Face firework - 17 June 2025

SUDDEN RENAULT CEO DEPARTUREOver the weekend there was surprise from Renault Group, as Luca de Meo announced he would be leaving the company on 15 July to become CEO of French luxury group Kering. To find out more, click this Yahoo Finance article link here. £15.6BN FOR TRANSPORT IN GOVERNMENT SPENDING REVIEWThe UK Government has announced their spending review, where £15.6 billion is being allocated for transport projects, of which £1.4 billion is for the uptake of electric vehicles. More money is set aside for other connected projects such as training and upskilling young people. Click this Motor Trader article link here to read more. MINISTERS TO CHOOSE WHO CAN ACCESS US UK TRADE DEALWith the US and UK having negotiated the details of the previous agreement of areas they would discuss, the proposal of 100,000 UK built cars being exported to America, annually, at an additional tariff of 10% looks set to come into force. However, who from these shores can access that is yet to be decided. Car Dealer Magazine is suggesting that Government ministers are to work that out. If you want to read more, click this article link here. VOLVO REVEALS ADAPTIVE SEAT BELTVolvo has shown off a new seat belt, which has been designed to react to the individual wearing it and the environment around the car. There will be a host of sensors which relay specific information to allow different tension strengths, in the event of an collision, depending on the size and weight of the occupant. On top of which there will be over-the-air updates that Volvo says it will use to improve the technology. To learn more, click this Top Gear article link here. BELIEV TO EXPAND EV CHARGER NETWORKBeliev has announced that, thanks to public and private funding, it will expand the public EV charging network helping to try to achieve the 300,000 charger target by 2030. They will be helping on-street charging needs as well as rural areas that have been overlooked up to now. You can find out more, by clicking this EV Powered article link here. UBER AND WAYVE TO BRING DRIVERLESS CARS TO LONDONUber and Wayve will be trialling a taxi service in London come the spring of 2026. Wayve claims it uses AI to pilot vehicles and only last month Uber was complaining that they could not meet the requirements to launch driverless vehicles in the UK. A reminder that AI cannot meet the requirements of safety critical software. For more on this, click here on a Top Gear article link. 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 - VW Polo Edition 50Volkswagen are celebrating the Polo’s 50th birthday with a special edition, the Edition 50. There are a host of features included in this limited run model for a price of £26,350. Click this Motoring Research article to read more. Honda Civic Type R Ultimate EditionHonda are ending the sale of the Type R in Europe and the UK due to regulatory pressures. However, they are signing it off with a limited run of the Ultimate Edition. Just 10 are coming to these shores. No news on the price but expect it to be more than the current £48,900. Click this Autocar article link for more. Pogea Project R107German company Pogea has shown off their Project R107, a restomod SL, and it looks fab. A showcase for the level of detail and individuality they can offer the well heeled and discerning customer. Price is very much POA, mind you. Click this Evo article link to see more. LUNCHTIME READ: DON’T LOOK BACK IN ANGERPatrick Fuller, writing in Autocar, explains the media landscape of the 1990s. This was a formative time for many of us as we got new magazines and a change in how things were done. Click this article link to take a history lesson. LIST OF THE WEEK: WHAT DAD DROVEHagerty, thanks to Antony Ingram, has provided the list of the week. Here are 10 examples of what typical Dad’s used to drive. Do you agree with Alan’s choice? Let us know. Click here to see your options. AND FINALLY: ADVENTURES IN CUP HOLDER DESIGNThe humble cup holder may seem like a simple thing to add to a car but that is not the case. You can read about how much effort goes into trying to add something that as many people as possible will be happy with, by clicking this DesignNews article link here.