“Granny shifting instead of double clutching like you should”

Words made famous by ‘Dom’ (Vin Diesel) in 2001 film The Fast and the Furious. Maybe the low expectations of the movie led the makers to deem fact checking unnecessary, but this line stands out as a glaring error amongst a host of them relating to motor vehicles and their operation.

Passenger cars performance is constantly improving. As a result, mechanical stresses on the components are increasing – particularly for chassis applications.

In November 2017, Tesla announced their first effort in the commercial vehicle market – the Semi. In the presentation given by CEO Elon Musk, some very impressive claims were made about the capabilities of the Semi - but given Tesla’s problems surrounding the Model 3, can they deliver on them?

In 2018 Alfa Romeo – after a thirty year absence – will be re-joining the pinnacle of motorsport for the Formula 1 18/19 season having teamed up with the Sauber team.

They are a marque with undoubted pedigree and a long history stretching back to the days of the very first Grand Prix’s, and will be a welcome addition to the F1 stable.

Appearing as if from nowhere and spreading across the roads like black pits of alloy shattering despair - winter brings about the growth of the dreaded pothole more than at any other time of year.

In their wake arises the relentless sea of orange plastic and amber light, to further torment motorists into traffic jam induced rages of impotence.  It doesn’t have to be this way, salvation is close to hand.

Technology is currently advancing at the fastest rate ever seen in the history of mankind. Advances that had never been dreamed of let alone fulfilled have come and gone; every new challenge that arises invites even greater determination to conquer it as soon as possible.

Back in 1997, Andy Green driving Thrust SSC shattered the land speed record by the largest margin in the records history when he achieved a top speed of 763mph - becoming the first and only supersonic man on land – and beating the previous record of 634mph set by Richard Noble driving Thrust 2 back in 1983.

In November 2017 the UK government announced it was committing £100million to an industry matched investment fund designed to encourage the testing and development of driverless car technology on its roads. There are currently two existing testing centres in the UK and this will work to combine them into a central hub.