THE WEEKLY MOTORING CLINIC BY MOTORING EDITOR ANDREW HAMILTON
In the rough
First a somewhat bizarre story told to me by some English visitors on their way back home by way of Rosslare. It happened to two of their number, a married couple, while driving through England to catch the ferry here.
The couple were driving past the practice tee of a local private golf club when a ball hit the roof of their car. They immediately drove to the club and gave their name and address and mobile phone number to the bar steward, the only member of the staff present.
The couple were since telephoned by the club secretary to say that the golfer, who was thought to be responsible, vehemently denied the incident.
So, if your car is hit by a golf ball, what's the procedure? Presumably find the ball and catch the golfer concerned?
The expert advice we got was that indeed you must recover the ball as evidence - not always easy - and then report the matter both to the club and the local police as soon as possible. It's the club's responsibility to ensure that the activities of its members do not endanger the public or their property lawfully passing the vicinity of the club on public road.
The exception would be if the damage occurred on the club's own property, where you could not reasonably expect your car to be immune to strong golf balls.
Wankel memories
John Kennedy, from Co Wicklow, wonders if we will ever see an affordable car with the Wankel rotary engine. Are there any cars still being produced with the Wankel unit, one hailed as a technological breakthrough in internal combustion engine design?
Mr Kennedy hasn't been reading a recent issue of Motors. Mazda has stuck with the rotary engine through several generations, with the RX-7 sports car which won the Le Mans 24 Hour Race in 1991. Its successor, the RX-8 is also rotary-powered and, as we mentioned, it will be innovative in another way, no side pillars and doors like French windows.
The RX-8 will be expensive and we think it's unlikely that there will be a more affordable rotary-engined car. The principal drawback of the Wankel technology is poor fuel economy.
We remember with some affection the original Wankel-engined car sold on the Irish market, the NSU Ro80. Are there any out there still driving?
Probably its biggest driving characteristic - apart from excessive mpg - was the silence. The NSU Ro80 was the quietest car around 30 years ago.
Is this a bit much?
A reader from Booterstown, Co Dublin, is very upset that Fiat Auto Ireland contacted him telling him that, as a Nissan Almera owner, he would appreciate the style and comfort of their new Stilo. How, he wants to know, did they know he owned an Almera.
"Frankly, I felt it was almost an invasion of my privacy. I am not paranoid in that way but I felt it was a bit much and it would frankly put me off buying a Fiat. I was assured nobody from the marketing department of Fiat could speak to me so I wondered if you might air my grievance on your very helpful new Motors supplement."
Joe Gantly, for Fiat Auto Ireland, thinks our reader may have volunteered lifestyle information in a survey conducted by An Post which offered prizes.
"We bought a mailing list from An Post with a lot of lifestyle information, just as other companies have done," he says. "There's nothing underhand here. The information was acquired legitimately and we put it to use in furtherance of a marketing campaign."
Good connections
David Murphy from Baldoyle, Co Dublin, e-mails about his friend in Italy who has an Alfa Romeo 147 with Connect, a system based around a dashboard screen that integrates the car stereo and telephone with satellite navigation and a 24-hour information service.
He is particularly interested in Connect's access to the call centre in Milan, where any one of 800 operators can identify the car and where it is. They will reply in what seems to be the appropriate language: they can speak 14.
The Connect operators have access to all kinds of information, from traffic conditions to the location of the nearest petrol station, recommending and booking hotels and restaurants and advising on local events. News and stock market prices are also available. They can alert emergency services and roadside assistance. The information can be presented verbally, or as a screen message.
Joe Gantly, for Alfa Romeo here, says Connect will be available as an option when Ireland is mapped for satellite navigation. "We have the Dublin area at present and our information is that work is proceeding on the rest of the country quickly," he says. "It will be a great boon, particularly to visitors."