Lap Record broken at Silverstone, with the new Alfa Romeo Giulia, with totally blocked out windows.

• To celebrate arrival of the Alfa Romeo Giulia in UK dealerships the manufacturer set a lap record at Silverstone in the flagship Quadrifoglio – driven ‘blindfolded’
• Attempt utilised on-board technology and driver focused design
• Feat marks 65 years since Alfa Romeo driver and Italian F1 World Champion Nino Farina set the fastest lap at the circuit during the British Grand Prix
• Fastest blindfolded lap recorded: 1:44.3secs
• Car reached speeds in excess of 100mph despite windows completely covered by black vinyl
• Starting price for the Alfa Romeo Giulia range starts at £29,180 OTR and is available to test drive in UK dealerships

To celebrate the arrival of the Alfa Romeo Giulia in UK dealerships, the Italian manufacturer has achieved a world first by setting a lap record of the famed Silverstone circuit with an epic twist – the windows of the Quadrifoglio were completely blacked out. 

Marking 65 years from Italian F1 World Champion Nino Farina registering a lap record at Silverstone while driving the legendary Alfa Romeo 159 which was adorned with the iconic Quadrifoglio badge, the 2016 range-topping Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio can now lay claim to another record-breaking accomplishment completing the lap on the National Circuit in 1:44.3secs, matching the 1:44secs set by Farina in 1951.

Despite the car windows being covered entirely in a black vinyl, the hotly-anticipated sports saloon, powered by an all-new aluminium 510hp, 600Nm Bi-Turbo V6 petrol engine, navigated the seven-turn, 1.64-mile course and reached speeds of more than 100mph.

Clearly a challenge of this magnitude would require rigorous preparation. With the Quadrifoglio driven by Ed Morris – the youngest ever British driver to compete at Le Mans 24 hour – and David Brise directing from a second Quadrifoglio behind, the drivers spent two days getting to grips with the challenge, first practising on the smaller Stowe Circuit, before moving onto the iconic National Circuit.

To make this achievement possible required more than just driver determination and memory power, the Alfa Romeo Giulia is packed full of high-performance technologies that allowed the driver to be truly at one with the car.

The Alfa Romeo Giulia is equipped with the Alfa Chassis Domain Control (CDC) system, which is a sector first, distributing the power evenly through the Torque Vectoring & Active Suspension systems to ensure maximum drive through the rear wheels. The “brain” is dedicated to vehicle dynamics – combined with the front Active Aero Splitter and rear air diffuser which helped keep the rear-wheel drive Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio ‘glued’ to the track, while the on-board Alfa Connect infotainment system allowed the driver to stay in touch with the support team.

In addition, and working almost as a sixth sense for the driver, the active safety systems such as Forward Collision Warning (FCW), Autonomous Emergency Brake (AEB) with pedestrian recognition and Lane Departure Warning (LDW), allowed the driver to have complete confidence in the task at hand.

“I’ve driven hundreds of cars but never one with all the windows blacked out,” said professional driver Morris. “As a racing driver it’s in your nature to push yourself and the car to its limits and knowing the Alfa Romeo Giulia is packed with so many high-performance technologies really allowed us to have complete trust in it and focus on setting a record.”

The Alfa Romeo Giulia range is now available to test drive at dealerships throughout the UK, with a starting price of £29,180 OTR, including the record breaking Alfa Romeo Giulia Quadrifoglio priced at £59,000 OTR.

Even Caterham produces a fuel efficient car by taking part in the 2015 MPG Marathon,

• Caterham proves the 160 is the most economical two-seater sportscar on the market*
• Seven 160 finishes eco-driving event with an overall MPG of 59.03, a 2.48% improvement on the car’s official MPG
• Pistonheads’ John Mahoney piloted 160 in the 370-mile competition 

British sportscar maker, Caterham Cars, has taken part in the annual MPG Marathon for the first time with its most economical Seven model; the 160.

The UK’s leading lean driving challenge took place between Tuesday 29^th and Wednesday 30^th September, with the 370-mile route starting and finishing at Heythrop Park, Oxfordshire.

This year saw the 15^th edition of the MPG Marathon take place, with production cars and LCVs, competing in a test of eco driving skills. Prizes were awarded on the basis of the percentage improvement obtained in relation to the official MPG for the combined cycle of the car and outright net fuel consumption in MPG.

Caterham competed with its most frugal Seven ever built and, driven by Pistonheads’ John Mahoney, the 160 competed in the class for passenger cars powered by petrol with CO2 emissions of 101g/km – 190g/km. The Seven 160 achieved an overall MPG of 59.03 during the course of the event - a 2.48% improvement on the 160’s official 57.60mpg.

The MPG Marathon saw the iconic Seven, a car which brings unrivalled levels of efficiency, fun and value for money to the sportscar segment, standing out from the crowd as the only two-seater sportscar, participating.

Powered by a super-compact, turbocharged three-cylinder Suzuki engine, the 160 emits just 114g/km CO2. The 160 produces 80hp from its 660cc engine and generates a top speed of 100mph, reaching 0–62mph in only 6.5 seconds. Priced from £15,995 in component form and £18,995 fully built, the Seven 160 can be taxed for just £30 per year and is the most cost-effective two-seater sportscar on the market*.

Caterham Cars’ Chief Commercial Officer, David Ridley, said: “The 160’s impressive performance in this event proves that the Seven really does deliver everything, proving that fuel economy doesn’t have to come at the expense of a fun drive.”

UK's first 100mph production car

• Vauxhall 30-98 direct rival to sporting Bentleys during 1920s
• Fast, durable and lightweight – top speed validated by factory at Brooklands
• Enduring example of early 1900s’ engineering – nearly 200 cars survive today

The Vauxhall 30-98, one of the greatest sports cars of the twentieth century and the first to top 100mph in production form, is marking its centenary in style this May, when almost 50 surviving examples attempt the Waddington Fell hillclimb, site of the car’s first appearance and competition success in 1913.

Described as ‘The car of grace that sets the pace’, the 30-98 was derived from Vauxhall’s C10 ‘Prince Henry’ – acknowledged as the UK’s first real sports car – and was produced at a time when Vauxhall vied with Bentley in the prestige car market.

But armed with a kerb weight 400kgs less than a Bentley 3.0-Litre, a powerful engine and high axle ratio, the 30-98 became renowned as a high-performance car that could swallow long distances with ease. This made it particularly popular with drivers in the colonies, and explains why so many cars still survive in Australia today.

A precursor to the recently launched Cascada convertible, the 30-98 was actually developed in just 71 days, but went on to spawn a production run of 600 cars over a 14 year period (with a break for WW1). Remarkably, around a third of these cars still survive today.

At a time when car manufacturers promoted the performance, durability and handling of their products through competition, Vauxhall had already been successful in hillclimbs, grands prix and endurance trials since the company was formed in 1903 (now celebrating its 110th anniversary, it’s the UK’s oldest surviving car brand).

And the 30-98 represented the zenith of those achievements. On its first outing at the Waddington Fell hill climb in Lancashire, it set fastest time of the day, proving to the car’s designer, Laurence Pomeroy, and Vauxhall’s directors, Percy Kidner and Leslie Walton, that the car had a future, and production started in earnest.

Originally fitted with a 4,525cc side-valve four cylinder engine, producing 90bhp, the model was made in two basic types: E-type and OE-type, with the latter denoting the more powerful overhead valve cars producing 112bhp, and built between 1923 and 1927.

And it was the OE-type that became the first production car to exceed 100mph, partly prompted by a letter to The Autocar’s editor from a Major L.Ropner, complaining that he was unable to buy a road car that could cover a flying mile at more than 100mph!

Vauxhall responded by producing a stunning two-seater 30-98 for him in polished aluminium, with a full set of road equipment. On March 28, 1923 factory test driver Matt Park took the car to Brooklands and achieved a flying lap at 100.7mph, before delivering the car to Ropner, who used it extensively for competition, continental touring and commuting to London from his home in Yorkshire.

The British motoring press fell in love with the OE-Type 30-98, and in 1923 The Autocar subjected one to an early road test, recording a maximum speed (with standard Velox body and wind-breaking full windscreen) of 82.57mph – no mean feat at a time when most cars were struggling to top 50mph.

The Autocar went on to say: ‘Few cars have such graceful lines yet at once suggest unlimited strength allied to speed…and very, very few can take a corner stiffly with absolute certainty as this one can.’

This year, Vauxhall Motors’ own 1926 OE-Type Velox Tourer (OE268) will join around 50 other 30-98s in Lancashire to celebrate the model’s competition debut at Waddington Fell. Working with the Vauxhall 30-98 Register, local authorities have closed the public road which used to form the course, allowing cars from as far afield as Australia and the US to recreate Higginson’s winning run.

Other events which Vauxhall is supporting as part of the 30-98 centenary include:

Brooklands Double Twelve (June 15-16)
The 30-98 Centenary Run (July 5) – Tour starting at Brooklands and travelling to Vauxhall’s Luton HQ and then on to Millbrook Proving Ground with up to 100 30-98s
CarFest North, Oulton Park (August 2-4)
CarFest South, Laverstoke Park (August 23-25)
‘Thirsty Down Under’ Tour (Oct/Nov) – a three-week tour of Victoria and Tasmania for the thriving 30-98 Register based in Australia
Goodwood has yet to confirm entry of the 30-98 in its centenary year at the Festival of Speed.