Auto Express 1698

I ONCE heard a theory that no one is disabled until people or society puts obstacles in their way. It sounds glib, but maybe it’s a useful way to help comprehend how the world can look from different perspectives. Witnessing two wheelchair users unpicking the multitude of “designed-in” challenges on the first stop of our tour of Brighton and Hove Council’s electric vehicle charging installations (above) brought the theory sharply into focus for me. The site comprised a handful of compact on-street bays situated on a steep slope, with woefully cramped pavements, precipitous kerbs and unmanageable chargers. “Accessible”, it was not. There are around 26,000 public EV chargers in the UK today, with thousands more installed every year. We can’t tell you how many have been installed on accessible parking…

• New generation of engines set to be Audi’s ‘best ever’ • Full-EV version possible later in the car’s lifecycle John_McIlroy@autovia.co.uk @johnmcilroy AUDI has stated that it will become an all-electric manufacturer by the end of this decade – but in the meantime the company is planning a last hurrah for combustion engines on a new, potentially final version of its A4 compact executive. Expected to arrive in 2023, the next A4 will stay on the same MLB platform as the current generation. But while it will feature increased electrification, including mild and plug-in hybrids, it will still be based on a new generation of petrol and diesel engines, described by Audi’s head of technical development, Oliver Hoffman, as “the best we have ever launched”. Speaking exclusively to Auto Express,…

James_Brodie@autovia.co.uk @jimmybrods • Polestar 3 is due next year, and will be followed by 4 in 2023 • Manufacturer aims to use private finance to drive sales up POLESTAR will launch a pair of new SUVs over the next two years as the brand chases a significant growth in sales, from around 10,000 vehicles so far this year, to 290,000 globally by 2025. It will be assisted by significant new private finance, after the company confirmed it would be traded publicly on the stock market. We’ll see the first new car, the Polestar 3, next year. This large electric SUV is said to be similar to the Porsche Cayenne in size and price, according to CEO Thomas Ingenlath, with an expected starting price of around 75,000 Euros (£64,000). However, most…

CEO, Polestar Q What impact will the new corporate structure and public offering have on Polestar? A “It is a very important step for the company growing up externally and internally, to make people understand that this is a company that is striving for independence, and independence financially as well.” Q But you can still rely on Geely Group? A “This is one of the advantages Polestar has compared with start-up competitors: having access to basic platforms, services and the manufacturing footprint, which is crucial for our business model. It would be a waste of our energy to try to do everything.” Q Can you use a Geely platform for a car smaller than the Polestar 2? A “You can but at this moment in time we cannot see that.…

Chris_Rosamond@autovia.co.uk ACCORDING to the UK Equality Act 2010, it’s illegal to discriminate against individuals with disabilities. Why then, do so many companies and organisations involved in the installation of new EV infrastructure seem oblivious to that responsibility? Whether you look at facilities provided by national charging networks, retailers, car park providers or local authorities, the picture is the same. There’s been a systematic failure to anticipate disabled needs when installing charging infrastructure, and there’s no Government regulation as a back-stop to ensure disabled needs are met. We’ve talked to a range of charity and mobility organisations, who all paint a bleak picture of the current state of the EV sector from an accessibility perspective, and point to an urgent need for action so the UK’s 14 million disabled people aren’t…

BP PULSE: 8,000+ charge points “WE’RE working with the DfT, Motability and others to identify current challenges, and with BSI on chargepoint accessibility standards. We have a number of accessible bays across our network, including at least one accessible bay wherever we deploy ultra-fast chargers on BP forecourts (40 sites and growing) and we’ve set up an accessibility team to focus on these issues.” INSTAVOLT: 600 chargers, plus plans for 5,000 by 2024/5 “WE know as an industry we have to do more to accommodate less able drivers. I often speak to customers directly on these issues and we are engaged with Motability to further understand the challenges that drivers who need accessibility spaces face when trying to charge their car. We know more must be done to make EVs…