Poor quality diesel blamed for winter breakdowns

Thousands of drivers are risking a winter breakdown through being sold poor quality diesel fuel, the RAC has warned. All makes and models of car are at risk, says the breakdown recovery provider, with breakdowns proving more prevalent in eastern England and Scotland, and the greatest concentration of breakdowns occurring in the North East. Winter motoring guide Winter driving tips The organisation hasn’t yet found the root cause of the problem – so it is working with fuel retailers to work out what’s causing it.

Merc to revive straight six, plus 4cyl and smaller V8s

Mercedes has just signed off a new engine family which will see most full-sized Mercs in future run four-cylinders, downsized V8s and… straight sixes. A friendly Mercedes engineer recently met CAR to disclose the engine plans for future models, including the surprise disclosure that Merc plans to switch to straight sixes, like its rivals over in Munich.  It's fair to say I almost choked on my breakfast croissant when I found out the details of the next MB engine generation which has just been signed off for release in 2015. Mercedes' future four-cylinder engines Again, there will be a family of new low-cost fours, and the big-bore V8s will be replaced by a series of downsized turbocharged 4.0-litre units.

£110BN price tag put on Deadly accidents by Road Safety Body

A NEW report commissioned by a parliamentary safety group claims that deaths and serious injuries on the roads are likely to cost society £110 billion in the years to 2030. According to the Parliamentary Advisory Committee for Transport Safety (Pacts), the total of those killed or seriously injured (KSIs) over this period is expected to be around a third of a million. These figures are expected despite the report predicting a dip in KSIs and slight injuries by 2030 compared with figures for 2012.