Motoring Podcast - News Show

RAC RECOMMENDS DITCHING FUEL DUTY CUT The RAC, who have long been highlighting how fuel retailers are not passing on the fuel duty cut to consumers, have recommended to the Government that they remove this in the upcoming Budget. Their argument is that drivers are not seeing the benefit and companies are only lining their pockets. To read more on this, click the link here to a BBC News article . H...

WARNING ISSUED FOR UK NEW CAR MARKET Cox Automotive, the automotive consultancy that helps those selling cars, has warned that the last quarter of 2024 will be very difficult for brands and dealers in the UK. They have gone so far as to liken the struggles they foresee as similar to those faced in the economic turmoil of the 2008 financial crash. To read more and get a better understanding of what...

London ULEZ Scrappage Scheme to End Next Month The London Scrappage Scheme will close next month for residents of all the London Boroughs covered by the ULEZ, but certain groups still have until 2027. You can read more in this story from Autocar . GM Lays off 1,000 Software Engineers Just when all other car manufacturers are trying to focus on getting software correct, GM lays off 1,000 across the...

FOLLOW UP: CHINA SAYS EU TARIFFS ON EVS BREAK WTO RULES China has said the tariffs imposed by the EU on Chinese made electric cars break the World Trade Organisation’s rules. On top of which the claim is the findings from the initial report and ruling are factually incorrect too. There is no confirmation that they have lodged legal proceedings with the WTO yet, but they state they reserve the righ...

FOLLOW UP: MORE CERTIFICATION WOES FOR TOYOTA Following on-site inspections, by Japan’s transport ministry, more certification violations have been found. A further seven models have been found to have been incorrectly certified, including the RAV4 model, resulting in a call for “drastic reforms” from the government. To learn more, click this link to a Reuters article . JULY 2024 NEW CAR REGISTRAT...

NEW ICE ONLY CAR SALE BAN TO BE 2030 IN UK The Department for Transport has stated that they will ‘provide clarity’ by announcing that new internal combustion petrol and diesel only cars will be banned from sale in 2030. Further details will be issued in ‘due course’. Questions are being raised over vans, which are not mentioned. To read more, click this FleetNews article link here . STELLANTIS PR...

NEW CTO FOR RENAULT GROUP Philippe Krief will become the chief technical officer for the Renault Group on 1 September 2024, taking over the role from Gilles Le Borgne. Krief will continue his role at Alpine. To learn more, click this YahooFinance link here . NEW EU TYRE RULES COME INTO FORCE New rules for tyres, from the EU, mean that they will need to have the same wet braking standards new as wh...

UK CAR FACTORIES HALVE CARBON EMISSIONS The UK car manufacturing industry has managed to cut carbon emissions by half in the past 25 years. On top of which, water use has dropped significantly. This comes from the SMMT’s 25th annual Sustainability Report. If you wish to learn more, click this AMOnline link here . JLR SALES INCREASE JLR, in the last quarter, saw their sales to dealers (wholesale) r...

FOLLOW UP: CHINESE BUILT EV TARIFFS COME INTO EFFECT The interim tariffs, from the EU on Chinese built EVs, has come into effect. Some of these have been tweaked, with Geely’s penalty dropping a fraction. The EU also published a document to explain who was hit by what and why. To find out more, click this Reuters link here . SAIC have asked for a special hearing with the EU as it states some of it...

FOLLOW UP: ARAMCO FINALLY AGREE TO HORSE STAKE The joint-venture between Geely and Renault, for engine technology, called Horse, has finally managed to get Aramco on board as the third partner. They are expected to take a 10% share in the company. To read more, click this link to a Reuters article here . VW THROWS $1B LIFELINE TO RIVIAN Volkswagen and Rivian announced a partnership, with VW invest...

FOLLOW UP: EU AND CHINA AGREE TO TALK The EU and China have agreed, following a call over the weekend, to start a consultation into the issues around Chinese made battery electric vehicles. China wants the tariffs halted during this time but the EU has rejected this. Click here, to read more from Politico . DR FINED FOR CLAIMING CARS ARE MADE IN ITALY Stellantis is not the only company getting int...

FOLLOW UP: SURPRISE EU TARIFF RATES The EU has announced the rates for interim tariffs on Chinese made cars coming to the continent. These are surprisingly high, in some cases. The differences per brand is due to the level of cooperation they provided the investigators and what state aid they receive. To read more, click this Politco article link here . To read another interesting article from Pol...

FOLLOW UP: JLR SPEEDS UP SECURITY UPDATE FOR OLDER CARS JLR is speeding up the software updates to older models of the Range Rover, Defender, Discovery and Jaguar brands. These are cars built after 2018. Owners of such cars are urged to get in touch with JLR so their vehicles can be updated. You can learn more by clicking this AMOnline article link here . NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES MAY 2024 The...

FOLLOW UP: FCA PERMITS GAP INSURANCE AGAIN The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) has given permission for companies to sell GAP insurance once again, following steps to make it fairer to customers. Those selling the insurance will need to demonstrate they are following the new rules and then they will be allowed to resume their offering. If you wish to learn more, click this AMOnline article link...

FOLLOW UP: NHTSA INVESTIGATES MORE WAYMO INCIDENTS The National Highways and Transport Safety Administration (NHTSA) are investigating further incidents involving Waymo vehicles. The nine extra are focused on stationary or semi-stationary items such as gates, chains and utility poles. If you wish to learn more, click on this TechCrunch link here . FOLLOW UP: CAR THING TO BE BRICKED BY SPOTIFY Afte...

FOLLOW UP: EU TO IMPOSE TARIFFS EU politicians have indicated that they will impose tariffs between 25-30% on Chinese EVs imported to the European Union. This comes after the US raised their tariff level to 105% for Chinese EVs. The move has been expected but the amount was not known. This has brought out divisions within the EU as France and Germany have very different home industries. If you wis...

FOLLOW UP: CAZOO TO ENTER ADMINISTRATION The online car retailer has taken the step to announce that it will appoint administrators for its subsidiaries to help protect them from creditor’s debt enforcement. Cazoo also stated, to investors, unless it found urgent investment it would fold. You can read more, by clicking this AMOnline article link here . FOLLOW UP: TESLA AUTOPILOT UPDATE INVESTIGATE...

FOLLOW UP: EU WARNS OVER LACK OF COOPERATION WITH PROBE The EU has accused BYD, Geely and SAIC of not providing enough detail for their investigation. Due to this, apparent, lack of cooperation the tariffs that will be imposed are going to be higher than they might have been. The timing of this is important as the Chinese President is visiting Europe imminently. Click this article link from Politi...

FOLLOW UP: CONTINENTAL FINED $107M FOR DIESELGATE Continental, the automotive parts supplier, has been fined €100 million for its part in the dieselgate scandal. The fine was such due to the full cooperation of the company and changes they have subsequently made to their compliance structures. There are six weeks for Continental to pay the fine. Click this Reuters article for more information . ST...

FOLLOW UP: WALES TO CHANGE SOME ROADS BACK TO 30MPH Ken Skates, the Welsh Government Transport Secretary, has announced that some of the road limits recently changed from 30mph to 20mph, will now revert back to the original limit. This is an acknowledgement that the implementation of the reduced road speeds has not been as carefully executed as should have occured. If you wish to learn more about...

FOLLOW UP: BYD HELPED BY CHINESE GOVERNMENT A report is claiming that BYD has received $3.7 billion, in funding from the Chinese Government, to help it to reach its dominating position. This is all part of the EU’s investigation into whether companies from the country have an unfair advantage thanks to state aid. Click this Yahoo Finance article link for more information . FOLLOW UP: BRITISHVOLT S...

FOLLOW UP: RENAULT AND VOLVO GROUP PRESENT EV VAN JV Flexis is the name of the joint-venture between Renault, the Volvo Group and transportation company CMA CGM, that will develop EV vans aimed at urban and last mile deliveries. This will fill the gap in both Renault and Volvo’s offerings to the commercial vehicle industry. For more information, click this Autocar link here . TOYOTA UPDATES ON CAR...

FOLLOW UP: LUCID RAISES $1B FROM SAUDI ARABIA THe luxury EV maker, Lucid, has received a further $1 billion in investment, from the Saudi Arabian sovereign fund, Public Investment Fund. They also increased the number of vehicles they expect to produce in 2024 compared to 2023, still only 9,000 cars though. If you wish to learn more, click this link to a Reuters article . FOLLOW UP: CANOO BUYS UP A...

FOLLOW UP: RENAULT VOLVO JV FOR EV VANS IS ON Last week we discussed the Reuters article that stated Renault and Volvo will announce that their joint venture for electric vans will shut in early April. This turns out not to be the case. Thanks to Renault sources we can confirm the JV is still very much on. Click this article link from AMOnline to read more . FOLLOW UP: FISKER TALKS WITH NISSAN BRE...

FOLLOW UP: RENAULT AND VOLVO TO SHUT EV VAN PROJECT Renault and Volvo will announce that their joint venture for electric vans will shut in early April. There is no detail on why this is. Click here for more information, via the Reuters article link . UK GOVERNMENT PREPARES TRADE SANCTIONS ON CHINESE EVS At a SMMT conference, the Transport Secretary, Mark Harper, said that the UK Government could...