Anger As Consumer Advice - 6 July 2021

FOLLOW UP: SECOND UK-BASED VW EMISSIONS CLAIM LAUNCHED

The legal firm, Leigh Day, has launched a second emissions claim against Volkswagen, this time connected with the fix. They are claiming that VW “covertly made fundamental changes to affected vehicles” by altering other engine types that were not part of the #dieselgate outcry. Volkswagen responded that they have not been informed of such action and believe such claims to be without merit. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

FOLLOW UP: JLR TO FOCUS ON RELIABILITY ISSUES

After last week’s show, where the chaps discussed what they saw as holding Jaguar Land Rover back, which wasn’t the designs, Thierry Bolloré announced that they would be solving the company’s reliability and build quality issues. To read more, whilst the chaps wait for their consulting fee to arrive from the firm, click the Autocar article here.

NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES FOR JUNE 2021

The June registration figures are up on last year, as expected, but they are not at the levels of 2019, with much talk about constrained supply chains. The Tesla Model 3 was topped the charts for the most registered. To find out more, click the SMMT link here.

SUNDERLAND TO BE NISSAN’S EV HUB

Sunderland has been selected as Nissan’s EV Hub, following investment from both the company and the UK Government, to secure the site’s future. To read more about this news, click the Nissan press release here.

As additional information, click Pernile Rudlin’s twitter thread explaining the deal here.

Thanks to the decision the UK has made, about it’s position in the global market, there is now a rush for more battery factories, which you can read more about by clicking the Guardian’s link here.

ELLESMERE PORT PLANT SAVED

Stellantis has confirmed that it will invest in the Ellesmere Port Vauxhall plant, so that it can make small commercial EVs. This will be the first electric vehicle only plant in the Group. To read more, click the Autocar article here.

PORSCHE RECALLING TAYCAN OVER SOFTWARE GLITCH

Porsche are recalling around 45,000 Taycan cars over a software bug that can cause the vehicle to cut power and get a warning notification to pull over. 135 cars have suffered from this error, which can be sorted by a reboot. To read more, click the EVO article here.

SHELL OPENS 10MW HYDROGEN ELECTROLYSIS PLANT

Near Wesseling, in the Rheinland, Shell has opened Europe’s largest Hydrogen electrolysis plant. There already plans to expand it to cope with commercial interest. To read more, click the Reuters article here.

DON’T PAY FOR DVLA SERVICES WARNING

The DVLA has reiterated that you should avoid any ads and companies that state they will use one of the DVLA’s services, on your behalf, for a fee. To find out more, click the Motoring Research article here.

‘GREEN CARD’ INSURANCE FOR EUROPE WAIVED

The European Commission has waived the requirement that UK based drivers must carry the internal documentation to prove they are insured to drive in Europe. Obviously this makes it much easier for those who have to traverse the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. To find out more details, click the Hagerty link here.

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NEW NEW CAR NEWS

Renault 5

The name badge of that small French car, that makes many go misty eyed, is back on Renault’s latest EV model. The concept styling is reminiscent of the original car, but the aim is to undercut the Zoe quite significantly in terms of price. The expected starting point will be around £18,500, in the region of a third less than the Zoe, but still with a range of 248 miles. There is no confirmation exactly when the 5 will go into production, but it won’t be soon enough for us! To see more, click the Autocar article here.

VW Polo GTi

The Volkswagen Polo GTi is retuning to our roads, this time with 204bhp and the latest corporate face. There will be 236lb ft of the torques available, helping propel the car to 62mph in 6.5 seconds. The styling will fall in line with the latest models offered, including the thin light-bar running just under the bonnet lip. There is no further detail on prices, as of yet. To find out more, click the Autocar link here.

LUNCHTIME READ: AROUND THE WORLD IN THE “BABY BENZ”

A couple from Austria toured the World in their Mercedes-Benz 190D, racking up around 250,000 kilometres in the process. To find out why, then move on to how and end up sitting in admiration at what they’ve achieved and the car that helped them, by clicking the Daimler article here.

LIST OF THE WEEK: THE 12 BEST RETRO CONCEPTS

Further to rebirth of the Renault 5, we have a look at 12 more retro concepts that were super cool. To run through the list yourself, click the Goodwood Road & Racing link here. Don’t forget to tell us which you’d pick over all the others!

AND FINALLY: MOBILE PARK ABIDES BY PARKING RULES

Adam Tranter created a ‘parklet’ that fitted within the guidelines of a single parking space on a local ‘car-free’ day initiative. This included a bench, artificial grass and flowers. However, a single complaint meant the council removed it. He was not to be thwarted though and is back with a motorised ‘parklet’, that sits on the flatbed of a 1970s Peugeot Ape van, meaning it is a vehicle that is entitled to use the space. Again people are using the facility. To read more, click the YesAuto link here.