Practical driving tests will soon be conducted almost exclusively in automatic electric cars, according to one electromobility expert. Emma Loveday (below), EV Consultant at Volkswagen Financial Services UK, explained that young people learning to drive in automatic vehicles will ‘soon be the norm’ as consumers become more environmentally conscious and cost savings for green transport become more … [Read more...]
Are EVs green or greenwash?
Thousands of drivers who collect the keys to a brand new ‘72’ plate electric car tomorrow will have a nagging doubt at the back of their minds as they glide silently off the forecourt – are battery-powered cars truly better for the environment, or is zero-emission motoring just ‘greenwash’ hype? Sales of electric cars are soaring, up 49.9% year-on-year (January to July), as motorists take … [Read more...]
Car production improves but issues remain
Though the outlook is beginning to look more positive as production levels rise for the third month in a row and the industry shows signs of recovery, persistent issues will continue to cause turbulence in the coming months, said Lisa Watson, Director of Sales at Close Brothers Motor Finance. “The ongoing conflict in Ukraine means the well-documented semiconductor shortage is continuing to cause … [Read more...]
Fleets see savings in EVs
Cost advantages and lower environmental impact head the list of reasons why UK businesses are electrifying their company cars, suggests research from the latest Arval Mobility Observatory Barometer. The factors mentioned by fleet and mobility decision makers in the research were topped by reduced fuel expenses (66% of those questioned – up from 54% in 2021) and, in second place, tax incentives … [Read more...]
Beat the heat & recirculate
The ultimate hack for driving this summer is the recirculation button on the AC unit in most vehicles. We all know it’s there, but many of us don’t know how best to use it. Graham Conway, Managing Director at Select Car Leasing, UK’s largest independent specialists for car and van leasing, has revealed exactly how we should be using the recirculation feature to get the most from your vehicle's … [Read more...]
Newslines 8 August
The RAC wants the Government to do a u-turn on ending the plug -in car grant. The incentive was ended this spring to encourage motorists to choose pure evs but after a disastrous summer of new car sales RAC EV spokesperson Simon Williams said, “ With high fuel prices and the overall cost of living continuing to bite, drivers are increasingly looking to low-running-cost alternatives to petrol and … [Read more...]
Breaking the EV myth of franchise dealers
The idea that franchise dealers are required more for electric vehicle service, maintenance and repair than their internal combustion engine counterparts is a “myth”, shows new research from epyx. Statistics taken from its 1link Service Network platform, used to manage SMR for more than four million company vehicles largely operated by leasing companies, show hardly any difference in the … [Read more...]
Brits falling out of love with evs
Brits’ appetite for electric vehicles appears to be declining with fewer people saying they expect to own an EV in the next decade, according to a recent CarGurus study. Despite petrol prices reaching record highs and the sale of new petrol and diesel cars banned from 2030, UK motorists’ appetite for EVs has decreased when comparing interest in 2021 versus 2022. Notably, potential … [Read more...]
Newslines 2 August
Cardiff is a hot spot for car thieves. The Welsh capital has generated some of the highest tweets from owners asking for users to look out for their car and it’s in the UK top ten at fifth, according to the analysis by Scrap Car Comparison, and ranking just behind Athens but is worse than Rome and London. Online used car disruptor Carzam was more than £2.4m in debt when it called in … [Read more...]
Legal hurdle to speeding up EV charging
Problems created by revised regulations covering the installation of isolators for home electric vehicle chargers appear to be no closer to being resolved, the Association of Fleet Professionals is reporting. The issue was first highlighted by the AFP in March and is causing installation of home chargers to be delayed by a typical period of 4-6 weeks as well as causing uncertainty in costs as … [Read more...]