This week Mr Cropley was noticing the early effects of panic buying at fuel pumps, considering a new car purchase, and admiring the compact nature of his Dacia long-termer's engine...
Monday
It’s always fascinating to hear of new people getting into supercar creation, but it strikes me that Ferrari boss John Elkann has pulled off a design king-hit by attracting superstar creatives Marc Newson and Sir Jony Ive – both Ferrari enthusiasts – to the task of creating a new strain of Maranello products.
Of course, as soon as I say this, my middle-class doubts kick in: the only previous car the pair has created between them appears to be the neat but modest 021C concept car that Newson penned for Ford a couple of decades ago. And I don’t know whether to be optimistic or scared about the self-confident shot they issued with their news. It’s certainly a long way from the bloke-in-black-polo-neck portraits we’re used to. Yet when I look at the same-again profile of every supercar of the past 20 years, I can’t help welcoming any fresh approach. I trust we won’t have to wait many years to see the fruits of their efforts.
Tuesday
I’m truly awed by the latest exploits of race driver Mia Flewitt, who recently scored another brace of wins against extremely serious, capable and professional opposition when the high-powered Pure McLaren GT series snapped back into action in Portugal. An engineer at Volvo when she met her husband, Mike (now the boss of McLaren Automotive), she has discovered her aptitude and talent – how do I put this? – a little later in life than most other really good drivers, yet she’s the most natural racer I’ve ever met. My personal hope is to see her race at Le Mans.
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