Hercules Qxd-3 Oil Pump on 2040-parts.com

E85 makes inroads on cost and availability

Three years ago, we embarked on a Midwest road trip in search of what was then the Holy Grail of fuel: E85. Our findings weren't too positive--there were far more E85-compatible vehicles on the road in 2006 (5 million) than there were E85 pumps to fuel them (about 700 out of some 200,000 fuel stations nationwide). In addition, those burning the mix of 15 percent gasoline and 85 percent ethanol were paying a pretty penny for their earth-friendly ways, losing about 15 percent in fuel economy while often paying the same price as regular unleaded.

Hyundai move from Baboons to Kids to test quality

Hyundai let a troop of 4 & 5 year olds loose on an i30 to test quality Last year, Hyundai let a troop of 40 safari park baboons loose on an i30 to see if, left to their own devices, they could trash Hyundai’s very well bolted together (just ask Martin Winterkorn) i30. It was a clever way to demonstrate that the i30 doesn’t just look good, but is made of a bit more than recycled baked bean cans and Fairy liquid bottles. The i30 came through the baboon test with flying colours (even the company tasked with cleaning it up after the baboons commented on the story that they were impressed by how unscathed the i30 was), but Hyundai has now come up with a quality test that makes the baboon adventure look like a walk in the (safari) park.

More women 'caught drink driving'

THE NUMBER of women convicted of drink-driving has almost doubled in recent years, a survey has shown. Women accounted for 9% of drink-drive convictions in 1998, but this figure had risen to 17% by 2012, the survey revealed. From car insurance company Direct Line and transport organisation the Rees Jeffreys Road Fund, the survey also showed that 17% of female motorists thought they had driven while over the legal alcohol limit in the past year.