The Weird World of Wheels

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25 October 2007

Each week, we bring you the strangest auto-related news from around the world.

This week:

Follow the yellow black line

If people have a problem with double yellow lines on their street they’ll usually, begrudgingly, park somewhere else or maybe even write a stern letter to their council or local paper.

But one mystery resident in Cambridge has painted over double yellow lines in their street with black paint.

And, when the council painted them back, the anonymous painter did it again.

Residents of Ravensworth Gardens have complained about the lines since they were introduced this year, as there is no longer a place for locals or visitors to park.

A Cambridgeshire County Council spokesman said: "Someone has painted over the lines and we have told residents that we will be putting them back because legally an order is in place. If the lines are there or not it's still illegal to park there."

Rock rentals

Your driving licence, its paper counterpart and a credit card are what you’ll need to rent a car in this country.

But in some parts of the US, it seems, all you need is a rock of crack.

The University of Alabama has published a study which reveals how cars in the US are regularly hired not with cash, but with rocks of crack cocaine.

One person interviewed for the study said: "That's how we used to ride when we were young. To have a rock rental was like having a brand new car in the neighbourhood."

As you might expect cars loaned by this method are often returned late, causing them to be reported stolen.

One year 400 of the 792 cars reported stolen in one Louisiana town were ‘rock rentals’.

Sow traffic ahead

As all mothers know, when kids decide they’re hungry, they won’t give in until they’ve been fed.

So wherever you are, you’d better stop and feed them.

But feeding them in the middle of the road is probably pushing it.

Dozens of cars were forced to wait this week while a sow fed her nine piglets in the middle of the B3079 in Hampshire.

One driver said: "Local radio even broadcast a warning about the pigs."

Weird Pic of the Week: Suzuki SSC

The Tokyo motor show is a great source of weird and wonderful new designs. Here’s a picture of Suzuki’s SSC (Suzuki Sharing Coach).

Video: Roll with it

It’s not so much the fact this man’s SUV rolls away which makes this video, but the fact the owner doesn’t seem to be bothered about his car’s demise.

Click the play button below to see for yourself.