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Mini is 50: a Mini celebration by CAR writers and readers

By Tim Pollard Motoring Issues 13 October 2009 12:45 Mini is 50 this year and we've published a 33-page Mini special in the new November issue of CAR Magazine – packed with memories, drives and analysis of and with the cars and people that made Mini great.  Here we've asked some of CAR's top writers to remember their personal highlights from the past five decades. Gavin Green explains why he recently drove across Australia in a modern Mini, while Anthony ffrench-Constant recalls why crashing a classic Mini caused him to start a lifelong nicotine habit. Click on the links below for our new Mini stories – and don't forget we want YOUR Mini memories too.

McLaren 650S Spider joins 650S Coupe: Geneva Motor Show

The McLaren 650S Spider revealed at the Geneva Motor Show We had the reveal of the new McLaren 650S Coupe just last month, but what we didn’t get is the reveal of the Convertible version. But that’s all changed today with the arrival of the McLaren 650S Spider in Geneva with the same trick folding roof as the 12C Spider and the same cosmetic and dynamic changes as the 650S Coupe. That means open-top motoring with stunning performance – 0-62mph in 3 seconds and 124mph in 8.5 seconds thanks to the 650S’s 641bhp and 500lb/ft of torque from its updated 3.8 litre V8.

Road funding must increase, say MPs

THERE needs to be a big increase in Government funding and a change of approach for England's major road network if predicted traffic increases are correct, according to MPs. But any move towards using road charging to pay for the extra funding couldn't be achieved without broad agreement among politicians and motorists, said the House of Commons Transport Committee. In a report the committee added that it was "not convinced" by the case for establishing the Highways Agency, the body responsible for England's motorways and major A-roads, as a Government-owned company.