Episode 164: Evil and Nasty Things - VW Settles One Lawsuit, BMW recalling cars, Diesel cars can be banned from German Cities, Aston Martin posts profit

FOLLOW UP: VW SETTLES ONE LAWSUIT IN US

Following the request to postpone a lawsuit because the Netflix documentary made comparisons to the Nazis, which was rejected, Volkswagen has reached an out of court settlement over marketing of their diesels in the US. This is one of three cases due to be heard in the first half of the year. To read more click the Bloomberg article here.

CHINESE BUSINESSMAN BUYS DAIMLER SHARES

The Chairman of Geely has become the biggest shareholder of Daimler, after buying $9 billion. Not Geely itself, which you may have read. This has caused some intense naval gazing in Germany following the realisation that capitalism works both ways. To read more click the Bloomberg article here. To read the Reuters article click here. To see the first Geely car click here.

BMW RECALLING 11,700 CARS FOR WRONG ENGINE SOFTWARE

BMW has installed the wrong engine management software on 11,700 5 and 7-Series models. This is on the back of them being accused of doing this deliberately to manipulate emissions, which the company has denied. To read more click the Automotive News article here.

DIESEL CARS CAN BE BANNED FROM GERMAN CITIES

A German court has ruled that banning diesel cars from German cities, in an effort to improve air quality is a justified action. Initially, the ban will only cover pre Euro-5 engines, but after September 2019 Euro-5 will also be banned. To read more click the Autocar article here.

WRC FACTBOOK AVAILABLE

With thanks to friend of the show, Richard Gooding, you can download the WRC Factbook. So if you want more info on this year’s competition click the WRC link here.

SCOTTISH MOTOR SPORTS LAUNCH ROAD SERIES

In an effort to make entry into motor racing more accessible, the Scottish Motor Sports organisation has launched the Scottish Road Car Series. There will be 10 rounds at various locations, with very reasonable registration and entry fees. To read more click the link here.

ASTON MARTIN POSTS IMPRESSIVE PROFIT

Aston Martin has posted a pre-tax profit of £87m, for 2017, compared to a loss of £163m in 2016. Revenue is up nearly 50%, with just over 5000 vehicles being sold. To read more click the BBC News article here.

TOP GEAR IS BACK AND SO ARE THE KEYBOARD WARRIORS

Gavin Braithwaite-Smith has written an excellent article, aimed at those who took to social media to complain about the opening Top Gear show of the new series. We recommend you read it, click the Motoring Research article here to do so.

RECOMMENDED READING: WHATCAR? INSIGHT

WhatCar? has published a PDF called Insight, which delves into a few topics in greater detail than they do in the magazine. The subjects are quite geeky, so we’re sure you, the listener, will enjoy it. To read more click the link here.

WHAT TO DO IF YOU GET STUCK IN THE SNOW

Andrew Brady has written an article on what to do if you get stuck in the snow. This is a sensible, practical list of how to behave. To read more click the Motoring Research article here.

LIST OF THE WEEK - ENGLAND’S WORST ROADS

Car Parts 4 Less submitted a Freedom of Information request to find out which roads have received the most complaints in the last twelve months. To read the list click the Sunday Times Driving article here.

AND FINALLY - SENDING A (TOY) CAR INTO SPACE IS HARD

Donut Media found out that sending a toy car into space is actually hard. Click here to see the Jalopnik article discussing this attempt.

EXTRA LINKS

To see James Ruppert's video click here.

To check out Chris Pollitt's Kickstarter campaign click here.

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