Motoring Podcast - News Show

The Swiss company, Bcomp produce lightweight, natural fibre composite materials and panels which are beginning to find their way into the automotive sector. Listen in as Andrew talks to Per Mårtenson about how Bcomp started, what they do and how these clever products can be used. Thank you to Per for chatting with Andrew and giving us this fascinating insight into a different material.

FOLLOW UP: MORGAN HINTS AT FUTURE DESIGNS Recently the chaps discussed the new appointment of Matthew Hole as CTO and idly wondered what that would mean for future designs. Seems Morgan heard, well, okay, they probably didn’t, but let’s not dwell on that as they have teased out some sketch designs of how future Morgan’s could look. To find out more, click the Morgan article here . NEW CAR REGISTRA...

ALISON JONES NAMED PRESIDENT OF SMMT Alison Jones, Stellantis VP and Country Manager for the UK, has been announced as the first female President of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders. She will take up her position on 1 January 2022. Dr George Gillespie OBE, steps down after a three year tenure as President. To find out more, click the SMMT article here . UK CAR PRODUCTION WORST SINCE...

Alan went to Oxford for a day to try some of the new sporting and electric offerings from BMW. With the keys to everything fromt he new M3 Competition xDrive to an electric MINI, how did he get on and what new and novel insights did he gain?

FOLLOW UP: VW SHOULD’VE PUBLISHED ENGINE PLAN In a test case brought by investors in Germany, Volkswagen is accused of failing to disclose the problem from back in 2008. The judge has stated that it is on the investors to prove VW or any of their staff withheld information, but it is up to VW to prove the board not telling investors from 2012 was not grossly negligent nor deliberate. To read more,...

FOLLOW UP: VW LOSES APPEAL IN SUPREME COURT Volkswagen has lost their appeal, in the US Supreme Court, to have claims for damages brought by individual states thrown out. VW felt that the rules only allowed the federal government to make claims for damages under the Clean Air Act. This means the potential for further financial penalties is very real, with Ohio along with counties in Florida and Ut...

Alan had a Honda HR-V for 48 hours to find out how this 3rd generation of Honda’s left-field compact SUV coped on the roads of Northamptonshire. It’s divisive in many ways, but was it a Joy Machine?

FOLLOW UP: ENVISION SCALES BACK OUTPUT PREDICTION Envision, the Chinese company partnering with Renault on their battery factory, in Northern France, has lowered the predicted production output due to a change in the site’s layout. The wooded area, previously marked for demolition will now not be destroyed because it is a wildlife habitat and building there would be “complicated”. Output is now pr...

UK GOVERNMENT CONSULTING ON THE FUTURE OF TRANSPORT The Government has launched a consultation on the future of transport, looking at vehicles parts and equipment and engines of non-road mobile machinery. They are looking to cover everything from road vehicles, to trailers, to farm machinery etc. The aim is to ensure there is applicable regulatory powers and framework for security, environmental a...

Andrew tried out the Suzuki Ignis 1.2 Hybrid SZ5 4WD, for a week. Find out if the chaps need to change their reviews to include small canine quantifiers, can a family of five use a four seat car and does Andrew’s lead footedness hinder the efficiency of the engine.

FOLLOW UP: VOLVO P1800 GASSER IS UK’S HOT WHEELS The judging of the UK’s Hot Wheels candidate took place last weekend. A Volvo P1800 gasser was chosen to represent the UK in the Hot Wheels Legends Tour. To watch the Car Throttle stream of the event, click the link here . To read more about the result, click the Elan PR article here . FORD INVESTS IN HALEWOOD PLANT Ford is investing £200 million in...

Alan spent a little while talking to mindfulness coach Christoph Spiessens about mindfulness at the wheel, how it can help and how you can start to achieve it. They also discussed four tracks that Lexus have released, created using the sounds created by Lexus cars. To listen to the tracks and read more about Lexus’ mindfulness music click this link . To listen and download the tracks from Spotify...

FOLLOW UP: HYPER-MILING A MIRAI AGAIN In the United States a Toyota Mirai has driven 845 miles, on a single tank, to break the official record. The journey, which took two days, was carried out by Wayne Gerdes and Bob Winger in California at the end of August. TO find out more, click here for the Top Gear article . GENEVA MOTOR SHOW POSTPONED AGAIN Geneva Motor Show has again been postponed, this...

FOLLOW UP: ROLLS ROYCE 102EX CONCEPT CAR In response to Alan’s query about the wireless charging for the 2011 102EX concept car, from Rolls Royce, Dave Monks has got in touch. He confirmed that the wireless charging did work and in fact he designed it to deal with a wide range of voltages, grid frequencies and types of charging interface. There was only one model and they drove it around the world...

Alan spent a day with Hyundai driving some of the newest additions to their range. This Special Edition includes short drive opinions of:- Tucson PHEV i20 N-Line i20N Kona N-Line IONIQ 5 To listen to the recent Hyundai Tucson Hybrid Twin Test Review, click this link here . To listen to the recent Hyundai i20 Premium Review, click this link here . To listen to Alan’s conversation with Albert Bierma...

FOLLOW UP: VW TEMPERATURE EMISSION LEVELS QUESTIONED At the European Court of Justice, the prosecutor’s expert witness has stated that Volkswagen has no justification in using an external temperature and altitude guided emissions device, in Austria. The average temperature and operating altitude is often outside the scope for running at lower NOx emissions. The judges have yet to give their verdic...

FOLLOW UP: MAN GUILTY OF SELLING SCANIA SECRETS Back in February, of this year, we talked about the Swedish man accused of selling secrets from Scania and Volvo to Russia. His trial is now complete and he is guilty of passing on information from Scania but not from Volvo. To read more, click the Automotive News Europe article here . OSPREY CHARGING INSTALLING 150 CHARGING HUBS Osprey Charging has...

Alan spent a week with an outlier in the Lexus range, the electric UX300e. How well does Lexus’ first UK-sold EV fare in daily use and would you want to own one?

GOVERNMENT CHANGES HGV AND TOWING TESTS In a bid to reduce the backlog of tests and increase the number of HGV drivers, the Government has decided to do away with some of the previously mandatory requirements to show someone was a safe and competent driver. There will only be one single HGV test, for both rigid body and articulated lorries. The hitching and reversing elements are no longer require...

Alan had a chat to David Spickett of The Car Crowd to find out all about buying a share, or shares, in a classic car and what you can expect as a result. To find out more about The Car Crowd you can follow them on Instagram , on Facebook and on their website .

FOLLOW UP: PARIS SPEED CAMERAS RUNNING INTO PROBLEMS The unpopular reduction of the speed limit in Paris has meant that some runners are being caught by the City’s speed cameras, exceeding the 30km/h limit. In a promotional and clever stunt the running shop DISTANCE has teamed up with professional athletes to get caught at night triggering the cameras. To read more, click The Connexion article her...

UN SAYS LEADED PETROL IS NO MORE The UN has announced that the last country to sell leaded petrol to the public has now stopped. Algeria was the last of 80 odd countries that used this petrol well into the 2000s. The announcement was made on the eve of E10 unleaded petrol being mandated in the UK. To read more, click the Hagerty article here . DS AND AUDI MAKE FURTHER ELECTRIC ANNOUNCEMENTS DS Aut...

SEMI-CONDUCTOR CRISIS - UPDATE Whilst this has been an ongoing issue for the car industry, we haven’t updated you on who is being hit hardest at the moment, but we address that in this episode. Of note is Toyota announcing a cut of 40% in global output, Volvo idling the Gothenburg plant again and JLR telling lease companies it is struggling with supplies. To read more about that and all affected,...

FOLLOW UP: WHAT MAKES A SALE A SALE With thanks to the SMMT we can now confirm that a “sale” is when there is a change in owner, so if a person or company continue their lease beyond the original time frame, that will not be added to the figures reported. Which makes the reported numbers even more impressive than the chaps originally thought. CORNWALL SPARKS COMMERICAL EV DRIVE Watt Electric Vehic...

JULY 2021 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES SMMT has released the July figures for new car registrations. In what is being reported as a combination of factors, thanks to Covid and chip shortages, the numbers are not good. They are the worst since the 1990s, in fact. To find out more, click the SMMT article here . To see Triston Young’s breakdown of numbers by fuel type, click his Twitter thread link h...