If you've got a Saturday afternoon on your hands – and you like watching automotive exotica – the King's Road in Chelsea is a good place to spend time. It's also the spiritual home of the Mini as a 1960's fashion icon and still the UK's fashionista central.

So, in the interests of rigorous market research, I took the Countryman for a mid-afternoon bumble down the Kings Road to see if the target clientele noticed the newest and least mini Mini.

In this job you get to drive a lot of a brand new metal and, aside from the odd exception like the last Skyline GT-R, the man and woman in the street dodn't pay much attention.

The Mini Countryman might not be a supercar, but it caused a wave of pointing and double takes the full length of the King's Road. Quite a few people pulled on their friend's arms to gain their attention and then started an arm waving discussion about the Countryman's design.

It was also funny to see the number of double takes, where people thought they were looking at a typical Mini and then realised that the proportions were wildly different.

Women seemed the most clued up about the Countryman (evidence of pent-up demand for a proper four-seat Mini?) but the type of people who stared ranged from a toff bloke in a lovely Bentley S1 Continental (who stopped his car in the middle if the road for a proper gawp) to a fashionable young women in a full headscarf who stared hard while trying not to look as if she was looking.

I drove on to a street in front of the British Museum and parked the Countryman up for a few hours outside my favourite cafe. The owner of the Camera Cafe owns an original Mini (in Japanese auto, air-con spec) and brought it along, so we could park the two Minis together and watch for passing reaction.

Again, the Countryman got significant attention from passers-by and was snapped by endless camera phones. Again it seemed the women were most enthusiastic, including two local mothers pram-pushing mothers, who immediately identified it as 'the new Mini 4×4'. A posh mum with her teenage daughter got out of her Mini cabrio and declared it 'very smart…much better than the [Clubman] estate.'

I can't say I'd like to do 300 miles on those stylised seats and this Cooper S's ride in broken central London was, at times, unacceptable. But the Countryman offers Golf leg, head and boot room in a much smaller package. The car still has much of the joy de vivre of the three-door and it just feels so damn handy in urban situations.

Based on my rigorous research, the Countryman will be a success. Just loose the jacked up ride height and finesse the suspension tuning.

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Not only will there be a new Concorde agreement governing the commercial rights income distribution from such lucrative areas as television coverage contracts, trackside advertising and corporate hospitality, but also bold new technical rules which will change the Grand Prix landscape for good.

As the teams head for Monza and this coming weekend’s Italian Grand Prix a number of ‘think tanks’ have been set up to consider various propositions. The latest concept is for a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine to become standard.

Couple this with ground effect aerodynamics, a fuel flow limitation and a possible limit of five engineers per season per driver and you’ve got a recipe for the most deep-rooted technical changes since turbocharged engines were introduced first time round in 1977.

How ironic that a technical development which originally occurred by an accident of rule interpretation should now be seen as the sport’s way forward.

Back in 1966, when the 3.0-litre F1 engine regulations were implemented, the FIA was concerned that there would be insufficient new power units to go round. So, as an interim measure, a provision was left in the regulations to allow 1.5-litre supercharged engines to be used.

Nobody took up the option until 1977 when Renault arrived with its exhaust driven turbocharged engine which was nodded through and accepted despite the fact a turbocharger is not a supercharger.

But the distinction was conveniently blurred for the benefit of Renault’s acceptance into the F1 fold, even though Cosworth co-founder Keith Duckworth – the architect of the Ford Cosworth DFV – would bend your ear for half an hour on the iniquity of the turbo on any occasion that you weren’t quick enough to escape. Keith was right, of course, but his mantra was repetitive, to say the least.

Still, at the end of the day, it should be a cheaper solution than high-revving naturally aspirated engines. As Nobuhiko Kawamoto, the legendary engineer who rose to become Honda’s president, once told Bernie Ecclestone “boost is cheaper than revs". From 2013 we should find out whether he was right.

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Every weekend up and down the country there's always car-related stuff to see or do: single make meetings, festivals, autojumbles, you name it. For all that there's surprisingly little going on in London. Which is one of the reasons I pitched up at the new Chelsea AutoLegends show yesterday.

See all the best pics from the Chelsea AutoLegends show

It's at the Royal Hospital (site of the flower show) which is a grand setting but despite this and the advanced publicity I was expecting a low-key event.

What I got though was something on a much grander scale. Masses of exciting road cars (more classic Ferraris and Porsches than you could shake a stick at) and race cars including Le Mans winners.

Le Mans greats of the human kind were there too, as both Richard Attwood and David Piper were featured artists. They were terrific, as was the classic Steve McQueen Le Mans film being played behind them…

The event wasn't perfect and let's face it getting to Chelsea is tricky and pricey if you don't live in the capital. But it was a shining example of why we Brits have such a great car culture.

In fact I wouldn’t be surprised if it ended up being a British version of Pebble Beach, albeit a bit more in touch with ordinary folk than the upscale  Californian event. If you are inside the the M25 I'd put it in the diary for next year…

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Not only will there be a new Concorde agreement governing the commercial rights income distribution from such lucrative areas as television coverage contracts, trackside advertising and corporate hospitality, but also bold new technical rules which will change the Grand Prix landscape for good.

As the teams head for Monza and this coming weekend’s Italian Grand Prix a number of ‘think tanks’ have been set up to consider various propositions. The latest concept is for a 1.6-litre four-cylinder turbocharged engine to become standard.

Couple this with ground effect aerodynamics, a fuel flow limitation and a possible limit of five engineers per season per driver and you’ve got a recipe for the most deep-rooted technical changes since turbocharged engines were introduced first time round in 1977.

How ironic that a technical development which originally occurred by an accident of rule interpretation should now be seen as the sport’s way forward.

Back in 1966, when the 3.0-litre F1 engine regulations were implemented, the FIA was concerned that there would be insufficient new power units to go round. So, as an interim measure, a provision was left in the regulations to allow 1.5-litre supercharged engines to be used.

Nobody took up the option until 1977 when Renault arrived with its exhaust driven turbocharged engine which was nodded through and accepted despite the fact a turbocharger is not a supercharger.

But the distinction was conveniently blurred for the benefit of Renault’s acceptance into the F1 fold, even though Cosworth co-founder Keith Duckworth – the architect of the Ford Cosworth DFV – would bend your ear for half an hour on the iniquity of the turbo on any occasion that you weren’t quick enough to escape. Keith was right, of course, but his mantra was repetitive, to say the least.

Still, at the end of the day, it should be a cheaper solution than high-revving naturally aspirated engines. As Nobuhiko Kawamoto, the legendary engineer who rose to become Honda’s president, once told Bernie Ecclestone “boost is cheaper than revs". From 2013 we should find out whether he was right.

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I would argue that there are some cars which never truly become used. I believe that they miss all the usual stages and go straight to collectible or classic status instead.

I never really see many exotics as used, although a Jaguar always will be very used, then a banger and, if it is very lucky, a classic. A Caterham to me is never really a used car, although the Ferrari 400i went through all the Seven Ages of Car, as far as I could see.

Oh yes, the Seven Ages of Car. Here is my theoretical breakdown as to just how cars get old and all that:

New – Showroom fresh and delivery mileage.

Pre-registered – As above, but there is a name in the V5 and some money missing from the bottom line.

Nearly new – Dealer demos and pretty much most cars under a year old and with less than 10k miles qualify.

Pre-owned – The posh and slightly pretentious car dealer, or perhaps an exotic vehicle will be listed here. Would make a great name for a column, too.

Used – Self-explanatory, I hope.

Banger – The cars I love – all depreciated out, but still full of life.

Classic  – All of a sudden a car crosses that threshold (Morris Ital, anyone?) and suddenly everyone loves them and maybe they start to appreciate in value.

There are of course, exceptions – models that seem to miss out on several stages altogether. So I just wondered whether this Seven Ages theory holds any water and how the cars you love fare on this basis?

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I’m talking about the short circuit at Donington – in other words, not the one that includes the Melbourne loop. And despite what you may think in light of the British GP debacle, the circuit itself is the same as it ever was – even if the Spitfire has been sadly removed from the infield near the Old Hairpin.

Here are the cars. See if you can put them in order of lap time, from fastest to slowest, with yours truly at the wheel on a dry, sunny day:

Renault Megane 250 Cup, Noble M600, Mercedes SLS, Jaguar XJ (supercharged), Ferrari 458, VW Scirocco R, Lotus Elise (entry-level model), Lotus Evora, Porsche 911 GT3 RS, Alpina B5 S.

Anyone who gets it spot on wins a free subscription to the mag for a year – on me.

Good luck.

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And yesterday I returned from an intense briefing on Mazda’s new design philosophy and the unveiling of the stunning Shinari concept car – which is a clear hint at the shape of the all-new, 2012, Mazda 6.

Mazda’s long relationship with Ford is being slowly unwound and the car maker’s finest minds have sat down and thought very long and very hard about how a comparatively small independent company (which makes a varied 1.2 million vehicles per year) can survive in the global market.

I’m convinced that Mazda’s design and engineering teams have cooked up a solution that’s so clever and so brilliantly engineered that the rest of the car industry will look on in admiration.

Mazda’s future is based around just a single scalable steel spaceframe platform, two basic (but completely re-thought) petrol and diesel engine designs, and manual and auto transmissions.

The programme kicks off with a 2.2-litre diesel engine that not only has an low 14:1 compression ratio, but can also meet super-strict Euro 6 pollution regulations without a NOx trap and is even cheaper to build than today’s Euro 5 diesel engines. Hooked up to a six-speed manual ‘box, this engine – when fitted in the next-gen Mazda 6 – promises a CO2 output of just 105g/km. And that’s without any of the clever fuel saving devices fitted to, say, an Efficient Dynamics BMW 3-series.

The new 2.0-litre petrol engine is (unusually in these days of forced induction) normally aspirated and runs an unusually high 14:1 compression ratio. Mazda has been aiming for a beefy torque curve, smooth manners and impressively low consumption.

It has also thought outside the box with the new platform, which makes use of simple box-section pressings under the floor and super-strong ‘ring’ structures for the upper part of the platform. This relatively simple construction will be able to be scaled down to the Mazda 3 and up to the US-market CX-9.

Mazda engineers are also working hard to make the chassis much more in tune with European tastes, tuning out the high-pitch road noise and resonance that the Japanese ear doesn’t find a problem with, and giving the chassis a much firmer and more stable feel at motorway speeds.

Having sampled both engines and both transmissions in the new platform I’d say – even 20 months out from production – that Mazda is a long way towards achieving its goal.

Of course, all this superb effort needs to be clad in an eye-catching skin. Typical contemporary Japanese styling won’t do.

Which is why Mazda showed us the Shinari concept, a very strong hint towards the form of the new Mazda 6.  In the late summer light of Milan, this car was a genuine stunner. The interior (led by an ex-Audi designer) is exceptional, especially the cockpit and switchgear design.

Of course, a production version of  this car would have to have at least a taller glass house and real bumpers. But if Mazda can get near turning this 6 mule into something approaching the Shinari, it will have pulled off an engineering and visual coup.

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Does that make the F430 an inferior car to the 458? Yes, of course it does. Just as well, too, because who wants a new car without any progress? The 458’s double-clutch gearbox especially is a massive step forward over the 430’s rather more conventional robotised manual system, first used by Ferrari in the mid-1990s.

But despite all this, I can’t bring myself to look upon Steve Cropley’s F430 any less favourably. It still goes up the road absurdly well and can comfortably outperform some seriously fast cars, including an Audi R8 V10 we had around here for six months.

There aren’t many cars that can match it for drama or sense of occasion, either. I tagged along to a job involving the new Mercedes SLS in the F430 recently. Even the Gullwing, excellent car though it is, just didn’t quite have the pizzazz of the Ferrari. And you can add quite a few exotic cars to that list.

The upshot is that if you have the wherewithal to buy and run a used F430, you’re still getting a brilliant car. That applies even now the 458 Italia has turned up.

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In a stinging critique of Vettel  – which many felt was fully justified on this occasion – Whitmarsh laid into his team’s rival and at the same time in effect questioned whether the penalty for his serious driving error was sufficient, given the consequences for Button. But to be fair to Whitmarsh, his observations seemed prompted more by frustration than anger on a day when Lewis Hamilton had driven a beautiful Belgian GP to win at Spa for the first time.

"It was not what you would expect to see in F1 – more reminiscent of junior formulae," Whitmarsh said on Sunday after the race. "A drive-through seemed a pretty light punishment to me."

Whitmarsh added that he did not understand why Vettel put himself in such a position on the track as he fought Button – who was struggling with a damaged front wing. "It was a bit of a strange mistake I have to say," he commented. "I realise it was not intentional but it was a pretty strange one really. If he was going for the inside he had three inches to sneak down there, so God knows what he thought he was doing. That was frustrating. But that is motor racing; we've got to move on now."

He added: "He [Vettel] is a nice guy and he didn't need to do it, but when you keep doing these things you have to reflect on what is on your mind on this occasion. It looked like he was trying to go for an inside gap where, as I said, there were a few inches. What he thought he was doing there, I don't know. And he lost it. I would rather he did it with his team-mates rather than do it with us!"

As triple world champion Jackie Stewart added thoughtfully, “It was just a case of youthful exuberance for Vettel getting a bit out of hand.  And a reminder that, even during his third year in F1, there is still much to learn.”

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