Pant Wettingly Excited - 14 March 2023

FOLLOW UP: CAMERA MIRROR VIEW ANGLES

Thank you to Jamie Fretwell, Mercedes-Benz Trucks UK PR& Corporate Communications Manager, who did respond to our unfair public request for more information on the viewing angles of lorries with camera wing mirrors. Click this link to see more via a tweet with a video. Also, he has a thread on safety campaigns across the globe, with this particular beaut from Australia, click here to see more.

FOLLOW UP: UK GOVERNMENT CUTS ACTIVE TRAVEL FUND

Buried in with the announcement that HS2 will be ‘paused’, to save costs, the UK Government also stated that it will cut the budget fund for active travel, capping it out at £330 million, instead of the £710 million promised in 2021. Click here to read more, from Sustrans.

VW TO OPEN NEW PLANT IN THE US

Volkswagen has announced the first investment in North American plants thanks to the US Government’s Inflation Reduction Act. They will be building the Scout brand vehicles at a new factory in South Carolina. As the VW brand is tainted by dieselgate they are using an older US marque to get a bigger share of the market. Volkswagen claim they were always going to open a plant in the US but the incentives of the new act has pushed up that timescale. This is a blow to Europe as it still formulates it’s response to the dual threat of the US and China. Click here to read more from the TechCrunch article.

FORD MUSTANG WILL NOT HAVE AM RADIO FREQUENCY

The infotainment system of the Ford Mustang will not come with the AM radio frequency. This has been the case with several EVs but now is taking place in ICE vehicles. AM is being or has already been switched off in many countries in the EU and where it hasn’t there are alternatives, such as DAB. Click here to read the arstechnica article for more.

TESLA RECALL AFFECTS THE AV INDUSTRY

The recall of all Tesla vehicles fitted with ‘Full Self-Driving Beta’ software poses a risk to the autonomous vehicle industry, even though this is not self-driving software. Now that the NHTSA is finally doing something about Tesla, the claims it has made and the reality of their vehicles others may well come into the spotlight. As the linked article discusses, from SAE International, Tesla is not the AV industry. Click the link here to read more.

HUD TECHNOLOGY TO MAKE HUDS WORSE

Envisics Holographic has developed a Head Up Display (HUD) that adds augmented reality to what the driver sees. Whilst this sounds like a good idea, the point of a HUD is to reduce distractions for the driver, adding more info does the opposite.

FOLLOW UP: CAMERA MIRROR VIEW ANGLES

Thank you to Jamie Fretwell, Mercedes-Benz Trucks UK PR& Corporate Communications Manager, who did respond to our unfair public request for more information on the viewing angles of lorries with camera wing mirrors. Click this link to see more via a tweet with a video. Also, he has a thread on safety campaigns across the globe, with this particular beaut from Australia, click here to see more.

FOLLOW UP: UK GOVERNMENT CUTS ACTIVE TRAVEL FUND

Buried in with the announcement that HS2 will be ‘paused’, to save costs, the UK Government also stated that it will cut the budget fund for active travel, capping it out at £330 million, instead of the £710 million promised in 2021. Click here to read more, from Sustrans.

VW TO OPEN NEW PLANT IN THE US

Volkswagen has announced the first investment in North American plants thanks to the US Government’s Inflation Reduction Act. They will be building the Scout brand vehicles at a new factory in South Carolina. As the VW brand is tainted by dieselgate they are using an older US marque to get a bigger share of the market. Volkswagen claim they were always going to open a plant in the US but the incentives of the new act has pushed up that timescale. This is a blow to Europe as it still formulates it’s response to the dual threat of the US and China. Click here to read more from the TechCrunch article.

FORD MUSTANG WILL NOT HAVE AM RADIO FREQUENCY

The infotainment system of the Ford Mustang will not come with the AM radio frequency. This has been the case with several EVs but now is taking place in ICE vehicles. AM is being or has already been switched off in many countries in the EU and where it hasn’t there are alternatives, such as DAB. Click here to read the arstechnica article for more.

TESLA RECALL AFFECTS THE AV INDUSTRY

The recall of all Tesla vehicles fitted with ‘Full Self-Driving Beta’ software poses a risk to the autonomous vehicle industry, even though this is not self-driving software. Now that the NHTSA is finally doing something about Tesla, the claims it has made and the reality of their vehicles others may well come into the spotlight. As the linked article discusses, from SAE International, Tesla is not the AV industry. Click the link here to read more.

HUD TECHNOLOGY TO MAKE HUDS WORSE

Envisics Holographic has developed a Head Up Display (HUD) that adds augmented reality to what the driver sees. Whilst this sounds like a good idea, the point of a HUD is to reduce distractions for the driver, adding more info does the opposite. Click through on this Design News article link to read more and then watch the video part way down as see how advertisements have been added. Of course they have.

TEVVA EV TRUCK ELIGIBLE FOR GOVERNMENT GRANT

The Tevva 7.5 tonne electric truck, which we discussed after it received European Community Whole Vehicle Type Approval in January, is eligible for up to £16,000 Government Plug-In Truck Grant. To read more, click this MoveElectric article link here.

ARRIVAL CONFIRMS EXTRA CASH

Igor Torgov, CEO of Arrival, announced the company plans and $300 million equity financing. The expectation, from the company, is that it will be building their vans in the Charlotte factory late 2024, as long as they get funding for said factory. They will also be reducing their headcount to below 800 personnel. To read more, click this link to a press release from Arrival.

MAZDA MX-5 DRIVES 1,000 MILES WITH SUSTAINABLE FUEL

Mazda, in partnership with Croyton SUSTAIN, drove an unmodified MX-5 1.000 miles around the UK to lap a race track in each of the home nations, using fossil-free fuel. Agricultural waste was used to create the fuel, which did not effect the performance or efficiency of the engine. To read more on this, click here for the Inside Mazda article and stunning photos.

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:2023 Hyundai Kona EV -

More details have been revealed about the new Kona EV, which whilst retaining the same battery pack and motors, will be bigger, bolder and upgraded in terms of quality. There is no confirmation on price yet, but is expected to slightly more than the existing, therefore we can expect around a £36,000 starting price. Additionally, to the increased interior space, many of the controls are buttons and dials! To read more, click this MoveElectric link here.

Xiaomi MS11 -

Xiaomi, the Chinese electronics company, has confirmed that their electric saloon, the MS11, will come to market in 2024. The exterior has captured the ‘generic EV saloon’ look with McLaren headlights slapped on the front. We are concerned at the amount of money being invested in the car division as it is very low, for industry standards. Click here to see more, via the Autocar article.

UK Car of the Year 2023 Winner -

The UK Car of the Year Category Winner for 2023 has been announced. Congratulations to MG as their MG4 topped the list. The Dacia Jogger was second and the Toyota GR86 was third, congratulations to both.

To read more, including why some judges picked the MG4, click this link to the official UK Car of the Year website.

LUNCHTIME READ: AUTOMAKERS NEED TO COME UP WITH BETTER EV NAMES

The article we are pointing you towards, this week, is a little tongue in cheek but also there is a grain of truth behind it. The naming of cars is under the spotlight, click this link to see who is considered to be doing it well, merely okay and who needs to up their game, according to Car Buzz.

LIST OF THE WEEK: THE COOL CONCEPT CARS WE TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT

Autocar provide a 45 pictured slideshow for us all to run through and select our favourite forgotten concept cars. Yes Alan, we know YOU haven’t forgotten most of them, but us mere mortals have. Do you agree with Alan and Andrew’s choices? After you have viewed the options let them know. Click here to see some marvels.

AND FINALLY: POLLITT’S PROJECTS - £700 V8 DAIMLER

Chris Pollitt has refreshed his YouTube channel and released a video of him discussing and cleaning one of his latest car projects, a £700 V8 Daimler. Utterly delightful film from Chris, as you’d expect. If you haven’t seen it, click this link here to rectify that.