So it's all over - HM government's feeble attempt to rescue our car industry while saving the planet boosted the sales of Korean wheels beyond their wildest dreams, while destroying perfectly good bargain-basement transport and forcing Aston Martin to doll up a dull, dull, dull Toyota iQ.
Now consider Exhibit A above - a mid '70s Honda 500T that managed to be slower, infinitely less cool, and even more unreliable than the CB450 it replaced. Yet here it is on Sidmouth seafront 35 years later, providing some drop-out with his everyday ride.
Compare that with the outrageous-but-true story of a Newbury car dealer who scrapped a 10 year old 23,000 mile Yaris just because elderly polish-it-every-Sunday fancied a new 'un under the scrapage scheme. And these cars really are scrapped - as in "hello crusher" - an idea presumably dreamt by an unemployed IRA negotiator determined these wheels go to the out of reach world where he had to leave his AK-47s. So no breaking 'em for spares, which'll mean more cars become uneconomic to repair,and get scrapped. Car Industry must be laughing crocodile tears at us poor saps. Not that it's cost the taxpayer owt, I hope - after all, there's still 15% VAT on new cars which amounts to pretty much each Government contributed £1,000 pot to take the piss in.
And the next Eco-wheeze? All manufactures to have a maximum average CO2 emission across the range. Manufacturer's of tiny hatchbacks like Fiat can't believe their luck, so run out and buy eco-horrors Chrysler to celebrate. And Aston Martin re brand Toyota's eco-cred laden iQ, ostensibly to give Vanquish owners a city car; the fact that this wheeze almost halves AM's average CO2 emissions apparently hasn't crossed their chairman's Teutonic little mind...
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