06/07 Kawasaki Zx10 [right Rotor ] on 2040-parts.com

Jaguar tops J. D. Power Survey again in 2013

Even though the Jaguar XF actually slipped from 2nd to 3rd in the top cars section (although it was the ‘Best Executive Car’), behind the Skoda Superb and Skoda Yeti, it received five star ratings for performance, service and running costs and owners rated it as ‘Excellent’ across all categories. And it was more good news for Jaguar Land Rover as Land Rover was rated the most improved brand in 2013, jumping in to the top ten (in 6th place) for the first time, with Freelander owners noting an improved dealer experience and Discovery owners reporting 30 per cent fewer faults – and actually leading the SUV sector for reliability. That’ll help the still lingering perception that JLR’s cars can be ‘fragile’.

Electric cars must get noisier, ICE cars must get quieter

Electric cars will have to make a noise to protect pedestrians It’s four years since the Lotus solution for making electric cars noisy raised its head, since when the US has had a go at the Pedestrian Safety Enhancement Act in 2010 to do the same thing, the Japanese are playing too, and Toyota revealed the Prius Vehicle Notification System, and now the EU has decided its time to act to make EVs emit ‘noise’. Despite the most appealing part of an EV being that it makes our cities quieter, legislators worry about the blind, partially sighted and distracted pedestrian (think earphones and a Smartphone) being mowed down by a stalking electric car and feel the need to act. So the European Parliament has decided that by 2019 new models of electric vehicle will have to make a noise in cities, and that by 2021 all new hybrids and electrics must be noisy too.

England to ban car park cameras?

Static cameras and ‘spy cars’ fitted with video surveillance equipment could be banned in England following communities secretary Eric Pickle’s statement that he wanted to “rein in over-zealous and unfair rules.” The government isn’t looking to eradicate parking enforcement altogether, however. The coalition stated that traffic wardens armed with cameras would be able to carry out the task instead, potentially at a reduced cost to the state over the current setup. On Bing: see pictures of the craziest double-yellow lines If drivers could stop on double yellow lines, parking chaos would ensue These fixed cameras and moving camera cars have issued more than £301 million worth of fines in over 10 million separate cases during the past five years, according to the Conservative party.