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.

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:

The Lotus position

If you're going to get your Lotus Elise serviced, make sure it's not in Orlando, Florida.

Bad things happen to Elises there.

An anonymous owner dropped off his pride and joy at the shop to have it fitted with a new set of tyres.

The owner was very careful to go through the details of how the car should be raised up on the jacks, even showing the mechanics the details in the car's manual.

An hour after leaving he got a call from staff at the store asking him to come back, as there had been an 'accident'.

On his return he found his car almost vertical, having slipped off the service jacks.

The owner said: "They said they read the manual, but not to the point where it spoke about the 4-point lift. After the crash, they continued reading. Yipee for me."

The bottom diffuser, passenger seat area and the front and rear ends were all damaged.

Computer says no

Technology is a great thing, but sometimes it can be counter-productive. Especially when it tells you you don’t exist.

The dark country road Trish Milne broke down on was so remote she couldn't get a signal on her mobile. The 42-year-old mum walked half a mile to the nearest house with her two children, to phone the AA for assistance.

Ms Milne said: "The operator could not find us on their map even when we gave directions. We went back to the car to wait. It was cold, dark and scary."

After two hours the AA called Tony Waites, the owner of the house, to say the road in Denham Bridge, Devon, didn’t exist on any of their maps, and told him to tell Ms Milne they wouldn't be arriving any time soon.

Mr Waites filled Ms Milne's leaking radiator with water so she could get back to her home in nearby Bere Alston.

The AA said: "We apologise unreservedly for the distress caused."

You could be lifted

It's unlucky to get stuck in a lift, but to get a parking ticket after being in a lift is doubly unlucky.

A woman who spent 18 hours in a broken lift - from 8pm to 2pm the following day - received a second slap in the face when she returned to her car to find a £60 fine on her windscreen.

The un-named woman was moving her son's belongings into a block of flats in Liskeard, Cornwall, when the doors of the lift slammed shut behind her.

She was only found when an estate agent, who was conducting a viewing in the tower block the next day, heard her cries for help and called the emergency services.

Her relief at being freed was short lived when she returned to her car…

Video: The slippery slope

This is priceless.

If there's a lesson to be learned here, it's 'don’t try to tow a massive caravan up a steep, slippery road in a Renault 5'.

Click the play button below to start the video.

Missed a previous edition of Weird World of Wheels? Take a look through the archive now.

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