This article in the Guardian discusses the imminent loss of nearly £30 billion as the adoption of fully electric vehicles becomes the main vehicle used by, well, everyone. For context, full EVs currently pay no road tax - this is a Government incentive to drive us to zero net emissions by 2050. And yet surely the Government will need to recoup these losses somehow to cover the…
Not to bang on incessantly about autonomous driving, but this op ed written by David Ficking and featured on Bloomberg ( https://www.bloomberg.com/opinion/articles/2019-09-24/hyundai-aptiv-s-jv-doesn-t-put-a-driverless-future-any-closer) highlights that fact that headlines in this space can often be misleading. The piece shows us that a big automotive name (in this case Hyundai) making a purchase of a big name autonomous driving car company (in this case Aptiv) for billions of dollars (in…
https://marketrealist.com/2019/08/us-companies-urge-for-relaxed-autonomous-car-regs/?utm_source=yahoo&utm_medium=feed&yptr=yahoo The above link points to a story about legacy car and (new-ish) technology companies putting pressure on regulators to lighten the red tape that is standing in the way for more autonomous vehicle testing. This isn't that surprising simply because the various players (Google-owned Waymo, LYFT, Uber etc) have invested so much that they need to see Level 5 autonomous driving become a reality sooner rather…
https://uk.finance.yahoo.com/news/last-volkswagen-beetle-drives-sunset-002027161.html The writing has been on the wall for years. But yesterday saw the last Volkswagen Beetle roll off the assembly line in Puebla, Mexico bringing an end to one of the most iconic vehicles ever made. Sad, yes, but also inevitable. The VW Beetle was developed in 1938 after Adolf Hitler wanted a car that would be affordable for the people with mass production beginning in…
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-48865702 The above BBC link tells us that new car sales are down in June. The fact that car sales are down for a fourth consecutive month is bad enough. But add in that alternatively fuelled cars, ie hybrids and plug-in hybrids, are also down in the month of June is really a kick in the teeth as the UK tries its best to become a zero-emission…
https://techcrunch.com/2019/06/19/geely-is-turning-to-zenuity-as-its-self-driving-software-supplier/?yptr=yahoo I recently wrote a blog on autonomous driving and my belief that this technology wouldn’t become mainstream in my lifetime, if ever. What amazes me is the amount of press coverage this topic still generates - have a read of the link above for the latest. And yet, I shouldn’t be. The reality is that tech companies are at the fore of the development of autonomous…
I’m often asked which is better, purchasing a new or used car on a PCP (Personal Contract Purchase) or simply buying the car outright? Alas the answer isn’t straightforward as it really depends on the individual and their financial preferences. The age old “if you can’t afford it, don’t buy it” has been cast aside as automakers have either created inhouse finance departments or aligned themselves with…
At the Shanghai Motor show in April, Porsche unveiled their latest SUV named, somewhat unimaginatively, the Cayenne Coupe. One may find themselves asking if the world really needs another SUV but if you are a firm proponent of this style then the latest Porsche with its eye-catching design could be right up your strasse. For context, this is the third SUV in the German sports car’s line-up…
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-06-10/audi-recalls-first-electric-vehicle-in-u-s-on-battery-fire-risk The above Bloomberg link points to a story showing Audi's voluntary recall of all its new E-Tron SUV's sold in the US (1644 total) due to the risk of battery fire. It's important to note that NO fires have been reported. The recall came about after five cases of owners flagged a battery fault light that appeared on their dashboards. Audi has since declared that the…
https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2019/may/30/electric-vehicle-drivers-at-risk-by-charging-from-home-mains-supply The link to the Guardian article highlights a critical issue concerning those EV owners who charge at home. No, it doesn't talk about the risk of your battery powered EV unexpectedly catching fire, but does discuss the heightened risk of a domestic electrical fire if proper care isn't taken while charging your EV at home. The most alarming feature of this story is the statistic that…