This week's motor news in pics

Top Gear goes live!

Jeremy Clarkson, Richard Hammond and James May are going on tour, and there's not a caravan in sight!

Instead the preferred mode of transport at today's press launch of Top Gear Live is a bespoke, black liveried tank.

In typical Top Gear style, the three motoring presenters stunned drivers and saluted fans as they thundered across London's Tower Bridge to mark the capital as the debut venue for its UK and world tour.

For eight days at two venues (October 30 - November 2) at London's Earls Court and Birmingham's NEC - Jezza, Hamster and Captain Slow will host Top Gear Live at the MPH The Prestige and Performance Motor Show.

Visit www.mphshow.co.uk/info for ticket information.

Meet the fan in the van!

Football fans across the country will have the opportunity to vent their views from the comfort of a British-built Vivaro Doublecab during the 2008-09 season, thanks to a tie-in between Vauxhall Commercial Vehicles and talkSPORT radio.

A specially-liveried Vivaro will be touring the UK during the football season, with the show's presenters carrying out live interviews with fans on their way to matches to build up the atmosphere in the prelude to a big game.

'Fan in the Van' participants will be given the opportunity to air their opinions on their team's performance throughout the season, and to predict the outcome of matches live on talkSPORT's Saturday Match Day Live programme.nextpage

Kia gets ready to put Soul in the city at Paris Show

Kia's sharply-stylish new segment-busting Soul is set to win over minds as well as hearts at the Paris Salon de l'Automobile in October, with confirmation that the urban crossover will come to Europe next year with a choice of fuel-efficient petrol and diesel engines.

Kia Soul will go on sale in mainland Europe next February with a choice 126 ps diesel and petrol engines based on the DOHC engines already fitted to the hugely successful, European-built, Kia cee'd – with a choice of manual or automatic transmissions, depending on model.

The diesel engine generates 126 ps at 4,000 rpm and maximum torque of 255 Nm at 2,000 rpm. The all-aluminium petrol engine also produces 126 ps at 6,300 rpm and 156 Nm of torque at 4,200 rpm.nextpage

Motorists get industry backing in fight against rip-off garages

The motor industry has launched a robust new code of practice to improve the standards of garages across the country, addressing complaints which cost consumers an estimated £4billion a year.

Motorists now have the reassurance of a new scheme and tough enforcement regime to ensure fair and honest treatment by garages.

Responding to consumer concerns over pricing, quality of work and customer service, the new Code now commits subscribing garages to honest and fair services, open and transparent pricing, completing work as agreed, invoices that match quoted prices, competent and conscientious staff, and a straightforward, swift complaint procedure.

Visit www.motorindustrycodes.co.uk to identify your nearest subscribing garage.nextpage

British drivers feel the need for speed

A survey has revealed that the majority of British motorists are living life in the fast lane – with 71 per cent of those questioned admitting to breaking the speed limit on more than a quarter of all journeys.

The study, carried out by RoadPilot Ltd – Europe's leading provider of speed camera and safety data to the automotive satellite navigation industry – found that the 70 miles-per-hour limit in place on dual carriageways and motorways is the main point of contention with motorists, with 60 per cent saying that this limit should be raised.

RoadPilot's findings are consistent with figures recently released by the Department for Transport, which have shown that during 2007, 72 per cent of cars travelled above the motorway limit.nextpage

Used car market slows

The origins of the downturn in the used car market can be seen in a new Report published by BCA.

The BCA Used Car Market Report, now in its 18th year shows that used car volumes and values fell last year when the uncertain economy and rising household bills were only beginning to affect consumer confidence.

Annual used car volumes fell by 384,000 units to 7.1 million in 2007.

Despite this, UK motorists spent £33.3 Billion on used cars last year, down by £0.6 billion on 2006 but still the second highest figure ever recorded.nextpage

New Scirocco hits the road

The very first examples of the new Scirocco are set to be delivered to customers at Volkswagen retailers across the UK this week as the much-anticipated coupé makes its debut.

The Scirocco makes its return 34 years after the launch of the original Volkswagen coupé – of which over 77,000 examples were sold in the UK.

Equipped from launch with a powerful 2.0-litre TSI 200 PS engine linked to a choice of six-speed manual or DSG gearboxes the new Scirocco is fitted with six airbags as standard along with air-conditioning, a touchscreen CD stereo and Adaptive Chassis Control (ACC) which allows the damping to alter to suit the road conditions.

Prices for the new Scirocco start at £20,940 fitted with a six-speed manual gearbox, rising to £22,270 for the DSG-equipped vehicle.nextpage

Suzuki dealers amongst most satisfied in UK

Suzuki franchise dealers are the third most satisfied in the UK, according to the findings of the new dealer attitude survey conducted by the National Franchised Dealers Association.

When asked to rate the value of the holding of their franchise, Suzuki achieved an overall score of 7.5 (with 1 denoting 'Very Poor', and the score of 10 equating to 'Excellent'), ranked only behind Jaguar and Audi, who gained 8.2 and 8.5 respectively, and coming high above the average score of 5.9 for the 32 manufacturers in the study.

Furthermore, Suzuki came second behind Audi when dealers were asked about the future profitability of their business.nextpage

RHA asks Chancellor to vary duty on petrol and diesel

The Road Haulage Association has called on the Chancellor to vary the duty level on diesel and petrol to ensure that the pump price of the two fuels remain roughly the same – as has been the accepted price position of the two fuels for years.

Even in mid-2007, diesel was typically just 2p or 3p more expensive that petrol. But over the past year the price of diesel fuel has risen much faster than the price of petrol, opening up a gap of up to 15p.

This has been due to market demand and the failure of the UK to invest in diesel refining capacity and the indications are that the price difference will be maintained for the foreseeable future.