Here is as much as was known at the time of
going to press. As reported elsewhere, there are only ten
teams this year as the FIA has said that Arrows does not get a
start, having missed 5 Grands Prix this year. Arrows boss Tom
Walkinshaw has immediately appealed, saying that if he
hasn’t got a start next season, the “sale” of Arrows
will fall over. In the meantime, the bailiffs are banging on
the doors.
By the way, if you want to keep yourself
informed with reliable reports, I do suggest you use
pitpass.com, the best F1 website. Here’s the grid ...
1 Michael Schumacher Scuderia Ferrari
Bridgestone (B)
2 Rubens Barrichello Scuderia Ferrari B
3 Juan Pablo Montoya BMW WilliamsF1
Michelin (M)
4 Ralf Schumacher BMW Williams F1 (M)
5 David Coulthard West McLaren Mercedes (M)
6 Kimi Raikkonen West McLaren Mercedes (M)
7 Jarno Trulli Mild Seven Renault (M)
8 Fernando Alonso Mild Seven Renault (M)
9 Nick Heidfeld Sauber Petronas (B)
10 Heinz-Harald Frentzen Sauber Petronas
(B)
11 Giancarlo Fisichella Jordan Ford (B)
12 TBA Jordan Ford (B)
14 Mark Webber Jaguar Racing (M)
15 Antonio Pizzonia Jaguar Racing (M)
16 Jacques Villeneuve Lucky Strike BAR
Honda (B)
17 Jenson Button Lucky Strike BAR Honda (B)
18 TBA Minardi (M)
19 TBA Minardi (M)
20 Olivier Panis Panasonic Toyota Racing
(M)
21 Cristiano da Matta Panasonic Toyota Racing (M)
Autotrivia
Quiz
Last week I mentioned that DKW, the German
car and bike manufacturer, was founded by Jorgen Skafte
Rasmussen. I asked what did the initials DKW stand for? Hands
up all who said, “Das Kleine Wunder”? Well, you’re all
wrong. The initials came from a steam car that our mate Jorgen
designed called “Dampfe Kraft Wagen” in 1916.
So to this week, and we may as well stick
with acronyms and such. We all know that “GT” stands for
“Gran Tourismo” - so when was this term first applied? Now
that should give the web crawlers something to do for at least
several nano-seconds!
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be
the first correct answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
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Compulsion and Prevention
Motorcycle riders in Thailand comprise the
vast majority of fatalities in this country. Perhaps I should
have called them ex-motorcycle riders, as they won’t be
riding again in this lifetime. Recently Chiang Mai did a
survey and found that more than 50% of motorcycle riders in
the North did not even have a licence! There are those cynics
in our midst who would go so far as to claim that in this
country you buy your licence first and then learn to
drive/ride. Be that as it may, 50% of all those with a leg
across a motorcycle didn’t even get that far - they have no
licence at all!
Now I am not claiming that the possession
of a licence makes every rider immune from accidents and
injury, far from it. But if the rider has had some sort of
scrutiny as to their prowess, then we may have rid the roads
of the terminal wobblers, more than one of which has attacked
various external parts of my parked motor vehicle. And yours!
However, to get these people into a driving centre and to have
them properly tested, without fear or financial favour, is
well beyond the scope of this little article.
However, there is one thing this article
can do to lower the road toll - and that is to advocate the
wearing of a decent crash helmet. Note I wrote “decent”.
There are helmets out there which wouldn’t pass muster to
hold ice cream, let alone hold your brains from getting melted
and mushy. It was the Bell helmet people many years ago that
ran the brilliantly simple ad - “If you’ve got a $10 head,
wear a $10 helmet.” How true!
What is needed, is for the authorities to
insist that retail outlets only sell helmets that meet a world
standard, US Snell or whatever. But meet a recognised
standard. Now I also know full well that the “better”
helmets are more expensive - but please re-read the Bell
helmet advertising slogan! If you are riding a 40,000 baht new
bike (or even a 20,000 baht second-hand motorcycle), then you
can afford the 1,000 baht for a good helmet. You just budget
for it.
The compulsory wearing of crash helmets in
the UK and Australia lowered not only the road toll, but also
the number of ‘vegetables’ that survived their motorcycle
crash. And since it is compulsory for the rider to wear
helmets in this country, let’s extend that to the pillion
passenger(s) as well - all four of them! With a decent helmet
you can actually live to tell the tale.
The wearing of a good motorcycle helmet
(done up), by all people on a motorcycle, would do wonders for
reduction of the road toll. So where do you come in? Well,
first off, wear your helmet. Secondly, make sure it is a
“good” one. Thirdly, insist that your pillion passenger
wears one as well - and of a decent standard too. The
future’s in your hands, or should I rather say, the
future’s on your head!
KIA is Kumming?
The latest manufacturer to claim that they
are making Thailand their manufacturing base is KIA Motors.
KIA has had a few problems in their homeland, Korea, but have
come out of the Korean auto recession and are expanding. The
Carnival 7-seater MPV has sold well in Thailand and KIA are
talking 5,000 units a year within three years.
Carnival
7-seater MPV
One reason for the predicted increase in
sales is the formation of Yontrakit KIA Motors which will
assemble the Carnival here in Thailand. KIA are also talking
about assembly of their small car line in another two years
after the release of the locally produced Carnival around the
middle of next year.
This one is probably less likely, with KIA
having just spent USD 300 million to set up the manufacture of
their small sedans in China. However, bringing the MPV line
on-shore makes sense, to directly face GM with the very
successful Zafira.
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