The 110-year old Morgan Motor Company of Malvern has sold a majority shareholding to British investment group. The Investindustrial Group has backed Aston Martin and Ducati and its likely the Morgan family will become multi-millionaires through the deal which also sees all 190 employees become shareholders. Morgan became famous through its iconic three-wheelers and now builds a modern … [Read more...]
Aston Martin mark St David’s Day and new Welsh plant
The Aston Martin DBX SUV, which will be built in St Athan near Cardiff, made a surprise visit to No.10 Downing Street in an early celebration of St David’s Day. Aston Martin Lagonda’s investment in a second UK manufacturing facility, which was announced in early 2016, will create over 700 new skilled jobs in the Vale of Glamorgan. Over the past two years the former Ministry of … [Read more...]
Dealers worried over deadline for petrol & diesel cars
Close Brothers Motor Finance’s Dealer Satisfaction Survey has found that two-thirds (66%) of car dealers believe the Government’s plans to ban petrol and diesel cars by 2032 will be too early. The qualitative survey of more than 200 dealers nationwide found that the vast majority (86%) believed the ban would cause another layer of confusion to the market, with 59% believing it would make car … [Read more...]
Newslines 25 February
The latest Mazda3 coming to the UK from May will begin at £20,595. The 18-strong range of petrol and diesel hatchbacks has five trims running up to £27,735. Ford will conduct an investigation after concerns raised by its own employees over the 'analytical modelling' standards that it employs as part of its US fuel economy and emissions compliance process, says Just-Auto.com . In the wake … [Read more...]
Industry criticises Government for ’emissions tax’ rises
The Vehicle Remarketing Association has added its support to the British Vehicle Rental and Leasing Association’s response to the current Government’s WLTP consultation. Sam Watkins, chair at the VRA, said that her organisation shared the BVRLA’s concern about how the potential, negative impact on the company car sector could have widespread repercussions. She explained, “The Government’s … [Read more...]
Honda fall-out affects Wales
A dozen businesses in Wales make parts for Honda, said the Welsh Automotive Forum. The component suppliers employ thousands of workers and Welsh Government and WAF are taking steps to identify the true impact of the Honda closure and how the employees can be helped. Honda will close its vehicle assembly plant in Turkey along with the Swindon operation by 2021. It is part of a global … [Read more...]
New car sales will stagnate this year, say makers
This year, EU car sales will stagnate at 2018 levels in terms of units sold, staying close to the 15 million new registrations mark recorded last year, according to new forecasts by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. Although 2018 was the fifth consecutive year of growth, the pace of growth has slowed down significantly over the last few years, amounting to a slight increase … [Read more...]
Newslines 12 February
The along awaited Audi e-tron electric models will go into showrooms in April. There will be two versions from £71,490 after the ev plug in allowance and it will be a their version of the VW Golf sized I D Neo hatchback. The next generation Vauxhall Corsa range will include a plug-in battery-electric model. It will also have the intelligent LED headlights first seen on Insignia and … [Read more...]
MoT test widens to more vehicles from 20 May
More agricultural, delivery, recovery and construction vehicles are now liable to the annual safety test. The DVSA is introducing annual testing for some when their current tax is renewable but others must have a test done by 20 May 2019. Vehicles now needing a test certificate include: mobile cranes breakdown vehicles (not breakdown vans) tower wagons some mobile engineering … [Read more...]
Newslines 5 February
The new 2019 Mitsubishi Mirage is available to UK customers from £11,295. A new entry level Mirage 3 is available with a manual transmission and is £1,005 less than the outgoing Juro model and they have a 3 cylinder 1.2-litre MIVEC engine, 80hp and 106Nm torque and emit 107g/km CO2. Two plug-in versions of the new BMW 7-Series will arrive in Spring. In-line 6-cylinder petrol engine and … [Read more...]