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Ecclestone wants to bring the noise

FORMULA ONE supremo Bernie Ecclestone has vowed to address growing concerns surrounding the sport's lack of an appealing noise. Following Sunday's season-opening Australian Grand Prix, Ron Walker, chairman of the organising company that stages the race, complained to close friend Ecclestone about the lack of sound. The piercing scream of the old V8 engine has gone, and in its place we now have a huskier tone, complete with whistles and whirrs from the 1.6-litre V6 turbo as F1 tries to become greener.

Good news for British car factories

NEW FIGURES have revealed that UK-based car production raced ahead in April, resulting in the biggest monthly rise since July 2012. A total of 133,437 cars were made in the UK last month – a 21.3% increase on the April 2013 figure, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said. The excellent April figures took the year-so-far total to 538,240 – a 6.9% rise on the figure for January-April 2013.

One pothole for every mile of road in Britain

There is now one pothole for every mile of road in Great Britain, according to official data sourced by car breakdown and recovery company Britannia Rescue following a Freedom of Information Act request. And just like everything else in the UK, it would seem we can blame the weather, with experts suggesting that the combination of a harsh winter and a dry summer has exacerbated the problem. On Bing: see pictures of potholes Find out how much a used car is worth on Auto Trader The result is a 79% increase in compensation claims, with UK councils receiving 32,000 reimbursement requests in the past financial year.