fitted with the engine from the Nissan GT-R supercar, the Juke-R has been completely reworked from the ground up to provide exceptional performance and handling whilst retaining the unique looks of the base car.

Nissan has shown during testing that the Juke-R’s 485bhp 3.8-litre V6 twin turbo engine propels the car from a standing start to 62mph (100kph) in just 3.7 seconds, before continuing on to a top speed of 160mph (257kph). This is eye watering performance for something that started off life as a fresh and funky small family car.

I will remind you all at this point that Juke-R the is only a technical study at this stage, and just two working examples will be built (in left and right hand drive respectively). This though speaks volumes. I’m guessing if the public at large show a demand, the car will no doubt be built. I wonder if the price tag will be as hair raising as the performance…

A new survey, commissioned by GEM, reveals that 52 per cent of motorists want to keep the current annual MOT system and do not agree with Government proposals to make it biennial. Only 26 per cent said they would want it to change and 22 per cent were unsure.

The survey of 3,000 UK motorists reveals that drivers would be worried about leaving a two year gap between MOT tests; with nearly 50 per cent being concerned about potential mechanical failure. The survey also shows that more than half of UK drivers believe that the change in the law would see car maintenance standards deteriorate and feel reassured of their car’s safety and roadworthiness with the current system.

GEM Chief Executive, David Williams MBE, comments: “The results prove that having such a regular service gives the public peace of mind when it comes to driving a safe and reliable vehicle. We know that drivers rarely check their cars themselves and leaving it two years will mean we will have unsafe and sub-standard cars on our roads. The proposed biennial MOT system will undoubtedly have a negative impact on road safety and put more lives at risk unnecessarily every year.”

The survey also shows that 44 per cent of drivers believe the MOT law change would have a negative impact on road safety in the UK.

“Road safety should never be compromised and we are fierce supporters of the ProMOTe campaign to lobby the government against these plans.” David concluded.

For more information on the ProMOTe campaign please visit www.pro-mote.org.uk and the GEM Motoring Assist website www.motoringassist.com.

Here is the latest (as of 13th January 2012) Croft Circuit 2012 Fixture List (provisional):

Date/Event:
22 Jan Jack Frost Rally (DDMC)
1 March-1 April Motorcycle races (NEMCRC)
28-29 April Car races (BARC)
19-20 May Car races (DDMC)
23-24 June Dunlop BTCC (BARC)
21-22 July Car races (BARC)
4-5 August Nostalgia Weekend (HSCC)
18-19 August Motorcycle races (Derby Phoenix)
8-9 September Car races (DDMC)
29-30 September Car races (BARC)
28 October British Rallycross (TBA)
24 Nov Roger Albert Clark Rally
TBA Christmas Stages Rally (NAC)

Croft Circuit has issued an action-packed motor sport fixture list for 2012 with the star-studded Dunlop MSA British Touring Car Championship (23-24 June), its own historic racing festival, Nostalgia Weekend (4-5 August), and the Roger Albert Clark Rally on 24 November featuring the hero cars of rallying’s golden era from the Seventies among the major highlights.

Croft Circuit Manager Tracey Morley commented: “Once again we are committed to providing the public, particularly families, with a great day’s entertainment when they visit us. We are very proud of our line-up of events for 2012, particularly considering we are limited to just 40 days per year of competitive activity here at Croft – of course the BTCC and Nostalgia weekends will attract star billing, but there are plenty of other gems in there for the public, media, officials and competitors to enjoy. We very much look forward to seeing them all during the forthcoming season.”

You may also be interested to know that Croft Circuit has re-launched its website www.croftcircuit.co.uk – providing fans, media, competitors and officials with greater and far speedier details about its exciting calendar of motor sport events and performance driving experiences.