31 July 2002: Audi has a dedicated 'noise team' to eliminate all those annoying creaks and cracks that can happen in a new car during its development.

31 July 2002: A revised version of the S-Class Mercedes-Benz which goes on sale in the autumn incorporates a new 500bhp 12-cylinder engine in its powerplant lineup. And the other engines available in the vehicle are all uprated from their current power outputs.

31 July 2002: A hybrid version of the Lexus RX300 will be sold on the US market by the end of next year, according to Toyota, the brand's owner.

31 July 2002: Cadillac is to unveil a concept version of an ultra-luxury V16-powered sedan at the Detroit auto show in January.

31 July 2002: DaimlerChrysler AG said it is investing about 900 million euro for the next generation of Mercedes-Benz A-Class model.

30 July 2002: Fiat is to introduce a cheaper, fewer frills version of its Stilo in October, according to Fiat Auto Chief Executive Giancarlo Boschetti. A wagon version is due around the same time.

30 July 2002: The Motor Insurance Justice Action Group (MIJAG) has welcomed the news of the implementation of the first recommendations of the MIAB report on the industry, which criticised the insurance companies here for making too much profit, particularly on young driver premiums.

30 July 2002: The next Honda Accord will be bigger than the current car and in a change of recent Honda strategy will be the same basic vehicle right around the world. The first market to get the car will be the US, in September, powered by a 2.4-litre V6 engine. The car is not likely to come to Ireland untile the first quarter of next year, according to Frank Kennedy of Honda Ireland.

30 July 2002: Land Rover has published a new ‘Fragile Earth’ policy, aimed at all drivers who venture off-road. It includes the company’s Off-Road Code, which encourages careful driving and the preservation of the environment for future generations.

29 July 2002: Opel Ireland is offering substantial discounts worth as much as 1,200 euros towards insurance.

29 July 2002: Peugeot’s new Boxer van appeared on the world’s largest billboard site (Guinness Book of Records, 2002) at Fort Dunlop outside Birmingham in the UK, this month.

29 July 2002: For its three models Golf, New Beetle and Passat, Volkswagen has received the Total Quality Award for 2002 on the North American market. The Bora, which is particularly successful in the USA where it is sold as the Jetta, gained second place in its category.

27 July 2002: When we drove the Focus ST170 earlier this year, there were those amongst us who thought it a little less than it might have been. But the reason was the imminent arrival of the RS, the 'real' hot-hatch Focus, which now goes on sale in October.

27 July 2002: Lithuania has removed a rule that required all women to undergo a gynecological examination to qualify for a driver's licence.

26 July 2002: A new family of petrol engines to be developed jointly by BMW and PSA Peugeot Citroen is likely to replace the 1.6-litre engine built in Brazil by DaimlerChrysler which has been used in the new MINI (above) since its launch.

26 July 2002: Automotive technology company Donnelly Corporation, which has two production sites in Ireland, has urged the 4,000 driver training schools in the US to discuss ‘safety reversing techniques’ with student drivers. This follows research that shows that more than 9,000 children were injured in the US around motor vehicles that were not in traffic.

26 July 2002: The Honda FCX has become the first fuel-cell vehicle in the world to receive government certification, paving the way for commercial use of such vehicles.

26 July 2002: Seatbelt usage by all motorists in Ireland is low by European standards, largely because of lack of enforcement, safety experts believe. Gardai carry out ‘campaigns’ from time to time, but it seems there’s no ongoing effort to enforce the regulations here, which require all car occupants to be ‘belted up’.

25 July 2002: Upwards of 200,000 cars on Irish roads are being driven with at least one tyre below the legal tread depth limit of 1.6mm, according to Semperit Ireland.

25 July 2002: MG has announced the availability of a diesel engine for the MG ZT and ZT-T models, the saloon and wagon cars based on the company’s Rover 75.

25 July 2002: The Nissan X-Trail has been voted the ‘best recreational vehicle’ by the UK’s weekly motoring magazine, Auto Express. It beat competition from the Land Rover Freelander and the Honda CR-V, though the magazine’s editor Tom Barnard said the decision ‘was almost too close to call’ and the vehicle made its ranking eventually for iits ‘fresh take’ on interior design.

25 July 2002: UK car buyers are saving up to £15 million daily by buying new cars from other EU states imported by dealers and internet retailers. This is in line with revelations that the UK has the most expensive pre-tax recommended retail prices of any EU country for more than half of popular cars sold.

24 July 2002: With the ending of the production of the current Renault Megane next week, the marque changes gear dramatically to increase its share of the segment market from 12.4 per cent to 14 per cent over the life of the Megane II, which will be on sale in Ireland before the end of October.

24 July 2002: An innovative ‘pre-crash safety’ system developed by Toyota will be installed in some new models due next year. The system reduces collision injury by foreseeing unavoidable collisions to preemptively activate safety devices.

24 July 2002: Fiat has revised its Multipla range with improved ride comfort, an electrically-operated tailgate, and with disc brakes all round.

24 July 2002: A choice of seven gear ratios will come with a new transmission system on Honda’s award-winning Jazz supermini next month.

23 July 2002: The FSI petrol engine technology which enabled the Le Mans conquering Audi Infineon R8 sports cars to race harder and longer between fuel stops is to be made available in the marque's A4 road car.

23 July 2002: Car price differences between European Union member states have not converged despite the introduction of the euro, according to a European Commission report issued yesterday. The report is based on recommended retail prices before tax provided by the manufacturers.

22 July 2002: A Lexus powered by a diesel engine is on the company’s development horizon, according to Dr Shuhei Toyoda, president and CEO of Toyota Motor Europe.

22 July 2002: Former World Rally Champion Colin McRae won yesterday's World Rally Experience tarmac event at Punchestown in Co Kildare. And 'local man' from Rathcoole, Co Dublin, Austin McHale took a confidence-boosting third place in the fun day event, which attracted a 12,000 strong crowd.

22 July 2002: Bosch has developed a closed-loop lambda sensor control to a diesel engine for the first time. The system feeds back detailed information on exhaust gases to the engine management system, allowing for previously unattainable levels of injection and engine tuning, and further reducing fuel consumption and emissions.

22 July 2002: In a major change in car development policy in the US, the Ford Motor Company is seriously studying plans to offer a diesel-powered Ford Focus for sale in North America.

22 July 2002: Peugeot in Ireland is offering a new Special Edition of its 406 range to attract more executive owners. The car has additional specification at no extra cost.

19 July 2002: Volvo has won awards from the UK-based Auto Express and Diesel Car magazines for the quality, design and performance of its latest models, beating key premium brand rivals.

19 July 2002: Colin McCrae, Andrew Nesbitt and Austin McHale are leading a top 15 of contenders that will see a a plethora of various WRC and Group N cars tear around the perimeter tarmac at Punchestown this weekend in the Punchestown Rally Experience.

18 July 2002: The Honda Jazz has won the Auto Express Car of the Year award, beating other new superminis like the Ford Fiesta, the VW Polo, and the Citroen C3 in a market that in the UK is worth 20% of all cars sold there, or six million vehicles.

18 July 2002: In just a few months’ time, BMW will raise the benchmark yet again for luxury motoring in the diesel range with the introduction of two new model variants in the 7 Series.

18 July 2002: MG Rover has announced turbo-charged Rover 75 which produces 150PS of power, and a strong 215Nm of torque from 2100rpm.

17 July 2002: The Ford Dealers of Ireland are supporting sailor Maria Coleman in her quest for glory at the Athens Olympics in 2004. The Baltimore star, recent winner of the Cork Dry Gin Sailor of the Year award, is considered one of Ireland’s strongest prospects for a gold medal at the games.

17 July 2002: UK-based Auto Express Magazine has awarded the Vauxhall Vectra (an Opel in Ireland) as the Best Family Car, and also gave the compact Zafira the accolade of Best MPV, for the third time since it was launched in 1999.

17 July 2002: Renault has joined with Nuvera Fuel Cells to pursue research and product development into multi-fuel processing technologies for fuel cell vehicles.

17 July 2002: Ray O’Brien Motors of Newbridge has been given the franchise for Mitsubishi Trucks in Co Kildare, following his group’s recent acquisition of the local dealership for Mitsubishi cars.

17 July 2002: A German motoring magazine for business users has chosen the Volkswagen Polo as the best company car.

16 July 2002: Fiat Auto Ireland has just announced two special editions of their best-selling Punto range especially for the summer.

16 July 2002: PSA Peugeot Citroën is building a Design Centre to enhance the group’s ability to create Peugeot and Citroen models of the future. The cornerstone for the Center was laid on 27 June at PSA Peugeot Citroën’s engineering facility in Vélizy, near Paris, where some 800 people will create the new models.

16 July 2002: Local driver Kenneth Mulvaney from Coolaney, Co. Sligo scored a dramatic maiden victory on the fifth round of the 2002 Ford Ireland KA Rally Championship, the Sligo Stages Rally, at the weekend.

16 July 2002: MG Rover has enhanced its award-winning Rover 75 range with the introduction to Ireland this month of the new Rover 75 Elite.

16 July 2002: The AA is advising motorists to shop around for petrol as prices vary between stations.

15 July 2002: World rally star Colin McRae and the Ford World Rally team are to compete at the World Rally Experience at Punchestown this Sunday, July 21. The 33-year old former world champion will be at the wheel of the Focus World Rally Car which took him to victory at the recent Acropolis Rally in Greece (above) and most recently in Kenya's Safari Rally yesterday.

15 July 2002: Ford finished first and fourth in the eighth round of the FIA World Rally Championship, the Safari Rally, which finished in Nairobi, Kenya, yesterday. The event was won by Colin McCrae in his Ford Focus WRC while Peugeot 206 WRC driver Harri Rovanperä scored a gritty second place podium finish and Thomas Radström in his Citroen Xsara WRC came third. The other Ford in the placings was Markko Martin’s Focus.

15 July 2002: Austin McHale (Rathcoole) lost out on a certain fifth place from the Jim Clark Memorial Rally at the weekend, the Toyota Ireland Corolla WRC driver having a good run in both the Toshiba Computers Irish Tarmac and the Pirelli British Rally Championships until the 15th stage on Saturday.

13 July 2002: Volvo will launch a high-powered version of its S60 series car at the Paris Motor Show in September - the S60 R. The car is powered by a 300bhp 2.5-litre engine, allowing a 156mph top speed and a 0-60mph time of 5.8 seconds.

12 July 2002: Toyota Motor Marketing Europe (TMME) sold an all-time record 410,841 units in the period from January to June 2002, an increase of 15% over the first half of 2001. TMME also enjoyed all-time record unit sales for the month of June, with 68,734 units sold - an increase of 12% over the same month last year.

11 July 2002: Saab Ireland is hoping to sell close to 1,000 units of the new 9-3 Sports Sedan next year, with about 150 of these being diesel powered versions. The car is being launched in Ireland in late September.

11 July 2002: Audi have published details of their second generation A8 model range, first versions of which will arrive into Ireland next January.

11 July 2002: Peugeot’s new Boxer van is available in a short wheel base, medium wheel base and a high-roof long wheel base body style and there is a choice of a 2.0 litre HDi, a 2.2 HDi or a 2.8 HDi engine. The van has undergone 22 changes in total to stiffen the body and improve its torsion resistance: an improvement of approximately 20%.

11 July 2002: Renault is to launch 20 new cars over the next three years, of which the first is the new Megane II (above), details of which were revealed last week at Douai in France.

11 July 2002: The Sligo Stages Rally will be the next round of the highly competitive 2002 Ford Ireland KA Rally Championship, with all fourteen Pirelli shod, Ford rockets, battling for the overall honours

11 July 2002: Robert Taylor has been appointed Managing Director of RAC Ireland. Robert has been a director of the company in Ireland since 1997. In his new role he is responsible for both the RAC motoring services operation and the recently founded RAC School of Motoring.

11 July 2002: Truck Show 2002 will take place at Mondello Park on the weekend of Saturday 31st August to Sunday 1st September. The two-day festival of transport moves from its traditional early August date to avoid the annual business and family holiday period.

10 July 2002: The Land Rover Discovery has entered the third phase of its 13-year history with a new look and a number of technical enhancements. It marks the second new vehicle launch in a matter of months by Land Rover, the British-based company now part of the Ford-owned Premier Automotive Group.

9 July 2002: MG is offering an opportunity to experience the thrill of motor racing with every MGZ saloon purchased before the 31st August.

9 July 2002: Mazda has again been named as the most reliable car in the latest updating of the index compiled by Warranty Direct, the UK market leaders selling warranties direct to the motoring public. Fiat comes second and Ford third.

9 July 2002: The Irish car market appears to be holding fairly steady with the second consecutive month showing an overall dip against last year of between 6-7%.

9 July 2002: A mid-life upgrade to the Alfa Romeo 156 is expected to bring a boost to a somewhat flagging recent sales performance in Ireland of what is arguably the brand's most successful model.

5 July 2002: Honda has produced its half millionth Civic at the Swindon car plant, with a little help from Jacques Villeneuve and Olivier Panis!

5 July 2002: Any Irish car fans travelling in Britain on Sunday week will have an opportunity to see some of the world’s most exciting and glamorous cars as they descend on The Heritage Motor Centre at Gaydon, one mile from the M40, Junction 12, for Supercar Sunday (July 14).

5 July 2002: With considerable changes in the car rental market over the years and the holiday season under way, Argus Car Rentals have issued a list of Top 10 Tips for renting a car, here in Ireland and abroad.

5 July 2002: A new book just published in the UK on caravanning and trailer tenting may well prove essential reading for Irish caravanners.

5 July 2002: The new MINI is just one year old on Sunday. In that time it seems to have won its way into the hearts of more people than expected in some 50 markets from Guadeloupe to the UK, and the oldest known owner is an 81-year-old woman in Japan.

4 July 2002: Four months after the brand's comeback at the last Geneva Motor Show, the luxury car Maybach is being presented to the US public for the first time in New York.

4 July 2002: Initial production of the new Ford Fusion has begun at Ford’s assembly plant in Cologne, Germany. The new model is due to go on sale in the autumn and is expected in Ireland sometime after October.

4 July 2002: A recent study of 400 German car owners revealed that a climate control system was among the most important features for vehicle comfort. A new reports says that penetration levels are expected to reach up to four out of every five cars sold in Europe by the year 2005.

4 July 2002: The Mazda MPV has achieved maximum safety points in four out of five areas in the latest crash and rollover ratings released by the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The vehicle was awarded five stars in the frontal and side impact tests for both driver and front passenger. The Mazda achieved 3 stars in rollover tests.

3 July 2002: The new Dundrum Bypass was officially opened yesterday by the minister for transport, Seamus Brennan TD, in the company of Cllr Betty Coffey, Cathaoirleach, Dun Laoghaire Rathdown County Council.

3 July 2002: Glanmire's Alan Dwyer took his third victory of the season in the sixth round of the Ford of Ireland Formula Ford Zetec Championship last Sunday at a rain-soaked Mondello Park, beating on-form veteran Derek Daly (Castleknock).

3 July 2002: Ford Ireland is to supply 90 Fiesta 1.4 TDCi models to Dublin Corporation, along with 71 Focus, 92 Transits in addition to Mondeo and light commercials. The vehicles will be supplied by Winfield Motors, Dublin, and Griffiths of Claremorris and Mullingar, via an associated leasing company, GPT.

3 July 2002: He couldn’t exactly be called a heavy vehicle driver, but Juan Pablo Montoya, driver with the BMW Williams F1 Team, was in Dublin yesterday to launch the Allianz Ireland 'Risk & Safety Services' initiative, designed to provide advanced and defensive driver training to the drivers of commercial vehicles.

3 July 2002: Clamping companies have been instructed to clamp fewer cars parked illegally as the practice could put the driver at risk. The move follows fears that women particulrly would be at risk from criminals if they were stuck at the side of the road with a clamped car.

3 July 2002: The new Z4 BMW roadster will be shown publicly for the first time at the Paris Motor Show in late September. The Z3 predecessor ceased production last Friday. It will be available in Europe next spring.

3 July 2002: The winner of a Peugeot 206, first prize in the Conquer and Care Lotteries charity lottery, is Mrs Sadie Hennessy from Ballycallan in Co Kilkenny.

3 July 2002: More than 150 fit fundraisers – including celebrities from sport and television – will this Thursday gather at Carantouhill, near Killarney, for the final leg of one of Europe’s most physically gruelling challenges.

2 July 2002: Renault this morning unveiled the first two cars from the New Mégane II family which will eventually offer seven models by 2004 in a complete renewal of its product line-up in the C segment, the biggest in the European automobile market.

2 July 2002: Ford of Ireland has introduced a Focus van for a price of 18,500 euros, including VAT. It is powered by the 1.8 TDdi Duratorq 90PS engine and specification includes sports 15" 5-spoke alloy wheels and front fog lamps.

2 July 2002: Volvo has developed a special 'virtual' test dummy which simulates the effects of crash impacts on pregnant passengers. It's the first such model of its kind, with the basic geometry completed in January of this year.
   

2 July 2002: Toyota will start limited marketing of a fuel cell hybrid (FCHV) sport utility vehicle (SUV) in Japan and the US around the end of this year, much earlier than originally planned.

2 July 2002: Clonee's Jonathan Fildes reigned supreme at a wet Mondello Park last Sunday to take his fifth victory in a superb display from pole position and was never headed throughout the 10 laps.

2 July 2002: Four out of ten features listed by respondents to a J D Power survey in the US on what they'd like to see in their future cars were safety-related. In line with this trend, carmakers and safety systems manufacturers are working on a range of new and improved safety devices.

1 July 2002: The new open top Audi A4 Cabriolet has just been launched in Ireland. The range consists of two models initially - a 3.0 litre 220 bhp V6 at 59,590 euros and a 2.4 litre 170 bhp V6 at 52,540 euros. Both come with 5-speed manual transmission with Audi’s unique Multitronic system available as an option 2,820 euros. Arriving later for the 2003 market will be a 2.5-litre TDI and a 1.8-litre Turbo for which prices will be announced at the time.

1 July 2002: Saab hopes to reach annual sales of 200,000 with the aid of its new 9-3 model range, due to be launched later this year.

1 July 2002: A pair of Lexus vehicles that will 'exist in the future', which also 'exist today' but which will probably 'never really exist' can be seen in Ireland from the end of this week. They're the special transportation systems of the future which were designed with the help of the Toyota-owned luxury carmaker for the latest Steven Spielberg film 'Minority Report', starring Tom Cruise, which opens on nationwide Irish release this weekend. Spielberg himself drives a Lexus SUV.