Articles by CarsGuide team

Speeding fines have become a multi-million dollar source of income for state governments in Australia, according to the National Motorists Association of Australia (NMAA). NMAA spokesman Michael Lane said there has been a vast over-emphasis on collecting speeding fines instead of a focus on the major causes of road fatalities. The cause of the majority of road fatalities is inattention, Lane said. "Some people use the euphemism of distraction when they crash while driving. However, drivers need to accept that driving is a task that deserves their full attention." Research in Australia has shown that fewer than 8 per cent of road fatalities would be prevented by fitting GPS controllers to every vehicle on the road so that drivers cannot exceed the posted speed limit. The NMAA said this is clear evidence that more than 92 per cent of fatalities are not caused by exceeding the speed limit. "Governments need to focus on the real causes of fatal crashes, instead of raking in speeding fines." Other nations have provided similar research results. Government research in the UKshows that only 5 per cent of all injury crashes had 'exceeding the speed limit' as a contributory factor. In the US, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) reports that when driver error was the primary cause of a crash, researchers identified that "distraction and not paying attention to the road accounted for 41 percent of the errors". In Australia, state governments continue to espouse speed limit enforcement as the primary traffic safety measure. Comprehensive examination of accident causation suggests this focus on speed is grossly misplaced and is actively hindering progress towards genuine reductions in road fatalities. Mr Lane said three major steps are necessary to dramatically reduce fatal crashes on our roads. Firstly, improved driver training is vital and P-plate drivers need to complete an advanced driving course to be competent to drive on public roads. Secondly, more highly visible highway patrol vehicles need to patrol the roads and enforce all road rules, not simply the one rule for which technology allows the greatest number of tickets issued per hour. The technology companies that peddle speed detection devices are part of the problem. For too long, bureaucrats and politicians have been susceptible to the temptation to invest in this technologically based revenue. Thirdly, governments need to commit far more expenditure on road improvements such as divided dual carriageways on major highways. History shows that converting the Hume Highway between Sydney and Melbourne to a dual divided carriageway has reduced road fatalities by 80 per cent. That is a quantum leap. Mr Lane said that reducing fatalities and injuries on roads is not a simplistic single sentence fix such as blaming speed. "The state governments have converted the roads portfolio into a revenue source and in doing so have disguised their lack of expenditure on road infrastructure. "Vehicle manufacturers have made excellent progress with vehicle safety.  Evidence of this is that air bags have greatly reduced the number of front seat fatalities and electronic stability control has dramatically reduced the number of fatal car crashes. "What is needed is for state governments to participate with expenditure on road infrastructure, providing more highway patrol police and establishing a vastly improved standard of driver training."  

The side-by-side ATVs were designed in Israel for military use but a London businessman retiring to Australia decided to localise the product for Australian conditions and licensed the intellectual property rights. The Brim family initially moved to Brisbane from London to commercialise the Tomcar project, but has since relocated to Melbourne where the vehicles are being assembled in a factory owned by automotive components maker MtM Auto. It is now the only working assembly plant of Tomcar now operating and has sourced a large percentage of the components locally for the Australian-built version. MtM Auto builds components such as gearshift assemblies, door handles, release levers, steering columns and other components for automotive brands such as Ford, Holden, Buick, Cadillac, Jaguar, Kenworth and Toyota Racing. The Victorian dealer for Tomcar is True Blue Tomcar, a division of the Penfolds Motor Group, which operates new car dealerships for Mazda, Audi, Holden and Subaru, in Victorian locations. Different Tomcar models will include the basic two-seater TM2, the four-seater TM4 and the two-seater flat-tray model TM5. The vehicles, which can be test driven by arrangement with True Blue Tomcar, are aimed at the construction, tourism and agricultural markets.

  

Watch this horrifying video as an SUV flies out of nowhere and crashes through a woman’s windscreen. The offroader seems to have launched over a barrier separating two sides of the highway and then launches into the air before landing on the oncoming vehicle – in which a dashcam recorded the terrifying footage.

  

At the time it was seen as a very technological advanced, stylish, small car, yet has always been overshadowed by the front wheel drive Mini, its main competitor, and to a lesser extent, the very conventional Ford Anglia. Maybe it was just too innovative for most car buyers.Indeed, the Imp was a big change of direction for Hillman. They'd won their reputation building well engineered, mid-sized, front-engined cars like the Minx. Their new small car was a 180 degree turnaround, both in styling and mechanical design, literally.The Imp boasted a rear mounted 875cc aluminium alloy engine, with overhead camshaft, sourced from Formula 1 builders, Coventry Climax. Hillman's engineers tweaked the motor by laying it over on a 45 degree angle and increasing the compression ratio to 10:1, quite high for the day.What really had everyone taking notice was the light weight motor, just 77kgs. This gave the car a superior level of performance and with some tuning and exhaust system fettling the standard power output of 41kw could be raised to over 80kw. That's a lot of horsepower for a small car.The cute shape was inspired by the 1960 Chevrolet Corvair. The front end is almost a direct copy. In fact, during the development of the Imp, Hillman engineers test drove Corvairs seeking to understand how Chevrolet had solved the "tail happy" tendencies, so typical of rear engine designs.After putting one on its roof, the Hillman folk realised Chevrolet had not solved the problem at all, and thus opted for a sophisticated multi link rear suspension, rather than the Corvair's simpler, cheaper swing axles. And the rest of that story you would know only too well.Over 500,000 Imps were sold across the world during its 13 year production run. Hillman's parent company, Rootes, badge-engineered it into the Singer Chamois and Sunbeam Sport. In Australia the Imp was sold through dedicated Hillman dealerships and after Rootes was acquired by Chrysler, it ended up sitting beside Valiants on showroom floors.Imps have a very strong fan base in the classic car world. Parts and panels are readily available in Australia, New Zealand and in the UK. They are ideal for anyone thinking about their first classic car, being cheap to buy and maintain.Unique to Australia was a convertible called the Hillman Stiletto. It was factory sanctioned and built by Melbourne firm EiffelTower Motors. The convertible could be ordered with a removable hard top. This is a very rare and much sought after Imp. 

Holden is giving away a new Commodore, you've just got to piece the puzzle together. In the largest hunt of its kind in Australia, 101 virtual puzzle pieces that make up the first image of the new VF Commodore have been hidden around the country in both physical and online locations. Players can register to help Holden build the new Commodore on a new microsite, www.buildthecommodore.com.au, where they will receive daily clues to find a piece of the image. Anyone who finds one of the pieces and shares it online will be entered into a prize draw to win one of the first VF Commodores to roll off the production line. Holden Marketing Director, Simon Carr said social media offered Holden a unique opportunity to engage fans, customers and the public in the launch of the new car. "The last time we launched a new Commodore, social media was in its infancy. Facebook and YouTube were not household names and mobile phones were for calls and texts. "What better way to reveal an Australian favourite than engage our fans and enthusiasts in the hunt to create its first official image?" Registrations to participate in the Build The Commodore campaign are open today. The first puzzle pieces will be released on February 6 with the hunt concluding as the real-life car is revealed via live stream on the Holden website on 10 February.