Last week I had a ride in the back seat of the new Fiat 500. Now, I agree with all the good things that are being said about the car: it’s a fabulous new creation from the company that has historically made THE best small cars, and it looks truly gorgeous, inside and out. But I have to tell you – after 20 minutes in the cramped back seat, I was desperate to get out. We bumped like a wheelbarrow over every pothole, accompanied by deafening boomy road noise, until my ears hurt and I felt sick. Fab car, crap ride, unbearable booming in the back seat. 

Please, please, please can retro cars at least have the option of skinny, high-profile, retro tyres? Skinny old tyres would also give better mpg. And be safer in snow. And be more fun to drive (what’s the point of massive grip on the public road?). And be cheaper to replace. And so on.