Advertise on podcast: Motoring Podcast - News Show

FOLLOW UP: CRUISE APPOINTS FIRST EVER SAFETY OFFICERIn a move that should have more people stunned, Cruise has announced their first every safety officer. Steve Kenner has worked at a number of places in the autonomous vehicle industry. Louise Zhang, who is a VP of safety and systems will remain in her role. Astonishingly. If you wish to learn more, click this TechCrunch link here. FOLLOW UP: FRENCH SUBSIDY FOR LOW INCOME HOMES HALTEDThe recently launched subsidy to help low income families into EV has already been halted, due to an overwhelming demand, according to French Government officials. They will be relaunching it in 2025. To read further, click this link to The Guardian article. GOVERNMENT U-TURN ON TAX OF DOUBLE-CABSIn a crazy few days, the UK Government went from declaring that double-cab pickup’s tax category was going to change to that of a car, but still be classed as a light commercial vehicle (LCV) from 1 July 2024, to u-turning and saying no they wouldn’t. This came around due to a court case where it was ruled that they have a dual purpose of carrying people and cargo, therefore cannot be classed as “primarily” transporting cargo. The reaction from the public was loud and angry. The blanket move, with what appeared to be very little thought on the use of these vehicles and who these changes would hit, was decried not just by management consultants, architects and dentists who would have to change their vehicle as the tax loophole closed, but by those who genuinely need a multipurpose vehicle. To see what the original issue was all about, click this link to a Professional Pickup article link here. If you wish to read about the u-turn and what that means, click this link here to a Broker News article. AUDI, PORSCHE AND BENTLEYS STUCK AT US PORTSThanks to Audi, Porsche and Bentley utilising components that are on the banned list, for the United States, their cars are sitting dockside waiting for replacement parts. The parts in question are claimed to have been sourced from companies operating in areas where forced labour is the norm, the Xinjiang province. VW Group claims it had no knowledge as it was part of a larger part and only found out due to information received. Click this Yahoo News article link if you wish to learn more. BMW LEAVES ONLINE STORAGE SET TO PUBLICA Microsoft Azure storage ‘bucket’ run by BMW was mistakenly left with access set to public, rather than private. This meant that anyone could have accessed the huge amount of code, credentials, data and information held. This is very similar to what happened with Mercedes a couple of weeks ago. There is no knowledge if this data was accessed by unauthorised persons. BMW stress that there was no customer data held or at risk. If you with to learn more, a...

FOLLOW UP: ARRIVAL GOES INTO ADMINISTRATIONThe inevitable has happened at Arrival and the company has brought in receivers to try and sell on the company assets. Last year they announced they were focusing only on their large van, but this has not been produced. Claims of macroeconomic conditions have been laughed at, following the revelations of management and how the business was run. If you wish to learn more, click this article here, from The Guardian. ASA BANS ADS OVER ZERO EMISSION AND ULEZ CLAIMSThe Advertising Standards Agency (ASA) has rapped BMW, MG and Transport for London (TfL) over advertising claims. BMW have been censured due to claiming its electric vehicles are zero emission, which the ASA said they were not due to electricity production and manufacturing not being such. MG were censured over including their hybrid models in an advert for zero emission vehicles. TfL fell foul over claims made about misleading adverts regarding the ULEZ and modelled data rather than actual data. To learn more about the manufacturer’s issues, click this AMOnline article. For the detail of the TfL ruling, click this BBC News article link. ASTON MARTIN IS SEARCHING FOR NEXT CEOAston Martin has begun the process of finding a replacement for Amedeo Felisa, the current CEO. Felisa is coming up to his 78th birthday, and has helped shaped the future of the company since taking over from Tobias Moers in 2022. If you would like to learn more, click this Autocar article link, here. HYUNDAI EUROPE HIT BY RANSOMWARE ATTACKHyundai Europe has admitted they have suffered a cyberattack. Through investigations by BleepingComputer, it is believed to be a ransomware attack and the up to 3TB of data has been accessed or taken. According to the outlet, this covers many different departments and companies in the group. Whilst Hyundai has not confirmed what type of attack, it is believed to be a ransomware one. Click this link to learn more, from a BleepingComputer article. ROLLS ROYCE SPECTRE RECALLED IN THE USA faulty ground connection cable has caused Spectres in the US to be recalled. There is a potential for an injury risk to technicians working on the car and in extreme cases for a “thermal event” or fire as we generally know it. Affected cars were built between October and December 2023. You can learn more, by clicking this article link from The Register. EUROPE’S MOST RECALLED CAR BRANDS IN 2023Autocar has listed the car brands that had the most recalls in 2023, for Europe. It must be remembered, the potential for recalls increases the more niches you wish to cover, not that its an excuse. Click here to run through an extra List of the Week. 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...

FOLLOW UP: PARIS VOTES TO CHARGE EXTRA FOR HEAVY CARSJust under six percent of eligible Parisians voted on charging extra for non resident parking permitted heavier vehicles, with 54.6% voting for this. Therefore, internal combustion engined cars (ICE) weighing over 1.6 tonnes and electric vehicles weighing over 2 tonnes, will be charged extra. Click here to read a misleadingly headlined article from The Guardian that is an example of some of the pathetic reporting on this matter. FOLLOW UP: LITHIA TAKEOVER PENDRAGONLithia, the US based firm, has finally taken over the motor retail group, Pendragon. This makes Lithia the second biggest retailer in the UK, ahead of Arnold Clark but behind Sytner. You can read more by clicking this AMOnline article link here. JANUARY 2024 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURESSMMT has released the January 2024 new car registration figures. They are up on 2023, but still down on the Before Times. Fleet is doing a lot of the heavy lifting, with Private down once again. Worryingly, in the first month of the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate, the battery electric vehicle (BEV) share is only 14.7%, well below the 22% required from each manufacturer. Click here to read an interesting article from Tristan Young in Broker News, which hints that the figures could have been even worse. For the SMMT article and detail, click this link here. RENAULT CANCELS IPO FOR EV DIVISION AMPERERenault has confirmed that they will not separate their electric vehicle division, Ampere, and list it on the stock exchange. The reasoning is that the market is “sluggish”, which has also been compounded with a slow down in EV uptake across Europe at the end of the year. The company is adamant that they are cash rich and their ambitions are not dependent on an IPO. If you wish to learn more, click this article link from Reuters here. VW PAUSES IPO OF BATTERY DIVISIONVolkswagen has paused proceeding with listing their battery division, PowerCo, with the EV market slowing in Europe. On top of that, they have not yet decided where their fourth battery factory will be located in Europe. Click this electrive article link to read more on the IPO situation. For the battery factory story, click this InsideEVs article link here. For the Autocar article on the subject of the stock market and EV companies, click this link here. VOLVO TO STOP FUNDING POLESTARAmongst the detail of Volvo’s 2023 financial results, they announced that they will be ceasing to continue to fund Polestar and be focusing solely on their own projects. This could lead to Volvo selling their shares or Geely just buying more. They will continue to partner up over...

FOLLOW UP: CRUISE’S ACCIDENT FAILURES ARE WORSE THAN GUESSEDThe ‘independent’ review by a legal firm employed by both GM and Cruise has produced their first report into the incident where a pedestrian who was knocked into the path of a driverless taxi was hit and dragged by the car. They try to claim that no one really meant to deceive the regulators and it was the internet that prevented them from showing the full video. They admitted that no one then attempted to explain verbally or via email. You can learn more from this Jalopnik article link here. You can find more context and details in a Twitter thread from John Berry, linked here. And here is another thread from John, click here. For an even more damning review of the report, click here to read what Bryant Walker Smith has to say. FOLLOW UP: MOT CHANGES ARE SHELVEDThankfully, common sense has prevailed and the UK Government are not going to change MOTs to occur every two years. If you wish to learn more, click this Autocar article link here. FOLLOW UP: DAIHATSU RECALLING OVER 320,00 CARSThe news gets worse for Daihatsu as it confirms it will be recalling over 320,000 cars due to door defects, following the revelations about the safety testing scandal. Three of the four Japanese factories will also remain shuttered, with a possibility one may restart soon. To read more on this story, click here for The Japan Times article link. TOYOTA HALTS SHIPMENTS OF SOME VEHICLESToyota has announced that it is halting the shipment of some vehicles due to irregularities in certification of some diesel engines. The engines go into approximately 36,000 vehicles worldwide, per month. There has yet to be a confirmation of the full extent of this issue. Click this Reuters article to learn more. EU FINDS MOST CARS EMIT SAME CARBON LEVELS AS 12 YEARS AGOAn investigation into the EU’s progress regarding the reduction of CO2 has found that levels emitted by cars has not changed in 12 years. A combination of larger, heavier cars and an apparent significant difference between lab tested and real world emissions have all been blamed. What is missing is the significant drop in diesel vehicles, replaced by petrol and hybrids, which produce more CO2 than a diesel, whilst producing less NOx. You can read more, by clicking this link to an Euractiv article. BMW UNDER INVESTIGATION FOR EMISSIONS MANIPULATIONIn Germany, the federal transport authority, the KBA, are investigating BMW X3 2.0 diesel built between 2010 and 2014, due to suspicions over software manipulation of...

FOLLOW UP: VW AND GERMAN GOV LOSE ENGINE FIX FIGHTA German environmental group has won its court case against the Volkswagen Group and the German Government for allowing the use of thermal windows in engine emissions, for the last eight years. Whilst the regulator allowed it the court ruled they should not have. You can learn more by clicking this electrive article link here. FOLLOW UP: CMA WINS APPEAL AGAINST BMW AND VWThe Competitions and Markets Authority (CMA) has won its appeal relating to forcing BMW and the Volkswagen Group hand over information to enable their investigation into possible anti-competative practices for recycling vehicles. The argument from BMW and VW is that they are based outside of the UK therefore the CMA has no authority. The Court of Appeal ruled they do. For more on this story, click this Reuters article link here. FOLLOW UP: FEEDBACK ON THE CHAT GPT EXPLAINERThank you to everyone who got in touch, following the release of last week’s show and the separate video which explained Chat GPT, AI and why it is a bad idea in cars. We are glad it has helped so many of you. If you haven’t seen it yet, click this link to our YouTube video here. BRITAIN STICKS TO MONOCHROME NEW CARS IN 2023Topping the chart, once again, we find that grey is the most popular colour for new car registrations. The top three are rounded out with black and white - yawn. Do click this link to SMMT’s article on this, as there is one chart that lists the Top 10 colours and how many have been registered in that colour, it is eye opening. EU INVESTIGATORS TO VISIT CHINESE CAR COMPANIESAs part of the EU’s investigation into whether China unfairly helps their own manufacturing base, with electric vehicles, they will be visiting several firms at locations in the country to check if information supplied matches. They will not be checking on European set ups. Click this link, from electrive, to read more on this development. EVS IN THE EU WILL NEED A BATTERY PASSPORT FROM 2027A system has been developed that aims to track everything about a vehicle battery, from minerals in the ground to what was last done to it in the car. This comes into force in February 2027. Depending on which group is looking to access the data, different levels of information will be available. You can learn more by clicking this Autocar link here. SUBARU UK GETS A NEW MDCongratulations to Lorraine Bishton on her appointment as the new managing director at Subaru UK. She has previously worked at Ford, JLR and lately at McLaren Special Operations. If you wish to learn more, click this AMOnline link here. 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 a...

FOLLOW UP: CAR MAKERS LOBBIED AGAINST INCENTIVES FOR SMALL EVSIn the consultation over the introduction of the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate, which came into force on 1 January 2024, documents have revealed that some manufacturers fought against rules that encouraged more efficient, smaller and lighter vehicles. Not a great look for the car industry. If you wish to learn more, click this Autocar link here. FOLLOW UP: WALES 20MPH REVIEW TO BE LED BY ORIGINAL ADVISORIn what feels like an entry into Private Eye's Rotten Boroughs segment, the Welsh Government has announced the consultant who helped introduce the new 20mph urban speed limit will lead the review of said implementation. They justified this by stating that "he is well-placed to assess whether clarifications in the policy are needed to encourage greater consistency.". To read more, click this link from the BBC News. RED SEA SHIPPING ISSUES HITTING CAR MAKERSTesla and Volvo are pausing car production due to delays in parts after shipping has been disrupted in the Red Sea. Either the ships run the gauntlet of attack or go via the Cape of Good Hope. This is an added pressure to the already difficult shipping environment as there is a lack of container ships available which has pushed costs higher. You can learn more by clicking this link to an article from MarineLink. BMW TO SWITCH MUNICH FACTORY TO EV PRODUCTION IN 2027BMW will be producing electric only cars, at their Munich factory, from the end of 2027. They will build the Neue Klasse saloon from 2026, whilst phasing out the combustion engine vehicles. To read more on this, click the Petrolheads article link here. STUDY CLAIMS LONDON IS THE SLOWEST CITY TO DRIVE INA TomTom study claims that London is the slowest city, in the world, to drive in, with Dublin, Toronto, Milan and Lima making up the top five. Transport for London has argued that the study is misleading and that it is nothing to do with a 20mph speed limit. They also go on to claim the methodology is flawed, by only using a very small selection of roads and ones in the city centre too. You can read more, by clicking this BBC News article link here. CRITIC OF VINFAST DETAINEDVinFast, the Vietnamese EV maker who's first car has been panned for a raft of issues, has pressured local law enforcement, allegedly, to detain a critic who posted on social media the issues with the cars. Vietnamese law apparently forbids harming the interest of others, according to this article, linked here from The Drive. SAINSBURY'S LAUNCHES OWN EV CHARGING BRANDSainsbury's has become the first UK supermarket brand to launch its own EV charging network. Called Smart Charge, the company intends to fit 750 rapid chargers in over 100 stores by the end of 2024. Click this link to read more from Autocar. FRANCE UNVEILS AFFORDABLE EV SCHEMELow-income customers in France are able to take advantage of a

FOLLOW UP: RIFTER NOT BERLINGO, BAD ANDREWDuring the Year of unintended consequences - 19 December 2023 episode, Andrew stated that Alex Grant has an e-Berlingo, which is incorrect. Alex has the more stylish e-Rifter, which shares a lot of the platform but is not the same. Apologies Alex, Andrew has been suitably chastised for his error. FOLLOW UP: WELSH 20MPH LIMIT TO NOW BE ENFORCEDThe Welsh Government has stated that the newly introduced default 20mph speed limit, for built up areas, will be enforced from this month onwards. Depressingly, the article we link to, on the BBC News site which you can read by clicking here, has several quotes making it explicit that in Wales at least, compliance equals safety. Speed cameras will be installed in areas where it is deemed that too many are breaking the limit, rather than where there are accident blackspot as has been the norm. DECEMBER AND FULL YEAR NEW CAR REGISTRATIONSOnce again we note so many have trouble with the difference between new car registrations and sales. They are not the same. The good news is that registrations rose 17.9% on 2022, but still it is way down on the Before Times, approximately 17.5% down. We always need to put these figures into context. A lot of positive fuss was made about the volume of battery electric cars (BEV) which is impressively up, but the percentage of those registered is down for both December and 2023. Some of this may be due to holding back vehicles with 2024 and the Zero Emission Vehicle mandate about to land. More of a concern will be Private registrations that fell 14% for December and 0.1% for the year. Fleet is doing all the heavy lifting now. However, the inevitable calls for incentives and/or subsidies for private buyers has started. Click this link to the SMMT article for more information. SUPERMARKETS STILL RIPPING US OFF ACCORDING TO RACThe RAC brings out its monthly report into fuel prices, once again confirming that supermarkets are holding onto the duty relief the Government intended to be passed onto the public. Click this Autocar article link here, to read more. JLR LAUNCHES BESPOKE INSURANCE FOR RANGE ROVERSFollowing the issues JLR have had around their vehicles and how older models have been targets for thieves, which they appear to have solved for some models, with a £10 million effort we discussed a few weeks ago, they now are offering insurance for those struggling to get cover. Click this Motoring Research article link for more information. AUDI E-TRON RECALLED IN THE USAudi E-Trons built before March 2022 have been recalled in the United States over a fire risk connected to LG Energy Solutions battery packs. The affects nearly 27,000 cars and there is no remedy yet. You can learn more by clicking this link here to a Consumer Reports article. TESLA RECALL OVER FAULTY DOOR RISKTesla is issuing an over-the-air-update to fix the risk of doors opening during an accident, in the United States. Model S and X from 2021 to 2023 are affected by this. If you wish to learn more, a...

In this episode, Alan talks all about his 2019 Lexus GX460 Premium. Since this was recorded, the replacement GX550 has been announced, and Alan has taken it on a 5,000-mile road trip to Wyoming and back. The 4.6 litre V8 has become more efficient over time; it’s underlined its ability to remain very comfortable for long periods of time, and, sadly, it still looks like Predator chewing a wasp.

Follow Up: RULES OF ORIGIN DELAY AGREEDLeaving it until almost the last moment, the EU and UK have agreed to delay implementing the rules of origin legislation, which would’ve hit car makers in both Europe and Blighty. This was expected to happen and there was an almost audible sigh of relief from the car industry. You can find out more on this, by clicking the link here from Autocar. MCLAREN SHARE RESTRUCTURE DEALThe Bahrain sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat, has effectively become the sole owner of the McLaren Group after the complicated share structure was reorganised. This has prompted many to believe (or hope) that means future model development and the move to EVs can occur with some confidence. If you wish to read more on this, click here for Sky New’s version of the story. VW DETAILS COST CUTS AS IT AIMS FOR $11B GAINSFollowing extensive discussions with the works council, Volkswagen has announced its plans for saving that will net gains of $11 billion by 2026. Steps include speeding up development, a more efficient purchasing strategy and reducing staff costs. There will be no redundancies but vacancies may not be filled. To find out more on the latest strategy from VW, click this Reuters link here. BYD TO BUILD CARS IN EUROPEBYD has announced it will build cars in Hungary, where it will hope this is a work around for any potential tariffs for Chinese built cars. No date has been announced when the works will be completed and car will start coming off the production line. Click this Autocar article link for more. NIO RECEIVES INVESTMENT FROM ABU DHABINIO, the battery swap EV company, has received $2.2 billion investment from a fund backed by CYVN Holdings. The company has been struggling and made a net loss of $2.03 billion in 2022. They announced they would be delaying entering the UK market, last year, with no date being given where that would change. To read more, click this Nikkei Asia article link here. KIA ANNOUNCE NEW CEO OF EUROPE OPERATIONSMarc Hedrich, the former Ford VW Group and Toyota executive, has been revealed as the new President and CEO of Kia Europe. He started his role on 1 January 2024. If you wish to find out more, click this link to a JustAuto article. CAZOO NEEDS URGENT ADDITIONAL FUNDINGCazoo, the online retailer, has declared that it needs urgent funding before the second half of 2024 to remain in business. You can read more, by clicking this link to an AMOnline article. DAIHATSU PRODUCTION STOPPED AT JAPANESE PLANTSDaihatsu has stopped all car production in its four Japanese plants, following revelations of falsifying safety and testing data. Toyota, the parent company, has declared that “fundamental reform” is needed at the company. This problem effects not just Daihatsu and Toyota but also Mazda, and Subaru models...

Follow Up: CRUISE FIRE NINE EXECS IN ACCIDENT AFTERMATHFollowing the internal investigation by GM, into the incident where a pedestrian was dragged by a Cruise driverless vehicle, nine executives from the company have been sacked. Departments affected include Legal, Government Affairs, Commercial Operations and Safety and Systems. On top of that General Motors has stated that it is cutting 900 staff from the offshoot. Click here to read more, from The Register. Follow-Up: FRANCE EV SUBSIDY ELIGIBILITY LIST PUBLISHEDFrance has published a list of electric vehicles that will be eligible for governmental subsidy, following the inclusion of production environmental calculations. Surprising no one, but Chinese made vehicles will not get financial help. This will come into force from 1 January 2024. You can read more, by clicking this link here to an electrive article. FOLLOW UP: CLEVEDON WIGGLY LINES ROAD CHANGES AGAINAn independent investigation into the controversial changes to Clevedon’s sea front has recommended reinstating some diagonal parking spaces. Many are still unhappy with this, wanting a return to the original layout before any changes were made. Additionally the council is investigating if they need to return the funding, if they make these changes, and how to pay for it. This link here, will explain more thanks to the BBC News article. EU VOTES FOR CRITICAL RAW MATERIALS SECURITY LAWWith the push to electric vehicles the risk that the region could be held to ransom by other countries has pushed the EU Parliament to vote on bringing a law regarding critical raw materials. This will require up to 45% of recycling, as well as increasing the amount extracted in Europe. Click here to read more in an electrive article. TESLA RECALL DUE TO AUTOPILOT FLAWSTesla has been forced to announce a recall for their Autopilot system in the US, which is the name for their driver assistance technology such as adaptive cruise control, lane keeping assist and the likes. They are delivering it by an over-the-air update. The results are more frequent reminders for the driver to pay attention. To find out why this has happened, click this link to an electrive article. For a bit of background to all of this, click this link to a Rolling Stone article written by Ed Niedermeyer. CARIAD TO CUT COSTS INSTEAD OF JOBSCARIAD, the software division of the Volkswagen Group, has agreed with unions to cut costs to prevent job losses. By 2028 there must be a reduction of costs of 20%. You can learn more by clicking this link to an Investing article. GENERAL SAFETY REGULATIONS MANDATE MORE TECHThe new General Safety Regulations (GSR2) have been published. These tie together a few different regulations, into the one but also add more technology that must be fitted as standard on vehicles. This will obviously lead to a rise in costs. To find out more and exactly what...

Follow Up - EU and UK Agree to 3-Year Rules of Origin DelayUK and EU politicians have agreed to delay the introduction of EV Rules of Origin by three years—more details in this Autocar story. Follow-Up - Tesla Vs. Nordic Unions - Unions AheadTesla continues to rebuff cooperation with Nordic unions, making life hard for Tesla. The Guardian covers this in more detail in the story linked here. New Car Registration Figures for NovemberUK new car registrations were slightly up in November, but the percentage of EVs is down slightly. Lots more and all of the numbers on the SMMT website. UK Motorists Continue To Be Overcharged For FuelAccording to the RAC, the gap between wholesale and retail road fuel prices has narrowed but is still too broad. More here from Autocar. Euro NCAP States The ObviousEuro NCAP has declared that bigger, heavier SUVs present “safety concerns” to other drivers and pedestrians. Autocar explains more in this article. Sixt Migrates to BYD EVs While Hertz Steps Back From EVSRental company Sixt is swapping Tesla for BYD after concerns about repair costs and residuals. Hertz is dialling back the speed with which it’s introducing EVs to its fleet. Jalopnik has more detail in this article. More Government Money For New Motorway Rapid ChargersUKGOV has set aside £70 million to fill the gaps in open-access motorway rapid and ultra-rapid chargers and ensure at least six chargers at each. Autocar has more detail here. EV Charging Companies Continue Evolving To Try To Make MoneyBP Pulse is expanding its rapid charger network, while Podpoint focuses on home and workplace chargers instead. NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Suzuki SwiftSuzuki has unveiled a revised Swift. The outside is a bit rounder, and the interior has fewer buttons. Much more information is available from Autocar. Morgan XP1The Morgan 3-wheeler is a magnificent machine, and Morgan’s hard at work on an electric version. CAR magazine has lots more details here. Stellantis Battery Swap StationsStellantis is considering introducing multi-brand battery swap stations, starting with the Fiat 500e in Madrid. Autocar has the full...

Follow Up - Volta Trucks Saved by Venture Existing BackersUK-based Volta Trucks has been saved by a venture capital fund that had previously invested them. There’s more about this in the Autocar story linked here. Follow-Up - Welsh Speed Limit Changes Cause ConsternationSome roads in Wales are now subject to many more changes of speed limit than before. This BBC story highlights one extreme example. VW to Cut Jobs In Bid To Increase CompetitivenessThe Volkswagen CEO has claimed that it is “no longer competitive” and will be taking advantage of the “demographic curve” to reduce staff numbers ahead of the previously-announced 2029 date for dismissals. More from Autocar here. £20bm Investment Boost for UK Auto Manufacturing in 2023The SMMT has announced the latest figures for investment in UK manufacturing as well as the government’s Advanced Manufacturing Strategy. There’s more about this on the SMMT website, linked here. Call for “Euro-Kai Car” for small, urban EVsIn an effort to save the small car, European lobby group ACEA is pitching for legislation to encourage small, urban EVs. You can find out more in the Autocar story linked here. Tuner Fined for Fitting Illegal Exhaust ModsThe DVLA has fined West Yorkshire tuner AET Motorsport for fitting a ”pop-bang” map and removing the catalytic converter from a Fiesta ST. Find out more in this Car article. Geely & NIO sign Strategic Partnership on Battery-Swap TechnologyGeely and NIO have signed a strategic partnership to develop battery standards, swapping technology, network expansion and development, swappable model development, and battery asset management. Big news, and you can read more in Geely’s press release here. Induction Charging Road Installed in DetroitAn induction charging test road has been installed in Detroit to test the system's robustness in real-world conditions. Find out more in this article from Jalopnik. 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 - Dacia BigsterDacia has revealed their first model bigger than the Duster, a chunkily-styled 5-seat SUV available as a petrol mild and full hybrid. A competitor for the Ford Kuga and other, the Bigster is slightly larger, but expected to cost under £40,000 when it’s introduced tot he UK in 2025. Find out more in this article from Autocar. Dacia DusterAt the same...