Busy Times

Quite a lot has been happening over the last couple of weeks.

Last weekend I was looking at cars with a view to buying one. Runner up in the process was a magnificent 1996 Lexus LS400. Painted very dark green with the slightly tacky option of gold badges the LS was in many ways superb. Smooth, quiet, comfortable you can see how Lexus came from nowhere to become a genuine contender alongside Audi, BMW, Jaguar and Mercedes. For me, however, there was a sense that something with more driver involvement would be better. That said, I may go after another LS400 next time I buy a car. As for what I’ve chosen this time, you’ll have to wait and see.

This week I was able to catch up on my quota of new cars for the year. It also allowed me to drive not one but three cars I’ve admired since my childhood. Simply remembering what was what could take a while so bear with me.

Yesterday I finally got round to changing the oil in my bike. Having done oil changes on cars there didn’t seem to be anything to fear by doing the same on the bike. Clearance to remove the drain bolt with my drip tray in place was lacking until I removed the lower side body panel. There is nothing quite like taking your bike apart to appreciate how well it was put together. In particular I was impressed by the design of the captive nuts that should never work loose. Even more impressively, everything went back together as easily as it had come apart and there is now fresh oil inside the engine, good for another couple of thousand miles of riding.

Finally, today I’m off to see some drag racing at Santa Pod. It has been a while since my last taste of quarter mile action and I’m looking forward to it. Pictures will follow, no doubt.

Chauffeur for the day

Spent all of yesterday playing with some fancy cars. I don’t think I’ve driven as many cars in one day before; in fact the seven cars I drove would make up most of a normal year’s worth of testing. In order I drove:

VW Phaeton LWB 3.0 V6 TDI
Lexus LS 600hL
Jaguar XJ6 lwb 2.7D
Chrysler 300C (diesel)
BMW 730dL
Mercedes-Benz S300d
Volvo S80 2.5d



Overall the cars were amazingly good, I’m sure diesel engines aren’t supposed to be as nice as they were. In the case of the BMW and Mercedes you might even wonder if it was worth going for a bigger engine. The only unpleasant surprise was how badly some of the cars seemed to cope with bumps. I couldn’t help thinking that a Citroën C6 would be better than all but the 7-series and S-class.

Heroes and Villains 2 Peugeot 406 V6 coupé

Looking back over cars that have made an impression, whether good or bad. Some cars have lived up to my expectations, some cars have disappointed. A good reputation or a prestigious badge is no guarantee of hero status.

The Peugeot 406 coupé is probably my favourite of all the cars I’ve never written about. I liked the shape which was no worse for containing elements of other car’s styling. The way bonnet, windscreen pillars and front wings merged reminded me of the Toyota Soarer. There was a faint echo of the 1968 Dodge Charger in the slightly recessed rear window.

What I enjoyed about the 406 coupé was that it was fast and surefooted without being in any way harsh or “sporty”. Every road test I’ve read criticised the 406 for over light steering but I prefer response to weight and in that respect the steering was fine. In fact every control was beautifully responsive without being hard work to operate. The only disappointment was the gear lever, which had that slightly loose, floppy feeling that seems to be a Peugeot family trait. In a 206 that is fine but in a £30,000 car I would expect the lever to move with a well-oiled precision and without slop.

One flaw could not spoil my enjoyment of the car. Overall the 406 had an air of class; it felt well made, the leather seats were very comfortable and the driving position felt more coupé than saloon. Given the good impression the Peugeot made I feel almost embarrassed that this is the first time I’ve actually written anything about it.

Big cat spotting in Coventry

Coventry isn’t the most glamorous of places but if you want to spot Jaguars, particularly new and not yet released Jaguars it is the place to be. Over the years I’ve been in Coventry I’ve seen prototypes of the XK8, XJ8, S-type and X-type.

Today I wish I had been able to take a photograph of a distinctly non-standard looking S-type. Wide of track and apparently held together by sticky tape I wonder if it was a development mule for the XF or a sporting XF-R.



I also caught a glimpse of an XF; the more I see the XF the more I like it. It succeeds in looking like a Jaguar without looking like any past Jaguar. There is a strong link to the current XK, which is no bad thing. If, as some people complain, it looks like a Lexus GS then remember that the first Lexus GS took its shape from a Jaguar design study by Giugiaro.

Style-wise all new Jaguars are overshadowed by what I think is the best looking Jaguar of all, the 1975 XJ-C – the coupé version of the series 2 XJ saloon. There was a sober but slightly menacing, dark green XJ-C adding a touch of class to the morning traffic.

Autumn Time

The season of mists and mellow fruitfulness is upon us, which means it is time for the annual European Car of the Year contest. Voted for by a jury comprising of 58 members from 22 countries, the number of jurors representing each nation depends on the size and significance of the motor industry and new car market in that country. Each juror has 25 points to award to at least 5 of the seven finalists. No more than 10 points can be awarded to any one car and ties are not permitted. Furthermore each juror must provide a written justification for the way they voted.



The shortlist for the 2008 ECOTY has been released. From 35 eligible cars seven have shown the “right stuff” as potential Car of the Year material. Those cars are the Fiat 500, Ford Mondeo, Kia Cee'd, Mazda 2, Mercedes-Benz C-class, Nissan Qashqai and the Peugeot 308. Picking a likely winner from that lot is incredibly difficult. The Ford and Fiat are both highly regarded and both marques have a strong history of COTY winners. Only once, in 2005 when the Toyota Prius won, has a car built outside Europe been the outright winner – so it is unlikely that the Mazda 2 will win. Mercedes have only enjoyed one COTY win and nothing I’ve read about the C-class suggests that it could beat the Fiat of Ford. The Nissan might suffer because it looks like the sort of car we are supposed to hate – a SUV – or profit because it doesn’t fit typical classifications. The Peugeot will do well with the French judges but probably not any others where as the Cee’d could do surprisingly well.



I think this is the strongest COTY line-up in years. Only the Peugeot 308 and Mazda 2 seem incongruous – the Lexus LS and Land Rover Freelander might have been more interesting finalists but possibly not consonant with the spirit of the time. My prediction is that the Fiat 500 will win, the Mondeo will be second and it will be close for third place between the Mercedes C-class and the Kia Cee’d. Kia challenging Mercedes, who could have predicted that?

Weird Tech: Lexus rear mounted radiator

I was going through Autocar and saw a piece on the Lexus LF-A. This is a super-coupé with a 500bhp V10 engine and 200mph performance. One of the more interesting features of the LF-A is the placement of the coolant radiators at the rear.



On mid or rear-engined cars this might not be unusual but the Lexus is a front mid-engined design. It seems to fly in the face of logic; the established convention for 110 years has been to put the radiator at the front of the car where it can receive the greatest flow of cooling air over its surface.



The idea isn’t as barking as you might think. Lexus claim to have done it to achieve the optimum weight distribution but it makes aerodynamic sense too. A car punches a big hole in the air at speed – a low-pressure wake similar to the wake following a boat as it moves through water. Air picks up heat as it passes through a car’s radiator, this makes the air expand. The heated air can therefore help to fill the low pressure wake behind the car.



What might be the practical drawbacks? The boot opening on the concept car looks quite small; will it accommodate the regulation issue two golf bags? The radiators might cook the luggage or anyone standing loading or unloading the boot. Then again Lexus have a reputation for being thorough. By the time the LF-A goes on sale in the Autumn or 2008 I wouldn’t bet against the drawbacks being overcome.