Arias Pistons 12.5:1 Compression 82mm Bore Honda B-series on 2040-parts.com

Vote: Guess this car review, episode 1

This is the beginning of what hopefully becomes a weekly feature here at Autoweek.com. Your job as the reader is to figure out what car we were reviewing when we wrote these lines way back in 2004. This is a closed book test, so there will be no Googling of the answers.

Superb wins Tow Car of the Year

THE SKODA SUPERB Estate has been crowned Tow Car of the Year by the Caravan Club, beating off competition from 40 other entrants including Range Rover and Jaguar. Commenting on the Superb’s ability, the judges remarked: ‘With a loading limit of 100kg on the roof, 80kg on the towball and a boot that scored maximum marks, it’s a very tough act to follow. You wouldn’t know you were towing a caravan.’ Skoda also won the £16,000-£20,000 category with the new Octavia 1.2 TSI, which was praised for its pulling power with such a small engine.

Petrolhead spiders cause Mazda recall

Mazda has had to recall 42,000 vehicles in the US after it emerged that a species of spider had been weaving webs in fuel vent hoses, increasing the risk of fuel leaks and fires. The yellow sac spider’s curious domestic activities cause a build-up of pressure in the evaporative fuel vent that – in theory at least – could result in a cracked fuel tank and therefore an increased risk of fire. This isn’t the first time that the Mazda 6 has received the unwanted advances of a gas-guzzling arachnid, either – three years ago Mazda had to recall over 50,000 cars for precisely the same reason.