New cars 'cheaper to insure' for young drivers

NEW CARS are actually cheaper for young drivers to insure than old bangers, insurance broker Be Wiser has claimed. Figures from the company reveal that the cheapest car for youngsters to insure at the moment is a Volkswagen Up, which costs around £3,000 per year based on a 17-year-old driver in a large city. The same customer looking to insure a 20-year-old Ford Fiesta would be facing a bill of almost £4,000, with insurance premiums even higher in some parts of the country.

Trains cancelled over broken-down taxi

TRAINS were cancelled after a taxi carrying the ticket conductors broke down on the way to the station - and health and safety policy bans them walking. London Midland yesterday told passengers it was cancelling two of its services from Birmingham New Street station in the city centre after the breakdown happened during what is usually a short journey by foot from nearby Snow Hill station. However, the rail operator has said its own safety policy bars the uniformed conductors from getting to the station on foot because they are carrying their ticket machines and cash from the days' takings.

MINI confirms details of engines for new 2014 Cooper and Cooper S

MINI MINI has confirmed a slew of technical details for the next-generation MINI family, the first of which will be shown later in autumn 2013. A mix of three- and four-cylinder engines will be available in the new MINI, all sporting the latest tech to keep the brand's fun quotient up and fuel consumption and emissions down. So turbocharging is common across the range, and petrol engines employ direct fuel injection for precise metering of unleaded.