Motoring Newsbriefs

Jan 12 2010 Maurice Glover

Months of shameTHERE'S not a glamour model in sight, but a new tyre calendar still wins second looks.

A dozen shocking pictures of tyres in outrageous condition are the focal point of Tyre Wall of Shame, the calendar produced by Kwik-Fit in a novel bid to promote road safety.

The images show covers with almost no tread left, sidewall ruptures through under inflation and one worn down to the steel core - and all came from customers' cars on a single day last month.

'It beggars belief that people can drive with tyres like this - let alone those with their family in the car. Worryingly, we could have filled many more calendars,' said customer service director David White.

The fast-fit chain's latest survey found that one third of drivers had not checked their tyre pressures for six months, one in five had under-inflated tyres and one in 10 was driving with tread depths below the legal requirement of 1.6mm.

MPV from SuzukiSUZUKI could soon be building a compact multi-purpose vehicle in India.

The firm used its stand at the Auto Expo event in New Delhi to show an example of a vehicle that could cater for India's rapidly changing car market and where consumer lifestyles are quickly evolving.

Seating six in three rows, the R3 concept has four wide-opening doors and is significant in not having a central pillar to allow easy access for all occupants - a feature used by Vauxhall in the next-generation Meriva MPV.

Of the 11 million passenger vehicles currently on the roads in India; more than 7.5 million are Suzukis and the Alto is the country's most popular car.

Better BerlingoCITROEN has boosted the specification of its popular Berlingo panel van for 2010.

Remote control central locking, power front windows and electrically adjusted and heated door mirrors have been included as standard on the First 1.6HDi 75bhp model.

'We are also fitting a nearside sliding side load door as standard to make our budget vehicle even better value at £11,335,' said head of commercial vehicles and business sector sales Charles Peugeot.

Clean screenMEN are more likely to risk tackling snowy roads than women - but both sexes are as bad as each other when it comes to setting off without fully cleaning and de-misting the front and rear windscreens.

'With much of the UK continuing to experience severe weather, our latest survey results come as a real worry. Drivers should be sure their screens are cleared for their own safety and that of others,' says Sainsbury's car insurance manager Ben Tyte.

Fiat upFIAT has just had its best year's trading in Britain since 2004. The Italian brand recorded almost 71,000 Fiat, Alfa Romeo and Abarth registrations and sold more than 24,000 examples of its Fiat 500 city car.

Driving successIN its first year of operation, the Porsche Experience Centre at Silverstone attracted more than 12,000 visitors to take part in courses covering performance handling, car control and racetrack precision techniques.