A Million Keyrings - 15 December 2020

FOLLOW UP: SSANGYONG GB AND MITSUBISHI END TALKS

SsangYong GB and Mitsubishi have now ceased, over the possibility of the Korean brand taking over the UK operation from the Colt Car Company. Suggestions were that the price both wanted was too far away from each other to satisfactorily conclude negotiations. To read more, click the CarDealer article here.

PORT DELAYS AND COVID AFFECT BRITISH FACTORIES

The ongoing delays at British ports, for both import and export goods, has caused some problems for manufacturing sites in the UK. The most notable examples of this are Honda, which had to halt production last week. JLR’S site Castle Browmich, has been hit by a slow down of parts from suppliers due to the impact of Covid. Whilst Swindon has started up again, the West Midlands site has not. To read more, click the Autocar article here for Honda and click here for the JLR Autocar article.

TFL CONSIDERING CHARGING NON LONDON CARS A FEE TO ENTER

The financial hole that TfL is trying to fill could mean that cars, that are based outside of London, may be charged £3.50 to enter the city limits. Transport for London is looking to claw back some of the public transport income they would’ve expected to have received this year. To read more, cick the Autocar article here.

NORTHUMBERLAND PICKED FOR EV BATTERY FACTORY

Britishvolt has selected a site near Blythe, Northumberland, for the large (we will not be calling it a gigafactory!) electric vehicle battery factory. The expectation, until very recently, was for a South Wales location to be used but after agreement between the Welsh Government and Britishvolt that it would not be ready in time they decided up the North East. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

DIESS FENDS OFF THREAT TO LEADERSHIP IN VW GROUP

Herbert Diess has had to deal with an internal power struggle, within the Volkswagen Group, over his leadership and plans to move the organisation forward. Following a vote of confidence, that he brought forward himself, he has got the backing of the board. The future of Bugatti is still unclear but all the other brands will be following the strategy for their Together 2025+ plans. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

FERRARI CEO IN SHOCK DEPARTURE

Louis Camilleri has announced his retirement, with immediate effect. He had been suffering from Covid and was recuperating following a stay in hospital, according to reports, although this was not the main reason for him leaving. Under his short tenure he has helped the company sell more cars than ever before, breaking the 10,000 barrier in 2019. There is no indication as to who...

FOLLOW UP: SSANGYONG GB AND MITSUBISHI END TALKS

SsangYong GB and Mitsubishi have now ceased, over the possibility of the Korean brand taking over the UK operation from the Colt Car Company. Suggestions were that the price both wanted was too far away from each other to satisfactorily conclude negotiations. To read more, click the CarDealer article here.

PORT DELAYS AND COVID AFFECT BRITISH FACTORIES

The ongoing delays at British ports, for both import and export goods, has caused some problems for manufacturing sites in the UK. The most notable examples of this are Honda, which had to halt production last week. JLR’S site Castle Browmich, has been hit by a slow down of parts from suppliers due to the impact of Covid. Whilst Swindon has started up again, the West Midlands site has not. To read more, click the Autocar article here for Honda and click here for the JLR Autocar article.

TFL CONSIDERING CHARGING NON LONDON CARS A FEE TO ENTER

The financial hole that TfL is trying to fill could mean that cars, that are based outside of London, may be charged £3.50 to enter the city limits. Transport for London is looking to claw back some of the public transport income they would’ve expected to have received this year. To read more, cick the Autocar article here.

NORTHUMBERLAND PICKED FOR EV BATTERY FACTORY

Britishvolt has selected a site near Blythe, Northumberland, for the large (we will not be calling it a gigafactory!) electric vehicle battery factory. The expectation, until very recently, was for a South Wales location to be used but after agreement between the Welsh Government and Britishvolt that it would not be ready in time they decided up the North East. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

DIESS FENDS OFF THREAT TO LEADERSHIP IN VW GROUP

Herbert Diess has had to deal with an internal power struggle, within the Volkswagen Group, over his leadership and plans to move the organisation forward. Following a vote of confidence, that he brought forward himself, he has got the backing of the board. The future of Bugatti is still unclear but all the other brands will be following the strategy for their Together 2025+ plans. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

FERRARI CEO IN SHOCK DEPARTURE

Louis Camilleri has announced his retirement, with immediate effect. He had been suffering from Covid and was recuperating following a stay in hospital, according to reports, although this was not the main reason for him leaving. Under his short tenure he has helped the company sell more cars than ever before, breaking the 10,000 barrier in 2019. There is no indication as to who will lead the company on a permanent basis. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

BLACK AND SILVER NUMBER PLATE CLARIFICATION

The DVLA has now adjusted legislation for vehicles that are in the historic tax class and therefore exempt from from paying VED. Under the previous rules the 40 year date for entering the historic tax class is a rolling, ever moving line, which meant black and silver plates could technically be fitted to cars younger than 1973. However, this has now changed, from 1 January 2021, only cars built prior to 1 January 1980 can have those plates fitted. To read more, click the Federation of British Historic Vehicle Clubs article here.

FRANCE CAR TAX LAWS HURT HOT HATCHES

France has different car tax rules than we do in the UK and they’re getting tougher in 2021. They start to heavily penalise the first owner of a car, if that car emits over 133g/km. However, if you buy a car with 218g/km or more, dig deep to fork out the extra €29,070 on top of the list price! This particularly hits performance cars, such as hot hatches. To read more, click the EVO article here.

LIST OF FREE PARKING AROUND THE UK OVER CHRISTMAS

Gavin Braithwaite-Smith has compiled a list of all the places that have free parking leading up to and over Christmas, to learn if anywhere local to you does click the Motoring Research article here.

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FORMULA E: GEN 3 LANDSCAPE

Following the announcements from Audi and BMW, Sam Smith has written a piece to explain how Formula E is shaping up to Gen 3. To read more, click The Race article here.

WRC: 2021

As the dust is still settling on the end of the 2020 season, 2021 is coming at us fast. France is expected to announce new restrictions on the population, to prevent a third wave thanks to Covid, which will effect Rally Mote Carlo. To read about the implications, click the Dirt Fish article here.

Rally Sweden has fallen already, again due to tighter governmental controls to prevent the infection spreading through the country. However, there may well be an Arctic Rally. To find out more, click the DirtFish article here.

In further good news, Rally Australia may well be back on the calendar. Rumours abound, mainly in Europe, that Bathurst could host the event, however, it looks like Adelaide is trying hard to be the location. For more information, click the DirtFish article here.

LIST OF THE WEEK: IN MEMORIAM - THE CARS THAT DIED IN 2020

Autocar has compiled a list for us to run through, confirming the cars that stopped being produced in 2020. There will be some sadness and also some surprise, that they were still being built as much as anything. To pay your respects, click the article link here.

LUNCHTIME READ: HOW LASER SCANNING TRACKS MAKES A DIFFERENCE FOR GAMES

There is an interview with the makers of Assetto Corsa Competizione, explaining some of the efforts they went to in order to replicate as much realism as possible in a game that can be found on both PC and console. To read more, click the article link here.

AND FINALLY: SUBARU LEVORG IS JAPAN’S CAR OF THE YEAR 2020

The latest iteration of the family estate from Subaru, the Levorg, has beaten off stiff competition from Toyota and Honda to be named the Japanese Car of the Year for 2020. In what was a surprise to many, possibly including Subaru themselves. To find out more, click the link from Motoring Research here.