Ten things we learned this week: 20 January 2017 edition

Good news, Ford's done the same thing to the Mustang Convertible it did to the Coupe - make it better.

When it goes on sale in the US this autumn, the new Mustang Convertible will benefit from many, if not all (Ford hasn't given us much info to go on) the changes made to the regular Mustang.

So besides the new, we think better-looking face, there's the more powerful engines, the active exhaust, the MagneRide suspension and the new ten-speed automatic gearbox, plus a load more colour and wheel options. And, of course, no V6. You can read about all the changes Ford's made to the Mustang by clicking on these blue words. Looks good, no?

You’ve likely heard of the licence-plate flipper, first made famous in Goldfinger and copied ad infinitum by toll-dodgers and miscreants the world over. 

Well, it turns out there are low-rent versions that just drop a curtain in front of the plate, obscuring it from toll/speed cameras. Genius, right? Er, no. Apart from that whole ‘desperately illegal’ aspect, all you’re doing is inviting serious trouble, rather than the few quid you were up for.  

And that brings us neatly to a man in Florida, who was caught dodging a toll booth by a police officer. And now he faces court proceedings. 

Don’t scam the government, kids!

Photo: SPUI

In perhaps the cheesiest thing since this side of an entire wheel of gouda, Dodge has released a video which we think details the weight-shedding programme that’ll ensure the massively powerful lump of American muscle will be even faster than the Hellcat.

Still, no one’s going to buy a Demon for its subtlety, are they?

We’ve heard before that speed bumps, chicanes and other so-called ‘traffic-calming’ measures cause quite a bit of pollution by forcing cars to accelerate to get back up to speed. This, in turn, kills us by ruining the air we breathe.

But, according to motorist advocacy news site The Newspaper, the road architecture built to slow us down and keep us safe has more than 1600 accidents over the past decade, killing 23 people.

If you want to see their numbers, check them out here.

Photo: Mat Fascione

It seems the world’s vendetta against diesel is starting to reach fever pitch, with Norway clearing its capital’s roads of all compression-ignition engines for two days this week.

Of course, Oslo already has plans to ban diesel cars permanently, but this move was a temporary action to curb a spike in pollution levels. Paris, Madrid and Athens have enacted similar plans to rid cities of diesel power, and there’s quite a bit of talk about doing the same in London, Brussels and Dublin. 

If you ask the locals, it’s apparently a bit of an about-face from the Norwegian government, which encouraged them to buy diesels as an environmentally sound alternative to petrol-powered cars. 

Photo: Pudelek

A few weeks back, Pagani showed us a picture of its upcoming Huayra Roadster. Well, it was a picture of a wing mirror, actually. The company is, as well as being masterful car builders, also appear to be the masters of delayed gratification.

Now, the hypercar builder has released a shot of a heavily disguised flank. And we approve.

… With a shot of the AMG-sourced engine, nestled in the engine bay of one of the most anticipated cars of 2017.

The phrase ‘waiting with bated breath’ doesn’t even begin to cover it.

Yes, yes… we know. It’s actually Rallycross, but to-may-to, to-mah-to – we’re talking about sliding Audi Quattros, and if that concept doesn’t excite you, consider seeking medical advice. 

Swedish speed merchant Mattias Ekström was so successful in last year’s season (winning overall, in case you were curious) that Audi has now thrown its full support behind the EKS team. So, it’ll be a Swede, driving factory-backed Audi S1 sideways. We approve.

Perhaps no one told Kia that most Europeans hate diesels now. 

With diesel cars set to be banned from city centres and the general public equating them to asbestos, coal seam fracking and chain-smoking, it seems an odd choice for Kia to announce a 197bhp, 325lb ft diesel version of its upcoming Stinger super saloon.

But it really isn’t – car buyers still want miles per gallon, and diesel’s still got the numbers game on its side, with consumption figures destined to be on the wallet-pleasing side of 50mpg. And, with about 25 per cent more torque than the 2.0-litre petrol, it’s still likely to remain a popular choice. 

Now, commence arguments over diesel vs petrol vs electric in the comments.