Four years after its launch, the MG4 is still one of the best-value EVs out there, said Auto Express. But now we have the MG4 Urban, which is “so good” it makes the original, “which once seemed unbeatable value”, now seem rather “redundant”. Bigger and more practical than the MG4, and now with front-wheel drive, it’s nearly 4.4 metres long and has a “whopping” 557-litre boot. The kit list is impressive too, and it drives well.

MG’s “modern” family EV is great value, but there is stiff competition in the sub-£25,000 EV segment from Fiat’s new Grande Panda and Citroën’s C3 Aircross, said The Independent. The Urban is rather “old-school” on the road – the ride can feel “crashy” over uneven ground and there’s a bit of road noise. Overall, it’s “exactly what you expect it to be: a lot of car for the money”, and nothing to get wildly excited about.

Battery options are rather “small for a car of this size”, with the entry MG4 Urban carrying battery packs totalling 42.8kWh, which manages a range of just 201 miles, said Autocar. It’s not a quick car, taking about 9.5secs to reach 62mph, but that’s perfectly adequate “to dust off the occasional overtake”. Quality inside the cabin feels high, but there’s no escaping the “scratchy” plastic on the dashboard.

Most new mid-engined supercars are now plug-in hybrids, said The Telegraph, and in 2019 Ferrari launched its own: the SF90 Stradale. “Not many people loved it”, however: though it was extremely fast, it had rather a “digital feel”, and failed to deliver the “visceral analogue experience” that buyers of high-performance cars tend to want.

Ferrari evidently took note – and now it has launched the 849 Testarossa, “which shares the layout and most of the technical specification” of the SF90, but is, according to Ferrari, “much improved”.

Originally two separate words, “Testa Rossa” was first applied to Ferrari’s formidable sports racers of the mid-1950s and early 1960s, said Evo.

The styling of the 849 is “divisive, but there’s no question it puts a smile on your face when you swing open the door and drop into the driver’s seat”. Steering is “light and free”, and the ride “never feels less than firm”; the car has a “bumpy road mode”, too, which takes the edge off “lumpy” roads. And though it’s a big car, “it feels compact and wieldy”. According to Ferrari, the top speed is 205mph, and it’s quick out of the blocks, taking 2.3 seconds to hit 62mph; total power is 1036bhp.

The new Testarossa also has “the biggest turbochargers ever fitted to a Ferrari production road car”, said Top Gear Magazine, and the 4.0-litre engine is “vastly changed” from the one in the SF90, with titanium fittings used throughout, “better cooling” and various other improvements. And though it is technically a “heinously complicated” machine, it makes for an “intuitive driving experience”. It adds up to a “scintillating” car that’s a joy to drive on both road and track.

People looking to spend tons of money on a car will soon have a more eco-friendly option, as a variety of luxury auto companies are developing electric vehicles. High-end automakers are taking different paths to market: Companies like Ferrari are all-in on EVs; others have a more muted approach. As the jostling continues, there are concerns that the luxury car market might be the wrong platform for EVs.

What luxury companies are making EVs?

Ferrari, Lamborghini, Mercedes-Benz and Porsche are all experimenting with EV development. Ferrari has been pushing ahead at a rapid pace. The company “doesn’t have an EV on the market yet, but its first model, called Luce, is expected to be open for orders later this spring,” said CNBC. Still, there are hurdles ahead for the iconic Italian brand.

For starters, electric cars can go extremely fast just like gas-powered Ferraris, but “much of what makes an internal combustion Ferrari compelling is missing,” Karl Brauer, an executive analyst for iSeeCars, said to CNBC. People purchase Ferraris for the “way it stirs a person’s senses: the look of it, the sound and feel of the engine and the smell of the exhaust.” Experts say many of these experiences may not exist in an electric Ferrari.

Though Ferrari’s plans are in motion, the same cannot be said for Lamborghini, which has “pulled the plug on plans” for its EV in the “face of collapsing demand among its well-heeled customers,” said The Times. Instead, the company will debut a hybrid model. It admits this is a demand issue. The “acceptance curve” for EVs in Lamborghini’s market is “flattening and close to zero,” Lamborghini CEO Stephan Winkelmann said to the Times.

What does the market say?

Others in the auto industry have also noted the demand problem raised by Lamborghini executives. For “many years, many of the electric vehicles that Americans bought were luxury models, like the Tesla Model S, the GMC Hummer and the Porsche Taycan,” said The New York Times. All of these vehicles sell for more than $80,000, while Lamborghinis and Ferraris routinely sell for six figures (the Ferrari Luce EV is expected to cost at least $500,000).

Geopolitical factors, particularly tariffs implemented by President Donald Trump, are also being considered. Mercedes-Benz “had been selling electric versions of its luxury sedans and SUVs in the United States but recently said it would stop importing them,” said the Times. Volkswagen has similarly “slowed production of the ID.Buzz, an upscale electric van that’s made in Germany.” Many automakers have seen the “largest losses from luxury models. Now fewer sales will mean smaller losses.”

While luxury brands may be struggling with EVs, the “picture is very different for worldwide EV sales for brands not on the high-end,” said Wired, as this vehicle market is booming. It could also be that luxury buyers simply don’t want electric cars. For “luxury brands, which operate lower volumes and higher R&D costs,” said Philip Nothard, Cox Automotive’s insight director, to Wired, the industry’s challenges are “even more pronounced.”

This “honest, charming” and “fun” EV was given a facelift in 2024, and has now been updated again, said Top Gear Magazine. Made by the “purveyor of cheap and cheerful cars”, Dacia, it’s “tiny” – roughly the size of the Kia Picanto and Fiat Panda – but it offers a good rebuttal to “all the bloated, over-batteried SUVs that are pummelling the roads” to dust. It’s good value and punches above its weight in terms of efficiency.

The new Dacia Spring works best as a city car and is fun to drive, in a “back-to-basics way”, said Auto Express. Light and easy to manoeuvre, it has a tight turning circle – but there are problems. Its small 24.3kWh battery needs frequent charging, and as a package it is lacking in refinement: the throttle and brakes are abrupt; the steering is rather “sticky”; and the touchscreen controls are “infuriating”.

Part of the reason the Spring is so cheap is that it’s built in China and based on a car that was designed for the Indian market, said Car Magazine. Unfortunately, it really does feel cheap – the doors are “flimsy” and sound “tinny” when they close; and there are very few soft-touch materials, except for the seats, which lack height adjustment. The 308-litre boot is big, but rear legroom is tight. In short, don’t bother.

Britain’s roads have been described as a “number-plate wild west”, as one in 15 cars uses ghost number-plates to avoid detection, said The Telegraph.

The illegal plates are being offered by “dodgy sellers” who can set up “with no questions asked”, according to the All-Party Parliamentary Group for Transport Safety.

Security threat

A ghost number-plate appears completely normal to the human eye but has been modified so it can’t be detected properly by the infrared technology used in automatic number-plate recognition (ANPR) and other roadside camera systems.

Some ghost plates use reflective sprays that create a bright glare when viewed through an ANPR camera, others apply clear coatings designed to blur or warp the letters and numbers. Sometimes, the characters themselves are subtly altered – for example, changing a “B” into an “8” – which bamboozles the recognition software used by the cameras.

The plates are being used by taxi drivers and motorists keen to “avoid detection for speeding penalties, parking fines and low-level criminality”, said The Telegraph. They’re increasingly popular among “grooming gangs, drug traffickers and organised crime groups”.

They could also “pose a security threat”, according to experts, because “would-be terrorists” could use them to “bypass surveillance systems around airports, train stations and iconic buildings”.

Cottage industry

A trading standards team that investigated ghost plates in Rochdale was surprised to discover there were more than 600 suppliers in the city. “We nearly fell off our chairs”, said a spokesperson. “We were finding people making them in the back bedroom, in the shed, in the garden,” they told The Telegraph.

Ghost number-plates, sometimes known as stealth plates, are now as “widespread” as cloned number-plates, where criminals copy a “legitimate” vehicle’s registration on to a stolen car to “hide its identity”, said The Telegraph.

There are 34,455 suppliers in the UK providing registration plates – four times the number of petrol stations. In December, the All-Party Parliamentary Group said it wants the number of licensed sellers “significantly” reduced by bringing in higher standards and a more expansive annual fee. Currently, criminals can “set themselves up as number-plate sellers with no questions asked”, said committee member Sarah Coombes MP.

The RAC’s head of policy, Simon Williams, said that the "widespread abuse of number-plates" must be dealt with. The Driver and Vehicle Licensing Agency, which maintains records of nearly 53 million drivers and more than 47 million vehicles, insisted that a review of number-plate standards is ongoing with the target of banning designs that evade ANPR.

From this month, Transport for London will roll out infra-red cameras to detect illegal number-plates on licensed taxis and private hire vehicles. If licensed drivers are found to have illegal plates on multiple occasions they could lose their licences, said Taxi Point.

Following the success of its 5 and E5 cars, the “affordable premium” Chinese brand Omoda has launched this plush plug-in hybrid SUV, said Car magazine. The 9 combines a “giant” 34.5kWh battery and a 1.5-litre petrol engine to give 443bhp, and a “best-in-class” EV-only range of 93 miles. It can sprint from 0-62mph in just 4.9secs, and its top speed is 124mph. “This is easily Omoda’s best effort yet.”

The Omoda 9 is “unashamedly geared towards comfort rather than sporty handling”, and, as such, it’s not much fun to drive, but it is an “excellent cruiser”, said Auto Express. Quick yet “soft”, the 9 is most at home on zippier roads and motorways; it’s a bit “wishy-washy” on country roads. It feels “reassuringly solid” and visibility is good but the steering is vague and the brakes are “a little grabby”.

This “bluff, modern” SUV looks “inoffensive”, if “a bit boring”, but at 4.75m long, the 9 is “seriously spacious”, said Autocar. It’s “brimming with tech”, too, from autonomous parking to heated back seats and, despite some cheap plastics, it “feels classy”. The curved touchscreen could be more intuitive, but the graphics are good and there are welcome physical rotary controls for air con.

Following its success with a string of electric SUVs, Kia is now hoping to showcase its talents with a more traditional hatchback, What Car? said. Built on the same underpinnings as the EV3, the EV4 has the same “Tiger Face” front, but better aerodynamics and a longer range. Two versions are available, the standard one and a “sleeker” version with a longer rear end; both have a 201bhp electric motor and can go from 0-62mph in about 7.5 seconds.

Bigger than most of its rivals, this is a “solid” family-friendly car with the option of a long-range 81.4kWh battery capable of 388 miles WLTP, said Top Gear Magazine. A max charging rate of 127kW means it takes half an hour to go from 10%-80%. It’s smooth to drive with little wind or road noise, and the soft suspension and damping make it “terrifically comfy”. Acceleration is decent, but the brakes are a little light.

It may be “an eyesore”, but the EV4 is geared for comfort, with “plush seats” and generous space, said The Times. The practical cabin has “cubbyholes galore”, plus plenty of proper buttons, dials and levers. You can forgive some of the scratchy plastic, as it incorporates eco materials including recycled fishing nets. The triple touchscreen looks “neat”, though the middle panel is obscured by the steering wheel.

The first in a line of a new generation of EVs – BMW is calling them the New Class, or Neue Klasse – the iX3 expunges “many or all of the annoyances of new-age EVs”, said Top Gear Magazine. The car doesn’t feel “heavy or numb” to drive; it’s efficient; and charging times are “staggering” – you can pick up 200 miles of range in just ten minutes. It’s no exaggeration to say that the model marks a “revolution for BMW”.

If you’re after a “big, comfortable”, premium electric SUV, this car ticks all the boxes, What Car? said. It strikes a “great balance between ride comfort and driving fun”; it disguises its heaviness remarkably well and it’s practical, with tons of room for passengers and a generous boot. There’s only one version available from next month, the “very quick” 50 xDrive, but cheaper models are on the way.

The cabin is particularly “hi-tech”, and features a digital strip that sits across the dashboard, to keep key information in the driver’s eyeline, said The Times. There’s also an 17.9-inch infotainment touchscreen that features the usual controls for air con, radio and maps, but also supports apps such as Spotify and YouTube. You can even download Zoom – though you obviously won’t be able to take video calls while actually driving.

This electric SUV has been around for a while, but its maker, Genesis, the luxury arm of Hyundai, has given it a midlife update. It now has a “cleaner, more modern look”, said AutoExpress, with new headlights and wheels, as well as a bigger battery that boosts the range of the base model by 27 miles. A 10%-80% charge takes just 18 minutes. “If you can bring yourself to try something new”, the GV60 could be most rewarding.

“Fast and practical”, said The Scotsman, the GV60 is a joy to drive: it’s a “dawdle” on country lanes, and it “simply gobbles up the motorway miles. And ooooh... the silence.” There’s very little road noise, making the cabin “a lovely place to be”. The steering wheel has an interesting D shape and comes with some useful buttons built in. Still, this is by no means a cheap car, especially compared with its rivals.

“A brilliant electric car”, said What Car?, the GV60 has a “luxurious interior” with top-quality, soft-touch materials and lots of kit. All models get a 27-inch screen for the driver’s display and infotainment system, which is intuitive and quick; there’s a rotary controller, and physical buttons too. The front seats are spacious, but the sloping roof reduces headroom in the back, and the 432-litre boot isn’t huge.

It may be time to hit the road in pursuit of scientific research. Millions of animals are struck by vehicles every year and killed as a result. These accidents have even pushed some species to extinction. While roadkill is never pleasant, these animals could bring an opportunity to conduct scientific research more ethically.

Road to discovery

Roadkill could be a “valuable source of animals for study that does not require and could even replace the use of live wildlife,” said a study published in the journal Biology Letters. Researchers identified approximately 117 different uses for roadkill across various scientific projects. “We found examples of successfully using roadkill to map species distributions, monitor disease and environmental pollution, study diets, track invasive species, supply museum collections and even discover species previously unknown to science,” said Christa Beckmann, the lead author of the study, in a statement.

One of the most common uses for roadkill is to identify and determine the populations of species in an area. Many species are “hard to see,” Beckmann said to Science. “You don’t just trip across them as you’re walking. So finding dead animals on the road might actually be an easier way to quantify the presence of these animals in the habitat.” Several lizard and rodent species were “first discovered as roadkill, while deer carcasses have been used as bait to attract eagles at the center of research,” said AAP. In another case, a “paleontologist took photographs of animals’ remains as they were repeatedly run over to teach students about the process of fossilization.”

The road less traveled

A big advantage of using roadkill for research is that it is “highly ethical,” said the study. It could be used as an alternative to invasive sampling methods. “If you want to take a genetic sample, you don’t need to trap live animals or handle them, both of which can cause stress,” said Beckmann. “You can just drive along the road and use samples of roadkill.” It aligns with the global guidelines for animal research known as the 3Rs: refinement, replacement and reduction. These tenets aim to reduce the number of animals needed for research, along with reducing suffering and protecting population numbers.

Researchers still need permits to collect and handle dead animals from the road because of potential biohazard and traffic risks. The animals can “harbor disease that is transmissible to humans,” which requires protective gear, said the study. In addition, it could be dangerous to collect the animals and “necessary precautions should be taken when collecting roadkill on and around roads and highways, such as wearing reflective clothing and being mindful of traffic.”

In a car-centric society, roadkill is an unfortunate side effect. Some species are even being “driven toward extinction because of traffic,” said Scientific American. “Vehicles continue to be overlooked environmental forces that are likely to decimate more and more animal populations.” Despite this, said Beckmann, “using these losses wisely could help drive scientific discovery and conservation forward, rather than letting valuable information decompose by the roadside.”

The chaotic drive out of Marrakech gave little hint of what lay ahead. Just an hour later, the traffic thins and the road dissolves into the Agafay Desert. Pale, rocky and otherworldly, with the snow-capped Atlas Mountains fixed on the horizon some 20 miles to the south, it feels like another planet entirely. This was the setting for a 24-hour off-road adventure and a real-world test of the newly launched Dacia Duster Hybrid-G 150 4x4.

On paper the challenge was simple: leave the city, navigate across the desert using a pre-loaded route on the car’s infotainment system, and reach a remote camp in time for sundowners. But Agafay isn’t the Sahara of sweeping dunes and postcard views. It’s harsher and technical: hard gravel plains stretch into the distance, broken by rocky climbs, dry riverbeds and sudden drop-offs. Pick the wrong line and you’re stuck. Push too hard and you risk damage.

It’s also where the Duster began to impress. Sitting at the heart of Dacia’s new line-up, the SUV pairs a turbocharged 1.2-litre petrol engine with hybrid assistance and four-wheel drive, producing 150hp. It was my first time behind the wheel of a Dacia and, if I’m honest, I arrived with a degree of scepticism. Yet out here, crossing rock, gravel and washouts hour after hour, it proved quietly capable and entirely up to the task.

Capable, but fun

It wasn’t long before we reached our first proper test. Slowing to a crawl, we edged down a steep, boulder-strewn track, the car momentarily balancing on two wheels at angles that felt improbable from the driver’s seat. It was genuinely nerve-jangling. With blind faith in the car, there was very little driving skill involved on my part. Torque was calmly fed to where it was needed, the Duster stayed poised, and we eased smoothly back onto firmer ground.

Once we’d taken a well-earned pause for mint tea and camel-spotting, the terrain opened up and everything changed. On wide, fast gravel tracks, I could really put my foot down. My mind drifted to the World Rally Championship as the Duster skimmed across the surface with unexpected pace and stability. Despite the small engine and deliberately low kerb weight, it never felt underpowered or twitchy. More than that, it felt completely in its element, and genuinely good fun to drive.

Its confidence is helped by six drive modes: Auto, Eco, Snow, Mud, Lock and Hill Descent. These aren’t marketing add-ons. In the desert, you use them constantly. Lock mode proved invaluable on loose climbs, Hill Descent took the stress out of steep drop-offs, and Auto seamlessly shuffled between two- and four-wheel drive as conditions changed. The hybrid system itself was smooth and unobtrusive, underpinned by Renault Group engineering that inspires trust when you’re hours from help.

Design that makes sense

The Duster’s LPG model accounts for roughly one in three global sales – they’re hugely popular in mainland Europe – and the dual-fuel hybrid we drove paired unleaded and LPG tanks for a staggering range of up to 1,500km. That specific configuration won’t come to the UK, where LPG never truly caught on, but the principle remains. This is a car designed to go far and keep going, removing one of the biggest mental burdens of remote travel.

What stood out just as much as the capability was what Dacia chooses not to include. There’s no chrome or leather inside, reducing both cost and environmental impact. The bumpers are designed for durability and recyclability, while wipe-clean surfaces and all-weather tyres as standard encourage use rather than preciousness.

Even the details feel considered. The modular roof bars rotate 90 degrees to become proper crossbars when needed, while the alloy wheels are subtly recessed to sit within the line of the tyre, helping avoid scrapes from inevitable encounters with kerbs or rocks. It’s thoughtful, practical design, shaped by how people actually use their cars rather than how they photograph.

As the sun dropped and the temperature fell, Scarabeo Roches Noires emerged on the horizon, a small cluster of white tents perched on a rocky escarpment. After a day navigating Agafay’s unforgiving terrain, fires were lit and a well-earned drink under a sky full of stars marked the end of an exhilarating day in the desert.

Why the Duster works

Time spent in Agafay clarifies what the Duster is really about. It’s Dacia’s best-selling model, with one sold every few minutes globally since its launch 15 years ago. With pricing under £20,000, it remains one of the most affordable SUVs on sale, yet at this price point it’s a genuinely compelling package. A three-year warranty comes as standard, extendable to seven years via Dacia’s Zen plan for around £20 per month.

By the time we turn back towards Marrakech, dust-covered and tired, the desert feels far less intimidating than it had the day before. The Duster was the perfect companion, building confidence behind the wheel, helping turn a harsh landscape into something navigable and genuinely fun.

Back home, that same thinking makes the Duster hard to ignore. It’s a car that now sits firmly on my radar for family life in London: practical, reliable, easy to live with, and with looks that don’t feel out of place alongside the neighbours’ Volvos and Mercedes. Add in the sensible pricing, and it feels less like a compromise and more like a smart, realistic choice for everyday life, with the added bonus of being ready for the occasional escape.

Finally, a new car that isn’t an SUV. The Honda Prelude is a “quietly rewarding” and “elegant” two-door coupé, said Car Magazine.

Officially named the Prelude e:HEV, it’s only available in hybrid form, and pairs a 2.0-litre engine with two electric motors for 181bhp. It takes 8.2secs to get from 0-62mph, but it is agile and has “clean, consistent steering”. In sum, this is a hybrid that wants you to feel good, “not just save fuel”.

The “handsome” Prelude has the same hybrid system as the Civic, but “with a trick up its sleeve” – eight simulated gears that are accompanied by a fairly convincing fake soundtrack, said Autocar. The car rides and handles like the Civic Type R, but “better”, with quick steering and excellent brake-feel. It’s a little pricey – “£41k is BMW money” – but it’s “quietly sporting and satisfying all the same”.

There are two appealing interior colour schemes to choose from: white and blue, or black and blue. The trim feels “plush”, and a “bespoke Bose sound system adds a premium edge”, said Top Gear. The driver and passenger seats aren’t the same – the driver gets “taller, stronger side bolsters” – but be warned: the rear seats are for “smaller folk” only. The “perfect date car”, it has “subtly cool good looks”.

One of many Chinese brands to have launched in the UK, Chery focuses on value and “is one to be reckoned with”, said Auto Express. It has three SUVs in its line-up: the “massive” Tiggo 9, the slightly smaller 8 and the Tiggo 7, which rivals the Dacia Bigster. There are just two engine options on the 7, a 145bhp 1.6-litre pure-petrol or a 201bhp 1.5-litre plug-in hybrid (branded “Super Hybrid”); and both are packed with equipment.

The petrol model is “inoffensively modest” in terms of ride and handling, said Top Gear. The “punchier” hybrid is more refined, with a strong range of 56 e-miles and a promised 745 miles in total. Both would benefit from more sophistication. Damping is pretty supple, but the Tiggo 7 takes a while to settle after bumps. It corners neatly, but there’s a bit of body roll. Avoid Sport mode, which creates lots of wheelspin.

“Cheap and cheerful”, the 7 has generous kit in entry-level Aspire trim, and a “plush, well-built interior” with soft-touch materials, said What Car?. The high driving position gives great visibility, and it has parking sensors as standard. It feels spacious front and back, but at 426 litres, the boot is small. The twin 12.3-inch displays have sharp graphics and logical menus. All 7s have a reassuring seven-year/ 100,000-mile warranty.

Built in Britain, the third-generation Nissan Leaf is “an EV to be proud of”, said The Independent, focused on value, comfort and usability.

It’s not the most exciting car but it is efficient, with a well-judged ride and impressive range. There’s a choice of two battery sizes: 52kWh for local driving or 75kWh with a claimed range of 386 miles. Charging speeds are “modest”, though; a 20%-80% top-up takes just under half an hour.

Both versions of the new model are front-wheel drive, said WhatCar? The 52kWh battery gets a 174bhp electric motor and can do 0-62mph in 8.3secs, while the bigger battery gets a 214bhp electric motor capable of 0-62mph in 7.6secs. The ride is well-cushioned, there’s plenty of grip and accurate steering, but there’s a bit of body lean through corners, and the brake pedal is spongy and light.

The Leaf rides on a new platform with an SUV-style fastback body, which does cut into headroom a bit in the back, said Auto Express. It’s still pretty spacious inside; it’s not plush, but the plastics feel “robust” and the seats are supportive and comfy. The “cutting-edge” interior features a pair of “superb” 14-inch screens with Google-enhanced infotainment on most models. Boot space is a “competitive” 437 litres.

From BMW to Toyota, Jeep to Porsche, here is our pick of the best cars for 2026. With practical, electric, and stylish options to choose from, this year promises to be a bumper one for the automobile industry.

BMW iX3

The new iX3 marks a “bold new era” for BMW: it is the first of its “Neue Klasse” models with totally redesigned electrics and mechanics, the result of four years of development and £17 billion investment. Sleek bodywork and bespoke tyres mean efficiency is up 20%; charging speeds are 30% quicker; and range is 30% longer – the official WLTP of 500 miles is “boundary breaking”, and makes it the UK’s longest-range EV (from £58,755).

Denza B5

BYD’s upmarket Denza brand is coming for the Land Rover Defender in 2026 with its premium SUV off-roader. The B5 has a hybrid powertrain, pairing a 1.5-litre turbocharged engine with twin electric motors, to give 677bhp. It can get from 0-62mph in 4.8 seconds; it has a top speed of 112mph; and can supposedly do 62 miles on EV power alone. What it lacks in brand heritage, the B5 makes up for with power and “gadgets galore” (from about £60,000).

Jeep Compass

Capitalising on the huge success of the smaller Avenger, Jeep has given the new Compass the same combination of “ruggedly handsome looks”, quality interior, good tech and a broad selection of hybrid and electric powertrains. It’s not the most plush or refined mid-size SUV, but it’s spacious and “perfectly practical”, with great off-road ability thanks to decent ground clearance and extra traction (from £34,520).

Toyota RAV4 PHEV

Economical and practical, this mid-size SUV is a bestseller across the pond, and you get even more bang for your buck with the 2026 model. It has a higher-capacity 22.7kWh battery to increase its all-electric range to about 60 miles, up from 46 in the old version. It feels “more refined and controllable”, with a stronger body, new suspension, updated tech and next generation plug-in hybrid systems (from about £41,000).

Renault Twingo

Renault is hoping to build on the success of its retro-style 4 and 5 EVs, with a fully electric version of the Twingo. This new four-seater city runaround takes inspiration from the 1992 original, but has been remixed for 2026 with “cute looks”, a funky interior and an 80bhp electric motor. It has been hailed as a “game-changer” by Renault, but will its handy size and adorable appearance make up for the “minuscule” 163-mile range (from about £18,000)?

Porsche Cayenne Electric

This looks “mighty promising” – it can be charged wirelessly and can take on 200 miles of range in just ten minutes at a 400kW high-speed roadside charger. Larger and heavier than the current petrol version, it has more room for passengers in the back. It’s also “stupidly fast” – even the base car gets up to 436bhp, while a turbo version has up to 1,140bhp and can do 0-62mph in 2.5 seconds (from £83,200).

With the market for petrol city cars dying out, Toyota has produced a version of the Aygo X with the Yaris’s 1.5-litre hybrid powertrain. The new Aygo X has two electric motors for a combined 114bhp, up from 71bhp, and this “glut of extra power” means the hybrid is much faster than the old petrol model, 0-62mph takes just 9.2 seconds, 6 seconds less, said Car Magazine. The 12-volt battery is placed under the floor of the boot.

The new model is a bit heavier, but at 1,090kg it’s still a “featherweight” in its class, said Auto Express. The engine builds speed with “impressive enthusiasm”, and it feels agile and “effortless” in town and on motorways. The steering is accurate and well weighted, and despite “rudimentary suspension”, the car rides pretty well and tracks securely. Efficiency is “astonishing”, exceeding the claimed 76.3mpg.

The Aygo X is now the only full hybrid in the city car class. The main change is to the powertrain, but the X has also been given a minor facelift, with a more aggressive front end and new colours and trims. Inside it is much the same – not luxurious, but “solid and well built”, with a “perfectly usable” new 7-inch driver display, said Autocar. The back seats are only suitable for kids though, and at 231 litres, the boot isn’t huge.

Following a midlife facelift, the new Kia EV6 GT is “a better cruiser than ever” – it has more power, better range and is cheaper than its “impressive” forerunner, said PistonHeads. The battery is 8.5% larger (84kWh) and lighter too, so the range is “a smidge” longer at 279 miles. It now charges at 258kW (up from 239kW), and has an extra 65bhp (641bhp total). With a top speed of 161mph, it’s “fast as heck”, and it takes just 3.5secs for 0-62mph.

The updated EV6 GT has a new virtual gear shift, with six simulated “gears” and a synthesised soundtrack to accompany them, making the drive “more interesting”, said Evo. Noise levels are down and the new damper tuning gives better control, balance and refinement. The steering lacks traditional feel, but is well weighted. This new EV6 GT is “approaching a genuinely engaging electric car to drive with verve”.

This is Kia’s fastest accelerating car, and to highlight the sportiness it gets 21-inch alloys and neon-green brake calipers. The neon theme continues inside on the piping on the comfy bucket seats. It’s “spacious” with “limo-like rear legroom”, but the boot could be bigger, said What Car?. As with the standard EV6, there’s a curved 12.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, a 12.3-inch driver’s display and smartphone mirroring.

Fiat has introduced hybrid options to its 600 crossover line-up, which includes the all-electric 600e. “Frugal, spacious and comfortable”, said Auto Express, the 600 Hybrid is similar to its Stellantis stablemates, the Citroën C4, Peugeot 5008, Alfa Romeo Junior and Vauxhall Astra, but is “packed with retro appeal”. This small SUV comes in 98bhp or 136bhp versions, with a 1.2-litre petrol engine and a tiny 0.89kWh battery.

The 98bhp hybrid is easily “punchy enough” for pootling about town and beyond, with a 0-62mph time of 10.9 seconds and a 114mph top speed, said Top Gear Magazine. The 136bhp car has “extra oomph”: it can do 0-62mph in 8.5 seconds and 124mph, making it the quickest 600 available. Both are pretty efficient, with a claimed 58.9mpg. The ride is comfortable, but the steering and brakes are “light and numb”.

“Cute and cartoonish”, said Autocar, the 600 is large by supermini standards, but although headroom up front is quite generous and the 360-litre boot is “fairly roomy”, passenger space in the back is “relatively mean”. All models get a 7-inch driver’s screen and a 10.3-inch infotainment touchscreen, with wireless smartphone mirroring. A few physical controls remain, including one to switch off the ADAS (driver assistance) systems.

It seems that, for some luxury car buyers, more is more, said Autocar. When Aston Martin gave the DBX a midlife update last year with the 707, it dropped the base model, as buyers seemed happy to fork out extra for the hardcore version. Hence the DBX S, which takes the 707 and “adds even more power and aggression”. Thanks to some bigger turbochargers taken from the Valhalla supercar, the DBX S now has 717bhp – up from 697bhp, and notably 2bhp more than Ferrari’s Purosangue. The top speed and 0-62mph remain unchanged at 193mph and 3.3 seconds respectively.

The DBX has always been “dynamic”, but the S is significantly lighter than the 707, said Top Gear Magazine – if you’re willing to pay extra for a host of “weight-saving” alternatives, including a carbon-fibre roof (£5,000), or 23-inch magnesium wheels (£15,000).

There’s a new front grille (which can be made of lightweight polycarbonate, for an extra cost too), the quad exhausts sit vertically now, and there’s a new go-faster stripe. The steering is 4% faster, which improves the turning circle by nearly half a metre. Body control impresses and it handles very well. And it’s terrific on motorways – “quiet and composed” with “modest wind noise”.

With this latest iteration, “the DBX’s reputation as a pliant and very persuasive sort of SUV hotrod remains wholly intact”, said PistonHeads. For its size, the DBX S is still remarkably good at cornering, and is fun, too. Inside, the S upgrade looks the part, with tactile, high-end materials, Alcantara trim and an emphasis on physical switchgear. Aston Martin is the first carmaker to fit Apple’s CarPlay Ultra, which blends CarPlay with the car’s own systems, making it easier to use for Apple converts.

A lucrative illegal trade in cars and their parts has driven a 74% increase in the number of vehicles stolen in England and Wales over the past 10 years.

The cars will often be “soaked”, left in a location for two or three days, and end up in a “chop shop” but some will follow stolen mobile phones and be shipped abroad.

What happens to stolen cars?

Car thieves in the “intricate £1.8 billion-a-year web of crime normally take several steps to maximise profits and avoid arrest”, and the first is usually “soaking”, said the Daily Mail. After leaving the crime scene, the thieves will generally abandon the car for two or three days at a predetermined location, to check whether it’s been fitted with a tracker.

After that, they attach cloned number plates, which correspond to another car of the same make, model and colour, to avoid detection from automatic numberplate recognition system cameras.

Sometimes the car will be sold to drug dealers, armed robbers or gangsters. Or it might go to a so-called “chop shop”, where mechanics can “rapidly strip” the stolen car of lucrative parts, which “get sold on to unsuspecting consumers” who want to repair their own car.

The vehicles could also be shipped abroad. Stolen cars from the UK have been “found across the globe”, including in Russia, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eastern Europe, Dubai, Thailand and Cyprus.

What happens to stolen phones?

Headlines and social media posts about mobile phones being snatched on Oxford Street have worried Londoners and visitors alike. Earlier this month, the Metropolitan Police busted an international gang suspected of smuggling up to 40,000 stolen mobile phones from the UK to China over the past 12 months, said the BBC.

After the number of phones stolen in London almost tripled in the last four years, from 28,609 in 2020 to 80,588 in 2024, the Met discovered that street thieves were being paid up to £300 per handset. Stolen devices are being sold in China for up to £4,000 each, because they are “internet-enabled and more attractive for those trying to bypass censorship”.

What is being done about it?

The Met said personal robbery has decreased by 13% and theft is down 14% in London this year. Up to 80 more officers are joining the West End team to focus on offences such as phone robbery. But London Mayor Sadiq Khan said “coordinated global action” is needed to “shut down” the trade in stolen phones.

As for cars, the “days of hard-bitten detectives getting tip-offs from snouts over a pint” and then “raiding a seedy back-street garage” are “long gone”, said The Telegraph. Instead, police are turning to private companies staffed by former officers.

“We’re almost trying to alleviate the pressure on the police,” said Ahron Tolley from W4G. “I’m ex-police. We know the stresses and strains on the police in the UK to investigate crime.”

The government is to look into the design of cars and growing use of new LED headlights, which drivers argue is making it harder to navigate roads at night.

Four out of five drivers (82%) are concerned about being dazzled by vehicle headlights with the arrival of darker evenings after the clocks have gone back, according to new research from motoring organisation the RAC.

“Unfortunately, for a lot of drivers, the annual onset of darker evenings coincides with another unwelcome arrival – that of overly bright headlights that they believe make driving more difficult due to dazzle and discomfort,” said RAC senior policy officer Rod Dennis.

Have they actually got brighter?

The RAC attributes the increased brightness to modern bi-xenon or LED bulbs, which are becoming more common in new vehicles.

The beam from LED headlights is “whiter, more focused and brighter than the more diffuse light from halogen lamps fitted in older cars”, said the BBC.

Other factors causing problems for drivers include badly aligned headlights and the higher position of SUV lights.

Is it dangerous?

At best, headlight glare can make driving “uncomfortable and more difficult”, said the RAC, “but the consequences can be more severe”.

Half of drivers surveyed said they had been temporarily blinded, while more than a third said they felt less safe driving because of bright headlights on other vehicles. Others reported tiredness, headaches and even migraines.

The problem is worse for older people, whose eyes take longer to recover from glare. Between the ages of 15 and 65 recovery time increases from two to nine seconds, said the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents on its Older Drivers website. A 2018 study published in the Frontiers in Psychology journal also found that headlight glare particularly affected people with cataracts.

In all, dazzling headlights are cited as a factor in between 200 and 300 accidents in the UK each year, said the House of Lords Library, but there is no evidence that brighter lights are causing more collisions than previously.

What can be done?

As the problem has grown more pronounced in recent years, the RAC has joined with other road safety bodies including the College of Optometrists and IAM RoadSmart to campaign for the causes of headlight glare to be investigated.

A Westminster Hall debate on the issue is to be held today, with a government-commissioned report led by consultancy TRL expected to be published in the coming weeks.

The Department for Transport said the findings will help “to better understand the causes and impact of glare, which will inform new measures in the upcoming Road Safety Strategy”.

Alongside this, the Driver and Vehicle Standards Agency has “stepped up surveillance to intercept the sale of illegal retrofit headlamp bulbs”, with anyone caught facing a fine of up to £1,000.

Drivers can also help to minimise the impact of brighter headlights. The College of Optometrists recommends you ensure that your windscreen, and glasses if worn, are clean, avoid looking straight ahead but focus on the edge of the road, and do not wear night sunglasses sold for night-driving, as they reduce overall light, not glare.

While headlight glare is a problem that “needs tackling”, said the RAC, it is “important to remember that brighter headlights can give drivers a better view of the road ahead – so there’s a balance to be struck”.

This sixth-generation Nissan Micra is really a rebadged Renault 5 with a few bodywork tweaks, said Top Gear Magazine. Electric is the only option, and, like the 5, there’s the choice of 40kWh and 52kWh batteries, with 121bhp and 148bhp motors. Charging times are the same as the 5 (80kW and up to 100kW), but the Micra has a slightly better range of up to 260 miles on the bigger battery, and 198 miles for the smaller one.

Much like the Renault 5, the new Nissan Micra is nice to drive – “nippy, compact, refined, supple but well-damped”, said Autocar. As expected with a small electric car, it’s quick off the line, but performance tails off as speed builds. The stiff brake pedal takes a bit of getting used to, but feels quite responsive. The Micra is agile and fun in town yet contained on country roads, with plenty of grip and good handling.

“A fantastic little EV”, the Micra has different styling from the 5, with new headlights and bumpers and an upgraded interior, said Car Magazine. There are three trims: entry-level Engage gets a 10.1-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and a 7-inch driver’s display; higher trims get a bigger display, ambient lighting and better speakers. There’s plenty of room up front, but it’s a squeeze in the back. Boot space is good at 326 litres.

At just 3.8m by 1.6m, the Inster is Hyundai’s smallest EV. A great compact city car, it comes in two guises with lots of standard kit, including an EV heat pump to help improve efficiency. The Standard Range has a 39kWh battery, 95bhp, and a WLTP of 203 miles. The Long Range version has a 49kWh battery for an official range of 229 miles; and with 113bhp it delivers an extra bit of “zip around town” too, said What Car?.

Charging speeds aren’t that good – even the long-range model will only charge at a max of 85kW. The ride is smooth, with little wind noise, and at gentle speeds it resists lean pretty well. The steering is a bit slow and remote, and the suspension quite stiff, but there’s plenty of grip and traction. Despite its flaws, the Inster has “an irrepressible cheeriness”, a “combination of quirkiness and charm”, said The Daily Telegraph.

Although it only has four seats, the Inster is “surprisingly versatile”, with sliding and folding rear seats on the upper trim levels, said Top Gear Magazine. The cabin is “fun and distinctive”, blending proper controls with “cheerful upholstery”, much of it recycled. The twin 10.25-inch screens are useful, but can be a bit slow. With a host of driver-assist features as standard, this is “a refined and good-looking little car”.

Three years after it launched, Renault’s midsize crossover, the Austral, has been given an update with new shock absorbers and bump stops to improve the ride. As before, the Austral is only available as a self-charging hybrid in the UK. Now four-wheel steering has been ditched as an option here too. The facelift includes a new bonnet, grille and tailgate, with “fancier lights” in line with a new brand identity, said Car Magazine.

If you're after a hybrid crossover, the Austral is “a good choice”, said Top Gear. All models have a 1.2-litre petrol engine with a four-speed gearbox, plus an electric motor with two gears of its own for 197bhp combined; and on paper, it does an excellent 58.9mpg. It’s quiet and smooth in town, and handles corners well without too much body roll, but the steering is overly light unless you’re in Sport mode.

The updated Austral has more supportive front seats and better sound proofing. There are three trim levels, and standard kit (Techno trim) is generous, including 19-inch alloys, LED headlights and smartphone mirroring. The interior has lots of storage and plenty of room up front. A 12.3in driver’s display and a 12in touchscreen with “crisp graphics” dominate the dash, but there are some physical controls too, said What Car?.

Škoda has a rich history in motorsport and its performance models now have pure-electric power, and lots of it: the Elroq vRS – a souped-up version of the compact SUV – is Škoda’s fastest car yet. With two motors delivering 335bhp, it can do 0-62mph in a “punchy” 5.4 seconds, said The Times. The 79kWh battery gives a claimed range of 342 miles, and it takes 26 minutes to charge from 10% to 80% in optimal conditions.

This new sporty version of the Škoda Elroq remains “supremely comfortable” and “inspires confidence from the get-go”, said Autocar. Brisk and composed, it is “grippy, planted and intuitive to drive”, even if it isn’t quite imbued with “hot-hatch spirit”. Thanks to adaptive dampers, there’s very little roll, and the ride feels “truly wafty”, but the steering is a bit “numb”, and the brake pedals are “mushy”.

The Elroq vRS is a “real over-indulgence”, said Top Gear Magazine. Škoda has thrown everything at the exterior, and inside there’s a heated leather steering wheel, microsuede upholstery, sports seats with a massage function and upgraded stainless-steel pedals. The driver gets a 5-inch digital display, and there’s a 13-inch touchscreen and Canton sound system. All this kit makes a decent enough car “troublingly expensive”.

It seems counter-intuitive to make a sporty version of a mini-van, but "it's easy to fall for" the "charming" VW ID Buzz GTX. It looks "striking", said Auto Express, with 21-inch alloys and a new front grille and bumper. There's a 50% boost in power: with a dual-motor set-up and 335bhp, it can do 0-62mph in 6.1 seconds (1.6 seconds quicker); towing power increases too. All in all, the new Buzz is "likeable", if not exactly "sensible".

There's a five or six-seater short-wheelbase version or a seven-seater long-wheelbase, with 79kWh and 86kWh batteries respectively. The GTX is quite comfortable, but "doesn't feel as quick as the numbers suggest" and performance tails as you speed up, said Car Magazine. The weight helps with stability at speed, but "blunts its cornering ability"; there's little feel to the brakes and the steering system is slow.

The ID Buzz GTX comes in a new cherry red colour with a panoramic glass roof. The "cavernous interior" is full of handy cubbyholes, there are new sports seats, an improved infotainment screen, plus a "stonking" Harman Kardon sound system. Visibility is great and it's "easy to get comfortable", said The Times. With "no compromise on style and practicality", could this be the "ultimate parentmobile"?

Dacia's first foray into the family SUV market, the Bigster is essentially a stretched version of the Duster, said Car Magazine. At 4.57m long, it’s a bit bigger than Dacia's MPV, the Jogger, but there's no option for seven seats. There are three powertrains on offer: a front-wheel drive 138bhp mild hybrid 1.2- litre three-cylinder; a four- wheel drive version of the mild hybrid; and the flagship 155bhp front- wheel drive full hybrid.

Affordability is key for Dacia, and the Bigster is "a blinder of a deal", said Autocar. It is "roomy, economical, well equipped and broadly quite nice to drive". Like the Duster, it isn't sporty; the steering is light and imprecise, but it's intuitive and relaxing. There’s a fair bit of roll and the cabin is noisy on motorways, but with its soft suspension it rides pretty well. And the assisted driving systems are easy to switch off.

The Bigster is "for people with nothing to prove"; "it's not a flash car, but it is a good one", said Top Gear Magazine. There are three trims and extras include a panoramic roof and wireless charging, but you can't avoid the cabin’s hard plastics. All models get a 10.1-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, plus a digital driver's display. At 667 litres, there's loads of boot space, and legroom is generous too.

In adding electric power to the popular Ranger line-up, Ford has built Europe's first plug-in hybrid pickup. "More than just a novelty", said Car Magazine, the Ranger PHEV has a "powerful hybrid system" with a 2.3-litre petrol engine and a 75kW electric motor. At 25.5 miles, the electric-only driving range isn't much to shout about, but its lower CO2 emissions mean it qualifies for much lower benefit-in-kind tax, and it is also VAT exempt.

Ford hasn't compromised on cargo and towing capacity: the Ranger PHEV can tow 3.5 tonnes with a payload of more than a tonne. At 11.8kWh the battery isn't big, but with 277bhp the truck can do 0-62mph in 9.2secs, a fraction faster than the 3.0-litre diesel. Much like the standard model, the ride is "compliant", with a "decent powertrain", plenty of stopping power and just a bit of body roll, said Auto Express.

"Surprisingly agile", the Ranger PHEV remains a "commercial workhorse", but with lower running costs and better comfort, said The Independent. The functional interior is full of hard plastics, but the seats are comfy, visibility is great and legroom decent. There's a 12-inch central touchscreen and a driver display, but the smartest tech is the Pro Power Onboard system, which has three 230V three-pin plug sockets.

Helsinki has been hailed as the road safety capital of the world, after city officials revealed there has not been a single traffic-related fatality in the past year.

While road deaths have declined by an average of 3% across EU countries, according to recent European Commission figures, "they are still commonplace in metropolitan areas", said Politico. So, "to go a full year without one is a remarkable feat for most cities – let alone a European capital".

'Vision Zero'

The achievement is the culmination of years of work to reduce and then eliminate road deaths in Finland. The country adopted a "Vision Zero" traffic safety strategy in the early 2000s, guided by a set of principles and policies that, said The Guardian in 2020, "shifts responsibility for crashes from road users to the designers of the road system". If there is a crash, "it is up to authorities to ensure that it does not happen again".

Helsinki's traffic fatalities have been declining ever since. It recorded zero pedestrian fatalities in 2019, with the city's last fatal traffic accident occurring in early July 2024. Traffic-related injuries in the capital have also plummeted from 727 in 2023 to 14 in 2024.

For context, there were a total of 20,418 deaths on EU roads in 2023, with two countries, Lithuania and Latvia, registering an strong increase (33% and 26% respectively), according to a European Transport Safety Council report.

'A handful of small changes'

Helsinki's success does not come "from any one major policy shift but from a handful of small changes" that add up to "meaningful impact" said MSM. By focusing on safer people, safer roads, safer vehicles, safer speeds and better post-crash care, the aim is to create "multiple layers of protection, so if one fails, the others will create a safety net to lessen the impact of a crash", said Forbes

More than half the city's streets now have a speed limit of 30 kph (less than 20 mph), a decision driven by data showing the risk of pedestrian fatality is cut in half by reducing a car's speed of impact from 40 kph to to 30 kph, said Politico.

And "street design has also played a key role", said Finnish news outlet YLE. "Pedestrian and cycling infrastructure has been significantly upgraded" and "more traffic cameras and automated enforcement systems have been introduced". In many areas, "roads have been narrowed and trees have been planted with the deliberate goal of making drivers move more cautiously", said Politico.

Other measures include "improving the traffic skills of different road users", said Forbes, as well as increasing motorcycle and moped helmet-wearing rates to nearly 100%, and "allowing the police to make random alcohol and drug tests". Finland is also the only country in Europe to conduct an in-depth investigation into every single fatal collision.

The European Transport Safety Council has recognised the country's carefully co-ordinated progress in road safety. "In Finland, they say, 'Vahinko ei tule kello kaulassa'," said ETSC director Antonio Avenoso. This "roughly translates as: 'Accidents don't come with a bell around their neck'".

Designed to replace the Plus Six as Morgan's flagship model, the all-new Supersport aims to be the everyday car in the range. It even comes with a proper hard-top roof (for an extra £4,194). It is a bit of a faff to remove, but gives the "feel of a classic speed-record racer", said PistonHeads.

Built on a new aluminium CXV platform, the Supersport is 95kg heavier than the Plus Six, but it has the same 3.0-litre straight-six turbo, with 335bhp sent to the rear wheels via an eight-speed automatic gearbox (there's no manual option). With a "new look, new underpinnings" and a "new mission", it could truly be "a new dawn for Morgan".

Morgan has "made a car for the 21st century", says Car Magazine. The Supersport feels "well engineered", with "excellent balance between ride and handling"; it can do 0-62mph in 3.9 seconds, with a top speed of 166mph. The electric power steering feels sharper than that of the Plus Six, with plenty of feedback. With all-round wishbone suspension, it rides bumps well; there is some body roll, but this gives it character. The brake pedal is a bit "too numb", and the gearbox could be a bit "zippier" in normal driving mode.

The Supersport retains Morgan's classic style with a few "modern touches", says Auto Express. There's a tiny digital driver's display, but no Apple CarPlay, just Bluetooth connectivity and old-school dials and buttons. The boot is big enough for a weekend bag, and there's plenty of room for two adults. It "might not have the everyday usability of other sports cars", but that makes the Supersport "feel all the more special when the mood strikes to take it out".

Customers mis-sold car financing could still be entitled to compensation, despite last week's landmark Supreme Court ruling that sided with lenders.

The Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) announced it will consult on a payout scheme later this year, just days after a "worst-case scenario for the industry" appeared to have been avoided, said The Times.

"It is the latest twist in a scandal that had caused consternation at the very top of the government over fears of the size of the hit lenders may face."

What was the controversy about?

Between 80% and 90% of cars in Britain are bought with finance: loans paid off in monthly instalments. The cost includes interest added by the brokers who sell the finance plans on behalf of the lender and receive a commission in return.

Before 2021, some car finance lenders had what was called a "discretionary commission arrangement" with brokers in which they earned a higher commission if customers were given a higher interest rate. "This incentivised sellers to maximise interest rates, which meant many were unfairly charged too much," said Sky News.

The practice was banned by the FCA in January 2021, but millions of customers claimed they had already been overcharged and were seeking compensation. Some 80,000 open cases made to the Financial Ombudsman Service were effectively on hold pending the outcome of a court ruling last Friday.

What did the courts rule?

Last October, the Court of Appeal sided with customers, ruling that some commission arrangements amounted to bribes and a breach of the obligation car dealerships had to their consumers. Those affected should be entitled to receive compensation equivalent to the commission, the court said.

City analysts estimated that car finance providers could have been liable for up to £44 billion in total, which would have made it one of the biggest compensation payouts in British history.

But lenders – and Chancellor Rachel Reeves, who had voiced concerns about the potential impact on economic growth – were handed a reprieve on Friday after the Supreme Court dismissed the two central arguments brought by customers. It effectively found that commercial relationships are based on self-interest, and thus dealers had no duty to act in customers' interest.

The ruling did not let lenders off the hook completely, leaving open the possibility of compensation claims for particularly large commissions.

Will customers get any compensation?

Following the ruling, the FCA has announced it will consult on launching a payout scheme, which will start in October with the first payments expected next year.

The regulator said those eligible will probably be entitled to a payout of no more than £950, depending on the "degree of harm suffered by the consumer and the need to ensure consumers continue to be able to access affordable loans for motor vehicles". Individuals do not need to use costly claims management companies to register their claims and those who have already registered a complaint do not need to take any further action.

While it is "hard to estimate precisely at this stage the total cost to industry", the regulator said it is likely to be between £9 billion and £18 billion, the BBC reported. The industry is "expected to cover the full costs of any potential compensation scheme, including any administrative costs".

Car finance lenders, including some of the UK's biggest banks, had already set aside billions of pounds for potential payouts.

Despite Formula 1 being a cultural touchstone for millions across Europe, the sport has historically struggled to gain significant traction in the United States. That has been flipped upside down in recent years. The open-wheel racing organization is gaining steam in the U.S., where NASCAR has long dominated the auto racing market.

Thanks to some key marketing and business decisions, Formula 1 has finally cracked the code on getting eyeballs and market share in the U.S. Crucially, the Netflix show "Formula 1: Drive to Survive" introduced millions of Americans to the sport. But while Formula 1 has undoubtedly experienced an increase in its U.S. viewership, some industry experts say there may be nowhere left for it to go.

How popular is Formula 1 in the US?

Formula 1 fandom in the U.S. has been growing rapidly over the past few years. The 2025 Global F1 Fan Survey, performed by the organization itself, polled Formula 1 fans in 186 countries. Of all of these nations, the U.S. "accounts for the largest share of respondents of any individual country," said the survey.

Younger audiences have largely been pushing this wave of Formula 1 popularity, and in the U.S., at least 70% of Gen Z fans "engage with F1 content daily," said the survey. Many fans seem to enjoy the races not only on television, but also in person. Among all U.S. respondents to the survey, at least "73% plan to attend a US race in the future" and "37% have purchased F1 merchandise."

In all, there are about "52 million F1 fans in America, an increase of more than 10% from 2024," said Motorsport.com. On ESPN, which broadcasts races in the U.S., the network's "live race audience has doubled since 2018 and so far this year there has been a noticeable increase in viewers for the opening five rounds of the championship."

Why has Formula 1 become more popular in the US?

The Netflix series "Formula 1: Drive to Survive" certainly played a role, and has been "credited with everything from helping F1 crack the U.S. to rejuvenating the sport itself," said CNBC. But the "Netflix effect" is only part of the reason why Formula 1 has taken off stateside.

Formula 1 has made inroads in the U.S. due to a "blend of pivotal elements — strategic maneuvers that recalibrated its course, collaborative efforts that enhanced captivating broadcasts and the burgeoning emergence of American talents" in a sport still dominated by Europeans, said USA Today. One notable decision that precipitated Formula 1's rise was the "expansion of Formula 1 races going beyond the United States Grand Prix, growing from two events in 2017 to three by 2023." These circuits "played a pivotal role in enhancing the sport's appeal" and "didn't just host races; they became epicenters of electrifying events."

American companies have also been getting in on the action by partnering with Formula 1 races and teams, creating sponsorships to draw in more fans. Since "2018, the number of American-based partners has more than doubled," said Bjorn Stenbacka of Spomotion Analytics to Motorsport.com. To "see the reach of American brands, Ferrari is a great example." Ferrari's racing division, Scuderia Ferrari, is widely considered the most iconic and popular Formula 1 team in history, and Italy has been the "number one country on its partnership list" from the beginning. But in 2024, the "U.S. passed Italy — a historical switch — and this year, so far Italy and the U.S. are equal."

Today, the team is officially known as Scuderia Ferrari HP after a branding deal with American technology company HP. All of these factors combined have resulted in a major boom in U.S. viewership. The 2024 Miami Grand Prix "attracted the largest live U.S. television audience on record for F1 as an average of 3.1 million viewers watched," said ESPN. As with other races, younger people made up a majority of the viewership; the "audience in the persons ages 18-49 demographic averaged 1.3 million."

Has this popularity plateaued?

Despite Formula 1's obvious U.S. growth, there are concerns that its popularity may have reached its peak. This was especially evident after the 2023 racing season, because while "attendance at live events stayed relatively strong in 2023, American TV ratings tumbled a bit," said The Athletic. The numbers increased in 2024, but there are still viewership oddities, particularly when it comes to the Miami Grand Prix.

That race "averaged 3.1 million viewers (a record for an F1 event)" in 2024, but "this year the number was about 30% lower, though that still makes it the year's most viewed race," said Bloomberg. However, there may be a simple explanation for why Formula 1 saw a tapering off: a lack of competition on the course.

This is largely because of the on-track supremacy of Max Verstappen. The 27-year-old Dutch-Belgian phenom has become a dominant force driving for Red Bull Racing and has become the face of Formula 1. Throughout 2023 and 2024, there was "consternation within the sport that Verstappen's stranglehold on the competition could jeopardize F1's hard-fought expansion of its U.S. fan base," said Front Office Sports. Verstappen drove to victory so regularly (particularly in 2023 when he won 19 out of 22 races) that any race he is a part of is "never going to be the best to watch, and the only exciting races have been the ones that Max is not in," said McLaren driver Lando Norris.

But while Verstappen dominated in 2023 and 2024, his 2025 has been far less successful, and he has only won two Formula 1 races in the first half of the year. This means that the races are getting more competitive and as a result, viewership could rise again. Verstappen's "lack of dominance has been a positive development toward making the sport feel less formulaic," said Bloomberg. And a tapered fandom could be burst wide open if an American were to see the kind of on-track successes that Europeans do.

If "you do get a U.S. driver and they are flamboyant, loud and successful, which is the most important piece, it could unlock a new level of viewership," John Suchenski, ESPN's senior director for programming and acquisitions, told Bloomberg. "I don't think it's necessary for the sport to thrive, because it does well with these international stars and the teams' brands are so strong, but it's an opportunity for growth if it were to happen."

The odds that an American driver dominates Formula 1 are probably low. A U.S. driver has not won a Formula 1 race in nearly five decades — Mario Andretti was the last to do so in 1978. While 58 American-born drivers have participated in Formula 1 races, the sport does not currently have any drivers born in the United States.

The Rolls-Royce Ghost has long been the brand's quietly confident bestseller, blending a driver-focused experience with cutting-edge technology and timeless elegance. Since its complete revamp in 2020, the new Series II, which we took for a spin, has been given a subtle but meaningful facelift.

Design, refined

From the outside, the updates may be understated, but together they work beautifully. The reshaped front air intakes and sharper headlamp design bring a modern precision to the Ghost's otherwise classic form. At the rear, Spectre-inspired tail lights introduce vertical light panels accented by a discreet chrome flourish. Clients can also spec from two new striking 22-inch, nine-spoke wheel designs.

Inside, the new Spirit of Ecstasy clock cabinet takes centre stage on the dashboard. It houses an elegant analogue timepiece and an up-lit, mirror-polished, solid stainless steel Spirit of Ecstasy figurine – a miniature sculpture that catches and plays with ambient light. There are also more options for customisation of the textiles, allowing clients to further tailor the cabin's mood to their personal tastes.

Power and poise on the road

Let's not mince words: the Ghost is a large car. At over 5.5 metres long and just shy of 2.5 tonnes, it was particularly noticeable on tight Shropshire lanes, where its immense power and bulk needed to be handled with care. But get it on to a motorway and it transforms, devouring distance with supernatural ease and comfort.

This is thanks to Rolls-Royce's renowned "Magic Carpet Ride", an intricate system that employs air springs, adaptive dampers and a camera to literally read the road ahead, preemptively adjusting to ensure every journey is serenely smooth. The sheer quietness inside, a product of over 100kg of sound-deadening material, elevates the experience to an almost meditative state.

Under the bonnet lies Rolls-Royce's sublime 6.75-litre twin-turbocharged V12 engine, putting out 563bhp and a colossal 850Nm of torque (where's the towbar!). Despite its size and weight, the Ghost sprints from 0-60mph in just 4.6 seconds. That figure is impressive in isolation, but it's the way it delivers that speed that stuns: smooth, seamless and entirely devoid of drama. The eight-speed gearbox is so discreet you'll never notice it shifting; Rolls-Royce even replaces the traditional tachometer with a "power reserve" dial, a small but telling sign of the brand's priorities.

Official fuel economy is around 18mpg, but I averaged just over 20mpg across a few hundred miles of mixed driving – a pleasant surprise. In town, though, the throttle could feel a little twitchy. In stop-start traffic, a slightly keen press on the pedal would trigger more enthusiasm than expected, the V12 raring to go. Compared to my daily EV, which delivers power with quiet restraint, the Ghost feels like it's always limbering up for a sprint.

An interior of unrivalled luxury

Inside, it's as serene and sumptuous as you'd expect. The thick sheepskin carpets are heaven underfoot. The push-pull air vents are tactile perfection. Natural open-pore wood sweeps across the dash. Massage seats up front and in the rear ensure every journey feels like a spa day. The "Starlight Headliner" overhead – hundreds of fibre-optic lights mimicking the night sky – is still a delight, though its presence means no sunroof, leaving the cabin feeling slightly more enclosed.

The gear shifter, mounted on the steering column, cleverly frees up the centre console, which houses a large rotary controller, a few elegantly milled buttons, and cup holders. The touchscreen infotainment system is perfectly adequate: pair it with Apple CarPlay or Android Auto to access your usual phone apps. Rear entertainment screens offer independent viewing and streaming capabilities, though in our case, they stubbornly refused to cooperate, much to the dismay of my kids.

But in every other way, the Ghost's back seats are truly luxurious. Massaging, reclining chairs. Thick lambswool mats. Optional champagne fridge, with flutes and crystal tumblers nestled in the centre armrest (at the expense of the middle seat). Picnic tables fold out to reveal the rear screens. And, of course, those glorious coach doors open and close at the touch of a button. The umbrella hidden in the door cavity remains the best automotive party trick in the business.

The Ghost Series II starts at around £250,000, with the "Black Badge" version pushing £280,000. But no one buys a Rolls-Royce off the shelf. Each one is a bespoke commission. Add a few personal touches, and you'll glide past those base figures without difficulty.

The verdict

The Ghost Series II demonstrates Rolls-Royce's masterful ability to evolve without compromising its core values. It remains an incredibly capable and refined vehicle, offering a driving and passenger experience that sets it apart. This facelift cements its position as a compelling choice for those seeking the ultimate in discreet luxury and effortless performance.

Aston Martin has been on "storming" form recently, and that continues with the "fantastic" Roadster version of its new Vantage coupé, said Top Gear Magazine.

Developed in tandem with the coupé, you get the same 656bhp and 789lb-ft torque from the twinturbo V8 engine; and the Roadster's top speed is also 202mph. The 0-62mph time is a fraction slower at 3.6secs – still seriously impressive for a rear-wheel drive car. It's not perfect, but a car with this much character "is a rare treat indeed".

This "immensely competent" two-seater "oozes the same muscular presence" as its sibling, said Evo, with identical Michelin Pilot Sport S 5 tyres. The ride is on the firm side for a convertible, but this helps it retain the alertness and direct approach of the coupé, and the sharp handling makes even "the most mundane journey feel special". The boot has shrunk to 200 litres, but this is still bigger than most rivals. Aston claims the Roadster can do 23mpg, and thanks to its 73-litre fuel tank it has a 300-mile range.

It is a "fearsome" car, "as fast and exciting as it is beautiful", said Auto Express, and it has a "monstrous V8 soundtrack to match". Inside, the Roadster has the same "gorgeous cabin and fine driving position" as the new coupé. Aston has listened to its critics and increased the font sizes for the digital displays, making them easier to read, though the touchscreen is still laggy, with fiddly menus. The roof folds away in a record-breaking 6.8secs, at speeds of up to 31mph. "Boasting even more style" but no less performance, the Roadster feels just like the coupé, but with the bonus of being able to drive with the top down.

Men generally have bigger feet than women – and a bigger carbon footprint too, according to new research.

A joint UK-French study, at the LSE's Grantham Research Institute on Climate Change and the Environment, found that men cause 26% more planet-warming gas emissions than women do, mainly because of the cars they drive and the meat they eat.

The researchers analysed French survey data on food consumption and transport patterns – the two factors that, together, account for 50% of the carbon footprint of French households. They found that, for men, the average annual carbon footprint associated with food and transport was 5.3 tonnes of carbon-dioxide equivalent; for women, it was 3.9.

The difference between the sexes is mainly accounted for by men's higher consumption of red meat and greater use of cars – both "often associated with male identity", concluded the study authors in an LSE press release. "Our results suggest that traditional gender norms, particularly those linking masculinity with red-meat consumption and car use, play a significant role in shaping individual carbon footprints," said study co-author Ondine Berland, a LSE fellow in environmental economics.

'Striking' gender gap

"Research into gender gaps is often plagued by difficult decisions about which factors to control for," said The Guardian. Men need more calories than women, for example, but "they also eat disproportionately more than women". Men also tend to drive longer distances when commuting, and they also generally have higher incomes, which are themselves "correlated with higher emissions".

But, even after the study authors controlled for socioeconomic factors such as income, job type, household size and education, the emissions gap between men and women was still a significant 18%.

It is "quite striking that the difference in carbon footprint in food and transport use" between French men and women is "around the same as we estimate" globally for high-income people compared to lower-income people, study co-author Marion Leroutier, an assistant professor at Crest-Ensae Paris, told the paper.

Higher personal costs

The carbon-footprint gap the study identifies could help explain "the growing climate concern gap between men and women", said The Independent. It's possible that men are less inclined to support climate action because there are "higher personal costs" for them in doing so, such as giving up red meat and reducing car use.

Alternatively, it could be that women's lower-carbon lifestyles "might reflect and reinforce deeper values and priorities": their carbon footprints are smaller because they're more concerned about the climate.

Either way, it's clear that "public messaging and policy design" on lowering emissions needs "to take social norms and gender roles into account, not just market signals or price incentives". Strategists wanting to target "high-emission activities like driving and eating meat" need to factor in that this will "disproportionately affect men, especially those who associate consumption with identity or status".

And the rewards of successful messaging could be impressive. If all adult men adopted the average food and transport "carbon intensity of women", say the study authors, France's emissions from food and transport would fall by more than 13 million tonnes of carbon-dioxide equivalent a year. That's about triple the emissions decrease that France is targeting across those sectors, to comply with its 2030 climate targets.

Drivers could be set for a boost as recent falls in petrol prices are predicted to accelerate further.

Average petrol prices have been falling in recent months due to a drop in the cost of oil. The typical price for unleaded petrol is now 134.11p or 140.62p for diesel, according to the RAC.

It comes as oil-producing states such as Saudi Arabia and Russia have increased production of Brent crude, said the Daily Telegraph, amid fears that President Donald Trump's trade war "will cause demand for fuels to drop as the economy slows".

The RAC is "calling for further cuts at the pumps" as, despite some prices dropping, the reduction in wholesale costs isn't being fully passed on. Therefore, many people will be looking for the best ways to save money at the petrol pump.

Drive more efficiently

Your style of driving can have a "big impact" on how much fuel you use, said The Times Money Mentor.

To save money, consider keeping an eye on "when you brake and how fast you're going". Doing so can keep fuel use down and cut costs.

Check your tyre pressure

A well-maintained car can be more fuel-efficient, and therefore save money.

If your tyre pressure is too low, said MoneySavingExpert, this can "increase drag on a car" which will then use more fuel. Keeping your tyres at the correct pressure for your car means you will need "less oomph to keep it moving".

Avoid air conditioning

Air conditioning may be useful to "keep you cool and comfortable" when driving in the summer months, said KwikFit, but it can "increase your fuel usage by as much as 10%".

The effects can be "particularly noticeable" on short journeys if you are looking to cool the car down quickly. So you may be better off by switching it off, especially if you aren't driving far.

Don't get dragged down

You can reduce fuel usage if you "ditch the clutter" such as roof racks or bulky items that are weighing down your car, said The Times Money Mentor, as this will help your vehicle accelerate more easily on less fuel.

Even keeping windows open or displaying football flags that you attach to your vehicle to "show support" for your country during the World Cup can decrease your MPG, added the RAC.

Compare fuel prices

It is also possible to shop around for better fuel prices.

The RAC has a Fuel Watch webpage that regularly updates average petrol prices on forecourts and at supermarkets, while CarWow also has a tool that lets drivers enter their postcode to find "the most affordable options" in the area for fuel.

Since its launch in 2019, the Defender has been a huge hit, said Top Gear Magazine, and Land Rover has a simple aim for its new Defender Octa: "to be the world's fastest off-roader" yet. Three years in the making, it has been re-engineered to take even more punishment.

The Octa is 28mm higher and 68mm wider than previous models, "with muscular wheelarch extensions". It has a new 627bhp BMW-sourced 4.4-litre twin-turbo mild-hybrid V8 engine with an eight-speed automatic gearbox, but the "big news" is the "6D Dynamics" air-suspension tech that renders traditional anti-roll bars redundant.

Off-road, the car seems to 'float'

This "astonishing" tech is possibly "the defining piece of the Octa puzzle", said Evo, allowing for flatter, calmer cornering. The Octa is "an unexpected thrill to drive", making the regular Defender look "a touch meek".

Despite weighing 2,585kg, it can reach 60mph in 3.8 secs in launch mode, and "gathers momentum with serious pace", while remaining composed; the brakes are "suitably impressive" too. Off-road, the car seems to "float", absorbing any impact with "engineered excellence".

An 'extra-special off-roader'

Land Rover has thrown out the rulebook to create a "tough" and "phenomenally capable 4x4", said Autocar. The all-terrain tyres give an assured level of grip, even on the road; less rugged all-season tyres or Michelin Primacy road tyres are an option for those who want to go faster. The dash is simple, with an intuitive touchscreen featuring excellent off-roading cameras; and the new "body and soul" bucket seats with vibro-acoustic tech are supremely comfortable. This "extra-special off-roader" should be in a class of its own.

A silent revolution is under way at Rolls-Royce. As the curtain falls on its exquisite V12, the marque ushers in a new era of electric power with the Spectre. Two years after its launch, the EV coupé has eclipsed expectations, becoming the brand's best-selling model in Europe. It's a defining moment for the 120-year-old brand, proving that electrification only amplifies the Rolls-Royce experience.

Reacquainting myself with the Spectre – this time the Black Badge – through Barcelona's bustling streets, sweeping mountain roads, and even the race track, only reinforces its brilliance. The seamless, whisper-quiet power delivery aligns perfectly with Rolls-Royce's DNA: it's effortless to drive and luxuriously crafted. Little wonder, then, that the Spectre has become a runaway success.

A familiar yet elevated experience

With the introduction of the Black Badge variant, the Spectre embraces a bolder persona, its 'darker side' alter ego. Despite a price tag exceeding £320,000, demand is unlikely to be an issue. While many defining characteristics remain – the colossal 23-inch alloys, sleek silhouette, and the most refined ride of any luxury coupé – this version pushes boundaries further.

The Black Badge Spectre is now the most powerful Rolls-Royce ever built. Its dual electric motors produce 650 brake horsepower (bhp) and a staggering 1,075Nm of torque, launching this near-three-tonne grand tourer from 0 to 60 mph in just 4.1 seconds. These are supercar figures wrapped in an opulent, near-silent package.

Driving dynamics: engaging the infinite

At the Spectre's launch in Napa Valley, its effortless driving experience stood out. Regenerative braking made one-pedal driving a breeze, perfectly suited for urban environments. The Black Badge, however, brings an extra layer of dynamism with "Infinity Mode", engaged via an infinity-symbol button on the steering wheel – a signature of Rolls-Royce's Black Badge models. Activating it unleashes the full 650 bhp, providing a sharper throttle response and a more engaging driving experience.

For those seeking an even more visceral thrill, "Spirited Mode" offers an additional burst of torque. By pressing the brake and throttle simultaneously before releasing the brake, the Spectre momentarily amplifies torque delivery. I tested this with a drag race on the track, and it's astonishing how quickly this three-tonne grand tourer moves. The sensation is reminiscent of the power surges delivered by the legendary Rolls-Royce Merlin engines, which propelled the Second World War Spitfire.

With a claimed range of 306 to 329 miles – it's fitted with the same 102kWh battery as the standard model – the Spectre Black Badge offers respectable real-world usability for a vehicle of this size and class.

Chassis and handling: the 'Magic Carpet Ride', reimagined

To match the Spectre Black Badge's enhanced performance, Rolls-Royce engineers have fine-tuned the chassis. The steering weight has been increased to provide better feedback, while roll stabilisation has been adjusted to reduce body lean in corners. Upgraded dampers further refine body control, minimising squat under acceleration and dive under braking. When throwing it into corners on the track, it felt remarkably agile.

These changes ensure that, while the Spectre retains its hallmark "magic carpet ride", it also offers a more responsive feel for the driver. Achieving this balance in a car of this scale is no small feat, yet Rolls-Royce has executed it with the precision we have come to expect.

Bespoke personalisation: crafting individuality

Customisation is at the heart of every Rolls-Royce, and the Black Badge Spectre raises the bar. Clients can select from 44,000 'prêt-à-porter' paint colours or collaborate with Rolls-Royce designers to create an entirely unique hue. The introduction of the 'waft' coachline along the lower half of the coupé provides an additional personalisation touch, as well as subtly accentuating the car's generous proportions.

Inside, Rolls-Royce's SPIRIT operating system allows customers to tailor digital surfaces, meaning that both the physical and digital elements of the car match up. Whether it's unique interior materials, contrasting leather upholstery, or personalised embroidery, the Black Badge Spectre accommodates individuality – it's unlikely that there will ever be two alike.

Interior: a fusion of craftsmanship and technology

Stepping into the Black Badge Spectre is an experience in itself. The cabin is a masterpiece, blending traditional craftsmanship with modern innovation. The Technical Fibre Illuminated Fascia, featuring over 5,500 fibre-optic stars, forms an abstract representation of the Spirit of Ecstasy mascot intertwined with the Black Badge infinity symbol – a subtle but striking differentiator from the standard Spectre.

Materials are equally impressive. A distinctive carbon and fine metal-thread diamond-pattern weave adds depth and complexity to surfaces, while the upholstery is exquisitely detailed. Every element of the interior reaffirms Rolls-Royce's commitment to the highest standards of craftsmanship, from the deep-pile carpets to the precision-stitched leather.

The verdict

From city streets to mountain switchbacks to the open track, the Black Badge Spectre remains every inch a Rolls-Royce: refined, beautifully crafted, and effortless to drive. With its bold styling, enhanced performance, and near-limitless customisation options, the Black Badge is perhaps the ultimate expression of electrified luxury.

Ministers have finally given the green light to the Lower Thames Crossing, ending years of delays and false starts.

The scheme, which will connect Kent and Essex, has become a "symbol of Britain's sclerotic planning system", said the Financial Times (FT).

What is it?

Described by National Highways as "the most significant road project in a generation", the 14.5-mile road and tunnel project linking Essex and Kent is "aimed at reducing congestion on the Dartford Crossing by nearly doubling road capacity across the Thames east of London", said The Independent.

This will include two 2.6-mile tunnels under the Thames, which would be "the UK's longest road tunnels".

One official said the project would be a "key strategic route" for drivers, freight and logistics, improving connectivity between southern England and the Midlands and unlocking regional economic growth.

What's the hold-up been?

Tuesday's announcement by Transport Secretary Heidi Alexander was "16 years in the making, with the project first mooted in 2009", said the BBC.

More than £1.2 billion has already been spent on planning, consultations, traffic modelling, environmental assessments, legal and advisory fees and land purchases, despite construction not yet having started.

The FT said the planning document for the project "runs to 359,070 pages, equivalent to nearly 300 times the complete works of William Shakespeare".

Originally costed at between £5.3 billion and £6.8 billion when it was first agreed in 2017, it is currently forecast to cost around £10 billion. Barring any further hold-ups, work on the tunnel is expected to begin next year and it is scheduled to open in 2032.

Why is it controversial?

The Lower Thames Crossing "has seen many controversies along its now 20-year lifespan", said New Civil Engineer.

Last October, residents of Thurrock, Essex, told the BBC the plans have been "looming" over them for years, leaving them unable to sell their homes and move.

Thurrock Council leader John Kent said the proposals "would do nothing to improve congestion locally or regionally and would add little capacity to the national strategic road network".

He added that the tunnels would, however, "cut Thurrock in two, severing communities, bring huge amounts of pollution to the borough, but bring no discernible benefits for local people".

The project has also faced a number of "legal threats" from environmental groups, The i Paper reported. "Conservationists claim several developments that are central to the Government's growth agenda" – including the Lower Thames Crossing – "do not take into consideration new laws designed to improve England’s protected national park and landscapes."

National Highways has promised to build "the UK's greenest ever road", but environmental groups have "raised concerns over the destruction of ancient woodlands and habitats for wildlife".

There has also been fierce debate about how the project will be funded, with the government "yet to decide what method of private finance to use", said the FT.

A proposal to have a "regulated asset base" model – in which private investors would collect road toll revenues to pay back their investments over the life of the projects – is "favoured by the Treasury, according to people with knowledge of the discussions".

This option – which would require nearly £2 billion of taxpayer funding to attract £6.3 billion of private investment – would cost the Treasury £200 million more in upfront costs than if the government paid for the scheme directly, according to a recent National Highways document.

Car insurance costs are on the rise, but you may not pay as much if you are covering a vintage vehicle.

The average annual cost of car insurance in the final quarter of 2024 was £621, according to the Association of British Insurers.

The figure is up 15% annually "against a backdrop of total claims payouts that were 17% higher in 2024".

But when it comes to premiums in the classic car market, there is quite a difference.

When does a car become a classic?

There is no "definitive answer" on when a car becomes a classic, said CompareTheMarket, with some thinking it is based on "timeless design and technological or nostalgic value".

If you use the car tax exemption date of 1984 as a cut-off, then any car over 40 years old is classic "even if it's not very desirable," said the comparison website.

HMRC considers a car to be classic when it's over 15 years old and has a market value above £15,000, said Howden Insurance, but some insurers may require the car to be 25 or 30 years old "to qualify for classic car insurance".

A classic car "can be anything from an Aston Martin or a vintage Porsche to any make of car that's older than 15 years", said Uswitch, so it is possible you've been driving one "without even knowing it".

Most classic car policies start once a car is at least 20 years old, said Carwow, and they are "usually much cheaper than you'd expect".

How much is classic car insurance?

Classic car cover is often cheaper than a standard insurance policy, said Go.Compare as vintage vehicles are typically "well-maintained, stored safely and driven less frequently".

These policies are for drivers who use older cars "infrequently and mainly for 'leisure' purposes", said MoneySavingExpert, so they won't cover you for "doing the school run or daily commute".

As with standard car insurance, you can get third party, third party fire and theft and fully comprehensive cover.

Classic car policies will also ask for an agreed valuation, said Which? – this is a "pre-agreed sum" your insurer pays out if your car is declared a total loss.

There is also cheaper "laid-up cover" covering vintage vehicles that are no longer driven on the road but still require damage, fire and theft insurance.

How to cut the cost of classic car insurance

Like all insurance, said Howden, "there's no one-size-fits-all cost" for classic car insurance.

Premium costs will depend on value, age and your claims history.

Classic cars won't have the same security features as a modern-day vehicle, added Uswitch, so installing an alarm or immobiliser will improve security, but "check with your insurer what impact it will have on your premium".

General car insurance "hints and tips", such as keeping the car in your garage and reducing mileage, "can also be applicable to classic car insurance", said MoneySavingExpert, adding that joining a car club could "knock up to 25% off your insurance".

Car club membership is seen as evidence of your "commitment to taking good care of your car", said Go.Compare.

Some insurers may require owners to keep the car in a garage or to limit mileage, but "despite these caveats", said SlashGear, premiums can be a "bargain" compared with regular insurance.

BYD Dolphin Mini

Having made inroads into the UK with the Seal and full-size Dolphin, Chinese auto giant BYD (Build Your Dreams) is now targeting the small-electric-car market with its Dolphin Mini (pictured above). Priced to rival the UK's cheapest electric car, Dacia's Spring, the Dolphin Mini seats four, and claims a range of 175 miles. But it lacks "oomph": with a small front-mounted 74bhp motor, it takes nearly 15 seconds to get to 62mph (from £16,000).

Dacia Bigster

Due in the spring, this large family SUV (a size up from the Dacia Duster) could tempt buyers away from rivals such as the Kia Sportage, owing to its relatively bargain price, bigger than usual boot and good fuel economy (up to 50mpg). There will be two petrol engines – a mild hybrid and a 155bhp full hybrid. Inside, no-frills Dacia has stripped out excess software, and (thankfully) opted for more simple controls with physical buttons (from £25,000).

Volkswagen ID.2

Said to be an "homage to the Golf, Polo and Beetle", the ID.2 is aimed at the suburban supermini market. It's a nippy (0-62mph in about seven seconds), cheap and practical electric hot hatch; it will be front-wheel drive, with a new 223bhp motor and a choice of two batteries (38kWh and 56kWh) for a range of up to 280 miles; and there will be a GTI version too. Inside, there is a large 12.9in central touchscreen (from £21,000).

Ford Puma Gen-E

Unveiled at the end of last year, Ford's Puma electric looks set to rival family favourites the Kia EV3 and Renault 5. The Romanian-built crossover has a 43kWh battery, with a WLTP range of 233 miles, and is expected to take just 23 minutes to charge from 10-80% using a 100kW fast charger. The boot is huge, and with the frunk, there's up to 566 litres of space. Inside is a 12in touchscreen and a 12.8in digital display (from £29,995).

Range Rover Electric

Jaguar Land Rover claims its all-electric luxury Range Rover will be nearly as good off-road as the petrol version, with a wading depth of 850mm, and torque management to each wheel to help with agility. It should be smooth on motorways too. Capable of 0-62mph in 4.5 seconds, it has a claimed range of 300 miles on a charge, and with electric architecture of 800 volts, recharging is likely to be fast (from £104,000).

Renault 4 E-Tech

Following the success of the new Renault 5, there are high hopes for this larger, smart electric compact SUV. The Comfort model has a 150bhp motor and a 52kWh battery, capable of 249 miles, while the cheaper Urban Range can do 186 miles. Built for urban use, the Renault 4 is likely to strike the balance between ride and handling, with a "gloriously retro interior", plus an electronic voice assistant (from £28,000).

Norway has cemented its reign as a leader in electric vehicle purchases with nine out of 10 new cars sold in Norway last year being powered by electricity.

The Scandinavian nation is "leagues ahead" in the “electric car race", said Quartz, and has "become the poster child" for the transition to EVs, said DW.

Green and robust

As far back as the 1990s, Norway set out to manufacture EVs and, although "early attempts" had "limited commercial success", they "fostered public awareness and acceptance of electromobility", said the outlet.

Norway's "remarkable commitment" to fighting climate change has been "driven by strong government policies, robust infrastructure, and a supportive public". Its "wealth and size" played a part in its "EV success" – it has a population of 5.5 million and is one of the world's richest nations, thanks to substantial oil and gas reserves, ironically.

Norway "penalises" petrol and diesel cars with "high taxes", said Reuters, and exempts EVs from import and value-added taxes to "make them more attractive", although "some levies" were reintroduced in 2023. EVs have been exempt from road tolls and parking fees and were allowed to use bus lanes in and around the capital, Oslo.

The approach has worked because it has been "consistent over time" and maintained by governments of "various political persuasion", said the outlet, in contrast to other countries where "someone puts tax incentives or exemptions and then they pull back again," said Christina Bu, head of the Norwegian EV association.

Offering incentives, rather than banning petrol and diesel cars, has also helped, said the outlet, and another advantage is that Norway "does not have an automaker lobby". Norway's power grid is "one of the greenest and most robust in the world", said DW, and usually produces a "surplus of energy", which helped ease the home charging of EVs.

Ambitious goal

Norway has set a target for all cars sold to be zero-emission vehicles by the end of 2025, a milestone that would put it a decade ahead of the European Union, of which it is not a member.

But "reaching that ambitious goal" will "likely be a difficult task", said Quartz. Øyvind Solberg Thorsen, from the Norwegian Road Federation, said that "the figures and the increase in share show that the last few percentages" to meet the 2025 target may be "difficult to achieve".

While nearly all new buyers of cars in Norway have gone electric, "some hold-outs remain", noted Reuters, particularly among rental companies, which prefer to use cars that are familiar for tourists.

The Japanese car industry was once ascendant. Now it appears ready to consolidate in the face of challenges from Chinese EV makers like BYD: Nissan and Honda are in talks for a possible merger.

The two companies are looking to "combine resources in order to remain competitive" in the face of China's powerhouse auto industry, said CNN. But the need is particularly acute for Nissan, which saw its strategic alliance with French automaker Renault "collapse" in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. That left Nissan in "desperate need of a larger merger partner." How much trouble is Nissan facing? Profits for the six-month period ending in September "plunged" 94%, said CNN. Some observers suspect that left alone, Nissan "could face bankruptcy as soon as 2026."

Nissan was "once a symbol of Japan's carmaking prowess," said The Wall Street Journal. In recent years, though, it has stumbled. The company has been "slower than rivals in refreshing its lineup" and has fallen behind in the race to build electric vehicles. Nissan also "has yet to fully recover" from the 2018 arrest of former executive Carlos Ghosn for financial crimes. (He ultimately fled Japan in a private jet.) But talks of a merger have some American auto dealers hopeful. "Honda is a better-run company than Nissan," said Adam Lee, whose Maine company includes two Nissan outlets and a Honda dealership, to the Journal.

Losing ground in China

The Honda-Nissan talks are a sign of the "existential threat of Chinese EVs to Japan," Kantaro Komiya and Yoshifumi Takemoto said at Reuters. Both companies have lost ground in China as BYD and other domestic carmakers capture that rising market. That's not just bad for Honda and Nissan — it's a threat to the Japanese car industry, which is "the strongest sector in the world's fourth-largest economy," Komiya and Takemoto said. "If the auto industry doesn't improve, then the whole of Japanese manufacturing will not get better," said Takumi Tsunoda, an economist at Shinkin Central Bank Research Institute.

Keeping pace with Chinese automakers means "rolling out electric vehicles" while also selling the "petrol cars that will finance the shift," said The Economist. The problem for Nissan: Investors are "unconvinced that it has a clear strategy for EVs or hybrids." A company containing Honda and Nissan together "could invest more in technology to catch up with rivals," said The Economist.

'Egos and infighting'

The challenge? Carmaker mergers "often falter," said The New York Times. That's because the process of combining two large manufacturing companies requires "reconciling different technologies, models and approaches to doing business." The 1998 merger of Chrysler and Daimler shows that it's difficult to smooth those differences when hundreds of thousands of jobs are on the line. "You try to put two of them together and you run into a lot of egos and infighting," said Thomas Stallkamp, a consultant who was involved in that merger.

"A merger, should it take place, won't be a magic fix for either company," Rob Stumpf said at InsideEVs. The process of joining the companies together could take up to five years, according to one analyst, and "that leaves a lot of time for the competition to sprint ahead of both brands."

What happened

Honda and Nissan said Wednesday they are exploring merging their companies, deepening a collaboration between Japan's No. 2 and No. 3 automakers that started in March. Both companies are losing ground in China, the world's largest auto market, and struggling to keep up with Tesla and China's BYD in the global race to produce affordable electric vehicles.

Who said what

In a joint statement, Honda and Nissan said they were "considering various possibilities for future collaboration, but no decisions have been made." A combined Honda-Nissan would be the world's third-largest automaker by production, sales and market capitalization, after Toyota and Volkswagen.

A merger would allow Honda and Nissan to "seek synergies in purchasing and technology development, but it would also present challenges for two companies with different cultures and partly overlapping vehicle lineups," The Wall Street Journal said. Honda "has long pursued a go-it-alone approach," The New York Times said, but the high investment costs in pivoting to battery-powered vehicles has "led it to seek partnerships."

What next?

Nissan and Honda were "expected to sign a memorandum of understanding within the next week to formally begin discussions of partnership-broadening steps," the Times said, "including the details of a potential merger."

If you have a favorite automotive brand, there's a good chance it's made by Stellantis. Chrysler, Dodge and Jeep all fall under the company's umbrella, as do international lines like Fiat, Maserati and Alfa Romeo. But Stellantis is stumbling.

How bad is it? CEO Carlos Tavares resigned this month, said Fortune. That was a shock: Tavares was "once hailed as the very best manager the legacy car industry had to offer." Stellantis posted "record annual results" for 2023, but in September Tavares "shocked the market" this fall by revealing Stellantis' plans to "liquidate a bloated U.S. inventory of vehicles at bargain-basement prices." Critics said the announcement revealed that Tavares "prioritized short-term success at the cost of longer-term problems," Fortune said.

"All kinds of problems lurked" behind Stellantis' 2023 success, said CNBC. High prices and quality problems, notably in the ever-more-costly Jeep line, dogged the company's brands. As a result, "profits plummeted by nearly half" during the first six months of 2024, and U.S. sales fell 20% in the third quarter. (Industry sales are up overall.) Dealers now find themselves with a surplus of Stellantis vehicles on their lots. "That means they aren't selling," said CNBC. The company's North American brands, once a "cash cow," are faltering. "The next six to 12 months could also be quite rocky."

What did the commentators say?

"What a mess it is," Gus Carlson said for The Globe and Mail. Jeep, Dodge and Ram were once "workhorse" brands, but they have increasingly "turned away loyal buyers" with "stubbornly high luxury-level prices." Tavares was once seen as a "visionary dealmaker" for his maneuvering that combined the Peugeot and Fiat Chrysler companies to create Stellantis. But he made a misstep when it came to a basic rule of business: "Know what value means to your customers and price your products accordingly." Instead, the visionary dealmaker ended his tenure in a blaze of "tone-deaf strategy and bad leadership," said Carlson.

The problem at Stellantis "boils down to product and price" Steven Cole Smith said at Hagerty, which covers the auto industry. The company needs to find a surprise in its product pipeline to "instill confidence in the dealer network, and generate a positive buzz among customers." The company's North American forerunner, Chrysler, has been left for dead repeatedly over the decades, only to emerge with hit products like minivans in the 1980s and the Dodge Ram pickup in the 1990s. "Each represented outside-the-box thinking," said Smith, "backed by the willingness to take chances."

What next?

The dealers who sell Stellantis vehicles are "breathing a sigh of relief" at Tavares' departure, said The Detroit Free Press. And they're optimistic about the company's future. "It's like buying a house, it's got great bones," said an anonymous Michigan dealer. But they still have to move slow-selling vehicles off their lots, and price remains an issue. There are more than 100,000 Jeep Grand Wagoneers sitting unsold at the moment — but the vehicle "carries a price tag over $100,000," said the Free Press. Which means there's still trouble in the short term. If you're going to bet on Stellantis' future, another dealer said, "you wouldn't bet it on a $113,000 product, you'd bet it on a $30,000 product."

This week's announcement of plans to close a Vauxhall van factory in Luton underlines the UK's ongoing struggle with the transition to electric vehicles (EVs).

Experts say that EV uptake isn't keeping up with the government's plan for UK manufacturers to sell only zero-emission vehicles by 2030. Stellantis, which owns Vauxhall and several other car brands, blamed its decision to close the Luton factory "on the UK's 'stringent' zero-emission vehicle mandate, sparking a row over the viability of Labour targets", said Yahoo News UK.

Car manufacturers face fines if they don't comply with yearly EV sales targets, so they often offer discounts or promotions, but plateauing demand for EV vehicles has put even the most established car companies under stress.

Private motorists "are refusing to play ball with the government’s targets", said The Spectator, which means "some very large fines are looming".

What are the zero-emission targets?

In January, a government-backed pledge to switch entirely to electric vehicles by 2035 – the Zero Emission Vehicle (ZEV) mandate – was signed into law.

The mandate set incremental benchmarks, requiring car manufacturers to sell set percentages of EVs in each year leading up to the total ban.

This year, Labour leaders said it would reinstate the ZEV mandate's original goal: 100% zero-emission vehicles by 2030. "This is five years earlier than the original mandate target set by Rishi Sunak's government – and a demand car makers say they can't meet," said the Daily Mail.

To meet the current goal, 28% of new cars and 16% of new vans sold in 2025 must be zero-emission. And if makers can't meet the benchmark, they must pay a fine: £15,000 for each non-compliant car and £18,000 for each non-compliant van.

Why are car makers 'hitting the panic button'?

This year, poor demand for EVs means manufacturers have struggled to meet the government's targets. And many are now left with a difficult choice.

"To avoid fines, they say they are having to discount new vehicles heavily," said BBC News. Or they are "subsidising" rival companies which only build electric cars, and "none of which have a manufacturing base in the UK".

Stellantis and other car makers have "hit the panic button", said the Daily Mail, and "slashed the costs of some of their EVs by as much as 35%". Car firms are taking an estimated £4bn hit to make discounts, the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders told the paper, and "has warned that the mandate will have 'devastating impacts'" on businesses and jobs.

Ford has already announced it will cut 4,000 jobs across Europe, and Volkswagen is set to shut three of its factories in Germany "for the first time in the history of the company", said The New York Times. Jaguar, too, is undergoing a complete rebrand while it switches to 100% EV production.

"We need government-backed incentives to urgently boost the uptake of electric vehicles," Ford UK's managing director Lisa Brankin told the BBC. The company has put hundreds of millions into bolstering its electric fleet but it isn't seeing results. Without demand, Brankin said, the EV mandate "just won't work".

What's the government response?

After Vauxhall's announcement, the government seems to be paying closer attention to manufacturers' demands.

Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds told car manufacturers he is ''profoundly concerned" about how the targets are panning out. "I don't believe the policies that we have inherited, and I mean specifically in relation to zero-emission vehicles, are operating today in a way anyone intended them to," he said, according to Yahoo News UK.

However, it seems clear that the government wants "to stick to a deadline of 2030 for phasing out the sale of new petrol and diesel-powered cars", said the news site.

Quentin Wilson, journalist and former "Top Gear" star, told the Daily Mail that the government needs to spend more on customer incentives, such as electric chargers and free parking for EVs, if it continues to impose fines on manufacturers.

"What the government must do is to make it easier for consumers to buy these cars, and that means offering incentives, like, you know, free parking in some towns and cities," he said.

The third-generation Vanquish is "the best Aston Martin full stop", said Evo. In its "fabulous" new shape, it looks "quietly aggressive", which is fitting given the competition it's facing from the new Ferrari 12 Cilindri, which has "uncannily similar" headline figures. With 824bhp, the Aston has a top speed of 214mph, and can do 0-62mph in 3.3secs, while the Ferrari has 819bhp, a top speed of 211mph and hits 62mph in 2.9secs. The Vanquish ticks a lot of boxes: it feels "well balanced and agile", it "looks wonderful", "sounds amazing" and, thanks to an all-new 5.2-litre V12 engine with twin turbochargers optimised for efficiency and power, "offers spectacular performance".

The Vanquish is designed for long distances and high speeds, said Car Magazine. The wheelbase is three inches longer, which gives better stability and weight distribution. The only choice of gearbox is an eight-speed auto, but you can have some fun with it. Switch from GT to Sport+ mode for a stronger throttle response and the Vanquish is "comfortable, stable and exceedingly rapid".

With a "penchant for speed and theatrics", the Vanquish "keeps you on your toes", said the Financial Times, and moderation is needed, particularly on the accelerator. For all its "muscular appearance", this is strictly a two-seater. The cabin is "comfortable and spacious", but there's not much room for bags, so Aston sells a bespoke luggage set designed for the space: the boot is big enough to hold a couple of suitcases. The "knockout" interior has supple leather and satin-finish carbon trims. The central touchscreen suffers from tiny graphics, but thankfully there are rotary controls too.

America's love affair with super-sized trucks and SUVs has a downside: The giant vehicles can be a menace to pedestrians, who have died in ever-greater numbers in recent years. That may change.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is proposing new rules designed to "reduce the number of pedestrians killed and seriously injured" on American roadways, NPR said. The number of pedestrians killed in vehicle accidents has risen by 75% since 2009. The reasons for that rise are "complicated," but surely include the "growing size and weight of vehicles." Another factor? Design. Those big vehicles with "higher front ends and blunt profiles" are 45% more likely to cause fatalities than smaller cars and trucks.

The proposed rules will require auto companies to test their vehicles on crash test dummies that "simulate children and adults," said The Associated Press. That testing is expected to reveal "blind spots for drivers" in vehicles that have grown in "size and hood height" over recent years. The aim is to save lives. "We have a crisis of roadway deaths," said one official, "and it's even worse among vulnerable road users like pedestrians." 

What did the commentators say?

Cars are safer than ever "for the people inside of them," Collin Woodard said at Jalopnik. That's not the case for people outside vehicles. Federal regulators have known "for over a decade" that action was needed to protect pedestrians and now it's finally happening. The proposed rules would apply to all American-made vehicles under 10,000 pounds, but "it's no secret that the Escalades and F-150s of the world are the primary targets." The rising number of pedestrian deaths makes the United States an "outlier" — in other developed countries road deaths "have been dropping instead of increasing." The rules could still be watered down, "but this is still a huge step in the right direction."

Giant passenger vehicles in America are "too much of a good thing," said The Economist. Carmakers say they're giving buyers "what they want" by increasing the size of vehicles, but the rising death rate of pedestrians is too high a price to pay for "roomier interiors and more powerful engines." Analyses show a vehicle's weight is a "critical factor" in the survivability of vehicle crashes, and that just makes sense. Despite all the safety features available on American vehicles today, "the laws of physics are cruel." Bottom line: "Reining in the heaviest vehicles would save lives."

What next?

Big trucks and SUVs "could look very different in the near future," said The Street. It's not just safety rules that will prompt the change: Automakers are also pushing — in fits and starts — to transition from gas-guzzling engines to electric vehicles, and the sheer size of many popular vehicles is an obstacle to that shift. "We have to start to get back in love with smaller vehicles," Ford CEO Jim Farley said at the Aspen Ideas Festival. 

If implemented, The Verge said, the rules could save 67 lives a year. That may just be the start. Europe has "gone much further to protect pedestrians" by enacting rules that prevent some of the largest American passenger vehicles from being sold on the market. The new rules are a "step in the right direction," said Cathy Chase, the president of Advocates for Highway and Auto Safety. "But it still falls behind what Europe has successfully done."

One of the world's worst countries for car thefts is not one that you might expect. Nevertheless, Canada is dealing with an epidemic of stolen vehicles. Despite many Canadians going to extreme lengths to protect their valuables, car thefts in the land of maple leaves continue to be a widespread and pervasive problem. 

While the issue has been ongoing, recent years have seen a significant uptick in the crime. Car thefts were up 24% across the country in 2022, according to The New York Times, and in Canada's largest city, Toronto, thefts have risen 150% over the last six years. Just how many cars are stolen in Canada, and why has it become such a significant crime? 

How many cars are stolen in Canada?

The number is staggering: More than 105,000 cars have been stolen in Canada since 2022, according to the Insurance Bureau of Canada (IBC), which translates to one every five minutes. Since February 2024 alone, more than 1,500 vehicles first stolen in Canada have been detected around the world, according to Interpol. Stolen Canadian cars are currently being identified at a rate of more than 200 per week, the international policing agency said.

Most of these vehicles "are being identified in other countries, typically at ports of entry," Jalopnik said. Notably, not even "members of the Canadian government are untouched by the waves of thefts." Former Canadian Justice Minister David Lametti "had his government-issued car stolen three times over the past three years," and the same Highlander XLE that was stolen from Lametti "was stolen from his successor, Arif Virani, in November 2023."

It is true that "the U.S., Canada and the U.K. have all experienced a spike in car thefts since the Covid-19 pandemic," said the BBC. But "Canada's rate of thefts (262.5 per 100,000 people) is higher than that of England and Wales (220 per 100,000 people)."  

Why is car theft in Canada so bad? 

"The pervasiveness of car thefts in Canada is surprising given how small the country's population is compared to the U.S. and the U.K. — other countries with high rates of such crime," Alexis Piquero, the director of the U.S. Bureau of Justice Statistics, said to the BBC. 

It is true that the Covid pandemic has played a significant role in the auto theft spike, both in Canada and globally. Cars "have become a lucrative business for crime rings in recent years," and "auto parts and semiconductor shortages during the Covid-19 pandemic constrained car production and increased demand for newer-model cars already on the road,"  Bryan Gast, the vice president of investigative services at Canadian insurance fraud tracker Équité Association, said to The Wall Street Journal. 

Many stolen Canadian cars are often found in Africa, where "demand for used cars in African countries is surging" due to a growing middle class on the continent, said the Journal. Around 40% of the world's used cars are in Africa, and "newer models of cars such as the Honda CR-V sport-utility vehicle are sold at substantial markups to what they could fetch in Canada." This makes cars attractive targets for Canadian thieves looking to sell products offshore. These thieves, many associated with large crime rings, use the cars "as currency, using proceeds from selling the vehicles in foreign markets to fund drugs and arms operations as a way of avoiding the Canadian banking system," Gast said. 

And while Canada's fight against auto theft "has largely focused on ramping up inspections at shipping ports," criminals are "increasingly selling hot vehicles in Canada to unsuspecting buyers with little protection, exploiting a weakness in provincial registration systems that veteran investigators argue needs to be fixed," said the CBC. 

Car theft remains "one of the top three revenue generators for organized crime," Nick Milinovich, deputy chief of the Peel Regional Police, said to the CBC. It is "high reward, low risk and an easy crime."

Younger generations will shape our world's future. And with climate change a worry for many, it's no surprise that they have plenty of ideas on how we can best protect the planet.

So, what does a greener future look like through their eyes? Imagining that possibility is the first step towards making it a reality – something Osprey Charging Network knows all too well and is championing with "Visions of the Future".

Through the innovative use of AI generated images, Osprey has brought to life creative versions of what the world might be like to live in in the coming years, as imagined by a number of young minds. Some kids envisioned a utopia of progress and positivity, the skies filled with rainbows and flying electric cars, the air clean and the water clear. 

But others had a less optimistic outlook. One child imagined an atmosphere destroyed by air pollution in which people couldn't breathe comfortably or move around freely.  "It's awful. Everything's just destroyed," he said as he saw this ahead of him. Take a look for yourself.  

One point all these young visionaries could agree on is that the future we will create is up to us. Taking proactive and considered steps like recycling helps people to lead more environmentally aware lives, one child said. Another highlighted the urgency of the green energy transition, a driving force behind Osprey Charging's rapid EV charging network. 

There's a lot to consider when you make the switch to an electrical vehicle, and Osprey is putting customers' concerns and questions at the heart of their planning and operations. That's why it's an industry leader in safety and accessibility, setting the standard for high-powered charging infrastructure in the UK. 

The team is building the foundations to help individuals and communities make that leap to cleaner and more sustainable ways of living. Across the country, all the way from John O'Groats down to Land's End, the award-winning Osprey Charging Network has installed more than 1,000 rapid charging points to help EV drivers go further for longer. You'll spot them in towns and cities, and along many key routes across the UK. Find your nearest at OspreyCharging.co.uk.  

With Osprey's help, it couldn't be simpler to power up and hit the road without worrying about range and reliability. Each of its charge points is set up for a range of payment methods, and with speeds of up to 300kW, they are quick and convenient to use. 

And perhaps most importantly, Osprey's units are powered by 100% renewable energy, which helps customers to further reduce their contribution to emissions of the world's most prevalent greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide. So when you need to power up, choose Osprey – because taking action today will make for a better tomorrow. 

Share the "Visions of the Future" video with your network to help inspire change. And find out more about Osprey's commitment to building a more sustainable path forward for people and the planet, at OspreyCharging.co.uk.