Young women risking unsafe lifts

THOUSANDS of young women are risking their lives and safety by accepting lifts from drivers they don’t know or drivers who are under the influence of drink or drugs. Among young women aged 17- to 25-years old who don’t drive, it was found that 6% have accepted a lift from a stranger. That figure rises to 13% who have got into a car with a driver who has been drinking alcohol or taken drugs.

BMW i8 production car revealed – costs £99,845: Frankfurt 2013

The new BMW i8 Hybrid (pictured) will cost £100k in the UK The BMW i8 jas finally arrived in production guise at the Frankfurt Motor show, neatly creating the top end of BMW’s new i-brand range after the BMW i3 underlined the starting point. Looking really quite appealing, the i8 uses the same carbon fibre reinforced plastic bodyshell and aluminium chassis construction as the i3, but whereas the i3 is built to be a city car, the i8 is the closest we’re likely to get to a 21st century version of the BMW M1. Similar in size to the Audi R8, the BMW i8 is a 2+2 with a 3-cylinder 1.5 litre engine and generator sitting at the back and driving the rear wheels and an electric motor at the front driving the front wheels, with a petrol tank at the back and the batteries for the electric motor stored in the centre tunnel.

Audi Q1 sub-compact SUV in 2016

The new Audi Q1 will look like a smaller Q3 (pictured) There was a time when saloon cars ruled the car sales charts, but they eventually went out of fashion to be replaced by the more practical hatchback. But, despite the demonising of the SUV by ‘green’ groups, compact SUVs/Crossovbers have become the favourite flavour for car buyers as they seek something practical and with the promise of a bit of go anywhere credentials (even if they are cosmetic rather than mechanical). So it’s no surprise to see cars like the Nissan Juke, Peugeot 2008 and Renault Captur starting to grab sales from small hatches.