A Cruel Mountain: 2014 Bathurst 1000
It’s now history that Chaz Mostert and Paul Morris won the Supercheap Autos Bathurst 1000 for 2014.
It’s now history that they did so by, as silly as it may sound, leading on the last lap. Why that point is important is because it was the ONLY lap the car had been in the lead in the 161 laps the event has. However, the preceding near eight hours had seen scenes unprecedented in the history of V8 Supercars. In fact, the days leading up to The Great Race witnessed just how cruel “The Mountain” can be to drivers, both veterans and inexperienced.
Making Your Own Biodiesel
When I came across an article in a magazine about making your own biodiesel, my first reaction was “Yeah, right – get out of here!” However, as I read on, I discovered that it isn’t too hard to do. It looks to be on about the same level of difficulty as making your own beer, soap, jam or toffee. In fact, I think making homebrewed beer and wine might be harder. So I thought that this was such a handy thing to know about that I just had to find out more and pass the knowledge on.
However, before I get onto the recipe, please bear in mind that: (A) I haven’t tried this myself (yet), (B) you need to be really, really careful with all of the ingredients because a lot of them are very corrosive and (C) don’t put straight home-made biodiesel in your engine but mix it with regular stuff from the pump or the result may do something nasty to bits of your engine. Obviously, you need a diesel-powered vehicle!
Twin Peaks: Volvo S60 T5 R-Design and Polestar
Turbos and small engines go together like scotch and ice. Volvo’s done the scotch and ice with its S60 T5 R-Design, taking a 2.0L petrol engine and throwing on a hairdryer, adding in a smooth auto and some sweet interior design work to provide a comfortable work place. Then there’s a 3.0L turbo to play with and a northern hemisphere name….Private Fleet’s Dave Conole loads the R-Design up with three adults and two kids for a week and takes the (as tested) $71000 car for a cruise to the NSW Central Coast then follows up with the Polestar (call it $100K), this time, to the South Coast, via Canberra.
The Donk.
Not unexpectedly, power is peaky, 180kW at 5500 revs, but there’s a mesa flat 350Nm of torque from 1500 through to 4800 revs in the T5. In a car that weighs 1600 kg, that equates to a top speed of 230 klicks, passing 100 in a lick over six seconds. Fuel economy is rated at 6.4L per 100 kilometres on a combined cycle from a tank of 67.5 litres. It’s joined to a eight speed dual clutch automatic transmission 
(with paddle shifts on 
the steering column), driving the front wheels and comes with Stop/Start technology plus a full suite of safety and driver assist technology. Polestar gets 257kW (5700 rpm) and over 500 Nm (3000 to 4750 revs) and puts power down via all four paws through a six speed auto. It’s a touch heavier, at 1770 kg and somewhat thirstier, at 10.2L/100 km. Polestar gets an extra level of tech, with Launch Control, adjustable suspension thanks to Ohlins, Brembo brakes and breathes out via stainless steel pipes.
Road Safety: 'I forget that others don't actually want to die'
The title of this piece may at first seem a little strange; you could even say that it is such a logical statement that it really does not need to be said at all. It is this exact point that I wish to expand upon in this post. A few years ago I was out driving with a friend of mine and as we approached a roundabout they appeared to recoil slightly as if something bad was going to happen. It was as we cleared the roundabout in complete safety and control that they uttered to me the very quote that you see now heads this article.
When you first see a quote such as this sitting right there in front of you, it may at first seem hard to process. Of course others do not want to die on the road, why would anyone feel the need to say that? But on the other hand, if this was truly the case it does beg the question of why on earth are there some people that drive on the road as if they have a death wish hanging like a dark cloud above their head? When my friend first said that to me I found it rather amusing, but the more I think about it the more they may actually have a point. It is the view of this author that as the years go rushing by, the effects of Newton’s Third Law are becoming visible than ever before. For every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. For it would seem that with the increase of technology that makes both cars and the roads safer places to be on, actual driving standards are decreasing.
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