The final round of Euro NCAP testing of 2021 reveals some sobering safety scores for two new vehicles from the carmaker who brought five-star safety to the market 20 years ago. The Renault Zoe and Dacia Spring have achieved zero-stars and one-star respectively in safety assessments. The Renault Zoe, a vehicle in the Supermini class, becomes only the third car in Euro NCAP’s history to achieve … [Read more...]
Industry
Volkswagen Group forging new alliances for future EVs
The Volkswagen Group has entered into three more strategic partnerships, further strengthening its position in the field of batteries. The new partners are the leading materials technology group Umicore, the battery specialist 24M Technologies, and cleantech company Vulcan Energy Resources Ltd. Although these three partnerships are independent from each other, they share a common goal: … [Read more...]
Trade event will be training, technology and tools focused
The new UK Garage and Bodyshop Event has revealed its theme will be ‘Training, Technology and Tools’, as the event hosts a showcase of new technologies, products and training initiatives from leading suppliers. The aim is to support suppliers, garage and bodyshop business owners, technicians, and specialists to futureproof their businesses and careers, while enabling them to tackle the … [Read more...]
Turnaround in new car sales led by EVs raises issues
New car sales rose 1.7% year on year in November, ending four consecutive months of decline. The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders reported 115,706 new cars were registered last month, up from 113,781 in the same period last year. The trade body noted this small uptick "must be viewed in the context of a weak 2020, when lockdowns impacted registrations". With the … [Read more...]
Newslines 6 December
Polestar has released a second teaser image of the forthcoming Polestar 3 pure electric performance SUV. It will launch in 2022 as the company’s first SUV and will be its first vehicle to be built in the US, in Charleston, South Carolina. Stellantis has collaborated on a pilot project to build near Milan a 1,000 metre road implanted with an electrical loop to test inductive charging in … [Read more...]
Wales powers ahead with car chargers
Wales is out-performing the rest of the UK installing charging points, say the car makers. New analysis by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders revealed that the ratio of vehicle chargepoints to plug-in cars deteriorated by -31% during 2020. The research shows that at the end of 2019, 11 plug-in vehicles potentially shared a standard public chargepoint capable of charging both … [Read more...]
Remanufactured parts focus of green agenda
With a total value of €4.7 bn of sold remanufactured spare parts by suppliers in 2020, the automotive aftermarket is already substantially contributing to the circular economy targets proposed by the European Commission in their Green Deal. CLEPA, together with the consultancy Oakdene Hollins, recently published a study on the contribution of automotive to the circular economy targets, where … [Read more...]
Holes in H-EV network need plugging say Logistics UK
Government plans to develop the electricity network for the growth of electric cars and vans have big holes to fill when it comes to really heavy vehicle operations, said Denise Beedell, Public Policy Manager at Logistics UK. Earlier in November the Government said new build homes and workplaces would have to be equipped with charging points for owners and users but that left gaps for existing … [Read more...]
Used electric vans are a new challenge
The remarketing sector needs to learn to present used electric vans correctly to maximise their saleability, delegates were told at a webinar organised by the Vehicle Remarketing Association. Paul Kirby, of EV Essentials, explained that additional care needed to be taken to highlight operational factors such as range, speed of charging, and payload. “Arguably more so than diesel vans, … [Read more...]
Cold weather chills ev-battery performance
Freezing weather and increased cabin heating could see some of the UK’s most popular EV models lose more than 30 miles of range this winter. The data from Vertu Motors finds that a cold snap could cause an EV to lose up to nine per cent of its range overnight, due to the intense energy usage required to power through the freeze. Most popular EVs Range miles Range lost Range … [Read more...]