So you want to drive in the snow?
In a welcome change for PetrolBlog, resident guest blogger, Rob Griggs-Taylor has provided some genuinely useful content. Here he draws on his time in the north of Scotland to offer some sensible advice for driving in snow. It’s good stuff. But if you miss the inane waffle and bunk, don’t worry, normal service will be resumed soon.
It snowed today and so lots of you are going to try and drive through the snow to accomplish journeys like you do every day. This is not always a great idea so I thought it was time to pass on some advice gleaned from years of driving in the north of Scotland.
Rob’s Vauxhall Insignia: Long term update
Resident PetrolBlogger, Rob Griggs-Taylor is back with an update on his Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 EcoFlex Elite. For the earlier review, have a look here, or to follow Rob on twitter, click here.
In 1973 BMW launched the 2002 Turbo onto an unsuspecting market. It was their first turbocharged car, producing around 170BHP which gave it the ability to accelerate from 0-60mph in a whisker under seven seconds. It became a legend, partly because of the bright reversed ’2002 Turbo’ badging on the front spoiler, the fact that only 1,672 were produced in a two-year production run and because the turbo lag was epic. The power delivery was reputedly all or nothing, leading to some exciting rear-first exits to corners. Read more 
Rob experiences the Caterham Slalom
Rob’s been having fun with a Caterham. Here’s what he thought of the Slalom Experience, Silverstone.
The back of the car begins to slide left and I start to apply corrective steering. The back continues to slide round and I twirl the tiny steering wheel further. My brain throws the message through – “we’re going to spin“. The steering hits full lock. Instinct says to lift off the throttle but I know that if I do that I’ll definitely spin and I won’t be quick enough to catch it. So a very gentle lift off the throttle is just enough to stop the back becoming the front, as it were, and we accelerate towards the next gate.
It’s five days after the British Grand Prix, I’m at Silverstone and I’m driving a Caterham Roadsport SV for the first time in my life. Now, just to get it in context I’m actually in Car Park 49 just outside the main gate of the circuit, and not thraping the little Caterham round the actual circuit. Unfortunately. Read more
Rob writes: The luxury sports car
Rob’s back on PetrolBlog. It would have been earlier, had I not missed the email Rob kindly sent to me on Friday evening. Sorry Rob.
So without further ado, here’s Rob with some words on the luxury sports car. Follow him on twitter at @robgt2 or on his personal blog at www.griggs-taylor.co.uk. Read more
Long term test: Vauxhall Insignia 2.0 CDTi 160 EcoFlex Elite
Following his recent Real World Review and Real World Dream Barn, I’m delighted to say that Rob Griggs-Taylor has joined PetrolBlog as a resident blogger. I have of course just made up the term ‘resident blogger’, but I can’t exactly call him staff writer, as then I’d need to prepare a contract and pay him some hard cash. So resident blogger he is and in his first post under this new, made up title, he gives the lowdown on his Vauxhall Cavalier…I mean Vectra…sorry, Insignia. Read more
Rob Griggs-Taylor’s Real World Dream Barn
Last month, following a confession about supercars, I posted the contents of my Real World Dream Barn. It sparked a bit of interest, with other fine petrolheads offering their own list of ten cars. Now, Rob Griggs-Taylor offers his own list of ten cars and in doing so has penned his second article for PetrolBlog. You can read his earlier contribution here. In the meantime, check out his list. There are some real crackers in here.
Over to you Rob… Read more
Real World Reviews: Mini Clubman
In the first of the new series of Real World Reviews, Rob Griggs-Taylor (@robgt2 on twitter), takes a reflective look back at his first car – a Mini Clubman.
Your first car is a rite of passage. You choose something that projects an image, carefully cultivated within the limits of a tight budget and ludicrous insurance quotes. It will be an extension of your personality, the first impression when you arrive. No matter what the car is, or in what condition, many people fall in love with their first car and often go the extra mile when fiscal restraint and common sense are screaming logic, but the heart is committed to insane and costly action. Read more
