Trod a tightrope - 9 December 2025
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Company
Zipcar
Zipcar is a company that lets people rent cars for short periods, like a few hours or a day, so you don’t need to own one.
Concept
EV car club pilot
An EV car club pilot is a test program where a community can share electric cars, helping people use clean vehicles without owning one.
Concept
electric HGVs
These are big delivery trucks that run on electricity instead of diesel fuel, helping cut pollution and lower running costs.
Term
hub and spoke model
Think of a wheel: the hub is the center and the spokes are the arms that reach out. In delivery, a big warehouse (hub) sends packages to many smaller locations (spokes).
Concept
middle-mile deliveries
Imagine moving a package from a big city warehouse to a smaller town depot before it goes to the final address. That middle step is called middle‑mile delivery.
Term
rapid charges
Rapid charges are fast ways to recharge an electric car, giving you many miles in just a few minutes.
Company
ABB T360s
ABB T360s is a brand of electric car chargers that can give you more miles quickly, so you don’t have to wait long for a full charge.
Car
Mercedes-Benz GLB (second generation)
The GLB is a small luxury SUV from Mercedes‑Benz that can fit up to seven passengers. The second generation means it’s the newer version of this car.
Car
Mercedes-Benz G-Class
The G-Class is a big, sturdy SUV from Mercedes that can handle rough terrain. It’s famous for its square shape and strong off‑road performance.
Term
hybrid version
A hybrid car uses both a regular gasoline engine and an electric motor to save gas and help the environment.
Term
platform
A platform is like a common set of building blocks that car makers use to create several different cars. It helps them save time and money.
Term
powertrains
Powertrain is the part of a car that makes it move—like the engine, gearbox, and stuff that sends power to the wheels.
Car
Toyota GR GT
The Toyota GR GT is a fast, sporty car made by Toyota. It has a powerful engine and is designed to be fun on the road and at racing events.
Concept
FIA GT3 spec version
FIA GT3 is a racing category where cars are built to specific rules so they can compete fairly against each other. Think of it like a sports league with a rulebook that all teams must follow.
Concept
GT4 categories
GT4 races are for cars that look a lot like the ones you can buy from a dealer, but they’re tuned a bit for racing.
Car
LC500
The LC500 is a special version of the Lamborghini Countach, a famous Italian sports car known for its sharp angles and powerful V12 engine.
Car
BMW M3
The BMW M3 is a special, faster version of the regular 3 Series car. It has a stronger engine and better handling for racing or sporty driving.
Term
hybrid powertrain
A hybrid engine uses both gasoline and electric power to run the car. It helps save gas and cut pollution.
Part
V8
A V8 is a type of engine with eight cylinders that gives the car strong power and good performance.
Brand
Lexus
Lexus makes fancy cars that are usually very comfortable and reliable. They’re the premium brand of Toyota.
Car
Hyundai Crater
The Hyundai Crater is a special prototype car made by the Korean company Hyundai. It has a very unique, futuristic look that looks like it was carved out of a crater. It’s not sold to the public, but shows what Hyundai might do in the future.
Car
Santa Cruz pickup truck
The Santa Cruz is a small car from Chevrolet that looks like a truck but can carry people and cargo. It’s useful for families who want something easy to drive.
Term
XRT
XRT is a special edition of the Chevy Silverado that has sportier looks and better features. It’s like a deluxe version of the truck.
Concept
Hyundai Group Concepts
Hyundai Group Concepts are special prototype cars made by Hyundai to show new ideas for future cars. They help the company decide what features and looks might appear in regular cars later.
Term
pillarless suicide doors
Pillarless suicide doors are a type of car door that swings open from the back and doesn't have a pillar between the front and rear doors. They look cool but need extra support to stay strong.
Part
steel roll cage
A roll cage is a metal frame inside the car that keeps the seats and passengers safe if the car flips over. It’s made of steel tubes welded together.
Term
B pillar
The B pillar is the side part of a car’s frame that sits between the front and back doors. It helps keep the roof from falling in a crash.
Car
Tesla Cybertruck
Tesla’s Cybertruck is a new electric pickup truck with a very sharp, futuristic look. It can carry heavy loads and travel long distances without gasoline.
Concept
pedestrian impact safety
It’s about how cars are built to protect people who walk or bike when they hit a vehicle. Features like softer bumpers and safety tech help keep pedestrians safer.
Brand
Jaguar
Jaguar makes fancy cars that are popular in the UK and around the world. They’re known for good looks and strong engines.
LIVE
Welcome to the motoring podcast, your week's discussion of motoring news. This is episode 661 on Tuesday, the 9th of December 2025. Hello, I'm Alan. Hello, I'm Andrew. And a week where it becomes even more obvious that you dear listener are not listening to those too lazy to come up with their own podcast name. You'll hear us say hello and goodbye a few times. In new car news, you will see one version of a Korean adventure. And in points of interest, you'll possibly want to reconsider one or two cars.
But first, we have some follow-up. And this is all to do with the financial, miscelling, stroke complaints, stroke, they weren't missold, et cetera, et cetera, that we have discussed a few times because the financial conduct authority has now said, instead of it being in July, 2026, when companies need to start paying back customers or dealing properly with the financial miscelling command.
And that was put on pause in 2024. It's now going to be the 31st of May in 2026. So it brought it forward a couple of months. This was a bit of a shock to the motor finance industry. However, they are being given a lot of notice. And the FCA says, come on, you should be able to have it sorted by then.
I think they're actually shocked that the FCA is doing something and actually go, well, no, get on with it, please, because that's not a particular, the FCA type thing to do.
No, they are making it very clear that this is all about ensuring that consumers, and this is quoted in the motor trader article, ensuring consumers receive fair and timely outcomes.
And that, as Alan says, that's remarkable, really.
There's a little bit. There's in fact, any time there's FCA in the headline, though, it still throws me, because I still always expected to be Fiat Crouse Lord.
I know. Yes.
Anyway, it's towards the front end of a month, so that can only mean one thing, Alan.
That's right, everyone. Brace yourselves. It's the November new car registration figures.
Yeah, pop up the volume.
Yes, that's the most exciting thing you can hear for the next few minutes, really, because the new car market's fallen by
1.6% ahead of the budget, including introducing new tax on electric cars.
Now, as a theme through the SMM team wording on this, they're blaming the budget for all of this other than the fact it's November.
The weather's been pretty grim across the whole of the UK, but we're all feeling a bit rubbish.
Christmas is coming. Christmas is coming. We don't really feel we have much money, etc, etc, etc.
Probably more of a factor than Rachel from accounts, right at the moment saying that something's probably going to happen in a couple of years.
Do ending a weather or not, they think they're going to get re-elected.
Lots of big news saying that electric vehicles made up over 50% of the market share they didn't.
Where you see that? That is badly written. It's a lie, Alan. It's a lie.
That's what I wasn't saying. It's electrified vehicles made up just over 50%.
And the industry is, of course, calling on the government to rethink the EVD proposals, which they're saying, well, under mine demands an endangered EV transition.
I'm saying I'm just stupid, poorly thought through, and I'm never going to work if anything like that is implemented.
And to me, that's far more of an issue than frankly anything that is perceived to be indeed during the EV transition.
It's just a really stupid way of doing it.
Overall, total 151,154 new cars were registered last month.
Of those, 43.8% were petrol-powered. That's 66,180.
4.7% were diesel-powered. That's 7,168. That's all.
Hybrid electric vehicles made up 13.1% and that's 19,836.
Battery electric vehicles made up 26.5%, and that's 39,965 vehicles.
And the remainder, remaining 18,05 vehicles, or 11.9% of the market were plug-in hybrid electric vehicles.
And that is just a reminder for those listening. That is only for November 2025.
Yes.
And the changes in percentage-wise are year-on-year.
Yes, so that's November to November everyone.
Because if you look at the market share for the year up to now, then battery electric is at 22. something percent.
Therefore, some way still are away from the requirement of the 25-26% car.
Keep forgetting what it is supposed to be for 2025.
It's 26.4% is where it's standing right at the moment. It's meant to be 28%.
But the market share for the year overall is only 22.8% for battery electric vehicles.
The 26% is just November itself.
Oh, pardon me, you're quite right. Yes, I'm so sorry.
Yeah, that's how easy it is to read it.
Just to be clear, so no one thinks that we're like one of the loons that go anti-battery electric vehicle or anything.
That's an improvement of 4% on last year.
Yeah.
There is an improvement. It is constantly getting better.
It's just, as we always say, it's never been at the rate people expected, stroke required.
Yeah. The thing is, the number of registrations is up 26% to 22.7% market share.
Yeah.
Anyway, sorry. I just derailed us there slightly.
Do you want to tell people who were the people registering allegedly?
Yes, the top models table for November only, not for the whole of 2025 so far.
Number 10 is the Audi A3 with 2114 registrations.
Number 9 is the Mini Mini Cooper with 10 more 2124.
The next out is number 8, the J2 7.
At number 7 is the voxel course, though.
Number 6 is the Volkswagen Golf.
Number 5 is the Volkswagen Throck with 2768.
So as usual, there's very little in this because there are just so many flipping models available in the marketplace.
Yeah.
Number 4 is the Nissan Juke 2835.
Number 3 is the Nissan Keshe Guy with 3400.
So that's the jump of just under 200.
Number 2 is the Kia Sportage with 3649 units registered.
And at number 1, the Ford Puma with 4859 units registered.
Yes, quite a jump.
There's quite a lot of e-pumers have been registered.
I'm sure.
I registered, I said I didn't say salt.
No, I know just that.
I know.
And it does matter for those who complain whenever I point that out and say,
but they're going to the fleet anyway.
Yes, but if people are claiming something is sold when it is not actually sold,
that is once again returning to a theme, that is a lie.
We don't do lies.
A listener's really complaining about that because listeners are generally as nerdy as we are.
Sorry, listeners.
Well, they've heard us go on about it in off time, so they're well-educated.
And obviously gorgeous and intelligent on top of things.
Yes, absolutely.
Should I do the spreadsheet of Doom then?
Yeah, you do the Doomie bit, then I'll do the nicey bit.
Okay.
Our bath is down at 73%.
The Bentley is down at 41%.
BMW is down at 16%.
Put that into context.
Last year.
So in 2024, they registered 10,558.
In 2025, they registered 8,896 in November.
Then we get to DS who've dropped 85%.
Then Fiat drop a 78%.
Honda are down 17%.
Ineos are down at 35%.
Jeep are down 78%.
Then we have Lexus dropping 23%.
Mercedes are dropping 36%.
Again, just to give you context, because these are brands that we all recognize.
In November 2024, that was 8,278.
In 2025, it was only 5,302.
So there's quite a drop.
MG is down 23%.
Mini is down 35%.
Purgeo down 44%.
Porsche down 29%.
Tesla drops 17%.
Other British is 36%.
And other imports also drops 42%.
Okay, Alan, cheer everyone up.
Meanwhile in good news, alpha male up 119%.
To 248 to vehicles registered.
Alping up 548%.
They get the MG award for ridiculous percentages.
214.
I'm sure many of those are powerful versions of the Reno5.
BYD up 233%.
Cooper up 66%.
GWM up 76%.
KGM.
I have no idea who these people are.
The KGM used to be Sun Yong.
Is it, because I always think, oh, GWM is the one with the aura,
and it's imported by international motors, isn't it?
GWM's Chinese KGM is Korean.
Oh, easy for us all to remember.
Oh, yeah.
Oh, Moda.
You know, also Chinese.
100% Polestar, who are Chinese.
100% Reno, who are not Chinese.
17%.
Skywell, I'll let you guess.
27%.
Smart 96.3%.
Subaru, and 19.3%.
Suzuki 81.26%.
Significant rise for Suzuki is always a good thing as far as I'm concerned.
I have no idea why, but I just always feel it's a good thing.
Puts a smile on my face because I want Suzuki to do well.
I know they're never going to be one of the top five when it comes to registrations and things like that.
1,470 vehicles registered by the way.
So not just like 304.
Yeah.
You know, it's, they do a steady trade there.
Suzuki, and that makes me happy.
I think as long as there's a place in the market for a manufacturer like Suzuki,
then I think that that's a sign of something that's quite healthy.
I know that all sounds a bit silly, and I don't know why I feel that.
Well, but they also serve areas of the country that others won't go to.
Yeah.
And I think that's important because it's enabling new cars to people and areas that wouldn't get them otherwise.
Yeah, that's a good point.
That's it.
I'll then to repeat the wise words of my cause.
His statement this month is that even in a fragile market zero emission vehicle uptake continues to rise,
which is exactly what we need.
But the weakest growth for almost two years ahead of government announcing a new tax name is,
should be seen as a wake up call that sustained increase in demand for EVs cannot be taken for granted.
We should be taking every opportunity to encourage drivers to make switch,
not punish them for doing so else the ambitions of the government and industry will be sorted.
Make more affordable cars.
There's your simple answer.
Yeah.
Don't get anywhere near the ridiculous new luxury car tax.
Bishbosh, bish, job done.
Everybody's happy.
There we go.
The world is cruelty to close.
I've fixed it all.
It's so easy for here.
Yeah.
It's okay.
Right, I'm going to move us on now.
And I am going to take us on to the fact that Voxel has lost their managing director,
Steve Katlin, who was only in place for eight months.
He has now left due to quote personal reasons.
And the head of Stellantis UK,
that the managing director.
Uric Drew has stepped in and four.
I don't know if this is a temporary thing or whether this is permanent,
but we'll be doing the role of managing director for Voxel along.
He's current responsibilities for Stellantis UK.
Yeah.
This.
There have been a lot of musical chairs that Stellantis in the UK reached over the last few months.
Well, Stellantis will stop because they've got a new head honcho.
Well, the problem was whilst they were looking for a head honcho,
they did a whole load of appointments at senior level,
both locally and internationally.
And then the new boss came in and went,
tatty by everyone,
I'm putting my own people that I want in these positions.
And it's not a surprise,
but it does feel like it's been an awful waste of time and money by a lot of people.
Yes, I wonder how this is all feeling from inside the companies,
because you know, it does bring quite a lot of instability.
This is a thing that's struggling as well as a company,
internationally and in local markets.
I mean, okay, we could see there's some growth in November.
We've just gone through some of those companies,
but they're not exploding and taking the market by storm.
And they do have some good products as well.
I mean, we found that when we were at SMMT,
we were surprised Voxel's Grandland,
because we hadn't been anywhere near a Voxel for ages,
so we didn't know what to expect.
And okay, it was a 10-minute drive, but it felt really good.
And I've heard from other people who I respect chatting to them,
and they said, no, really good vehicles.
So they do have some products there that are working.
I've said before that Voxel's biggest problem is the veg Voxel on it.
That's the biggest problem Voxel have is the fact
and that they keep on reusing the same moniker.
Whereas some things are well passed the day.
People need to move on from the idea of a Voxel Corsa.
I hope the new head honcho calls several brands
just to streamline what they offer,
because until they do that, they're just fighting each other
in a lot of markets over the same customer.
I don't like that, because I think there should be choices
and all the little flavors and nuances that they give you.
But I also agree with you.
Because it's just too much, and then they fight with each other.
Everybody doesn't know what they're doing, so they go off and buy something different.
Yeah.
I would say they go off and buy it forward, but they don't.
Not in Europe.
No.
And maybe we'll come to that more about that next week,
because I think in discussing that, we will discuss Stellantis as well
and their approach to certain things.
As ever, we hope Voxel continue to fight the good fight in this country
or if they're called open at any point.
And good luck to everybody involved.
We're about to talk about Zipcar.
And the fact that it is considering closing its UK business.
It pours bookings in London, which is the only city
in which they still operate, previously operated in Bristol Cambridge
and Oxford as well.
And Zipcar, if you don't know, they have a fleet of vans and cars,
which if you are signed up for their car club, you can access.
I think it's with a card.
It might be with your phone now, but it used to be with a card
that you can access and drive.
And then the EVs you just plug them back in again
and the petrol powered ones you had to top them up.
But you could get in drive pay for the time you used the car
and then return it to a Zipcar bay.
Sometimes where you got it from, others in just whichever Zipcar bay
is convenient for you at that moment.
For the 2024 calendar year,
they posted an £11.7 million loss in the accounts they filed.
In 2023, they posted a £364,000 loss.
There's a bit of a difference between those two numbers.
The mounting losses were put down to high electricity price,
the size of the electric fleet, in fact, fuel costs were included
in the cost of the rental.
And then they also set the resale market values continued
to be challenging, which drove higher costs as well.
That's something we have talked about again on the show,
many, many times because there are some out there
who profess to be thought leaders, etc.
Saying, oh, it's brilliant for the next buyer
that the electric car has depreciated far, far more than
was anticipated, let alone hoped.
And used to go, that's such a one-dimensional view on these things,
someone takes the hit and we can see it here.
We can see it in the numbers directly.
What happens is a company then goes, you know what?
We're going to have to fold because we can't afford to continue doing business.
I really wish more out there would understand this
because the electric car grant is not going to help,
is actually going to make this worse.
Electric car grant is an immediate, however much it is this week,
of depreciation straight away.
Yeah.
And that's across the whole of new cars on offer
because those who aren't eligible are now offering the discount as well.
Yeah.
So if you bought the car at the end of June beginning in July before this came in,
you've lost so much more than you thought you were already.
Yeah, and this is a real problem for the renticums
because they previously were able to get to make a pretty good stab
at what vehicle was going to be worth at the end of its time with them.
And so that they could predict it.
And then that reflected back in the rental prices.
Whereas with the EVs, it was way worse than was expected.
And that has had a significant hit on their balance sheet,
a really significant hit on the balance sheet because at the same time they can't
put the rentals up, crazy amounts, all people aren't going to rent from them.
And you know, it's a whole cycle.
Yeah.
It's a vicious, vicious cycle.
And so it's a real shame because again,
they schemes like this, they're meant to enable people to say,
well, actually, you know, there's a few times a year I need a car that I'll just use
a zip car or that once or twice a week to just go do my shopping.
And they don't have to worry about having a parking permit.
I don't have to worry about any of these things.
But when I'm going to IKEA, then I'll just take a zip car
if I'm going to wherever I'll take a zip car.
Yeah.
If you live in London where there are more people who don't own a car than do,
I can see the sense, particularly for not a car person as well,
you just, I need a particular type of transport to fill this need now.
It does sound really attractive.
However, for the likes of us and our listeners,
we don't want to share with anyone.
We don't.
Even then, you rent space for a friend who lives outside London and then when we need a car,
you choose a zip car.
That kind of things were worth considering.
There is, of course, the flip side, which was that people don't like sharing.
And some people who you have to share with are not that great.
And they don't leave the cars very clean.
And all these kind of things were not going to affect.
I mean, French friends who had to utterly pass his in Paris and just the state of some of them.
So it was just a point of brilliant.
It was a great service.
But you can see why it folded.
But it's different reasons for a zip car.
Yeah, absolutely.
You know, there's fewer people making homes in zip cars.
Yes.
But another thing, and I haven't had a chance to look this up,
but I've got a vague memory of a one particular council in London,
binned their fleet,
or a large portion of their fleet and went all in with the zip car.
Now, after the 31st of December this year,
that no vehicles are leaving the zip car fleet for the public use.
That council has got a couple of weeks to source an alternative
if I've remembered correctly.
I can't really see.
I can't see anything like that.
I love to dig hard,
but I'm almost certain there was one council that went,
oh, this is great.
And again, if you're a council, it sounds it on paper,
but you're putting an awful lot of eggs into the basket of,
let's hope this start-up works.
It might be in Hackney Council.
They launched an EV car club pilot.
They launched a pilot car sharing programming partnership with zip car,
and this is charging.
And members of it would have access to 50 EVs from zip cars
with 70 on street fast chargers.
That might have been it.
That was from me this year.
Oh, there was one other thing that we didn't mention,
and that's across the changes to the congestion zone.
Oh, yes.
Chargers and this contestant zone,
and those also have been a significant operational hit
because they need to basically be paid every day,
apart from certain zip cars,
which were tied to certain parking spots
within the congestion zone,
and were therefore congestion zone exempt.
Other than that,
they were spending an awful lot of money on the congestion zone.
But that's coming in in the second of January, 2026.
The removal of the EV won.
The ICE still had to pay that.
But yeah, because it's been so long since we discussed it.
Second of January, 2026,
EVs will now pay the congestion charge for London Central Zone.
More electrification news, though.
The B network.
Yes.
Should I know who the B network are?
The B network is the bus network for greater Manchester.
And we have to discuss.
They're all yellow and black, everyone.
Yes, they are.
It does tie in and it's easy to recognize.
But transport for greater Manchester TFGM brackets.
Yes.
I get the feeling that greater Manchester is trying to ape London
in many, many ways.
Desperately trying to get ape London,
and it's leadership has been trying to do so for some time.
Yes, absolutely.
However, what they are doing is they have approved 65 million pounds
to X, and this is quoted in the sustainable bus article
that we have linked in the show notes,
to accelerate the transition of its public transport system
towards zero emission.
59.1 million is going on to increase the number of electric buses
so they're going to have an extra 220,
which is roughly 13% of their fleet.
And then there is going to be 5.7 million spent on a project
to push forward the tram train development
on the Oldham Rothschild Haywood Burry corridor.
That's not a lot of things, but in there.
The new buses are expected to come on stream by late 2026.
They've already got 350 electric buses
around the Greater Manchester area.
And the Greater Manchester area is really quite large.
And I hope for this to increase
because recently I did see a B network bus.
Unfortunately, it was spewing out a horrific amount of smoke
from its exhaust pipe.
It was like, you know, if you could make that one electric,
that would be really cool.
I see that they have done the free bus network
that's in the centre of Manchester.
Then I see that they've already replaced the elderly diesel vehicles
that have been doing that run for quite some time
out with 12 new EV buses.
Let's not forget, Greater Manchester is also the first region
that was looking at a clean air zone that then said,
no, actually, we can do this without charging people.
And it seems to be moving a pace towards having clean air
without the taxation by encouraging rather than hitting with the stick.
Yeah, I think that's fair comment.
Also on the road to electrification,
but don't jish.
A Royal Mail is introducing a new fleet of electric HGVs.
It's going to be running then between its Midlands
and Northwest parcel hubs to say here
that the vehicles will operate 24 hours a day handling
middle-mile deliveries between hubs and mail centres.
So yeah, hub and spoke model.
I'm certainly perfect for running EVs.
They are dafts, whatever's replaced the CF model.
Dafts, that's the not the biggest one.
It's the middle sized one.
And they're electric versions of those.
They've been installing rapid charges,
ABB T360s for the charges spotters out there.
They give around 60 miles of range in a few and 15 minutes.
I was given that information.
I thought, why am I who cares?
Oh, they, not only in Unrux,
but they have special rubber wellies just in case as well.
Exactly.
And the gloves.
We're going back to that GC record again, aren't we?
Yes.
The eight vehicles.
The eight vehicles are set to cut about a thousand tons of CO2 annually.
This comes on top of 7,000 vans that they already have out there.
Plus some of the new sort of compact electric vehicle things,
which are replacing vans in parts of London.
I can't think, I can't find them word in the article.
Yes, some of them are like electrified cargo bikes
with cargo bikes and stuff like that.
It's not a bicycle.
It's not a motor vehicle.
It's that gray area in between.
It's a sort of electric assisted bicycle or the assisted trolley
is another fatal one.
We've ever seen that.
You see those in Switzerland and stuff.
But yeah, they've got the biggest electric vehicle fleet in the UK.
I was a microelectric vehicle.
That's what it is.
A mev.
Wasn't that a particular Mitsubishi brand
that we saw on charging around Britain?
That was the i-man.
Yes.
Well, talking of great ideas,
but it does also feel quite sad that this sort of thing
still needs to happen in 2025.
Yeah.
But a Rigel group who are a franchise car dealership group
has launched a women in automotive journal.
Now this is a new initiative designed as it is quoted
and motivated here to inspire, inform, and empower women
and girls to pursue careers within the automotive industry.
Still, there is many that do not realize there are so many
opportunities in the automotive that is obviously obviously
it feels like you need to say,
but you shouldn't need to say, but we still need to say
that women and girls can do just as well as a man can.
And this is in this journal,
they have talked to people within their own group,
women within their own group, giving advice,
and real-life stories,
as well as some partners that they've worked with,
including Ben, that's the automotive charity,
as well as motor trader themselves,
helping to show all the possible opportunities out there
and how so many women have found it rewarding careers
within automotive.
Fantastic initiative, brilliant thing.
Like I said, such a shame, we still have to do this sort of thing,
but it's great to see such a positive way
of trying to portray it and a positive way
to encourage people or women and girls
to enter the motoring world, because it is,
I mean, we think it's fabulous,
because we've talked about it for 10 years.
Yeah, there's quite interesting,
that article that's linked to motor trader
is saying that most of the people,
most of the women who work in the motor trade
just so they can fail into it,
it wasn't really the plan,
and they just kind of happened.
Well, that brings us to Guilt Minute,
Quick Break in the Show,
where we asked for Tata Financial Support,
the lights on, and the hosting, running.
If you feel the motoring poll gasses
are a small consideration every month,
then you can become a patron,
different laws of patron,
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Yes, tweaking upwards most of the way.
Yes.
Anyway, that brings us on to new car news.
And Alan, do you want to take us on to
a Mercedes that seems,
I don't know,
like it is a three-pointed star fetish thing.
It is.
It really is.
Now, there we are back to the Jeep Recorder again.
Yes, there's a,
it says unveiled the all-new GLB.
It's a second generation GLB.
And it is the upright seven-seater SUV
buddy of the CLA.
My first challenge,
I have a number of challenges with this week.
My first one is the name,
which I just think is ugly.
Yeah, I don't understand what the,
obviously the G is tied
in with the wagon.
Offway wagon.
But I don't,
I've never understood what the two letters
after depending on which.
Well, be as, be as the size
and L is just saying that it's...
I mean, something German,
obviously isn't it?
Yeah, I just,
yeah.
Well, at least we looked,
which was light.
You see, that's where it was in CLK.
But that's,
which is very caring for.
But anyway,
I have to say before you continue on with the challenges,
with the previous model
and this one apart from the front end,
if you,
but if you're looking,
so I think that that's the best-looking SUV
that Mercedes make.
I like the overall shape of it,
apart from the G-wagon.
I love the G-wagon,
but that's a historic thing,
although now it's been
vejazzled,
so it's quite silly.
Well, they're all being vejazzled.
You can get a G
400 diesel.
Can you?
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
It's about the same as a small flat,
but yeah, they had one sitting outside,
but it was,
it was unblinked,
it was not rap.
Okay.
It was not rapist spec.
It's however,
it's trying very hard to be rapist spec.
It has,
just some,
all right.
First of all,
these, as Andrew said,
three-pointer star fetish.
Or second of all,
because first of all,
the fact is that it's got a really ugly name,
the glove.
The three-pointer stars throughout the grill
are like running lights.
They're real lights.
Just about everything.
The real lights,
it's all just a wee bit much, folks.
Yeah.
You say that.
But if we're going to talk about
the wee bit worse,
there is worse.
There are worse,
but you know,
a wee bit much is the,
are the two screens
that are possible?
It's possible to have the dashboard.
Now they are,
now the second 14-inch screen.
Goodness sakes for years,
my family,
we survived with a CRT television
that was only 13 inches.
The twin 14-inch screens,
and that's not including,
not including the binnacle in front of,
binnacle,
in front of the driver.
Yeah.
It's just unbelievable,
but it is optional.
So what it's shown in the press cars.
So that's the one
in front of the passenger seat is optional.
The one inside the passenger seat,
in front of the passenger seat,
is optional, I believe, yes.
Because the problem I have,
if you click the link in the show notes,
you'll go through
to an auto car article.
And on the top slide show bit,
it's only three or four clicks across,
and you'll get to the interior view from the back seat.
And the problem I have
is that interior looks so cheap
and nasty with those screens there.
Now, as always,
and it's not cheap,
because it's a Mercedes.
Now it starts at 42,000.
41,000 if it's the hybrid version.
Well, possibly,
we don't know for sure yet.
Yeah.
And about 50,000, wasn't it?
Yeah, for the EV.
For the electric version,
for the EV version.
But to be fair,
the EV does have a 322 mile range.
That's really impressive, actually.
It has a massive range,
which, as you say,
is fantastically impressive.
And to me,
that's the thing,
which I find most impressive about this vehicle.
I'm sitting here,
and I'm grumbling about,
the fact it's got all these stars in the grille
and 152 or something in the sunroof
and all these at 94
in the illuminated front panel.
I just think that's a wee bit much.
I'd like,
I'm sure it's a lovely thing to live with,
and there'll be clever,
you know,
the electronics,
if you don't have to look at the big screen,
there'll be quick clever
and things like,
if you're speaking on the phone,
it'll automatically
offer to put the windows up,
and all these kinds of things,
which Mercedes does really,
really nicely.
I definitely wouldn't be speccing
all of those screens,
because it's important.
I'd like a mid to low spec
on the trim
with the 392 mile range,
and I think that might be the sweet spot for this car.
I would also not specify
the cream colored leather
and all these things,
which are some of the things
that make that interior
that you've just been saying off-look quite so cheap,
I think there's been decisions made
for press and photography cars.
Yeah, absolutely.
Which I don't think
will necessarily be reflected
by real world buyers,
for start real world buyers,
probably won't buy it in bright blow,
they'll probably,
unless they're a ranges fan.
They will go for something more muted.
Because if you flick through
that slide show,
you get the hybrid version
and in the interior,
there is much darker
and more warm would expect,
most people to specify.
Yeah,
and by the way,
seven seats as well,
that's the other big way
when it's actually quite a small seven-seater,
which is not something to be sniffed at.
So people go,
because you're not particularly big,
it's based on the CLA platform,
although it is a little bit bigger,
but you'll be fitting seven seats into that.
Yeah,
and if you want an idea of powertrains
and all the rest of it,
do click with link in the show notes
because it's all explained in that,
really quite thorough autocarticle.
Yes.
Right, I am going to move us on then,
and something that definitely is not a seven-seater,
and that is the surprise,
reveal of the Toyota GR GT,
and this is quite a thing.
Was not expecting a V8 Supercar Super GT type thing
with actual backup to the phrase,
a race car for the road
because they also revealed at this same event,
an FIA GT3 spec version,
as well,
so they're going racing with this.
They've basically done what they're done with the GR,
yeah, it's something.
They've said,
look, we want to go into,
we want to be in this particular type of racing.
We've got some bits hanging around the place.
Let's put them together into a car,
which we think is going to dominate this.
Yeah.
And so that's what they've done.
They've gone off and then made a road car.
Because they did,
they sort of did the backwards with the GR Super,
the GR Super has done a lot of racing in GT4 categories,
and it's not always been as successful as hoped,
but this one has gone clearly come from,
oh no, we're racing.
Okay, now how do we make some for the road?
Because that looks wise,
it's not a pretty car.
It's slightly challenging, I think,
is a fair way to put it.
I think what you have to realize is purely
the function will give the form.
And if you go in with that attitude,
you can then go,
oh right, I see why it looks like it does.
Especially at that very heavy looking back.
The very heavy looking rear is it?
It's the silhouette and the back.
Yeah, it's all,
okay, right,
this is not an LC500.
No.
Although I did see someone say they preferred,
they thought this looked better than the LC500
and at which point there was a...
Did you have a word with their guide dog?
At which point there was a small, yes.
There was a small, relatively polite pile on.
With respect.
With respect.
The whole President Bartlett,
you know, stand there and be wrong in your wrongness.
And give being used.
Because I don't see...
I think the LC is fantastic.
And this is cool.
But I don't think it's pretty or ridiculously attractive.
I say that to someone who owns 200 billion.
But I think,
if you look at the BMW M3,
when it came out with the challenging grill,
and it looks awful on the road.
But on the racetrack,
it looks immense.
And you don't want to see that
in your rearview mirror or screen,
depending on which car you're in and which championship.
You don't want to see that.
And I think this is equally that.
It's such an aggressive looking vehicle.
And it is all about the,
we are here to go fast and win races.
And that side of things.
Awesome.
And on the road,
we're all going to go,
no.
But I love the fact they've done it.
I mean, look,
you look at the way the car industry is going,
apart from in one or two markets,
then it's electric.
It's at least hybrid and all the rest of it.
And this does have a hybrid powertrain
made it to the brand new V8.
So Alan can't claim lineage from his Lexus.
It's a brand new V8.
They're saying it's more than 641 brake horsepower
in this EVO article.
Yeah.
But the hybridness is going to be,
to boost the performance.
It's not about doing any,
any miles electric only.
It is not about helping
with the efficiency miles per gallon.
It is all about,
I want to go much faster,
please, can you give me a boost?
Love that idea.
Because it's a very specific car.
It's not for every day.
It's not for families.
It's not for the taxi people.
You know, this is a specific car for a specific task.
One thing that's worth mentioning,
there is not a,
in none of these,
in none of these photos of it,
is there a single Toyota badge, by the way.
It just says,
it's all GR.
Yeah.
It costs around about 200,000 pounds,
each likely, possibly.
Let's see.
So you're probably looking back,
whatever you're looking for.
Yeah.
Can't wait to see on the restaurant.
No, it's going to be amazing.
As we said before,
by the way, folks,
we're both keeping the,
a little more weekend.
And the number of green 24.
Yeah.
We can, sir.
Free.
Absolutely.
Yep.
In case you forgot.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Well, you can hear that a lot.
Concept car coming up next.
The Hyundai Crater.
I like this.
Awesome.
I mean,
it's awesome.
It's also incredibly silly.
And I can explain to exactly why it's incredibly silly.
But it's also awesome.
This is to show the direction for,
uh, you careers.
XR.
A career.
I should know.
XR T range.
That's kind of sub-range in North America.
So they do an ionic five XRT,
which is like,
plated and jacked up a little bit.
They do a version of the Santa Cruz pickup truck.
That's basically a two-story front.
Kind of nice little pickup at the back.
Almost bought one,
but decided it would too hard to import.
A bit more plated,
which is the XRT.
And they do a version of the Palisade,
which is a large SUV that we don't get here.
7-8-C,
which is pretty good looking, actually,
about the size of a small house.
But it's pretty good looking,
and they do an XRT.
Is there a venture brand,
whereas N is their performance brand?
Yes.
Okay.
Yeah.
Cool.
I love the fact they're confident enough to do that.
I mean,
it's basically slightly junkier tires and some clad.
Well,
that hits all the buttons we want.
Right.
Which is more than straight into the part of this podcast.
But anyway,
this crater is to show some of the styling cues
that might come through.
It's a cartoonish,
mid-smallish,
small SUV.
I think it's small.
It's wide,
but it's short.
You know,
actually,
in concept,
not a million miles different from my Vergross,
was that I was actually strongly reminded of that,
and I didn't want to say it in case people then
accused the podcast of
abused you for needing a drink.
So you just let me do it then.
Yeah.
It's kind of similar in concept for that,
but it's got freedom doors at the back.
It's got two-sided doors,
so that it's there now,
because it's a concept.
So it's kind of a two-plus-two-door setup.
Let's be honest.
The Hyundai Group Concepts,
whoever's designing
has a fetish for a
pillarless
suicide doors,
because they're always in there
and they always look cool,
and we know why they cannot be made real.
Yeah, but they always look cool
because they show off the interior
and stuff,
much better in photos and all these things.
Despite the fact that they're inside the concept,
there is a steel roll cage
which still gives it a B pillar.
Yep.
In this particular case,
but it's got the whole modular dash
and the interior looks so cool.
It's got the whole modular dash.
Let's project stuff onto the inside
of the windscreen,
seeked with lots of separate bits,
Aladdin 1980s Renault style.
Yeah, yeah.
There's lots of that.
But if you look at the...
Dashboard,
the whole dashboard,
the crossbar looks like a JBL speaker.
Yes, absolutely.
But if you look at those
the digital displays
that are above the JBL speaker,
they look like they're the same things
on the outside for the spotlights
that they've got the Pac-Man.
Oh, yeah.
It's got the LED bits.
They've got the whole TC daylight
smiley face type thing going on.
But with the LED,
but you know,
ripped up by the pixelated LED
which brushes a real good-bye.
I was going to say,
you know, concept cloud
and thought of all the models
that they actually do here on.
It would seem that tubular
is very much a theme on the interior.
Yes, it is.
Very much.
Suspended CT and all that kind of stuff.
It's very, very,
awesome.
One thing I don't like
is that it does have the,
it does have the kind of jungle wires
on the front,
which are perfect
for decapitating a cyclist.
They're from the Tesla cyber truck
school of pedestrian,
pedestrian impact safety.
One life,
live it, et cetera, et cetera.
Yes.
Yes, one life.
I'm going to you.
You can't.
Yes.
Especially when it then shows
bits, it shows renderings here
of it in the desert.
Well, that's the last question.
Oh, nearly class, yeah.
That's another question.
Don't need them there either.
But no, I like this.
And it's got, you know,
it's got towing eyes
and all sorts of fun stuff
that are red
so that, you know,
they're a towing eye.
Yeah.
Yeah.
This is very much my kind of thing.
What does it talk about powertrain?
But it's recognizably
a Hyundai as well at the moment
because of the way
there's the thin line
across the bonnet
and everything else.
Do click the top gear link
in the show notes.
I mean, we are
waffling long
about this
because it is so cool.
That's how you know we like it.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
Oh, I better stop now, though, Alan.
I better stop.
Yes.
I'm going to move us on to
designer's mood board
and there was a discussion
in the week.
There was a discussion
in the week
on whether this
actually should be
in new news
or designer's mood board.
And we decided in the end
through a bit of towing
and froing.
And there wasn't a massive argument
but there was sort of questions about it.
We decided to put the article
from Autocard
that is titled
JLR Access Design Boss
Jerry McGovern
into designer's mood board.
And one of the questions
that came up was
but he's not actually
designed anything
for many years.
Should that not be
new news
because he's a board member
rather than a designer
but it's so monumental
it probably does fit in.
And what people call him
is a designer.
Yeah, and there's plenty
of design,
chiefs and stuff
who have also been in the
mood board slot
who have been at
probably sometimes
since they have
wielded the crayon
and they also are
at board level.
We've got to play fair.
Yeah.
Consistency.
So what we like to do,
yes, well allegedly gone.
See, this is the problem.
This news came out
and we didn't talk
about it last week
because it came out just before the show.
And it was all reports are.
There was an awful lot
of speculation
and I thought well
we'll let this one ripen
a bit.
It's a bit like the...
It's a bit like the
Ford Rena one
that we've not talked about
tonight,
although we've alluded to it.
That's...
We want to see
what happens with that
and just what the feedback
is from around the world.
And it was the same
with it.
It was like,
let's not jump to conclusions here.
We don't really know what's happened
and the answer is
that a week later
we still don't really know
what's happened.
No, we don't like to put
in this show
rumors
because we have done it
once or twice
and been caught out.
And not maliciously
or anything like that
is just
that's not been the case.
And we try to make sure
that we're giving you
actual news, actual facts
and if we get it wrong,
we'll tell you.
We actually do like
to be transparent.
But this one
it came out
and it was all rumors
and reports suggest
and the
lots of air quotes
all liberally plaster
throughout articles.
However,
we've heard nothing
since
but it really does appear
that Jeremy Gov.
has left JLR.
We don't know whether
it was his own
steam
or whether he was encouraged
to leave
or whether he was told
he had to leave.
We don't know.
And we don't know why
and we know nothing else.
And we don't know
if this has a knock-on effect
to the company wider
projected products
that are expected to come out.
Nothing else is known.
And it's
that side of things worries me.
Yeah, that's actually
it's not that there's been a change.
I actually thought
there'd be a statement.
That's
companies get by on that.
But how critical
Jaguar, for example,
and how much
Jeremy Gov was involved
in telling the world about that
and his ideas and direction
was allegedly involved
in the route they went down,
particularly
with the way that
the model of the car came out,
not that he necessarily
scribbled on
and made that.
But he helped
shape
that concept.
And that's the whole concept,
not just the car,
but also
all of the stuff that went
with it.
Yeah, it's the
new brand and the way that
people dress in dealerships
and all this all,
all that sort of stuff.
It worries me now
that we've not heard anything
come out and go.
And by the way,
this doesn't change our
plans or actually,
we're changing our plans.
And so there was a whole thing
about it and just the way
that this seemed to happen
was that, you know,
it was very,
it was not a normal way
for things to happen
like this.
Normally it expects a small
way or
what type of
projects,
personal reasons,
these kinds of things
and there's been,
there's been none
of that and you would expect
that.
I would have expected it
from him.
Well, yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
I would have expected him
to control the narrative.
Mm-hmm.
Yeah.
I mean, it could be,
I don't know.
There's a couple of things
it could be, I guess.
Let's not speculate
because our lawyers are not
well fit.
Sorry, I don't have that
much money.
I know what's in the
podcast bank account
and it's not going to
fund a lawyer for very
long.
Maybe not even a phone call
at this rate.
Anyway, what we're trying
to say is we don't really
know much.
I hope it all is, you know,
in the next week or two
weeks, the new CEO comes
out and goes,
right, this has
happened.
Yes, we've moved on.
Here's a new person.
By the way,
it changes nothing
or whatever.
There will be,
I'm sure there will be
a lot of people who are
looking at our lawyers
earning their very
high fees as Christmas
bonus speech.
As we speak, and once
they've all made up
their minds about what can
be said, what can't be said,
then something will be said.
Anyway, do you want to
take us on to safer
ground and points of
interest?
Oh, yeah, much safer.
Let's start off with,
I think we tried to
take it over there.
Let's move on to,
one-stime read.
I think it was
relatively new to me.
I didn't really know
of this.
I don't know how I missed it.
I had no idea.
So you sent me the link.
It looks fab.
I love the layout and
everything.
The graphic design is
fantastic.
Yeah.
It's really nice.
And to this article by Tim
Stevens called,
I watched DLC and patches
ravaged the gaming
industry now.
OTA is killing cars
where he talks about
when he was a software
games reviewer and how
he saw a pattern of
behavior going on in the
games industry where it came
to quality of what was
shipped.
And now in the automotive
industry, he's seeing the
quality of what is
shipping as well.
He sees very worrying
parallels between them.
It's a really nice
article.
Well, worth your time.
So are many of the others
on this site actually.
They seem to have some
really nice stuff here.
I missed it before.
Yep.
Does feel like it's one
of those on the,
the merch we still haven't
sorted out for.
We told you so.
Dot dot dot.
And then you're obsessed
with this one.
I know I need to sort it.
I need to sort it.
I will do something about it.
But I do need to sort it
out the graphics of it
and everything because it
does feel like we've said
this a lot about many
subjects.
And unfortunately we've
been proven right.
Because none of it's
for good stuff.
That's the shame.
Because we're
old and greyhead and
experienced.
And we can see what's
happening with stuff like
this.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
Right.
Anyway, moving on
from my grumpiness.
And let's go to
List of the Week.
And this is from
Haggerty.
And it is titled
Top 10 misunderstood
classics that deserve
re-appraisal.
Excellent article here
from Richard Hasselstein.
Discussing a bunch
of cars that we perhaps
didn't appreciate in the
right way at the time or
since.
And he gives a little
paragraph for each one.
And why pass possibly
we need to re-look
at some of these cars.
Alan, there's ten.
Andrew.
So have you got one
that stands out more
that deserves re-appraisal
than any of the others?
There's one which I
re-appraised a few times.
And I'm still not sure
where I stand on it.
To be honest.
All right.
That's interesting.
And that's the 2002
Jaguar S-Type convertible.
Sorry.
For Thunderbird.
But it's the same
platform as the Jaguar S-Type
and the Lincoln LT.
There you go.
There you go.
There you should
know the referee for tonight.
And he says, you know,
just to know if height
when it was launched in 2002,
it was withdrawn in July
2005 by which time sales had
flatlined.
It's hard to put it
depending on the
floor and its make-up.
So draw your own conclusions.
I know what my conclusion is.
Now, I've seen the,
obviously I saw these
when I was in the US
and saw them in all sorts
of colours,
in all sorts of conditions.
And they're still pretty
stunning on the road.
Are they stunning?
They are.
Well, they're so,
sorry.
Distinctive.
They're distinctive
and they stand out on the road.
Okay.
I'll go with that.
And therefore,
attract your attention
and I'm sorry.
I used the wrong word.
But the trouble
these days is still the trouble
they had when they launched
in 2002.
So they're only,
only bought by all people.
Hmm.
Literally once all the old people
had satisfied their desire
for them,
then that was it.
No, but it was sold.
No.
The problem is the clientele.
Well, is it the clientele
or is it what you were saying
earlier in the show
about voxel and
clinging on to a name
that is so historically old
that we don't move on.
You know,
the thing is that everybody
younger was buying a Mustang.
Oh, okay.
That's the thing.
And so,
Mustang has been around,
well, not quite as long as
Thunderbird and everything.
But still,
and people of all ages
buy Mustangs.
It does feel like
the Mustang
has been reinvented
sufficiently well enough.
Yeah.
So I think the Mustang
is going through some
Ropey times.
Oh, yeah.
Of course.
Absolutely.
Really Ropey times.
But as of late,
should we say,
as of late,
the last ten years
or so,
a great job.
Yeah.
Last 20, 25 years,
done a great job.
This came along
and didn't hit the mark.
And I don't think,
I still don't think
it hits the mark.
They're having re-appraised it.
I still don't think it hits the mark.
I think it was just
the wrong target market.
For me,
the design is 290s.
Well, that's it.
I mean, we're still looking at it.
Yeah.
2002.
It's like 1995.
It feels.
It was mainly all new
new beatbox stuff.
J-Maze,
policing.
Mm-hmm.
Uh-huh.
Sorry.
So that was my take.
That was my take.
I just loads of re-,
you know, I know there's only ten here.
Yeah.
The other nine.
Some of them,
you can look at it,
and others,
you look out and go,
well, actually,
I think,
I think that that's actually
really pretty cool.
I think most of them
you can have a really good conversation about.
Take the list.
You're down the pub with your mates,
and talk them through.
That's what I was listening to.
I'm not going to tell you what it was,
but the next one down the list was the one
that I was, uh,
two seconds away from saying,
and so on.
That was my choice.
Mm-hmm.
Because it's very interesting car in,
in, in, in many ways.
Yeah.
Absolutely.
Anyway,
do you want to take us on to,
finally, the end, finally?
It is.
Um, author,
didact has released a new video,
actually about a month ago.
It's about
the Mercedes-Benz SLB R129 model.
So that is the,
the one after the Dallas one.
The one with the hard top.
No.
You could get the hard top version.
You could get hard top version,
but it was separate,
but the cool thing,
you of course,
you had to leave it in your garage.
The cool thing,
of course,
the pop-up robot.
Yeah.
The cool thing.
It's one of the last,
fully engineered Mercedes-Benz.
Yeah.
Yeah.
Yeah.
In my opinion,
and I have many opinions on this stuff.
It's similar generation to the,
um, e-class that you had.
Yeah.
It's later than the W124.
Oh, yeah.
Obviously, the W129,
but that shifts you an idea of the time
between the W124 and that R129,
and how close the numbers are,
gives you an idea of just how long
its gestation period was.
Before the accountant's
ruined Mercedes with Excel.
Yes.
Basically.
Basically yes.
Awesome.
I think that's us for this week.
Uh, good news, everyone.
Andrew is doing the editing.
So those of you who've asked what's
happened to the chapters in the podcast
that you'd like so that you can skip
with your board,
then there's a high chance that those
will be back again.
Yeah.
Thank you for putting up with my editing
for the last three weeks.
Somebody has done far more
of the 661 shows than I know.
No, but I appreciate your help in this
current time of my need.
Anyway.
Uh, that said that,
oh, gosh, quite a lot has been said.
Don't forget that if you're now next week,
you can give us any feedback
and share your thoughts
with the show at motoringpodcast.com
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And on the contact page of
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Let's do such a thing.
Andrew, what's the best way to get in touch
with you?
Um, I'm not sure at the moment.
I think possibly LinkedIn,
I was going to say blue sky,
but I went on it today
and found that blue sky had removed
all my muted words and accounts
so that made it almost disgusting to use.
So I'm not sure I'll be back there
anytime soon.
LinkedIn is probably the best way,
although there may be a delay in me
getting back to you because
outside of the podcast,
I am still very busy everybody.
Please bear with.
Um, but Alan,
enough of my grumbling,
and as you're a much more polite
and nicer person than I,
what's the best way for people to get in touch with you?
Blue sky is definitely best for me,
where I'm at
AJP Bradley,
that's B-I-E-D-L-E-Y,
dot B-Sky, dot,
social.
We'll be back very soon,
but until then,
I've been Alan Bradley.
I've been Andrew Kluse.
And safe motoring.
About this episode
A deep dive into the latest automotive news reveals significant shifts in the UK car market, including a decline in new car registrations and the impact of upcoming financial regulations. The hosts discuss the latest figures showing a drop in petrol and diesel vehicles while electric models gain traction. They also touch on the potential closure of Zipcar's UK operations due to financial losses and highlight the introduction of electric HGVs by Royal Mail. Additionally, the episode features insights on new car launches, including the Mercedes GLB and Toyota GR GT, alongside discussions on industry leadership changes and initiatives to promote women in automotive careers.
Original notes
FOLLOW UP: MOTOR FINANCE CLAIMS TO RESTART
The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) is restarting finance mis-selling claims on 31 May 2026, which is earlier than previously announced. The FCA states this should be enough time for companies to ready their compensation schemes. You can find out more, by clicking this Motor Trade article link here.
NOVEMBER 2025 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURESThe SMMT has released the new car registration figures for November 2025. The overall market dropped 1.6%, year on year. Battery electric, plug-in hybrid and hybrid numbers all rose, with petrol and diesel dropping. Fleet once again is the major market, at 61% of all registrations, whilst Private and Business make up the rest. Click this link to see more, from SMMT.
VAUXHALL LOSE THEIR MDSteve Catlin has left his role as managing director of Vauxhall, after only eight months in charge. Citing “personal reasons”, his seat will be taken over by Stellantis UK managing director Eurig Druce. If you wish to find out more, click this Motor Trader article link here.
ZIPCAR PAUSES UK OPERATIONS DUE TO LOSSESZipcar, a car sharing company operating in the UK but is US based, is pausing all operations in this country due to £11.7 million loss in 2024. Blaming charging costs, insurance and larger than expected depreciation the company has opened a consultation with employees. Additionally, from 2 January 2026 EVs will be liable for the Congestion Charge in central London. To read more, click this Autocar article here.
BEE NETWORK SPEEDS UP EV FLEET SIZETransport for Greater Manchester (TfGM) is investing £65 million to enable more of the bus fleet to be electric as well as move the train-tram development for one particular corridor. If you would like to find out more, click this Sustainable Bus article link here.
ROYAL MAIL GAINS ELECTRIC HGVS FOR MIDLANDS AND NORTH WESTRoyal Mail is going to use electric HGVs at their North West and Midlands hubs, delivering between the hubs and mail centres. They will be utilising eight vehicles which will replace diesel versions. You can read more, by clicking this edie article link here.
NEW ‘WOMEN IN AUTOMOTIVE’ JOURNAL LAUNCHEDRygor Group, a car retail company, has launched a ‘Women in Automotive’ journal, to help inspire, inform and empower women and girls where they hopefully pursue a career in the automotive world. Women from across the company, as well as partners such as Ben, The Automotive Charity and Motor Trader, have had their advice published. If you want to find out more, click this Motor Trader article link here.
If you like what we do, on this show, and think it is worth a £1.00, please consider supporting us via Patreon. Here is the link to that
Motoring Podcast - News Show
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