One Lap of the Web: Mini challenges Porsche; kit cars; and brand loyalty

We spend a lot of time on the Internet -- pretty much whenever we're not driving, writing about or working on cars. Since there's more out there than we'd ever be able to cover, here's our daily digest of car stuff on the Web you may not otherwise have heard about. Mini wished the Porsche 911 a happy 50th anniversary.

Vintage photos show Ford Mustang I and the elusive XD Cobra

It's hardly surprising that our readers want to share their memories of the Ford Mustang -- 50 years is a long time for an automotive nameplate to endure, and the model's upcoming 50th anniversary is as good excuse as any to look back on the experiences that have made the car an enthusiast hit. Take William Drew, who had a close encounter with pony car history when he saw the Mustang I concept, plus a rare Ghia-bodied Shelby Cobra concept, at an auto dealer in Dallas in 1970. His slides (taken with a Yashica camera, he notes) show the unusual cars in the nice, bright colors of Kodachrome.

Newcastle’s Speed Cameras switched off for 4 years – Council chief still gets a ticket

Speed Cameras in Newcastle switched off Speed cameras – certainly many of them – are nothing more than tax generators. But if you live, or travel, in Newcastle, then speed cameras have contributed virtually nothing – they’ve all been switched off for up to four years. Newcastle has a total of fourteen speed cameras, but to save money the local council has had them all switched off for the last two years, and some of them haven’t worked for four years in a secret, money-saving exercise.