All Black Jonah Lomu poured about $100,000 into the sound system in his head-banging Nissan Patrol. We don't know how loud it can get but we do know he has a rival in Britain. A music fan in Brighton has fitted out her Rover Metro with a system that can be heard more than a kilometre away. It puts out 160 decibels, 10 times that of a typical rock concert. The noise from a 747 jumbo jet at liftoff is about 130 decibels.
Aussies turn to CNG
The rocketing cost of petrol is making Australians unhappy, too. So much so that the Liverpool City Council, in Sydney's west, is about to convert all its vehicles to CNG. The Melbourne City Council has already switched six of its garbage trucks over to CNG. The council estimates it can save up to 50 per cent on fuel costs. CNG is gaining in popularity because it can be tailored for both petrol and diesel-engined cars, with each capable of switching between CNG and their original fuel. The Australian Government has set aside nearly $10 million to set up CNG fuelling stations between Sydney and Melbourne. Supply of CNG in Australia is estimated at 80 years. New Zealand toyed with it once. Had its use become more widespread, perhaps petrol wouldn't be as expensive as it is now.
Toyota tyres
Toyota isn't commenting on a newspaper report in Japan that says it is planning to make its own tyres. The story says Toyota has already set up a tyre-making system with the help of an established tyre company. Toyota makes all sorts of things in Japan, including kitset houses.
Nodders snapped
Carmakers have been working for some time on devices to help drivers to stop nodding off. The latest is a miniature camera which monitors the blink rate of a driver's eyes and wakes him up if the rate falls. The race to develop a clever anti-doze system has gained momentum since the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration in the United States calculated that dozing drivers cause 100,000 accidents a year on American roads.
Nissan convertible
Nissan in Japan will launch a convertible version of the delightful 200SX in July. The car was unveiled at the Tokyo Motor Show last year. No word on whether it will sell new here but it is sure to turn up as a used import.
Still exploring
Ford New Zealand has been putting motoring writers in and out of what it calls its new Explorer. But, alas, the new Explorer is still the old Explorer with a cosmetic change here and there. The real new model is taller, wider, longer, has a third row of seats, independent suspension all round and has just finished testing in Australia's Northern Territory. But Ford executives were not happy with it and ordered substantial changes - which is why its launch in the United States has been put back six months. It should still make it to New Zealand in 2002.
We are the world
* A man in Nova Scotia who drove home from his stag night with a ball and chain padlocked to his leg drowned when he crashed his car into a river.
* Long live the king. Autocar magazine reports that a music lover in Germany swapped his 1986 Audi 100 for $800 and a signed photograph of Elvis Presley.
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