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

AA Survey says 40% of UK roads are in a ‘Terrible’ state

40% of our roads are in a ‘Terrible’ state We all moan about how bad the UK’s roads are after several years of extreme weather and even more years of underinvestment in road repairs. Now the AA has revealed that a survey of 29,911 of their members reveals that 40 per cent of local roads are considered to be in a ‘Terrible’ state, 34 per cent of main roads the same and just 11 per cent of local roads considered ‘Excellent’. None of which will come as a surprise to Cars UK readers; we get endless emails on the subject from disgruntled readers bemoaning the dangerous state of our roads and asking what can be done.

The no-show cars: a reader rant on mad concepts

Instigated by Harley Earl at General Motors in the late 30s with the quaintly named Buick Y-Job, show cars, or concept cars, were presented to an excited public eager for new things. As the world recovered from a depression and then a war, these vehicles pointed to a better future that many people believed in, including the people who produced them. And, although many of the concept cars of the 50s, with their Jetsons plexiglass roofs and notional nuclear powered engines seem ludicrous now, in their time they weren’t that cynical.

Renault Laguna Coupe (2008): first pictures

By Ben Pulman First Official Pictures 24 May 2008 21:00 How do you add a dash of pizzazz to the underwhelming looks of the Laguna saloon? Renault’s answer - in the shape of the new Laguna Coupe - seems like a good one: lop off two doors, drop in a 3.5-litre V6 from the Nissan 350Z and garnish with your own four-wheel steer system. Make the car shorter and wider than the saloon and then get your imposing Lebanese CEO to drive it around the Cannes Film Festival.