Olivia Learns To Steer Clear Of Trouble - TV Times Magazine

Here's another opportunity to improve your driving and win a high-performance saloon car. This week's wolf-in-sheep's-clothing is the new Ford Escort RS2000, the latest high-performance version of the Escort. And as a special bonus, the winner becomes the Gemini Car Club twin of singer Olivia Newton-John

The Ford Escort RS2000 can certainly qualify for the too hot-to-handle league. So Olivia Newton-John, this week's star driver, was relieved to have the expert assistance of British School of Motoring co-driver Stuart Niland when she drove around the Brands Hatch circuit in Kent. Olivia's B.S.M. high performance lesson concentrated on steering.

Olivia, daughter of a professor, and a regular singer on ITV, eased her new Ford Escort RS2000 into the pits at Brands Hatch and said: That is what I call a powerful car.

Olivia is a self-confessed speed fiend. As a teenager she spent a lot of time among the rip roaring stock-car and hot rod fraternity of Victoria, Australia. Her first car was a Mini 1000; she now owns a BMW, and is very much clued-up on the performance and potential of the Ford Escort range.

They are world leaders in saloon car racing and rallying, which I follow quite closely, she said. But I honestly didn't imagine I'd experience such power. Driving the RS2000 was rather like playing an LP. record at 45r.p.m.

Olivia won't be the only RS2000 driver to be impressed by its performance. It isn't necessary to look too far to discover what has made all the difference between the R$2000 and its little brother, the Escort 1100, although the car is still the same four-seater family saloon, with plenty of luggage space.

The RS2000 isn't just a wolf-in-sheep's-clothing. Compared to the 1100, it's the pack leader masquerading as a day-old lamb!

For a start there's an extra 195cc to play with, which gives 25m.p.h. more top speed. It has more than doubled the acceleration power, too!

Olivia's B.S.M. lesson in high performance driving concentrated on steering and she thought it appropriate in this car. With a livelier than usual car you must get your steering absolutely right or you end up in all kinds of trouble, she said. Simply because you arrive at a corner a little bit more quickly than you anticipated.

I've always changed gear to assist my slowing up, but I've learned that it's easier and cheaper to replace brake linings than a gearbox.

I now realise I concentrated far too much on the immediate job of cornering or overtaking, and didn't myself enough time to think ahead about exactly what to do once I had taken the corner or passed another car.

Co-driver Stuart Niland's report on Olivia Newton-John was: Her mechanical handling of the vehicle was quite good and she showed a good deal of natural flair. But failure to look ahead enough when negotiating corners and bends led to coarse steering. Such drivers have no chance t0 assess road conditions ahead as they are changes very late and leave themselves little time in which to react.

The remedy:

Look further ahead - when cornering you should seek out possible hazards ahead. Don't look where you are, look where you're going. If you don't it leads to steering twitch (of which Olivia was guilty) and an unbalanced car.

Develop anticipation. Don't wait to be forced into action by the the movement of other traffic or changes in the road direction.

There are several other elementary steering points that the B.S.M. stress.

Your hands should generally be at ten-to-two or quarter-three on the wheel. No matter how severe comer or how hard a lock, your hands should always be opposite each other on the wheel, whether high or low. You feed the wheel through your hands; never cross your arms.

Both hands should be on the wheel as much as possible. Don't rest your left hand on the gear lever, it's not going anywhere. The same applies to leaning your right elbow on the driver's door. In an emergency you won't get your right hand on the wheel in time, and you're putting all the weight on your left hand, Doctors say that the direct current of cold air onto a hot body can lead to muscular trouble, too.

If you should find your hands in a crossed-over position, let go with the hand that is over the top and re-position it correctly.

When steering into a right hand corner, the dominant pressure should be with the right hand, i.e. the pulling hand, rather than the pushing hand, and vice versa.

Don't press your thumbs into the rim of the steering wheel. This causes unnecessary strain and stress on the forearm and shoulder muscles.

There are so many good things to remember, said Olivia, particularly about the balance of the car. I've always felt a bit worried when I'm swung about in a passenger sent. But I've never attributed that to the steering ability of the driver I'm with.

I never really had any worries about driving the RS2000, though, even in the wet. It's roadholding and manoeuvrability inspired confidence. And I always worry about skidding, but the brakes, steering and roadholding made me feel like a real race ace. No trouble.

And like the good pop artist she is, Olivia added: I liked the backing, too, She was referring to the well-appointed interior of the RS2000: cloth-trimmed reclining front seats. (with optional built-in head restraints) and loop-pile carpeting.

Olivia's only worry about the R52000 was that, being only 5ft, 6in. tall, she experienced difficulty peering through the windscreen. Because I soon learned that line of vision was vitally important to smooth steering.

By way of compensation, the new Ford doesn't suffer from Olivia's pet motoring hate, one which most other women will echo It's easy getting in and out, she said. So many cars these days, particularly sporty models, make it imperative for a girl to wear trousers all the time, because it is rather like a free peep show if you wear a skirt.

By Dave Lanning

NEXT WEEK: Rachael Heyhoe and the new Morris Marina LSTC.