Do I Not Like Ash Sutton?

Didn't used to.

I thought he was arrogant and how dare a 23 year old become BTCC Champion?

Though maybe he had something to be arrogant about.

I suppose I've always been a Colin Turkington fan - even from when before I bought a BMW.

And Ash Sutton has always been a big rival - and he's made a few caustic remarks too.  Often about Colin Turkington.

But, I have to admit he is brilliant racing driver.  He was brilliant at Knockhill today winning two races.  And the BTCC needs arrogant drivers with attitude - especially this season while Jason Plato is on a sabbatical.  And the grumpy Matt Neal isn't getting much airtime to be grumpy in.

I suppose what worries me most about Ash Sutton is that he became champion in 2017 - the year after the Russians meddled in the Brexit vote and in the US Presidential elections.

Here is Ash Sutton wearing a face mask:

Remind you of anyone?

Soup Apes

This picture is actually a monkey - but near enough.

 

If you want to know why this post is called "Soup Apes", then  you will need to look at a lot of photos in the second Autocar/Ronan Glon story that I've picked up on in a week.  Here's the other one if you missed it.

 

This is about a museum full of post-war Citroëns.

 

Each to their own but I'm not a fan - this one is my least unfavourite: 

It's an SM.

 

Does that stand for "Soup Monkey?"

Do 28% of Car Owners own BMWs?

Maybe.

Or maybe 28% of people who read articles about BMWs on motoring news sites own BMWs.

 

That survey appears at the bottom of this Car+Driver story about how, when firefighters have to break car windows to run their hoses along the shortest distance from hydrant to fire - it is usually a BMW that is illegally parked in their way.

 

They supply the latest example - this happened in The Bronx this week: 

However, a Google Images search reveals quite a different story.

 

So, speaking as a participant in that survey, and as part of that 28%, DO SOME RESEARCH BEFORE YOU VOTE!*

 

In fact, that is true every time you vote in anything - otherwise you end up with idiots in charge.

 

 

 

 

 

*I didn't, I just voted that way because I drive a BMW.

Rouille en Paix

That's French for "Rust in Peace"

Google Translate says it is anyway - a Frenchman may disagree.

It's probably not a good idea to visit France at the moment, unless you don't mind a couple of weeks quarantine on your return.

Which means that you could be missing out on an unusual tourist attraction.

Last month's Top Gear Magazine plugged an interesting book entitled "Lost Wheels" by Dieter Klein.

"It all started in Cognac, in this French town in Nouvelle-Aquitane, at the edge of a small village close by, I fell in love with Rosalie"

I think that is a better opening line than "It was the best of times, it was the worst of times" and certainly better than "Call me Ishmael."

Especially when you find out that Rosalie is an abandoned Citroën delivery truck.  The book is full of beautifully photographed abandoned cars and other vehicles.

So why am I bringing this up now?

I'll tell you.

Autocar today have an interesting article by American-based-in-France-with-an-Irish-first-name Ronan Glon which involves abandoned cars in France.

Some are old:

Apparently that is a Renault Monaquatre from the early '30s.  It would have looked like this:

Some are unrecognisable:

Believe it or not, that is a Renault Fuego.

 

What I like about this article is that Ronan and his researchers have tried to find out about the specific cars and vans - checking out number plates, VIN plates and even door hinges in one case to identify a Peugeot.

 

Some are surprising, like this Celica:

That Toyota is probably my favourite but this Renault 4 inspired Ronan so much that they have bought it:

It's a shame that some of these cars have ended up in this state - some have been stolen and stripped for parts - some just parked and forgotten about.  Some were used to build a dam - which didn't last very long.

A bit of a beautiful mess.

Talking of messes, our Government is insisting that the schools will reopen in September.  They may have a bit of a problem now:
You do realise we're all in France? say teachers (satire - but only just)

Badvertising

First there was Bananaman:

Then came Banana-Girl:

This is apparently a VERY BAD ADVERT for the Audi RS4.

 

Audi used this still from an advert showing it as a family car on Twitter and had to apologise.

 

Now, in terms of showing off the speed and the attributes of the car, I can see that it is failing on all counts - but that isn't really a reason to apologise unless you are the advertising executive who suggested to Audi that they use it.

 

No, according to one Twitter user, it is sexually provocative:

 

"Let's add it up: Red=eroticism, sports car=substitute for potency, animal print mini-skirt=sex appeal, banana=phallic symbol. But sure this is all just accidental..."

 

Maybe I'm not as perverted as some of these Twitter users but I am really not seeing it.

 

Talking of getting offended by ads, the BBC had this story yesterday about how "A new campaign called 'Badvertising' is demanding an immediate end to adverts for large polluting cars."

 

They don't seem to mind small polluting cars.

 

The campaign wants the Government to clamp down on sports utility vehicle (SUV) car adverts in the way it curbed smoking ads. Now, I'd quite like to ban SUVs - including the electric ones - but that's nothing to do with environmental concerns.

 

I looked up Badvertising on Google - I don't think it's anything to do with this lot.  I eventually found them here.  They are also worried about the impact of outdoor advertising signage in its own right -

 

"Outdoor advertising such as giant billboards, digital screens, and panels placed at bus stops and other places for public transport, are particularly problematic because unlike other mediums, we have no choice over whether we view them or not."

 

But when you are out and about, you are in the marketplace - I'd much rather that than have the advertisers come round to my front door.

 

The group behind the campaign are a worthy enough bunch of academics and artists and I wish them well - but they aren't going to convince the Mail Readers if they haven't convinced a Leftie like me - although maybe the fact I'm a Leftie Car-lover has something to do with that.

 

Advertising doesn't work on me anyway.  Now, I could just go a banana.