1965 Chevrolet Impala Tail Lamps on 2040-parts.com

'Paradox' in transport policy claim

THERE IS A "paradox at the heart" of the Government's roads programme, a transport policy professor has told MPs. The question on whether traffic levels would increase or decrease in the future was unresolved, University College London emeritus professor of transport policy Phil Goodwin told the House of Commons Transport Committee. The paradox was that if traffic levels increased the planned roads programme was "not big enough to make an improvement", he said.

Minicars perform poorly in crash tests, study says

Minicars made by Toyota, Honda and Daimler AG did poorly on frontal crash tests with mid-sized automobiles, prompting an influential safety organization to suggest consumers consider buying larger cars that have comparable fuel economy. The Toyota Yaris, Honda Fit and Smart ForTwo all collapsed upon impact into the space around the driver dummy, according to the study released today by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety. Drivers in all three vehicles faced high risk of head and leg injuries after test collisions at 40 miles an hour, even after airbags inflated, said the non-profit group funded by auto insurers.

Mercedes GLA: New B Class SUV in 2013

Mercedes GLA based on the new B Class (pictured) Another Mercedes niche car based on the new A Class platform will arrive in 2013 as the compact SUV Mercedes GLA. Mercedes’ nomenclature has got confusing in recent years so it’s quite hard to pin down exactly what they’re likely to call a new car we know is coming but which isn’t yet official. But it does now seem clear that the compact SUV we’ll see from Mercedes in 2013 – and based on the same platform as the new A and B Class – will be the Mercedes GLA.