Thursday

So... as it turned out, the local Mercedes dealer was keen to sell me a Smart Roadster. Like, really keen. They ended up offering me a stupendous trade-in, and what with a price rise due in a week, it starts to look like I'll barely lose money over another Cooper even if I only keep the thing for six months. So...

Let's just say that my trip to Glasgow next weekend will not be a quick one. Ah, the joys of running in.

Metallic blue and silver, by the way. With the funky three-spoke wheels, and a surprising number of toys inside, including the all-important paddle shifters.

Now: remind me why I always seem to do this when I'm right in the middle of the busiest part of a production? I seem to recall taking delivery of the Mini, then immediately driving to a British Oxygen depot to pick up a cylinder, before driving to Rockingham. Which was a bit of a git, actually - track time going free, but only 300 miles on the clock and a 3500rpm redline.