Saturn On Upside-Down - 27 January 2021

FOLLOW UP: VW APPEAL $20M SPANISH CLAIM

After a Spanish court order Volkswagen to compensate owners €3000 each, who bought a car with the defeat-device fitted. The company has announced it will appeal the ruling. To read more, click the Reuters article here.

FOLLOW UP: VW SEEKS US RULING ON EMISSION UPDATE

When Volkswagen agreed to settle the criminal and civil actions, in the US, to the tune of $20 billion, it did not get liability protection from state and local governments, according to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals. VW disagree and are taking the ruling to the US Supreme Court to attempt to protect themselves from state and local governments claiming penalties for the defeat-devices. To read more, click the Automotive News Europe article here.

VW FACING FLEET CO2 FINE

Volkswagen Group missed their required target for fleet CO2 levels, in 2020, and is now facing a potential fine of €95 for every g/km missed per car sold. Diess tried to put a brave face on it, by stating VW and Audi brands exceeded the targets. Whilst we wait for the final ruling from the EU, click the Autocar article here to read more.

NISSAN TO BUILD EVS IN UK

Nissan has committed to building EVs in the UK for the foreseeable future and to enable that will package the batteries in the UK too, due to Rule of Origin requirements of the Brexit deal. To read more, click the Relocate Magazine article here. For further background information, see the Twitter thread involving Jim Holder, Haymarket Editorial Director, and Dr Andy Palmer, formerly of Nissan and Aston Martin, by clicking here.

TFL SEES CONGESTION CHARGE INCOME INCREASE

Following agreement between the Government and Transport for London (TfL), for a financial handout in 2020, the “temporary” increase to the scope and level of the charge resulted in an £86 million increase of income. The '“temporary” changes will remain in place until the end of this financial year, at least. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

SHELL BUYS UBITRICITY

Shell is continuing to expand into the EV charging industry, with the announcement that it is buying Ubitricity. There are 2700 charging points, mainly low energy versions built into street furniture such as bollards, street lamps and the likes. To read more, click here for the Autocar article.

BLOODHOUND LSR UP FOR SALE

The Bloodhound Land Speed Record project, is once again up for sale, after Ian Warhurst stated he could not afford to take attempt the record due to the extra investment required....

FOLLOW UP: VW APPEAL $20M SPANISH CLAIM

After a Spanish court order Volkswagen to compensate owners €3000 each, who bought a car with the defeat-device fitted. The company has announced it will appeal the ruling. To read more, click the Reuters article here.

FOLLOW UP: VW SEEKS US RULING ON EMISSION UPDATE

When Volkswagen agreed to settle the criminal and civil actions, in the US, to the tune of $20 billion, it did not get liability protection from state and local governments, according to the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals. VW disagree and are taking the ruling to the US Supreme Court to attempt to protect themselves from state and local governments claiming penalties for the defeat-devices. To read more, click the Automotive News Europe article here.

VW FACING FLEET CO2 FINE

Volkswagen Group missed their required target for fleet CO2 levels, in 2020, and is now facing a potential fine of €95 for every g/km missed per car sold. Diess tried to put a brave face on it, by stating VW and Audi brands exceeded the targets. Whilst we wait for the final ruling from the EU, click the Autocar article here to read more.

NISSAN TO BUILD EVS IN UK

Nissan has committed to building EVs in the UK for the foreseeable future and to enable that will package the batteries in the UK too, due to Rule of Origin requirements of the Brexit deal. To read more, click the Relocate Magazine article here. For further background information, see the Twitter thread involving Jim Holder, Haymarket Editorial Director, and Dr Andy Palmer, formerly of Nissan and Aston Martin, by clicking here.

TFL SEES CONGESTION CHARGE INCOME INCREASE

Following agreement between the Government and Transport for London (TfL), for a financial handout in 2020, the “temporary” increase to the scope and level of the charge resulted in an £86 million increase of income. The '“temporary” changes will remain in place until the end of this financial year, at least. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

SHELL BUYS UBITRICITY

Shell is continuing to expand into the EV charging industry, with the announcement that it is buying Ubitricity. There are 2700 charging points, mainly low energy versions built into street furniture such as bollards, street lamps and the likes. To read more, click here for the Autocar article.

BLOODHOUND LSR UP FOR SALE

The Bloodhound Land Speed Record project, is once again up for sale, after Ian Warhurst stated he could not afford to take attempt the record due to the extra investment required. Hopefully, someone can come in and support the project to a successful conclusion. To read more, click the BBC News article here.

SUBARU TO REMAIN IN THE UK

Subaru’s new boss, who was appointed last summer, has confirmed that the company is staying in Europe and the UK markets. Admitting that 2020 was an embarrassment John Hurtig is confident they have a recovery plan to address their poor market performance. We hope they do and they work out who they are as a brand. To read more, click here for the Autocar article.

LOTUS ANNOUNCES NEW MODELS

Lotus has presented a plan to move the brand forward, starting with a new model this year, called the ‘Type 131’, whilst they will also be aiming for Porsche. We feel this isn’t a rehashed Bahar move, as we think their plans are more realistic, which fills us with more optimism. To read more about the exciting plans, click here for the Motoring Research article.

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FORMULA E: THE COST CAP DILEMMAS DESTABILISING FORMULA E

This is an article from Sam Smith, writing on The Race, explaining the nuances of the problems of a cost cap and the various aspects that have to be taken into consideration. This will be fascinating to watch unfold, but to get up to speed, click the article link here.

WRC: MONTE CARLO RESULTS

The Mote Carlo Rally took place, no one unauthorised turned up, no stages had to be cancelled and it went as smoothly as could be expect. Hooray! Ogier won the event for the eigth time and his 50th win in WRC, with team-mate Evans second and Neuville ensuring Hyundai were on the podium. To read about the event, click here for the DirtFish article.

For the ‘What we learned’ article from DirtFish, click the link here.

To find out how the organisers managed to pull off the rally, click another DirtFish article here.

DESIGNERS MOOD BOARD: MORAY CALLUM TO RETIRE

Moray Callum, Ford’s Design Chief, is set to retire, being replaced by Anthony Lo, previously at Renault. Callum started out with working on the Lotus Carlton, but has also penned the Ford GT, the Mustang and the Mustang Mach-E. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

LUNCHTIME READ: RUPPERT’S BANGERPEDIA 2000-2010

A disclaimer, before we start, we have been sent copies of James Ruppert’s latest book, Ruppert's Bangerpedia: 2000 - 2010, which covers most of the models that were available to buy in the UK between 2000-2010, with a rating, information, stats and things to look out for if you intend to buy. Having read through this book, we feel this is a vital tool for you, if you intend to go down the Bangernomics route. If you are interested in buying a copy, you can click here on an Amazon affiliate link that will benefit both James and this podcast.

LIST OF THE WEEK: TAKE A LOOK AT HOW THE SUPER RICH CUSTOMISED THEIR ROLLS-ROYCES IN 2020

If you are wondering if money can guarantee taste, or not, you will find examples at both ends of the spectrum in this list from The Scotsman, where we see how some owners personalised the look of their cars. To run through the list, click the link here.

AND FINALLY: NISSAN OVER-ENGINEERED A FUEL GAUGE

The top of the range Nissan 300ZX from 1984, had one peculiar feature, especially for a sports car, and that was a dual fuel gauge. This allowed the more financially conservative to closely monitor how little fuel they actually had left. To read more about this bizarre move by Nissan, click the Jalopnik article here.