Lee01

Seems it's a bit of a faff and not worth bothering with.

OR have been taking redundant copper out of the ground and selling it for at least a decade. Some of my old colleagues are still on cable recovery which is mostly done at night. Tens of billions worth - I forget the actual figure but it was eye watering.

Just seen a GWM Ora and I thought to myself that Kia missed a trick with not grabbing that name

Even more fugly

Oh sweet irony.

God you're boring 🥱

Did Clarkson do the 800 mile round trip without stopping to take a pee or eat or even stretch his legs where he could, if he were in an EV, have used that time to charge? Now that would be impressive. TBH this thread has been done to death IMO.

He was also very uncomfortable doing it as no heating/ AC (I forget which) and no radio to try and squeeze every drop so hardly a real world driving experience. Also, it was telly so who knows if he really did it 🤷

Do you have a physical handbrake or a button?

Not bad for a MkV Escort tbh. Obvs a kittens though.

D'oh. My bad - typo, Pete. Amended

Well colour me shocked. Tory councillor admins 36 anti ULEZ Facebook groups which spread propaganda, Islamophobic messaging and anti Sadiq Khan messaging. https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2024/apr/27/tory-staff-running-network-of-anti-ulez-facebook-groups-riddled-with-racism-and-abuse?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Other

The International Energy Agency has just published its latest report on the EV market and industry. "Electric car sales in 2023 were 3.5 million higher than in 2022, a 35% year-on-year increase. This is more than six times higher than in 2018, just 5 years earlier. ...Electric cars accounted for around 18% of all cars sold in 2023, up from 14% in 2022 and only 2% 5 years earlier, in 2018." There are some warning signs, though; in some markets the vast majority of EVs have been sold to people who can charge at home. I'd guess that at some point that market will be saturated. Also there is a trend towards larger and more expensive EVs. https://www.iea.org/reports/global-ev-outlook-2024?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3oB9oQZ-bxTbvfNN6nkfWXT3cfA-T2q1i8dNaoqh4VFOvMU8XHXiPgqqo_aem_AWIYg0j0l_YbBjbZBrOzIvAkxh0foZejHEo4wBRaF4ykTE3fOnpquvLcLGp-70AcA-h4UdkHFd41UQqFxnbgvO17

More like Ethan Hunt. He wore smart specs in Mission: Impossible.

Central London at the height of summer isn't really a great comparison to the countryside in winter. Does central London still get smog like that or has ULEZ and other factors reduced it?

It's winter so obviously there's gonna be some mist and also, that's not exactly 4K video is it.

It drove out didn't it. Seen plenty of ICE vehicles not drive out of that sort of situation 🤷

Battery stations - Chinese car manufacturer Nio has gone to scale with it in China and is now trying it in Europe. The idea is to cut down waits at charging stations and stop EV buyers from worrying about battery life. But I wonder if it could also be an answer for people who have nowhere to charge off-road at home? I've always thought that swapping out batteries would be far easier not to mention quicker cutting journey times. Of course there'd need to be a consensus on the standardisation of battery types but if Apple etc can be made to swap to USB-C then anything's possible. https://restofworld.org/2024/ev-battery-swapping-china/?fbclid=IwAR3y1u5FKEBh_0ZQjA58RitEEKh-5TL7g9CuL2dAIibcVdW_zjlfAY_Ij8U

I was watching one of them on Secrets of the London Underground a couple of weeks ago. Theirs was only used for shunting carriages in the yard though. Quite old as well so I doubt that one could pull/ push anywhere near that weight.

I've wanted a Unimog for years now but no way I could justify the purchase. See loads here doing all sorts of tasks with all the attachments they can be fitted with. I saw one with a pair of roller brushes (like a car wash but vertical) on a hydraulic arm. It's purpose was to clean the snow poles

That Michelin statement reads more like them trying to be eco more than from a safety angle IMO. But as for your tyre - yes, change it sooner rather than later and request a wheel alignment assesment and calibration (preferably a Hunter or similar four wheel alignment)

Yep. That's what I'm saying - it's a basic function so should be IMO. It's in no way safe to flick through options at motorway speeds.

Tweet I saw today by an 'Author, Blogger, Influencer, YouTuber, Engineer etc etc; 5 Star EuroNACP Valuation Requires Physical Buttons EuroNCAP announced that from 2026, real physical buttons and switches will be mandatory for certain functions in the car in order to receive the highest rating. The alliance of various European transport ministries, automobile clubs and insurance associations based in Brussels has rolled out its new agenda. "This decision marks a significant shift in the automotive industry and highlights the importance of traditional controls, which have been increasingly displaced by digital touchscreens and voice-activated systems in recent years." The safety specialists are targeting developments at Tesla and the VW Group. At least for the five most important functions, real switches, levers or buttons will be required from 2026 in order for cars to receive the five-star safety rating from Euro NCAP. From 2026, suitable switches must therefore remain in the car for the turn signal, hazard warning lights, windscreen wipers, horn and SOS emergency call functions if the full 5-star result is to be achieved. Vehicle manufacturers will also be encouraged to use separate physical controls for other basic functions such as seat and mirror adjustment or ventilation. OMG to argue that physical buttons are safer than using a display or voice commands shows that its not about safety at all but that lobby groups have suceeded and thats sad. Its all about revenue, influence and profits but not about safety. Starting in 2026 we best ignore EuroNCAP if we talk vehicle safety and I hope Tesla won't change is strategy to build the safest vehicles in the world without physical buttons! The Bomer [sic] generation strikes back. https://twitter.com/alex_avoigt/status/1775875232932192269 Sorry but who wants to go through multile menus just to turn the heat up a little at 70mph?

With those new found freedoms maybe the UK could, after consulting the results of the petition, demand that auto makers sell them only cars with UK specific type approved non glarey headlights. The downside is the added cost of making HMG compliant 'freedom headlights'™ 😉

As @AGFalco said the headlights are higher up on SUVs. Isn't that because there's far fewer SUVs in France because they have such a high purchase tax in them?