Brit James Thompson...
Brit James Thompson scored a memorable debut win for Honda in the World Touring Car Championship at Imola, Italy. The ex-BTCC champ scorched from fifth on the grid to finish ahead of the BMW of Jorg Muller and Chevroletò€™s Rob Huff in the dayò€™s second outing. This was the highlight of a good weekend for the Japanese squad, after Thompson took third place in the opening race, behind the SEATs of Rickard Rydell and eventual winner Yvan Muller, who now has a 12-point lead in the standings.
Can you combine the...
Can you combine the best bits of petrol and diesel engines
to create a new concept for powering cars? Mercedes says yes – and has unveiled its DiesOtto prototype unit to prove it.
The 1.8-litre four-cylinder delivers the same torque output and fuel economy of a diesel, but with the power and emissions quality of a petrol engine.
On the prototype, Mercedes claims an impressive 238bhp and 400Nm of torque – more than much larger conventional engines. Fuel economy is up to 45mpg, although the technology won’t be ready for production models for at least five years.
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JACK ODELL who died last month aged 87, was a gifted engineer and widely credited as the creator of Matchbox toy cars, launched in 1953.
In fact, the inspiration was his daughter, Anne, who often took spiders to school in a matchbox. Jack, co-owner of a diecast toy firm, decided to make a road roller model that could fit inside one, too. When his business partner saw it, the idea for a range dawned. The first Matchbox car was issued a year later: it was an MG TD, about 5cm long.