Ford Thunderbird R Upper Control Arm Ball Joint 89-97 on 2040-parts.com

Learners' bizarre superstitions revealed

NERVES can have a crippling effect on learner drivers once they get to test day. Here, instructors with the AA Driving School recall particularly superstitious students whose desire to get their full licence resulted in carrying out unusual rituals: :: One pupil wore the T-shirt she had on when she gave birth to her daughter (now seven years old) and the trousers she was wearing before she conceived. :: A learner had failed three times due to nerves.

56% of drivers 'underestimated car expense'

MORE THAN half of people who have bought a second-hand car in the last two years have found it more expensive to run than they expected, according to a Government-backed body. Some 56% of motorists said that total cost, including maintenance, repairs, insurance and fuel had turned out to be higher than anticipated and one in five drivers (20%) have resorted to going into debt just to keep their vehicle on the road, the Money Advice Service (MAS) found. One in four (26%) of the 3,000 people surveyed who have bought a second-hand car since 2012 now has regrets about their purchase, with many of them saying they had not worked out whether it was really affordable or that the purchase price was too much in the first place.

Land Rover DC100 concept (2011) - it's the new Defender

The new Land Rover DC100 concept car, ready for a 2011 Frankfurt motor show arrival - points to the company's planned replacement for the Defender 4x4. Land Rover has now confirmed officially that it'll launch a successor to the Defender in 2015, and the DC100 provides plenty of clues to what we could expect. So the Land Rover DC100 is the new Defender?