Driven's The Good Oil looks at a different side of the week in motoring.

It's the season for normal sedate drivers to lose their rag and become absolute maniacs on our roads.

One of New Zealand's few full-time professional motor racers flies very much under the radar. Daniel Bray believes his sport of karting is most of the time regarded as a stepping stone to bigger things.

American-Kiwi Jonathan Allard has proven to be one of the fastest sprint car drivers at WxC Speedway Western Springs this season, but as the old adage states: to finish first, first you must finish.

It's not revolutionary, writes Brian Rudman, but my solution post-weekend traffic hell is cheap and quick. Just clean up faster after a major crash and get us moving again.

Police have defended their handling of a harbour bridge crash which closed three northbound lanes on Saturday, causing traffic jams that crippled the Auckland's transport system.

Last Saturday's traffic ordeal highlighted Auckland's vulnerability to complete and protracted gridlock, writes Chris de Freitas. A single crash can bring the core of the city's transport network to its knees.

David Linklater puts the Ford Focus ST up against the Mazda3 SP22 in a comparison test. Photos / David Linklater

John Key has ruled out an earlier construction date for a second harbour crossing in response to huge traffic jams which brought Auckland roads to a standstill on Saturday.

Fiat Chrysler Automobiles used the skills of Italian NBA champion and player for the San Antonio Spurs, Marco Belinelli, to show 'Racer', one of its industrial robots, how to play basketball.

City leaders question why a crash on the harbour bridge brought Auckland to a standstill. We look at the options for easing congestion if it happened again.

The advocates of residential intensification were doubtless cheered by the Auckland Trotting Club's announcement of a $205 million residential and retailing village at Alexandra Park.