Auto Express 1487

ELECTRIC vehicles have been in the news a lot over the summer – and public interest is only going to increase as the UK begins its push towards the target of no purepetrol or pure-diesel cars being sold by 2040. However, there’s a still a lot of misinformation on buying, owning and running an electric car – everything from whether they’re more or less reliable to their safety in crashes. The car industry hasn’t helped with this. It’s a disgrace, for example, that there are still competing standards of EV plug sockets when we’re about to embark on a plan of significant investment in public charging infrastructure. It’s also frustrating to see that some companies still exclude the battery from the purchase price, meaning you’re saddled with an extra monthly…

▪ Concept Z4 drop-top stars at Pebble Beach concours in California ▪ Lithe styling previews the next generation of models from BMW OFFICIAL BMW chose last week’s Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance in California to unveil its Concept Z4 – a car that closely reveals how the 2018 roadster will look. There are elements of the concept that won’t make production, but approximately 80 per cent of this ‘Energetic Orange Matt’ design study will morph into a showroomready machine during the next 12 months. The car is a bold statement by BMW, and coupled with the recently revealed 8 Series Concept, it clearly previews how the next generation of models will look. Overall, the effect is one of lithe aggression, with a low shark-nosed front end that rises in a wedge…

James_Brodie@dennis.co.uk @jimmybrods AS the wraps came off the new Z4 in concept form (Page 6), BMW unleashed the production version of its sixth-generation M5 saloon, revealing a revised V8 engine and new all-wheel-drive powertrain. The brand has confirmed a February launch for the car, a rival to the Mercedes-AMG E 63 S. At the heart of the new M5 is a 4.4-litre bi-turbo V8 – the same unit as is found under the bonnet of the previous model. It’s been given an overhaul, however, to ensure that the BMW is on par with the flagship E-Class. Newly developed turbos have been installed, working alongside revised exhaust manifolds. The set-up is enhanced with fresh cooling and lubrication systems. It now produces 592bhp; that’s 40bhp more than before. Torque surges to 750Nm,…

Richard_Ingram@dennis.co.uk @rsp_ingram THE Volkswagen Scirocco will be reinvented as a sporty two-door EV coupé for its next generation, and it will be based on the company’s new all-electric MEB platform, Auto Express can reveal. Previewed here by our exclusive images, the Scirocco EV will share many of its components with VW’s forthcoming I.D. family of pure-electric cars. That will allow the new model to keep the current car’s compact dimensions and offer vastly improved interior space. Speaking exclusively to Auto Express, Volkswagen R&D boss Dr Frank Welsch told us that in order to use the Scirocco name – which joined the VW range in 1974 – there were aspects of the new car that would need to remain intact. “For me, we can only use [Scirocco] for a sporty two-door…

Martin_Saarinen@dennis.co.uk @AE_Consumer RECENT dips in real wages could lead to an increase in the number of drivers running on illegal tyres, experts have warned. According to figures from tyre specialist Micheldever, recessions, rising prices and declines in real wages are associated with a rise in motorists looking to save money by waiting until their tyres are below the legal minimum of 1.6mm of tread before they replace them. Auto Express obtained data from Micheldever’s Protyre retail arm going back to 2008. Protyre recorded the tread levels of over 239,000 tyres that were swapped for new ones and found that since the 2008 credit crunch, the number of drivers with illegal tyres has increased significantly. In 2008, on average 15.27 per cent of motorists were found driving on at least one…

FUTURE car buyers who opt for Personal Contract Purchase (PCP) deals could find themselves with little or no equity left in their vehicles at the end of the agreement, the Bank of England has revealed. In a blog post, agents warned that used prices have fallen by “perhaps more than the industry expected”. These dropped by 2.3 per cent in June compared with the same month last year. PCP deals come with a Guaranteed Minimum Future Value (GMFV) – an estimate, made at the start by the lender, of the car’s value at the end of the agreement. If the GMFV is below the market value, owners can use the equity in their car to fund further agreements. But with falling used prices, agents at the Bank of England said lenders…