Motoring Podcast - News Show
Motoring Podcast
Updated 3 days agoMotoring enthusiasts Alan and Andrew discuss their takes on the week's motoring news in this 45 to 60 minute audio podcast.
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Episodes (338)
My demeaning voice - 31 October 2023
FOLLOW UP: CRUISE PAUSES DRIVERLESS TAXI SERVICEBoth Califoria’s Department for Motor Vehicles and Public Utilities Commission have revoked Cruise’s license to carry fee paying passengers in their robotaxis. Cruise, following this, has “paused” the operation of their fleet. This all stems from an incident on 2 October 2023, where a car driven by a human hit a pedestrian and they were knocked into the pathway of one of Cruise’s cars which could not stop in time and trapped the pedestrian underneath the vehicle. The DMV claims Cruise shared partial video that showed up to the point of the vehicle stopping. However, the DMV now states there was more as they were not shown that the Cruise vehicle tried to move to the side of the road with the lady still trapped beneath the car. The DMV stated that “the manufacturers vehicles are not safe for public operation”. To read more click this Vice article link here. For the next stage of the story, click this Tech Crunch article link here. To read the DMV’s own documentation on their decision, click this link here. For Cruise’s Twitter post regarding their pause, click this link. Forbes have a thoughtful piece on what has happened and what Cruise can and should do next. To read that, click this link here. FOLLOW UP: MERCEDES USER MANUAL FOR DRIVE PILOT Mercedes-Benz has now released the user manuals for their Drive Pilot Level 3 automated driving system. Looking at the documentation there are a number of inconsistencies and contradictions. Click this link to a piece from Philip Koopman on LinkedIn highlighting the issues in the text. Reading the information, we wouldn’t use the system as we have no idea if we would be held accountable or Mercedes, in the event of an issue. STELLANTIS TO SELL LEAPMOTOR VEHICLES IN EUROPEFollowing a £1.3 billion investment in the Chinese EV maker, Leapmotor, Stellantis will start selling their vehicles in Europe from 2024. No details have been revealed as to what models they would be. We also ask if it is the technology side of things that Stellantis is really after. You can read more, by clicking this link to an Autocar story. RAC STATES FUEL PRICES ARE UNFAIRLY HIGHThe RAC has explained that all fuel retailers should be lowering their prices by at least 5p per litre, thanks to the drop in wholesale costs. They also point out how this is helping to ensure that inflation remains high. If you would like to read more,
Special Edition: Japan Mobility Show 2023 - 30 October 2023
JAPAN MOBILITY SHOW 2023Alan and Andrew are rounding up the motoring element of the Japan Mobility Show 2023, which is the replacement for the Tokyo Motor Show. The organisers have expanded the remit and potential audience. There are stands about everything from wheelchairs to private jets and all things between. TINY CARSAs this is Japan you can imagine just how many tiny and kei cars there were. We have picked only a small fraction to discuss. Honda CI-MEVDaihatsu ME:MoDaihatsu UNIFORM Truck and UNIFORM CargoDaihatsu CopenSPORTS CARSIn selecting all the cars that are in here, some stretching of the definition of “sports” has occurred. Do bear with us as we try to explain why the choices that have been made, have been made. Honda PreludeMazda Iconic SPHonda Sustania-CToyota FT-3eToyota FT-SeNissan Hyper ForceELECTRIC SUVSAs you would expect, there was a lot of electric SUVs on display. Here we have picked some of the more interesting ones, to our eyes. Nissan Hyper PunkNissan Hyper Adventure Toyota Land Cruiser SeToyota EPUFEEDBACKAs this is only the second time we have tried to do this multimedia style approach, where we are showing what we discuss (if your player can display the photos), we would like your feedback. We know there are things to improve, but if you could let us know if the efforts we have gone to are okay or not, that would be great.
That's courageous - 24 October 2023
CALLS FOR RULES OF ORIGIN AGREEMENT STRENGTHENEDThe Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders has reinforced its call for an agreement to be reached between the EU and UK over rules of origin delay. The SMMT has outlined what the average price increase would be for vehicles coming into or out of the UK and EU. You can read more about the potential impact by clicking this link to an SMMT article. The UK Government has stated that if a satisfactory agreement with the EU cannot be reached over rules of origin it would just make their own rules up. That have not clarified what these would be, nor how they expect them to help UK based companies. Click this Autocar article to read more. CHINA EXPORT TARIFFS APPLIED TO GRAPHITE China will be imposing an export tariff on certain grades of graphite, which is used in the manufacture of electric car batteries. This will mean that homegrown batteries will be cheaper than, those built using the material abroad. To learn more, click this electrive link here. £200M NET ZERO DEMONSTRATION PROGRAMThe UK Government has set aside £200 million of the net zero funding to enable four demonstration projects for the viability of electric HGVs. This is a move to help encourage and demonstrate the positives of moving to the UK haulage industry. In order to read more, click this link here to a Current News article. UK GOVERNMENT URGED TO IMPROVE ROADS OUTSIDE THE SOUTHA report from the National Infrastructure Commission has called on the Government to improve on the amount of money allocated to the Road Investment Strategy being spent on the Midlands and the North of England. Only 22% goes to projects outside the South, which looks bad but there are a few reasons for why this is the case. To read more, click this article link from Autocar. VOLTA TRUCKS ENTERS BANKRUPTCYFollowing supplier Proterra going into administration and an inability to raise more funding, Volta Trucks has entered bankruptcy in Sweden, with it following suite soon in the UK too. Management are trying to find a buyer to take it on as a going concern. Click here to read more, via Autocar. JLR’S HUGE REPAIRS PARTS SHORTAGECar Dealer Magazine has an exclusive report on 10,000 JLR vehicles being affected by the company’s huge parts shortage issue. Digging into the problem, it is clear the situation has been made so much worse with a huge consolidation project that combined a number of warehouse facilities into a new single site, changing parts supplier and combining a number of legacy systems into a new one. As Alan, who’s day job is just this sort of thing states, “that’s courageous”. If you would like to read more, click this link to the original scoop here. ALPINA FOUNDER PASSES AWAYBurkard Bovensiepen, who was the founder of ALPINA, has sadly passed away at the age of 87. He helped create an incredible...
Better at rubbing the soap - 17 October 2023
DOJ CHARGES EBAY OVER ROLLING COAL DEVICE SELLINGThe Department of Justice (DOJ) in the US, has taken eBay to court over allowing ‘rolling coal’ devices to be sold on the platform. These manipulate the control of engines and allow for huge plumes of black smoke to be emitted by vehicles. eBay says it cut so many out and does all it can. The fine, if found guilty would be a maximum in the region of $2 billion, but as its an American company it will not be that high. Click this CNBC article link to learn more. BATTERY RECYCLING PLANT OPENS IN WOLVERHAMPTON Battery recycling firm, Recyclus, have opened their new Wolverhampton operation that will eventually enable them to process up to 22,000 tons of lithium ion batteries. Called ‘urban mining’, such operations will be vital in bringing down the environmental impact of our electrified future. You can learn more by clicking this electrive article link here. WAE TO BUILD EV BATTERIES IN OXFORD FACTORY WAE will produce electric batteries, mainly for heavy plant vehicles, in its new £20 million factory, located near Oxford. The UK has a thriving heavy plant manufacturing industry and home built batteries will be vital to ensuring the viability of that sector. If you wish to learn more, click this link to an Autocar article. AUDI CUTS BACK PRODUCTION PLANS FOR Q4 ETRONPlans to build the Q4 eTron in Audi’s own Brussels plant have been put on hold as demand is not enough to meet the capacity at the VW Zwickau factory. Workers in Brussels have gone on strike as their contracts are changed to fit the new future. Click this electrive article link to see more. MERCEDES-BENZ EACTROS 600 Mercedes has revealed the 2024 eActross 600, a lorry capable of travelling 310 miles on a single charge, with a payload of 22 tonnes. With regular, legislated stops and charging whilst taking required breaks, will allow it to travel 600 miles easily. For more on this, click here to read more via Green Fleet.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 CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Toyota C-HRToyota has announced pricing for the new C-HR, with it starting at £31, 290 and topping out at £42,720 for the range topping Premier Edition spec. Click this Autocar article link to find out all the details of the car and options for powertrains. Lexus LBXThe LBX is a small crossover, that is based on the underpinnings of the Toyota Yaris Cross, which will be the new entry level to the brand. Prices start at £29,995 and go all the way up to £40, 545 for the Takumi Design spec. You can find out more by clicking this CAR article link here. Kia EV2 Kia announced several new planned models, which we start with covering the baby one, the EV2. The brand aims to have...
Driven by nobs - 10 October 2023
FOLLOW UP: CHINA UNHAPPY AT EU SUBSIDY PROBEIn a move that should surprise no one, China has complained about the process and speed of the EU’s investigation into the possibility of state backed subsidies for Chinese EV makers. Click here to read the Reuters article with plenty of quotes from China making it clear there will be ramifications. FOLLOW UP: PENDRAGON SUITERS DOWN TO TWO The Hedin Penske bid for Pendragon has been removed, which leaves two suiters. A report this week has suggested that the AutoNation offer can increased and take it well above the Lithia Motors proposal. If they do, the board of Pendragon are expected to recommend AutoNation. You can read more by clicking this article from AMOnline, here. SEPTEMBER 2023 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES No matter how positive many are trying to be about September’s figures, they were dreadful. Overall, whilst better than 2022 and ignoring the Covid years, it was the lowest since before 2007, EVs failed to break 16% again, private EV rates are down 14% and you have to wonder how long fleet registrations can prop up the industry. On top of all of that, the reporting on this has once again been poor. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) inevitably calls on the Government to support private buyers so that more cars can find new homes. Click here to read the SMMT’s official post. GOVERNMENT UNVEILS “THE PLAN FOR DRIVERS” DOCUMENTLast week the Transport Secretary revealed a document called “The Plan for Drivers” which is a 30-point plan aimed at helping to make driving less of a chore in the UK. If you would like to learn what the plan exactly entails, click here to read the document from the .GOV site. For a summary, click this Autocar link here. JLR IN TROUBLE WITH ASA The Advertising Standards Authority has banned an advert for the Range Rover Sport SVR from JLR. The ruling cited that the main message was about speed, which contravenes the CAP Code rule 19.4. JLR disagreed, but when the time from 0-60 was the second of two sentences, it is easy to see how the ASA came to the decision it did. You can read more, by clicking this AMOnline link here. POLICE USED VAN TO STOP RUNAWAY CARA man called the police, in order to get them to help him find a way to stop his car that was stuck at 30mph. Eventually, they used a police van, which acted as the brakes, to bring to vehicle to a safe stop. There is no current understanding as to why the accelerator was jammed on. We hope when the reason is found that is reported to all of us. To read about this story, click here for the BBC News version. VOLVO NAMES NEW UK MANAGING DIRECTORNicole Melillo Shaw has been named as the next managing director for Volvo
Take a French lunch - 3 October 2023
FOLLOW UP: ZEV MANDATE FINALLY ANNOUNCEDThe Government has finally published the details of the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate. As we discussed last week the expected percentage minimums of zero emission vehicles sold per brand have remained from the consultation. However, there is no additional detail from 2030 to 2035 except there being no new internal combustion engines sold from 2035. Click here to read the Autocar article on the story. To read the SMMT’s response, click this link here. UK ROAD DEATHS RISE The statistics on road deaths and injuries have been released by the UK Government. Deaths have risen, for the first time since 2017, but overall incidents are slightly down. Remember it is pointless to compare with 2020 and 2021 figures, therefore one needs to look to 2019 for comparison. Also, note that there is a lot of information and it is handed to us in a variety of formats, which you need to make sure you are aware of if reviewing the data. Click this link here to read Autocar’s summary. If you would like to review the data, click this Government link here. YEW TREE CONSORTIUM INCREASES ASTON MARTIN STAKE The Lawrence Stroll led consortium, Yew Tree, has increased their stake in Aston Martin, once again. They continue to be the largest single shareholder. In order to learn more, click here to read the Reuters article link. PENDRAGON DEALERSHIP CENTRE OF BIDDING WARA trio of US-based bids have been received by Pendragon, for their company, after revealing record profits for the first six months of the year. There have already been increases in bids and counter offers, therefore this may not end anytime soon. You can learn more by clicking this link here to a Car Dealer Magazine article. PERTH TOYOTA DEALERSHIP CONTRACT REMOVEDStuans, the family owned dealer group, has unceremoniously lost their franchise agreement with Toyota, following no consultation or warning. The sites in Dundee and Perth will now be run by Eastern and Western Motor Group. This one is quite personal for Alan and he goes on to explain how little choice Scottish buyers now get. If you would like to learn more, click this AMOnline article link. VW HIRES EX TESLA AND RIVIAN SOFTWARE ENGINEERVolkswagen has brought in a non-VW employee to their CARIAD software division, in a shock move. Sanjay Lal, has previously worked at both Tesla and Rivian, as part of his 25 year career. He is being tasked with trying to improve the speed and quality of software development at the company. You can read more by clicking this InsideEVs article link here.FLEET DATA SHOWS EV TYRES ARE REPLACED MORE OFTENFleet data, analysed by epyx, indicates that EV tyres...
Existential and deep - 26 September 2023
GOVERNMENT DELAYS 2030 ICE-ONLY BANThe Prime Minister announced that he was putting back the date when the sale of new internal combustion engined cars and vans would be banned in the UK, to 2035. This caused much comment, especially from an angry car industry. Click here to read about that, from Autocar. For an explanation as to what has changed, ie. nothing, click this LeasePlan article link. ZEV MANDATE TO REMAIN DESPITE NEW 2035 ICE-ONLY BAN Whilst much was made of the change in the 2035 date for the banning internal combustion engined only cars and vans, especially by the Government, the zero emission vehicle mandate is to remain in place. The Government is to demand car companies sell a percentage of zero emission vehicles despite adding five years to the deadline and thus making the job harder for those trying to sell cars. To find out more, about this idiotic move, click this Autocar link here. FRANCE REVISES EV SUBSIDY RULES France will change their electric vehicle subsidy rules, which means many Asian built EVs will not qualify for the financial assistance scheme. The French Government claim, in the face of calls of protectionism, that it is all guided by how green the manufacturing process of the vehicle is and China, for a random example, is still powered to a large extent by non renewable energy sources, according the France. In order to learn more, click here on this Reuters article link to learn more. EDINBURGH AIRPORT TO INSTALL 40 EV CHARGERSEdinburgh airport is installing 40 EV chargers, a mix of 7kWh and 22kWh versions. Some will be time constrained whilst others will not. Click this electrive.com article link to read more on the story. 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 CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Audi Q4 E-tronThe revised Audi Q4 E-tron, for 2024, has been shown to us all. Improvements to the range, a new motor, better efficiency and revised suspension. The price, whilst not yet announced is to be slightly higher than the current version’s. To find out all the stats and info, click this Autocar article link here. Oshe OkovangoOshe have displayed their Okovango, a restomod version of the Land Rover Defender 90, that evokes the look of African safari vehicles. The price of this very attractive vehicle is £225,000. If you wish to learn more, click this Hagerty article link here. Frontline LE60 and BEE EV Frontline have taken the MGB GT and produced an electric only version as well as one with a Rover V8. They both look great and to read all the fine details, before their public reveal at Bicester Heritage Sunday...
Your Chanel handbag - 19 September 2023
INDUSTRY CALLS FOR MORE GOVERNMENT HELPThe Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has called on additional help from the Government, to encourage the uptake of electric vehicles. During their one day conference, called Electrified, they proposed four incentives that would help make the switch easier for the private buyer. You can find out more, by clicking this link here. NEW EV MINIS WILL BE BUILT IN THE UK BMW is investing £600 million in their Oxford and Swindon plants to enable it to build the new Mini Cooper Electric and the Mini Aceman. This secures around 4,000 jobs and does include some financial support from the UK Government. To find out more, you can click this Autocar article link here. EU INVESTIGATES CHINESE STATE SUBSIDESThe European Union will begin an investigation into whether the Chinese Government subsidises their car industry and that gives them an unfair advantage in Europe. Alan and Andrew are quite scathing about how this situation has arisen and how this was a very obvious outcome but now politicians and the industry are equally surprised. Click this Autocar article link for more. We recommend you also click this BBC News article link, as it gives some context to what that means to the UK and potential ramifications if a trade war is started. SAT NAV WARNING OVER NEW WELSH 20MPH SPEED LIMITSSat nav manufacturers are warning motorists not to trust their systems after the recent implementation of 20mph zones across Wales. They are recommending that the software is updated and to be watchful of the speed limit signs on the roads. To read more, click this BBC News article here. If you would like to see the extent of the new 20mph zones, click this link to a map showing just how many or few roads are actually affected.UK ROAD REPAIRS AT LOWEST LEVEL IN FIVE YEARSThe RAC ha found that UK road and pothole repairs are at their lowest level in five years, with some councils carrying out no resurfacing work and many others doing no surface-dressing work. If you would like to learn more, click here to read the Autocar article explaining it all. CALLS FOR UK GOVERNMENT TO TIGHTEN AV LAWSParliament’s Transport Committee has released a report outlining the areas the Government needs to tighten up the law for autonomous vehicles, if it wants a safe deployment of the technology. Where it is asking for language to be less vague and wooly is very admirable, but still there is the delusion that the way it is being developed will actually result in any safe AV operations is worrying. Click this link to read the committee’s report. ELECTRIC CAR SUBSCRIPTION SERVICE ONTO IN ADMINISTRATION Onto, the electric car subscription service which wrapped up nearly all the costs...
Too wet to light man - 12 September 2023
NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES FOR AUGUST 2023For the first time, in a long time, the new car registration overall figure for August is close to those of the before times, being just under seven thousand less than 2019 numbers. Battery electric vehicles (BEVs) jumped to a 20.1% market share for the month, unfortunately the year to date is still stuck in the 16s. The SMMT make it very clear they desperately need the Government to reveal what the Zero Emission Vehicle Mandate will actually be as, astonishingly, they have not revealed what it will actually entail. Click here to read more about August from this SMMT article link. NEW EV MINIS WILL BE BUILT IN THE UK BMW is investing £600 million in their Oxford and Swindon plants to enable it to build the new Mini Cooper Electric and the Mini Aceman. This secures around 4,000 jobs and does include some financial support from the UK Government. To find out more, you can click this Autocar article link here. CAMBRIDGE CONGESTION CHARGE CANCELLEDThe plans for charging vehicles to drive in and around Cambridge, during peak times, has been shelved. The Lib Dems expressed “concerns” which removed much of the previous support for the scheme. Labour confirmed they too had concerns over certain aspects of the proposals. However, it was acknowledged that something will have to be done. If you wish to find out more, click this BBC News article link here. EV NETWORK AND BP PULSE OPEN UK’S LARGEST CHARGING HUBThe NEC Campus is the location for EV Network and BP Pulse’s new charging hub, which is the largest in the UK. There are 16 rapid 300kW chargers and 150 7kW charging points, with provision for some accessible bays in both rapid and fast areas. Click this ZapMap article link to read more. RICHMOND BOROUGH TO INSTALL 525 MORE CHARGE POINTSThe London Borough of Richmond upon Thames has announced it will be installing a further 525 on-street charge points across its area to bring the total up to 945. You can read more from the electrive.com article via this link here. LIVERPOOL HYDROGEN BUS PROJECT SCRAMBLES FOR FUELA flagship hydrogen bus project, based in Liverpool, has not been running as the operator struggles to find a fuel supplier. The hope is for the situation to be solved soon, with the source also being sustainably produced. To learn more, click this link here from Hydrogeninsight. Montpellier is cancelling their hydrogen bus experiment due to the high running costs, when compared to electric buses. Hydrogen has been calculated as six times more expensive that the equivalent electric. Click this Recharge article link to read more. MOZILLA CLAIMS CAR DATA PRIVACY IS APPALLING The Mozilla Foundation has investigated car brands over...
I am whelmed - 5 September 2023
FOLLOW UP: XIAOMI’S EV PLANSLast week when discussing the approval of Xiaomi’s plan to build EV, Andrew should have clarified that this was the fourth to be given permission since 2017, not the fifth. FUEL PRICE RISE HITS HARD IN AUGUST Unsurprising to anyone who’s watched fuel prices over the last few years, petrol and diesel went up in August. That month when the UK takes to roads due to the school holiday. Prices increased by nearly seven pence per litre. To read more, including some of the justification of this, click here for the Autocar article. ALMOST HALF HOMEOWNERS WOULD PAVE GARDEN TO CHARGEResearch by EO Charging found that 49 percent of homeowners would pave over their front garden, to make it easier to charge their electric car. This is despite 53 percent expressing concern in people paving over their front gardens. For further insight, click this link to read more at Motoring Research. JLR TO USE SUSTAINABLY FUELLED LORRY FLEETJLR (y’know, the lot that used to be called Jaguar Land Rover), will be running their lorry fleet on sustainable biofuel, from 2024. They estimate this will cut their road freight carbon emission by up to 84 percent. To learn more, click this link to the Autocar article referred to on the show. TOYOTA, VW AND KIA PRODUCTION HIT BY DISRUPTIONFactories across the globe came to standstill in the last week for a variety of reasons. All of Toyota’s output in Japan ceased after an issue with a systems update. Kia’s factory in Hwaseong, South Korea, was shut following a fire. Volkswagen’s Slovakia plant stopped making the T-Roc following severe flooding in the region causing damage to a supplier’s operations. Click this AMOnline article link to read more. GOVERNMENT ANNOUNCES MAAS TRAVEL APPS STANDARDSThe Government has announced the guidelines for Mobility-as-a-Service (MaaS) apps.The aim is to make them more user friendly, safer and reduce costs for travellers. These apps are thought to be developed to contain public transport, road and micro-mobility information and costings. For you to learn more, click this link to an Intelligent Transport article. Maybe Alan’s dream app will finally happen?FRENCH ROAD SIGN CAUSES CONFUSIONFrench authorities are testing a new symbol, to be displayed on digital road signs that indicate a lane is for car-sharing only. One tiny problem is, it looks a lot like the Renault logo, but following the company’s lawyers investigating no further action was taken. You can read more, by clicking this link here to a Connexion article. 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 CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Mini Cooper ElectricMini has revealed their new Cooper Electric, which is the new name for the...
Split the ions - 29 August 2023
FOLLOW UP: BATH CAZ MAKES A DIFFERENCEFollowing the introduction of a Clean Ari Zone (CAZ) to a portion of Bath, NOx levels have dropped by 26% and only 1% of vehicles entering the zone are non compliant. Bath took the approach of targeting taxis, vans, buses, coaches and lorries only. You can find out more, by clicking this BBC News article link here. DAMAGE FROM POTHOLES ROCKETS IN JULYJuly, in the UK, was incredibly wet which has help to make conditions that have led to a sharp increase in vehicle damage due to potholes. Drivers have not been able to establish if a puddle is shallow or to a depth comparable to Lock Ness. To learn more, including how to make a claim from the local council if you are unfortunate enough to damage your car, click this CAR link here. DEVON ASKS FOR MORE MOTORING OFFENCES POWERDevon County Council has started a public consultation on approval from residents to extend their powers to include prosecuting drivers for contravening some motoring offences. We are curious how some of the claims the council are making can actually occur by fining someone for going past a no entry sign. Click this link to a BBC News article to read more and also find the link to the consultation. GLASGOW HYDROGEN PROJECT CANCELLEDGlasgow Council has cancelled their hydrogen refuse lorry project. Details are unclear as to why the decision was made. Alan and Andrew try to work it out with availability of suitable vehicles and the increase in the cost of hydrogen being likely suspects. They will now channel that money into electrifying their fleet. If you would like to read more, click this article link from FuleCellsWorks. LEGAL TESLA CHARGER OPENS IN UKTesla has opened their first V4 chargers, in the UK. The significant improvements include a longer charging cable, meaning it should be easier to reach charging ports. But most importantly, is that they will finally be compliant with UK regulations and allow for contactless payment. Click this Top Gear article to read more. 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 CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Kia EV5Kia have revealed their EV5, which is a smaller version of the seven seat EV9, with very similar external boxy styling. Whilst no details have been released regarding price, it is expected to be around £50,000, similar to the Skoda Enyaqi, Ford Explorer and Fisker Ocean. Click this link to an Autocar article to see the clean and minimal design both inside and out, as well as some very clever storage solutions. Hyundai i20Hyundai have given the very good i20 a refresh. Prices start at £20,770, with added safety tech, three new colours and the ability for over the air updates. To read more about this news,
Water transport devices - 22 August 2023
FOLLOW UP: CLAIMS WELSH 20MPH WILL CAUSE EMERGENCY SERVICES ISSUES DISPUTEDA Conservative Freedom of Information request has led to accusations that the mandatory 20mph speed limit for urban areas in Wales will impede emergency services ability to fulfil their roles. This is disputed by both the Labour Government and the emergency services. You can read more, by clicking this BBC News link here. FOLLOW UP: CRUISE CUTS TESTING FLEET BY 50%Following a collision with a fire engine, Cruise has agreed to a request that it cut it’s testing fleet by 50% in San Fransisco whilst an investigation takes place. The incident led to a passengers being taken to hospital but then released later. To find out more, click this link to and article from The Guardian. This last seven days have not been great for Cruise, click this Twitter thread to read just some of the issues their cars have had. To read why reducing numbers for testing will have a big impact on Cruise, click this Jack Stilgoe Twitter thread. FOLLOW UP: TESLA IS SUING TWO EX-EMPLOYEES OVER HACKTesla has confirmed that the downloading of 100 gigabytes of data from company servers was an ‘inside job’ and that two ex-employees are being sued. Whilst the individuals involved should be pursued for breaking the law, this does not absolve the company. Huge questions still remain over the culture and attitude to privacy and security. One question to ask is “how could they access so much and so diverse information?”. Click this link, to a Quartz article, for more information. FOLLOW UP: DVLA REMINDER SERVICE CLARIFICATIONAfter we discussed the confusion, over paper reminders from the DVLA, we have been contacted by them. Paper reminders are still available, you must opt out to not receive them. Thank you to the DVLA for clarifying this situation. Click here to check out the information provided by the DVLA over this. TESLA EXECS APPARENTLY KNEW OF AUTOPILOT ISSUESEngineers for Tesla, whilst giving deposition for another civil case following the death of an owner, have stated that executives knew that Autopilot could not detect cross traffic and did nothing to fix it. This will be of interest to the other organisations investigating many issues with Tesla. Click here to read more from The Register. FORD MD TAKES ON UK CHAIR TOOLisa Brankin has added Ford UK Chairperson to her title of Managing Director. She is taking over the position following Tim Slatter’s move to Ford in the US. More can be read on this, by clicking the link here to an AMOnline story. JLR RECRUITING 300 TECHNICIANSAs part of the push to an electrified future, Jaguar Land Rover are recruiting 300 technicians to their factory and development centres across the country. You can lean more
Swansea Blackhole - 15 August 2023
FOLLOW UP: britishvolt saga takes another twistThe buyer for the bankrupt Britishvolt company, Recharge Industries, has failed to make the final payment and is in breach of contract, according to the administrator. Recently we covered the news that the Australian head office was raided by tax officials and police. Click this Autocar Business article to find out more. FOLLOW UP: TESLA RANGE CALCULATIONS EXPLAINEDFollowing the report that Tesla was deliberately misleading owners on the range of their vehicles, Car & Driver investigated how range was calculated in Teslas and compared that to other vehicles. Tesla appear to use a very simple formula which works in a very linear manner and does not adapt to conditions or driving styles. You can find out more, by clicking this link here. FOLLOW UP: LISTENER FEEDBACK Thank you, to Tony Wood, for writing in to us to tell us about the free Android app, called “Petrol Prices” which is available in the Google PlayStore, which uses crowdsourced information to tell you of the cost of fuel in areas of the UK. Tony went on to tell us of his experience of traffic lights changing dependent on whether the car is being driven in excess of the speed limit or not. He confirmed this was done in Spain a decade ago and he thought it was an excellent way to encourage better behaviour on the roads. If you would like to get in touch with us, please feel free to use our contact page, which is linked to here. HOUSE OF LORDS ASKS FOR EVIDENCE ABOUT OUR EV TRANSITIONThe House of Lords Environment and Climate Change Committee has asked for evidence of a strategy and plan from the Government and wider public on the transition to EVs by the mandated dates. Click here to read the Autocar article but also to find links to the committee’s list of questions and how to respond. CONFUSION OVER DVLA REMINDER SERVICE AND POST OFFICE CONTRACTThank you to Meilyr Williams for sending a Mastodon thread to Andrew about confusion over the changes to the DVLA’s reminder service, for car tax, which you can read by clicking here. Check it out and then go see if you are in the system for reminders or need to get on the list for reminders. Additionally, we also we informed that the DVLA is looking to cancel its contract with Post Office, which will mean there will be no way to use a Post Office for any DVLA related services. Once again, the attack on those who are not on the internet or need to do things in person rears its head. Click this link to read more. CAR INSURANCE PRICES HIT ALL TIME HIGHCar insurance prices hit a record level, according to the industry itself. The blame is being put on the costs of repair increasing at an alarming rate. However, Andrew does have personal and recent experience that shows not all costs are justifiable. You can find out more by clicking this Motoring research article link here. WARNING OVER CAR EMISSION STICKER REQUIREMENTS in europeIf you are...
When MPVs were real MPVs - 8 August 2023
FOLLOW UP: ULEZ SCRAPPAGE SCHEME EXPANDEDThe Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced that the scrappage scheme for the London ULEZ expansion has been altered to now cover all residents of London, unlike previously where only a small number of eligible groups were allowed to apply. Click this BBC News article link to read more. FOLLOW UP: UBER AV FATALITY LEGAL CASE ENDSThe legal case brought against the test operator, Rafaela Vasquez, who was working for Uber in their autonomous vehicle program who was monitoring the system when it hit and killed Elaine Herzberg five years ago, has ended after she pleaded guilty to endangerment. This has resulted in three years probation but avoids any jail time. Of note is that no charges have ever been brought against Uber or anyone else from the company. Rafaela disputes claims she was watching The Voice on her phone, instead stating she was checking the in-company channel on the app Slack, as the Uber had instructed all operatives to do. Click this article link from WIRED to read more on these developments. We also strongly recommend you check out a piece from Ed Niedermeyer, discussing the case and what it means for the industry and us drivers. You can read that by clicking this link here. NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES FOR JULY 2023 The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), have released the registration figures of new cars, for July 2023. Growth continues once again, which is positive news, but it is still over a decade (apart from the previous two years) to find a worse month. EV registration continue to hover around 16%, with diesel continuing to fall. To read more, click this link to the SMMT article. RESEARCHERS JAILBREAK A TESLAWith physical access to a Tesla researchers have managed to access parts of the system that allow them to enable some options and activate them, without handing over their money to the company. As more companies fit all options and then hide them behind extra payments we will likely see a rise in such activities. You can find out more by clicking this TechCrunch article link here. CALIFORNIA DATA PRIVACY AGENCY INVESTIGATES CAR DATACalifornian’s privacy regulator has announced it is investigating the collection and sharing of data by connected cars. This follows some moves in Europe. Click here to learn more, from a MSM news link. 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 CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Toyota Land CruiserAlan clarifies the different model sizes of the range, which many in the US could’ve done with understanding when reporting on the reveal of the new Land Cruiser. The looks have been inspired by their historical models but they have managed not to create a pastiche. In the UK we will get the same 2.8 litre diesel until late...
Bobble hats and forests - 1 August 2023
FOLLOW UP: ULEZ EXPANSION GIVEN GO AHEAD The High Court has ruled that the expansion to the ULEZ, as announced by the Mayor of London, is legal and allowed to take place. Five councils had brought the action against the increase in the area covered by the rules on vehicle emissions. You can find out more by clicking this BBC News article link here. ASTON MARTIN GETS NEW BOARD MEMBERFollowing their increased stake in Aston Martin, Geely are now entitled to a seat on the board of the sports car company. Daniel Li, the Geely CEO, has been appointed. Geely are the third largest shareholders, with 17% stake. Click this Automotive News Europe article link, to find out more. CLAIMS OVER TESLA RANGE MANIPULATION An article surfaced from Reuters claiming that Tesla has a secrete team who squash any complaints on the range of their cars, from customers. The claims centre around range exaggeration by the company creating an expectation in customer’s minds and them having to deal with the differences owners found. You can read that piece by clicking the Reuters link here. A well known YouTube EV specialists, Bjørn Nyland, has published a video discussing the article and pointing out areas he does not believe are correct, you can watch that by clicking this link here. BT TO CONVERT CABINETS TO EV CHARGERSBT, the telecoms giant, has announced it will convert on street cabinets to EV chargers once they are decommissioned as areas are serviced by full fibre systems. Starting in Northern Ireland in the autumn, a few cabinets will be converted to enable car charging before the project is rolled out across the UK. The expectation is up to 60,000 cabinets could be eligible for conversion. To find out more, click this edie article link here. SCAREMONGERING OVER MINERAL REQUIREMENTSMuch is said, online, about the need for precious metals and how much of them will be required as we move to electric cars. We are linking you to an article from the Financial Times that discusses this, explaining how we have the supplies but also the reality that some communities will be affected by the increase in mines and manufacturing. Click here to read more. 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 CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Lexus LMLexus has revealed their new range topping model, a luxury MPV. LM is the acronym for Luxury Mover, aimed at those who are to be transported in comfort that don’t want an SUV or saloon. The car will come with a 2.5 litre petrol hybrid powertrain and an optional extra electric motor. Length is just over five metres and a width slightly under 1.9m. Configuration will be either four or seven seats. Prices start at £89,995, running all the way up to £112,995 for the top of the range Takumi trim. Click here to read more, via an Autocar article....
Facetious and silly - 25 July 2023
TATA BATTERY FACTORY TO BE BUILT IN THE UK Tata, Jaguar Land Rover owners, have finally confirmed thanks to Government help their battery factory will be built in the UK and not Spain. Production is planned to start from 2026, with the aim being to produce 40GWh of batteries when fully operational. These will be sold to the mobility and energy industries. Click this Autocar article link for more. JLR CONFIRM ADRIAN MARDELL AS PERMANENT CEOAdrian Mardell stepped in to fill the void following the departure of Thierry Bolloré several months ago. This was only a temporary appointment, however, Tata has announced that he will take over the role on a permanent basis. You can find out more by clicking this Autocar Business link here. SUPERMARKET FUEL PROFITS MORE THAN DOUBLE The RAC continues to hound the supermarkets over their fuel pricing. They have established that since the start of the Ukrainian war, supermarket’s profit per litre of fuel has doubled as they have not passed savings onto us consumers. More can be read on this, by clicking the link to the Autocar article here. LOTUS TO CUTS JOBSLotus announced an already planned cull of approximately 200 jobs when releasing their financial results. The company is at pains to stress these were not the result of the increased losses of £145.1 million. A consultation is underway regarding the proposal. Click here to find out more, via an Autocar Business link. ALPINE GET A NEW CEOLaurent Rossi is being moved to a Renault Group position as Philippe Krief, ex-Ferrari engineering boss, takes over as CEO. No real explanation has been given for the change. More can be read on this by clicking this article link from Automotive News Europe. CHROME PLATING TO BE BANNEDChrome plating is set to be banned in Europe and the US, for new cars due to the dangers of the process and chemicals involved. This won’t actually make too much difference as very little actual chrome is used in today’s cars. Click this Autocar article link to read more. ANTI FRAUD SERVICE FOR USED CAR ADVERTS AVAILABLE Brego, a vehicle valuation company, has launched the Brego Advert Check to help second hand car buyers establish if an ad is potentially fraudulent. The price, compared to the market expectations, along with searching for the pictures used online and wording, are all utilised to evaluate the legitimacy of the advert. There is a case study in the article linked to from Autocar which you can read by clicking this link. CLEVER SPEED REGULATION IDEAS FROM FRANCEIn France they are trialling some clever ideas to get motorists to slow down that is not all about enforcement but changing behaviour. One idea is a speed detector synched to traffic lights, which is the vehicle is at or below the speed limit...
Wheels are on fire - 18 July 2023
Public Charge Point Regulations announced The Government has announced that it will bring in laws that require a 99% reliability to the charging network, for rapid chargers, as well as live status updates. Furthermore, new chargers over 8kW must have contactless pay reader fitted. Failure to meet the new regulations could result in a £10,000 fine for each unit that does not satisfy the requirements. Click here to read more, from Autocar. RENAULT-GEELY PARTNERSHIP HQ IN UKWe first discussed the Renault-Geely joint venture back in November 2022, but now they have announced their headquarters will be in the UK. All production will occur outside the UK. They are still in talks with Aramco to join. Much misinformation has occurred over this story, click this Twitter thread from Edwin Hayward that unpicks the lies. If you would like to read more about the actual story, click here for the link from BBC News. RENAULT CUTS DEALERSHIP NUMBERS Renault announced that they are cutting their dealership numbers, by approximately 25% by 2025. The do not plan, at this time, to move to the agency model so many competitors find irresistible at the moment. To find out more, click the link here for the AM Online story. NISSAN AGREES INVESTMENT IN RENAULTNissan has finally agreed a figure of investment in Renault. They are investing around €646 million in Ampere, which equates to a stake of less than 10% when it was expected to be 15%. You can read more, by clicking this electrive article link. NISSAN RECALLS 1.4M CARS GLOBALLYNissan is recalling 1.4 million vehicles globally due to a risk of unintended acceleration in their Note, Kicks, Serena, Leaf models. The Note Aura is being recalled in Japan over a headlight issue. This includes the UK. No accidents have resulted in these matters. Click this Jalopnik article link to learn more. VW MANAGEMENT MUSICAL CHAIRS CONTINUESVolkswagen Group continue to play musical chairs for their senior staff. Stefan Weckbach will fill the role of Group Chief Strategist following Gernot Doellner’s move to CEO of Audi, we discussed in the Moved to Tears - July 4 2023 episode. André Stoffels will replace Thomas Sedran as CARIAD Chief Financial Officer. Andreas Lehe will fill the position at Bentley, Peter Bosch’s move to head up CARIAD created. Simon Bracco will add to the responsibilities of his position as Head of Corporate Quality at Audi to replace Michael Neumayer as head of Group Quality, which he held for less than a year. There are more, but you get the gist, lots of changes and all of it internal. You can find out more by clicking this article link from electrive here. PARIS INTRODUCES PARKING CHARGES BASED ON WEIGHT The full details of the changes to parking levies imposed by the city of Paris
Bahami - 11 July 2023
FOLLOW UP: NO CHANGE TO EU TARIFF RULES Following weeks of statements that the UK and EU were discussing the changes to the expected import/export tariffs, it appears that there will be no change to the tariffs for ‘rules of origin’ starting in 2024. The European Commission has rejected a call to postpone until 2027. Click this article link, to learn more, from Electrive. JUNE 2023 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURESOnce again registrations are up, year on year. However, they are still well below 2019 levels. Battery electric vehicles grew, for the month, to nearly 18% market share, but year-to-date still sits at a smidgen over 16%. Diesel has dropped, unsurprisingly, whilst PHEVs jumped. Petrol was also down for the month and year-on-year. The SMMT has called on the UK Government to cut VAT from public charging to help encourage more to switch. Click here to read the information from the SMMT. UK STELLANTIS BOSS STEPS DOWN Phil Willcox has announced he is stepping down as the UK boss of Stellantis. He will be replaced by Maria Grazia Davino, who will begin her new position on 1 September, moving from Head of Sales and Marketing for the group. Click the link here, to read more from AM Online. JLR ANNOUNCE NEW UK MANAGING DIRECTORJagual Land Rover has revealed the new Managing Director for the UK, Patrick McGillycuddy, who stepped into the role on a temporary basis, in the wake of Rawdon Glover moving to Jaguar, in March. You can find our more, by clicking this Fleet & Leasing article link, here. 10-YEAR ANNIVERSARY OF TESLA SELF DRIVING CLAIMThis is the tenth consecutive time Elon Musk has claimed that Tesla will achieve Level 4 or 5 automated driving this year. Happy anniversary! Again he has made the claims and again it will not happen. For more, click this article link from The Autopian. SAN Francisco RESIDENTS STOP SELF-DRIVING CARS Local residents, in San Francisco, fed up with the disruption of Waymo and Cruze’s self-driving test fleet being very, very poor at actually driving. The activists make it clear cones are to only be placed on empty cars. Traffic cones are put on the bonnet of cars, which causes the vehicle to stop as the system does not know what to do, but it does not actually damage the car. You can learn more, by clicking this link to a Jalopnik story. CLEVEDON SEA FRONT CYCLE LANE UNDER REVIEWLast year Clevedon council installed a new cycle lane to the sea front. Unusually, they used curving lines to delineate the road from the cycle path, which weave into the normal road area. This has proved controversial. The council has appointed independent experts to review the scheme. Click this BBC News article for more. If you like what we do, on this show, and think it is worth a £1.00, please consider supporting us via...
Moved To Tears - 4 July 2023
FOLLOW UP: BIDIRECTIONAL CAMERAS CATCH 3200 DRIVERS In the first 15 days of operation, the four bidirectional cameras, installed by Devon and Cornwall councils, has been triggered 3200 times. One camera was activated 120 times a day. Thanks to listener Mark Snow for bringing this to our attention! Click here to read more from the BBC News article. UK CAR INDUSTRY CALLS ON NEXT GOVERNMENT FOR HELPThe SMMT has moved on to calling to the next Government, whoever that is, to help secure the future of the car industry in the UK. They have laid out five pledges it hopes any of our politicians will pick up and run with. Click here, on this link, to learn more of this desperate move in the face of political apathy from all corners. SUPERMARKETS RIP MOTORISTS OFF Supermarkets have been found to have ripped the British motorists off, due to weak competition allowing them to charge 6p per litre more than they should have. One of the recommendations, from the Competitions and Markets Authority, is to force supermarkets to publish live prices in order that we consumers can compare and find the cheapest. There is no guarantee this will be implemented. Click this BBC News article here, to learn more. AUDI SACK CEO MARKUS DUESMANNThe CEO of Audi, Markus Duesmann, has been sacked following very public criticism from VW Group CEO Oliver Blume. Duesmann was brought in by Diess, from BMW. He will be replaced by Gernot Doellner, the current VW Group strategy boss. Whilst Audi’s performance has not got close to the hopes from VW, there is context that shows it is not all his fault. Click this Twitter thread from Matthias Schmidt for context of what he inherited. To read more about the overall story, click this Forbes article link written by Michael Taylor. HYUNDAI AND TOYOTA EV ADS BANNEDAfter a brief spell of being in agreement with the Advertising Standards Authority over dealer price claims, we return to normal service. Toyota and Hyundai adverts for their EVs have been banned because they do not warn people there is only a small number of the very fastest charge points available. On top of that, the complaints stated to achieve the fastest charge there were a number of variables that could thwart the process. You can read more by clicking this article link from The Times. SURVEY SUGGESTS DEMAND FOR EVS BELOW REQUIREMENTS A survey by Auto Retail Bulletin has revealed that current demand for EVs falls below next year’s imposed requirement by the Government of 22%. 60% of respondents state demand is below 15% and a third say it is below 10%. That would mean the car industry paying the UK Government a lot of money. However, most likely there will be a throttling of non compliant model availability, as we have seen previously. For more on this story, click this Auto Retail Network link. HMRC SAYS EV NUMBERS ARE CLIMBING AS DIESEL FALLSIn this week’s...
Snakes Eating Tails - 27 June 2023
FOLLOW UP: ALL CARS WITH THERMAL WINDOW DEVICES OWE COMPENSATION IN EUA German court has ruled any car fitted with a thermal window device is deemed illegal, thus owners can sue the manufacturer unless they can prove there is no negligence on the part of the car company. These devices were permitted by the regulations that the EU brought in, up until July 2022. Click this Autocar article link for more information. FOLLOW UP: GHOSN SUES NISSAN FOR DEFAMATION Carlos Ghosn is suing Nissan, two other companies and twelve individuals for defamation, to the tune of $1 billion, relating to his ejection from Nissan and subsequent imprisonment. You can learn more by clicking this Hagerty article link here. FOLLOW UP: BRITISHVOLT OWNER RAIDED BY POLICEThe owner of Britishvolt, who has yet to pay for the company, has been raided by Australian police, relating to tax matters. The company stresses this is all a misunderstanding and is cooperating fully. Click this BBC News article link here, for more information. For Peter Campbell’s tweet adding more context, click this link. CAR FIRMS WARN OF RULES OF ORIGIN PAINEU car companies have warned of a £3.2 billion hit if an agreement cannot be reached over ‘rules of origin’ as car batteries will fail to meet the criteria imposed on them. For more on this story, click the Motoring Research article link here. NISSAN OUST COO GUPTA In a shock move, by Nissan, their Chief Operating Officer has been forced from the company under mysterious circumstances. No official reason has been given as to why the man who was steadying the ship, making it financially viable once more and even increasing market share has been kicked out. Click here, to read more from the Asia Times. HEATHROW CHARGING POINTS SHUTDOWNHeathrow short term parking EV charging points have shutdown, with no explanation from either Heathrow Airport or PodPoint. There is speculation as to why, which you can read more about from this Autocar article, linked here. Also, we recommend reading the tweet from Tim Oldland, giving realistic reasons why this may have happened and exposing a real issue as more charging points are needed across the country. Click here to see what he explains. BIDIRECTIONAL SPEED CAMERAS INSTALLED IN DEVON AND CORNWALLCertain roads in Devon and Cornwall now have bidirectional speed cameras installed, in further attempts to deal with speeding vehicles. Some are replacements, with others being new installations. To find out more and where they are, click this BBC News article link here. COUNCILS GOING APP ONLY FOR PARKING PAYMENTSOver 20 councils in the UK have moved to parking set ups that will only allow for app based...
Rant Down - 20 June 2023
FOLLOW UP: NHTSA TELLS CAR COMPANIES TO IGNORE RIGHT TO REPAIRIn a stunning move, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has told car companies in the USA to ignore the new Massachusetts right-to-repair law. The claims in the letter cover cyber security risks and malicious actions. Questions were also raised about the author of the letter and their involvement in the long battle by John Deere and the right to repair and how that could be seen as a conflict. Click this Reuters article link for more. For some context on the claims in the NHTAS letter and how they run a little hollow, click this link from Hot Hardware. VW ANNOUNCE ANOTHER NEW STRATEGYVolkswagen CEO, Thomas Schäfer, announced the latest strategy for the brand. They will be prioritising volumes, with sales, cutting some of their models as they focus on “core models”. There is also mention of more cross brand working. You can find out more by clicking this AM Online article link here. That is not the end of the announcements though, VW is dropping the manual gearbox if Euro 7 legislation is implemented as it is now. The claim is that it is needed for emission rules. Click this Autocar article link for more. Also announced, again by Schäfer, was the news that the interiors of Volkswagens will be improved and made simpler. Acknowledging the complaints about the touch-screen only approach, with a return to a more functional design and layout. Click this Autocar article for more. STELLANTIS ENDING ICE ONLY MODELS IN SOME US STATESStellantis are no longer selling ICE only cars in 14 states in the US, in order to meet stricter emission rules. All models are electrified to greater or lesser extent. They announced the move in April. Click this Autopian article link to find out more. TIGHT FINANCES CAUSE OWNERS TO SKIP SERVICINGIn news that should surprise no one, Volkswagen Financial Services surveyed over 2000 owners to find out a third are skipping essential servicing due to the cost of living crisis. This is the latest in a number of such results from many companies reporting the similar news. Click this Autocar article link to read more on this worrying trend. NEW MOTORING OFFENCES SENTENCING GUIDELINES PUBLISHED The Sentencing Council has listed the revised and new sentences for motoring offences, covering dangerous, disqualified, careless and uninsured driving amongst others. Click here to read the list and what the sentence recommendations are, from the Council. INCREASED PARKING CHARGES FOR POLLUTING CARSLambeth Council is introducing increased parking charges for the...
Allegro Fantasies - 13 June 2023
FOLLOW UP: COURT APPROVES MORE AREAS OF ULEZ CONTENTIONThe High Court has approved a further two grounds for contesting the expansion of the London ULEZ, following initial legal efforts in February where only two of five grounds were accepted. There are five councils fighting the expansion which is due to be reviewed on 4 July. To learn more, click here to read the Enfield Dispatch article. ‘NO MOW MAY’ RAISES CONCERNS‘No Mow May’ is a campaign that allows verges to grow, thus enabling plant life to flourish. However, some concerns have been raised as this has led to reduced visibility. PlantLife have helped 300 local authorities to adopt this. Click this Autocar link to learn more. EV SHOULD PAY-PER-MILE SAYS THINK TANKThe Centre for Policy Studies, an organisation with strong links to the Conservatives, has recommended to the Government, that all EVs are charged per mile, to help replace the lost vehicle excise duty venue. They go on to recommend a set amount of free mileage per year, with those in more remote locations allocated more. The rates would also tie into the weight of the vehicle. You can learn more, by clicking the AMOnline article link here. STELLANTIS PROMOTING KEEPING CARS ON THE ROAD LONGERThe average age of cars on the road is twelve years, but Stellantis is suggesting fifteen is easily possible with remanufacturing. This is where cars that have reached the end of life are harvested for parts that can be refurbished and used by others. All of this will help reduce CO2, as a consequence. Click this Autocar Business article to learn more. To watch The Late Brake Show about ‘deproduction’, click this YouTube link. To read the Autocar Business article on ‘deproduction’, click the link here. MERCEDES GETS LEVEL 3 APPROVAL IN CALIFORNIAMercedes-Benz US has gain approval for their Level 3 automated driving system, in California. Called ‘Drive Pilot’ and once engaged, will allow the driver to take their hands from the steering wheel and look away from the road. The driver needs to keep their face to the in-car monitoring camera but can do other things, like play with their phone. All of this will only occur when up to 40mph and when the car is in heavy traffic. Click The Verge article link to learn more. For context as to Andrew’s anger at this being deployed, and the change in tune from Mercedes from only a few months ago when it comes to responsibility, click this LinkedIn post. For even more context, a piece from The Autopian, explaining why Level 3 is a bad idea and inherently flawed,
Rab C Nesbitt - 6 June 2023
FOLLOW UP: VW AND AUDI AGREE DIESELGATE DEAL WITH TEXASVolkswagen and Audi have agreed, in principle, a settlement deal with the State of Texas over breaking environmental laws because of dieselgate. A sum of $85 million will be paid. Click this US News article link for more. FOLLOW UP: EV GRITTER NAMESAfter mentioning looking forward to seeing the EV gritter names on last week’s show, we have had some suggestions. Jouletide Grittings, Salt Watter and DeICEr. Thank you to Nir Kahn for those, they’re wonderful. Feel free to send the chaps your suggestions. MAY 2023 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURESMay 2023 New Car Registration figures are up 16.7% on last year, but don’t forget that was quite poor due to supply constraints. The main driver, sorry not sorry, of May’s rise is an increase in Fleet registrations, up nearly 37% on last year. There is also a change at the top of the ‘Most Registered Cars’ chart too. To find out more, click this article link from the SMMT. JAGUAR I-PACE RECALLED IN US OVER FIRE RISKJaguar is recalling over 6,000 I-Pace cars due to the risk of fire, attributed to an issue with the battery pack but the exact reason is still not known. You can read more by clicking this Reuters article link here. JAGUAR LAND ROVER REBRANDINGJaguar Land Rover, as a Group, are rebranding. JLR now has a logo, they have developed a ‘Look Book’, which dictates all aspects of the various brand’s aesthetics from stationary through to what the dealership staff are to wear. There is much optimism for the future but also acknowledgement that aspects need improving. To find out more about the JLR logo and Group, click this Autocar link. For the expected benefits for us customers, with the move to the agency model, click here to read more from Autocar. To read about how the staff “uniform” has gone down with dealerships, click this Auto Retail article link here. If you would like to learn more about how the Discovery brand is seen as an exciting one, from within JLR, click this Autocar link here. REMOTELY OPERATED TAXI SERVICE IN MILTON KEYNESThis week’s Ledge of Fury™ item is brought to you by Fetch, Milton Keynes and regulators that have approved a taxi service that utilised remote operators to drive the car, whilst a safety driver sits in the front seat. Following a whole 1,000 miles of testing this has been approved to run on public roads. Click this BBC News article link here for more. There are a huge number of reasons why this is a bad idea, dangerous and should not be allowed, which are backed up by plenty of research that...
Other Vulnerable Vehicles - 30 May 2023
CAR CRIME DRAMATICALLY RISES2022 saw a rise of 25% in stolen vehicles, on the previous twelve months. Items stolen from vehicles also rose. Figures are expected to be higher as Devon and Cornwall Police could not provide statistics. Relay theft is being cited as part of the problem, but we know, thanks to Ken Tindell and Ian Tabor there is a new way some cars are being stolen, click here to learn more on that technique from Ken. Click this link, from Motoring Research, to read more about the rise in car crime. DEALERSHIP PRICE CLAIMS MISLEADING IN RULINGThe Advertising Standards Agency has ruled that pricing a car for only five days, then reducing that price and then claiming there will be a saving for the consumer is misleading. Marshall Motor Group did this and have been censured by the ASA as a result. Five days does not set any reference for the price, according to the ruling. Click here to read more from AMOnline and the wider implications to the industry. CHARGEPLACE SCOTLAND TO BE PRIVATISEDAs demand for the service and the need to upgrade the network takes its toll on Chargeplace Scotland, the news that it will now be managed by private contractors is not surprising. The Scottish Government has stated it cannot afford to back it anymore. To read more, click this Autocar article here. DEVON OPENS NEW 16 CHARGER EV SITEFor the thousands that invade the South West every holiday there is good news if you drive an EV as a new site has opened to charge at. Buckfastleigh, just off the A38 between Exeter and Plymouth. 16 ultra rapid charge points, including two with extra long bays for bigger vehicles or those towing something are now open to the public. Click this BBC News article to learn more. EV GRITTER LORRY LAUNCHEDEcon Engineering has launched their electric gritter lorry in the UK. But that is not all, thanks to the clever adaptability of their Electric Quick Change Body (E-QCB) system, the lorry can be used for a variety of roles throughout the year. You can find out more, by clicking this electrive.com article link. TESLA DATA LEAK AND ADAS COMPLAINTSA huge data leak, from Tesla - which the company blamed on a disgruntled employee, has revealed two things. First, Tesla will be investigated by data control authorities, as a huge amount of customer and employee information being accessed and taken. Secondly, the data leak also showed that there have been a huge amount of complaints over ‘Autopilot’ and its capabilities. To read more, click this link from The Guardian. POLICE WORK WITH GEORGE’S CAR MEDIA TO PROMOTE SAFETYDevon and Cornwall Police are working with George’s Car Media to promote safe and legal practices for modifying cars. Using TikTok they are reaching a younger audience, which put requests to change an aspect of a Ford Focus the channel uses to show how to modify correctly. You can learn more,
Ben Elton Sketch - 23 May 2023
FOLLOW UP: US LAWMAKERS ATTEMPT AM LOSS U-TURNSenators in the US are banding together to try and create a bill that will force car makers to install the option of AM Radio in all new cars. The claim is that removing it weakens the Government’s ability to issue emergency broadcasts. Click here to read the Autoevolution article. GEELY INCREASES STAKE IN ASTON MARTINAfter several attempts to increase their investment in Aston Martin, that Lance Stroll had rebuffed, Geely announced that it now owns 17% of the brand. This makes them the third largest shareholder. To read more, click this EVO article link here. CALL FOR OVER-70S TO GET MANDATORY EYE CHECKSOlder Drivers Forum, as road safety organisation, has called for all drivers to take a mandatory eye-test as they hit 70 and every three years recurring. This sounds like an eminently sensible idea that we hope will become law. You can find out more, by clicking this Autocar link here. CAR INDUSTRY WARNS OF RULES OF ORIGIN IMPACTVauxhall, quickly followed by Ford, brought up the issue of Rules of Origin, where parts and vehicles imported into the UK from Europe, and vice versa, face a 10% surcharge bringing into question the viability of UK car factories. The car industry has urged the Government to renegotiate a deal with Europe to prevent the cost implications. To read more, click this BBC News article discussing Vauxhall’s position. This is an issue that has been known and discussed by a few for some time. Click this Autocar article link, from Jim Holder explaining the issues and consequences. You can read more about the lack of industry strategy, at a Governmental level, how that is hurting the industry and may mean it dies altogether, by clicking this The Guardian link. CALLS FOR GLOUCESTERSHIRE ROADS TO BE DECLARED AN EMERGENCYPaul Hodgkinson, a Gloucestershire County Councillor, has called for the poor state of roads in the county to be declared an emergency. The Highways Department had “30 teams” working to address road repairs. They also stated they met Government targets to fix high safety priorities within one day and other safety issues within 28 days. Click this BBC News article for more information. MERCEDES PINK NOISE DEPLOYED TO SAVE HEARINGThis is not a new thing, as Mercedes-Benz has been adding this to their cars since 2015, however it is amazing. If the car detects it is about to have an incident, pink noise is played through the speakers which causes occupant’s ear drums to close over and prevent loud noises from hurting and disorientating them. Click this Uncrate link here and watch the video for more. NIO UNVEILS GEN 3 BATTERY SWAP STATIONNIO, the Chinese EV...