FOLLOW UP: BRITISHVOLT STAFF NOT PAID FOR MONTHS

Recharge Industries, the company that has bought Britishvolt, although not finalised payment yet, has not paid UK staff for the last four months. Once again, the poor staff let down by management. If you would like to read more, including how much belief employees have in the assurances given, click this BBC News article link here.

FOLLOW UP: JLR PARTS ISSUE TO LAST INTO 2024

JLR have confirmed that they are improving the repair parts backlog, they’re experiencing. With the steps being made, they anticipate getting back on track in 2024. The issue has been acknowledged by CEO Adrian Mardell. To read more, click this Jalopnik article link here.

FOLLOW UP: TESLA NOT FOUND LIABLE FOR MODEL 3 CRASH

A jury has decided that Tesla and their Autopilot software are not responsible for the accident that led to the driver’s death and passenger injuries, back in 2019. The claim was the software was faulty, there are arguments that how lawyers are pursing such cases is flawed and will ensure they never win such cases. If you want to read more about the case, click this article link from The Register. To find out more about why Michael DeKort thinks the legal cases are destined to fail, click this LinkedIn post link.

OCTOBER 2023 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES

The SMMT published the figures of the new car registrations for October 2023. A big jump in registrations over all, but BEVs only managed to capture 15% market share, which is less than in previous months. Another concern, for the industry, is how reliant they now are on Fleet registrations as Private remained the same as last year. Click here to read more, from the SMMT.

SMMT CONNECTED AND AUTOMATED MOBILITY REPORT

Sticking with the SMMT, they published a report based on KPMG research in to the potential connected and automated mobility aspects of the industry. Whilst a lot of it is incredibly optimistic in terms of potential earnings, impact and job creation, one chart caught Alan’s eye regarding which could be the sectors fastest and most likely to become automated and take advantage of connectivity. To learn more, click this link from the SMMT.

DRIVERLESS FIFE BUS NOW DRIVEN BY A HUMAN DRIVER

The bus that runs between Ferrytoll Park and Ride near Inverkeithing and Edinburgh Park, which is testing an autonomous driving system now is being fully driven by a human driver. You can read more, by clicking this link to a The Courier article.

jLR POSTS RECORD REVENUES

In the last quarter, JLR posted record revenue figures as demand for the Range Rover Sport and Defender was strong. Nice to be able to say something positive about JLR. Click here to read more, via The Guardian.

EDINBURGH COUNCIL TO CONSIDER SUV BAN

Edinburgh Council’s transport and environment committee has agreed to consider if SUVs should be banned from some roads in the city. Some of the tired cliched and false tropes were wheeled out, unfortunately. The chaps do point out the fallacies in some of what was said. You can read more, by clicking this link here to a BBC News article.

LIVERPOOL TO INVEST £10M TO INCREASE EV CHARGERS

On-street charging will get a boost in the Liverpool areas as £10 million is being earmarked to increase the number of chargers. If you would like to read more, click this electrive link here.

ARRIVA ORDERS 34 MORE EV DOUBLE DECKER BUSES

Arriva has order 34 more electric double decker buses, for its London fleet. This will take their number to over 100 for the operator. Click this electrive article link for more.

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NEW NEW CAR NEWS -

Toyota Prius

In a surprise move, Toyota is brining the latest Prius to the UK after disappointing the internet by saying it wasn’t. We hope you all go out and buy it or we won’t get nice things in the future! You can read more, by clicking this Autocar article link here.

Skoda Superb

Skoda are updating the Superb, which will be slightly longer, wider, bigger inside, nicer, have more tech, essentially betterer than before! A huge range of powertrains and spec levels. Once again, we need to buy the estate or companies will stop making them. Click this link, to read more from Top Gear.

Hyundai Ioniq 5 N

The first EV from Hyundai to get the N treatment is an odd choice, it being the Ioniq 5. Alan and Andrew both love the comfort, serene cabin and ride, hence their surprise this will get oodles of power and get the N Grin Boost mode. Prices start at £65,000 for the performance version, with the chaps reserving full judgement until they get the opportunity to try one out. Click here to find out more, thanks to CAR.

Aston Martin DBX

Aston Martin are refreshing the interior of the DBX which has mainly remained the same since first coming to market. Out goes the Mercedes derived infotainment, to be replaced by Aston’s own. If you wish to learn more, click this Autocar link here.

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Estate

Mercedes have revealed the details for the latest E-Class estate. For some bizarre reason, the UK mainly only gets the sporty trims, with associated ride. Click this Business Car article link, to learn more.

LUNCHTIME READ: AKIDO TOYODA’S STILL PLAYING THE LONG GAME

Road & Track have a fascinating and rare interview with Akido Toyoda regarding his time in charge of the company. Even if you are not a fan of his or Toyota’s this is an insight into why decisions that have been made have and the reasons behind them. Click here to read more.

LIST OF THE WEEK: SEMA 2023

CAR has listed their highlights of the US modification motor show, which Andrew picks his top of the pile from. To see what options you have to pick, click this link here. Don’t forget to tell the chaps what you would want.

AND FINALLY: TOYOTA LUNA CRUISER

Toyota has revealed a concept for a lunar buggy, that would be part of a Japanese landing on the moon. We think it looks great, click this link here to read more from Top Gear.

To watch a short video, click this YouTube link.

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