This is the electric version of the Mini Cooper. The hosts are talking about where it’s built, because that can change how expensive it is to sell in different places.
The Mini Countryman is a Mini that’s built like a small SUV, with more room than a regular Mini. The podcast mentions it because they’re talking about where it’s made. That can affect how and when cars are delivered.
Leipzig is a city in Germany where cars are built. The hosts mention it because where a car is made can change how expensive it is to sell under EU rules.
The “Made in the EU Act” sounds like a proposed EU rule meant to encourage cars to be built in Europe. The hosts are saying it could make it more expensive for companies to produce cars outside the EU.
“Rules of origin” are trade rules that decide what counts as the product’s country of origin. If the rules are strict, companies may have to change where they build cars to avoid extra costs.
Aston Martin is a luxury car brand from the UK. Here, they’re talking about a new top executive role that’s mainly about selling more cars and growing the business worldwide.
Lamborghini is a famous Italian supercar brand. In this part of the show, it’s mentioned because the new Aston Martin executive previously worked there.
Audi is a well-known car brand. They mention it here because the hosts are talking about executive changes happening across multiple luxury automakers.
Aston Martin Lagonda is connected to Aston Martin’s Lagonda line of cars. The podcast brings it up because it’s quoting the company’s CEO about something important. That usually means there’s news about what the company plans to do next.
Tax relief means you pay less tax because of something you’re allowed to claim. In this case, it’s linked to claiming mileage when you use your car for work.
It’s a UK tax/work expense rule that pays you a set amount per mile you drive for work. Here they’re saying the rate is 55 pence for each mile you drive, if you qualify.
Lexus is Toyota’s luxury car brand. They’re talking about a new electric-only four-door sedan plan, and saying it’s been paused—this would have been meant to replace the Lexus LS.
“Electric only” means the car would run purely on electricity from a battery. The speaker contrasts it with the LS today, which can be hybrid or even use a V8 engine.
A hybrid uses two kinds of power—usually a petrol engine and an electric motor. The podcast is saying the LS has been offered in hybrid form, unlike the proposed electric-only version.
A V8 is a type of engine with eight cylinders. They’re mentioning it as one of the traditional engine options the Lexus LS has had, before contrasting with an electric-only future plan.
Giga casting is a way to make big car parts in one go instead of assembling many smaller pieces. It can make the car lighter and stiffer, but it has to be done very precisely so the part fits perfectly.
Solid state batteries are a newer type of battery that uses a solid material inside instead of a liquid. They could store more energy and be safer, but they’re still hard to build reliably in large numbers.
“Pushed back” just means the launch date got moved later. The idea is that if the new parts or systems aren’t ready yet, the whole project can’t safely go into production on schedule.
Mass production means making something in large quantities, repeatedly, with the same quality each time. Some new tech works in test cars but still needs time to be reliable when factories start building lots of them.
Concept
untried and untested components, systems, features
They’re saying the car might be delayed because it would use several brand-new parts and features that haven’t been proven yet. If too many things are uncertain at the same time, problems can multiply and slow everything down.
Concept
tool to launch a cluster
This is basically saying the car could be used as a “testbed” to roll out several new technologies together. The point is that Lexus may be cautious about launching too many unproven systems in one go.
This is a proposed U.S. law about updating the car industry. The hosts are saying it could be used to block some companies—especially those tied to certain foreign governments—from selling in the U.S.
Mercedes-Benz is the automaker at the center of the segment’s discussion about potential U.S. sales restrictions. The hosts claim that, under the proposed bill’s wording, Mercedes-Benz could be “kicked out” of the U.S. sales market due to its ownership links to Chinese shareholders and the Chinese government.
Volvo is mentioned as a car company that the hosts say is allowed an exception. They use it to show that the rules might not affect every automaker the same way.
This is another proposed or existing U.S. law about keeping connected car technology secure. The hosts say Volvo can get an exception under it, even though the rules are similar to the modernization bill.
Geely is a Chinese automaker the hosts bring up as part of the ownership chain. They’re using it to explain why Mercedes might be treated as foreign-government-linked under the proposed law.
Li Shufu is a person the hosts mention as a major owner behind Geely. They’re connecting his ownership to why Mercedes-Benz could be affected by the proposed U.S. rules.
The BMW M6 is a powerful, performance-focused BMW. It’s the kind of car that’s built for faster driving and stronger acceleration than a regular BMW. The podcast mentions it because they’re talking about a specific M6 and where it is.
“400 kilowatts” is how strong the charger is. A stronger charger can usually add more energy faster, but your car still has to be able to accept that speed.
“Range” is how far the car can drive on the energy it has. When chargers advertise “up to 100 miles of range,” they’re estimating how much driving distance the added charge could provide under typical test assumptions.
Term
CCS Chathamote
CCS is the charging plug/standard used by many electric cars for fast charging. If your car supports CCS, you can plug in at these stations and charge quickly.
Motorway services are the big stops along the motorway where you can rest and refuel. For electric cars, it matters whether there are enough fast chargers working when lots of people stop at once.
This is a program that connects classic BMW owners with approved dealers. It’s meant to make sure servicing and repairs are handled by people who know how to take care of older cars.
W124 is a Mercedes-Benz model generation. The host is talking about getting the right key for it, and how using the proper dealer/parts route can be simpler than hunting around.
Brake discs are the metal parts the brake pads squeeze to make the car slow down. The host is talking about how much they cost when you buy them through the dealer.
Car
Lotus Amira
The Lotus Amira is a Lotus car that the company is changing. Instead of being fully electric, they’re planning a petrol engine and a hybrid system that can help with range.
“EV version” means a fully electric car. That’s different from a hybrid or a petrol-powered setup, which can use an engine to help power the car or extend driving range.
Horse powertrain is the company (or group) providing the engine and hybrid technology. Lotus is planning to use their powertrain parts in the Amira and Electra.
A twin-turbo V6 is a V6 engine that uses two turbochargers to make more power. The turbos help the engine feel stronger, especially when you accelerate.
This describes an engine type: six cylinders in a V shape, with a displacement around 3.5 liters. It’s the kind of petrol engine the Amira used to be offered with.
That’s a smaller engine: four cylinders with a turbo to make more power. The hosts are saying the Amira used to offer this as an alternative engine choice.
Ferrari Luce is a Ferrari model name being discussed here. The point isn’t just whether it looks good—it’s about whether the car’s branding and story match what Ferrari is known for.
The Genesis GV60 is an electric SUV made by Genesis. It’s designed to look sporty and drive more enthusiast-style than a typical family electric SUV. The podcast mentions it because there are new details about a specific version.
Genesis is a car brand that’s part of Hyundai. The podcast mentions it because they’re talking about a Genesis model and its updates. So “Hyundai Genesis” is basically pointing to the Genesis brand under Hyundai.
The Genesis GV60 Magma is a high-performance electric SUV-coupe from Genesis. It’s meant to be fast—using two electric motors—and it’s priced and timed like a special, sporty version of the GV60.
The Jaguar F-Type is a sports car made by Jaguar. It’s designed to be more exciting to drive than a normal everyday car. The podcast mentions it as part of a wider conversation about different vehicles.
An SUV coupé is basically an SUV with a more sloped, sporty-looking roof. It tries to look more like a stylish car, while still being an SUV underneath.
The drive selector is the control you use to choose what the car should do, like putting it in drive or reverse. On some cars it’s designed to look like a special, premium feature.
Twin motors means the electric car has two electric engines instead of one. That often helps it launch faster and grip better because the power can be split front-to-rear.
The Kia EV6 GT is a faster, sportier EV6. The host is using it as a comparison point for the kind of performance platform the Genesis GV60 Magma is based on.
The Polestar 4 Performance is a sportier version of Polestar’s EV. The host is saying it’s one of the cars the Genesis GV60 Magma will be competing with.
Range is how far an EV can go on one full charge. “Up to 311 miles” is the best-case estimate, and real-world results can be lower depending on how you drive and the weather.
kWh is the size of the EV’s battery—how much energy it can store. A bigger kWh number usually means you can drive farther, but it also depends on how efficiently the car uses that energy.
A restomod is an old car that’s been updated with newer tech or parts. It’s not just a restoration to look original—it’s meant to drive better in today’s world.
Evoluto is a customization shop referenced here as the company that would modify the Ferrari’s appearance. The segment specifically mentions their approach to removing Ferrari badges, which is a common tactic in “debadge” or non-OEM styling builds.
Badges are the little logos and model name stickers/emblems on the car. Removing Ferrari badges means the car won’t visually announce itself as a Ferrari in the same way.
The Mercedes-AMG GT is a sporty Mercedes model. They’re comparing the look of this Ferrari modification to the style of a Mercedes-AMG GT they previously liked.
The Ferrari F355 is a classic Ferrari model with a V8 engine. Here, they’re talking about modifying one so it looks more like older Ferraris, instead of keeping it original.
The Ferrari 288 GTO is an older, very special Ferrari that’s known for being fast and rare. They’re basically saying: if you want the 288 GTO look, you should buy one instead of copying the vibe on another model.
The Mercedes W124 is a classic Mercedes sedan from the late 1980s/early 1990s. The hosts are saying it’s one of those cars that still looks great even after many years.
“Timeless styling” means designing a car so it doesn’t look old or outdated quickly. The hosts connect it to Mercedes design that still looks good years later.
The Lancia Flaminia is an old Italian sports/grand touring car. It’s notable for having its gearbox mounted at the back (a rear transaxle) and a V6 engine that started at 2.5 liters and later grew to 2.8 liters.
A rear transaxle is a drivetrain setup where the transmission is packaged with the differential at the rear of the car. This can improve weight distribution and help handling balance compared with a front-mounted gearbox.
A V6 motor is an engine with six cylinders arranged in a “V” shape, sharing a common crankshaft. It’s a common configuration for smooth, flexible power in grand tourers.
The Chrysler New Yorker is a car model name used by Chrysler for bigger, more comfortable vehicles. The podcast mentions it because there was talk about a possible new model called the “Airflow.” They’re basically discussing what Chrysler could be planning next.
Integrale is the name of Lancia’s high-performance Delta variant, strongly associated with rally success. In this segment, it’s used as a reference point so listeners don’t confuse the 1979 Delta with the later Integrale model.
Term
HF turbo
“HF turbo” refers to a turbocharged high-performance HF (High Fidelity/High Performance) trim used by Lancia on earlier Delta performance models. It’s mentioned here to explain the performance lineage leading up to the Integrale.
The Lancia Delta is a small car from Lancia that’s famous for rally racing. In this part of the show, they’re talking about how one looks with steel wheels and how it was sold under a different name in some countries.
“Steelies” means steel wheels. People sometimes prefer them because they’re tougher and cheaper, or because they give the car a more classic look.
Car
Lancia Saab 600
“Lancia Saab 600” is a name used in some Nordic countries for a version of the Lancia Delta. It’s basically the same kind of car, but sold under a different combined brand name.
Hot Wheels is a toy brand that makes model cars. In this segment, they’re talking about Hot Wheels making buildable car sets with bricks, not just toy cars.
Lego is the famous toy system where you snap bricks together. The hosts are saying that Lego’s special brick connection design is no longer protected by patents, so other toy makers can copy the idea.
Term
IP
IP (intellectual property) refers to legal rights that protect creations like designs, inventions, and brand-specific technology. In this segment, the hosts say expired patents mean competitors aren’t infringing on Lego’s protected brick mechanism anymore.
LIVE
Welcome to the Motoring Podcast, your weekly discussion on Motoring News, this episode
of 688 on Tuesday, the 2nd of June, 2026.
Hello, I'm Alan.
Hello, I'm Andrew.
And this week, you'll hear how some uncertainty hampers the industry.
In new car news, you'll listen to us say, power many times.
And in points of interest, your bank balance may not thank us.
But well, no, not but first, we have no follow-up.
We go straight into news.
I'm so expecting follow-up.
But first, there's no follow-up.
But first, we go into the news.
And I'm going to start with the headline from this
ElectriVe article that is, Mini keeps electric car production out of Oxford for now.
All to do with how BMW announced back in 2023, I think it was, yeah, it's 2023,
how they were going to revamp the Oxford plant and start making electric minis from there.
That was supposed to happen from this year.
And then by the end of 2030, going to be fully electric production.
Funnily enough, with the way things have happened in the world, they're a bit hesitant.
But because it's Britain, there's special extra bonuses on top.
Thanks to Brexit, and I'd forgotten this was going to happen.
But the rules of origin that really comes into focus from the first of January 2027.
And so not many months away now, this got delayed or put off three years in 2024.
And what it'll mean is that there is a 10% tariff on vehicles that are not made 45%
with their components manufactured in the EU or UK.
And for batteries, it's even high, because that's 60%.
But right at the minute, they've made in China.
So I don't really understand how...
I mean, I understand how that excludes both Oxford and China.
They're going to have to change something anyway, because the Eastman,
please don't ask me to describe it.
It's the kind of squary odd thing is completely electric.
And it's all made in Austria.
Yeah. And then the Mini Cooper, the electric Mini Cooper is made in China, isn't it?
Oh, no, pardon me.
The Eastman is made in China.
It's the countryman that's produced in Leipzig, my apologies.
Yeah, the Eastman is a bit like a countryman.
But electric.
Yes.
Unfortunately, the Brexit bonuses are rearing their heads again.
And I haven't noticed anyone in the industry mentioning this and going,
so we're doing something.
But what this article doesn't mention, which I know the industry has been talking
a lot about, is the new proposed Made in the EU Act that the EU really wants to do,
which on top of the rules of origin might be a double whammy, which again,
then makes BMW go, well, this is really becoming financially unacceptable for us.
So do they then actually pull all production?
Well, at the same, hopefully not.
Yeah, of course.
This is my answer to that.
At the same time, many of the rules around food production, some of the export
stuff there has been reharmonized with the EU.
And so an awful lot of the certification and taxation and all of that extra kind
of tariffy stuff has been dropped from quite a lot of fresh food going from
UK to Europe and from Europe to the UK has been relatively quiet on the side.
I'm kind of hopeful, given this precedent, maybe, that this kind of stuff will come back.
Yeah, but BMW have, according to this article, turned down a 60 million pound
government grant.
Yeah, but they're not interested in that because they want the longevity
and the stability and that's just a point in time incentive to stay.
I mean, they're not nisser.
No, no.
But equally, if you are not going, well, we were going to stay anyway, right,
let's take the money and that helps us out.
I think well, they just want some stability.
On the other hand, I wouldn't be surprised if BMW decided to pull all the
many stuff out of the UK, build it all in, I know, the Czech Republic or something
and still plaster the darn things with Union Jack.
Yeah.
That would not surprise me at all, which is nasty, terrible, cynical thing to be
doing. But there we go.
I hope it doesn't come to that.
And I hope that an agreement generally is a wider agreement is going to,
which gives stability to the whole thing rather than all this fluctuating
change of planet.
And this is what happens when you do transformation and change without
doing any planning at all and working out what the impacts are going to be.
It's the same old story that we've been saying for 10 years.
It's just a total not a cluster.
Yeah.
But do expect to start hearing about the rules of origin mentioned much more.
Yes.
But this is your first warning to put it on your bingo card.
Speaking of total clusters, Aston Martin has appointed a new Chief Commercial Officer.
I remember a few weeks ago, we talked about all of the musical chairs that
were going on in Lamborghini and parts of Audi.
Well, we've now found a reason for that.
It's Andrea Baldi, who was the head of Lamborghini.
Previously is now the Chief Commercial Officer at Aston Martin.
Adrian Hallmark, the Chief Executive Officer of Aston Martin Lagonda, said,
according to this MotorTrader.com article by Chesleen Mann,
Andrea is a highly accomplished international leader with deep luxury
automotive expertise and a proven track record of building demand and driving
performance.
And I'm not sure the driving performance refers to the cars.
In this case, I think it's more a case of he's very good at getting people
to make what people want to buy.
And it says, his perspective and experience will be invaluable as we
continue to grow our global presence and deliver sustainable results.
That's what we like.
Sustainable.
I think Aston Martin would almost kill for sustainable results.
I think they would kill for global presence and sustainable results right at the moment.
Yes.
Having asked for money eight times recently.
Baldy, I mean, I'm sure he will be a beneficiary of some of that last set of money.
He's 25 years in the automotive industry, 10 at Joucati and then 15 at
Lamborghini, where he bailed a number of senior leadership roles.
He's going to be shaping Aston Martin's commercial direction that said,
enhancing market presence and driving that sustainable growth.
Good luck.
Yeah, exactly.
Good luck.
It's a tough old marketplace for that.
Yeah.
Okay, some good news.
We didn't spot this last week when we were discussing about what the government
are doing to help out the beleaguered motorist.
Thanks to the rocketing price rise of fuel.
The government has announced that if you use your car for work and you
claim via the mileage scheme at work, then the tax relief amount has gone
up 10p to 55p per mile for the first 10,000 miles in the tax year.
It's been 45p a mile since 2011.
So it's, yeah, it's the first time in 15 years.
It's well due and it's backdated to the start of April 2026, which is for most
companies the start of the financial year.
This important not just for policy consultants, driving to and from client
sites, but also for all sorts of folks, people who drive for work.
So you're every delivery driver.
If you get home care, if someone's receiving home care, then the people using
their own vehicles to go out and deliver that, they can all claim back now at
55p per mile instead of 45p a mile.
That's a good thing, helping offset the rising costs of insurance and fuel.
Yep.
But it's only the up to 10,000 mile rate, by the way.
The others remain the same after that, just to be aware.
Yes.
Do you want to take us on to Toyota?
Well, Toyota, according to work on a number of things, but there's also an
electric drive article that will be linked in the show notes.
They're pausing, they've been reported to a board of plans for an electric
Lexus saloon.
There was going to be a new flagship Lexus saloon that was going to replace
the LS in the range, and it was going to be electric only rather than hybrid
or V8 as the LS has been since the dawn of time.
Now, lots of people say, well, look at this, it's Toyota not doing EVs anymore,
death knell of EVs, American market, et cetera, cetera.
But the more you read into this, the more you realize there's an awful lot
that could go wrong in here, and that it's quite possible that the actual
factor that is electric is not the issue in this.
This saloon was meant to, let's begin at the beginning, was meant to use
a new giga casting process to cast large chunks of the underneath
and the subframe and all of that kind of thing.
And that whole new process, whole new development for that as a result
of this and this new way of building cars, that there was a whole system
around how this new factory was going to work to add flexibility to accommodate
the way that these cars were going to be built instead.
Then we come to the battery technology, which has been highly inferred
that it was meant to be the vehicle that first got the solid state batteries,
which have already been pushed back from this year to into next year.
Is it next year, 2028, late 2026, pushed back to market introduction to mid 2027.
Yes. Well, that's the whole introduction of this LFZC was pushed back then,
but again, solid state batteries as yet not an entirely proven technology
when it in vehicles and in mass production for vehicles.
Let's be clear here that the fact that this is being pushed back is not necessarily
because Lexus doesn't see that there is space in the market for a large
electric saloon car. It's more likely that it's not one or more of these brand new
untried and untested components, systems, features isn't necessarily there.
If more than one of them is a little bit off, the chances are that everything could become
a tool to launch a cluster and Lexus aren't really up for just sticking it together in a tent
out the back. It's not really the way that they work whilst other EV manufacturers might.
You can see why they've paused, if not waited on this while still saying no,
we're still developing these things quite possible that this will make a reappearance
or something similar will make a reappearance if and when these systems are proven to work.
I'm going to take us to America and this time we're going to see what the latest
move in Insanity is and it is that there is an act that is being put forward called the
Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026 and in it there are things that help protect the U.S.
car industry and the U.S. car buying public and obviously the U.S. dealerships.
Everything protects the dealership, nothing protects anything else.
Well, what's happened is through this legislation and this is in the Autopian
that is discussing a CNBC report that states that Mercedes-Benz,
if this market comes into being and is read in the way that it looks like it has been
apparently written then they would be kicked out of the U.S. sales market because they have
a majority or their larger shareholders are from China and the Chinese government is a foreign
what is the particular, a foreign adversary government.
This is a tricky one because this is really the bill that's meant to keep Chinese manufacturers
out of the U.S. For some reason, by the way, Volvo already has an exception here.
They're accepted on the Connected Vehicle Security Act.
But that's also got the same wording in there where it's all about you can't have foreign
adversary government companies putting technology in.
But they get through that because Volvo runs on all the Google stuff.
We guess.
Yes. Well, certainly the front-end is all good. It's Google-based.
Yes, that's why we assume that they get round that because of course the main shareholder and
Geely is the same guy who's got all the shares in Mercedes.
One of the challenges with Mercedes, by the way, is that they have two Chinese
shareholder groups. One is the aforementioned Li Shufu who founded Geely.
The other one is the Chinese automated BAIC which is Chinese, majority Chinese government owned.
The challenge is that whilst either of those groups is below the threshold,
when you add them both together, they're above the threshold that's in this draft bill.
Andrew and I have a couple of competing theories on this.
They could actually be working together.
Which could be working together. I mean, it could be a bit about
mine because I'm an optimist and I generally believe that people and organizations are
incompetent before they're actually evil is that nobody realized this when they were drafting it
and now Mercedes-Benz has caught the crossfire. Andrew, you are a nasty evil cynic. Go on and
put your theories forward. I don't know if everybody remembers but there was a story a few months back
and we covered it on the show where it came out that the American government tried to,
when there was the whole tariffs on European cars and that whole fight started when the first
salvos of tariffs happened that the American government tried to lure Mercedes and tell them
or ask them to set up their new global headquarters in America to which Mercedes went nine and
but we know that this current government are really, really good at holding on
a grudge when they are told no in any way and they wait and wait and then they will
find a way to get back. My theory is that they did know and they're going, haha,
we don't care because the government also doesn't care how many people in the country will lose their
jobs if this happens. Yeah, because of course Mercedes-Benz, by the way, employs about 10,000
people in the US and that's before you get down to the dealerships as well, across two factories
in that well-known lefty leaning state of Alabama. They have significant investment in the US,
significant investment in Republican states in the US and then of course you've got all the
dealers who are the ones who have been doing some significant bankrolling of various Republican
campaigns. Yeah, I don't know. I can see it being any or all of the above. Yeah, yeah, yeah,
depending on who it is that's making a decision or who last spoke to the president or whatever,
but it's a nasty mess. Absolutely. Well, do you want to bring us back to the UK and some good news?
Yeah, Gridsurf has opened a new electric super hub. Their inverted comma is not mine and it's at the
Moto Limb Services on the M6 and it's up around Liverpool, Manchester, away, I'm saying M6 and
M56. Yeah, from the M6 and the M56 you can get to the Limb Services. I'll be honest, it's one that
I don't think I've ever stopped there. I think it's because of where it's positioned, it's one
that I just drive past. Yeah, it's never convenient in my trip for me, but it's good to know it's there
up to 400 kilowatts as well. These 400 kilowatt chargers can, if your vehicle permits, conditions,
et cetera, permitting your mileage very, very blah, blah, blah, and up to 100 miles of range
in less than 10 minutes, which is pretty impressive. There are other chargers there already, the six
existing fast chargers, and they all support CCS Chathamote as well. Another one of these big
grits of outlets. I mean, do you remember when we did charge around Britain, the whole idea of
trying to charge at a motorway services nine years ago was just, let's not do it, it's just not worth
it. Well, that was the hardest thing at the end was after you dropped me off, you trying to get home?
Yeah, and that was down to charge availability. And bearing in mind, at the end of day one, we
turned up at a location that didn't have a charger that we thought it did, but the hardest bit was
Alan trying to get home. Driving down the M6 to get to get home. That was that was the closest
we ever came to a disaster was afterward finished. Yeah, this is good news. More things like this,
please, more facilities like this. Yep, they're going to be sitting with a lot of charges waiting
a lot of the time, but then come those holiday peak travel days. That's when the this kind of
facility really comes into its own. Yeah, absolutely. Totally. I'm going to finish the
end of the first part of the show with even more good news, particularly if you are a BMW owner
and you are a classic BMW owner. There is now being trialled in the UK, the classic partner
program, which is an initiative that guarantees manufacturer approved support for sales servicing
and body repairs of classic models. That saying it's going to give you the same level of care
as if you're taking it back to the factory. Now this is being run at four dealerships across the
UK. You've got Halliwell-Jones in Wilmslow, Sittner-Stevenitch. You've got Group One in
Hallislam, and then you've got Dick Lovett in Bristol. Those were really convenient for me.
I know. Well, Scotland's not the UK. You know that when it comes to anything like this until
we need it to be. But I am surprised there isn't one saying Glasgow or Edinburgh.
Well, no, I'm not whenever I think it's three or actually.
Okay. Is it your favorite group? Okay. Well, no wonder then.
This is really good. If you want to be using factory parts with a factory-trained technician
or BMW-trained technician doing this, like with other car companies who have done something
similar, I feel this adds an extra level to the price someone can ask for if they sell on their
classic car. But the fact that they're going to be selling classic cars as well is interesting.
Yes. That's going to be interesting because you would hope that adds a level of confidence
for the buyer. Oh, absolutely. Oh, well, I saw you remember, I saw around some of the Porsche
facility in Atlanta. Yeah, you'd pay a premium for anything coming out of there, for obvious reason.
Yeah. Stuff either goes there or Stuttgart. That's it. They're the only two in the world.
Very cool. This kind of thing is great. It's also really good for just being able to acquire
parts for your classic car. Stuff like Missages is great for this. When it came to the W124,
I wanted a second key, well, a third key actually, a turn down, a second key for it. I was actually
cheaper and easier going to Missages Benz in Northampton and ordering a genuine Missages Benz
key from there than I would have been just going around to Timbson. And I ended up with a genuine
Missages Benz key cut in Germany and shipped to Northampton for me. I think a lot of us forget
because it's like you found with your Lexus when you went to your local dealer and wanted to get a
service and stuff. Or you wanted some parts, servicing parts and there were ways and means
that it is actually better to go to the main dealer than it is to try and work your way around it.
But the problem is you need the ability to do the research and have the luxury to do the research.
But even then, there's other silly stuff like I was chatting to the performance guy at the Toyota
dealership, the guy that deals with all the GR stuff. And he said, well, the thing is, if you
get a parts price from us for some brake discs, they're going to be X amount. And you think,
oh, it's going to be that plus fitting. I'll never get Toyota to do it. He said, but they've already
costed it all in. He said, very often, it only adds 10 or 15 pounds to the cost of the parts to
get it fitted. And it's fitted by Toyota. He says, ridiculous, you can't just go on the parts price.
You have to go to the service department and to the parts department if you want to compare it like
that. Because it's often, he said, getting us to fit it is actually cheaper. Mad. I don't know,
I haven't tested that one out, but it's worth bearing in mind it's certainly gone me thinking
about it. Should we move on to guilt minute? Let's try that. Guess what I'm going to guilt you into?
It's not the usual. Because on Thursday night, that's Thursday, the 4th of June, 2026,
we're going to be hosting our second live question and answer session on YouTube and
wherever else I decide to click, possibly Facebook and Instagram and everything else as well.
This is the time when we really test out StreamYard, the hosting platform we use.
And we're going to be doing questions and answers there. Many of you have sent them in,
we've got a good old list so far. Do if you have something you'd like to ask us in advance,
if perhaps you can't watch the Q&A live, then do send it by whether a social media manner
you desire or via the contact us page on www.motoringpodcast.com or of course,
we're going to be there. You can wait till the evening. We'll be taking questions as we go along
and feedback as we go along as well. 8pm, Thursday, 4th of June, be there or be...
Don't know. Person who isn't.
Person who isn't, yeah. 8pm, BST, British summertime as well.
Yes. For anyone in Europe. That's GMT plus one.
Sorry, it's a running gag. Those of you who aren't patrons, there is this sort of semi-running gag.
At least from me, I don't know if anybody else has ever found it vaguely amusing as a fact.
I always gave two time zones as to when we were recording, mostly for myself.
Did this start when you happened to be based in the US by any chance?
No, I always did it and gave it in military time in 24 hour clock and with the appropriate time
zone. But then when I was in the US, I would give it in two different time zones as part of it.
So that anybody who was on the Eastern seaboard knew when to join in and when to set their morning
alarm clock. Anyway, Thursday, 8pm, on the YouTube, we will try to remind you many times before then
because many of you missed it last time. We're all upset about it. Cool. New car news then.
Yes. And it's me. Lotus are going to introduce horsepower into the Amira. They are getting
rid of the EV version. I'm quite proud of that. They're getting rid of the EV version of the Amira
and they're going to replace that with a new 536 brake horsepower petrol engine
sourced from horse powertrain. Horse powertrain being the Geely and Renault and Saudi Aramco
joint venture. The hilarious part being that the pronunciation of horse is very, very difficult
with French accent. Horse powertrain, 536 brake horsepower twin turbo v6, the first vehicle
that's going to use this. Now previously, the Amira had two different engines you could have
in it. You could either have a three and a half liter v6 from Toyota, which was a venerable engine,
or you could have a two liter turbocharged four cylinder engine from Mercedes AMG. This
new three liter is going to replace both of those. This engine's probably going to appear in a couple
of future Lotus as well. I'm quite interused by this because to me, this says Lotus is at least
in the short term going back to sort of focusing on what it's really good at.
I agree that I think they've woken up. Yeah, well, I think it's been shaken pretty hard.
And also, major markets like the US and stuff, they can now do this. But worth mentioning that
they're also going to be using horse powertrain's hybrid and range extender technology in the
Electra and Amira models, which are no longer going to be pure electric vehicles.
But this is on the back of the Focus 2030 strategy that they announced last week on the
eve of the Financial Times Future Car Summit, which thankfully I didn't see too much of because
I generally find that it's very similar to what's the tech thing at the beginning of the year
that I've blanked out. Which one? South by South Waste? No, the big tech show that happens in...
Oh, yeah. CES, that's it. CES. Yeah. I find the Financial Times Future Car Summit goes a bit
CES with people making lots of promises. But it's interesting to see how they've talked about this,
they've talked about the, as you said before as well, that the Esprit is due back in 2028.
Hopefully they have woken up and realized that a China, not a China emphasis, but coming with
that perspective only. I don't even think it's to do with cultural perspective, to be honest. I
think it's the same state that Ferrari has made with the Luce. And there's so many, oh God,
LinkedIn and bad Luce takes. Oh, just don't even, don't, don't, just don't. But it's the whole,
actually we've done this new thing, but it's so far from the core of what our organization is
known for. We've not just changed one thing, we've changed like eight things. And as a result,
everyone goes, but that's not a brand. Yeah, there's no story. What I learned last week,
actually, was that as long as you change the badge on a car, then it changes it from being
a bad design to a good design. Oh, a lot of it is to do with the context. That's the thing,
that's the thing with the Luce. It's not that it's bad or anything like that. It's just that it's,
it's just that it's, there is worse out there. It's just that it's, it's, the context is not
correct for it. The vehicle is not right for the context in which the vehicle is being badged and
presented. I would, I would also argue that the thing you have said repeatedly about Lotus that
we've put on here is they never told us the story of why the Amira and the whatever the other one's
called. I've closed the tabs, so I can't remember either. The Electra and the Amira,
why are they Lotus? What makes them Lotus? And we've never had the story told to us of what,
what that is. And I think just quickly, and I'll stop then, but I think Luce did exactly the same.
Yes, yes, it's that because Johnny Ivers told us it's that.
There's no compelling story. Yeah. And as I said, I'm sure it's a lovely to touch.
Anyway, moving on, because we did Luce a lot last week.
And everyone else has done it in between and I'm, I'm kind of sick of it, but I was on LinkedIn
today because reasons and it was, I just was like, no, anything that mentioned it, I'm a scroll past
because this is rubbish. Genesis GV60 Magma, Andrew. Yes. We now have some more details to this. We
did talk about this a while ago. And it is the, the GV60 is their compact isn't quite the right
word. It's like midsize SUV that's a bit sporty in looks. It's an SUV coupé type design at the
inside of it's very lovely. I mean, it's got a, it's got a wonderful crystal ball. It's got great
big balls. Crystal, crystal ball is the drive selector, but the price is going to start from
£76,000. It is going to be able to have 641 brake horsepower. That's £583 foot of torque
from the twin motors. That means you will get from 0 to 62 if conditions and the road allows
when it comes to speed limits in 3.4 seconds. And they're going to go on sale from next month,
that's July. And this is the hot performance element of Genesis, the Magma. Don't forget,
Genesis Magma racing team is going to Le Mans. They have been revealing more of the images of
their vehicles and stuff. And also that I think going to be Le Mans this year, just this season,
they are dropping into certain races to test and get data from. I think it's next season
they are in the full world endurance championship and I can't remember if they're in IMSA or not.
But anyway, it's really exciting watching it. It's got the same underpinnings as the IONIQ 5N
and the Kia EV6 GT. Obviously, it's a bit more plush on the insides because it's Genesis.
They hope it's going to compete with the Polestar 4 Performance, the IXM60 from BMW
and the Porsche McCann Electric. We saw one at SMMT. I didn't drive it.
Looked striking. The orange looks amazing. It looks so much nicer in real life than it does
in the photos that are accompanied this article. Whether it was overcast or whether it was sunny,
I still thought it looked great as well. It's going to have a range of up to 311 miles as well
from the 84 kWh battery. Very cool. Yep, the interior looks good as well.
Now, Alan, I've picked a Resto mod for us to round out on because honestly, I wanted,
after last week, I needed a pallet cleanser where there were cars that were remotely good looking.
This is not it. Well, the base car is good looking. Yeah, if you want. Okay.
So, yes, now we're going to talk about the Ferrari F355 Resto mod by Evoluto.
And I like the Ferrari F355. Everything's a really nice looking car. I think it's tasteful.
I believe it's very easy to live with and to enjoy on a near daily basis. Obviously,
it's a Ferrari, so there was a certain amount of maintenance that's going to go along with that.
And it's classy and it shows that you are a person of taste who wants a Ferrari because it's
a Ferrari and because you might want to drive it and not because it's going to look good outside
the casino. You can then take it to Evoluto who will make it look like an, first of all,
they're not allowed Ferrari badges on it. It immediately looks like a non-brand vehicle in
Grand Theft Auto or one of the sort of cheap racing games out there. And then, yeah, I mean,
what the heck's the point? Frankly, sorry, you don't like the look. I don't understand why it's
got the why it's got crack tacked on it. I don't understand why it needs black bits in the grill.
I don't understand why it needs extra screws. I like the gold wheels on this red example.
Oh, and I also don't like the back. The back is has has been I think it looks like it's been
done by the same person as the Mercedes AMG GT that you loved so much last week.
Oh, that's harsh. I feel that's a bit harsh.
Okay, that's maybe a little bit. You're telling me Callum Designs
is the same as whatever happened in the AMG.
I just don't like it. And I just think it's unnecessary and I'd much rather have a nice
real one. Rather than this spaff, tastic and looking to the retro rest of mud.
What's the point? It's too new to be a rest of mud.
I don't think it looks that bad. However, I agree with you that I feel the F 355
seems a little young to be rest of modded at this point. It's more modified rather than rest of
mod at that point. It says there are now more hints of 288 GTO. So what? It's a 355. If you
want a hints of 288 GTO, buy a 288 GTO because clearly you've already got too much money.
Now, I'm doing an Andrew on this one. I don't like it. Therefore, it's rubbish.
And that's not my first choice of words.
Well, there is a Haggerty article linked in the show notes where you can make up your own mind,
including a video where Henry Cutchpole takes it for a drive. Have a look and see what you think.
Let us know whether you think this is unnecessary if we're going to be polite or whether you think
it's okay. I can almost predict that I am largely in the same ballpark as the majority of our listeners.
Oh, wow. Look at the ego.
It's not ego. It's just they're a bunch of curmudgeonly old sods as well. And I wouldn't
have it any other way. That's why they listen. Can we talk about something really nice now,
please? We're going to start with a lunchtime read also from Haggerty. And this is titled
The Genius of Bruno Sacco. You can see where this is going. And yes, it's a wonderfully well written.
Anyone who's listened to us for any length of time know that we are both
quite fond of a certain Mercedes that begins with W.
That really doesn't narrow it down. Any saloon Mercedes, everyone. But yeah, the 12 fours
are really what you're talking about. The W124s in particular, through personal experiences.
One of the great quotes in here, or one of the bits talking about Sacco is how he was such a
fan of timeless styling. And the quote is a Mercedes must look good even when it's old.
And you've got to say, really, I think he's nailed that. So do have a click on the link in
the show notes, have a read through, it goes through a little bit of his history and stuff.
And then you get a reminder of why Mercedes from a certain era just look as good as they do.
Yes, absolutely. We had a W201, it's a 190E as well, just to bring it back to Mercedes.
Yeah, somebody local's got a 190.
It was nice, but it was no W124. But I can see why you choose one of them.
Anyway, list of the week this week. This is a cracker from classic and sports car.
It is 120 years of Lancia.
2026 marks the 120th anniversary of Lancia, which of course is named after engineer and
racing driver Vincenzo Lancia, who along with his friend and fellow ex-create employee Claudio
Fuguli created their new business on the 27th of November 1906. There is a list of 25 or so.
There's 28 slides.
Well, 28 slides. So it's a list of 27, I think, here of the greatest of Lancia's.
You know, some really important first cars with four-wheel braking, I believe,
something like that. And Monocoques and all sorts of other great stuff
from some of the cars on the list. But Andrew, which one have you chosen?
I'm asking the ladies and gentlemen to move to slide 13, which is the Lancia.
Flaminia, Flaminia. From 1957. The picture itself, the front end of this just looks
absolutely gorgeous. It just looks amazing. It was prefigured by the Florida concept,
which was shown at the Turin two years earlier. But then they had a rear transaxle and a V6 motor
with initially 2.5 litres and then went up to 2.8 in 62. Again, just showing how they're pushing on
with the technological leaps, which we know the car industry did. They did this so well.
They pushed so many boundaries. Other countries did it as well, but they pushed so many boundaries.
And it's just a little bit of a reminder. You know, we got, or the internet got cross about
the Luce and they got cross about the AMG. There was also a Lancia SUV revealed, which apparently
got the internet cross, but it was overshadowed by us being. Yeah. You just go, that's just
re-badged and you've gone Lancia on it. Oh, I saw that. It just hits. It just somehow hits harder
with Lancia. I didn't mind it. There was some talk that it might be the new Chrysler Airflow.
But it could have been from anyone. Oh, it could have been, couldn't it? Because it's
still Antis and this is the whole point of the meeting. It's still Antis and Lancia is no part
of still Antis. They still sell very, very well in Italy. Anyway, sorry, enough of me moaning
about these things and the moving on of time and et cetera, et cetera. It's a lot of moaning tonight.
Which, which slide number have you chosen? I'm just trying to get back to it. The, oh, no,
I've got the motor sink. You've gone too fast. I went was doing so well.
The Lancia Delta from 1979, not the one, not the Integrale that we all think of,
all the HF turbo that came before the Integrale, but the standard straight-air Giorgetto Giorgiaro
Lancia Delta. On Steelies, put the look of it in the picture.
That one is on Steelies. It was also sold as the Lancia Saab 600 in some of the Nordic countries.
There's a fun, useless fact that I'm sure I, I'm sure are listening about.
Friends of my parents had many, many Lancia Delta, many, many Lancia's, but I seem to remember them
always have many, many Lancia Delta's. And despite being quite new, they still had trouble
starting in the cult. I remember, yeah, my dad telling one around with his three series to try
and get it to start. But they were very cool. They've got such nice seats and they've just
looked so good. And there's so many lovely things about them. I just think
Scotland was the wrong place for one. Yes. Really, again, lovely, lovely cars. And when you see them
in there, they're sort of, they're sort of all, all without, without all the lumps added.
You can see just what a nicely proportioned little car it is. Lovely thing. Really like that.
Yep. Really good list. Do check it out. Link in the show notes as ever. That means it is
and finally time. Now I said in the introduction that there was something that you bank balance
may not thank us for. And it is the fact that Hot Wheels is now challenging Lego with the Mattel
brick shop. They have seven classic cars that you can buy and build where there are specific
bricks to build cars. You know, if you know, like the Lego speed companion thing,
which I don't like, sorry. So the whole thing here is that all the patents for bricks that click
together in a certain manner have all now expired. So Lego is people are not infringing on Lego's IP
by making click together bricks anymore. And as a result, they all want a little bit of the click
together brick market, which Lego has really corner. But one of the things that I've always
liked about Lego is you can use your imagination and you can use and it was very much the same
set of bricks that you used for everything. And so I like it when they go out and have
special bricks for special models. Or too many. I know occasionally you have to do it.
It feels a little bit like, why don't you go and buy a model and like an air fix or something?
Well, that's it. I feel that these are cheating. They're like, they're like lazy click together
the air fix stuck it. But you know, they're very cool if you want them.
If you are into this stuff and ignore ignore our grumpiness,
they have got vehicles from Lamborghini, Audi, Toyota, Aston Martin and Chevrolet.
They have the premium elite and speed series building.
I've just said all that, but I've clicked through and I've seen the the Mark 4 Super
and it's really cool. They're quite like they make me want one.
But I also seem to think it looks very good. I mean, it's yeah, it's not pretending to be
Lego and I very much I'm sure there'll be some interoperability. But yeah, it's kind of a cool
car model, I suppose. So I get it. I know I'm a purist and a nerd.
And some of them are, I would say better than others here. But that Super is kind of cool.
$21.59 plus tax in the US. I wonder what that's going to be here.
$25.30. I had a quick look out today just to make sure that it was available over here,
otherwise it feels like a hey, here's this thing you can't have.
And they're about 40 odd quid to 50 quid on Amazon.
Okay, well fair enough.
But then you look at the Lego versions, some of the Lego versions can be spicy.
Yeah, exactly. I'm off looking for that Super already, which I shouldn't be doing.
I should be trying to make sure that we finish up the show before I can do that.
Parish notes. Again, another reminder, Thursday, 4th of June, 8pm, British summer time.
We will be on YouTube. I will set up the stream pretty soon so that you can all
you can all see that and get reminders and all that kind of thing that appears in your
YouTube because of the course you will subscribe to us on YouTube. Yeah.
Don't forget to like and subscribe. Click the bell to be notified of any new
uploads or all of that kind of good thing. Otherwise, I think that's us, isn't it?
Yeah, I think so, yeah.
I think so. Okay. Don't forget to be now next week. You can give us all the feedback and share
your thoughts with the show at motoringpodcast.com on Blue Sky, at Motoring Podcast on Instagram
and Facebook, and on the contact page of www.motoringpodcast.com, the hub of our activities.
Andrew, what's the best way to get in touch with you?
The best way to get in touch with me is if you search for Crackwing Screen on Blue Sky
or under my full name on LinkedIn. And Alan, if people would like to get in
touch with you personally, what is the best way for them to do that?
The best way is probably book Blue Sky, where I'm at AJP Bradley, that's B-I-E-D-L-E-U-Y,
dot bsky, dot social. I'm on LinkedIn as well. More for me. We'll be back very soon.
Until then, I've been Alan Bradley. I've been Andrew Clues.
Add safe motoring.
About this episode
Mini’s electric production plans for Oxford are delayed as Brexit rules of origin and a 10% tariff tied to EU/UK component thresholds come into focus. The hosts connect similar “double whammy” trade pressures to BMW’s potential production shifts, then pivot to luxury leadership changes at Aston Martin and UK mileage tax relief updates. EV and electrification stories continue with Toyota/Lexus pausing an electric LS-style saloon and Lotus moving from pure EVs to Horse powertrain hybrid/range-extender tech.
BMW is still reluctant to actually convert the Oxford Mini plant to enable their electric cars to be built. Thanks to Brexit, from the 1 January 2027, the UK is expected to be hit by the EU’s Rules of Origin after being delayed for three years. Additionally, production costs are increasing at the UK facility. For more on this, click here to read an electrive article.
ASTON MARTIN GET A NEW CCO
Andrea Baldi is the new Chief Commercial Officer of Aston Martin Lagonda Limited. He was previously working for Lamborghini. To read more, click this Motor Trader article link here.
MILEAGE ALLOWANCE INCREASED
If you use your car for work and claim on the mileage driven, then there is some good news as the Government has increased the amount for the first 10,000 miles to 55p. This is backdated to the start of April 2026 too. You can read more by clicking this Money Saving Expert article link here.
TOYOTA SLOW DOWN ELECTRIC ONLY DEVELOPMENT
Toyota are pausing the development of their electric saloon, based on the concept LF-ZC, which was revealed at the end of 2023. The vehicle was to herald the introduction of many new technologies to the production of their cars, such as gigacasting, solid-state batteries and production lines where the vehicles moved themselves. For more on this item, click this link to an electrive article.
MERCEDES COULD BE BANNED FROM US SALES
A proposed US bill, the Motor Vehicle Modernization Act of 2026, if brought into law could ban Mercedes-Benz from building and selling their cars in the US due to the largest shareholder being Chinese and are a foreign adversary Government in the US’s eyes. If you wish to find out more, click this link from The Autopian here.
GRIDSERVE NOW SERVE MOTO LYMM
Gridserve have announced that they have opened an ‘Electric Super Hub’ at the M6 services at Motor Lymm. There are 24 ultra-rapid charging bays, with a potential for 400kW charging. To read more, click this electrive article link here.
UK CLASSIC BMW OWNERS REJOICE
BMW is trialling its Classic Partner Program, in the UK, at four dealerships. This gives manufacturer-approved support for classic BMWs that includes sales, servicing and body repairs. There is no news on if this will be expanded in the future. For more on this, click this link here to a Classic & Sports Car article.
On Thursday 4 June at 20:00 BST, we will be going live with a Q&A on our YouTube channel. We need your help though, send us your automotive and motoring related question you would like to hear us answer. To send one in use our Contact Page, linked to here, and put “Q&A” in the Subject Line so it does not get lost in all the spam, or any other way you can send a question to us.NEW NEW CAR NEWS -Lotus Emira
Lotus has announced that they will be ditching the EV Emira and replacing the powertrain of the combustion engine versions with a V6 hybrid from Horse Powertrain. This will give 536bhp and 516lb ft of torque, more details will be released at a later date. Click this EVO article link here to read more.
Genesis GV60 Magma
Genesis has revealed more information about the GV60 Magma version, that goes on sale next month. Prices start at £75,915 and that gets you an electric SUV with 641bhp, 583lb ft of torque, resulting in a 0-62mph time of 3.4 seconds and a top speed of 164mph from a car with a range up to 311 miles. Click this EV Powered article link to read more.
Ferrari F355 restomod
Some don’t like the looks, some don’t see the point of this as the F355 isn’t that old, yet some think both. This will not be cheap as you need to find a F355 before paying roughly £600,000 depending on your exact taste. Click this Hagerty link here for more.
LUNCHTIME READ: THE GENIUS OF BRUNO SACCO
People look at Mercedes-Benz cars from a certain period of time with great fondness, thanks to how well Sacco designed. His philisophy was that Mercedes’s should look good even when they’re old. Click this link from Hagerty, to read more.
LIST OF THE WEEK: 120 YEARS OF LANCIA
Classic & Sports Car provide the slideshow for you to check out and run through. Do you agree with either of the chaps? Click this link here, then go through the options to see what you would pick.
AND FINALLY: HAS HOT WHEELS GOT LEGO LICKED
Thanks to an expired patent other companies are trying to get a slice of the ‘click bricks together', market. The Mattel Brick Shop currently has seven models available to build at home. Click this Design News article link here.
