A sense both of geography and design…

I fear that Nick Larkin’s geography may have gone a bit awry ( CCW, 16 August) in his BMC/BL Rally report on page 21, because Utrecht is, unsurprisingly, in the province of Utrecht, while Holland (Noord and Zuid), are two provinces of the remaining 11, and all are in the country named Nederland, known to us as The Netherlands.

In the same issue, Paul Wright earned the Letter of the Week award for his observations on car design, but everything, not just cars, is in the era of the hideous. I suspect that this might be because of modern designers’ egos needing persistent massaging and the ignoring of the ‘golden ratio’ of design. Tower blocks are a classic example of this ignorance, which is why they look so revolting, while Italian designers are masters of it, which is why many of that country’s car designs are regarded as ‘classic’, and why we love seeing them in Classic Car Weekly!

A British classic displaying use of the golden ratio could be one from the house of Alvis, say the FV620 Stalwart 6x6 amphibious load carrier; not a car I grant you, but showing that anything can have good design. The dimensions, shapes and proportions are unbeatable, and coupling this with the delicious sound of its bopping, roaring straight-eight petrol engine makes it a perfect, timeless, design and therefore a favourite with all those who are lucky enough to experience one. David Williams, Stamford, Lincolnshire