Month: May 2020

Transport secretary Grant Shapps has marked the 50th anniversary of the blue badge law by pledging to make roads ‘accessible for all’, saying that the parking permits are a ‘lifeline’ to many people.

The badges have been used since 1971, following the introduction of the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act on May 29, 1970. It stated that local authorities should create badges for disabled people to display in their cars.

The eligibility criteria was expanded in 1975 to include blind people, and in 2007, children who needed to travel with bulky medical equipment could also apply for a badge. Last year, the eligibility criteria was expanded again to include non-visible disabilities.

The benefits of a blue badge vary by area, but usually enable holders to park in pay-and-display bays for free and for up to three hours on single and double yellow lines. In London, holders are exempt from the Congestion Charge.

Mr Shapps said: “The blue badge scheme is a lifeline for so many disabled people. It makes transport easier to access for those who really need it.

“Having extended the blue badge scheme for hidden disabilities last year, I am determined that this Government will do even more to ensure the UK’s roads are safe and accessible for all.”

Accessibility minister Chris Heaton-Harris added: “A lot has been achieved in the last 50 years to help disabled people, but we must continue to do more.

“This scheme, along with our inclusive transport strategy, is at the heart of this Government’s transport agenda.”

Lamborghini has partnered with the Lego Group to produce a 3,696-piece scale model of its latest supercar.

The Lego Technic Lamborghini Sián FKP 37 is a 1:8 scale model of the real thing, featuring a replica of the V12 engine, a moveable rear spoiler, front and rear suspension and a working steering system.

Lift the scissor doors and there’s an ‘intricate’ cockpit with a moveable paddle gearshift that operates a functioning eight-speed sequential gearbox. Inside the front bonnet is a Lamborghini-branded ‘overnight bag’ that has a code that unlocks unique content about the model as well as build instructions.

Meanwhile, the lime-green paint and gold wheels are colour options available on the real Sián.

Stefano Domenicali, chairman and CEO of Automobili Lamborghini, said: “The Lego brick is an icon in the same way as a Lamborghini super sports car.

“They both embody the pursuit of design perfection through constant research and development, create different emotions with every interaction, and are valued by generations.

“This outstanding replica of the Lamborghini Sián FKP 37 from the Lego Group presents a brilliant new building experience for both super sports car fans and Lego enthusiasts, and Lamborghini is privileged to share this opportunity with the Lego Group.”

Niels. B. Christiansen, Lego Group CEO, said: “This new model truly encapsulates the pursuit of excellence embedded in the DNA of both Automobili Lamborghini and the Lego Group.

“Both the 1:8 model and the reveal itself are feats of engineering innovation, pulled off by incredibly talented teams from across our two businesses. The LEGO Technic Lamborghini Sián FKP 37 is a true testament that with Lego Technic, you can build anything your heart desires. I can’t wait to build this authentic replica of this futuristic super sports car for real.”

Nissan has confirmed the future of its Sunderland production site, alongside an announcement that it will be closing its Barcelona facility.

The future of the Sunderland plant – which produces cars such as the Qashqai, Leaf and Juke – has been uncertain for some time, but fresh confirmation by Nissan during its Transformation Plan has confirmed that the Japanese car maker sees the site as a core part of its European presence.

Stephen Ma, Nissan CFO, said that “In western Europe, we will maintain production of core models in Sunderland and maintain efficiency.”

The firm also showcased plans to utilise its relationship with other alliance members Renault and Mitsubishi to help grow the business. This could potentially see Renault models built in Sunderland, though this is yet to be confirmed.

Nissan said that it would now be focussing on reducing costs and bringing down the number of cars in its range, putting primary emphasis on electric vehicles, SUVs and crossovers – as well as sports cars – as it announced large losses for 2019.

The firm’s upcoming Ariya SUV, which it sees as a future core model for Europe, would be fully revealed in July.

It did, however, confirm its commitment to Europe, stating that the market remains ‘important’ to the brand while recognising that the automotive industry within the area is in ‘a period of transition’.

Classic car fans are planning to treat themselves to a new car instead of a dream holiday, according to a new survey.

New research by Car & Classic found that 93 per cent of 2,000 respondents were planning to shell out for a dream classic car instead of a holiday this year. And with users flocking to classifieds during the lockdown – 3.6m visited Car & Classic’s site in April alone – it would appear that many people are choosing to research their next vehicle instead of browsing holidays.

Tom Wood, CEO of Car & Classic, said: “While we appreciate users of Car & Classic are among the biggest classic car fans around, it’s still very telling that our users are ditching their holiday plans and deciding to invest in a classic car to use closer to home instead.

“During the lockdown we’ve seen millions more users searching the site with many planning carefully where to spend their money next. While foreign holidays may be on hold, it’s clear that classic car buying is not.

“Many people still want to treat themselves after the lockdown and with trips abroad being harder for the foreseeable future, classic cars look likely to be one way our users at least will be cheering themselves up.”

Search characteristics have shown a love for Ford products, with some of the Blue Oval’s most iconic models making it into the top ten of the most-searched for classics. In fact, five models in the top ten were from Ford.

Other classics in the list included the MG B GT, Triumph Stag and Rover P6.

The future of Europe’s most important motor show is under threat after the organisers rejected the conditions of a loan from the Geneva state council.

The 2020 edition of the Geneva International Motor Show was cancelled in March because of the coronavirus pandemic, which organisers estimate cost them 11 million francs (£9.2m).

A loan of 16.8m francs (£14.1m) was offered by the Canton of Geneva to cover the costs of the cancellation and plan for the 2021 event, but today, the Foundation that organises the event has rejected the loan based on the conditions attached to it.

In a statement, the Foundation thanked the State Council for the draft legislation, but added: “Unfortunately, the conditions attached to the loan, which, in particular, aim to completely outsource the show including its conceptualisation to Palexpo SA, are not acceptable to the Foundation.

“In fact, they are in contradiction to the statutes and especially to the purpose of the foundation formulated more than 100 years ago.”

The Foundation said that because this financial help will not be received, the 2021 show is ‘very uncertain at the moment’. It added that major exhibitors had instead encouraged it to plan for 2022 instead.

The Geneva motor show is the largest event in Switzerland, attracting 600,000 visitors and 10,000 media representatives in 2019.

The likelihood of Renault building cars at the Nissan Sunderland plant has increased today after the Renault Nissan Mitsubishi Alliance outlined its plans for the future.

The three companies cemented their relationship following years of uncertainty that came after former boss Carlos Ghosn left, and took the chance to confirm that Nissan would not leave Europe despite recent rumours to the contrary.

In an initiative that’s being called ‘leader follower’, the biggest brand in each global region will take the lead in the future – in Europe, that is Renault.

The alliance says it wants to find efficiencies across the group, particularly by running factories at full capacity. It also plans to have Nissan take the lead on C-segment SUVs such as the Qashqai, which is built in Sunderland, potentially further securing a factory that has had an uncertain future ever since Britain voted to leave the EU.

However, this factory is not currently running at full capacity, which opens the door for Renault models to be built there to maximise production efficiency.
The manufacturers already share the Flins factory in France, with Nissan building the Micra and Renault the Clio and Zoe, so building cars together is not unusual.

A spokesman for Renault UK said: “Today’s announcement reaffirmed the strength of the alliance and presented a new business model for how member partners will improve their competitiveness, efficiency and profitability. We cannot comment on speculation with regards to future developments.”

Each brand within the alliance will make individual announcements about their futures separately, with Nissan coming tomorrow, Renault on Friday, and Mitsubishi Motors in ‘a few weeks’.

Car dealerships in England are set to open on June 1, throwing open doors which have remained closed for more than two months. Prime Minister Boris Johnson made the announcement this week, giving dealers the opportunity to trade fully once again – though many have been selling cars online and via click-and-collect services for much of the lockdown period.

But even though dealers are allowed to open, what is being done to ensure customer safety?

Certificate

All dealers are going to be required to display a safety certificate which signifies that they are complying with government guidance on managing the risk of coronavirus.

If you’re planning on visiting a dealership after June 1, make sure that this certificate is being displayed. If you’re worried, give the dealers a call ahead of your visit to make sure that they’re complying with the latest measures.

Social distancing

As with all other aspects of businesses operating during the coronavirus pandemic, car dealerships will need to enforce strict social distancing policies. It means that signs will be put up to remind all in the dealership to remain two metres apart, and walkways will be marked out through the site too.

One-way systems will also be introduced, and all the vehicles in the showroom will remain locked to stop people from entering them.

Cleanliness

Some of the aspects of a dealership that you might have been used to are being removed to ensure cleanliness levels are kept to a maximum. Magazines, books and brochures will all be removed to avoid transmission, and refreshments won’t be served either.

Hand sanitiser will be available throughout the dealership, too.

Test drives

Testing a car out is a huge part of purchasing a new vehicle. From June 1, test drives will be permitted – but only solo ones. That means you’ll be able to take out a vehicle to try it, but the dealer won’t accompany you.

Trade plates must be used, and dealers must have the correct insurance policies in place – so speak to them beforehand to make sure that the right coverage is in place. The car will also be extensively sanitised both before and after each test drive.

Click-and-collect

Of course, if you don’t want to go to a dealership to buy a car then there are still plenty of options available. Click-and-collect services are being offered by many dealers, allowing you to choose your car online, contact the dealer for more information before placing an order and collecting the car at the dealership under social distancing measures.

In addition, a lot of dealers and manufacturers are now offering completely contactless purchasing. Order and pay online, and then the car will be delivered directly to your home.

The Torsus Praetorian has won a prestigious design award as the world’s first heavy duty off-road bus.

Czech-based Torsus, which was founded in 2016 and says it is ‘breaking new ground by designing, developing and manufacturing the world’s toughest off-road buses’, teamed up with transportation design studio Werkemotion to create the Praetorian.

It has been built to transport personnel and equipment across the world’s trickiest terrain, and uses a heavy-duty MAN chassis, engine and drivetrain. It uses Michelin off-road tyres, while the body panels are coated in Line-X, a military-grade material.

The Torsus Praetorian was handed the Red Dot Award in the Product Design category for 2020. This year, 6,500 products were entered for consideration, with jurors testing each one to give a detailed assessment and choose the best in design and innovation.

Vakhtang Dzhukashvili, founder and CEO of Torsus said: “It’s a privilege and an honour for us to be awarded the globally respected and admired Red Dot Award, for the outstanding design of our iconic Torsus Praetorian. We are very proud to accept this award and it is testament to the skilled work of the Torsus team and our design partners at Werkemotion who, together, helped produce the world’s toughest and most capable off-road bus.”

Bystrík Míček, CEO and design manager of Werkemotion, said: “We would like to congratulate Torsus on receiving the esteemed Red Dot award for Product Design. We are very proud to have worked alongside Torsus to design the world’s first off-road 4×4 bus and we are ecstatic they have been selected for what is, undoubtedly, one of the best product design awards in the world.”

Professor Dr. Peter Zec, founder and CEO of Red Dot said: “The winners of the Red Dot Award have proved that they have created excellent products worthy of winning an award. The products won over the jury not only through their aesthetic, but also thanks to their incomparable functionality. With their designs, the award winners are setting new standards in their industry. I wish to congratulate them most sincerely on their success.”

Mazda has revealed a sleek virtual race car with a high-performance rotary engine.

Called RX-Vision GT3, it’s the latest addition to Gran Turismo Sport’s Vision series of fantasy racers, and is available to download and race in the PlayStation 4 game now.

While most manufacturers let their imaginations run totally wild when designing Vision cars, Mazda has kept its new creation grounded in motorsport reality. Based on the RX-Vision concept first revealed at the 2015 Tokyo motor show, it has been modified to conform with official GT3 regulations.

Modifications include a wider track front and rear, chunkier wheel arches, removal of heavy materials and a stripped-back interior. The aerodynamics have been improved through the addition of a large air bonnet vent and tweaks to the front and rear spoilers and rear diffuser.

Power comes from a front-mounted four-rotor engine making 562bhp. Mazda enthusiasts have lamented the death of the rotary engine, which powered the firm’s classic sports cars such as the RX-7, but rumours suggest the quirky motor could make a return in Mazda’s hybrids in the future.

Like a piston engine, a rotary engine – often referred to as a Wankel engine after its inventor Dr Felix Wankel – makes its power through igniting a compressed mixture of fuel and air. However, instead of using pistons, it uses a triangular rotor that spins within an oval chamber.

Increasing the number of rotors increases the capacity of the chambers, similar to increasing the size and number of pistons in a typical engine, which improves performance by allowing more fuel and air to be ignited in each revolution. Therefore, the ‘four-rotor’ engine in the RX-Vision GT3 uses four separate rotors within four chambers.

Rotary engines work well in performance applications because they perform best at high revs, but have proved difficult to make reliable in mainstream applications as they require a completely different style of driving to work properly. They also use a lot of oil, making running costs higher than conventional engines.

McLaren Automotive has teamed up with the BBC’s Blue Peter show to create a ‘Supercar of the Future’ competition.

Young viewers will be given the chance to submit their supercar designs, with the winner seeing their creation brought to life as a 3D scale model. They’ll also meet McLaren’s designers and engineers once Covid-19 restrictions are lifted.

The prize includes a passenger lap in a McLaren with The Stig at the wheel, a VIP tour of McLaren’s Woking factory, and a Blue Peter badge.

In an episode of Blue Peter being broadcast this evening, McLaren’s design director Rob Melville explains how a supercar should ‘look fantastic, have sensational performance and push the boundaries of what already exists’.

Meanwhile, materials engineer Ella Podmore explains why using the right materials to make the car lighter and faster is so important.

Entrants have been asked to consider how their vehicle is powered, its impact on the environment, and describe what materials it is made from. They should also choose one outstanding feature of their design and explain why they’re proud of it.

Mandeep Dhatt, executive director of HR at McLaren, said: “Working with CBBC’s Blue Peter on this competition to get kids to design their supercar of the future is an exciting and fun way to get them to apply all of their design, science and technical creativity.

“It’s also a great way to showcase how they can use those skills in the real-world, having to follow the same thought processes and tackle the same challenges as our designers and engineers like Rob and Ella do every day at McLaren. I’m looking forward to seeing what the Blue Peter audience comes up with and what amazing idea wins our top prize.”

Ellen Evans, editor at Blue Peter, added: “This is such an exciting Blue Peter competition with an amazing prize to see behind closed doors at McLaren.

“The judges are going to be looking for designs that are full of imagination, with a great story and we want to see that they have given some thought to the science behind the design too. I can’t wait to see what the amazing, creative Blue Peter kids come up with!”

The competition is open to children between the ages of six and 15. More information and terms and conditions can be found on the Blue Peter website.