A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird:
Caught on video: texting, reckless driving
You’ve probably started to see them cropping up more and more: cameras attached to the helmets of motorcyclists. Similar to the dashcam phenomenon, these aren’t meant to record the stunts of a GoPro commercial, but to capture near misses. Being a motorcyclist is dangerous, particularly when you’re surrounded by an ever-more-distracted population.
Ottawa resident Erik Hannah’s helmet cam may have just done the residents of Ontario a small favour. Thanks to footage he uploaded to YouTube, a driver has surrendered to Ottawa police and is now facing charges of distracted and reckless driving.
Here’s what happens on tape. Hannah is stopped behind a black Toyota FJ Cruiser when he notices that the car is stopped far back of the line. He eases his bike over to take a look: the driver is glued to her phone.
He knocks on the window. She ignores him and keeps tapping away on her phone. The light changes, so Hannah proceeds forward, now ahead of the FJ. Within a few seconds, the Toyota comes surging forward from the right, cutting into Hannah’s lane and missing his bike by inches.
The video of the incident, including where Hannah catches up and calmly confronts the woman, went viral. Ottawa police were soon involved, and the driver subsequently turned herself in.
Cameras are everywhere these days, and in cases like this, it’s a good thing. If you aren’t going to behave like someone who belongs on the road, you should be taken off it.
Norway’s electric advantage: charging
Norway is often touted as a model for electric car adoption, as it has the highest percentage of EV owners of any country. There are very good reasons for the surge in ownership: the Norwegian government gives significant tax breaks to EV owners, including waiving the sales tax. They also get to take ferries for free, get free parking, and get to charge for free in public.
However, all the freebies in the world can’t replace good infrastructure. Thus, the Norwegians have just opened the world’s largest fast-charging site, located just outside Oslo. The site can charge 28 cars at the same time, which rates as more plugs in one place than you can find in some entire U.S. states.
With its densely populated area and limited sprawl, the Lower Mainland is one of the most sensible places to own an electric car, even if it’s only as your second vehicle. The more infrastructure we build for EVs, the easier they’ll be to own.
Last LaFerrari to benefit earthquake victims
The recent earthquake in Italy left hundreds dead and many more homeless. In order to help them out, Ferrari just announced their intention to build a 500th version of their LaFerrari hypercar, one that’ll be auctioned off for charity.
How much can one car raise? While the Ferrari LaFerrari originally sold for $1.3 million, the car has been changing hands for as much as three to four times the original price. Some people will get the help they need, and some very wealthy person will get a beautiful car. A beautiful car with an absolutely stupid name.
Dodge to make AWD Challenger
An all-wheel-drive Hellcat? Well, no – not yet. However, part of Dodge’s new plans are to add all-wheel drive to the Challenger platform, giving the muscle car a little more grip.
There’s more good news here too. As you may already know, Fiat’s acquisition of Chrysler involves a lot of cost savings via platform sharing. The next Challenger will lose its aging bones, being built instead on the same frame that underpins the Alfa Romeo Giulia. That means you’re getting a bruiser that’s also got a little Alfa racing pedigree – a boxer that can dance.
And finally, Dodge fans will get their chance at a convertible version of the Challenger. There’s a rumour going around that it might even be called the Barracuda.
Russians use risque risk management
Russian roads are among the most dangerous in the world. However, at one pedestrian crossing near the village of Severny, in central Russia, the road suddenly got a lot safer. And, um, nakeder.
In a move that would surely generate a heated council debates if someone was to try it here, a local road safety campaign hired a couple of models to stand by the side of the road in lingerie. They popped off their tops and held up speed limit signs. Everybody slowed right down. Like waaayyy down.
Surprisingly, there were no reported crashes caused by distracted drivers.
Watch this space for all the best and worst of automotive news, or submit your own auto oddities to [email protected].
