FOLLOW UP: VW LOSES TEMP CONTROL ENGINE SOFTWARE RULING
Volkswagen has been told by the EU Court of Justice that utilising software to protect engines outside a temperature range of 15 - 33 Celsius amounted to a defeat device, as below 15 Celsius is a normal temperature across Europe. This will, obviously, open the risk of more consumer class actions being taken against VW and possibly other manufacturers. For more, click the Reuters article here.
ASTON MARTIN SECURE FURTHER FUNDING
Aston Martin has secured £653 million more investment, which it states is only required to service the debt they have accrued. A Saudi Arabian fund, AMG and share issue will ensure that the cash reserves they currently have are deployed on their future development and not paying off their loans. You can learn more, by clicking this PistonHeads link here.
BMW TRIALS OPTIONS SUBSCRIPTIONS
BMW are trialling subscriptions for some options, with the ability to pay for them on a weekly, yearly or the entire time of your ownership of the car. This has caused a bit of controversy, but not all are against the idea. Click this Top Gear link to read about the move.
James Mills wrote a piece for Hagerty, explaining why this has been introduced and why they may not be a bad idea at all. You can read that, by clicking this link here.
Drew Smith, writing on the StudioPhro website, adds a dash of reality and caution to OEMs pursuing options via subscription, that can be read by clicking this link here.
TESLA ORDERED TO REFUND CUSTOMER OVER AUTOPILOT FAULTS
Tesla has been ordered to refund a customer, by a Munich court, due to the problems with the Autopilot function. Following a detailed technical analysis, it was confirmed that the system could not reliably recognise obstacles and changes to the layout of roads and lead to braking being applied unnecessarily. For more, click the Reuters article here.
EV ISOLATOR ISSUE HITTING HOME
Changes to regulations over the installation of home chargers has meant there is an added delay. There must be two visits, with one being the energy provider who needs to fit the new isolator to the properties existing electrical system. Until there is a single visit installation the problem will continue with the owner or fleet operator paying more as they have to use public charging points. To read about this, click the Business Motoring article here.
PORSCHE BUILDS SECOND EFUEL FACILITY
