One of the world's most distinctive shapes, the classic Land Rover Defender, is not unique enough an Appeal Court judge has decided. Jaguar Land Rover sought to get the trademark rights for the shape of the Defender SUV, but it failed and means billionaire Jim Ratcliffe’s Ineos Group can go ahead with the Grenadier off-road vehicle, which he admits was inspired by Defender. A London court on … [Read more...]
News
Hybrids are mystery to a third of drivers
A survey by DesperateSeller.co.uk has revealed that 30.9% of UK consumers simply don’t understand hybrid cars. A poll on the used car website in July 2020 asked “What is a hybrid car?” and gave three options: a) One that can use at least two means of propulsion; b) One that does NOT have an internal combustion engine; and c) One that can run on both petrol and diesel fuels. Of 1,190 … [Read more...]
Newslines 4 August
Ferrari earnings have skidded because of supply chain and coronavirus pandemic issues. Earnings fell 60% to £111,680,000 in Q2 but the full year sales are expected to dramatically pick up by spring 2021 and be at the lower end of their original forecast or about £30 Billion. Fuel price rises recorded by the RAC this week will wipe out savings from cheaper insurance premiums as a result of the … [Read more...]
Newslines 3 August
A bidder on Car & Classic Auction has secured a rare Mk1 Volkswagen Golf GTI for £21,500 - some £1,230 more than they could have bought a brand new 20-plate Golf. The 1983 Golf GTI was listed on Car & Classic Auction for seven days and by day three had already exceeded its estimate of £11,500 to £13,500, although it’s no ordinary Golf GTI, it’s a genuine Pirelli edition Golf GTI that has … [Read more...]
£2 Billion cycle-plan ignores vital deliveries
London’s protected cycleways will be rolled out to other English cities in a £2 Billion programme, but it’s already raised concerns in the logistics sector. In response to the government’s package of announcements made 28 July 2020 on urban road use, Natalie Chapman, Head of Urban Policy at Logistics UK, formerly FTA, said, “The government’s plans present an opportunity to make cycling a more … [Read more...]
Sunday drive: Ford Puma ST-Line X hybrid-petrol
Ford revealed its new 5-door Crossover – you could call it a compact SUV – towards the end of last year with UK deliveries scheduled in January, writes David Miles. However the COVID-19 lockdown derailed delivery to over 7,000 early adopter customers awaiting this new addition to the market place and more than 90% have chosen the petrol/hybrid 48V mHEV models. My initial test drive programme … [Read more...]
UK needs major rethink for EV charging network
Solving the infrastructure challenge is one of the final pieces of the electric vehicles puzzle, said Dan Hutson, head of motor insurance with comparethemarket.com. Ofgem’s focus on building capacity for 11 million electric cars in the UK will be welcome news to many who want an electric car but are concerned about the volume of charging points. He said, “Improving the electrical infrastructure … [Read more...]
Hyundai charge into the ev lead on cost
ChooseMyCar has taken a look at how much it costs to charge each EV currently on the market, as well as their electric range in miles to calculate which EV’s are the cheapest to drive and charge. Taking the top spot for the cheapest car to drive is the Hyundai IONIQ Electric, which has a range of 155 miles on a fully charged 40.4 kWh battery, which works out at a cost of £5.81 for a full charge … [Read more...]
Newslines 31 July
The cost of insuring a car has decreased by £80 over the past six months, according to new data from comparethemarket.com. It now costs an average of £1,182 to insure a car for those aged between 17-24 and while premiums have historically fluctuated throughout the year, average premiums remain significantly lower than the same time last year and are now at their lowest levels since 2015 for the … [Read more...]
Laverbread Nouveau Enduro taste for adventure
A weekend rally traversing some great French driving roads, promoting Wales and its gastronomic products while also generating a record amount of money for a worthy charity, was the idea. On refection, there was nothing not to like about the 1984 Laverbread Nouveau Enduro. Born out of a fertile marketing alliance between Wales Tourist Board and Children’s charity … [Read more...]