GTAm

Yes Alonso showed that he's real champ material. reminded me of the old MS charges from the rear. Talking of MS looks like his come back isn't the greatest career move. Sad for Vettel though. That R*D B*LL does have wings but they keep falling off.

Yep styling looks quite ordinary by supercar standards, quite disappointing as they had a clean sheet of paper with no heritage to cling onto. But is sure to be something special to drive. The twin test with the 458 Italia will be a great read I'm sure. Brit mags will go crazy with this for sure!

Vibration - could it be that the engine is idling too slow? Anyways pls get a test done on the engine as a rebuild would be expensive. The gearbox sounds like it's in a mess too. I'd be cautious and get a good mech to check it over. A good test drive is a must before you even start negotiating.

My Choices, Early Fiat Uno 60 - Has to be one of the best buys. Will a Lancer Box fit into this price bracket? I'd opt for this over the L/Tube light ones which have somewhat claustrophobic interiors. Fiat 128/Upali

I believe that you could find some of these rare clubs housed in the Race Course premises. Not sure if the rifle club is there tough but worth a try. Some time ago I wanted to join the Archery club, but it seemed like a secret society that I could never find and so I lost interest even though I went for a few private lessons that I thoroughly enjoyed.

It's done a lot in the UK with the Fiat Twin Cams, Rover K series and even Rover V8s. ......Don't forget to upgrade the suspension and brakes as well. I see lots of mods done to old cars only focused towards the engine and looks (usually hideous). But this can be very unsafe. There was a time I thought about a Minor Low-rider as well. Found these sites that might be inspirational. http://www.beardmorebros.co.uk/ http://www.minormania.com/feature.php?id=2125&catid=756 http://www.jlhmorrisminors.co.uk/index.php Have fun!

Did a group test between the usual suspects, 121, Familia, Civic and N16.

Oh for sure. I was praying that Kimi got sacked like many Ferrari supporters, what a waste of money. I don't like Nando, but yes he'll kick ass and is the best shot they have to contain MS IMHO. I Really like Massa, but I'm afraid that I believe his moment passed in Brazil 2008 with that Toyota slowing down suddenly. I'm afraid that the contenders and their machines are too potent at the top for FM. I wish I am wrong though.....

"Handling" is how the car behaves around bends and curved roads. A good handling car will behave neutrally and carry more velocity around a bend. A poor handling car will scrub of speed around the bend by under or over steering. There are many ingredients required for good handling. A rigid body/chassis contribute to handling as well as high speed stability. For me the cars that have the greatest high speed stability are the German cars. I don't necessarily like them a lot but I admire them. High speed control of a BMW, Merc or VW/Audi is super and a cut above other cars. Even when there is a sudden directional change they give you supreme control. This makes the driver feel more confident. Just drive a un-hacked late 80's BMW E30 3 series and the 121 back to back on a straight road at high speed and you'll see what I mean. Then there is grip which is largely down to the suspension and chassis design. The theory usually tells us that the stiffer the set up the better the grip (more rubber on the tarmac) and faster the cornering (more power transferred onto the tarmac). But this could have a negative effect on the ride comfort. The trick is to find an ideal balance. French (406) and Brit (Focus) cars usually get it near perfect with German cars being set up too stiff usually. Alas a car like a family Corolla does not involve itself in all this "nonsense". At least this is my guess. I bet Toyota know that the typical Corolla buyer does not give a hoot about handling and so why waste millions of $$$ developing an answer its customers never asked? Now you know another reason why they make gazillions of money. They are smart. Only the high performance Corolla derivatives will be honed to handle well e.g the RunX. They have to be or else they all be in trees, lamp-posts and paddy fields. The Mazda 3 is related to the Ford Focus, usually considered the benchmark for handling for a family car. It shares the rear independent multi-link set up and when you take the first corner you know that there is something more sophisticated underneath there. Most car users in SL seem to like this ultra light steering which is truly loathsome (for me) and probably unsafe. I know a guy who gave up a Mazda for a Sunny N16 because the Mazda steering was "tight" !!!

Yes the reviews are very good and it is electric!

Interesting post after all those boring, "What to buy for 2m, N16 or Carina" Posts I would like to poke my 2cents worth here. EPS does not HAVE to be light. If for example you drive a new Fiat you will note that they are weightier than the Corolla by some margin. The thing with EPS though is that it fails to convey what the car is up to unlike a Hydraulic set up. The car feels even more remote from the driver. However I must add that cars like Corollas and Sunnys hardly did do the job when they had hydraulic systems as well. It's a matter of what the manufacturers/developers priorities are. More testing and fine tuning means more cost and these cars are not aimed at the driving enthusiast. Many manufacturers are working on new systems to counter this feel-less effect of EPS. VW and Fiat claim to have developed already.

Well said KLM. Fully agree. What a shame about Lola and Prodrive

I am hoping that these crazy taxes will be reduced and the people of this country can buy some decent cars at decent prices once again. I know that people who leased cars would lose out. Actually I would lose out personally too. But everyone can't win. Unless the govt recognizes this and direct financial institutions to give some relief to existing lessees (v unlikely). I mean business is going to boom for them if duties are reduced..... These duties are crazy and so we have to make do with poor quality cars. It would have been understandable if we had a large car manufacturing base to protect. But we don't. Whatever happens it will be after the elections when we'll have to get used to sky high fuel prices once again!

How are they racist? Is there any such reference in that article? Besides those small teams are struggling to make it. It's such a shame to see the big manufacturers (BMW, Toyota and Honda) leave. It's great to see the Lotus name back though. I hope they are competitive. Anyway all I can say is that this has all the makings to be one hell of a season!!!

The traction seems amazing if it's a FWD version. Could it be the 4WD GTA? But that's a bit too early.

Not so. It's that particular industry - Likely loss of GSP+ advantage etc...... That's a high risk sector right now, unless you relocate to India or Banga. There are many new projects coming up with local and foreign money. None in garments to my knowledge.

What I'm saying is that the 260 came in two sizes. One was the longer 2+2. This car is a 2 seater for sure. The question is if it is a 240 or 260. Anyway there was a 260Z 2+2 in Colombo that I use to see very often some years back. Silver car. The proportions are distorted compared to this one. Rear window and cabin is longer. There is another 260Z 2+2 in derelict state somewhere in Kotte. As a kid I was crazy about the 240Z. However when I went to see my 1st race at Katunayake, maybe in the early 80s, I saw a 240Z get beaten by a modded Mini I was a bit upset !

Are you mixing it up with the 260Z 2+2? I thought the 240Z did get the 2.6 engine in the same SWB and the +2 LWB format.....

Yes it was even back then when I had a look at it. And the bumpers were gone then as well.

600k back then. But I tried very hard the seller was a dodgy dealer and when I went with an advance the car wasn't there even though when I called before setting out (from Colombo to Negombo) and asked if I could come over, have one last look and close the deal, pay an advance, he said "the car is here". When we went over he kept us waiting for about two hours insisting the car was on it's way....... I went the next week and called him just after passing his place. The car wasn't there but when I asked if he had the car, he said "Yes" it was parked in front and I could come all the way from Colombo. I spoke to the guy on the opposite side of the road, gave him some dough and asked him to call if ever the car came back. It did not. Disgruntled I went to see an Alfa Romeo Guilia Coupe which was also for sale...............................

This is the car that I NEARLY bought! I guess somewhere in Y2000.

I am surprised at how soon shocks seem to wear out - 20,00km??. On my last Alfa 156 we replaced the originals only at 80,000kms. The suspension was attended to many times during this mileage to replace bushes, ball joints etc. But not until that mileage did we find the dampers with low pressure. On my current car the previous owner had replaced them at a similar mileage and now with 125k on the clock they are still perfect! Also if the rest of your suspension is ok it's not too hard to tell if your dampers are gone when cornering the car a little fast. You'll feel a nervousness or quivering from the end where the dampers are weak. Another of "my" tests are to drive on speed bumps. If dampers are weak you'll feel the car bouncing and shaking. If they are firm you only feel the vertical moment once up and down.

Yes I think the new badge isn't good. The Lion looks more like a polar bear to me. As if its fur is soaked with water. This modernization looks quite unprofessional. I'd bet though that they carried out some consumer tests with people who are non-car-enthusiasts and the new badge got a resounding thumbs up I liked the Gold Lion on the 70's cars the best.

Yep it is to make it look Coupe like. as they don't have enough money right now to make a 3 door version. It's on the 156 and 147 as well. And Honda piched the idea for the Civic hatch.

This is the Alfa Romeo Giulietta due in Geneva in March. All Alfisti hopes rest on this car.