The Good Oil

Jaguar is all set to throw out its naming conventions. Photo / Supplied

A disaster on four wheels

Years ago, the magazine Popular Mechanics named the Ford Pinto as one of its 10 Cars That Deserved to Fail. The Pinto (1971-1980) was introduced as a two-door compact with the tagline "The little carefree car". It was aimed at rivals such as the Chevrolet Vega and AMC Gremlin. Everything looked hunky-dory for the Pinto until one was rear-ended in 1972. Its petrol tank exploded, a woman died and a teenager was badly burned. Investigators found a structural fault in the fuel filler neck, and Ford spent much of the 1970s fighting lawsuits. In all, 27 people died in Pinto fires. After Popular Mechanics' vote, Time magazine in 2008 ranked the Pinto number 21 in The 50 Worst Cars of All Time.

Miles per dollar

A draft transport bill in the US proposes taxing motorists on how far they drive rather than on the fuel they use. It follows a federal report suggesting the use of odometer-based electronic equipment to collect road tax. The plan is seen by some as an answer to concerns that, as drivers move to more fuel-efficient vehicles, the amount of tax money available for road works will gradually reduce. One argument against the system is that owners of heavier, less fuel-efficient vehicles such as SUVs would pay the same tax as lighter vehicles - even though the heavier ones would put more wear on roads.

Nice try, junior

Police impostors in the US usually drive cars outfitted to resemble cruisers, with flashing lights, scanners and so on, and carry impressive, if fake, ID. But Hector Garcia-Martinez, 35, fooled no one when he stopped two women in Joliet, Illinois. "Officer" Garcia-Martinez had none of the trappings - except a sticker on his front number plate reading "Woodridge Police Junior Officer". It had been given to children at a police event.

Wheels turning in electric revolution
Ford chairman Bill Ford reckons 25 per cent of all vehicles will be either hybrids, plug-ins or electric by 2020. But he caged the prediction, saying it was hard to know how quickly technology would be adopted.

"You might as well throw a dart," he said. "One thing I've learned is that you can't push technology. It has to be pulled." Ford said the United States needed to build a smart grid and install millions of car-charging stations in garages and public spots "while creating the IT that ties it all together. If we don't, there's a danger America will get left behind".

Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn says electric vehicles (not including hybrids) could account for 10 per cent of the alliance's global sales by 2020.

The saintly Volvo

Planned in Sweden, designed in Italy, launched in Belgium, built mostly in Britain and a huge success in the USA. That was the Volvo P1800. Production began in 1961 and ended in 1973. The two-door was made famous in The Saint television series starring Roger Moore. The TV production company wanted an E-Type Jaguar but Jaguar said no. The Volvo coupe's most famous owner is New Yorker Irv Gordon. He bought his in 1966, and has clocked up 4,500,00km - on the same engine. The P1800 wasn't Volvo's first sporty model. It tried its hand in the 1950s with the Volvo Sport, a plastic-bodied two-seater. But production ended after 67 cars. Then Volvo president Gunnar Engellau said: "Not a bad car, but a bad Volvo."

Drunken logic

The Montana House of Representatives in the US has passed a tough drink-driving bill to combat the state's high conviction rate.

But it came only after the objections of one of its own, Alan Hale, who owns a bar. Hale complained that drink-drive laws "are destroying small businesses" and "a way of life that has been in Montana for years and years". Until 2005, drinking while driving was legal outside of towns in Montana as long as the driver wasn't drunk. Hale said people need to drive home after they drink. "They are not going to hitchhike."

Tonka goes large

Courier company UPS is trialling plastic trucks that weigh about 500kg less than the conventional models on its worldwide fleet. A report from the US says the new trucks give 40 per cent better fuel economy than conventional vehicles, and could save the company more than 300 million litres of fuel each year. The trucks have a steel chassis but body panels, bumpers, cab, bonnet and so on are made of plastic. The trial will include crash tests.

Jaguar goes for simpler names

Jaguar is preparing to jettison nameplates like XJ and XF in favour of a more conventional alphanumeric system like that used by its German and Japanese rivals, says British magazine Autocar.

The thinking is that while the Jaguar faithful know the naming system, it's not immediately evident to newcomers - buyers who Jaguar is chasing. One model that could possibly hold out is Jaguar's new supercar, code-named C-X75 in honour of the carmaker's 75th birthday when unveiled at the Paris motor show last year. It takes the place of the XJ220 of the early 1990s but might be named the XJ330. The original wore the XJ220 badge because of its claimed 220mph (356km/h) top speed.