>> ASIAONE / MOTORING / NEWS / ARCHIVE 2007 Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec 2006 Jan Feb March April May June July Aug Sept Oct Nov Dec Massa puts Ferrari on pole for French GP Brazilian Felipe Massa put Ferrari on pole position for the French Grand Prix on Saturday. Coughlan provides Ferrari with affidavit High Court clash between Ferrari and suspended McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan was called off after he provided the Italian F1 team with a requested affidavit. Ecclestone hails Hamilton, warns Silverstone Formula One supremo hailed Lewis Hamilton as a British sporting hero while warning that his home grand prix could be struck off the calendar in 2010. Lewis Hamilton clocks best time in first practice for British Grand Prix Hamilton did a lap of the Silverstone circuit in 1 minute, 21.100 seconds. Raikkonen clocks fastest lap in final practice session for British Grand Prix at Silverstone Raikkonen, who won last week's French GP, clocked 1 minute,19.751 seconds on the 5.1km circuit. F1 governing body charges McLaren in 'spy' probe FIA has charged the championship leaders with breaking the sport's rules by possessing confidential information belonging to rivals Ferrari. Top civil servant caught for drink driving He was fined $2,500 and banned from driving for 18 mths. FIA hope to resolve 'spy' row within three weeks Formula One's governing body hopes to clarify whether any leaked Ferrari data has been used by rivals McLaren Honda approached by pair in 'spy' row Honda became the third team embroiled in Formula One's 'spy' controversy when they confirmed that the two men accused in the affair had approached them looking for jobs. Coulthard to stay at Red Bull in 2008 Briton David Coulthard, the oldest driver on the F1 starting grid, has extended his contract with Red Bull for another year and will again partner Australian Mark Webber in 2008. Prodrive F1 team say no Silverstone announcement Prodrive boss David Richards, whose company is due to enter Formula One as the 12th team next year, said he was still some way from announcing details of his plans. Dennis 'hacked off' despite Hamilton pole McLaren boss Ron Dennis watched Lewis Hamilton put the team on pole position at the British Grand Prix and was then ticked off for looking glum. Renault looking for step up from August Fading Formula One champions Renault expect to show their true colours from next month's Turkish Grand Prix, according to team president Alain Dassas. Hamilton mania fires up Silverstone crowd Silverstone was revelling in the Lewis Hamilton effect as British Grand Prix spectators packed the circuit to see their new sporting hero. Scary moments in Hamilton's life in fast lane Britain's Formula One revelation Lewis Hamilton is discovering the scarier side of his sudden fame. Stepney leaves Italy protesting his innocence Former Ferrari engineer Nigel Stepney says he has left Italy fearing for his safety. Time to wake up, Ecclestone tells Silverstone Sunday's successful British Grand Prix should serve as a wake-up call for Silverstone's owners, according to Formula One supremo Bernie Ecclestone. Honda sweeps board in reliability study Jazz supermini topped overall table with rating from owners of 96 percent. 3 killed, 2 injured in helicopter crash near France's Magny Cours circuit Helicopter making roundtrips between the French F1 circuit and a hotel crashed Alonso prays for rain after troubled day Gearbox problem in qualifying left the double world champion 10th on the French Grand Prix starting grid. Raikkonen leads Ferrari 1-2 in French GP Kimi Raikkonen led a Ferrari 1-2 with Felipe Massa, ending McLaren's winning streak Raikkonen looking to turn Ferrari around Kimi Raikkonen invigorated Ferrari's season on Sunday, leading a 1-2 finish for the Italian team at the French Grand Prix Sunday. F1 Team by team analysis - French GP How all the teams and drivers did at Magny Cours Ferrari fires British technician it accuses of attempted sabotage This after an internal investigation into attempted sabotage before the Monaco GP. A McLaren employee was also suspended. Motorist who drove with man on bonnet charged Philip Yeo Chuan Lock, 62, faces a charge of endangering the life of sales exec, Koh Boon Tai. Audi agent enters fray Hadi Tanaga puts pedal to the metal to drive his Audi import & distribution business. Motor trader plans to run 'green' taxi fleet Former hawker likely to become next new taxi operator Petrol prices go up with GST hike SPC and ExxonMobil were the first to raise pump prices following the GST hike Formula One spells bad news for A1 Team Singapore NOT everyone is glad that a Formula One race will be held in Singapore next year. Hamilton's mum tells why she split with husband AS LEWIS Hamilton, 22, catapults to fame and fortune, his mother has revealed for the first time why she split with the racer's father. Raikkonen's win a timely boost AS KIMI Raikkonen stood on the podium after his French GP victory, you could see as much relief as jubilation on his face. Truck-taxi that can haul furniture & more EVER wished that cab you hailed could 'swallow up' your newly bought furniture? Kubica and Heidfeld are the proving the best of the rest for BMW-Sauber The BMW-Sauber drivers are in a mini-battle to decide the best of the rest behind Ferrari and McLaren. F1 digest Formula One statistics for Sunday's British Grand Prix at Silverstone FIA to investigate alleged sabotage of Ferrari McLaren team implicated Hamilton more in the limelight than ever Rare burden of expectation on Hamilton, youngest Briton and first black driver to win a grand prix McLaren: No Ferrari-related information incorporated into its cars McLaren suspended chief designer Mike Coughlan after learning he had received technical information from a Ferrari employee Hamilton wants to see out career at McLaren Lewis Hamilton has told McLaren he wants to stay with them for the rest of his F1 career McLaren drivers' points are safe, says Ecclestone Fernando Alonso & Lewis Hamilton will not lose championship points as a result of 'spying' controversy Hamilton faces first F1 British GP as sabotage scandal rumbles on Lewis Hamilton returns home to race with his McLaren team embroiled in a scandal over accusations of sabotage against rival Ferrari Silverstone owners receive joint venture proposal Businessmen Bill Archer & Mike Rockall have submitted plans to the board of the British Racing Drivers' Club Stepney returns to Italy The former Ferrari employee accused of leaking information to McLaren, said he was "surprised" by the actions of the Italian team and again denied any wrongdoing Hamilton, Raikkonen clock best times in Silverstone practice Hamilton clocked 1 min, 21.100 sec in the morning session at the 5.1km circuit. Raikkonen rains on Hamilton's parade Finn wrecks championship leader Lewis Hamilton's hopes of a home celebration. Hamilton looks to improve after mistakes in home GP He finished third behind McLaren team mate Fernando Alonso and Ferrari race winner Kimi Raikkonen in what is still a sensational start to his debut season in Formula One. Fans roar Hamilton to pole LEWIS Hamilton wants to become first Englishman since Damon Hill in 1994 to win the British GP. Open market values of parallel import cars significantly lower 'OMV anomaly' can mean more than $10,000 difference in taxes per car Fastlane: G-class marathon MERCEDES G-class that clocked over half a million kilometres in a 17 years stopped over in Singapore last week. S'pore motorists paid M'sia $3.5m in fines MALAYSIA'S Road and Transport Department (RTD) and police collected about RM8m million in traffic fines from Singapore motorists in the past three years. Drunk driver jailed for offering bribes A YOUNG man who crashed his car into a drain knew he was in trouble because he had driven after having downed several glasses of wine. Fastlane: Caliber sees stars It was awarded four stars for adult occupant protection Fastlane: AXA steps up Poor servicing at AXA-approved workshop after an accident? Get up to $400 in discount vouchers. Pay less road tax from next week THE road tax for cars, motorcycles and dual-purpose commercial vehicles will be reduced by 8 per cent from Sept 1 as announced earlier this year during the Budget Statement. Surprise appearance by Ferrari F1 team likely FORMULA One is likely to be part of this year's National Day Parade (NDP). 17 S'poreans detained for illegal bike racing SEVENTEEN Singaporeans on heavy motorbikes were caught racing illegally on the Gelang Patah highway near the Tuas Second Link. Spyker fires driver Christijan Albers, citing sponsor problems Decision was made because of "commercial difficulties" after one of the driver's personal sponsors failed to come up with promised money. Holiday service stations hall of shame Italy's motorway service stations are among the worst in Europe, survey shows. Hamilton quickest on first day of Spa F1 test The 22-year-old British rookie did 83 laps of the revamped Belgian circuit with a best time of one minute 46.613 seconds BMW chief designer Zander moving to Honda Honda have signed BMW Sauber chief designer Joerg Zander as deputy technical director With higher fuel prices, US consumers shift toward smaller engines Many U.S. car buyers, though, still think the smaller engines are noisy and do not have enough power Kubica gains confidence after crash The 22-year-old Kubica missed the U.S. Grand Prix after his Montreal accident but has finished fourth in his two races since then McLaren promise quicker car for Germany McLaren have promised Lewis Hamilton and Fernando Alonso a quicker car for the next race in Germany after losing to Ferrari for the second weekend in a row. Raikkonen Alonso have differing views Although they had differing views on whether the better car or the better strategy won the British Grand Prix, it was easy to tell who was the winner and who was the loser. McLaren designer behaved disgracefully, court told McLaren chief designer Mike Coughlan "behaved disgracefully" by copying and keeping documents belonging to Formula One rivals Ferrari Ford, California power company join to develop plug-in hybrids Ford Motor Co. and Southern California Edison will team up to test rechargeable hybrid vehicles and hasten mass production of the new technology. India's Karthikeyan keen on Formula One return The Williams test driver and Austrian Christian Klien are being considered to replace Dutch driver Christijan Albers, who Spyker dropped due to non-payment by one of his main sponsors. Reports: Malaysian police say cars stolen then sold abroad to fund terrorism, crime Southeast Asia is being used as a transit point to smuggle stolen vehicles Ford: Hydrogen powered cars could reach showrooms within 5 years Nearly every automaker is testing hydrogen-powered vehicles across the world, touting them as a renewable alternative to gasoline. Coming soon: S'pore's 1st motorcross and racing track Motorcross and racing enthusiasts can enjoy their sport at a site being developed in Tuas West. ?It will feature a race track, spectator stand with a capacity of 100, a car park for 60 lots, a cafeteria and some retail shops, and will be ready by early 2008. Two wins put Raikkonen back in the F1 title hunt Kimi Raikkonen won the first Formula One race of the season and immediately felt the great expectations Ferrari has for him as Michael Schumacher's replacement. India becoming small car export hub as automakers rush to set up factories Cheap, fuel-efficient and versatile, compact hatchbacks are by far the most popular vehicles in India's rapidly growing auto market. Stream beats Wish as top grey import Grey importers hit a record high by half-time compared to the same period last year. Fastlane: Toyota fights whiplash Toyota has joined a growing number of European carmakers to offer active head restraint. Fastlane: C63AMG coming next year Mercedes has created the most muscular C-class ever: the 457hp C63AMG. Fastlane: Evo gears up Mitsubishi is expected to fit the next Lancer Evolution with a dual-clutch automated manual transmission Fastlane: Mini promotions MINI owners can take their cars for a free 21-point check this weekend at the Mini Habitat, 27 Leng Kee Road. Car imports test South Koreans' patriotism An increasing numbers of sleek, stylish European, U.S. and Japanese brands now ply South Korean roads, and more Koreans are putting aside patriotism to buy them. Transnational car smuggling ring busted Stolen in M'sia, shipped from S'pore, hidden in Indonesia. 6 Malaysians, 3 Indonesians nabbed for their part in syndicate Cameras at traffic light junctions may go digital Traffic Police aim for system that can download photos to a network daily 33 cars stolen in Malaysia daily 4,907 cars stolen in the first 5 months of this year - 11.5% more than last year. UK teen films himself speeding on highway 225kmh Trainee mechanic filmed the dashboard dials as he drove his father's Toyota MR2 down a highway Car tax scams: Parallel importers raided S'pore Customs conducting 'post-clearance audits' on parallel importers suspected of under-declaring value of cars they import. Living near high traffic raises heart risks Reseachers say long-term exposure to air pollution can harden the arteries. Sports car of 'Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil' character for sale on ebay Bidding on the 1983 Jaguar XJS will end July 27 Gil de Ferran leaves as sporting director of F1 team Honda 2003 Indy 500 champion left by mutual agreement to pursue other opportunities COE prices up for cars, down for goods vehicles COEs for small cars reverse decline and rise by 8.1%, to $16,000. Schumacher looks for bright spots in dismal season He has faced withering criticism for falling short of expectations this season, the year he was supposed to emerge from the shadow of his brother, seven-times champion Michael. Chrysler pulls SUV ad with electrocuted dog Ad shows dog being electrocuted and going up in flames. US study finds that plug-in hybrid cars could reduce greenhouse gas emissions Market share of 60% or more plug-ins could reduce approximately 450 million metric tons in greenhouse gas emissions a year by 2050 Markus Winkelhock to make Formula 1 debut for Spyker at European Grand Prix The 27-year-old will partner Adrian Sutil, taking the seat that was made vacant when the team fired Christijan Albers. Raikkonen hopes to keep streak going at European Grand Prix He has more wins this year, but still trails Hamilton by a margin of 18 points with less than half of the season remaining. Honda stick with Button and Barrichello Announcement maintains the pairing for third consecutive year and means Barrichello can look forward to breaking Italian Riccardo Patrese's record of 256 F1 race starts. Hamilton backs McLaren to weather F1 spy storm 22-year-old British rookie sounded more concerned with beating a bout of 'flu than the prospect of his team being punished by the sport's governing body Hamilton's hunters eager to catch leader Rookie crashed heavily on Saturday and will start 10th if given all-clear by F1's medical delegate. Raikkonen on pole for European Grand Prix Qualifying session was overshadowed by championship leader Lewis Hamilton crashing heavily. Hamilton fit to race after crash Lewis Hamilton, 2 points clear of double world champion team mate Fernando Alonso after nine podium finishes in a row, brought qualifying to a halt when he left the track at around 260kph and ploughed into the tyre wall. 14% of China-made tyre tubes fail test This comes just days after a US recall of light truck tyres. European Grand Prix re-starts after rain A series of drivers skidded out at the first corner on the third lap. Rain helps Alonso win European GP A WET and wild European Grand Prix finished with McLaren's Fernando Alonso barging Ferrari's Felipe Massa out of the way with just four laps to go for the win. Schumacher honoured at Nuerburgring Germany's 7-time world champion Michael Schumacher became the first driver to have a corner named after him at the Nuerburgring circuit Alonso win cuts Hamilton's lead By overtaking Felipe Massa late in the race in slippery conditions on Sunday, Alonso moved within two points of McLaren-Mercedes teammate Lewis Hamilton. Hamilton still smiling after awful weekend Rookie said he learned 10 times more in Sunday's nightmare race than in nine previous podiums. Nuerburgring jinx strikes Raikkonen again He started on pole position but slowed suddenly on the 35th of 60 laps while third. Relieved Webber happy to be back on F1 podium Mark Webber celebrated third place for Red Bull with typical Aussie bluntness at the European Grand Prix Melbourne loses F1 opening GP after ruling out night races But it will start start 1 1/2 hours later to allow European viewers to watch race in the morning. Team by team analysis of European Grand Prix How each of the teams and their drivers fared at the Nuerburgring. Karsono Kwee offers first Japanese brand MOTOR magnate Karsono Kwee has added the first Japanese marque to his stable of car brands by taking on a Mazda dealership in Jakarta. Shake-up in S'pore's best-selling brands Mercedes-Benz has overtaken BMW, Mitsubishi has displaced Hyundai, and Subaru has come in from the cold. Fast Lane: Peugeot taxis soon 6 Peugeot Partners are being delivered to private yellow-top operators. Fast Lane: Tyre tussle LTA monitoring controversy surrounding Hangzhou Zhongce Rubber in the US, following proposed recall of 450,000 tyres. Fast Lane: SUV from Peugeot 4007 is a joint venture with Mitsubishi Motor built on the Mitsubishi Outlander platform. Fast Lane: Economy? What economy? A global study by Shell found that Singapore drivers are the most passive when it comes to fuel economy. Fast Lane: Get ready for GT2 This is the 530bhp Porsche 911 GT2, capable of hitting 100kmh in 3.7 seconds and a top speed of 329kmh. Italy tries to curb murderous driving habits Prime Minister Prodi has called for a "major moral and civic shake-up". United Auto Workers talks start with GM, Ford Ford, GM, & Chrysler say hourly labor costs are about US$25 more than their Japanese rivals, Toyota Motor Corp., Honda Motor Co. & Nissan Motor Co. -AP Toyota, Mazda, Honda set to resume production after partsmaker recovers Factories have been shut because of parts shortage following damage to piston-ring maker Riken Corp.'s plant in Kashiwazaki after earthquake Toyota keeps global sales target of 9.34 million vehicles this year Sales target unchanged despite worries about plant closures and a sluggish market in Japan. US traffic deaths decline Traffic deaths in the US fell to their lowest total in 5 years in 2006, and the rate of deaths per miles traveled dropped to a record low. Men treat their cars as part of themselves, UK study finds The finding explains why men are more likely to feel annoyed or threatened by someone damaging their vehicle. Plan to get Ferrari F1 cars for N-Day Parade hits road block It is understood that no sponsor has been been found so far, virtually ruling out Ferraris? presence. Alonso up to 'dirty tricks' World champion is providing Hamilton with confusing data, claims F1 website NY parking lots cost as much as 5-room AMK flat Manhattan investors pay big bucks for small lots which they lease out Man steals Porsche Targa 4 - twice Brazen thief drives Porsche out of showroom window, and out of police station Tickets for S'pore F1 race go on sale in Dec Companies that want to buy hospitality packages can start their bookings from Nov 28 3 vehicles broken into: Use of master key suspected Nothing amiss on the outside, but it was obvious from looking inside 2 lorries & a van that they had been ransacked. Misadventure: Man killed in 160kmh race Truck driver recalls horror of head-on crash with speeding car Cabbies face anonymous service checks LTA to hire "private sleuths" to check on problems faced by commuters. McLaren faces hearing over charges it stole information from rival Ferrari Formula One leader McLaren-Mercedes will answer charges Thursday that its designer acquired confidential data from rival Ferrari. Probe launched after M'sian police pay $2m for fake car parts Men in blue left red-faced after discovering that they were cheated into paying S$2.2 million for imitation spare parts S'porean jailed for racing illegally on Second Link He has been jailed for 12 months and had his licence suspended for 2 years by Johor court Formula 1 boss agrees to hold French Grand Prix at Magny Cours in 2008 Ecclestone earlier said that the circuit is not up to F1 standards and that the French GP should be held closer to the capital. Japan's Yamamoto handed Spyker F1 drive He will race for Spyker in the remaining seven races of the season. McLaren breaches sporting code, but not penalised McLaren will