Petrol head's corner

The latest issue of RoyalAuto, the official magazine of the Royal Automobile Club of Victoria, contains a review of the Citroen Cactus, a compact SUV. A cursory reading of car review websites shows that it's unanimously praised as being a good car.

The copy on Citroen's website says that the name was chosen because just like a cactus plant that doesn't need much water, this car has excellent fuel economy, and it also has bump protection similar to the thorns on a cactus. Its name is presumably also supposed to be suggestive to potential buyers that this is the sort of vehicle that can comfortably handle driving in rugged conditions and deserts.

When whoever who is responsible for naming products at Citroen decided upon the name "Cactus," I wonder if they realised that in Australia, this is also a slang word meaning dead, useless, or broken?

http://www.citroen.com.au/new-car/c4-cactus/?gclid=CIPGjvGYvMkCFVgnvQodOdsDgw

http://english.stackexchange.com/questions/218294/why-do-aussies-use-cactus-to-mean-dead-useless-or-broken

The smug rating one driver

This is a mini photo essay on Melbourne's hoon culture. The first picture is from a roadside advertising billboard from the Victorian government's Transport Accident Commission (TAC). The TAC's own research shows that excessive speed is one of the major factors in road accidents. 287 people were killed on Victoria's roads in 2011. For instance, research undertaken by Professor Jack McLean of the University of Adelaide has shown that the risk of involvement in a casualty crash doubles with each 5 kilometre per hour increase in free travelling speed above 60 kilometres per hour, and a 5 kilometre per hour reduction in speed can result in a decrease of at least 15% in the number of crashes.

Secondly is a picture of some burnout marks in a sports reserve car park near my home. This is precisely the sort of behaviour that shows that some men never grow up; they just graduate to playing with bigger, more elaborate, and more expensive toys. This explains why they feel the need to destroy their tyres in a an attempt to impress their mates, or possibly a female companion.

Return of the pedantry corner

Has anyone heard of Adolph Hilter (sic), the Nazi dictator whose evil and insatiable thirst for power brought suffering and death upon millions of people during the Second World War, and changed the world forever? No, neither have I. That's the problem with word processors. Some people have blind faith in spell checkers and therefore don't bother to proof read their documents. It's overstating things to say that mistakes of this kind don't do much to help you present a professional image to the public. Pedantry and haughtiness aside, trucking magnate Lindsay Fox has a portion of his car collection on display in a purpose built facility in the Docklands precinct in Melbourne. Each car has an information board that tells you about its history, and the collection is popular with car enthusiasts and school groups.  

This sign above explains that the Volkswagen originated in 1938 in Nazi Germany. Those who prepared this display might have trouble with spelling, but on the other hand they probably know way more about cars and automotive technology than I do. This is coming from a man who once couldn't get his car started because it was in reverse and not park.

The centre is staffed by volunteers, and Lindsay Fox donates all of the proceeds from admission fees to charity. Fox is obviously passionate about his cars. While I don't begrudge him for his unique (and expensive) hobby, the common man like me has no aspiration of ever owning a prestige car, let alone several. Playing Forza Motorsport on Xbox 360 will satisfy my longings for driving such a car.