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Of the two Aussie drivers entered in this year’s Indianapolis 500, Will Power was the only one to finish the race, claiming 13th place.

Fellow countryman Ryan Briscoe, who started third, fell out of the race on lap 171 after making contact with Danica Patrick in the pit area. He finished 23rd.

Power had a consistent race, steadily moving up from his 23rd starting spot. By lap 58 he was 17th. Around the half-way mark Power had dropped back a few positions to the 20th spot. He moved back up to 14th by lap 38. With 10 laps to go, Power had moved up one position to 13th, which is where he finished, in the No. 8 Aussie Vineyards – Team Australia car.

“It was a really good day,” Power said. “I was pleased with my progress throughout the day. I was very happy that I finished the race.

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“It felt good to finish,” Power emphasized. “There was a lot of mayhem out there today. Luckily I was able to dodge all the bullets. It turned into a survival test today, especially on the restarts. The restarts were just crazy. When restarts happen and someone checks up, and they’re going three abreast or four abreast into one corner, it gets pretty wild.

“I think we can definitely gain a lot more speed here next year,” Power said. “There is no doubt about that. So we’re going to spend the (rest of the) season developing the car, and come back stronger next year.”

Briscoe’s day did not go as well, as he was having vibrations with his car. He went one lap down around the 40-lap mark. On lap 84 Briscoe did not join the drivers making pit stops. The strategy worked, and he was able to re-claim a spot on the lead lap.

Briscoe then began high-tailing it towards the front, getting as far as eighth place with 38 laps to go.

Less than 10 laps later, however, he found himself totally out of the race after colliding with Patrick on pit row.

“It’s a real shame,” Briscoe said. “I did just see the replay and was able to confirm my thoughts. We’re both out there trying to win the Indy 500 today, and when it’s time to go, we’ve got to go.

“From what I could see there was still plenty of room on the right side, for her (Danica) to get around,” the Team Penske driver said. “There are people pointing fingers, but that’s not the way we are in here. From what I could see there was still plenty of room for her to get around me.

“I’m getting around Wheldon in front of me and still staying in the middle lane, you know, and I got run up the back,” Briscoe said. “It’s a real shame for both of us.

“It was a no-win situation,” he said. “It’s just a real shame. She’s pointing fingers but that’s pretty typical of her, so I don’t have any comments on that.

“I’m not here to get in fights and rumbles,” Briscoe said. “We can sort it out nice and quietly, but I’m sure as soon as she sees the replay she’ll understand that she’s out of line.”

When Briscoe was asked if he saw Danica walking down pit road, he replied. “Yes, I did…”

New Zealand’s Scott Dixon dominated Sunday’s Indianapolis 500 at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, following up his first Indy pole by leading the most laps, 115, and earning his first Indy 500 victory in six starts. Vitor Meira, of Brazil, finished 1.7 seconds behind to take second for the second time since 2005. American Marco Andretti, who led 15 laps, was third.

Fuel, food, interest rates; you name it and its price is going up.

But before you press the panic button, there are many simple ways to save cash. Take your car. You may not have to rush out and buy the cheapest, smallest and most fuel-frugal car just yet.

Instead, you may be able to find a big car that drinks like a small car.

The choices are hybrid (basically, a small petrol engine with an electric motor for assistance); diesel (expensive fuel, but goes a long way); petrol (no need to expand on this one); and LPG (it’s a gas, but it is also rising in price).

Hybrid: A Toyota Prius costs $37,400, about $12,000 more than a similarly sized and equipped Toyota Corolla. But the Prius gets 4.4litres per 100km and expels only 106g of CO2 for each kilometre, while the Corolla gets 7.4 litres per 100km and emits 175g/km CO2. If you drive the Prius 15,000km a year, it will take 18 years to make up its extra price over the Corolla. But you’ll feel greener.

Diesel: A diesel automatic Ford Mondeo is almost as big as a Ford Falcon. Yet, the $37,990 Mondeo gets 7.3 litres per 100km compared with the $39,990 Falcon G6 automatic’s 10.5 litres per 100km. But diesel is about $1.70 a litre and petrol is $1.50 a litre, so at 15,000km a year, the Mondeo will still save you $700 each year, and about half the number of refuelling stops.

Thinking green? The Mondeo emits 197g/km CO2 and the Falcon is 252g/km CO2.

LPG: Though most motorists don’t equate LPG to petrol, unfortunately it suffers the same erratic price movements. It is now in sympathy with petrol and is about 67c a litre. The Federal Government will start taxing LPG from 2011. Though cheaper, LPG is less efficient than petrol and uses up

to 30 per cent more to travel the same distance. LPG conversions get a government rebate, which makes changing over a plausible economy move for long-distance cars. Ford makes dedicated (that is, not dual-fuel) LPG Falcon models that start at $37,890. Canny motorists can buy previous model LPG Falcons at fleet auctions, though you’ll be bidding against some serious taxi owners.

An LPG Falcon gets 15.5 litres per 100km compared with a petrol Falcon’s 10.5 litres per 100km. The LPG Falcon costs $1400 more, so it takes 20 months for pay-back and then the LPG car promises lower future running costs. Emissions are 233g/km CO2 for the LPG and 252g/km for the petrol Falcon. Note that government rebates are not available for factory-fit LPG vehicles.

Petrol: Basically, if you’re not financially blessed to buy a new car, lower your running costs by using the car less. Don’t go out and sell the big family car to buy a small-engined car before doing the sums.

A 10-year-old V8 Holden, for example, is a gas-guzzler at about 16 litres per 100km. It’s probably worth $10,000 as a trade-in. Buying a smaller Holden Astra, for example, to save fuel will mean you have a newer and safer car for $16,000. At $1.50 a litre, you could have bought 10,670 litres to fuel the V8 for `free’ for 67,000km.

 Would you consider buying a hybrid car to beat the oil price rises?

- Herald Sun

With the new customization programme for the recently launched Ford Kuga, Delta4×4 wants to put its well-known amprent also on the kinetic design of the American vehicle.

First of all, the tuning company increased the ground level with 55 cm and added new alloy wheels with diameter ranging from 18 to 22 inch. The 2.0 liter engine, thanks to the new ECU tweaking, develops now 162 hp and 380 Nm of torque. Everything is offered at a price of €34,990 including the price of the manufacturer’s model.

GM needs help. If the General is going to sell a lot of Chevy Volts, it needs them to be affordable, like under $30k. But that’s a tough target to hit when you’ve got those pricey li-ion batteries inside. So, GM knows who to turn to: Congress. But people are willing (very willing) to pay a lot of money for battery-powered transportation. Need proof? Check out this $89,200 eBay sale of a 2001 Toyota Rav4 EV. That much for NiMH batteries? Wow.

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