Motoring Podcast - News Show

UK LOVES A GREY CAR
The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) has released the details about the colours we selected in 2025 for new cars that were registered. Once again, claiming the top spot, grey won out. Black was second and blue rounded out the top three. To find out more, click this SMMT article link here.
HONDA LIGHT UP THEIR NEW LOGO
Honda has revealed their new ‘H’ logo that will adorn their electric and hybrid vehicles from 2027 onwards. This is a flat, stylised letter H that will be illuminated from behind. Click this Motor Trader article link here, to read more.
MERCEDES PAUSE THEIR LEVEL 3 DRIVING SYSTEM
Mercedes-Benz are to pause the sale of their Level 3 automated driving system, which under certain circumstances allowed the driver to have their hands off the steering wheel and be looking away from the road. They will only be fitting Level 2 driver assistance systems to cars that previously had the L3 option. If you wish to find out more, click this electrive article link here.
TESLA FSD TO BE SUBSCRIPTION ONLY
Tesla has announced that customers in the US will no longer be able to purchase the Full Self Driving driver assistance system outright, from the middle of February 2026. But, it can still be added to suitable cars for a subscription. To read more, click this electrive link here.
UK GOVERNMENT INCREASES FUND FOR EHGV GRANTS
The UK Government is adding £18 million to the fund for electric HGV purchase grant. The amount is tiered dependent on the size of the lorry, with up to £120,000 available to help buy HGVs up over 26 tonnes. You can find out further information by clicking this electrive article link here.
SOUTH EAST GET EVEN MORE EV CHARGERS
Charging company Zest will be installing over 200 charging points in the Lewisham Council controlled area. Good to hear the South East is getting even more chargers - but more seriously, we need more and we need all the country to be well provided for. Click this electrive article link here for more.
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NEW NEW CAR NEWS -
Mercedes-Benz CLA wins European COTY
52 years after the German brand last won a European COTY award, they do so with their latest CLA. Second place, the Skoda Elroq, was 100 points behind. To find out more about the CLA and the European COTY awards, click this Motoring Research article link here.
Skoda Peaq
Skoda has revealed the name for their new seven seat electric SUV will be Peaq (pronounced “peak”). Very little else is know, although it is based on the 2022 concept the...

FOLLOW UP: UK GOVERNMENT MULLS DRIVING SAFETY CHANGES
The UK Government first mentioned it was looking at some of the rules relating to road safety, back in the summer of 2025, but now has published its Road Safety Strategy which gives more information on proposals aimed at making our roads safer. Aspects being covered at young and elderly drivers, giving councils more powers to change speed limits, technology that is fitted to cars and more. To read this story, click the Autocar article link here. If you wish to visit the Government’s page with a link to the strategy and the five consultations, click this link here.
FOLLOW UP: GEELY TAKES ZEEKR OFF THE STOCK MARKET
As discussed a few months ago, Geely has taken Zeekr back to being a private company and off the stock market. To read more, click this electrive article link here.
FOllow up: jlr cyberattack hit payroll info
During the cyberattack on JLR’s systems, information from payroll was accessed. The company has warned staff to be careful of potential phishing and fraud. Click this article link from The Register, to read more.
DECEMBER AND 2025 NEW CAR REGISTRATION FIGURES
2025 saw registrations creep over 2 million for the first time since 2019. Battery electric vehicles made another solid gain in December, but it was not enough on its own to get to the Government’s mandated level for the year. SMMT made it clear that the discounts the industry is funding cannot continue, especially when the financial pressures are mounting and the introduction of taxes aimed specifically at EV owners could cause some buyers to look elsewhere. If you want to read more, click this SMMT article link here.
GMA LOSES A CEO BUT GAINS £90M INVESTMENT
Gordon Murray Automotive’s (GMA) CEO, Phil Lee, has left the company. However, Halo Cars Group has invested £90 million and had two of their officers added to the board. The company said the money will help them push forward with the model plans they have. Click this EVO article link here, for more.
FORD FORCED TO TAKE A FINANCIAL HIT
Outside of the EU, Ford is changing plans when it comes to EVs. They are taking a £14.5 billion hit, as a result. The company says this is a “customer-driven change” but equally, the changes in policy by the US Government has had a big impact on the adoption of EVs. To read more, click this Autocar article link here.
MERCEDES FINANCE SERVICES MAKES A BIG LOSS
Mercedes-Benz Financial Services UK made a loss of £365 million, in 2025. The main reason is setting aside £424 million to their finance mis-selling compensation fund. You can find out more, by clicking this Business Matters Magazine article link here.
TESLA...

Earlier in the year, Alan was invited down to the south coast to sample the then-new Hyundai Inster electric B-segment hatchback. Food was eaten, a hotel room was slept in, and an Inster was driven to the end of Portland Bill on a surprisingly long, comprehensive test route.
In this Special Edition, Alan shares his thoughts on the Inster.

The 2025 Tokyo Mobility Show took place between 30 October and 9 November 2025. We sat down to run through some of the exhibits that caught our eye. Some of what is discussed is out of this world, whilst others are very much for only one person at a time.
To see more about the Honda Super-one Prototype, click this Carscoops link here.
For more on the BYD Racco, click this Top Gear link here.
To join the chaps in their adoration of the Daihatsu Kayoibako K, click this Carscoops link here.
You can see more about the Toyota Land Cruiser FJ, by clicking this Carscoop link here.
Click this Top Gear link here, to read more about the Subaru STi Concept.
To see more of the very attractive Mazda Vision X Coupe, click this Top Gear link here.
The Lexus LS Concept take luxury MPV to the next stage, you can see more by clicking this Carscoops link here.
Toyota revealed concepts that considered mobility needs of a variety of people, click this Carscoops link to see their vision for handling children. Then for those with restricted mobility, click this link to a Parametric Architecture article.
Toyota had a busy show, they also presented a vehicle platform that would allow the owner to add just the elements required for their needs. Click this Autocar article link here to see more about this clever and fascinating idea.
Honda explored their full catalogue of companies to show off what they are or potentially are capable of. Click this link here for the HondaJet Elite II. To see more about Honda’s reusable rocket, click this link here.

Earlier in the year Andrew was invited, by Kia, to attend the Milan Design Week and their Eclipse of Perceptions exhibition. In this they showed off the Concept EV2, the PV5 electric van in passenger form and the PV5 WKNDR concept.
You can hear about all three and listen to the designers involved as they tell you more about the vehicles and ideas behind them. Do note, that the interview took place at the exhibition, therefore the sound quality is different.
Special thanks to Kia and their photographer for supplying the majority of the photos you see. The copywrite to the images lies with Kia and the Motoring Podcast, dependent on who took them, they cannot be reproduced without permission.