Car rentals double this month amid Easter travel chaos April 12, 2022 Car rentals have doubled ahead of Easter weekend, as Brits come up with alternatives while travel disruption wreaks havoc among the country’s transport network. According to data from Volkswagen Financial Services UK (VWFS), rentals on online platform Rent-a-Car have gone up 148 per cent on last year. “Lots of people have been waiting a long [...]
Chip shortages to remain into 2023, says BMW boss April 11, 2022 The shortage of semiconductors that plagued the automotive industry over the last two years is expected to remain well into 2023, said BMW boss Oliver Zipse today. “We are still in the height of the chip shortage,” he told German newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung. “I expect us to start seeing improvements at the latest next [...]
Drivers warned about busiest Easter on record as 21.5 million journeys planned April 11, 2022 Drivers were told to brace for the busiest Easter on record, as an estimated 21.5 million trips will be made over the bank holiday. According to automotive insurance company RAC, this year will be the busiest since it started recording traffic data in 2014. “After two years of relatively quiet Easter bank holidays on the [...]
Cazoo reports record year as company not impacted by inflationary pressures April 7, 2022 Ongoing inflationary pressures will not impact online car retailer Cazoo, its chief executive Alex Chesterman said yesterday. “Used cars have historically [pushed] in a recessionary environment, while new cars tend to be much more affected,” Chesterman told analysts during a call. “[New cars] are a luxury purchase whereas used cars are functional.” The company said [...]
March car production falls to lowest in 24 years as markets feel supply chain squeeze April 5, 2022 The UK’s automotive production in March fell to the lowest since 1998 as markets continued to feel the supply chain squeeze. According to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), new car registrations fell by 14.3 per cent to 243,479 units while overall the first quarter of 2021 reported a 1.9 per [...]
Stellantis to close Russian van plant as supply chain issues bite March 31, 2022 Automotive giant Stellantis said today it will be forced to close its Russian van plant following a shortage of parts. Operating only for the local market, the facility is situated in the western city of Kaluga and was run in partnership with Mitsubish. The world’s fourth-largest car maker didn’t specify whether it would write down [...]
‘What th f*** bro’: Watch as reckless driver in East London live streams himself as he crashes in Newham March 28, 2022 A live stream on TikTok is going viral across London this morning, showing a street racer crash his car on the A13 in East London. Streaming himself like on the popular Chinese social media platform, the driver was seen racing at high speed through the east side of the capital late on Saturday night. While [...]
UK car production falls for eighth consecutive month following chip shortages March 25, 2022 The UK’s automotive output fell 41.3 per cent in February as chip shortages don’t seem to end. According to data from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT), car production went down to 61,657 units produced, the worst February since 2009. Production for the domestic market went down 35.8 per cent, while overseas markets [...]
Automotive sector in favour of relocating car manufacturing to UK March 23, 2022 The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said today a relocation of car manufacturing back to the UK would be “good news” for the sector. “If supply chain resilience provides the opportunity to reshore more of the supply chain in the UK, we would certainly support and encourage that,” SMMT’s chief executive Mike Hawes [...]
Vehicle analytics supplier Quartix expects nearly 25 per cent increase in installations for first quarter March 23, 2022 One of Europe’s top suppliers of vehicle telematics and analytics increased unit installations by nearly 25 per cent in the first quarter of the year. Quartix Technologies is to hold its Annual General Meeting later today, and in a trading statement, said its experienced “strong growth” across the early part of 2021, which is expected [...]