Steve Cropley: has lockdown made drivers worse?

This week, our man ponders whether the ability of UK motorists has taken a tumble, and stretches the legs of a recent purchase

Not something to boast about, but I sometimes wield the vacuum cleaner in our house – and the experience has been teaching me a car-related thing or two about electric machines.

We recently acquired the latest battery-powered Dyson V11 Torque Drive full-house super-sucker – the one that looks like a miniature rocket-pack – and it turns out to be so much more powerful, quick, thorough, easy to use and (whisper this) enjoyable than our outgoing gizmo that I’m quite shocked by the experience.

It definitely feeds my optimism about electric machines and battery power, and delivers a timely reminder that truly modern products are often much better than those you thought – until today – were perfectly adequate. The secret, of course, is to pick the new stuff that delivers honest-to-God progress rather than merely refreshing old concepts. This Dyson experience also adds to my regret that Sir James’s electric luxury car never made it: I’m convinced it would have been very special.

*Tuesday*

How much do driving thrills matter? Not much, I’d say, if today’s experience of the four-wheel drive 178bhp Hyundai Tucson is anything to go by. Spent the morning near the Ridge Way in Wiltshire, rushing back and forth for Max Edleston’s (socially distanced) camera, then stopping while he worked on detail pictures. How bizarre it still seems to stand at a roadside while a photographer shoots pictures through the open window of a car he’s avoiding touching.

Still, I have to say I thoroughly enjoyed this car’s awesome competence in every area. It’s responsive but never skittish. Its 1.6-litre four-pot seven-speed dual-clutch powertrain is so refi ned (helped at the extremities of the torque curve by an integrated starter-generator) that there are simply no weak points. Some people get bored by cars that score a lot of 8.5/10s, but I suspect they’re not the ones who pay.

Having said this, when the shutter stopped clicking, I dialled up Sport and bolted the 40 miles home as quickly as law and propriety allowed. It can be fast, the Tucson, and provided you disable the killjoy lane-keeping systems, it’s fun to chuck about a bit. Hyundai SUVs have been steadily acquiring character, and this is the best yet.

*Wednesday*

Is it just me, or are our current societal difficulties making people drive badly? On a short (essential) journey in the Ignis today – yep, it’s still here – I seemed to get tailgated by every ferociously driven van and business saloon going, even though I wasn’t dawdling myself.

Of course, a more generous explanation might put this down to the torque characteristics of the diesel engines that predominate in machines like those behind: whereas oil-burners have copious torque to accelerate effortlessly out of corners or hold speed on gradients, the Ignis needs revs and often a gearchange (part of its charm). But if that procedure costs 5-10mph, following drivers currently seem to see red. Or at least pink.

*Friday*

Looking for an absorbing car-related lockdown pursuit? A wise reader called John Kent, who’s been with us since 1970, has come up with a brilliant idea I wish I’d had the sense to suggest.

Compile a list of every car and motorbike you’ve owned, he suggests, complete with numbers and photos, and stick them in an album or desktop photo file. Don’t forget to record locations, and the identities of the people included. You’ll be amazed how therapeutic it can be, and what memories it’ll bring back. I got so revved by Mr Kent’s idea that I started rummaging about for photos myself and soon found long-lost images of one of our lesser Landies. What has he started?

*And another thing...*

Finally managed a Cotswolds mile or three in crummy conditions in my new (old) Lotus, which I now know well enough to view as a delight. Various tweaks are needed, and I’m going to enjoy making them. This one’s a keeper.

*READ MORE*

*From Esprit to Exige: The highs and lows of Lotus*

*The most dangerous things you can do in a car*

*New 2021 Hyundai Tucson priced from £28,495*