Classic Bentley under hammer

There is much interest around the world in the auction in Melbourne next Monday of a 1931 Bentley, one of 50 made at the famous Cricklewood plant before W.O. Bentley went into receivership in July of that year and Rolls-Royce stepped in to save the Bentley name.

The 4-litre Bentley and its original H.J. Mulliner saloon coachwork is one of 35 surviving models, five of which are in Australia. Auctioneers Shannons expect the rarest of all W.O. Bentleys to fetch up to A$280,000 ($301,000).

Women buy with the brain

Vauxhall, General Motors' British brand, reckons there will be a 40 per cent increase in female new-car buyers over the next 15 years in Western Europe, and they will become the driving force for expansion in the new car market.

Said Vauxhall's chairman and managing director Kevin Wale: "We are already looking at ways to pilot new selling approaches designed to suit female buyers. Men are full of testosterone when they buy new cars and look forward in most cases to haggling with dealership sales staff. Women are different; they do not want the hard sell. They like to build relationships with the sales staff, think about all their buying options before committing to a purchase. They buy with their brain, not with their heart".

On-the-go entertainment

Computer chip giant Intel Corporation is using the new Land Rover Discovery - to be launched in New Zealand next month - to demonstrate its mobile PC concept designed for on-the-go entertainment. It provides occupants with access to music, movies, and email wherever they may be.

Small car, big sales

Mini has sold its 100,000th car in the United States, two years ahead of forecasts. Mini parent BMW expected to sell 20,000 cars a year in the US when it launched the new model in March 2002. But a car of the year award at the Detroit Motor Show in 2003 - it was the first European model to win the American gong - boosted sales overnight.