Forget the Christmas turkey and get stuck into this feast for the mind

1. What English Football League club has a name composed of two (now defunct) car makes (no, Bristol Rover isn’t the name of a club…)?

2. The highest annual total car production so far in the UK is 1.92 million. What year was this total reached? A) 1965; B) 1972; C) 2007; D) 2012

3. In what year was Exeter finally linked with Bristol by continuous motorway (to Junction 30)?

4. Match these Ford engines with their layouts: A) Essex; B) Kent; C) York; 1) Inline 4-cyl diesel; 2) V4/V6 petrol; 3) Inline 4-cyl petrol

5. The Rover 3500, often know as the SD1, was 1976 world Car of the Year. What does SD stand for? A) Sports Deluxe; B) Solihull Design; C) Specialist Division; D) Sigma Delta

6. Two Swiss drivers have won the British Grand Prix. Can you name them?

7. Only one mass production car has been offered with a choice of inline or transverse; air-cooled or water-cooled; and petrol or diesel engines. What was it?

8. Many car marques have been swallowed by more successful rivals. Can you match the following predators with their prey? A) Volkswagen; B) Citroen; C) BMW; D) Chrysler. 1) Panhard; 2) NSU; 3) Simca; 4) Glas

9. Which supercar manufacturer celebrated its 50th birthday this year?

10. What do the initials DB stand for in Aston Martin’s famous models? A) Daimler Benz; B) Duncan Bennett; C) Dunstable Bodybuilders; D) David Brown

11. How far apart are the emergency telephones on UK motorways? A) 880 yards; B) 1 mile; C) 1.5 miles; C) 2 miles

12. Lots of famous people have died in cars. Can you match the names and cars? A) Albert Camus; B) James Dean; C) Princess Grace of Monaco; D) Clay Regazzoni. 1) Chrysler Voyager; 2) Porsche 550 Spyder; 3) Facel Vega; 4) Rover P6

13. Which two founder members of the Western Group are still active members?

14. What is the motorway speed limit for a car towing a caravan on a motorway?

15. Who owns Avon Tyres? A) Pirelli; B) Hankook; C) Cooper; D) Sumitomo

16. Which automotive supplier gained the soubriquet “Prince of Darkness”?

17. Fiat’s TwinAir engine has won awards. Which British mass produced car had an engine with exactly the same number of ccs (but twice as many cylinders)?

18. Which pioneer of automotive engineering met a watery death in mid-Channel?

19. Who is the only driver to have won an F1 world championship posthumously?

20. What was a trafficator? A) An early form of traffic light; B) A mobile platform for traffic policemen; C) A semaphore arm for indicating a turn; D) Pre-war display board indicating levels of congestion ahead on main routes into London.

21. Brymon Airways flew from Plymouth airport and famously banned bibulous Car columnist George Bishop. Which F1 driver was one of the airline’s founding partners?

22. Match the bridge and return daytime cash toll for a standard car A) Dartford Crossing; B) Severn Crossing C) Humber Bridge D) Forth Road Bridge. 1) Free; 2) £3.00 ; 3) £4.00; 4) £6.20

23. Which car manufacturer based in Southampton produced just 99 cars?

24. Worm-and-peg, cam-and-roller and recirculating ball are all types of what?

25. What top selling car had the design code ADO16?

26. What pioneering feature did the Cord L-29, Oldsmobile Toronado and Citroen 2CV have in common?

27. Who was the Transport Minister in charge when compulsory front seat belt wearing was introduced? Was it A) Richard Marsh B) Ernie Marples C) Barbara Castle D) David Howells

28. Steve McQueen famously drove a Mustang in Bullitt, but what was the black car in which the villains met a fiery end? Was it A) a Chevrolet Camaro; B) a Pontiac GTO; C) a Dodge Charger D) a Ford Galaxy.

29. The price of 98 octane petrol in 1970 averaged 5/11d a gallon. What’s that in pence per litre? A) 6.5p B) 9.3p C) 11.1p D) 12.5p

30. Which manufacturing group has won the European Car of the Year award most often?

John Kerswill
John Kerswill
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