Auto Express 1762

WHILE most car makers constantly call on the Government to raise its game when it comes to supporting the charging network, I’ve long thought that the manufacturers themselves should take more responsibility – especially if it means more sales. After all, the industry’s trade body, the SMMT, only this week admitted that the public charging network is the biggest barrier to EV ownership. Tesla has long reaped the rewards of having its own network of Superchargers; it’s one of many reasons so many Teslas are bought each year (numbers one and two in the EV sales chart in 2022, as you can read on page 13). Clearly that isn’t lost on Mercedes, which has just made the significant announcement of plans for a network of 10,000 chargers around the world by 2030.…

Steve_Fowler@autovia.co.uk @stevefowler ● Golf name may be used on EV ● Could be sold alongside ID.3 VOLKSWAGEN recently announced a hefty set of upgrades for its ID.3 all-electric hatchback – but the company isn’t about to give up on its more famous family model, the Golf. And now, brand boss Thomas Schäfer has said that the iconic badge might be applied to an EV after the combustion-engined versions cease production. The current Mk8 Golf is due for a facelift this year, and this is likely to bring further mild-hybrid tech. Recent spy shots have also shown that VW is tweaking the controversial infotainment system, while increasing the size of the central touchscreen display. This is likely to be the last generation of the Golf to feature a combustion engine. But after this model reaches the end…

sean_carson@autovia.co.uk ● Radical saloon shown at CES ● Focuses on digital connectivity WITH new cars packing more tech than ever, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas is increasingly becoming a major motor show for brands, and the latest to reveal a new project at CES 2023 is BMW, with its i Vision Dee concept. The electric show car hints at the future of the 3 Series saloon, reinvented for a new era and based on BMW’s Neue Klasse platform. The i Vision Dee boasts retro-themed design cues but with cutting-edge features, such as an evolution of BMW’s E-Ink technology. “Dee” stands for Digital Emotional Experience, with the aim of “creating an even stronger bond between people and their cars”. Key to this, BMW says, is the Mixed Reality Slider, which uses a touch-sensitive…

A NEW electric car brand formed by Sony and Honda, called AFEELA, has unveiled its first electric vehicle concept at CES 2023. The as-yet unnamed four-door saloon is said to focus on “Autonomy, Augmentation and Affinity”, with AFEELA explaining that “the three As are the direction in which our mobility grows”. As a result, the 4.9-metre-long fastback model features Level 3 autonomous driving tech and the latest safety technology, with the car featuring a total of 45 sensors and cameras inside and out. Its next-generation infotainment system (part of a collaboration with Epic Games) “integrates real and virtual worlds”, AFEELA says, with much of the technology based on Qualcomm’s Snapdragon Digital Chassis system, which was also unveiled at CES (above, far right). The five-seat model has a “Media Bar”, which can display messages…

sean_carson@autovia.co.uk ● Concept uses STLA Large EV platform and has 500-mile range ● Hypersquare steering wheel is the highlight of hi-tech interior PEUGEOT has revealed its Inception concept at the Consumer Electronics Show 2023, with the sleek new saloon highlighting an exciting vision for the brand’s future and outlining initial details of parent firm Stellantis’s STLA Large platform. The Inception is five metres long, with its size “deliberately chosen to highlight the many innovations of this manifesto”. It’s set to inspire future products, down to the most compact cars in the range, from 2025. Mounted between the axles is a 100kWh battery, which the brand claims is good for a range of 800km (497 miles). The battery supplies two electric motors – one on the front axle, the other on the rear for all-wheel drive…

ELECTRONICS giant Qualcomm has revealed a standalone Digital Chassis concept car at CES 2023, with the four-door coupé-SUV showcasing the firm’s future Artificial Intelligence, voice control and digital ecosystem tech. Qualcomm, known for making electronics processors, says its Snapdragon Digital Chassis concept features “immersive infotainment, driver assistance and enhanced safety” and “brings the software-defined vehicle to life”. This is a huge growth area for the automotive industry, and firms such as Qualcomm are keen to get in on the act by providing open-source, scalable and upgradable software platforms for vehicle makers to base their infotainment and autonomous driving features on. Cloud-based on-demand services are highlighted by the concept, with Qualcomm also developing facial-recognition tech that can alter settings based on the user.…