Overdrive

Hello and welcome to Overdrive, a program that roams through the world of motoring and transport

I'm David Brown

And in this program we look at news stories including:

Road safety measures for Victoria to be fast-tracked after 'horrific' 24 hours on roads; Is urban transport too expensive?; Amazon and UK Government aim for the sky with partnership on drones; Opal data gives customers option to avoid the bus crush; UK university projects shows wireless sensors could improve rail crossing safety; Why women-only ride-sharing services are revolutionary

We chat with media personality Jonathon Coleman about his rather twisted motoring career

We talk about the prevalence of SUVs particularly in the luxury car class and road test the Lexus RX 350.

And in our panel discussion with Brian Smith we take a light-hearted look at stories including:

Nissan uses anthropologist to influence autonomous vehicle design;

Originally aired on 03 September 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

Jonathon (Jono) Coleman is a radio announcer, television personality, writer and performer.

His television broadcasting career started in the late 1970s as a reporter on Simon Townsend's Wonder World.

He's been in movies, television and a lot of radio including over a decade in the UK. He now appears regularly on television station channel 10 in Australia but his love of radio continues with a program each Monday on Community radio station 99.3 FM in Sydney. And you can hear this on the internet just put 99.3 in your search engine.

His motoring career has had its twists and turns including meeting some famous car people

Originally aired on 3 September August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

Overdrive:

Hello and welcome to Overdrive, a program about cars and culture.

And in this program we look at news stories including: the technology features consumers like and those ones they are having trouble with and an English test for taxi drivers in London.

News: Safety Features Score Big, Boosting New-Vehicle Appeal, German towns to test self-driving cars/France gives the go ahead for autonomous vehicle testing/Singapore launches new autonomous vehicle testing center, Real-time traffic updates to be displayed on buses, Self-Driving Cars Rip Up an Industry's Supply Chain, New 'superfast' charger opens Qld highways to electric cars, TfL to introduce £200 written English test for taxi drivers,

We road test the Hyundai Elantra.

And in our panel discussion with Brian Smith we take a light-hearted look at stories including:

New details revealed about self-driving racing cars for Roborace series; Buy This 1,000-Hp Minivan and Dominate the Soccer Practice Parking Lot

Originally aired on 20 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

Quirky News: New details revealed about self-driving racing cars for Roborace series; Buy This 1,000-Hp Minivan and Dominate the Soccer Practice Parking Lot; Beer with no pubs: remote brewers say transport, pourage rights still problems despite growth; American Muslims buy billboard telling IS they 'suck'.

Originally aired on 20 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

Electric vehicles could well be one of the more important developments we take to reduce the impact of pollution on our cities and on the planet.

Overdrive has just been to the Hunter Valley Electric Vehicle Festival 'EVFest' which showcases recent developments and encourages innovative ways to support improvements in electric powered vehicles. And it encourages the young and old to have fun while doing it.

The Electric Vehicle Festival is supported by a range of Hunter organisations and businesses and is led by the Tom Farrell Institute for the Environment at the University of Newcastle.

Dr Garry Ellem is the program manager for future industries at the Tom Farrell Institute and founder of social business and who was among other things the commentator on the two day festival.

Originally aired on 20 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

The small car class in Australia is actually not small. It's more like a small medium sized vehicle. Nonetheless it is the biggest selling category in our market but it is in some difficulties particularly with the booming increasing in sales of SUV encroaching on its space.

So far this year the biggest seller is the Hyundai i30 followed by the Toyota Corolla and then the Mazda 3.

Actually Hyundai would be even more in front except that they separately classify their I30 as a hatchback but, the Elantra sedan is given another, separate model altogether.

The hatch is the far more trendy vehicle outselling its sedan brother by more than twelve to one.

The Elantra starts at $21,500 plus on roads which is about $500 more than the lowest priced hatch but it has a bigger engine

Brent Davison and I have been driving the car and he joins me on the lie to talk about it

Overdrive: News: Vehicle emissions AAA puts top sellers to real-world tests, ‘Show and tell’ from Mercedes, Australian student engineers develop high-speed travel pod system, Electric vehicle charge points to outnumber petrol stations by 2020, say Nissan, Bosch launches shared mobility electric scooter service in Berlin, China's futuristic new 'straddling bus' takes to the streets.

We road test the Mini Convertible.

In our panel discussion with Brian Smith and Errol Smith we take a light-hearted look at stories including:

Most complained-about toilets on Melbourne train network get welcome revamp, Fed-up council seeks to take down Pokémon Go stops, The UK rail network is rubbish because Churchill’s advisor thought we’d all be commuting by air by now.

Originally aired on 13 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

Quirky News: Most complained-about toilets on Melbourne train network get welcome revamp; Fed-up council seeks to take down Pokémon Go stops; The UK rail network is rubbish because Churchill’s advisor thought we’d all be commuting by air by now; Designers and artists are using Mumbai's taxi interiors as a canvas.

Originally aired on 13 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

It's cheaper, got better dynamics, the display screens provide a plethora of images and information but it still carries some tradition from the 60s

I refer to the mini and more particularly the Mini Convertible

In 2000, Rover Group was broken up by BMW, with BMW retaining the Mini brand and the German marque has made a considerable number of variations

The new convertible starts at $37,900 plus on roads which is $4,800 cheaper than the model it replaces.

Brent Davison went to the launch and I have been driving one for a week

Originally aired on 13 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au

Overdrive: News: 1 in 6 Cars on the Road is Recalled but Not Fixed; High-speed rail in south-east Queensland could be legacy of potential 2028 Olympics; Ford, MIT project uses lidar, cameras, to measure pedestrian traffic and predict demand for new, on-demand electric shuttles/How Ford and MIT's Electric Shuttle Experiment Could Improve Ride-Hailing; Rural rail subsidised by up to $4,000 a trip, prompting overhaul call; Electric Corvette sets new land speed record; Koalas tunnels and bridges prove effective on busy roads.

We have an interview with Dr Barry Watson who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Global Road Safety Partnership whose head office is situated in Geneva. Some very interesting opinions on the psychology of road safety.

We road test the Jaguar XF saloon.

And in our panel discussion with Brian Smith and Errol Smith we take a light-hearted look at stories including: Forza Horizon 3: Iconic Holdens join other Aussie classics in latest car announcements

Originally aired on 6 August 2016. For past programs and individual segments visit www.drivenmedia.com.au