Plastic Building Blocks - 27 January 2026

GERMANY REINTRODUCES EV CAR GRANTThe German Government has reintroduced their electric car grant that is between €1500 and €6000. Criteria for eligibility include the vehicle’s size, buyer’s earnings and family size. To find out more, click this EV Powered article link here.RENAULT BECOMES EUROPE’S NO.2 CAR COMPANYRenault Group became the No.2 car maker in Europe after a jump in sales. By doing so they overtook Toyota. They increased their sales by 7.4%, which includes light commercial vehicles. Click this Autocar article link here, to read more.BYD INCREASED BATTERY WARRANTYBYD, the Chinese EV maker, has increased the warranty for their batteries to 155,000 miles. This increases from the previous 93,000 miles but still remains at eight years. To learn more, click this Motoring Research article link here.SCOTTISH GOVERNMENT ALLOCATES £85M TO LOW CARBON PROGRAMMESIn the 2026/27 budget, from the Scottish Government, they announce that they will be allocating £85 million to ‘low carbon programmes’, with vague language about expanding public charging and support for low emission vehicles. The details, currently, are scant and it would be unwise to get too excited until knowing more. More can be found by clicking this electrive article link here.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 PODCASTNEW NEW CAR NEWS -Volvo EX60Volvo has unveiled their new electric SUV, the mid sized EX60. Boasting a ‘game-changing’ new platform and ‘radical in-car technology’. With a range of up to 503 miles, prices start at £56,850 and rise to £70,360. Click this Autocar article link here for more.Leapmotor B05Leapmotor has finally revealed the interior of their B05 hatchback, at the recent Brussels Motor Show. Following the trend of a minimalist space, there are virtually no physical buttons to be seen. A maximum range of 285 miles is better than the Astra Electric but much less than the VW ID.3 and Kia EV4. The brand is hoping the price will sway buyers as it is expected to start below £30,000. Exact prices and availability timings are yet to be announced. Click this EV Powered article for more.Encor S1The Encor S1 is a restomod based on the Lotus Esprit Mk1. See, restomods don’t just need to be 911s! It comes with a carbon fibre body, a 400bhp V8 and will set you back at least £500,000. It looks fantastic. Click this EVO article link here, to see more.LUNCHTIME WATCH: ALRIGHT, WHICH RICH DIPSH*TS COMMISSIONED THESE ROLLS-ROYCESWe are sharing a wonderful article from Victoria Scott, where the bespoke configurations of Rolls-Royce cars from the last year, are evaluated. Not holding back, as you will see, this is well worth your time. Click this link here to the article.LIST OF THE WEEK: TINY BUT MIGHTYHagerty, once again, brings a list that we think you will enjoy running through, being all about kei sports cars. As ever, whilst there will be a few that you do expect, there are others which are not the usual suspects. Click this link here to check out the options.AND FINALLY: HOT WHEELS BRICK SHOPHot Wheels has launched a Brick Shop Speed Series. These are cars you build yourself from plastic pieces that snap together. Sound familiar? However, these do closely resemble the real thing, unlike some we have seen. Click this PetrolBlog article link here to see more.