Car thieves shun 4x4s

By Nigel Wonnacott Motor Industry 01 July 2008 11:36 Greens hate their CO2 emissions, campaigners may question their safety record and owners might be feeling the pinch at the pump. But 4x4s can claim at least one advantage over smaller cars; they are among the least likely types of car to be stolen. According to the latest Home Office Car Theft Index, just four in every thousand 4x4s and people carriers in Britain were stolen in 2006, compared to seven for Fiesta and Astra-sized cars.

Parking wardens given ‘illegal’ bonus targets

Parking wardens are given ‘illegal’ bonuses based on the number of fines they dish out, according to an investigation by the BBC. Three London Councils are now being probed by Local Government Minister, Brandon Lewis, as a result of the BBC’s research. On Bing: see pictures of bad parking UK pays £30 million a month in parking fines Bromley Council’s parking firm Vinci reportedly paid wardens a bonus of £20 a ticket, with a target of 72,000 penalty charge notices – while Lambeth’s parking enforcement contractors NSL ‘requires’ 205,000 tickets to be issued a year.

Citroen DS3 Cabrio (2012) first official pictures

Britain is Europe's biggest market for convertibles - odd, given our recent blink-and-you'll-miss-it summer. Still, Citroen hasn't been put off, and will launch the DS3 Cabrio after its world debut at the 2012 Paris motor show. Citroen claims the weight has only increased by 25kg over the hard-top DS3, and buyers will get even more personalisation options to go along with the wind-in-the-hair driving experience.