Sierra Magforce Premium Marine Wire Set 18-8800-1 on 2040-parts.com

Volkswagen & Suzuki – it’s handbags at dawn

Volkswagen Suzuki Partnership - things aren't exactly rosy Back in 2009 Volkswagen invested a rather large chunk of change (around €2 billion) in Suzuki in exchange for a 20% stake in the Japanese car maker, and there were big hopes for advantages for both parties. Volkswagen were looking for a quick-fix route to the burgeoning car market in India, where Suzuki were doing very well, with sales in India last year of 1.13 million cars – almost half its production – in comparison to VW’s paltry sales of just 53,000. In return, Suzuki were expecting to get a quick route to cutting-edge hybrid and electric tech for their range, and access to VW’s engines.

"Room for debate" on minimum driving age increase

MOTORISTS are concerned about the minimum driving age, according to new research. More than a third of drivers (35%) think the minimum age should be raised, with 40% of those people believing the starting point should be 21, according to the study carried out by British Car Auctions (BCA). Four in 10 of all people questioned said they felt that a reduction in the overall accident rate would be a welcome outcome of an adjustment of the legal minimum driving age.

UK car sales up 11% in May (2013)

The Ford Fiesta (pictured) was again the best selling car in the UK The rise and rise of new car registrations in the UK continues to defy the rest of the economy, with figures up in May 2013 by 11 per cent year on year, and private sales up a massive 20.9 per cent to levels last seen in 2007. It’s the fifteenth month in succession new car registration have risen in the UK, with sales for May at 180,111 and total sales to date in 2013 hitting almost 1 million units, at 948,666. The SMMT think the big jump in private registrations is down to a number of factors, including cars bought under the scrappage scheme now being traded in for a new car, strong incentives from car makers and the promise of new cars offering lower running costs, and they’re probably right, although there are other factors in play too.