Not-so-happy holidays
The cars on Britain’s roads are more likely to be filled with raised voices than happy chatter as thousands drive off to their summer holiday. An AA/Populus survey of 23,085 AA Members found that 65 per cent argue in the car.
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Survey reveals varying attitudes to ‘hit and run’ vehicle damage
What would you do if you damaged another vehicle but nobody saw you do it? A poll of 2,021 adults in the UK suggests that the chances are little over 50-50 that you’d make sure the vehicle owner received your details.
Children’s ‘Despicable’ movie choice – Micheldever/Protyre
A Micheldever/Protyre survey has confirmed children’s despicable taste in movies. Asked for their favourite film of the summer, Despicable Me 2 beat Frozen and How to Train your Dragon to first place. The survey draws attention to the need to keep children happy in the back of cars on family holidays, with portable video players an increasingly popular method of doing so.
Driverless cars? Survey says ‘no thanks’
A new study from Churchill Car Insurance of over 2,000 UK adults reveals that the majority (56 per cent) say they would not purchase a driverless car and a quarter (25 per cent) believes that autonomous vehicles will not be safe.
Over inflated part worn market figures
One of the Eagle-eyed editors at Tyres & Accessories’ German sister title, Neue Reifenzeitung recently dropped us a line with regard to our coverage of insurance firm Liverpool Victoria’s research into the UK part worn tyre market (see “23 million part worns sold since 2009” online and in the June issue of the magazine for the original story). In short it seems that while we accurately reported the figures that were released to the press, some of the calculations undergirding the report’s claims couldn’t bear their own mathematical weight. Or in other words the research shows that annual worn tyre demand is less than 4 million units annually and not knocking on the door of 6 million tyres a year (5.7 million units annually was the precise figure) that was originally quoted.
Grooming brand names Dodge Viper ‘world’s manliest car’
Is it possible to establish gender through the car you drive? Apparently so, according to “luxury male grooming brand” The Bluebeards Revenge, which has compiled a list of the “World’s Manliest Cars” based on an email survey of 1,226 customers. In a break from removing stubble with the “lightweight yet comfortably substantial” Bluebeards Revenge Privateer Collection Mach 3 Razor, these arbiters of manliness voted the Dodge Viper 2014’s top representative of automotive masculinity.
IAAF calls for suppliers to share parts data access experience in EC survey
The IAAF is asking suppliers and motor factors to give their views and experiences on accessing vehicle assemblers’ parts data. Research group Ricardo has issued its questionnaire for parts suppliers and wholesalers, having been appointed by the European Commission to collect and assess market experience in obtaining repair & maintenance information data for repairing and servicing vehicles.
IAAF issues survey on access to tech data
The IAAF is urging its members, garages and parts distributors, to take advantage of an opportunity to give the European competition authorities a first-hand view of the difficulties encountered in accessing technical and cataloguing data from the vehicle assemblers. Following the IAAF’s survey of vehicle assemblers at the start of 2014, the European Commission have […]
12 year backlog on road repairs
Council chiefs have warned that the country is facing a roads crisis that is escalating at an “alarming pace” after new research put the cost of bringing highways up to a decent standard at over £12bn.
The Annual Local Authority Road Maintenance (ALARM) survey from the Asphalt Industry Alliance (AIA) shows that councils fixed just over 2m potholes in England and Wales last year, yet record rainfall meant the overall conditions of local roads deteriorated again.
Cost of fuel is motorists’ biggest worry says BCA research
Chancellor George Osborne confirmed at the Budget that he would maintain the freeze on fuel duty – yet drivers still see the cost of fuel as their biggest motoring worry according to new data from leading vehicle remarketing company, British Car Auctions (BCA). Research amongst motorists at the start of 2014 revealed that over 70 per cent of motorists worry most about the price of fuel – the same as 2013.
Bridgestone taking run-flat tyres to the wider aftermarket in America
Run-flat tyres released into the aftermarket are typically intended for vehicles initially fitted with run-flats as original equipment, however the latest run-flat Bridgestone is releasing in North America is aimed at cars purchased new with standard tyres. Bridgestone Americas says the new DriveGuard is the first full line of mass-market replacement tyres with this particular focus.
US motorists getting more tyre satisfaction
According to a new study from J.D. Power, the number of problems owners in the US experience with their original equipment tyres declined 22 per cent to 68.5 problems per 100 vehicles in 2014 – down from 88.3 in 2010. The 2014 Original Equipment Tire Customer Satisfaction Study also found the incidence of all tyre problems measured has declined over the five-year span, with the largest improvements in fast tread wear, slow leaks and uneven wear. The study measured tyre owner satisfaction after two years of vehicle ownership in four segments: luxury, passenger car, performance sport and truck/utility. Satisfaction was examined in four factors: tyre wearability, tyre ride, tyre appearance, and tyre traction/handling.
Motorists anti lower motorway speed limit
Over two thirds of motorists want the Government to apply the brakes to plans to lower speeds limits on the motorway according to a new poll by Motorpoint. A web-based survey by the car supermarket chain found 78.1 per cent of drivers opposed proposals announced earlier this year to restrict speeds on a section of the M1 to 60mph. Over 4,100 people participated in the poll on the company’s website – www.motorpoint.co.uk/.
In the UK, 12% of cars are ‘on the pull’
According to research carried out for Kwik-Fit, as many as one in eight motorists claim the steering on their car pulls to one side or the other. If the ICM Research survey of 2,024 adults is representative of the wider British motoring public, this means that almost one million drivers are experiencing significant steering pull.
BEN achieves star-rated status in Sunday Times Top 100 Charities
The annual Sunday Times workplace survey has once again placed BEN, the automotive industry charity, in the Top 100 Best not-for-profit organisations to work for and awarded the charity with a coveted star rating.
