The first images have been revealed of a Church of Scotland church made from shipping containers, beer cans and tyres.

The proposed new building in the north of Glasgow, is part of a larger community campus to be owned and built by the people of Milton.

It will be constructed partly from old car tyres, while other parts of the building will be made from straw bales and old shipping containers.

Last year the congregation decided their future lay in a more environmentally-friendly building, as their current place of worship has a massive carbon footprint and an astronomical heating bill of £8,000-a-year.

Members wanted an ecologically-sound new-build church, but were told this would cost millions of pounds. So they now hope to make it themselves with the help of their local community.

The church received a £43,000 grant from the Scottish government’s Climate Challenge Fund to carry out a feasibility study, and these images show their dream and that of their community could soon become a reality.

Already members of the community have collected almost half a tonne of beer and soft drinks cans.
The Rev Christopher Rowe said: “Our new building may be ‘pure rubbish’ but it is also beautiful, we will be taking unwanted things and using them to create something new and exciting.

“It is a win-win-win situation, the community will gain confidence and skills through this project, the congregation and other local groups will get a new home, and the environment will benefit from lower carbon emissions.”

It is hoped that building could commence next summer.

Denna Bowman, Head Office

By Alex Kapadia

A British-built steam supercar, nicknamed the ”fastest kettle in the world”, has broken a 103-year-old world land speed record for steam-powered vehicles.

Sporting Goodyear tyres, the 25ft-long British Steam Car reached an average speed of 139.843mph on two runs over a measured mile at the Edwards Air Force Base in California.

The large tyres and brake discs helped bring the car, which is also kitted out with a parachute, to a halt.

The timing beat the previous record of 127mph set by American Fred Marriott in a Stanley steam car at the Daytona Beach Road Course in 1906.

Mr Marriott’s timing was the longest-standing officially-recognised land speed record but it was beaten by the British team, based in Lymington, Hampshire, with Charles Burnett III at the wheel.

He piloted the car for both runs, reaching a peak speed of 136mph on the first run and 151mph on the second.

Mr Burnett, who is a nephew of Lord Montague of Beaulieu, who made it into the Guinness Book of World Records in 1999 for an offshore water speed record of 137mph, said afterwards: “It is a privilege to be involved with such a talented crew. What we have achieved today is a true testament to British engineering, good teamwork and perseverance.”

Other team members included 48-year-old test driver and father-of-two Don Wales, nephew of the late speed ace Donald Campbell and grandson of Sir Malcolm Campbell.

With the most expensive unleaded petrol now at 116p per litre, many motorists will be dreading next Tuesday’s 2p increase in fuel duty, according to the Times newspaper.

But there are ways of making petrol go further from pumping up your tyres to driving smoothly. Here are Times Money’s tips on how to cut the cost of fuel:

1. Find your cheapest station. Go to www.petrolprices.com to find the cheapest fuel in your area. It covers 9,589 petrol stations and has 8,000 daily updates. The difference between the most expensive and the cheapest price per litre can be more than 15p.

2. Pump up your tyres. Under-inflated tyres create more rolling resistance and so use more fuel. Go to your local petrol station and use their pump – it is normally free.

3. Lose weight. Every extra 50kg will increase your petrol consumption by an average of 2 per cent, according to www.save-petrol.co.uk. So keep all your golf clubs – or anything else littering your boot – at home.

4. Streamline. Roof racks and bicycle carriers create extra wind resistance and so increase fuel consumption. If you do not need it, take it off.

5. Turn off the air-conditioning. It increases your petrol consumption by as much as 10 per cent – so if it is only mildly warm, put the fans on or wind down your window. That said, if you are travelling over 60mph having the window down increases drag which increases your fuel consumption – so air conditioning would be better.

6. Stick to the limits. The faster you go, the more fuel you use. Driving at 70mph uses up to 9 per cent more fuel than at 60mph and up to 15 per cent more than at 50mph, according to the Department of Transport.

7. Change your oil. Clean oil reduces the wear caused by friction of moving engine parts, helping to improve fuel consumption. You should change the oil in a petrol car once a year or every 7,500 miles. For a diesel engine it is recommended you change the oil every 6 months or 3,000 miles.

8. Drive Smoothly. Acceleration and deceleration is what uses most fuel – so try to slow down gradually at lights, avoid heavy braking and try not to rev too much.

9. Avoid rough surfaces. Gravel or heavy dirt surfaces can increase your fuel consumption by up to 30 per cent – not to mention the affect on your paintwork. If there is a route involving smooth tarmac, even if it is slightly longer, then take that.

10. Rather obviously… use your car less. Combine short trips – such as buying the paper, dropping-off the recycling, or collecting the kids – rather than making multiple short trips.

Denna Bowman, Head Office

By Denna Bowman

Motorist should carry out simple checks on their cars, like making sure the tyres are properly inflated, before hitting the roads for one of the busiest Bank Holiday weekends of the year.

TyreSafe is urging drivers to take a few minutes to check that tyres are inflated to the correct pressure to reduce the likelihood of suffering a blowout and help them arrive safely at their destination.

Stuart Jackson, chairman of the tyres safety group, said: “By ensuring that tyres are inflated to the correct pressure before setting off for the Bank Holiday weekend, drivers can significantly reduce the chances of suffering from a blowout which could leave them stranded at the roadside or involved in a serious accident.

For more information about tyre safety, visit www.tyresafe.org.

Top Tips for checking tyre pressures correctly

1. Pressures should be checked at least once a month or before a long journey.
2. Pressures should be checked against the vehicle manufacturer’s recommended level. This can be found in the vehicle handbook and on a plate which is often located inside the fuel filler flap or on the driver’s door sill.
3. Check the pressure when tyres are cold (i.e. when you have travelled less than two miles).
4. If you are carrying a full load of passengers or luggage or will be towing a trailer or caravan, tyre pressures should be increased in line with the vehicle manufacturer’s recommendations.
5. Ensure a reliable and accurate pressure gauge is used.
6. Check the pressure in all four tyres not forgetting to check the spare tyre as well.
7. While checking pressures, give the rest of the tyre a visual inspection. Remove any stones and other objects embedded in the tread. Look out for any bulges, lumps or cuts.
8. If you are unsure on any aspect of tyre pressure or tyre condition take your vehicle to an approved fitting centre and speak to the experts.

By Oliver Hall

Driving instructors are re-routing their lessons to deal with the dangers posed by potholes, according to the AA.

The UK roads are blighted by an estimated 1.5 million potholes which can wreck tyres and damage cars.

But after suffering mishaps from tyres suffering blow-outs to near-accidents caused by swerving, AA Driving School instructors are re-shaping their lessons to avoid the craters in the roads.

Instructors are also teaching specific driving techniques to deal with crumbling roads, according to feedback from the driving school.

In this case, some instructors are adding potholed roads to their routes to train drivers to deal with them.

Incidents reported by a national panel of AA Driving School instructors include tyre blow-outs, like the lesson in Stourbridge where a pupil was shaken by a double blow-out.

In other instances, instructors used dual controls to prevent accidents after pupils swerved towards traffic when trying to avoid potholes.

And one instructor in west London who got out of her car at the end of a lesson, stepped into a pothole and fell to the ground breaking her leg – and was then off work for four months.

The AA estimates that icy weather last winter caused a 40 per cent increase in road damage, pushing the number of potholes in the UK up to 1.5 million.

AA Car Insurance received more than three times as many claims for pothole damage this spring than last – including damage to wheels, suspension and bodywork.

AA President Edmund King says: “All drivers should take care – an innocuous looking puddle may actually be a deep pothole.

“By training new drivers to anticipate and deal with these obstacles we will make our roads safer, preventing accidents and damage to you and your car.”

A tragic story involving a teenager who was killed whilst driving with puncture in one of this tyres has once again highlighted the importance of making sure your car tyres are in good order.

Lee Alan Parlmer, 19, died on December 10 last year, when his Citroen Saxo ploughed into a wall and a telegraph pole in Holywell.

At an inquest into his death yesterday, North Wales Police collision investigation officers said the teenager had been driving with a puncture in one of his tyres.

The tyre was under-inflated by about 45 per cent, and was likely to have been travelling above the 30mph speed limit, which caused him to lose control of the car on a right-hand bend.

Recording a verdict of accidental death, the North East Wales coroner said: “The crucial element in this situation was speed, even though it may not have been overly excessive, and the fact that one of Lee’s tyres was under-inflated.”

It only takes a matter of minutes to check whether your tyres are properly inflated and if there are any signs of damage, like nails or sharp stones stuck in the rubber.

If you do it once every couple of weeks you will be able to recognise a slow puncture and have the tyre repaired or replaced immediately.

Denna Bowman, Head Office

Ross Brawn admits the problems with the their tyres may still come back to haunt them at the Belgium Grand Prix.

The championship leading Brawn team had charged to the top of the leader board, but their title race was derailed after the first seven races when they struggled to get heat into their tyres in Britain, Germany and Hungary.

However, the searing heat during the European Grand Prix in Valencia this weekend saw them return to the top of the podium – only this time it was Rubens Barrichello who claimed their seventh win of the season and not Jenson Button.

But with cooler conditions expected for the Spa race in the Ardennes region of Belgium, Brawn said he could not be sure the tyres issue wouldn’t return.

Asked if there was a risk its situation could revert to how it had been before the summer break, the team boss said: “Yeah, we have got to try (and resolve it).

“It’s a paradox isn’t it: you work most of your time to try and produce a car that’s easy on tyres, makes them last and can do all the normal things.

“And we’ve not got a situation where it’s hurting us and with no testing to go out and scan things, do things, to see what happens in a range of tyre pressures, settings and downforce.

“So there is any number of things in testing you can evaluate and look at, but it’s so difficult over a race weekend.”

While the team had fallen well short of its early-season form in the three races before last weekend, Brawn believes the tyre problem masked the improvements it had been making to the BGP 001 through aerodynamic revisions.

Alex Kapadia, Operations Team

By Denna Bowman

A safety check on second hand cars for sale has revealed that almost half of them were unroadworthy with defects including bald tyres and faulty brake pipes.

Officers from the Pembrokeshire county council’s public protection division carried out a survey of garage forecourt vehicle sales at five garages in July.

Everything from tyres to wiper blades was examined by trading standards officers who checked that the vehicles offered for sale were road worthy and complied with the Road Traffic Act 1988 and the General Product Safety Regulations 2005.

At each garage four or five vehicles were randomly chosen and inspected by an independent vehicle examiner, according to a report in the Tivyside Advertiser.

Out of 21 cars inspected, 10 had defects. Nine vehicles were withdrawn from sale and one had the fault put right while officers were carrying out further checks.

Now the Trading Standards Team has issued guidance to all garages selling cars in the county advising traders of their obligations.

Defects found on cars included: tyres below the legal limit; brake pipes excessively corroded; headlight damage; battery insecure (fire risk); track rod ends worn; CV Gaiters split and leaking; indicators not working; fog lamps not working; front side light bulbs missing; number plate lights not operating; wiper blade with no rubbers.

Several of the garages inspected were under the misapprehension that as long as the vehicles were put in a roadworthy condition once the customer had bought the car they complied with the required legislation, say trading standards officers.

However, vehicles must be in a roadworthy condition before being offered for sale, so that anyone viewing and test driving the vehicle can be assured that it is safe condition and can be legally taken on the road.

By Alex Kapadia

Bridgestone has introduced new recyclable tin weights into its Formula One and GP2 series wheel and tyres balancing process.

The use of tin as balance weights is believed to have a lower environmental impact than the previously utilised lead weights, according to the Japanese tyres manufacturer.

The new procedure got under way at the weekend during the European Grand Prix through the streets of Valencia.

Over the course of a racing season Bridgestone uses almost a tonne of wheel balance weights.

Hiroshi Yasukawa, director of Bridgestone motorsport, said: “Bridgestone’s Environmental Philosophy is to help ensure a healthy environment for current and future generations so we are always looking at ways to reduce our environmental impact.

“Lead weights have been used in Formula One for many years and offered a good technical solution.  However we now believe that we have a more environmentally sound method with tin weights.

“We have also changed our processes as well to enable recycling of all the waste weights after they have been used.

“We are very grateful for the close co-operation of all the teams in assisting us to make this change.” 

Lewis Hamilton refused to blame his team for the pit-stop error which cost him victory at the European Grand Prix.

The world champion had led from pole, but was delayed for several seconds at his second stop as his tyres were not ready, and he had to settle for second place.

He said: “We win and lose together. We had a great team effort to get here, so we can’t take second place for granted, or be disappointed that we didn’t win.”

Meanwhile, team principal Martin Whitmarsh, believes that the error didn’t cost them the race because Barrichello was already too dominant.

He said “Following our all-front-row qualifying result, naturally enough we had very high expectations for today’s race.

“In the event, though, our race pace wasn’t good enough to beat Rubens’s car. We’d adopted a different tyre strategy from many of the front-runners - maybe that was right, maybe that was wrong - but the reality is that we weren’t quick enough to win today.”

Although he was due to pit on Lap 37 of the race, the team went on the radio to tell Hamilton to stay out an extra lap to try to gain a slight advantage over the chasing Barrichello.

But the call was transmitted just a fraction too late and the British driver had already turned down the pit lane. Arriving at his pit box, he thus caught his mechanics on the hop.

“Coming in to the final pitstops, in our efforts to convert a safe second for Lewis into a possible first for him, we took a calculated risk in attempting to reverse the sequence of Lewis’s and Heikki’s pit stops at the last second.

“That last-second decision caused a bit of pit-lane confusion, which probably cost Lewis a couple of seconds overall - but Rubens’s race pace was such that that couple of seconds didn’t make a difference to the outcome of the race. I

“In a nutshell, we decided to take the risk because we knew Rubens had the strategy to win and it was our only chance of attempting to prevent that.”

Although he couldn’t match his win at the Hungaroring last month, Hamilton was still pleased with his second-place finish and delighted to be back on the podium again.

“This is my second podium in a row, and I’m very happy to be here,” he said. “We did the best job we could today.”

Alex Kapadia, Operations Team