This week's new car launch from China is...

Update from that. Make than 35kg lost.

Personal post time. Been on a bit of a weight loss regime. Decided to try and get back in better shape. Pleased that I've managed to shed 15kg so far. Nice to get into my suit from a few years ago. A bit snug, but still nice. Picture from last weekend and one taken in early October for comparison.

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 13/365: Lamborghini Urraco P250 Prototipo Lamborghini's attempt an entry-level supercar to rival the Ferrari Dino. The Urraco took three years to develop to launch in 1972. It was powered by a new V8, underpinned by a Dallara chassis and styled by Marcello Gandini.

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 12/365: Chrysler Avenger It's January 1976 and following the government £17m bailout of Chrysler UK, funds were released to facelift the Hillman Avenger. The Chrysler model that duly followed received an Alpine front end, its dashboard and new rear lights.

BMH's entire model range gathered together and photographed in 1966. Somehow zipping Leyland's lineup into this two years later really was an act of industrial näivete...

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 11/365: Audi 50 It's October 1974 and Audi launches the 50, designed to fight the Fiat 127 and Renault 5. Styled by Bertone and powered by new engines it proves to be too good. No wonder, then, it was badge engineered into the VW Polo - and the rest of history.

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 10/365: Dacia 1410 Sport After Dacia and Renault parted ways in 1978, the Romanian firm found itself free to develop its version of the R12. It was renamed and new variations were rolled out. The 1410 was a two-door coupé, which introduced a sleeker look to the range

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 9/365: Austin miniMetro It's October 1980 and The British car to beat the world was finally revealed. The Austin miniMetro was a clever piece of packaging overseen by Spen King and Charles Griffin, offering more room than the substantially longer Fiesta and R5.

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 8/365: Talbot Tagora 2.6 SX Talbot's post Chysler C9 project, styled in Coventry, hastily re-engineered for PSA bits, and unloved by pretty much everyone, did at least have one talent. It smoked from 0-60mph in 7.9 seconds, and chomped through fuel at 18mpg.

Blimey, I had no idea 😁 Does Parkers have one, too?

Didn't take long to spot one in the wild...

BlueSky 365 car press photo Day 7/365: Mercedes-Benz 450 SEL 6.9 When launched in 1975, this was the best car money could buy. With the unstressed V8 developing 286hp and planet-shifting torque, this ballistic plutocrat wagon was a rival to the company Learjet. They're still fabulous to drive today

Go on, then. Which brutalist saloon of the 1970s, built within the Council for Mutual Economic Assistance (ComEcon) nations, are you talking home? Or are you going with an Italian original?

BlueSky 365 press photo of the day 6/365: Lancia Trevi So, it wasn't named after the Roman fountain, Trevi was actually a contraction of 'tre volumi', or three box. It appeared late in the Beta's lifecycle. Can you name the other Beta bodystyles? I have Berlina, Coupe, Spider, HPE and Montecarlo.

Checking out the Argos catalogue for the Atari VCS. I'm guessing late 1982 from the appearance of Defender, Phoenix and Centipede. I won't mention the inclusion of the worst version of Pac-Man ever to grace a CRT. My fave accessory is the naff set of replacement cases designed to look like books

It'll be a classic before you know it...

One of the downsides of living in a house on the side of a wet, remote hill is what happens to the access track when things freeze over. Half a mile of ice road trucking, basically. Not good after six hours of shit on the A14/M6...

BlueSky 365 press photo of the day 5/365: Rover 3500 In the background, British Leyland's new £31m factory in Solihull created especially for the car. It was built with a low-profile single-story design and placed in a man-made valley behind moulded embankments to limit visual clutter for residents

BlueSky 365 press photo of the day 4/365: Fiat 128 3P (and SEAT Sport) The 1976 Fiat is a design classic but bedfellow SEAT's alternative was the striking 124-based RWD 1430 Sport Bocanegra the following year. Aimed at largely the same customers, which one does it for you? (P.S., love her boots!)

Now come on, who doesn't *love* a Fiat Multipla. #weirdcartwitter

I can't wait to try it...

Plus, while I'm on, here's a gratuitous picture of my Peugeot 405 GR Injection. Now I'm off to practice some more lift-off oversteer...

BlueSky 365 press photo of the day 3/365: Citroën AX 14 TZS You all love 205s, but I think I prefer these. Plus, #WeirdCarTwitter factoid - those front quarterlights meant the door pockets were big enough to store a nice full-sized bottle of Côtes de Rhone. That's what I'm talking about, mmm...

BlueSky 365 press photo of the day. 2/365: Alfa Romeo Alfa 90 Replacement for the Type 116 Alfetta. Yes, it had a removable briefcase in the dashboard, but in Italy you could also buy one with a VM turbodiesel instead of the lovely Busso V6. I mean, just because you could doesn't mean you should.

We had a dusting here on the Lancashire fells... #UKSnow

Finally! An image of the Jaguar X360 – the XJ-E, cancelled on the eve of its launch. With hindsight, it's easy to conclude that Jaguar made the right call. BUT, was it really? Now, we have no new Jags on sale, and the firm's EV lead in tatters. Catching up ain't gonna be easy x.com/RikSed/statu...

Time to delve in my collection of press photos. Time for a BlueSky 365 picture thread (some peeps might recognise this from elsewhere) 😜 Day 1/365: Opel GT: pretty little coupe designed by Erhard Schnell and based on Kadett underpinnings, 101,000 were built. GT/J was the entry-level 1.9 model

While I'm here, and as the gatekeeper of all things BL on the web of things (AROnline, remember that?), I thought I'd ask an important question to see who makes up the new (to me) BlueSky audience... What's your favourite BL car? I'll start with this.

Why does my phone make me sound like Professor Stanley Unwin? Whenever I go back and read a social post it's inevitably full of, 'Basic Engly Twenty Fido'

205 followers, thank you all x To mark this, and as an exhaust to get an old Peugeot on my timeline (again), here a picture of a 205 taken at the original launch in Morocco in 1983...

The weather has certainly been interesting this week. Here are the clouds rolling in at Chèz Adams...

Browsing continues. This ticks a few boxes for me - the X150 died before its time IMHO, and in many ways, drives and looks better than the F-Type it sired. Does anyone here have long-term experience, I'm not hearing of too many any serious or unusual issues... www.ebay.co.uk/itm/17663611...

Of course, an RS6 Avant is going to be much more sensible than a saloon with a rattly chain, isn't it... Again, that's so much car for the money. What else does £8500 buy you these days? www.ebay.co.uk/itm/11639189...

Currently thinking very deeply about selling my Audi 80 (B2) and replacing it with something more, you know, special. Was initially thinking of a Jaguar XK (X150), but now I can't get this out of my head at the moment... www.ebay.co.uk/itm/40534182...

This one's getting cleaned to within an inch of its life tomorrow. I feel I've not given it enough attention recently...

Me in 1994. Living in Lancashire, driving a 1991 Peugeot 405. Me in 2024. Living in Lancashire, driving a 1989 Peugeot 405. If I could have seen into the future then...

Oh, hello... #weirdcartwitter

That time I drove a Lada to Ukraine's capital Kyiv, then Pripyat and Chernobyl, before posing outside Reactor Number 4. Like you do. One day I hope to do it all again - keep hoping for better times across Europe. 🇺🇦

Still there. I really need to rescue this ASAFP. #weirdcartwitter

Also, isn't it nice when you can find Majorette cars here in the UK? ❤️❤️❤️❤️

After a long run of long-term EV test cars I'm back in a car with an engine. And I couldn't be happier with the Volvo XC90, especially if it snows up here next week as the clickbaity newspaper articles are threatening. ...Also, I reckon I'm channeling my inner Jeff Green from Curb Your Enthusiasm.

Looking for a car? The way the ad is written says a lot about what you can expect to find... I didn't go with this one. #weirdcartwitter

This Peugeot 405 is an absolute keeper - but I do always say that. But I think I kinda mean it this time. I do. I think. No, it's fab, and just such a peach to drive. It's all in the steering and the balance. Plus I just love looking at the damned thing... #weirdcartwitter