Leaving it until almost the last moment, the EU and UK have agreed to delay implementing the rules of origin legislation, which would’ve hit car makers in both Europe and Blighty. This was expected to happen and there was an almost audible sigh of relief from the car industry. You can find out more on this, by clicking the link here from Autocar.
The Bahrain sovereign wealth fund, Mumtalakat, has effectively become the sole owner of the McLaren Group after the complicated share structure was reorganised. This has prompted many to believe (or hope) that means future model development and the move to EVs can occur with some confidence. If you wish to read more on this, click here for Sky New’s version of the story.
Following extensive discussions with the works council, Volkswagen has announced its plans for saving that will net gains of $11 billion by 2026. Steps include speeding up development, a more efficient purchasing strategy and reducing staff costs. There will be no redundancies but vacancies may not be filled. To find out more on the latest strategy from VW, click this Reuters link here.
BYD has announced it will build cars in Hungary, where it will hope this is a work around for any potential tariffs for Chinese built cars. No date has been announced when the works will be completed and car will start coming off the production line. Click this Autocar article link for more.
NIO, the battery swap EV company, has received $2.2 billion investment from a fund backed by CYVN Holdings. The company has been struggling and made a net loss of $2.03 billion in 2022. They announced they would be delaying entering the UK market, last year, with no date being given where that would change. To read more, click this Nikkei Asia article link here.
Marc Hedrich, the former Ford VW Group and Toyota executive, has been revealed as the new President and CEO of Kia Europe. He started his role on 1 January 2024. If you wish to find out more, click this link to a JustAuto article.
Cazoo, the online retailer, has declared that it needs urgent funding before the second half of 2024 to remain in business. You can read more, by clicking this link to an AMOnline article.
Daihatsu has stopped all car production in its four Japanese plants, following revelations of falsifying safety and testing data. Toyota, the parent company, has declared that “fundamental reform” is needed at the company. This problem effects not just Daihatsu and Toyota but also Mazda, and Subaru models that the plants built. Click this Sky News article link for more.
Maria Grazia Davino, Stellantis UK Managing Director, has paused the move to agency model contracts with dealerships after the breakdown in trust with the group. The recent National Franchise Dealers Association survey results had all of the Stellantis group companies at the bottom of the rankings, with poor value being cited as a major factor. Problems stem from combining FCA and PSA to form Stellantis. You can read more by clicking this link here from AMOnline.
The chaps run through the stories and topics that cropped up time and again over the course of 2023, on the show. For another look at 2023 you can click this link to an Autocar article.
Alan and Andrew list their predictions for the coming year. Below is each of the selections.
Negative - New car registrations will struggle during the year, particularly the Private segment.
Positive - The EV public charging infrastructure will catch up during the year, particularly main road stations.
Silly / Wild Card - Tesla will unveil their long anticipated Tesla 2, which will have a launch price of $25,000.
Negative - As it is an election year, motoring gets dragged deeper into the “culture wars” with more nutiness, lunacy and lies spouted.
Positive - Car makers will go for lightness and educating us about what ranges we actually need, so smaller batteries can be fitted.
Silly / Wild Card - People and organisations will give up on using flawed and incorrect data and information to make points or educate the public.
