Better at rubbing the soap - 17 October 2023

DOJ CHARGES EBAY OVER ROLLING COAL DEVICE SELLINGThe Department of Justice (DOJ) in the US, has taken eBay to court over allowing ‘rolling coal’ devices to be sold on the platform. These manipulate the control of engines and allow for huge plumes of black smoke to be emitted by vehicles. eBay says it cut so many out and does all it can. The fine, if found guilty would be a maximum in the region of $2 billion, but as its an American company it will not be that high. Click this CNBC article link to learn more. BATTERY RECYCLING PLANT OPENS IN WOLVERHAMPTON Battery recycling firm, Recyclus, have opened their new Wolverhampton operation that will eventually enable them to process up to 22,000 tons of lithium ion batteries. Called ‘urban mining’, such operations will be vital in bringing down the environmental impact of our electrified future. You can learn more by clicking this electrive article link here. WAE TO BUILD EV BATTERIES IN OXFORD FACTORY WAE will produce electric batteries, mainly for heavy plant vehicles, in its new £20 million factory, located near Oxford. The UK has a thriving heavy plant manufacturing industry and home built batteries will be vital to ensuring the viability of that sector. If you wish to learn more, click this link to an Autocar article. AUDI CUTS BACK PRODUCTION PLANS FOR Q4 ETRONPlans to build the Q4 eTron in Audi’s own Brussels plant have been put on hold as demand is not enough to meet the capacity at the VW Zwickau factory. Workers in Brussels have gone on strike as their contracts are changed to fit the new future. Click this electrive article link to see more. MERCEDES-BENZ EACTROS 600 Mercedes has revealed the 2024 eActross 600, a lorry capable of travelling 310 miles on a single charge, with a payload of 22 tonnes. With regular, legislated stops and charging whilst taking required breaks, will allow it to travel 600 miles easily. For more on this, click here to read more via Green Fleet.If you like what we do, on this show, and think it is worth a £1.00, please consider supporting us via Patreon. Here is the link to that CLICK HERE TO SUPPORT THE PODCAST NEW NEW CAR NEWS - Toyota C-HRToyota has announced pricing for the new C-HR, with it starting at £31, 290 and topping out at £42,720 for the range topping Premier Edition spec. Click this Autocar article link to find out all the details of the car and options for powertrains. Lexus LBXThe LBX is a small crossover, that is based on the underpinnings of the Toyota Yaris Cross, which will be the new entry level to the brand. Prices start at £29,995 and go all the way up to £40, 545 for the Takumi Design spec. You can find out more by clicking this CAR article link here. Kia EV2 Kia announced several new planned models, which we start with covering the baby one, the EV2. The brand aims to have an entry price of around £25,000 when it comes out in 2026 and is to be city car sized, targeting the likes of the Corsa, Peugeot 2008 and suchlike. Click this Autocar link to read more. Kia EV3Next we move onto the Kia EV3, a baby SUV, due out next year, which will replace the Soul for less than £30,000. Looking at the size and price point this will be quite popular. For more on this, click here to read via Autocar. Kia EV4This will be a saloon/fastback style car, instead of another SUV. The aim is to take on the likes of the Polestar 2. Again, not due until 2026, there are scant details on the vehicle. But, to learn as much as we all do, click this Autocar link here. Kia EV5Back to SUVs and one that is initially aimed at China, but we will be amazed if it does not end up here too, the EV5. Continuing to use the ‘Tiger Face’ design language, this smart SUV is aimed at families. Click here to read more, from the CAR article. BMW X2BMW has revealed the new X2 and iX2, which will now come as a smallish SUV coupe. It is utterly hideous, click this link to see exactly how bad it is, thanks to an Autocar article. Skoda to stop offering sat nav for freeSkoda is experimenting with what customers will or will not accept as paid for extras, including if there is an appetite for subscription services. Sat nav, automatic headlights and adaptive cruise control will now be paid for extras. Click this Autocar link to read more. LUNCHTIME READ: STRANGEST THING ABOUT THE HUGE FIRE AT A BRITISH AIRPORT PARKING GARAGE IS HOW PEOPLE REACTED TO ITFollowing the fire at the Luton Airport car park, the loons of the internet rushed from underneath their rocks to scream about how is was an EV and clearly an EV when the fire service stated it was a diesel vehicle. The Autopian brings us a read on how nuts it has all been, from the outsiders perspective. Click here to read how mad it looked from afar. LIST OF THE WEEK: THE 19 VANS YOU NEVER KNEW YOU WANTEDTop Gear give an brilliant list to pick from, click here to check it out and make your choice. Don’t forget to tell the chaps which you would have and if their choices were decent or not. AND FINALLY: FLORIDA MIGHT CHANGE A ROAD NAME IN HONOUR OF JIMMY BUFFETT A Florida lawmaker is asking the state to change the name of the A1A costal highroad, to the Jimmy Buffett Memorial Highway. Click here to read more via an CNN article.