Goodwood's new social media site has launched! It's called fortyonesix.com, after the 41.6sec record for driving up the hillclimb set by Nick Heidfeld.
   I was very pleased to be asked to be one of the launch team, and you can find my features on fashion, a stroy about talking to the legendary Carroll Shelby and an interview with former F1 driver Desiré Wilson - now a Goodwood Revival regular.
   You'll also find lots of emotive features about motorsport - memories of the good old days and news of what's happening now. There are drives of dream sports cars and, of course, lots of Goodwood news. Tickets for 2013 are on sale now!
Click here or go to www.fortyonesix.com

I'm rather taken with the Maserati Gran Turismo Sport. Pity I don't have a spare £100,000.   
   Lucky old Jodie Kidd is seen here being a Maserati ambassador. She was chosen because she plays polo and also, I'm guessing, because you need one hell of a skinny arse to look good in white.
   Maserati partners with sports brand La Martina, so Jodie is modelling some of the latest range of polo-inspired kit. The new designs were inspired by the shirts of the Italian National Polo Team, who were sponsored by Maserati during the European round of the Polo World Championship Playoffs. Very complicated, very posh. You can see more here
www.maseratishop.com.
   Personally I'd go for the Convertible, of course. It oozes gorgeousness. I suppose your groom drives the horsebox home after the polo match.

Don’t people like driving any more? I’ve seen lots of press releases lately boasting that new cars are just a whisker away from being able to drive themselves.
   The Cadillac XTS release said ‘Sensor Fusion is an integral building towards the development of autonomous vehicles’. Sensor Fusion consists of radar, cameras and sensors giving the car an awareness of its surroundings, so it can park itself with minimal input from the driver. 
   I can understand that Cadillac owners might want a self-driving car – maybe they’re mourning the fact they can’t afford a chauffeur any more, but another release with the same theme was from Nissan. The company was extolling the virtues of its fly-by-wire steering system, which completely eliminates the mechanical connection between the wheel in your hands and the wheels on the road. Sound terrifying to me, but Nissan insists the system will enhance the driving experience and states again “It’s also a big step toward a fully autonomous vehicle.”
   Another surprise was the press pack for the Ford Escape compact SUV, which is loaded with so much kit, I’m surprised there’s room on the back for the dog. The pack says: “The all-new Escape is the first Ford SUV to combine class-exclusive technology to automatically slow the vehicle when it’s cornering too fast (Curve Control) or help accelerate through a turn (Torque Vectoring Control); a new Intelligent 4WD System helps deliver outstanding handling on pristine pavement and in adverse conditions as well, along with excellent traction off-road”.
   Plus: “Manoeuvring parking lots and traveling open roadways becomes even safer and less stressful with Escape’s sensor-based BLIS® (Blind Spot Information System) with cross-traffic alert. BLIS displays an alert in the side mirror when a vehicle is detected entering a blind spot. Cross-traffic alert warns if traffic is detected approaching from the sides, such as when Escape is leaving a parking space in reverse.”
Wouldn’t a mirror and a look over the shoulder do this?
   And it’s not all Yankee motors. The Vauxhall Cascada lists Front Camera System, including Traffic Sign Recognition, Lane Departure Warning, Following Distance Indication and Forward Collision Alert; rear-view camera; Side Blind Spot Alert, plus lots of tech to keep the wheels pointing at the black stuff, despite your best efforts.
   What’s the matter with everyone? Haven’t they seen any of the Terminator franchise? Or Battlestar Gallactica? Keep doing this way and cars with self-awareness will rebel! At the very least they’ll refuse to go anywhere but the garage if they fancy a good servicing.
   More seriously, though, the most dangerous thing in a car is still the driver, and if that driver feels too comfortable, nothing will remind them not to drive so damned fast. Or not to text inbetween choosing playlists on their integrated stereos or to get angry discussing business deals on their Bluetooth- connected phones. And what happens when they get into a car that doesn’t have any of these things?
   I remember someone suggesting that the best safety item might be a spear aimed at the driver’s heart. It concentrates the mind on the task at hand. Maybe I wouldn’t go that far, Personally I think driving is a skill and one you can enjoy, even if you’re not doing doughnuts on a track. It can also keep you safe.
  I also hate things that buzz at me. Over-sensitive lane-departure warnings drive me so crazy I’m probably more likely to crash.
  Rather than Terminator or BSG, I think of the Hitchhiker’s Guide (as always), and the planet where people threw out all the robots because they were so annoying.
  I can’t help thinking, too, about my granddad’s family who all used to pile on a horse and cart to go to the pub. Afterwards they’d all fall back on the cart and the horse took them home. (Although someone inevitably tumbled off and spent a night in the ditch.)
   Maybe that’s what people really want. A car that drives while you drink.

Vauxhall has released full images of its Cascada convertible, following the teaser shot a few weeks ago. (bloke in driving seat, of course). It really does look swish, and perfect for someone who really wants a sporty cabrio but has to give lifts (probably to children, but maybe friends).
   At 4.7 metres long, it's longer than an Audi A5 Convertible, and it's hoping to steal buyers from that premium marque. Duncan Aldred, Vauxhall’s Chairman and Managing Director said "The full-size convertible sector tends only to be occupied by very high-priced cars from premium manufacturers. With Cascada, we’re offering customers high levels of equipment, technology and luxury but at an affordable price."
   A wide range of engines will be offered, but the first will be a 140PS 1.4-litre petrol turbo and the 165hp 2.0 CDTi diesel from the Insignia and Zafira Sports Tourer, available with either a six-speed manual or six-speed automatic.
   Plus, Vauxhall is most excited about the all-new 1.6 SIDI Turbo ECOTEC petrol engine, which it promises will be powerful, smooth and efficient. It produces a maximum 170PS from 1650-3200rpm and 280Nm of torque, thanks to an overboost function*. Initially this engine will only be available with a new, low-friction automatic six-speed gearbox.
   The company has worked hard to keep this long body stiff to handling and reduce noise and vibration. Being realistic about the UK weather, the fabric hood has a special layer of polyester fleece to keep the cabin snug and quiet.
   The price hasn't been announced yet, but I'm guessing £25,000 to undercut the £29k A5 when it goes on sale early in 2013.
   I hope it can boost the Vauxhall name as the company hopes, but I can't help thinking it would do well as a hire car for visitors touring Scotland or the Cotswolds.

* Overboost is the latest buzz-word to impress performance fiends - it's a trick that uses a car's turbocharger to deliver a burst of extra power during peak acceleration.


  

I had a good day catching up on the VW range, from the up! to the Passat Alltrack on lovely Cotswold Roads. It was the one day in summer when it didn't rain, too. Click here for more

I received a lovely note from Jaime Steve who was pictured with his wife Whitney on my blog about the Goodwood Revival Sept 14. (Click here for the main story.) He sent me a picture of them in another set of fantastic outfits and a truly impressive list of the cars they currently own. (Not the list of all the cars they've owned as I first put, I'm guessing I wouldn't have space for that!) His comment reads:

Hi Liz,
Jaime Steve here again from the U.S. I've been reading more of your website and it really is terrific. Your writing nicely captures the feel of the Goodwood Revival.
   As you are clearly a car person, you might enjoy seeing a list of the mostly British cars for which my wife and I are the (temporary) keepers. As a car friend of mine often said, "You don't have to be nuts, but it helps."
1) 1931 Ford Model A deluxe coupe (w/ rumble seat)
2) 1933 MG J2
3) 1941 Army Jeep (made by Ford)
4) 1951 MG TD
5) 1955 MG TF 1500
6) 1957 Rolls Royce Silver Cloud I by Mulliner (#3 of 4 built)
7) 1959 Austin Healey Bugeye/Frogeye Sprite
8) 1962 MGA Mk II 1600
9) 1966 Ford Mustang convertible
10) 1967 MGB GT
11) 1968 MGB roadster
12) 1969 Jaguar E-type coupe
13) 1970 Triumph TR-6
14) 1972 Oldsmobile Vista Cruiser wagon
15) 1973 Volkswagen Type 3 Squareback
16) 1976 Jeep Wagoneer
17) 1976 BMW 2002
18) 1980 MGB LE
19) 1981 Fiat Spider 2000
20) 1994 Mazda Miata M-edition
21) 1997 Jaguar XK8 coupe

I’m convinced the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation has a contact with BMW/Mini. In the Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy, Douglas Adams wrote about the corporation responsible for robots with 'real people personalities' and a drinks dispenser that always turned out a liquid almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea.
   For a long time, I’ve suspected that Adams actually had a time machine and popped forward to the 21st century in search of inspiration. Every time a mechanical voice tells me there’s some important news about my refund, or Amazon emails to recommend some items I may like, based on the thrash metal album I once bought a teenage nephew, I’m convinced of it.
   We’ve had our Mini for just over a week. It's a very nice little car and very quiet and unrattly compared with most of our previous cars. Its cabin cavities glow green and purple in the dark, too. But we’ve had a couple of  annoyances and one terrifying moment that saw us yelling and shaking fists at the onboard computer.
   I was miffed that we only got one keyring. Having spent £16k, surely we could have one each? Plus, the salesperson warned us, we have to make sure we use both regularly. If we don’t, they die, like expensive tamagotchis, and you can’t get a battery, you have to buy a new key.
   Then, this weekend we set off on our first reasonably long trip. When we bought the car, we said (several times) we wanted the Pepper pack because it provides an auxiliary jack and USB port to allow us to control the iPod through the audio system. That means we can make up a mutually agreed playlist to get round our problem of mutually exclusive musical tastes. (Detailed in my blog The Sound of Music April 7, 2012).
   So we set off, me at the wheel, Richard all ready to set up the iPod. He plugged it in using the Apple connector. “ This cable is not supported,” sneered the audio. He rang the dealer, and sure enough, Apple’s cable won’t work. We’ve got to buy a BMW/Mini cable for an extra £42 if we actually want to use those expensive ports we shelled out for. Why didn't someone mention that? We felt like kids at Christmas when the batteries aren’t included.
   On the way back, it was Richard's turn to drive and he drew the short straw. After an hour of inching through solid, aggressive, Friday night traffic in the dark and the rain, he was hot and wanted to take his jacket off. As we reached a red traffic light, he put the car into neutral with the handbrake on and took his foot off the clutch, so the fuel-saving auto-stop cut the engine. He had to release his seatbelt to get his jacket off, but had put it back on again before the lights changed.
   He took selected gear, nothing happened. We didn't realise the computer with the bossy schoolmarm personality had decided “He’s taken his seatbelt off, it can’t be safe to start! We’re just going to sit here until he learns his lesson!”
   So we were stranded. Cars were hooting  and slicing past. In such appalling conditions, we were lucky no one rammed us. Safety feature? I don’t think so.
  Luckily we’ve been watching the IT Crowd, so guessed the answer would be to turn it off and turn it on again.

Blimey, Audi has issued a release saying it can make fuel from waste water.
   Actually it's the bugs in the water. Audi teamed up with US-based specialist fuels company Joule to investigate options for sustainable future fuels. The partners says they have produced e-ethanol and e-diesel by combining waste CO2, sunlight and microscopic organisms suspended in waste water. The equipment needed is apparently some lengths of ordinary-looking pipe.
  Audi says its engineers have "contributed to a breakthrough of almost miraculous proportions” and it certainly sounds like a win-win if it can be produced in significant volume for a price people will pay.
  I'm also keeping an eye on diesel from algae or fungus and ethanol from sugar beet or waste wood.
   Read more here.

We’ve been waiting since 1974, when flares were huge and Garry Glitter seemed like a laugh. At this September’s Paris Show, the wraps finally came off a successor to the E-type Jaguar.
   I didn’t make it to Paris, so I haven’t seen it in the flesh (fur?). From the pics, my first impressions are that it's a stylish machine with real presence, but I’m not going to cry because I can’t have one, the way I do when I see an E-type or XK120.
   Jaguar's Head of Design, Ian Callum, observed in an interview with Autocar "Is it as sexy or as glamorous as an E-type? Give it 20 years and we'll find out." He's right, of course.
   So far, the response from the international press has been cheering and weeping. I really hope it does well.
But isn't it sad that no F-type emerged when Jaguar was still actually British, rather than just built here? The man who made the F-type happen is Ratan Tata, boss of Indian giant Tata which now owns Jaguar Landrover. Tata is a real car enthusiast and a man with vision as well as commercial know-how. I suppose we should be grateful these two great British marques ended up in such a pair of safe hands, after the Brits dropped the ball.
Click here for F-type picture gallery.