WELCOME to Alex Eckford's Weird World of Wheels.

Each week, we'll be bringing you the essential strangest motoring news from around the world.
This week it's a Friday 13th Special - a round-up of less than lucky drivers who've found themselves in motoring-related pickles.

Don't forget to come back every Friday for your new helping.

Got any stories you think we should feature in the Weird World of Wheels? Send them to us at editorial@autotrader.co.uk.

This week:

F1 engine unluckiness

To break down once in a day should be regarded as unlucky, twice is just painful.

Especially if one of those times is in front of a few hundred million people.

After Michael Schumacher's devastating engine failure in Sunday's Japanese Grand Prix, the German driving machine found himself stranded in Japan for an extra night when one of the engines on his private plane developed a fault.

Two engine failures - one has probably resulted in him losing the last chance he had at retaining his world title, the other resulted in him being a bit late.

F1 shouting unluckiness

Staying on the subject on Formula One, the next story could be considered unlucky, or just fist-bitingly embarrassing.

F1 ace Nick Heidfeld (right) confused Sakon Yamamoto with his compatriot Takuma Sato at the Chinese Grand Prix, shouting obscenities at the understandably bewildered driver.

Angry at Sato for causing a collision which cost him fourth place, Heidfeld jumped out of his car as the race ended, ran over to Yamamoto and began to berate him.

Heidfeld said: "He didn't have a lot of time to respond because I was just furious, I think once or twice he tried to say something but I just didn't let him speak. He acted like he didn't know, which obviously he didn't, and that just made me even more angry."

The BMW driver has since apologised to Yamamoto.

Parking unluckiness

To have your car taken is enough of a kick in the teeth without having to pay to get it back.

When Amy Dudfield's Volkswagen Lupo GTi was taken from outside her house in Gloucester, the 21-year-old spotted the car six times after it was stolen, and repeatedly reported the car's whereabouts to the police.

The police eventually tracked the car down, impounded it and charged Ms Dudfield a storage fee of £150, plus £12 for every day the car was being held.

Ms Dudfield said: "What makes me angry is having to pay them to do their job."

Funeral unluckiness

Funerals are stressful enough without someone nicking your car.

What should have been a quiet, peaceful burial service for 85-year-old Ronald Lane in Worksop, Nottinghamshire was interrupted when thieves took a black Mondeo from the cemetery as mourners stood by the graveside. The car had been used to take pall-bearers and family members to travel to the ceremony.

One of the joyriders was described as being 5ft 9 inches tall with blonde hair, while the other wore a baseball cap. The pair drove down the A57 towards Sheffield.

Mr Lane's daughter Valerie said: "He was a lovely man and I think he would have had a sense of humour about it."

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Got any stories you think we should feature in the Weird World of Wheels? Send them to us at editorial@autotrader.co.uk.

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Read all about the Japanese Grand Prix in Keith Collantine's Trackside.