Aston Martin's street-legal F1 car enters production
The Valkyrie, Aston Martin's most extreme car, is now in full production in Gaydon. Touted as an F1 made for the road, the first customer car is now awaiting delivery. The coupe was first announced four years ago.
Only 150 of the hand-built cars will be made, each taking more than 2,000 man-hours. Boasting a hybrid V12 developing 1,139hp, the Valkyrie "incorporates concepts and technologies taken directly from Formula One".
Carmakers up EV investment
Global carmakers are planning to spend more than half a trillion dollars on electric vehicles (EVs) and batteries through 2030, according to a Reuters analysis.
Less than three years ago, a similar analysis by Reuters found that car companies planned to spend US$300 billion (S$406.5 billion) on EVs and related technologies. But looming zero-carbon mandates in cities such as London and Paris and countries from Norway to China have lent additional urgency to the industry's EV-related investment commitments.
The most recent analysis shows carmakers planning to spend an estimated US$515 billion over the next five to 10 years on the endeavour. But industry executives and forecasters remain concerned that consumer demand for EVs could fall well short of aggressive targets without substantial additional incentives and even greater spending on charging infrastructure and grid capacity.
Peugeot refreshes 3008 and 5008
The Peugeot 3008 and 5008 have been refreshed with styling updates. The cars get gloss black door mirrors on Active Premium, Allure and Allure Premium trim levels, complementing the frameless front grille.
Inside, a "Belomka" cloth with a half "Mistral" leather effect trim complemented by "Akinite" Copper stitching is now standard fare for GT trim cars.
Both models feature the latest digital instrumentation with a 12.3-inch head-up display, a compact steering wheel and a 10-inch high-definition capacitive colour infotainment touchscreen with 3D navigation.
New cycling app to improve safety on the go
Between 2018 and 2020, there were 1,532 traffic accidents involving bicycles in Singapore. To help address this, the Automobile Association of Singapore has partnered the Federation Internationale de l'Automobile (FIA) and cycling app developer Busby to launch a three-month Stay Safe with FIA-AA & Busby campaign.
Road users can download the Busby Enhanced Safety App, which monitors outdoor activities and raises an alert if the user is unresponsive and requires immediate assistance.
One function for cyclists will alert other users in a group if anyone gets too far from the group or has an incident. Similarly, the app can also be used to track the safety of drivers. Other activities which can be tracked include running, walking and hiking.
BMW chief takes another swipe at Tesla
For the second time this year, BMW chief executive Oliver Zipse has taken a public dig at Tesla, singling out quality and reliability as issues that set the Germany luxury automaker apart from the electric carmaker.
Bloomberg reported that Mr Zipse's latest swipe echoed his remarks in February when he cast doubt on Tesla's ability to retain its EV crown in the face of competition. Since then, demand has continued to boom and Tesla's Model 3 was Europe's top-seller in September.
"Where we differ is our standard on quality and reliability," Mr Zipse said on Wednesday (Nov 10) at a Handelsblatt conference.
He added: "We have different aspirations on customer satisfaction... Tesla isn't quite part of the premium segment. They're growing very strongly via price reductions. We wouldn't do that since you've got to last the distance."
