2019

2019 The Banking Royal Commission delivered its final report (4 Feb.). Labor snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in the federal election (18 May). The Australian bush-fire season started with a vengeance in early spring (September) and kept going; 2019 was Australia's hottest and driest year on record (see report 9 Jan. 2020). Fire chiefs pointed to climate change and the PM, Scott this-is-coal Morrison, offered thoughts and prayers. Greta Thunberg was named Time 'person of the year'. Pro-democracy protests ran for months in HK. There was a jump in road deaths involving trucks (see 17 Nov.). Toyota Hilux was the number one selling vehicle in .au, again. Lewis Hamilton won his sixth F1 Drivers World Championship. Les Hiddins, the "Bush Tucker Man" opened a new web site [www].

31 December 2019: "NSW South Coast bushfires burn at emergency level from Batemans Bay to Bega ..." — [abc].  "East Gippsland towns including Mallacoota brace for bushfires as wind change sweeps Victoria ..." — [2].
30 December 2019: "BOM warns sweltering Sydney weather, gusty winds will fan NSW fires ..." — [abc].
There were also 'Fire weather warnings' current for parts of NSW, SA, Tasmania, Victoria and WA. See the NSW [www], SA [www], Tasmanian [www], Victorian [www] and WA [www] fire services and warnings.

30 December 2019, vic: "[Truck-]driver charged after mother and five-year-old boy killed in crash [29/12] near Ballarat ..." — The Age [www].

29 December 2019: "East Gippsland [Vic.] residents and holidaymakers urged to leave ahead of escalating bushfire danger ..." — [abc] — Omeo, Bonang, Bairnsdale, Cann River, and more, with many roads closed. See the Vic. [cfa].
"'Elevated fire conditions' to hit South Australia on Monday as firefighters continue to battle blazes ..." — [abc]. See the SA CFS [www].

28 December 2019: "What a decade on the edge of change has taught me about 'the future' ... There are two lessons: be careful what you wish for; and always remember that technology has no agency – it is what we program it to be. ..." — Antony Funnell [www], Future Tense [www].

26 December 2019, for car parks: "[VW's prototype] mobile charging robot ... drives itself to the vehicle [car] that needs charging ... brings a trailer in the form of a [25kWh] mobile energy storage device [battery] to the vehicle ..." — VW [www].  And, "[VW] will be launching 34 new models worldwide next year, including twelve SUVs and eight electric or hybrid vehicles. ..." — VW [19/12].

26 December 2019: The 75th Sydney to Hobart yacht race.  IRC handicap: 1. Ichi Ban, 2. Gweilo, 3. Quest.  Line honours: 1. Comanche, 2. InfoTrack, 3. Wild Oats XI.

24 December 2019, recall, PRA #2019/18076: "Kia Motors Australia - Kia UM Sorento MY2020 ... Due to an error in the Frontal Collision-Avoidance Assist (FCA) software, the braking assist function may fail when the vehicle approaches a stationary vehicle or a pedestrian. ..." — .gov.au [www].

24 December 2019: "The number of homes razed by bushfires [in NSW] this season has climbed to almost 1,000 ..." — [abc]. See the NSW RFS [www].

21 December 2019: "Victorian bushfire [in] Gippsland generates its own weather ..." — [abc]. For this and other fires see the Vic. [cfa].
"NSW bushfires sees fire-generated thunderstorm ..." — [2]. See the NSW RFS [www].

20 December 2019, .au: "Bushfire burning out of control at Cudlee Creek [SA] ..." — [abc]. See the SA CFS [www].
"Coolgardie-Esperance Highway [WA] shut down as bushfire rages near Norseman ..." — [2]. See WA warnings [www].

20 December 2019: "Goldman Sachs abandons coal as investors look to low-emissions future ..." — [abc].

20 December 2019: Judgement Day in the Federal Court for 'Australian Competition and Consumer Commission [ACCC] v Volkswagen Aktiengesellschaft [2019] FCA 2166', i.e., ACCC v VW in dieselgate.au, "... 274 In all the circumstances and applying the requisite process of instinctive synthesis, I consider that a civil pecuniary penalty [on VW] of $125 million is warranted in the present case and that is the penalty which I propose to impose. ..." — [www].
Also, "19-370MR ASIC commences civil penalty proceedings against Volkswagen subsidiary for breaching responsible lending laws ..." — ASIC [www]. (Also see the [abc].)

19 December 2019, .au: Angus Taylor won the 2019 Golden Zombie award [www].

19 December 2019: "Self-driving trucks cut fuel consumption by 10% ..." — SAE [www].

18 December 2019, Wed., .au: The national average maximum temperature was 41.9°C, a new record [abc] beating the record of 40.7°C set just the day before (Tues., 17th). Prior to that the record had been 40.3°C in Jan. 2013. (The average max on Thu. 19th was "only" 41.0°C.)

18 December 2019: "... Across Australia as a whole, spring 2019 saw the highest fire weather danger as measured by the Forest Fire Danger Index (FFDI), with record high values observed in areas of all States and Territories. ..." — [bom]. "NSW state of emergency declared ..." — [19/12]. Check the NSW RFS [www]. "Fire on Sunshine Coast ..." — [18/12]. Check the Qld RFS [www].

18 December 2019: PSA (Peugeot) and FCA (Fiat Chrysler): "Groupe PSA and FCA agree to merge ..." — FCA [www]. "Groupe PSA and FCA agree to merge ... Combined company will be the 4th largest global OEM by volume and 3rd largest by revenue with annual sales of 8.7 million units and combined revenues of nearly €170 billion ..." — PSA [www]. Workers for Vauxhall might feel nervous. The merger is expected to take about a year.

18 December 2019: Jaguar Land-Rover (JLR) has bought 'Bowler', builder of off-road racers based on JLR products. See Bowler [www].

17 December 2019: "Tuesday [17th] was Australia's hottest day on record ..." — [abc].

17 December 2019: "... heatwaves, with a week of extreme temperatures set to impact large parts of south-eastern Australia ..." — [bom].
A fire at Gospers Mountain in the Wollemi National Park area (Blue Mtns, west of Sydney) could threaten the Mount Piper power station, Lithgow. See the [abc] and the NSW RFS [www].

17 December 2019: "The ACCC is warning Australian consumers about a new safety risk in using certain vehicles fitted with a different type of faulty Takata airbag. These airbags, which are fitted with a NADI 5-AT propellant, are not captured under the existing compulsory recall of Takata airbags. ... About 78,000 vehicles manufactured by Audi, BMW, Ford, Honda, Mazda, Mitsubishi, Suzuki and Toyota between 1996 and 2000 and fitted with the faulty airbags ..." — ACCC [www]. Note that this is a newly recognised risk, different to the other long-running – and still-running (see 4 Oct.) – Takata danger which began 11 April 2013 or earlier.

17 December 2019, .au: 'Nine fuel retailers have been fined a total of $15,750, after being found short measuring customers during a national audit by the National Measurement Institute (NMI). ... "The proportion of fuel pumps found to be inaccurate to consumer disadvantage doubled over a two year period, from 2.4% of inspected pumps in 2015-16 to 4.8% in 2017-18," ...' — NMI [www].

17 December 2019: "Magna to undertake series development of the new utilitarian 4x4 ... [Magna] will now be joined by Magna-Steyr, which will undertake the series development phase of the forthcoming Grenadier. ..." — Ineos Automotive [www].

15 December 2019: A survey of feral horses in the Kosciuszko National Park reports that feral horse numbers there have grown from ~9,200 in 2014 to ~25,000 in 2019. See [www]. The feral horses damage waterways and native vegetation. (NSW passed the controversial 'Kosciuszko Wild Horse Heritage Bill', act #24/2018, in June 2018, [www].)

15 December 2019: "... we present new ages for Wolfe Creek Crater from exposure dating using the cosmogenic nuclides 10Be and 26Al, together with ... The exposure ages range from ~86 to 128ka. The OSL ages indicate that the age of the impact is most likely to be ~120ka ..." — T. M. Barrows et al, 'The age of Wolfe Creek meteorite crater (Kandimalal), Western Australia', Meteoritics & Planetary Science, Sept., 2019, [www].  ("... Australia's Wolfe Creek crater is much younger [120ka] than previously thought [300ka] ..." — [abc].)

13 December 2019, .au: "Gold Coast and Sunshine Coast hit by very dangerous storms ..." — [abc].  And, "Housing estates warned it is 'too late to leave' as fire bears down north of Perth ..." — [2], and [3].

December 2019: Gordon Murray Automotive (GMA) revealed details of the 'T.50' supercar with ground-effects +fan (as in the Chaparral 2J of 1970 and the Brabham BT46B F1 fan-car of 1978), 3.9-litre V12 (by Cosworth) — GMA [www] and [www]. "Deliveries from early 2022."

12 December 2019 (Thu.), .uk: General Election. (Also see the current Brexit deadline, 31 January 2020.)

13 Dec.: The Conservative party, led by PM Boris Johnson, won a large majority: Con. 365, Lab. 203, SNP 48, LD 11, DUP 8, other 15. (Watch Scotland and Northern Ireland over the next few years.)
8 Dec.: On Northern Ireland customs checks — [www].

12 December 2019, wa: "Yanchep bushfire second emergency warning as blaze flares north of Perth in heatwave ..." — [abc]. See WA [fire] warnings.

12 December 2019: "Congested roads and crowded trains remain, 50 years after visionary [1969] Melbourne transport plan ..." — [abc].

10 December 2019: "How battery technology will drive truck electrification ... average year-on-year reduction in price of 20.5%, from us$1,160/kWh in 2010 to us$176/kWh in 2018. ..." — SAE [www]. There are a few "buts" too, including the supply of raw materials.

10 December 2019: GM "Holden axes Commodore range [in 2020] to focus on SUVs and utes as sedan sales dwindle ..." — [abc]. Will the 'Holden' brand last? (The current Commodore is built for GM by Opel, now part of PSA (Peugeot).) Apparently not: see 16 Feb. 2020.

10 December 2019: "NSW bushfire emergency warning issued for blaze north of Sydney ..." — [abc]. See the NSW RFS [www].
"'Unpredictable' East Gippsland [Vic.] bushfires prompt call for residents to take shelter ..." — [2]. See the CFA [www].

10 December 2019: "Tesla Model 3 on Autopilot crashes into police car ..." — [bbc]!

9 December 2019, .uk: "Are SUVs sabotaging the green transport revolution? ... Sales of new SUVs now outnumber electric vehicle sales at a rate of 37 to 1. ..." — UKERC [www].

7 December 2019: Bonhams Bond Street Sale (auction), London [www] including lot 9 a 1961 Aston Martin DB4GT 'lightweight' 4.2 Sports Saloon, reg SCM 971, chassis #DB4GT/0169/R (sold £2,367,000); lot 26 a 1953 Bentley R-Type Continental Sports Saloon, coachwork by Mulliner, reg 999 BHR, chassis #BC20C (not sold).

7 December 2019, .au: "Queensland fire conditions expected to worsen as temperatures in the south-east hit 40°C ..." — [abc]. See the Qld RFS [www].
"NSW bushfires surround Sydney but conditions ease for now ..." — [abc] and [6/12]. See the NSW RFS [www].

5 December 2019: Seems a DB5 gets yet another run in the next Bond movie 'No Time to Die' (2020).

4 December 2019, .au: "November 2019 new vehicle sales figures ... 84,708 sales recorded during the month, a 9.8% decrease on the same period last year. On a year-to-date basis, total sales for 2019 have been recorded as 978,628 units, an 8.2% decrease on year-to-date 2018. ..." — FCAI [www].

December 2019, .au: "Dangerous Takata airbag recall 85% complete ... The ACCC is particularly concerned about 3,200 critical-alpha and 10,300 critical non-alpha vehicles remaining for airbag replacement. ..." — ACCC [www].

4 December 2019: "NSW bushfires continue path across state, with more homes at risk, smoke danger ..." — [abc]. See the NSW RFS [www].
And, "Firefighters concerned for property as two bushfires flare south-west of Toowoomba ..." — [2]. See the Qld RFS [www].

2-13 December 2019: Santiago (conf. moved to Madrid) Climate Change Conference, COP25 — UNFCCC [www].

Any real action was put off for at least a year (and probably longer), e.g., [16/12].
"Climate change: Stalemate at UN talks ..." — [13/12].
"Polluting firms 'will be hit by climate policies' ... largest listed coal companies could fall in value by 44%. ..." — [9/12].
"2019 concludes a decade of exceptional global heat and high-impact weather .." — WMO [3/12].

2 December 2019: "NSW South Coast residents told it is too late to leave as bushfire jumps highway ..." — [abc] and [3/12]. See the NSW RFS [www].
And, "... driest November for the country as a whole ... second-warmest January-November on record for Australia (spanning 110 years), with rainfall the second-lowest on record for Australia as a whole (spanning 120 years) ..." — [bom].  "Bureau of Meteorology declares spring 2019 the driest on record ..." — [abc].

1 December 2019: "Volkswagen emissions scandal: class action begins in UK ..." — The G [www].

1 December 2019 (#21/21): Abu Dhabi F1 Grand Prix, Yas Marina.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes); 2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull); 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). There was overtaking – behind the leader. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)
2019 Formula One Drivers World Championship: 1. Lewis Hamilton 413pts; 2. Valterri Bottas 326pts; 3. Max Verstappen 278pts; 4. Charles Leclerc 264pts; 5. Sebastian Vettel 240pts; 6. Carlos Sainz 96pts ...
2019 Formula One Constructors World Championship: 1. Mercedes 739pts; 2. Ferrari 504pts; 3. Red Bull 417pts; 4. McLaren 145pts ...

1 December 2019, .au: "Mobile phone detection cameras will start targeting illegal phone use across NSW on 1 December and will include fixed and transportable trailer-mounted cameras. Together, these cameras will target illegal mobile phone use anywhere, anytime. ..." — nsw.gov.au [www].

30 November 2019: RM Sotheby's Abu Dhabi auction [www] including lot 117 Michael Schumacher's F1 Championship-winning 2002 Ferrari F2002, 3-litre V10, chassis #219 (sold us$6,643,750); lot 140 a 2015 Mercedes-Benz G63 AMG 6x6, 225km (why bother?), chassis #WDCYC7CF8FX237493 (sold us$748,750).

28 November 2019, .au: "Summer Outlook shows warmer and drier conditions likely to continue into 2020 ..." — [bom]. (Also see the [abc].)

28 November 2019, .au: "Truck driver involved in four-vehicle crash 'devastated' by death of 10-year-old boy ..." — [abc].

28 November 2019: "UK car production falls –4.0% in October as automotive sector counts the cost of [brexit] uncertainty ..." — SMMT [www].

28 November 2019: "Westpac appoints auditor to investigate child exploitation allegations, allows investors in capital-raising to withdraw ..." — [abc].

27 November 2019, usa: "Thanksgiving Weather: Travel Issues [much snow] Are Likely to Continue Through Holiday ..." — NYT [www].

26 November 2019: "... the Works Council and [Audi]'s management have agreed to cut up to 9,500 jobs until 2025 ..." — Audi [www]. (Also see Mercedes 14 Nov., below.)

25 November 2019: "Greenhouse gas concentrations in atmosphere reach yet another high ... CO2 reached 407.8 parts per million in 2018 ..." — WMO p.r. #25112019 [www].

25 November 2019: "Emergency services fight out-of-control bushfires in challenging conditions in eastern Victoria ... Walking tracks closed in Mount Bogong High Plains ..." — [abc], and [26/11].  And, "Parts of the Alpine National Park and State Forest in the Tea Tree Range, Barry Mountains, Upper Buffalo and Upper Buckland Valleys are closed due to fire activity" — Vic. Parks [www].  Also see the Vic. CFA [www].

25 November 2019: "Global electricity production from coal is on track to fall by around 3% in 2019, the largest drop on record. ..." — Carbon Brief [www].

25 November 2019: "'Allow no escapes': leak exposes reality of China's vast prison camp network ..." — The G [www].

23 November 2019 - 19 April 2020, .uk: An exhibition, 'Cars: Accelerating the Modern World', opens at the Victoria and Albert Museum (V and A) London. "... brings together 15 diverse cars to tell extraordinary stories about design and the car's impact on the broader world. These cars include the first production car in existence; an autonomous flying car; a converted low-rider; a 1950s concept car ..." — cars [www] at the V&A [www]. Also see The G [www], and [24/11].

22 November - 1 December 2019: LA Auto Show, Los Angeles [www].

22 November 2019: Tesla was spruiking its (electric) 'Cybertruck', that is, a 6-seat pickup truck or ute with 250, 300 or 500 mile range, us$40K to us$70K, and looks out of a SciFi movie: [www]. Production from late 2021? Also see the SAE [www].

21 November 2019: "Dashcam footage of crashes near emergency scenes prompts rethink on speed limits ... In 2014, South Australia reduced the speed limit for drivers overtaking police, ambulance and fire vehicles attending roadside and emergency incidents to 25km/h. ..." — [abc].

21 November 2019: "Properties lost as Yorketown [SA] fire burns out of control towards Edithburgh ..." — [abc]. Also see the SA CFS [www].
And, Victoria called a 'Code Red' day for the Mallee and Northern Country Districts, and a total fire ban for all of the state, for Thursday the 21st, [abc].  "Lightning strikes and hot, gusty winds have fanned more than 60 fires across Victoria ..." — [2].  Also see the Vic. CFA [www].

21 November 2019: Aston Martin revealed its prototype 'DBX' SUV, £158K [www]. Also see, e.g., The G [www].

20 November 2019: "Uber self-driving crash [18 March 2018] 'mostly caused by human error' ..." — [bbc].  The NTSB report: [www].

19 November 2019, .uk: The AA supports introducing the 'Dutch-Reach' into the highway code. The Dutch-reach is where a driver sitting in a RH-drive car uses their left hand, the hand farthest from the door, to open the driver's door thus automatically looking behind and seeing any approaching cyclists. (In a LH-drive car, use the right hand.)

19 November 2019: "Queensland bushfire emergency continues amid fears homes lost ..." — [abc]. See the Qld RFS [www].

18 November 2019: "Severe Weather Update: elevated fire danger in SA and heat building in the east ... heat will be entering South Australia on Wednesday ..." — [bom].
"Temperature records smashed across Perth and regional WA during weekend heatwave ..." — [abc].

18 November 2019, .au: "Colonial Frontier Massacres researchers add dozens of sites to map of Aboriginal killings ..." — [abc].  See [www] at [www].

17 November 2019: "... expanding the Mustang lineup with the all-electric Mustang Mach-E SUV ..." — Ford [www].  "Ford unveils 2021 Mustang Mach-E electric vehicle ..." — SAE [www].  "Ford unveils all-electric [SUV] - the Mustang Mach-E ... us$44K to us$60K ..." — [bbc].

17 November 2019 (#20/21): Brazilian F1 Grand Prix, Sao Paulo.

Results: 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull); 2. Pierre Gasly (Toro Rosso) 3. Carlos Sainz (McLaren). An exciting race with actual overtaking at the front, and two safety car periods, the second caused by the two Ferraris touching on lap 66 and knocking themselves out of the race. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes) finished third but was demoted to seventh by a five second penalty for hitting Alexander Albon (Red Bull). The first two cars were powered by Honda engines. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

17 November 2019: "... So far in 2019, 42 people have tragically been killed in crashes involving heavy vehicles on Victorian roads, compared with 28 in all of 2018 ..." — premier.vic.gov.au [www].  It would be nice to see fewer trucks tail-gating on the Monash. (Also see 31 Oct., 27 Sept., 25 July, 29 June, 11 March below.)

17 November 2019: "NSW bushfires destroy nearly 500 homes as crews scramble to build containment lines ..." — [abc].  And, "Queensland bushfires set to be 'incredibly challenging' today, with strong winds and thunderstorms forecast ..." — [abc].  See the NSW RFS [www] and the Qld RFS [www].

16-17 November 2019: Bendigo Swap Meet [www].

16 November 2019: "Run 34 (HST 13) ... GPS download indicated 628mph peak speed, 1010km/h ... A successful 628mph (1010km/h) run and chute deployment. This run completes all of the HST objectives. ..." — Bloodhound LSR [www].  "Bloodhound land speed racer blasts to 628mph [1,010km/h] ... The team says the 628mph speed concludes the high-speed trials and it will now return to England. ..." — [bbc]. The next stage is to add the rocket engine to help the jet engine. The World Land Speed Record stands at 1227.985kph (763.035mph), Mach 1.0175, set by Andy Green driving 'Thrust SSC' in 1997.

16 November 2019, .au: Qld [abc] and NSW [abc].

15 November 2019, .au: "... Very High to Severe fire dangers continue over northeast New South Wales and southern Queensland today. ..." — [bom].  "Queensland bushfire threat to intensify today, BOM warns ..." — [abc].  See the Qld RFS [www].

15 November 2019, .uk: "Snow and flooding causes traffic disruption in Wales ... heavy snow in south and mid Wales led to some roads becoming impassable ..." — [bbc].
"The Environment Agency's director of flood risk management says he is 'alarmed' by the prospect of further flooding across England this winter. ..." — [2].

15 November 2019, .au: "RACV has revealed the nation's 13 best cars for 2019 ... [e.g.,] 4WD dual-cab ute, 1. Toyota Hilux SR5 (2.8 td, 6-spd auto), and small car <$35K, 1. Toyota Corolla Ascent Sport" — RACV [www].

14 November 2019: "Ford's all-new, all-electric SUV will don the iconic pony badge and the name Mustang Mach-E when reservations for the vehicle open after it is revealed this Sunday [17th]. ..." — Ford [www].

14 November 2019: "Daimler cuts costs and sets course for the future ... The expenditure needed to achieve the [reduced] CO2 targets require comprehensive measures to increase efficiency ..." — Daimler [www]. ... job cuts. (Turns out to be 10,000+ of them — The G [www][30/11].) (Also see Audi 26 Nov., above.)

14 November 2019: "Our bushfire history ..." — [abc] and [13/11].

13 November 2019: "I lost my home to bushfire. Thoughts and prayers are not enough ..." — [abc].
"NSW bushfire fight continues, winds may bring fresh threat ..." — [13/11].

13 November 2019: "World Energy Outlook 2019 highlights deep disparities in the global energy system ..." — IEA [www].

13 November 2019: "Netherlands to cut speed limit to reduce emissions ..." — [bbc].

13 November 2019: Elon Musk announced that Tesla would open a factory in Berlin with production to start in 2021.

12 November 2019, .au: "Commonwealth Bank [CBA] leads in complaints against big four ..." — [abc].

12 November 2019, .au: "The terrifying bushfire future we were warned about is here. This is how we can adapt ..." — [abc].
"Severe Weather Update: Severe to Catastrophic fire danger in NSW & Qld, 12 Nov. 2019 ..." — [bom].

11 November 2019, .au: "NSW prepares for catastrophic fire conditions ..." — [abc]. A week-long state of emergency was called in NSW. And it is not yet summer. See the NSW RFS [www] and the Qld RFS [www].

11 November 2019, .uk: "Heavy rainfall and more flooding forecast for week ahead ..." — The G [www].

11 November 2019: "... hurricanes are indeed becoming more damaging. The frequency of the very most damaging hurricanes has increased at a rate of 330% per century." — 'Normalized US hurricane damage estimates using area of total destruction, 1900-2018', A. Grinsted et al, PNAS, 11 Nov. 2019, [www].

11 Novermber 2019: Remembrance Day.

10 November 2019 (Sun.): Historic Commercial Vehicle Display Day, Yarra Glen racecourse, Vic., HCVC [www].

10 November 2019: 28th Historic & Classic Rob Roy Hillclimb, Vic. [www].

10 November 2019: "Bushfire emergency intensifies in central Queensland, blaze destroys homes near Yeppoon ..." — [abc].
"Weather forecast fuels NSW fire fears, authorities warn Sydney could be at risk ..." — [abc].
See the NSW RFS [www] and the Qld RFS [www].

9 November 2019: "England flooding ... parts of England were deluged with a month's worth of rain in a day ..." — [bbc].

9 November 2019: "NSW fires destroy more than 100 homes, two people found dead ..." — [abc]. Also see the NSW RFS [www].

8-10 November 2019: Classic Motor Show, NEC, Birmingham, uk [www].

8 November 2019: "NSW fires: Pictures reveal widespread devastation that can even be seen from space ..." — [abc]. Also see the NSW RFS [www].

8 November 2019: "BOM warns of high temperatures, hot gusty winds to fan Queensland fire danger ..." — [abc]. Check the Queensland RFS [www].

8 November 2019, .au: "Problem diesel filters [DPFs] 'widespread' as VW, Subaru owners report similar problems to Toyota drivers ..." — [abc].

7 November 2019, recall PRA #2019/17946: "BMW Australia Ltd - BMW E46 3 Series MY1997-2000 ... The airbag inflators in these vehicles ... Owners of affected vehicles should stop driving their vehicle immediately and contact their local BMW dealership ..." — .gov.au [www].

November 2019: Note that Dakar 2020 will take place in Saudi Arabia, 5-17 January 2020. (Women have been able to drive in Saudi Arabia since 24 June 2018.)

6 November 2019, .au: "... new vehicles have now seen the nineteenth consecutive month of decreasing sales in the Australian market, with October 2019 sales down 9.1% compared to October 2018." — FCAI [www]. As usual, the Toyota Hilux was the top selling model at 3517 (Oct. 2019) v. 4401 (Oct. 2018).

6 November 2019: "Uber in fatal crash had safety flaws say US investigators ..." — [bbc]. Also see 20 November above, 24 May and 19 March 2018.

5-8 November 2019: SEMA show, Las Vegas [www].

5 November 2019, .uk: "The Defence Secretary has announced that a £2.8bn deal has been signed to provide the British Army with around 500 new armoured vehicles. ... for the Mechanised Infantry Vehicle (MIV) programme to deliver around 500 Boxer armoured vehicles and form part of the Army's Strike brigades. ..." — MOD [www].

5 November 2019 (Tues.): Melbourne Cup.

3 November 2019 (#19/21): USA F1 Grand Prix, Austin.

Results: 1. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull). Hamilton thus clinched his sixth F1 Drivers' World Championship; only Michael Schumacher has more with seven. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

November 2019: The FIA released the Formula (F1) One Regulations for 2021, a major objective being to make it easier for cars to follow each other closely without losing too much down-force. And, "a fully enforceable cost cap (starting at 175M$ ..." — FIA [www]. Engines will remain 1.6-litre V6 turbo hybrids. However, "... The three leading teams – Mercedes, Ferrari and Red Bull – have opposed the new rules ..." — [bbc].

3 November 2019: "Saudi Aramco IPO: the ultimate marriage between carbon and capitalism ..." — The G [www].

3 November 2019, .au: "Western NSW rejoices in the rainfall, but the summer outlook remains drier ..." — [abc].

3 November 2019: On one of its initial test runs, "Bloodhound smashes 450mph target speed" — Bloodhound LSR [www].

3 November 2019 (Sun.): London to Brighton Veteran Car Run [www].

2 November 2019 (Sat.): Regents Street Motor Show, London [www].

1 November 2019: "Lord Howe Island rodent eradication program on track for success as last bait traps laid ..." — [abc].

1 November 2019: "Blade Runner: How well did the film predict 2019's tech? ..." — [bbc]. The movie 'Blade Runner' was set in November 2019.

1 November 2019, .au: The PM, Scott this-is-coal Morrison, says that "the Government will seek to outlaw boycotts against businesses that provide services to the resource sector." — [abc].  And, "also promising to ban businesses from refusing to deal with mining companies, specifically calling out the banking, insurance and consulting sector." — [abc]. That doesn't sound very democratic.

 

31 October 2019, .au: "A Victorian driver has allegedly tested positive to methamphetamine after his truck ran out of fuel [in SA] on the South Eastern Freeway ..." — [abc].

Also see "... Heavy vehicles are overrepresented in fatal crashes. ... [in stage-1] 62% of vehicles fail[ed] their initial inspection ..." — the 'Heavy Vehicle Inspection Scheme' (HVIS), .sa.gov.au [www].

31 October 2019: Halloween (All Hallows' Eve), and ...

Brexit, possibly, [bbc][11/4] (also see 29 March below). But the deadline was extended again – to the end of January 2020. (Also see the general election, 12 Dec. above.)

30 October 2019: "Fiat Chrysler [FCA] and Peugeot owner [PSA] 'on verge of' merger ..." — [bbc].  "Groupe PSA and FCA Plan to Join Forces ..." — FCA [www][31/10].   "Discussions have opened a path to the creation of a new group with global scale and resources owned 50% by Groupe PSA shareholders and 50% by FCA shareholders ..." — PSA.  (Also see Fiat Chrysler and Renault (not), 27 May below.)

28 October 2019, .au: "Locals hope Balgo Tourist Road will give visitors first taste of ancient land, ensure community's future ... in Western Australia's far-north ... on the edge of the Great Sandy Desert ..." — [abc].

27 October 2019 (#18/21): Mexican F1 Grand Prix, Mexico City.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), 3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes). Also see the FIA [www]. and the [bbc].

27 October 2019, .jp: 30th Toyota Automobile Museum Classic Car Festival, Aichi Expo Memorial Park, Nagakute City [www].

26 October 2019: Climbing Uluru (Ayers Rock), which is sacred to the Anangu people, becomes banned (e.g., see the [abc][30/5]).

26 October 2019: "BOM issues dangerous wind warning as dust blankets drought-ravaged towns ... There are 50 fires burning across the state ..." — [abc].
Also see the NSW RFS [www].

24 Oct Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.66/l; min $1.30 ([Perth] avg $1.48/l, min $1.31); oil us$54/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.53, €0.61, ¥74

24 October 2019: RM Sotheby's London auction [www], including lot 133 a 1994 F1 Ferrari 412 T1, chassis #149, engine #28 (not sold); lot 134 a 1990 Lamborghini LM002 4x4, chassis #ZA9L00000LLA12188 (sold £207,000); lot 140 a 1989 Group-C Jaguar XJR-12, 3.5 V6 turbo, chassis #590 (not sold).

23 October 2019, .uk: "Smart motorways 'too confusing', says highways boss ..." — [bbc].

23 October 2019: "... The Bloodhound Land Speed Record (LSR) team today revealed the car aiming to claim a new World Land Speed Record next year, seen for the first time in completed desert spec as it begins its high speed testing programme in the Hakskeenpan desert, Northern Cape, South Africa. ..." — Bloodhound LSR [www].

23 October 2019: "... Direct GHG [greenhouse gas] emissions are reduced with organic farming, but when increased overseas land use to compensate for shortfalls in domestic supply are factored in, net emissions are greater. ..." — L. G. Smith et al, Nature Communications, vol.10, #4641, Oct. 2019, [www].

22 October 2019: On electric flying taxis, the [bbc].

20 Oct Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.44/l; min $1.31 ([Perth] avg $1.40/l, min $1.31); oil us$54/b

18 Oct Fri au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.53, €0.61, ¥74

20 October 2019: "Brexit delay voted through by MPs ..." — [bbc].

17 October 2019: "Bloodhound LSR team lands in desert and gears up for high speed runs ..." — Bloodhound LSR [www]. (Also see the [bbc].)

15 October 2019, recall PRA #2019/17886: "Volkswagen Golf MY2009-2015, Jetta MY2009-2015, Beetle MY2013-2015, Passat MY2010-2015, Polo MY2010-2015 & Caddy MY2011-2015 ... Due to a production fault, over time a crack in the transmissions pressure accumulator can occur. ... [loss of drive] ..." — .gov.au [www]. Similarly many Audis [www] and Skodas [www]; It seems to be the VW dual clutch gearboxes.

14 October 2019: "Communities urged to prepare now as Australia enters severe weather season ... increased risk of heatwaves and bushfires in the coming months. ..." — [bom]. Also see the [abc].

14 Oct Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.38/l; min $1.33 ([Perth] avg $1.36/l, min $1.30); oil us$55/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.54, €0.62, ¥74

13-20 October 2019, .au: World Solar Challenge, Darwin to Adelaide [www]. 1. Agoria Solar Team (Belgium), 'BluePoint', Oct 17, 3020km, 11:52:42, average 86.6 km/h.

13 October 2019 (#17/21): Japanese F1 Grand Prix, Suzuka.

Results: 1. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), 3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes).  Mercedes won the 2019 F1 Constructors' Championship for the 6th time in a row and the F1 Drivers' Championships is almost Hamilton's. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

13 October 2019, .au: Bathurst 1000, 1. Scott McLaughlin & Alexandre Premat (Ford) — [abc]. But see "... teammates have been accused of some very dodgy tactics ..." — [20/10]!

13 October 2019: "Rodin Cars' [FZERO] racecar targeted as lighter, faster than a Formula One ... 1,000 hp turbocharged 4.0 L V10 ..." — SAE [www].

13 October 2019, .au: Day of the Morris Minor, Caribbean Gardens, Scoresby, Vic. 3179 [www].

11-13 October 2019: Autoclassica, Royal Exhibition Building, Mebourne [www].

10 October 2019: "Bollinger Motors reveals second-gen Class-3 [electric] EV prototypes ... the latest beta of its B1 SUV and B2 truck prototypes ..." — SAE [www].

9 October 2019, recall PRA #2019/17860: "Automobili Lamborghini SpA - Lamborghini Aventador S Coupe and Aventador S Roadster MY2017-2019 ... Due to a software fault, the vehicle may not maintain the minimum idle speed required to keep the engine running when idling. ..." — .gov.au [www].

9 October 2019: "Hundreds of temperature records broken over summer ..." — [bbc].  And, "Northern California hit by mega power cuts over wildfire fears ..." — [2].

9 Oct Wed Melb ULP avg au$1.41/l; min $1.32 ([Perth] avg $1.52/l, min $1.32); oil us$53/b; au$1.00=us$0.67, £0.55, €0.61, ¥72

9 October 2019, .au: "Fire warnings downgraded in the Lockyer Valley after bushfire destroys Laidley home ..." — [abc]. See the Queensland RFS [www].  "Bushfires damage houses in northern NSW ..." — [abc]. NSW RFS [www].
And, "Bushfire closes Warrego Highway as dozens of blazes burn across Queensland ..." — [10/9].

8 October 2019, .us: "Removing complexity for autonomous trucks ... TuSimple plans to have fully autonomous trucks on the road fairly soon. TuSimple's systems will let trucks drive from dock to dock without a driver. ..." — SAE [www].

7 October 2019, .au: Labour Day (ACT, NSW, SA) [www].

5-6 October 2019: Melbourne Society of Model and Experimental Engineers Exhibition, South Oakleigh [www].

4-5 October 2019 (Fri., Sat.): Deniliqin Ute Muster [www].

4 October 2019 .au: "Urgent safety alert for 'critical' Takata airbag ... 20,000 vehicles already under recall for defective Takata airbags are now classified as 'critical'. ... should not be driven ..." — ACCC [www].

4 Oct Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.56/l; min $1.37 ([Perth] avg $1.47/l, min $1.30); oil us$52/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.55, €0.62, ¥72

4 October 2019, .uk: "New car market declines in first nine months of 2019 as Brexit fears hold buyers back ..." — SMMT [www].

4 October 2019: David Rowe's cartoons [www].

3-6 October 2019: Melbourne Leisurefest, Sandown racecourse (RVs, caravans, camping ...) [www].

3 October 2019, .au: It is reported that Geoscience Australia [www] will stop printing (paper) topographic maps from December.

3 October 2019, .uk: "Trade Mark Applications 3164282/83, 3186701, 3158947/8 and 3248751BY Jaguar Land Rover Ltd [JLR] to Register 6 Three Dimensional Shape Marks" (of the Land-Rover S1, S2 and Defender) "And Oppositions 409980-984 And 413358 by Ineos Industries Holdings Ltd" (of Projekt Grenadier) "... The applications are refused ..." — Intellectual Property Office [www]. Expect appeals.

3 October 2019: "Dow Jones plunges 838 points in two days ... mounting risks of a worldwide recession ... " — [abc].

2 October 2019, .uk: "UK proposals for a new Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland ..." — .gov.uk [www].  And, 3 Oct.: "Dismay in Brussels as Boris Johnson finally reveals Brexit plan ..." — The G [www].

1 October 2019: The 70th anniversary of the People's Republic of China. There was a tightly controlled military parade in Beijing to forestall any possibility of protest, but there were protests in Hong Kong and Taiwan.

 

30 September 2019: "Bloodhound LSR ... has reached the exciting final phase of its build programme as it prepares to head to South Africa and be put through its paces in a series of high speed shakedowns on the vast Hakskeenpan desert, Northern Cape. ..." — Bloodhound LSR [www].

29 September 2019 (#16/21): Russian F1 Grand Prix, Sochi.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

29 September 2019, .au: Bay to Birdwood, SA [www]. "This year is the Bay to Birdwood Classic for classic and early modern motorcars, motorcycles and commercial vehicles manufactured between 1 January 1956 and 31 December 1986" — [www]. The National Motor Museum is at Birdwood.

29 Sept Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.56/l; min $1.37 ([Perth] avg $1.42/l, min $1.34); oil us$56/b

27 Sept Fri au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.55, €0.62, ¥73

27 September 2019, .au: "Petrol prices stay high despite global oil prices falling to pre-attack [on Saudi Arabia, 16 Sept.] levels ..." — [abc].

27 September 2019: "Truck driver loses licence over incident caught on dashcam on Adelaide's South Eastern Freeway ..." — [abc].

26 November 2019: "Reported road casualties in Great Britain: 2018 annual report ... There were 1,784 reported road deaths in 2018, similar to the level seen since 2012, which followed a period of substantial reduction in fatalities from 2006 to 2010 ... 25,511 serious injuries ..." — .gov.uk [www].

26 November 2019: "Jaguar Land Rover to shut down UK factories for a week in November ..." — The G [www].

26 September 2019: Bonhams MPH September Auction [www], including lot 195 a 1968 Land-Rover S2A 109", chassis #25113968D, reg Q887 JKO Pink Panther (sold £47,250).

25 September 2019: The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) released a Special Report on the Ocean and Cryosphere^* in a Changing Climate (SROCC) — IPCC [www], [2]. Also see the [abc]. ([*]icy regions.)

24 September 2019: "Volkswagen top executives charged with market manipulation. Three current and former Volkswagen executives have been charged with market manipulation in connection with [the VW] diesel emissions scandal. ..." — [bbc].  And The G [1/10].  Also see, "FiatChrysler's 3.0-L Ecodiesel V6 remains clouded by controversy regarding the company's alleged ministrations to misguide U.S. regulatory agencies about the engine's emissions. ..." — SAE [www].

24 Sept Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.53/l; min $1.30 ([Perth] avg $1.57/l, min $1.30); oil us$59/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.55, €0.62, ¥73

24 September  2019: "Brexit: Bercow [the speaker] says parliament must meet 'without delay' as judges rule [Boris Johnson's] prorogation unlawful ..." — The G [www].  And, "Supreme Court: Suspending Parliament was unlawful, judges rule ..." — [bbc],  [26/9].

24 September 2019: "Victoria's speed camera watchdog warns of businesses paying fines to prevent licence loss ... Under the laws, companies that get a fine do not have to tell Victoria Police who was driving at the time of the infringement, if they pay the $3,000. ... 4,280 drivers would have lost their licences automatically if they had been identified. ..." — [abc].

24 September 2019, recall PRA #2019/17801: "Mercedes-Benz G Class MY2011-2018 ... Strong vibrations, such as driving on corrugated roadway, could cause the brake lines in the ABS hydraulic unit to crack, resulting in brake fluid leaking and affecting(!) the vehicle's stopping distance. ..." — .gov.au [www].

24 September 2019: "Nissan today unveiled the new 2020 Nissan Patrol [in Abu Dhabi] ... [the] base 4.0-litre V6 produces 275 horsepower and 394Nm of torque. The 5.6-litre V8 produces 400 horsepower and 560Nm of torque. ..." Nissan [www]. Monstrous, of coure.

24 September 2019: "The first of a fleet of new combat reconnaissance vehicles (CRVs) for the Australian Defence Force has been unveiled at a ceremony at Enoggera Barracks, Brisbane. The 211 new Boxer 8x8 CRVs will be delivered by Rheinmetall Defence Australia under the $5 billion LAND 400 Phase 2 Mounted Combat Reconnaissance Capability program. ..." — defence .gov.au [www]. (Also see 5 Nov. above.)

23 September 2019: UNSG's Climate Action Summit, UN HQ, New York [www].

"Global Climate in 2015-2019: Climate change accelerates ... Over the five-year period May 2014-2019, the rate of global mean sea-level rise has amounted to 5mm per year ..." — WMO [www].

23 September 2019: "Arctic sea ice at minimum extent for 2019 [was] 4.15 million square kilometers (1.60 million square miles) on 18 September 2019, according to scientists at the National Snow and Ice Data Center (NSIDC) at the University of Colorado Boulder. The 2019 minimum is ranked at second lowest in the 41-year satellite record, effectively tied with 2007 and 2016." — NSIDA [www].

22 September 2019 (#15/21): Singapore F1 Grand Prix.

Results:1. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), 2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull). (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

21 September - 1 October 2019: The Royal Show, Melbourne [www].

21 September 2019: "Battle of Arnhem: Mass parachute drop marks WW2 assault ..." — [bbc]. The 75th anniversary of Operation Market Garden (17/9/1944+).

21 September 2019: "Battle for the Fitzroy River: Kimberley divided over bid to harvest precious resource ... The WA Government hopes to release a draft water plan for the Fitzroy River early next year ..." — [abc]. The Fitzroy River rises near Mornington Wildlife Sanctuary [www] off the Gibb River Road. The Margaret River joins the Fitzroy River at Danggu Geikie Gorge [www], upstream of the town of Fitzroy Crossing.

21 September 2019, .uk: "Theft of catalytic converters from hybrid cars surges ..." — The G [www].

20 September 2019: "Cumulative Global Sales of the Toyota Land Cruiser Series Surpass 10 million Units ... The Land Cruiser is Toyota's longest-selling car. It launched on August 1, 1951, as the Toyota "Jeep BJ," and production has continued for 68 years. Full-scale exports of the Land Cruiser began with the 20 Series, which was introduced in November 1955, four years after the launch of the first-generation car. ..." — Toyota [www].

20 September 2019: "Global climate strike sees 'hundreds of thousands' of Australians rally across the country ..." — [abc].  And the world, [abc].

19 September 2019: "Amazon's commitment to purchase 100,000 Rivian-made electric delivery vehicles instantly vaults the edgy startup automaker into the EV big leagues. ..." — SAE [www].

19 September 2019, .au: "Court told of fatal cattle truck, caravan crash carnage [in 2017] that left parents dead ..." — [abc]. Also see [25/9], and [30/10].

19 Sept Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.29/l; min $1.18 ([Perth] avg $1.47/l, min $1.27); oil us$58/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.54, €0.62, ¥73

18 September 2019, .uk: "INEOS Automotive has announced that its utilitarian 4x4 will be named 'Grenadier' after the pub in which it was conceived ... will be built in a bespoke new manufacturing facility on a greenfield site in Bridgend, South Wales. ... planned start of production in 2021. ..." — INEOS [www]. (But see the 8 Dec. 2020.) The Grenadier is intended to be true to the spirit of the late Land-Rover Defender (d.2016), in contrast to the (overly?) sophisticated replacement recently revealed by Land-Rover at the Frankfurt Motor Show (10 Sept. below).

18 September 2019, .au: "Truck driver ... jailed over [2017] Newell Highway crash that killed two boys ..." — [abc].

18 September 2019, .au: "Car manufacturers costing consumers $1 billion in yearly mechanical bills due to lack of data sharing, ACCC says ..." — [abc].

17 Sept Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.34/l; min $1.18 ([Perth] avg $1.51/l, min $1.26);

16 Sept Mon WTI oil us$63/b; Brent us$69/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.55, €0.62, ¥74

16 September 2019: "Saudi oil attacks push prices up by highest amount since 1988 ..." — The G [www]. Houthi rebels in Yemen, who are fighting Saudi-supported forces, claimed responsibility for the attacks in Saudi Arabia. However, Saudi Arabia blamed Iran.

16 September 2019, .uk: "... Road traffic in Great Britain increased from 255 billion miles travelled in 1990 to 328 billion miles in 2018, an increase of 29%. ... Greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions from road transport in the UK have increased more slowly than the increase in road traffic, increasing by 6% from 1990 to 2017. ..." — Office for National Statistics [www].

16 September 2019, .au: "Volkswagen [inc. Audi] reaches multi-million-dollar [au$87m-$127m] settlement in Australian 'dieselgate' scandal ... Around 100,000 Volkswagen, Audi and Skoda vehicles in Australia were affected by the issue. ..." — [abc]. (Also see 20 Dec. above, and VW in the USA in [2017], [2016] etc.)

14 September 2019: "Fresh emergency warnings issued for northern NSW with bushfire threatening homes ..." — [abc]. Check with the NSW RFS [www] and Queensland RFS [www].

14 Sept Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.32/l; min $1.18 ([Perth] avg $1.34/l, min $1.20); oil us$55/b

13 Sept Fri au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.56, €0.62, ¥74

13-15 September 2019: Goodwood Revival [www] and, 14 Sept., Bonhams auction [www] including lot 218 a 1935 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante, chassis #57252, reg. DYF 4 (sold £1,499,000).

13 September 2019: We have Formula E on the track, now Extreme E is a proposed form of electric off-road racing. Range will be interesting. See extreme e [www].

12-22 September 2019, .de: 68th Frankfurt Motor Show, IAA, (trade 12-13, public 14-22) [www]. Including Amphicruiser (.nl) amphibious 4WD [www]; Audi 'AI:TRAIL' electric off-road concept [www]; BMW electric 'Mini'; Land-Rover 'Defender' replacement (see 10 Sept. below); Mercedes electric 'Vision EQS' concept [www]; Porsche electric 'Taycan' [www] (& see 4 Sept. below); Volkswagen electric 'ID.3' [www]. Also see the [bbc][9/9].

12-15 September 2019, .au: The Lake Perkolilli Red Dust Revival, near Kalgoorlie, WA [www] (originally 1914-1939). Also see the [abc][14/9].

12 September 2019, .uk: "Brexit: Operation Yellowhammer no-deal document published ..." — [bbc]. See, "Operation Yellowhammer ..." — .gov.uk [www][2 Aug.].

11 September 2019, .au: "Very high fire dangers could result in renewed fire activity over fire sites in New South Wales from Thursday and Queensland from Friday. ..." — bom [www].

10 September 2019: Land-Rover finally revealed the 'Defender' replacement at the Frankfurt motor show, SWB "90" 3-door from £40±K, LWB "110" 5-door from £45,240, "commercial" [www] from £35K+VAT, petrol I6 or diesels, 8-speed auto, full-time 4WD, 2-speed transfer case, all independent suspension, LR [www] and JLR [www] and us@[www].
(Also see 'Grenadier', 18 Sept. above.)

September 2019: "... the Australian EV [electric vehicle] share of new sales is predicted to reach 8% by 2025 and 27% by 2030. Globally, the EV share of new sales is predicted to reach 18% by 2025 and 36% by 2030. ..." [and half by 2035] — .gov.au [www], 'Electric Vehicle Uptake,' research report 151, Bureau of Infrastructure, Transport and Regional Economics, Commonwealth of Australia, Aug. 2019.

10 September 2019, .uk: "Brexit: Boris Johnson's second attempt to trigger election fails ... Parliament was officially suspended – or prorogued – just before 02:00 BST on Tuesday and will reopen on 14 October. ..." — [bbc].

11 September: "Scottish judges rule Boris Johnson's suspension of parliament unlawful ..." — The G. [www].
See 24 September above.
Also see 31 October above. (Is Theresa May enjoying Johnson's discomfort?)

9 Sep Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.38/l; min $1.18 ([Perth] avg $1.29/l, min $1.25); oil us$57/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.56, €0.62, ¥73

8 September 2019, .au: "Gold Coast hinterland bushfire out of control, fires expected to increase across Queensland ..." — [abc]. Check with the Queensland RFS [www] and NSW RFS [www].

8 September 2019 (#14/21): Italian F1 Grand Prix, Monza.

Results: 1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 3. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes). An exciting race but neither Mercedes could quite manage to pass Leclerc. Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc]. (In the drivers' world championship, Hamilton 284pts, Bottas 221, Verstappen 185, Leclerc 182, Vettel 169.)

8 September 2019, .au: "Aboriginal-owned Mutawintji State Conservation Area doubles in size, adding to NSW national parks ..." — [abc].

7 September 2019, .uk: Bonhams Beaulieu Sale (auction) [www], including lot 608 a 1975 Steyr-Daimler-Puch Pinzgauer 710M 4x4 reg PWR 621P, chassis #5754923 (sold£16,675); lot 683 a 1986 Aston Martin Lagonda Ser.3 saloon, reg D25 YRF, chassis #13501 (sold £36,800); lot 704 a 1903 Stanley 6 1/2hp Model A steam runabout, reg BS 8248, chassis #520 (sold £25,300).

6-8 September 2019, .uk: Concours of Elegance, Hampton Court [www].

6-7 September 2019, .au: Birdsville Races [www].

6 September 2019: "Tesla Model 3 was UK's third bestselling car (2,082) in August ..." — The G [www]. Also see, "UK electric car registrations surge in August ..." — SMMT [www].

6 September 2019: "Rare weather event over Antarctica driving Australia's hot, dry outlook ..." — [abc].

5-8 September 2019, .uk: Salon Prive, Blenheim Palace [www].

5 September 2019, .au: "Problems with diesel particulate filters in top-selling Toyota cars have exposed Australia's 'lagging' vehicle-emissions standards ..." — [abc]. (Also see 8 Nov. above.)

4 September 2019, .au: "Latest Used Car Safety Ratings released ... based on real-world data on crashes in Victoria, New South Wales, Queensland, Western Australia, New Zealand and South Australia during 1987-2017 ..." — MUARC [www], and results [www]. Generally, bigger and newer are better when it comes to driver protection.

4 September 2019: "World premiere of the [electric] Porsche 'Taycan' ... its first fully-electric sports car ... four-door ... 'Turbo S' version can generate up to 560kW (761PS), 412km range, €185,456 ... 'Taycan Turbo' up to 500kW (680PS), 450km, range €152,136 ... 93.4kWh ..." — Porsche [www]. And, "... curb weight of 2,295kg (5060 lb) ..." — SAE [www].

4 Sep Wed Melb ULP avg au$1.46/l; min $1.18 ([Perth] avg $1.46/l, min $1.27); oil us$54/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.56, €0.62, ¥71

4 September 2019: "Brexit: Boris Johnson defeated as MPs take control ..." — [bbc]. Also see The G [www]. And [5/9]. There seem to be three groups – (i) remainers, (ii) those wanting to leave with a "deal", and (iii) those prepared for (or even wanting) a "no deal" exit; no group seems to have a majority and any two groups can agree on nothing except to obstruct the other group.

4 September 2019: "Firefighters battle blazes across South East Queensland ..." — [abc]. And it's only four days into spring. Also see, "... More than 50 fires are burning across the state ..." — [7/9]. Check with the Queensland RFS [www] and NSW RFS [www].

3 September 2019: "Hurricane Dorian: Storm inches north west, leaving devastation in Bahamas ..." — [bbc]. At its peak Dorian was cat. 5 with winds of 185mph, equalling the highest speeds ever recorded at landfall. (Aftermath [9/9].)

2 September 2019: The Lamborghini 'Sian' is a mild-hybrid, V12 (819CV) + electric (34CV). The electric bit uses supercapacitors rather than batteries. [www].

2 September 2019: "... A pre-production vehicle of a Bugatti Chiron derivative is the first hyper sports car to break the magic 300-mile-per-hour barrier (482.80 km/h). At the same time, Bugatti has set a new TUV-certified speed record with 304.773mph (490.484 km/h). ..." — Bugatti [www].

1 September 2019 (#13/21): Belgian F1 Grand Prix, Spa.

Results: 1. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari), 2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes). Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc]. There was a minute's silence before the Grand Prix for Anthoine Hubert who died following an accident in a F2 race on Saturday.

 

30 Aug Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.51/l; min $1.18 ([Perth] avg $1.38/l, min $1.26); oil us$57/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.55, €0.61, ¥71

30 August 2019, .au: "Great Barrier Reef long-term outlook 'very poor', Federal Government reef report finds ..." — [abc]. Also see the GBRMPA report [www].

29 August - 1 September 2019: RM Sotheby's Auburn Fall auction [www] including lot 3133 a 1966 Land-Rover Series IIA 88" (SWB stn wgn) once owned by His Holiness the 14th Dalai Lama, chassis #31600162C (sold us$143,000).

29 August 2019, .au: "Climate outlook for September to December. A drier than average end to the year is likely for much of Australia, although the outlook for western Tasmania and southwest WA indicates a wetter than average September. Spring days are likely to be warmer than average for mainland Australia ..." — [bom].

29 August 2019: "Jessi Combs: US race car driver killed in high-speed crash ..." — [bbc]. Combs was attempting to beat the women's world land speed record.

28 August 2019: It is reported that, contrary to what you might think, "... experienced [car] drivers emitted 52% more HC [hydrocarbon] and 49% more NOx than young drivers and female drivers, and male drivers emitted 14% more HC and 44% more NOx than female drivers. ..." — A. I. Khader & R. S. Martin, 'On-the-road testing of the effects of driver's experience, gender, speed, and road grade on car emissions', J. Air and Waste Management Assoc., [www].

28 August 2019, .uk: "Parliament suspension: Queen approves PM's plan ..." — [bbc]. Boris Johnson's controversial move will make it difficult for MPs to affect the brexit process. (Also see 31 Oct above.)

24 August 2019, .au: "An outback enigma. Who created the Marree Man (above) and how they did it is unknown. But like with all great mysteries, everyone has a theory ..." — [abc].

(The Ford 4x4 mules below appear to be prototypes of the forthcoming (new) Ford 'Bronco' 4x4, matching the vehicles in a Ford video [www] of Jan. 2020. Also see 13 July 2020.)

4x4 mule, in company with Ford support vehicles,
on test at Arkaroola, South Australia.
There was also a short wheelbase model.

18 August 2019: Pebble Beach, Concours d'Elegance [www].

17 August 2019 (Sat.): Henley on Todd "Regatta", Alice Springs, NT, .au [www].

16-18 August 2019, .au: National 4x4 Show Melbourne Showgrounds [www].

16-17 August 2019: Gooding & Co. Pebble Beach auction [www] including lot 13 a 1936 Bugatti Type 57 Atalante chassis #57386, engine #281 (sold us$1,325,000); lot 26 a 1913 Isotta Fraschini Tipo IM chassis #0451, engine #0453 (sold us$2,645,000); lot 31 a 1975 Ferrari 312T (F1), chassis #022, winner of the 1975 French Grand Prix driven by the late Niki Lauda (sold us$6,000,000); lot 143 a 1964 Aston Martin DB5, chassis #DB5/1612/L, engine #400/1621 (sold us$637,500).

15-17 August 2019: RM Sotheby's Monterey auction [www], including lot 111 a 1965 Aston Martin DB5 an actual 'Bond Car' (for the movie 'Thunderball') chassis #DB5/2008/R, engine #400/1995 (sold us$6,385,000); lot 129 a 1953 Aston Martin DB3S Works, chassis #DB3S/2, engine #DP101/17 (not sold); lot 261 a 1994 McLaren F1 'LM-Specification' serial #018, chassis #SA9AB5AC1R1048018 (sold us$19,805,000); lot 362 1939(!) Porsche Type 64, chassis #38/41, engine #38/43 (not sold);

15 August 2019: Bonhams Quail Lodge auction [www] including lot 56 a 1993 Land Rover Defender 110 NAS, 3,950cc DOHC(!) V8, vin ALDH1284PA920276 (sold us$151,200); lot 69 a 1937 Horch 853 Spezial Streamlined Coupe 'Manuela' 4,494cc sohc I8, chassis #853433, recreation of a design built for racing ace Bernd Rosemeyer (not sold); lot 206 a 1922 Bentley 3-litre Sports Tourer, chassis #103, engine #109 (not sold).

11 August 2019, recall PRA 2019/17725: "Kia JF Optima Model Years 2018-2020 ... Due to an error in the Frontal Collision-Avoidance Assist (FCA) software, the braking assist function may fail when the vehicle approaches a stationary vehicle. ..." — .gov.au [www].

11 Aug Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.35/l; min $1.25 ([Perth] avg $1.33/l, min $1.25); oil us$55/b

9 Aug Fri au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.56, €0.61, ¥72

11 August 2019: "Victoria cold weather blankets towns in snow, forces closures on 'treacherous' roads ..." — [abc].

10 August 2019: "Snow falls in Blue Mountains as NSW warns 'Antarctic winds' will bring extreme weather ..." — [abc]; also see [9/8].

9 August 2019, .au: "Driver decisions, not dust storm, to blame for fatal head-on truck crash near Truro, SA Police say ..." — [abc].

8 August 2019: "New cars can be broken into in 10 seconds ..." — WhatCar [www]; also see the [bbc].

7 August 2019: "Kodiak Robotics, Inc. has begun making commercial truck deliveries in Texas using its new self-driving, long-haul [trucks] with safety drivers behind the wheel. ..." — SAE [www].

7 August 2019, .au: "Cold and severe weather forecast to hit New South Wales, Victoria and South Australia ..." — [abc].

5 August 2019: In 2017, "... there were an estimated 393 million firearms in the United States – and that's not even counting guns owned by the police and military. That represents 45.8% of the world's civilian-owned guns. ..." — [abc].

5 August 2019: 'Persistent acceleration in global sea-level rise since the 1960', S. Dagendorf et al, Nature Climate Change, [www]. Also see the [abc].

5 August 2019: "The global average temperature for July 2019 was on a par with, and possibly marginally higher than, that of July 2016, which followed an El Nino event. This was previously the warmest July and warmest month of all on record." — Copernicus Climate Change Service (C3S) [www].

5 Aug Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.48/l; min $1.25 ([Perth] avg $1.31/l, min $1.25); oil us$56/b; au$1.00=us$0.68, £0.56, €0.61, ¥73

4 August 2019 (#12/21): Hungarian F1 Grand Prix, Budapest.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Max Verstappen (Red Bull); 3. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari). A dry, but nevertheless tense, race. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].) The next race is the Belgian Grand Prix, Spa, 1 Sept.

4 August 2019: "Franky Zapata: Flyboarding Frenchman crosses English Channel ... on a jet-powered flyboard ..." — [bbc].

3 August 2019, .au: "The Bush Tucker Man [Les Hiddins] is back and he's bringing the outback to your smartphone ..." — [abc].

2-24 August 2019, .uk: The Royal Edinburgh Military Tatoo [www].

2 August 2019, recall PRA #2019/17524: "Hyundai Veloster (FS) Model Year 2013 ... The software installed on the engine management unit (ECU) may cause premature ignition, that can result in the engine stalling and with the possibility of a fire. ..." — .gov.au [www].

2 August 2019: "Saudi women can now travel without consent – but this progress is fragile ..." — The G [www]. Women can now get a passport and travel overseas without the need to get consent from a male "guardian". They were allowed to drive since 24 June 2018.

1 Aug Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.56/l; min $1.29 ([Perth] avg $1.43/l, min $1.27); oil us$59/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.56, €0.62, ¥75

1 August 2019: "July was the fourth-warmest on record for Australia as a whole, with the national mean temperature 1.62°C above average. The mean maximum temperature for the month was the third-highest on record for July, at 2.23°C above average, while the mean minimum temperature was 1.01°C above average. ..." — [bom].

1 August 2019, .au: "Toyota faces class action over claims Hilux, Prado have faulty diesel [particulate] filters [DPFs] ..." — [abc]. (Also see 5 Sept., 8 Nov. above.)

 

31 July 2019, .uk: "UK car production falls 20% in first six months as new data reveals £330 million 'no deal' mitigation bill ... 666,521 cars rolled off production lines in the first six months, a year-on-year loss of 168,052 units ... falling demand in key markets, including the UK, exacerbated by factory shutdowns pulled forward in anticipation of the March Brexit deadline. ... the number of cars built for export fell by -19.8% in June and by -21.0% in the first half of the year, with just over half a million units shipped overseas given softening of key overseas markets and global trade tensions. Exports to the sector's top global markets fell by double digits, with the US down -12.9%, China down -53.1%, Japan -10.5% and Turkey -93.0%. Demand in the UK's biggest market, the EU, also fell, by -15.6%. However, the EU still accounts for 57% of all UK car exports – the highest first half dependence since 2016 ..." — SMMT [www].

31 July 2019: "Top ten UK's hottest years all since 2002 ..." — Met Office [www].

30 July 2019: "Mobility Pipe Dreams? ... Consumers lack confidence in the future of self-driving vehicles and their outlook isn't much better about the influx of battery-electric vehicles ..." — J. D. Power [www].

29 July 2019: "A recording of 38.7°C at Cambridge Botanic Garden on Thursday 25 July has become the highest temperature officially recorded in the UK. ... Exceptionally high temperatures gripped large parts of central and western Europe last week, the UK joins Belgium, Germany and the Netherlands in breaking national temperature records. ..." — Met Office [www].

29 July 2019: "Marine Corps JVLT officially rolled out at Camp Lejeune ..." — SAE [www].

28 July 2019 (#11/21): German F1 Grand Prix, Hockenheim.

Results: 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull); 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari); 3. Daniil Kvyat (Toro Rosso). The start, and most of the race were in the wet which, as always, made for an exciting race. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

27 July Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.44/l; min $1.25 ([Perth] avg $1.38/l, min $1.28); oil us$56/b

26 July Fri au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.56, €0.62, ¥75

27 July 2019: Climate zombies [www].

27 July 2019, .uk: "UK on course for no-deal Brexit as Johnson rejects EU agreement ..." — The G [www].

28 July: "Vauxhall owner [PSA [Peugeot]] could move Astra production 'from UK' ..." — [bbc].

27 July 2019, .au: "Retiree finds massive gold nugget [2kg] outside historic gold rush town of Ballarat ..." — [abc].

26 July - 3 August 2019: Great Endeavour Rally, Gulf Trek [www].

26-28 July 2019: Silverstone Classic [www].

28th: Silverstone Classic Auction [www], including lot 241 a 1985 MG Metro 6R4 'Group B' rally car, "as new", chassis #SAXXRWNP7AD570189 (not sold).

26 July 2019: "Arctic wildfires: What's caused huge swathes of flames to spread? ... Wildfires are ravaging the Arctic, with areas of northern Siberia, northern Scandinavia, Alaska and Greenland engulfed in flames. ..." — [bbc].

26 July 2019: "California and carmakers agree emissions deal despite Trump rules ... by 2026, new models would meet a standard of 50 miles per US gallon (4.7 litres per 100km) ..." — [bbc].

25 July 2019, .au: "An official says it's an 'absolute miracle' no-one was seriously injured in a seven-vehicle collision in which two cars were sandwiched between trucks and another car crushed on [the Monash] freeway. ..." — [abc].

25 July 2019, .au: "National Road Transport Hall of Fame in administration after investigation finds financial irregularities ..." — [abc]. (But also see [31/7].)

24 July 2019, .uk: Members of the Conservative Party elected Boris Johnson as party leader; he thus became PM. Boris beat Jeremy Hunt 92,153 : 46,656. Mini-Trump? Also see brexit, 31 October above.

28 July: "No-deal Brexit now 'assumed' by government, says Gove ..." — [bbc].

5 August: "Boris Johnson has no intention of renegotiating Brexit deal, EU told ..." — The G [www].

10 August: "No-deal Brexit preparations 'top priority', Boris Johnson says ..." — [bbc].

24 July 2019, .uk: "Fears for Sunderland workers as Nissan plans to shed 10,000 jobs worldwide ..." — The G [www].

24 July 2019: "... preindustrial forcing was not sufficient to produce globally synchronous extreme temperatures at multidecadal and centennial timescales. By contrast, we find that the warmest period of the past two millennia occurred during the twentieth century for more than 98% of the globe. This provides strong evidence that anthropogenic global warming is not only unparalleled in terms of absolute temperatures5, but also unprecedented in spatial consistency within the context of the past 2,000 years." — 'No evidence for globally coherent warm and cold periods over the preindustrial Common Era', R. Neukom et al, Nature 571, pp.550-554, 2019, [www]. Also see [2] and [3]. It's CO₂ from human activity.

23-27 July 2019: The War and Peace Revival, Kent, uk [www].

23 July 2019: Ford demonstrated a "... prototype all-electric F-150 by towing 10 double-decker rail cars ..." — Ford [www]. (The load was approximately 500 tons.)

July 2019: "Alumni recreate legendary 1950s overland expedition ... In 1955, Tim Slessor (St Catharine's 1952) set off with four other young Cantabs and one Oxonian in two Land Rovers on the trip of a lifetime. Together, they completed the first overland from London to Singapore. ... On 25 August, Tim will join Alex Bescoby (Sidney Sussex 2006) in Singapore to recreate one-half of the epic drive and help mark the 200th anniversary of Sir Stamford Raffles' arrival in the country. Tim won't be the only original member of the team taking part. Remarkably, two years ago, one of the original Land Rovers was rediscovered, derelict, on the South Atlantic island of St Helena and has been lovingly restored. ..." -- cam.ac.uk [www].  Also see Last Overland [www].

22 July 2019 .uk: The 1966 Jaguar XJ13 was a prototype mid-engined racing car intended for Le Mans. Just one was built. "Fifty years on, the spectacular LM69 is to be launched. While remaining true in spirit and sympathetic to the style of the fabulous XJ13 ..." — Ecurie Ecosse [www]. The LM69 will be road legal.

22 July Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.34/l; min $1.23 ([Perth] avg $1.32/l, min $1.28); oil us$56/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.56, €0.63, ¥76

22 July 2019, .au terminal gate prices: ULP: Melbourne $1.32/l, Sydney $1.33/l, ..., Darwin $1.37/l, Hobart $1.38/l; diesel: Melbourne $1.35/l, Sydney $1.36/l, ... Darwin & Hobart $1.40/l — AIP [www].

21 July 2019: "No 10 hands Jaguar Land Rover £500m loan guarantee to develop electric cars ..." — The G [www].

20 July 2019: 50th anniversary of astronauts Neil Armstrong & Buzz Aldrin landing the Apollo lunar module Eagle on the moon (20 July 1969). Michael Collins remained in lunar orbit in the Apollo 11 command module Columbia. Also see NASA [www]. In Australia the date was 21 July. Also see the [abc] and [21/7].

20 July 2019 (Sat.): Festival of the Unexceptional, Concours de l'Ordinaire, Claydon Estate, Buckinghamshire, uk [www]. The event was won by a 1977 Morris Marina Estate (station wagon).

18 July 2019: "Electric car models to triple in Europe by 2021 ..." — [bbc].

18 July 2019: "June 2019 was hottest on record for the globe ... The average global temperature in June was 1.71°F above the 20th-century average of 59.9°F, making it the hottest June in the 140-year record ... Nine of the 10 hottest Junes have occurred since 2010. ..." — NOAA [www].

18 July 2019, recall PRA #2019/17676: "Volvo Car Australia [several models 2014-2019] ... The engine valve may leak and may cause the engine intake manifold to melt/deform. ... engine may experience reduced power, increasing the risk of an accident, injury or fire hazard. ..." — .gov.au [www].

16-18 July 2019: Birdsville Big Red Bash Music Festival [www].

16 July 2019: 50th anniversary of astronauts Neil Armstrong, Buzz Aldrin and Michael Collins lifing off in Apollo 11 on a mission to the moon (20 July).

15 July Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.34/l; min $1.29 ([Perth] avg $1.30/l, min $1.24); oil us$60/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.56, €0.62, ¥76

15 July 2019: "Country [NSW, Qld] towns close to reaching 'day zero', as water supplies dry up in the drought ..." — [abc].

14 July 2019 (#10/21): British F1 Grand Prix, Silverstone.

13 July 2019, .uk: Aston Martin gave a prototype 'Valkyrie' a run at Silverstone over the British F1 Grand Prix weekend. "... first deliveries commencing in Q4 2019 ..." — Aston Martin [www].  Also see, "... a design collaboration between Adrian Newey, Aston Martin Red Bull Racing's Chief Technical Officer, and Marek Reichman, Aston Martin's Chief Creative Officer, and is the result of a technical partnership between Red Bull Advanced Technologies and Aston Martin. It will be raced in anger from next year. ..." — Red Bull [www].

13 July 2019 (Sat.): International Air Day, Yeovilton, Somerset, .uk [www].

12 July 2019: "Ford [&] Volkswagen expand their global collaboration to advance autonomous driving, electrification ..." — VW [www].

12 July 2019: "Severe weather warnings as dangerous winds, blizzards to hit Sydney and south-east NSW ..." — [abc].

12 July Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.37/l; min $1.30 ([Perth] avg $1.38/l, min $1.23); oil us$60/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.56, €0.62, ¥76

11 July 2019: A museum honouring Jim Clark, F1 World Champion in 1963 and 1965, opened in Duns, Scottish Borders, uk [www].

11 July 2019: "Brake, tyre and road surface wear call for evidence: summary of responses ... Vehicle non-exhaust PM [particulate matter] is emitted from the use of brakes and friction between tyres and road surfaces ... exhaust PM [...] is already estimated to be a smaller source than non-exhaust PM and expected to be less than 10% of total road transport PM by 2030. ..." — .gov.uk [www].

10 July 2019, .au: "The real cost of a running a car ... The Kia Rio is the most affordable car to own and run in Victoria, according to RACV's 2019 Driving Your Dollars survey ... the Rio S will cost Victorian owners an average of $115.95 per week, taking into account the full range of costs ... Surprisingly, the most expensive car to run was an electric car, Tesla's Model X 100D SUV ($146K), which will set back owners an average of $514.36/wk ..." — RACV [www]. As always, depreciation typically makes up over 40% of cost over five years. Also see the RACV's costs carculator (sic) [www], e.g., a Toyota Hilux 4x4 costs $264/wk.

9 July 2019: "... range of 235 kilometers ... Production of the MINI Electric starts in Oxford in November 2019. ..." — BMW [www].

7 July 2019, .au: "Drought and climate change blamed for the death of centuries-old sandalwood trees ..." — [abc]. Also see the Dead Tree Detective [www].

7 July 2019, .au: "Why Wolfe Creek Crater attracts scientists, Indigenous traditional owners and horror movie fans ..." — [abc]. The crater in northern WA was formed about 300,000 years ago by a 50,000 ton meteorite.

7 July Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.51/l; min $1.31 ([Perth] avg $1.32/l, min $1.23); oil us$58/b

6 July Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.53/l; min $1.31 ([Perth] avg $1.34/l, min $1.23); oil us$58/b

5 July Fri au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.56, €0.62, ¥76

6 July 2019, .au: The Budj Bim Cultural Landscape in SW Victoria (Parks [www]) has been added to the UNESCO World Heritage List: The Gunditjmara peoples built stone dwellings, and ponds and traps to farm fish and eels around Lake Condah 6,700 years, and more, ago.

5 July 2019: "Jaguar Land Rover today revealed plans to manufacture a range of new electrified vehicles at its manufacturing plant in Castle Bromwich, UK. ... First vehicle confirmed as the next-generation all-electric Jaguar XJ. ... commitment to offer customers electrified options for all new Jaguar and Land Rover models from 2020. ..." — JLR [www].

5 July 2019: "Shifting the focus: energy demand in a net-zero carbon UK ... The complexity of energy demand means there is no 'silver bullet' solution or policy ... Road transport accounted for just under three-quarters of transport energy consumption in the UK in 2017, with the remainder almost entirely from air travel (23%). Of the road component, energy use from cars accounts for more than half (60%), with most of the remainder coming from light duty vehicles (vans) (16%), heavy goods vehicles (HGVs) (17%) and buses (3%) ..." — CREDS [www].

4-7 July 2019: Goodwood Festival of Speed [www].

5 July: Bonhams auction [www], including lot 323 a 1934 Alfa Romeo 8C 2300 'Long Chassis' Tourer reg. no. TFO 544, chassis #2311222 (not sold); lot 345 the 1992 Williams-Renault FW14B/08 F1 car 'Red Five', 3.5-litre V10, chassis #FW14-08, engine #240 (sold £2,703,000), Nigel Mansell (Williams) won the 1992 F1 World Drivers' Championship.

4 July 2019, .uk: "... UK new car registrations declined for a fourth consecutive month in June, with year-on-year demand falling by -4.9% to 223,421 units ..." — SMMT [www].

3 July 2019, .au: "... sales figures for the month of June 2019 ... report a drop of 9.6% in the Australian new vehicle market. Sales for the month totalled 117,817 units, with year to date 2019 sales totalling 554,466 units. ..." — FCAI [www].

3 July 2019: "Lotus confirms Type 130 hypercar is named EVIJA ... Due to start production in 2020 ... the first all-electric hypercar from a British car maker ..." — Lotus [www].

2 July Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.50/l; min $1.20 ([Perth] avg $1.49/l, min $1.21); oil us$59/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.55, €0.62, ¥76

1 July 2019: "Chubb Limited (NYSE: CB) today announced that it has adopted a new policy concerning coal-related underwriting and investment. With the new policy, the company will no longer underwrite the construction and operation of new coal-fired plants or new risks for companies that generate more than 30% of their revenues from coal mining or energy production from coal. ..." — Chubb [www]. (Also see Zurich, 25 June below.)

 

30 June 2019: Pikes Peak International Hill Climb [www].

30 June 2019 (#9/21): Austrian F1 Grand Prix, Spielberg.

Results: 1. Max Verstappen (Red Bull); 2. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari); 3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes). It was the first win for a Honda-powered car since 2006 and the first of the V6-turbo era. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

30 June 2019: "Queensland drivers could soon face $1,000 fines for texting while driving ..." — [abc].

29 June 2019: "European heatwave: France hits record temperature of 45.9°C ..." — [bbc].

29 June 2019, nsw: "Two people die in multi-vehicle crash, closing the M1 Princes Motorway in Wollongong ... their car became caught between two trucks, ..." — [abc].

28-30 June 2019: Tankfest 2019, Tank Museum, Bovington, uk [www].

27 June 2019: "UK car manufacturing declines for 12th month in a row as output falls –15.5% in May ..." — SMMT [www].

27 June 2019: "... approximately 12,000 jobs will be impacted[!] at Ford's wholly owned facilities and consolidated joint ventures in Europe by the end of 2020, primarily through voluntary separation programs. Around 2,000 of those are salaried positions, which are included among the 7,000 salaried positions Ford is reducing globally. ..." — Ford [www].

27 June 2019: "Next generation Opel Astra will be built in Russelsheim ... intention to manufacture the new Astra in two plants in Europe, including Russelsheim ... as of 2021 ... The Opel Astra [is] currently produced in Ellesmere Port (UK) and Gliwice (Poland) ..." — PSA [www]. PSA owns Opel and Vauxhall. So does that mean no British made Astra? (Brexit?)

27 June Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.27/l; min $1.22 ([Perth] avg $1.41/l, min $1.22); oil us$59/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.55, €0.62, ¥76

27 June 2019: "Bushfire season starts early across northern Australia due to ongoing hot, dry conditions ..." — [abc].

27 June 2019: "European heatwave sets new June temperature records ..." — [bbc].

25 June 2019: "Zurich Insurance Group (Zurich) today announces that it is accelerating actions to progress towards a low-carbon economy amid an increasing climate crisis. ..." — Zurich [www]. (Also see Chubb, 1 July above.)

24 June 2019: "Kangaroos account for 90 per cent of crashes involving animals in NSW, so what do you do if you hit a roo? ..." — [abc]. Also see WIRES (NSW Wildlife Information, Rescue and Education Service) [www].

23 June 2019 (#8/21): French F1 Grand Prix, Le Castellet.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). Finally the Renault-powered McLarens showed some pace, qualifying 5th and 6th – Carlos Sainz jnr finished 6th but Lando Norris lost hydraulic pressure and fell back to finish 10th. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

21 June 2019: "Around 120 Australians have died as a result of do it yourself (DIY) car maintenance accidents since 2000 ... Most of the fatalities were men and involved the vehicle being lifted or supported in the wrong way. Most victims were aged 40 to 49. ..." — ACCC [www].

21 June 2019, .us: "Army approves JLTV Full-Rate Production ... The 1-3 ID became the Army's first unit equipped with JLTVs in April 2019, after receiving more than 300 vehicles. ..." — .mil [www]. Also see LTVs @Oshkosh [www].

22 June Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.28/l; min $1.25 ([Perth] avg $1.32/l, min $1.21); oil us$57/b

21 June Fri au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.55, €0.61, ¥74

18 June 2019: "Australian National Outlook ..." — CSIRO [www]. And, "Australia 2060: Our crossroads today - future prosperity or slow decline ..." — [www].

17-23 June 2019: Paris Air Show (public 23-25) [www].

17 June Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.36/l; min $1.30 ([Perth] avg $1.26/l, min $1.19); oil us$53/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.55, €0.61, ¥75

17 June 2019: "Australia's Emissions Reduction Fund is failing to deliver, government data shows ..." — [abc].

15-16 June 2019: The 87th Le Mans 24-hour race [www].

Results: 1. Sebastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Fernando Alonso (Toyota, LMP1), 385 laps; 2. Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez (Toyota, LMP1), 385 laps (+17 secs); 3. Mikhail Aleshin, Vitaly Petrov and Stoffel Vandoorne (SMP Racing BR Engineering, LMP1), 379 laps. Also see the FIA [www].

13 June 2019: "Norway's us$1 trillion sovereign wealth fund to dump billions in coal investments ..." — [abc].

12 June Wed Melb ULP avg au$1.44/l; min $1.35 ([Perth] avg $1.46/l, min $1.23); oil us$53/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.55, €0.61, ¥75

12 June 2019, .au: Uber announced plans to test flying taxis in Melbourne from 2020, e.g., see Uber [www], the [abc] and the [bbc].

12 June 2019: "Climate change: UK government to commit to 2050 target [of "nett zero" CO2] ..." ‐ [bbc].

12 June 2019: "Ford recalls 1.2 million vehicles [Explorers] in US over suspension fault ..." — [bbc].

11 June 2019, .uk: The M25 was closed by the discovery of not one but two sink-holes, e.g., see The G [www].

10 June 2019 (Mon.), .au: Queen's Birthday (not Qld, WA) [www].

9 June 2019 (#7/21): Canadian F1 Grand Prix, Montreal.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). Vettel finished first but was penalised five seconds for rejoining the track unsafely (nearly collecting Hamilton) after running wide on lap 48 of 70. The Renaults of Daniel Ricciardo and Nico Hulkenberg had their best race of the year so far, finishing 6th and 7th. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

8 June 2019: The seventieth anniversary of the publication of George Orwell's novel Nineteen Eighty-Four. (And 4/6 was the 30^th anniversary of the Tacre.)

7-10 June 2019 .au: Finke Desert Race [www].

7 June Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.57/l; min $1.35 ([Perth] avg $1.40/l, min $1.26); oil us$53/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.55, €0.62, ¥76

7 June 2019, .au: "Fuel prices on the way down with oil, but shopping around can save you even more ..." — [abc].

6 June 2019: "Australia's greenhouse gas emissions rise again, according to delayed Federal Government data ..." — [abc]. Also see 'Progress of the National Greenhouse Gas Inventory', .gov.au [www].

6 June 2019, .eu: 75th anniversary of the D-Day landings (1944), e.g., [bbc] and [6/6].

6 June 2019, .uk: "Ford set to close Bridgend engine plant in 2020 ..." — [bbc].

5 June 2019: "Jaguar Land Rover and BMW Group today confirmed they are joining forces to develop next generation Electric Drive Units (EDUs) in a move that will support the advancement of electrification technologies, a central part of the automotive industry's transition to an ACES (Autonomous, Connected, Electric, Shared) future. ..." — JLR [www], BMW [www].

3 June 2019: "Change is in the air. The elevated future of mobility: What's next on the horizon? Hybrid-electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) vehicles ..." — Deloitte [www].

3 June 2019: "Is hydrogen the future for trucking? ... the diesel-reliant trucking industry is focusing on hydrogen fuel cells ..." — SAE [www].

1 June Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.51/l; min $1.32 ([Perth] avg $1.42/l, min $1.31); oil us$54/b

31 May Fri au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.55, €0.62, ¥75

1 June - 7 June 2019: Isle of Man TT races, 1st (Sat), 3rd (Mon), 5th (Wed), 7th (Fri), [www]. Mad!

 

31 May 2019: The Mini Electric "is to be produced at the MINI plant in Oxford [uk] starting in November 2019" — BMW [www].

30 May 2019: "UK car manufacturing plummets in April as Brexit shutdowns strike ..." — SAE [www].  "Brexit shutdown slashes UK car production by 45% ..." — [bbc]. (Over brexit 29 March which did not even happen.)

30 May 2019: "A warmer and drier than average winter likely for most of Australia ... [and] preliminary figures show autumn 2019 is likely to go down as one of Australia's five warmest autumns on record. ..." — [bom] and outlook [www].

28 May 2019, .au: There were snowfalls down to 700m in the Victorian Alps. E.g., see the [abc].

28 May 2019, .uk: "Car theft payouts 'at seven-year high' ..." — [bbc].

28 May Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.39/l; min $1.28 ([Perth] avg $1.55/l, min $1.32); oil us$59/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.55, €0.62, ¥76

27 May 2019: Fiat Chrysler Auto (FCA) proposed a 50:50 merger with Groupe Renault. (Renault has an "alliance" with Nissan and Mitsubishi Motors.) See FCA [www] and Groupe Renault [www].

5/6: The proposal was withdrawn citing "political conditions in France", FCA [www].
Also see Fiat Chrysler and Peugeot, 30 Oct. above.

26 May 2019 (#6/21): Monaco F1 Grand Prix.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari), 3. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes).  Max Verstappen (Red Bull) crossed the line in second place but was given a 5 second penalty for an unsafe release in the pits which dropped him to fourth. (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

26 May 2019 (Sun.): 103rd Indianapolis 500 [www].

Results: 1. Simon Pagenaud (Penske); 2. Alexander Rossi (Andretti); 3. Takuma Sato (Rahal Letterman Lanigan).

26 May 2019: "The power switch: tracking Britain's record coal-free run ... 8 days and 13 hours so far ..." — The G [www]. 31/5: "Two weeks ..." —[bbc]. Wind, solar (sunny uk!), hydro, nuclear, gas.

25 May (Sat) - 7 June 2019 (Fri): Isle of Man TT [www]. Qualifying 25th-31st, races 1 June (Sat) - 7 June (Fri).

25 May 2019: RM Sotheby's Villa Erba auction, Lake Como, Italy, [www] including lot 137 a 1931 Bugatti Type 50 Roadster, chassis #50123, engine #18 (sold €1,411,250) and lot 148 a 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Spider by Pinin Farina, chassis #0448 MD, engine #0448 MD (sold €3,717,500).

24 May 2019: British PM Theresa May announced that, unable to get a brexit deal through parliament, she would resign as Conservative Party leader on 7 June but continue to act as PM until a replacement is chosen e.g., [bbc].

23 May 2019, usa: "USPS tests autonomous semi-trailers for long-haul mail logistics ... The Class-8 vehicles - or semi-trailer trucks - will cover more than 1,000 miles over the course of the five 22-hour trips ..." — SAE [www].

23 May Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.41/l; min $1.34 ([Perth] avg $1.50/l, min $1.35); oil us$61/b; au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.54, €0.62, ¥76

23 May 2019: EU elections – with the UK still not having brexitted. (See 31 Oct. above.)

22 May 2019: "... No appetite for growth in energy coal regardless of asset attractiveness ... Energy coal:phased out, potentially sooner than expected ..." — BHP [www].

21 May 2019, WA: "Toll road proposed for Dampier Peninsula as visitor numbers are predicted to soar ... Cape Leveque ... road [will be] fully sealed in 2021. ..." — [abc].

21 May 2019: "Ford to cut 7,000 jobs including more than 500 in UK ..." — The G [www].

21 May 2019: "... Ford is preparing to widely deploy its fourth-generation hybrid-electric vehicle (HEV) technology ... 'power-split' planetary continuously variable transmission, dubbed eCVT [1.1kWh] ... for the 2020 Escape Hybrid is paired with a significantly revised 2.5L four-cylinder running the Atkinson cycle. There also will be a plug-in hybrid-electric vehicle (PHEV) variant of the 2020 Escape that promises up to 30 miles (48km) of battery-only driving range from its 14.4kWh liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery pack. ..." — SAE [www].

20 May 2019: Niki Lauda, F1 world champion in 1975 (Ferrari), 1977 (Ferrari) and 1984 (McLaren), died aged 70. See, e.g., The G [www] and the [bbc].

20 May 2019: "... We find that a global total [sea level rise] exceeding 2m by 2100 lies within the 90% uncertainty bounds for a high [CO2] emission scenario. This is more than twice the upper value put forward by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change in the Fifth Assessment Report." — 'Ice sheet contributions to future sea-level rise from structured expert judgment', J.L.Bamber et al, PNAS, [www].

19-23 May 2019: The Gibb Challenge, WA, "a socially competitive 660 kilometre team relay event raising community awareness and money for charity" [www] – the Gibb River road by bicycle.

18 May Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.50/l; min $1.36 ([Perth] avg $1.48/l, min $1.34); oil us$63/b

17 May Fri au$1.00=us$0.69, £0.54, €0.62, ¥75

18 May 2019: Australian Federal election. Scott this-is-coal Morrison and the Lib/NPs, arguably aided by Clive what-nickel-refinery(?) Palmer's $60m of ads and his UAP's preferences, gained more seats than Bill who(?) Shorten and Labor. Labor had stood on a set of policies that Sir Humphrey Appleby would have called "courageous".

As of the 23rd: Lib/NP 78, Labor (ALP) 67, Greens 1, Katter's AP 1, Centre Alliance 1, Independent 3, total 151 seats.

As of the 28th: Lib/NP 77, Labor (ALP) 68, ... . (The Senate results are still being processed.) Also see the AEC [www].

Some campaigns got dirty, notably Chisholm (Vic.); see [abc][28/5] and [6/11]. Also see [11/9].

17-19 May 2019: Historic Winton, Vic., .au [www].

17 May 2019: "Tesla Model 3: Autopilot engaged during fatal crash [March 2019] ..." — [bbc].  See the NTSB's Preliminary Report (HWY19FH008) "... From less than 8 seconds before the crash to the time of impact, the vehicle did not detect the driver's hands on the steering wheel. Preliminary vehicle data show that the Tesla was traveling about 68mph when it struck the semitrailer. Neither the preliminary data nor the videos indicate that the driver or the ADAS executed evasive maneuvers. ...", [www].

16 May 2019, .au: Bob Hawke (89) died. He was PM (Labor) from 1983 to 1991, e.g., [abc].

16 May 2019, .au: "A positive Indian Ocean Dipole [IOD] this winter is bad news for drought-hit parts of Australia ..." — [abc].  See the [bom].

16 May 2019: "Lilium [.de] reveals new air taxi as it celebrates maiden flight [4 May] ..." — Lilium [www]. All electric, five seats, VTOL, 300km/h, 300km range, maybe in service 2025?

15 May 2019: There were rumours that Peugeot was in take-over talks with Jaguar Land-Rover (currently owned by Tata).

14 May 2019: "ACE EV to sign agreement to build electric vehicles in Adelaide starting in 2020 ..." — [abc]. Also see ACE EV [www].

14 May 2019, .uk: "Brexit: Cross-party deal must include new referendum – Sir Keir Starmer ..." — [bbc].

13 May Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.61/l; min $1.35 ([Perth] avg $1.40/l, min $1.35); oil us$62/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.54, €0.62, ¥77

13 May 2019: "Tropical Cyclone Ann is now expected to cross the far north Queensland coast [as cat.1] early on Wednesday [15th] morning ..." — [abc].

12 May 2019 (#5/21): Spanish F1 Grand Prix, Barcelona.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull). (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

10 May 2019: There was early snow at Falls Creek, Vic..

9 May 2019: "Volvo Trucks has introduced a safety function, Distance Alert, which makes it easier for truck drivers to keep a safer distance from the vehicle ahead and avoid critical situations. Accidents where one vehicle runs into the back of another currently make up around 20 percent of all serious collisions involving trucks. ..." — Volvo Trucks [www]. Tailgating by cars is bad enough, but trucks!

9 May 2019, .au: "How multinationals shift billion$ in revenue offshore and what Labor plans to do about it ... [e.g.] Uber ... $691 million [of a gross profit of $785.6 million] was a 'service fees' charge, which cut tax payable down to $8.5 million ... Google, Facebook send advertising revenue offshore ... [and] Facebook's ... 2018 Australian tax bill was [only] $11.8 million. ...", etc., etc. — [abc].

9 May Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.56/l; min $1.32 ([Perth] avg $1.52/l, min $1.36); oil us$62/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.54, €0.62, ¥77

9 May 2019, .uk: "... the Environment Agency is preparing for a potential 4°C rise in global temperature and urgent action is needed to tackle more frequent, intense flooding and sea level rise. ... In some cases, the scale of flooding or coastal change may be so significant the concept of 'build back better' may not be appropriate. This may mean potentially moving communities out of harm's way in the longer term. ..." — Environment Agency .gov.uk [www].

8-9 May 2019, .au: Army live-fire exercise, Puckapunyal, [www].

7 May 2019: "... BMW Group to contest EU Commission allegations ..." [of collusion on lower emission cars] "it is probable that the EU Commission will issue a significant fine ..." — BWM [www].

3-5 May 2019 (Fri.-Sun.): Donington Historic [www].

3 May Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.42/l; min $1.33 ([Perth] avg $1.52/l, min $1.35); oil us$64/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.54, €0.63, ¥78

3 May 2019: "Amsterdam to ban petrol and diesel cars and motorbikes by 2030 ..." — The G [www].

3 May 2019: "24 hours of rain offers some NSW farmers much-needed drought relief ..." — [abc].
But at Menindee ... [abc][6/5].

3 May 2019, .au: "... new vehicle sales figures for the month of April 2019. Total sales for the month were 75,550 units, an 8.9% decrease on April 2018 ... Year to date sales figures for April 2019 totalled 344,088 units, an 8.1% decrease on the same period in 2018. ..." — FCAI [www].

 

April 2019: There were reports that the replacement for the late Land-Rover Defender would be revealed in September and available in .au in early 2020. Also that it would be built in Slovakia (brexit?). See LR [www].

29 April 2019, .us: "Ford Says Justice Dept. Has Opened Criminal Inquiry Into Emissions Issues ..." — NYT [www].

28 Apr Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.42/l; min $1.36 ([Perth] avg $1.43/l, min $1.34); oil us$63/b

26 Apr Fri au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.54, €0.63, ¥78

28 April 2019 (#4/21): Azerbaijan F1 Grand Prix, Baku.

Results: 1. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 3. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari).  (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

April 2019: Thatcham Research (uk) released car 'security ratings', including 2019 Ford Mondeo (poor), 2019 Hyundai Nexo (poor), 2019 Toyota Corolla Hybrid (poor) — TR [www].

25 April 2019: Anzac Day.

24 April 2019: "Rivian today announced an equity investment of us$500 million from Ford Motor Company. In addition to the investment, the companies have agreed to work together to develop an all-new, next-generation battery electric vehicle for Ford's growing EV portfolio using Rivian's skateboard platform. ..." — Ford [www].

24 April 2019: "Lake Eyre could get to its fullest since 1974 but Murray-Darling Basin is missing out ..." — [abc].

23 April 2019: "Ford and University of Michigan team up on first-ever sustainability study of urban air mobility ... fully-booked UAM vehicles would be more effective than ground vehicles in transporting passengers 'from San Francisco to San Jose or from Detroit to Cleveland.' ..." — SAE [www]. See A. Kasliwal et al, 'Role of flying cars in sustainable mobility', Nature Communications, 10, 1555, 2019, [www].

19-28 April 2019: New York Auto Show [www].

22 April 2019: Easter Monday [www].

19 April 2019: Good Friday [www].

Check Vic. Parks for possible closures due to fires [www].

19 April 2019: "Nikola reveals range of hydrogen fuel cell and battery-electric vehicles ... On-highway Class 6-8 trucks ... the manufacturer revealed a battery-electric all-terrain vehicle, an autonomous-capable military vehicle, and a personal watercraft concept ..." — SAE [www].

16 April 2019: "Life of Brian is 40 years old, but is it still controversial? ..." — [abc].

16 Apr Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.52/l; min $1.06 ([Perth] avg $1.56/l, min $1.26); oil us$64/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.55, €0.63, ¥80

15 April 2019, nsw, drought: "Fourth-generation grazier to sell family property as drought reaches unprecedented level ..." — [abc].

15 April 2019: "Former VW boss charged over diesel emissions scandal ..." — [bbc].

14 April 2019 (#3/21): Chinese F1 Grand Prix, Shanghai. The race was the 1000^th F1 grand prix since the first official GP in 1950.

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 3. Sebastian Vettel (Ferrari).  (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

12 April 2019: Possible delayed brexit date – see 29 March below, but ...

11 April 2019: Brexit was delayed, "flexibly", up to 31 October, e.g., [bbc].

11 Apr Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.57/l; min $1.31 ([Perth] avg $1.48/l, min $1.26); oil us$65/b; au$1.00=us$0.72, £0.55, €0.63, ¥80

11 April 2019, .au: The Prime Minister, Scott this-is-coal Morrison, called the Federal election for 18 May.

10-14 April 2019: TechnoClassica, Essen [www].

10 April 2019: "Lake Eyre floodwaters bring life and drought relief to South Australia's outback ..." — [abc]. (Also see LEYC [www].)

10 April 2019: Using data from a network of eight telescopes, astronomers released the first ever picture of a black hole – in galaxy M87 (Virgo A) — blackholecam [www] and wikip [www].

8 April 2019: Wiebe Wakker completed his trip from Amsterdam (15/3/2016) to Sydney in an electric car "without money", relying on donations — [www].

8 April 2019: London's 'Ultra Low Emission Zone' (ULEZ) came into force. "Most vehicles, including cars and vans, need to meet the ULEZ emissions standards or their drivers must pay a daily charge to drive within the zone. £12.50 for most vehicle types, including cars, motorcycles and vans (up to and including 3.5 tonnes) £100 for heavier vehicles, including lorries (over 3.5 tonnes) and buses/coaches (over 5 tonnes)." — .gov.uk [www]. (Euro 4 (2006+) petrol, and Euro 6 (2015+) diesel cars "pass".) (Also [bbc].)

5-7 April 2019, .au: National 4x4 Show Brisbane Showgrounds [www].

4 Apr Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.37/l; min $1.06 ([Perth] avg $1.47/l, min $1.26); oil us$62/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.54, €0.63, ¥79

3 April 2019, .au: "... new vehicle sales reached a total of 99,442 vehicles during March. This represents a decrease of 7,546 vehicles sales, or 7.1%, on the same period in 2018. ..." — FCAI [www].

2 April 2019: "US to investigate car firms Hyundai and Kia over vehicle fires ... NHTSA ..." — [bbc].

1 April 2019: "Warmest March on record for Australia ... national mean temperature was warmest on record, at 2.13°C above average ..." — [bom].

1 Apr Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.43/l; min $1.32 ([Perth] avg $1.32/l, min $1.25); oil us$60/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.55, €0.63, ¥79

1 April 2019, .au: "Labor climate change policy proposes tax breaks for businesses to buy electric cars ..." — [abc].

 

31 March 2019 (#2/21): Bahrain F1 Grand Prix (start 6.10pm local, 3.10pm GMT, 4.10pm BST).

Results: 1. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 2. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 3. Charles Leclerc (Ferrari). (Also see the FIA [www] and the [bbc].)

31 March 2019, recall PRA #2019/17430: "Mercedes-Benz A, C and CLS Class Vehicles MY2018-2019 ... The software in the powertrain control unit may not operate as intended. The engine warning light may not activate to warn the driver of the fault. A reset of the control unit might take place while driving. ... the engine may not start again automatically ..." — .gov.au [www].

30 March 2019, .uk: "May hopes to hold fourth vote on Brexit deal ..." — The G [www]. May's "deal" has been rejected three times, most recently 344:286, but the alternatives have also been rejected!  And 2/4/19, "Brexit votes: MPs fail to back proposals again ..." — [bbc].

29-30 March 2019: RM Sothebys Fort Lauderdale auction [www], including lot 3086 a 2008 Koenigsegg CCX, twin-supercharged 4.7 V8, chassis #YT9XH33B88A007044 (1000 miles, what was the point? Not sold); lot 3094 a 2015 Ferrari LaFerrari, ZFF76ZFA4F0209754 (600 miles, sold us$3,080,000)..

29 March 2019: "WMO State of Climate report is 'yet another strong wake-up call' ... record sea level rise, as well as exceptionally high land and ocean temperatures over the past four years. ..." — WMO [www].

29 March 2019, brexit: Britain due to leave the EU. (Also see brexit@wikip [www].)

But, 22 March: "EU leaders agree Brexit delay plan ... until 22 May, if MPs approve the withdrawal deal negotiated with the EU next week. [otherwise to 12 April] ..." — [bbc]. (There are European Parliament elections on 23 May which the UK would have to participate in if given a delay past that date.)

25 March: "Brexit: MPs vote to take control of Brexit process for indicative votes ..." — [bbc].

(However, on 11 April brexit was delayed again, possibly until 31 October. Also see 31 January 2020.)

28 March 2019: "British car manufacturing declines -15.3% in February, with 123,203 units produced. ..." — SMMT [www].

27 Mar Wed Melb ULP avg au$1.46/l; min $1.32 ([Perth] avg $1.48/l, min $1.27); oil us$60/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.54, €0.63, ¥79

26 March 2019, .eu: A provisional agreement for, "Safety features such as intelligent speed assistance (speed "limiters") and advanced emergency-braking system ... to be installed in new vehicles as from May 2022. ... driver distraction warning, emergency lane keeping, reversing detection system, alcohol interlock installation facilitation ... Event Data Recorders [black boxes] ..." — EU [www]. "ETSC welcomes provisional deal on new vehicle safety standards ..." — ETSC [www].

26 March 2019: "GoFly announces Phase II winning teams at AeroTech Americas ..." — SAE [www]. A flying "motorcycle", a multicopter, and other personal flying machines — GoFly [www].

24 March 2019, .au: "Bushman, painter and author Jack Absalom dies at 91 ..." — [abc].

24 March 2019, .wa: T.C. Veronica reached the WA coast between Karratha and Port Hedland, e.g., [abc].

25th: "Cyclone Veronica red alert lifted in parts of Pilbara but destructive winds, flooding continue ..." — [25/3], and [26/3].

23 March 2019, .nt: "Northern Territory's Barkly region braces for Tropical Cyclone Trevor deluge ..." — [abc].

23 March 2019: NSW state election, [www]. The Lib/NP state government was re-elected, e.g., [abc].

22-24 March 2019, .uk: Practical Classics Classic Car & Restoration Show, NEC, Birmingham [www].

22 March 2019: "GM to Invest us$300 Million, add 400 jobs at Michigan plant for new Chevrolet electric vehicle ..." — GM [www].

22 March 2019, .au: And a politician mentions "high-speed trains" – there must be an election coming up in a few weeks, [www]. (The Federal election is expected in May.)

22 Mar Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.52/l; min $1.29 ([Perth] avg $1.39/l, min $1.27); oil us$60/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.54, €0.62, ¥79

21 March 2019, .wa: "Cyclone Veronica rapidly intensifies off WA's Pilbara coast, expected to reach category five ..." — [abc]. "Tropical cyclone Veronica northwest of Western Australia ..." — [bom].  Category 4, 23/3.

21 March 2019, .nt: "Tropical cyclone Trevor rapidly intensifying ..." — [bom]. "Mass evacuations for NT coastal communities as Cyclone Trevor approaches ..." — [abc].  Category 4 [23/3].

21 March 2019: Canadian firm 'Carbon Engineering' claims that it can remove CO2 directly from the atmosphere for under us$100/tonne, [www]. (Also see the [bbc][3/4].)

20 March 2019, .uk: The Bloodhound land-speed record (LSR) project seems to be back on track under a new name 'Bloodhound LSR' after being rescued from bankruptcy by Ian Warhurst (Grafton LSR Ltd), [www].

20 March 2019: "Ford today announced it is expanding its production capacity for the company's next-generation battery electric vehicles at a second North American plant. ... [And] Production of Ford's first autonomous vehicles will begin in 2021 for deployment in commercial services to move people and goods. ..." — Ford [www].)

19 March 2019, .vic: "CityLink toll hike costs revealed under report on West Gate Tunnel deal ..." — [abc].

19 March 2019: "Fisker Inc. Reveals Stunning All-Electric SUV Design, priced below us$40,000 ... to be launched in the second half of 2021. ..." — Fisker [www]. (Also see Tesla 15 March below.)

19 March 2019: "Climate change: Water shortages in England 'within 25 years' ..." — [bbc].

18 March 2019: "Destructive wind gusts likely as Cyclone Trevor approaches North East Queensland ..." — [bom]. Tues. 19th: cat. 3. Also see, "Tropical Cyclone Trevor forms off Far North Queensland coast as storms hit the south east ..." — [abc].

19 March: "Cyclone Trevor intensified rapidly overnight in the Coral Sea and is now a Category 3 severe tropical cyclone as it approaches the east coast of Cape York Peninsula today. ..." — [bom].
And (IDW60281) there is "... a potential Tropical Cyclone for Pilbara [WA] coast over the weekend. ..." — [bom].

18 March 2019: "Lake Eyre begins filling with Queensland floodwaters as Birdsville roads reopen ..." — [abc].  And, the Lake Eyre Yacht Club plans to hold an event on the Warburton River ("... four day trip down the Warburton River starting ... Warburton Crossing at the bottom end of Goyder Lagoon ...") April 16-19 — LEYC [www].

18 March 2019: "INEOS Automotive's 4x4, Projekt Grenadier [announced] a powertrain technology partnership with BMW Group ... BMW Group will supply both petrol and diesel engines ... " — I.A. [www]. (Also see 17 Dec. above.)  Jim Ratcliffe, boss of Ineos, is a fan of the Land-Rover Defender (d.2016) and is hatching plans to build a comparable no-frills 4x4 – 'Projekt Grenadier', [www], was [www]. (Land-Rover is reported to be revealing a "frillier" Defender replacement later in 2019: See 10 Sept. above.)

17 Mar Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.32/l; min $1.16 ([Perth] avg $1.32/l, min $1.24); oil us$59/b

15 Mar Fri au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.53, €0.63, ¥79

17 March 2019 (#1/21): Australian F1 Grand Prix (start 4.10pm local, 5.10am GMT).

Results: 1. Valtteri Bottas (Mercedes), 2. Lewis Hamilton (Mercedes), 3. Max Verstappen (Red Bull). The much fancied Ferraris finished 4th and 5th. (Also see the FIA [www] and [bbc].) This year, the holder of the fastest lap (today Bottas) gets an extra point if they finish in the top ten.

16-17 March 2019, .au: "Defence, Past, Present and Future, Adelaide, Historic Commercial Vehicles Club (HCVC) [www].

15 March 2019: "Volkswagen and former boss face US lawsuit over Dieselgate ..." — [bbc].

15 March 2019: Tesla revealed details of the Model Y electric, mid-size SUV, from us$39K (early 2021), top models available late 2020, 230 to 300 mile range, Tesla [www].

14 March 2019, .uk: "Jaguar Land Rover recalls 44,000 cars over emissions ... Most models are petrol, while some are diesel. ..." — [bbc].

22 March 2019, .au, recall 2019/17408: "Jaguar Land Rover – Jaguar XE, XF, F-TYPE, F-PACE, E-PACE MY2018-2019 ... During testing, there was greater than expected variation in CO₂ emissions between vehicles. ..." — .gov.au [www].

12 March 2019, .uk: "Brexit: MPs reject Theresa May's deal for a second time ... 391 to 242 ..." — [bbc].

However: "MPs vote to reject no-deal Brexit ..." — [13/3].
14/3: Parliament voted to request a delay to Brexit.
And see a "SMMT statement on Brexit vote ..." — SMMT [www].

(Brexit is due 29 March, above.)

12 Mar Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.27/l; min $1.06 ([Perth] avg $1.45/l, min $1.20); oil us$56/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.54, €0.63, ¥79

11-17 March 2019, .au: Corowa Swim In, 'Year of the Amphibian and of the Prototype,' [www].

11 March 2019, .au: "Road-train driver allegedly high on ice when pulled over by police on Stuart Highway [Friday] ..." — [abc].

11 March 2019: End of consultations for a mandatory scheme for the sharing of motor vehicle service and repair information — .gov.au [www].

11 March 2019 (Mon.): Labour Day, Vic.(!), .au [www].

9-11 March 2019: Steamfest, National Steam Centre, Scoresby, Melbourne, Vic. [www].

8-11 March 2019 (Fri-Mon): Port Fairy Folk Festival [www].

NB. Many Victorian National Parks are closed due to bush-fires – see [parks].

8-9 March 2019: RM Sotheby's Amelia Island auction [www], including lot 213 a 1936 Hispano-Suiza K6 Limousine by Vanvooren, chassis #15095, engine #333142 (sold us$142,800); lot 252 a 1926 Hispano-Suiza H6B Cabriolet Le Dandy by Chapron, chassis #11528 (sold us$1,352,500); lot 269 a 1937 Bugatti type 57SC Tourer by Corsica, chassis #57512, engine #19S (not sold). (Also see Bonhams 7/3 below.)

8 March 2019, .uk: Project Wing is a drone delivery trial in Bonython, Canberra, ACT, by google (Alphabet). Small packages can be picked up and delivered. The drones make a high-pitched intrusive noise and there have been protests. See Wing [www] and, e.g., "Project Wing tests new 'quieter' drone ..." — Canberra Times [www].

8 March 2019, .uk: "Security holes found in big brand car alarms ..." — [bbc]. (Clifford, Viper, and Pandora.)

8 March 2019: International Women's Day [www].

7-17 March 2019: 89th Geneva International Motor Show [www] or [www]. (Also see, "Why it will be electrifying ..." — [bbc]. "Geneva goes electric ..." — The G [www]. "Horsepower and kilowatts ..." — SAE [www].) Including AIWAYS (Shanghai) 'U5' electric SUV; Aston Martin Valkyrie, 'AM-RB 003', mid-engined 'Vanquish Vision' concept [www], & Lagonda 'All Terrain' electric "SUV" concept [bbc]; Audi 'Q4 e-tron' electric SUV (2021?) [www]; Gumpert 'Nathalie' methanol fuel cell EV [www]; Hispano Suiza Cars (Barcelona) 'Carmen' EV [www] (note there seem to be two different HS firms!); Honda 'Urban EV'; Kia 'e-Niro' electric SUV; Koenigsegg new 'Jesko' [www]; Morgan new 'Plus Six' [www]; Nissan 'IMQ' AWD "e-power" series-hybrid concept [www]; PAL-V Liberty "flying car" (folding autogyro) [www]; Peugeot '208' and electric 'e-208' (50kWh); Pieche 'Mk 0' prototype EV; (Automobili-) Pininfarina 'Battista' EV; Porsche '917-001' (1969) restored [www]; Ssangyong new 'Korando'.

7 March 2019: "US trade deficit hits a 10-year high ..." — [abc].

7 Mar Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.28/l; min $1.06 ([Perth] avg $1.38/l, min $1.21); oil us$57/b; au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.53, €0.62, ¥79

7 March 2019: Bonhams Amelia Island Auction [www], including lot 278 a 1968 F1 Brabham BT26/BT26A (Jochen Rindt / Jacky Ickx, fitted 3-litre Cosworth V8 as per 1969), chassis #BT26/3, engine #1986 (sold us$1,105,000). (Also see RM Sotheby 9/3 above.)

6 March 2019, usa: "Uber 'not liable' for self-driving death ..." — [bbc]. (See 6 November above and 19 March 2018.) ¿But maybe the "driver" is?

5 March 2019, .au: "[New car] sales of 87,102 new vehicles during the month of February 2019. This represents a decrease of 9.3% on the same period last year. On a year to date basis, the industry reported 169,096 sales, or a decrease of 8.4% over the same period in 2018. ..." — FCAI [www].

6 March 2019: "Australia's GDP shows we're in a type of 'recession' and car dealers are bearing the brunt ..." — [abc].

5 March 2019: "The all-electric Jaguar I-PACE has been voted 'Car of the Year' at the European Car of the Year Awards 2019. ..." — JLR.

5 March 2019: "Toyota and BMW warn no-deal Brexit [29/3] could hit UK investment ..." — [bbc].

5 March 2019: The Morgan family sold a majority share in the British sports car company to an Italian venture capital firm, 'Investindustrial', [www].

2 Mar Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.33/l; min $1.16 ([Perth] avg $1.30/l, min $1.18); oil us$56/b

1 Mar Fri au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.53, €0.62, ¥79

2 March 2019: There are emergency warnings for bushfires including "Bunyip ... Tynong North, Budgeree ... Yinnar South, and Black Snake Creek ... Dargo ... Miowera ..." east of Melbourne, and others — .vic.gov.au [www].  And 3 March: [abc], [6/3], & [9/3].

2 March 2019, .uk: "Buyers beware! Half of used vehicles checked turn out to have a hidden history ..." — RAC [www]. The RAC has an online history checker [www], for a price.

1-3 March 2019: Australian International Airshow, Avalon, Geelong, Victoria [www] (trade 26/2-3/3, public 1-3/3).

1 March 2019: "Heat wave events headline a record warm summer for Australia ..." — [bom].

 

28 February 2019, .uk: "British car production falls -18.2% in first month of the year, reflecting model changes and weaker demand in both UK and key export markets. ..." — SMMT [www].

28 February 2019, .au: "High chance of drier than average autumn [March-May] for eastern Australia following record hot summer ..." — [bom], and the outlook [28/2]. (Also see, "Summer 2018-19 was hottest on record ...", the [abc].)

27 February 2019: It is expected that, "Queensland floodwaters flow to outback South Australia and Kati Thanda - Lake Eyre ..." — [abc].

26 February - 1 March 2019: F1 pre-season testing session #2, Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Spain. After testing, the concensus seemed to be that Ferrari probably had the fastest car followed by Mercedes and Red Bull. First F1 Grand Prix of 2019: Australia, 17 March.

26 February 2019: "UK beats winter temperature record again [London, 21.2°C] ..." — [bbc].

26 February 2019: "The next generation of the Porsche Macan [SUV] will be electric ... decided to manufacture the next generation of the Macan as a fully electric series. ... will be launched to market at the end of 2019 ..." — Porsche [www].

26 February 2019: "[Fiat Chrysler Automobiles] to Expand Production Capacity in Michigan to Grow Core Brands, Electrify Jeep© Vehicles ..." — FCA [www].

25 Feb Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.38/l; min $1.16 ([Perth] avg $1.21/l, min $1.16); oil us$57/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.55, €0.63, ¥79

25 February 2019, .au: "Remote outback town Innamincka [SA] to get telehealth clinic ..." — [abc].

24 February 2019: "Dozens rescued from south-east Queensland beaches as ex-Tropical Cyclone Oma departs ..." — [abc].

24 February 2019: "Fear grows in UK car industry that Honda is just first domino to fall ..." — The G [www]. Duh!

22-24 February 2019, .uk: Race Retro historic motorsport show, Stoneleigh Park [www]. And, Silverstone Auctions [www]; lot 311 a restored 1972 Lotus Elan Sprint DHC, chassis #72040665G, engine #N26330, sold for £45,000.

21 February 2019: "Cyclone Oma to approach the southeast Queensland coast this weekend ... higher than normal tides and dangerous surf conditions developing south of Seventeen Seventy ..." — [bom].

21 February 2019, .au: "Floodwaters trickle into Birdsville ..." — [abc], [2]. And, [23/2].

20 February 2019: "... To meet the growing needs of a lower carbon economy, Glencore aims to prioritise its capital investment to grow production of commodities essential to the energy and mobility transition and to limit its coal production capacity broadly to current levels. ..." — Glencore [www].

21 February 2019, .au: "Glencore moves to cap global coal output after investor pressure on climate change ..." — [abc]. Glencore is Australia's biggest coal mining company; it is based in Switzerland.

20 Feb Wed Melb ULP avg au$1.40/l; min $1.11 ([Perth] avg $1.37/l, min $1.18); oil us$56/b; au$1.00=us$0.72, £0.55, €0.63, ¥79

19 February 2019, .uk: "Honda to shut UK car plant in 2022 with the loss of 3,500 jobs ..." — Reuters [www]. Honda's Swindon factory builds Honda Civics (150,000/yr). (Also see Nissan, 3 Feb., below.) ?Brexit?

19 February 2019, .au: "Truckie remains behind bars after a 70km chase on the Pacific Highway ..." — [abc].

18-21 February 2019: F1 pre-season testing session #1, Circuit de Barcelona-Catalunya, Spain.

February 2019: The ten F1 teams for 2019; Alfa Romeo (was Sauber) - Kimi Raikkonen, Antonio Giovinazzi; Ferrari - Sebastian Vettel, Charles Leclerc; Haas - Romain Grosjean, Kevin Magnussen; McLaren - Carlos Sainz, Lando Norris; Mercedes - Lewis Hamilton, Valtteri Bottas; Racing Point (was Force India) - Sergio Perez, Lance Stroll; Red Bull - Max Verstappen, Pierre Gasly; Renault - Daniel Ricciardo, Nico Hulkenberg; Toro Rosso - Daniil Kvyat, Alexander Albon; Williams - George Russell, Robert Kubica.

17 February 2019 (Sun.): Victorian 4WD Show, Lardner Park, Lardner, Vic. 3821 [www].

17 February 2019: "Global nickel boom gives mothballed mine in WA's remote Kimberley a second lease on life ... Panoramic Resources' Savannah mine ... recently reopened near Halls Creek ... hoped to return to monthly nickel exports out of Wyndham Port ..." — [abc].

16 February 2019, .au: "'Climate-change refugees' quit mainland farming in search of greener pastures in Tasmania ..." — [abc].

15 Feb Fri Melb ULP avg au$1.17/l; min $1.11 ([Perth] avg $1.29/l, min $1.16); oil us$54/b; au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.55, €0.63, ¥78

15 February 2019: "Special Climate Statement 69 - an extended period of heavy rainfall and flooding in tropical Queensland ... In the seven days to 4 Feb. 2019, the Bureau's site at Townsville Aero recorded 1052.8mm, and 1257.0mm in the ten days to 6 February. ... There were several sites in elevated areas including Paluma, Woolshed, and Upper Bluewater that reported 12-day accumulations of more than 2000mm. ..." — [bom].

14-17 February 2019: The London Classic Car Show, Excel [www].

13 February 2019: "New research from RACV has identified the priority cycling routes across metropolitan Melbourne in a bid to promote safe and active options for Melburnians to move around the city. ... some of the 10 identified cycling superhighways include St Kilda Road and Chapel Street in the south east, Sydney Road in the north and Flemington Road - Mount Alexander Road in the north-west. ..." — RACV [www].

13 February 2019: Jaguar Land Rover will have a "new six-cylinder petrol engine designed and engineered in-house ... 3.0-litre straight six cylinder petrol engine, which will debut in 2020, is available in 265kW and 294kW versions with a torque capable of up to 495 and 550Nm, [replacing] the outgoing V6 petrol. ... an electric supercharger [plus] a twin scroll turbocharger ... [and 48-volt] mild Hybrid Electric Vehicle (MHEV) technology ..." — JLR [www].

13 February 2019, .uk: "Brexit: Ford reveals its plans for move abroad ..." — The Times [www].
And, "Ford has said a no-deal Brexit would be catastrophic for the firm's manufacturing operations in the UK ..." — [bbc].

12 February 2019: "Mandatory scheme for the sharing of motor vehicle service and repair information ... [consultations] 12 February 2019 - 11 March 2019 ... to gauge the suitability of possible elements of a mandatory scheme for the sharing of motor vehicle service and repair information and the establishment of a Service and Repair Information Sharing Advisory Committee. ..." — .gov.au [www].

12 February 2019, nsw: Bushfires at Tingha Plateau and west of Tabulam — check the [rfs]. Also see, "The NSW Rural Fire Service (RFS) has issued emergency warnings for two blazes ..." — [abc].

10 February 2019: "Truck driver charged over death of New Zealand cyclist on Federal Highway ..." — [abc].

10 Feb Sun Melb ULP avg au$1.21/l; min $1.11 ([Perth] avg $1.23/l, min $1.14); oil us$53/b

8 Feb Fri au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.55, €0.62, ¥78

9-10 February 2019: Pajero Challenge, Vic., .au [www].

9 February 2019: "Severe thunderstorms brought lightning and heavy rainfall to Sydney last night ..." — [abc].

9 February 2019: "Tasmania's Premier has made a special request for the Federal Government to foot the bill for the fires burning in the state's world heritage area ... since December. ..." — [abc]. Also see fire.tas.gov.au [www].

8 February 2019 .au: Chief Judge Brian Preston of the New South Wales Land and Environment Court confirmed a ban on the proposed Rocky Hill coal mine on various grounds including, but only, climate change [www]. Appeals? (Also see the [abc][12/2].)

7 February 2019, vic.: The 10th anniversary of the "Black Saturday" bushfires in which 173 people died.

7 February 2019: "Jaguar Land Rover posts £3.4bn loss as China demand slips ..." — [bbc]. (£3.1bn of it was a write-down.)

6-10 February 2019: Retromobile, Paris [www], including a 1950 BRM type 15 1.5-litre supercharged V16, a 1957 Berliet T100 truck, and celebrating Citroen's 100th.

7 February 2019: Bonhams Les Grandes Marques du Monde auction, Paris [www], including lot 237 a 1928 Bentley 6¹/₂-litre (6,567cc) sohc saloon, chassis #BR2353, engine #BR2351 (sold €1,150,000); lot 317 a 1962 Citroen 2CV Sahara 4x4 Saloon, chassis #0244 (sold €87,400).

6 February 2019: RM Sothebys Retromobile auction [www], including lot 165 a 1994 Bugatti EB110 Super Sport, chassis #ZA9BB02E0RCD39012, engine #086 (sold €2,030,000).

6 February 2019, .uk: "Government moves forward on advanced trials for self-driving vehicles ... [the] code of practice for testing automated vehicles will be strengthened further to set even clearer expectations for safe and responsible trials. ..." — .gov.uk [www].

6 February 2019: "The forecast for the global average surface temperature for the five-year period to 2023 is predicted to be near or above 1.0°C above pre-industrial levels, says the Met Office. If the observations for the next five years track the forecast that would make the decade from 2014 to 2023 the warmest run of years since records began. ..." — metoffice [www]. Check back in 2023 and in early 2024.

5 February 2019, .au: "... 81,994 new vehicles were sold during the month [January], down 7.4% on the same period in 2018 ..." — FCAI [www].

5 February 2019, recall PRA #2019/17325: "Mazda MX-5 (ND) Automatic MY2015-2019 ... The Transmission Control Module (TCM) may incorrectly interpret an electrical signal from the gear selector lever and this has the potential to cause the automatic transmission to downshift unexpectedly, causing an abrupt wheel speed reduction. ... [need to] reprogram the TCM with revised software." — .gov.au [www].

5 Feb Tue Melb ULP avg au$1.25/l; min $1.14 ([Perth] avg $1.16/l, min $1.10); oil us$55/b; au$1.00=us$0.73, £0.56, €0.64, ¥80

4 February 2019, .au: The Government received the final report of the banking royal commission (that it did not want to call) on Friday from Commissioner Kenneth Hayne AC QC (e.g., [abc]). The report was made public today (e.g., [abc]). (There were many and varied reactions, e.g., [1], and [2].) The Royal Commission into Misconduct in the Banking, Superannuation and Financial Services Industry (the banking royal commission) [www].

3 February 2019: "Emergency warnings issued for Hepburn and Timbarra bushfires in Victoria ..." — [abc]. Check .vic.gov.au [www].

3 February 2019, .uk: "Nissan has refused to comment on reports that it is abandoning plans to build a new model of one of its flagship vehicles [X-Trail] at its Sunderland plant. ..." — The G [www]. Confirmed [bbc], [4/2], and the G [4/2]. (Also see Honda, 19 Feb., above.) ?Brexit?

3 February 2019, .uk: UK weather: Ice warnings as snow disrupts weekend ..." — [bbc].

1 February 2019: "The [bom] is warning communities in Queensland's north to prepare for further widespread heavy falls and flooding over the weekend and well into next week as the monsoon trough continues to influence ..." — [bom].  (And 2 Feb [abc].  5 Feb. "Townsville flooding" [abc].)

1 February 2019: "Australia experiences its hottest January on record ... The mean temperature for January averaged across country exceeded 30°C, the first time this has occurred in any month. ..." — [bom]. And, 'Climate Summary' Jan. 2019, "... a series of heatwaves unprecedented in their scale and duration ..." — [www]. And, 'Special Climate Statement 68 – widespread heatwaves during December 2018 and January 2019' — [#68].

 

31 January 2019, recall PRA #2019/17302: "Mercedes-Benz C Class Vehicles MY2018 ... The ESP software may not meet the specifications. ... the ESP function would be deactivated and the parking brake could no longer be moved from its current position. ..." — .gov.au [www].

31 January 2019. .au: A Federal Government "Inquiry into controlling the spread of cane toads ... Submissions are being accepted until Thursday, 31 January 2019 ..." — .gov.au [www].  12 Feb. Public hearings — [www].  Cane toads are well established in WA's Kimberley region.

31 January 2019: "UK Automotive on red alert as 'no deal' [brexit] threat sees manufacturing and investment plummet ... car production falls -9.1% to 1.52 million units in 2018, a five year low ..." — SMMT [www].

31 Jan Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.30/l; min $1.06 ([Perth] avg $1.33/l, min $1.17); oil us$53/b; au$1.00=us$0.73, £0.55, €0.63, ¥79

30 January 2019, .uk: "The number of drivers applying for an International Driving Permit (IDP) has increased by more a fifth [brexit] as the AA is forced to stop issuing the document. ... drivers who need an IDP can only obtain one by visiting one of 2,500 issuing Post Offices ..." — The AA [www].

30 January 2019: "Polar vortex brings deadly cold snap to US states ..." — [bbc].  And snow in the UK [bbc] and [31st].

29 January 2019, .au: "Menindee fish deaths 'out of NSW Government's hands' says Regional Water Minister Niall Blair ..." — [abc].  And, "Cotton farmers and conservationists are engaging in heated exchanges on social media ..." — [30th].  And, "Murray-Darling Basin Royal Commission slams authority for 'maladministration' ..." — [31st]. Also see the Murray-Darling Basin Royal Commission [www].

28 January 2019: Lotus and Williams Advanced Engineering will "collaborate on advanced propulsion technologies" — Lotus [www].  Electric.

28 January 2019, .uk: "300 cars stolen every day in 2018. One vehicle was stolen every five minutes in 2018 ..." — RAC [www].

28 January 2019. On "keyless" cars: "Four of the UK's top five best-selling cars, plus hundreds of other models, can easily be stolen by thieves ..." — Which [www]. (Also see the [bbc].) However, keyless entry can be turned off on some cars, after which the lock and unlock buttons on the key fob must be used in the old way.

27 January 2019, .de: "Germany agrees to end reliance on coal stations by 2038 ..." — The G [www].

27 January 2019: "Daintree River floods as torrential rain continues in Far North Queensland ..." — [abc].

26 January 2019, .vic: Bushfire 6km south of Matlock, north of the Baw Baw national park, also other fires. See vic.gov.au [www]. (Also see the [cfa].)

26 Jan Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.34/l; min $1.14 ([Perth] avg $1.26/l, min $1.14); oil us$53/b

25 Jan Fri au$1.00=us$0.71, £0.54, €0.63, ¥78

26 January 2019 (Sat.): Australia Day. (28th (Mon.) public holiday.)

25 January 2019: "Power outages hit Melbourne, regional Victoria as state swelters through extreme weather ... 46°C at Melbourne Airport ..." — [abc].

24 January 2019: "Tropical Cyclone Watch continues for the Pilbara coast as Tropical Cyclone Riley [cat.1] tracks parallel to the Pilbara coast. ... estimated to be 280km west NW of Broome ..." — [bom]. And, there is "a tropical low over the northeast Gulf of Carpentaria ...".

23 January 2019: "Weather Update: Heatwave in South Australia, Victoria and Tasmania ... 45°C is forecast for Adelaide on Thursday ..." — [bom].

24 January 2019: "... Adelaide has hit a sweltering 46.6°C, surpassing the previous record set in Melbourne a decade ago to officially become the hottest capital in the country. ..." — [abc].

23 January 2019: "TomTom, Navman and Garmin remove 'lifetime' claims ... after the ACCC raised concerns these statements were potentially false, misleading or deceptive. ..." — ACCC [www].

23 January 2019 recall PRA #2019/17291: "Bentley Motors Limited - Continental GT MY2018 In specific driving conditions the electric power steering control unit may display an error. This is due to a software fault which could result in a temporary loss of power assistance ..." - .gov.au [www].

23 January 2019: "Boeing yesterday successfully completed the first test flight of its autonomous passenger air vehicle (PAV) prototype in Manassas, Virginia. Boeing NeXt ... electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft ..." — Boeing [www] and [2].

23 January 2019: "Sony to move Europe headquarters [from UK] to avoid Brexit disruption ... Panasonic has already moved its [HQ] ..." — [bbc].

22 January 2019: 'Accelerating changes in ice mass within Greenland, and the ice sheet's sensitivity to atmospheric forcing', M. Bevis et al, PNAS [www]. (Also see "... south-west Greenland, which had not been considered a serious threat, now looks as if it will become a major future contributor to sea-level rise ..." — [bbc].)

21 January 2019: "Volkswagen sets sights on electric record on the Nurburgring-Nordschleife ... The ID. R ... two electric engines ... 500 kW ..." — VW [www]. (Also see Pikes Peak, 24 June 2018.)

21 January 2019: Oxfam's 'Public Good or Private Wealth' report, "... the wealth of the world's billionaires increased by 12% or almost $3.5 billion AUD a day last year. [And] the poorest half of humanity saw their wealth shrink by 11%, a burden disproportionately carried by women and girls. ..." — Oxfam [www]. And, "Australia's record number of billionaires raked in a collective $100 million a day last year – a staggering total increase of $36 billion in the wealth of just 43 people – as inequality continued to grow ..." — [21/1].

21 January 2019: "Monsoon late to the date but now ready to dump on Darwin ..." — [abc].

21 Jan Mon Melb ULP avg au$1.38/l; min $1.14 ([Perth] avg $1.15/l, min $1.10); oil us$54/b; au$1.00=us$0.72, £0.56, €0.63, ¥79

17 January 2019: End of the Dakar; bikes 1. Toby Price (KTM); quad 1. Nicolas Cavigliasso; cars 1. Nasser Al-Attiyah & Matthieu Baumel (Toyota); s×s 1. Francisco Lopez Contardo & Alvaro Juan Leon Quintanilla; trucks 1. Eduard Nikolaev, Evgenii Iakovlev & Vladimir Rybakov (Kamaz); original 1. Edwin Straver — [www].

17 January 2019: RM Sotheby's Arizona auction [www], including lot 130 a 1928 Hispano-Suiza H6C 'transformable torpedo' (convertible), chassis #12036, engine #320104 (not sold); lot 142 a 1967 Ferrari 330 GTS by Pininfarina, 4-litre V12, chassis #10773, engine #10773 (sold us$2,012,500); lot 231 a 1952 Rolls-Royce Silver Wraith saloon, perhaps as used by Bond's boss 'M' (see 'Dr No'), chassis #WOF23, engine #W22F (sold us$103,600).

17 January 2019: Bonhams Scottsdale Auction [www], including lot 44 a 1954 Ferrari 500 Mondial Series I Spider, coachwork by Pinin Farina, chassis #0438MD (not sold); lot 54 a 1951 Maserati A6G/2000 Spider coachwork by Carrozzeria Frua, chassis #2017, engine #2013 (sold us$2,755,000).

17 January 2019: "... It reached 40°C in Adelaide on Wednesday ... In Port Augusta the hottest temperature ever recorded was smashed by 0.7° when it got up to 48.9°C. ..." — [abc]. And, "Cloncurry and Camooweal, in [Qld's] north west, recorded 33 days over [40°C] between December 16 last year and January 17 this year. ..." — [18/1].

16 Jan Wed Melb ULP avg au$1.20/l; min $1.09 ([Perth] avg $1.34/l, min $1.17); oil us$51/b; au$1.00=us$0.72, £0.56, €0.63, ¥78

15 January 2019: "Volkswagen AG and Ford Motor Company today announced the first formal agreements in a broad alliance that positions the companies to boost competitiveness and better serve customers in an era of rapid change in the industry. ..." — Ford [www], VW [www].

15 January 2019, .uk: PM Theresa May's Brexit deal was defeated in the House of Commons 432:202. Also see the [bbc] and The G [www]. (The government subsequently survived a vote of no confidence, 325:306.) And, "The vote against the Brexit deal on the table brings us closer to the 'no deal' cliff edge that would be catastrophic for the automotive industry. ..." — SMMT [www].

15 January 2019: The FIA publised the Formula 1 (F1) Grand Prix start times for 2019, [www].

14-27 January 2019: The North American International Auto Show NAIAS (Detroit, press 14-15, trade 16-17, charity 18, public 19-27) [www]. Including Fiat Chrysler 2019 'Ram' heavy duty truck, 6.7-litre turbo diesel [www]; Ford gen.6 'Explorer' (from mid 2019) [www]; Nissan Infiniti electric 'QX Inspiration' SUV concept [www]; Toyota new 'Supra' [www] & [2] (previous S. ended in 2002).

14 January 2019: "New pollution charges for motorists in London should not be based on a vehicle's age ..." — The G [www]. And, "Older vehicles driving in central London now need to meet minimum Euro emission standards or pay an extra daily charge. This is in addition to the Congestion Charge. ..." — tfl [gov.uk][14/1/'19].

14 January 2019: "Temperatures are set to soar across Australia ..." — [abc].

11 January 2019, .uk: "Ford: Almost 1,000 Bridgend job losses by 2021 outlined to unions ..." — [bbc].  And, "... expected ... thousands of job losses across Europe ..." — [10/1].

10-13 January 2019, .uk: Autosport International, NEC, Birmingham (10-11 trade only) [www].

10 January 2019: "Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) has confirmed it is cutting 4,500 jobs, with the substantial majority coming from its 40,000 strong UK workforce. ..." — [bbc]. ... Diesel, brexit, China slow down, ...

10 Jan Thu Melb ULP avg au$1.15/l; min $1.09 ([Perth] avg $1.30/l, min $1.07); oil us$52/b; au$1.00=us$0.72, £0.57, €0.63, ¥78

10 January 2019: "... Annual sales of 4,107 are the highest in the marque's 115-year history. Year-on-year sales growth in all regions; the Americas remains largest market ..." — Rolls Royce Cars [www]. Some US tax cuts not trickling down, bwa ha ha.

10 January 2019: "Annual Climate Statement 2018: Warmer than average temperatures and below-average rainfall ... Australia's average temperature in 2018 was 1.14°C above the 1961-1990 average, making it slightly warmer than 2017. ... Nationally, Australia's 2018 rainfall total was 11% below the 1961-1990 average, but many areas were significantly below average. ..." — [bom].  "Australia's third-warmest year on record". And the climate statement [bom].

9 January 2019, recall PRA #2019/17262: "Porsche Panamera 971 ... Due to a software error, the electric power steering may become unavailable sporadically. ...: — .gov.au [www].

7 January 2019: "Bell Helicopter ... revealed the configuration and full-scale vertical-takeoff-and-landing (VTOL) air taxi vehicle today during CES 2019. The air taxi, named Bell Nexus, is powered by a hybrid-electric propulsion system and features Bell's signature powered lift concept incorporating six tilting ducted fans that are designed to safely and efficiently redefine air travel. ..." — Bell H. [www]. Also see the SAE [www].

7 January 2019: "Alstom and Eversholt Rail have unveiled the design of a new hydrogen [fuel cell] train for the UK market. ... a conversion of existing Class 321 trains ... follows the introduction in September of Alstom's Coradia iLint hydrogen trains in Germany ..." — Alstom [www].

7 January 2019, .uk: "... new car registrations fall -6.8% in 2018 to 2.37m units ... diesel sector, down -29.6% in 2018 ..." — SMMT [www]. Also see the [bbc].

6-17 January 2019: Dakar 2019, 100% Peru [www].   7 Jan.: Stage 1, Lima – Pisco. Also see results, 17 Jan., above.

5 January 2019: "The 1960s Amphicar 770 was neither a decent car nor an accomplished motorboat ..." — [abc]. Also see amphibious vehicles.

5 Jan Sat Melb ULP avg au$1.13/l; min $1.09 ([Perth] avg $1.24/l, min $1.09); oil us$47/b

4 Jan Fri au$1.00=us$0.70, £0.56, €0.62, ¥76

4 January 2019: Terminal gate prices, ULP $1.11.7/l (Perth) to $1.17.8/l (Hobart); diesel $1.20.6/l (Melb.) to $1.26.3/l (Hobart) — AIP [www].

4 January 2019: "A burst of extreme summer heat in southern and eastern Australia, including Adelaide and Melbourne, has been dragged down from Western Australia's Pilbara region, which has experienced record-breaking temperatures in the past fortnight. ... Marble Bar recorded 49.3°C on December 27 ..." — [abc]. Also see the [bom].

4 January 2019: "Residents have been urged to take shelter indoors as a bushfire threatens homes and lives south of Rosedale [Gippsland] ..." — [abc].

4 January 2019, .au: "... National vehicle sales for December fell by 14.9% from the corresponding month in 2017 to 87,528 vehicles, which took sales for the year to 1,153,111 vehicles. ..." — FCAI [www]. Top seller was the Toyota HiLux (51,705).

4 January 2019: President Donald Trump said that he is prepared for a partial shutdown of the US government^* to last years, e.g., [bbc]. Perhaps not the best time to visit the USA. (^* over funding for his border "wall".)

3-6 January 2019: Summernats, Canberra [www].

3 January 2019: Volvo trucks "... has detected that an emissions control component used in certain markets and models may degrade more quickly than expected, affecting the vehicles emission performance negatively. The Volvo Group will in the fourth quarter 2018 make a provision of SEK 7 bn, relating to the estimated costs to address the issue. ..." — Volvo Group [www].

1 January 2019, .au: "The National Archives annual release of Cabinet records occurs on 1 January each year. ... In 2019 Cabinet records up to and including 1997 are in the open access period. ... In 2019 Cabinet notebooks up to and including 1986 are in the open access period. ..." — [www] at National Archives .gov.au [www].

And, "... Cabinet documents from 1996-97 show the Howard government was warned it was isolated on climate change ..." — H. Belot [abc].

And, "The Howard government was urged more than 20 years ago to consider an emissions trading scheme ..." — S. Wright, The Age [www].

1 January 2019: Tropical Cyclone 'Penny' (cat.1) formed in the Gulf of Carpentaria just to the west of Cape York. See the [abc][2/1] and the [bom].  After crossing Cape York, Cyclone Penny reformed over the Coral Sea [3/1].  Later weakening to a tropical low [bom][7/1].

1 January 2019: Provisional figures showed that 211 people died on Victorian Roads in 2018, 18.5% down from 259 in 2017. Some of this drop has been attributed to flexible wire-rope barriers being installed on more country roads – [www]. Stats at tac.vic.gov [www]. And, Australia-wide: "... During the 12 months ended December 2018, there were 1,146 road deaths. This is a decrease of 6.4% from the 12-month period ending December 2017 ... the rate of annual deaths per 100,000 population stands at 4.6. ..." — BITRE, [2018] at [www].

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