In this week’s episode of Fast News Friday, Foxtrot Papa’s weekly automotive news and content round up, we examine Hyundai’s new Tesla rival, glimpse into the future thanks to Toyota’s customer-friendly hydrogen fuel cell and learn of the United States Postal Service’s versatile new delivery truck. Enjoy.
Resembling a vehicle you might see in a Pixar film, the United States Postal Service announced that it has contracted the fantastically named Oshkosh Defense, a military vehicle manufacturer, to build its new delivery trucks. According to Road & Track, ‘the Next Generation Delivery Vehicle (NGDV) will be a purpose-built, right-hand drive vehicle that can be equipped with either internal combustion power or fully electric powertrains.’ Seemingly as versatile as the kiddy dungarees with which the maker shares a name, the deal represents an initial $482 million investment by the USPS and means Oshkosh will design, build, and deliver up to 165,000 examples of the NGDV over the next 10 years.
Hyundai Ioniq 5 takes aim at Tesla
Hyundai has revealed its latest all-electric model this week in the form of the sharply dressed Ioniq 5 – a handsome mid-size crossover which is the first car to be launched under the Korean firm’s electric sub-brand. Revealed via a delightful set of press images, we think it represents an exciting new direction. Under the hood (or should that be the floor?) 800V battery technology supports up to 220kW DC charging which can charge the battery from 10% to 80% in just 18 minutes. The maximum range is just over 290 miles, which is impressive. Buyers will have the choice of two battery sizes, both available with either rear- or all-wheel drive. The most powerful version uses a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive powertrain producing 302bhp, which is good enough for 0-100km/h in just 5.2 seconds. Watch out, Tesla!
New Land Rover Defender gets supercharged V8
It was only a matter of time until Land Rover’s tough new Defender received JLR’s muscular supercharged V8 motor. Last week the brand announced that it will launch six new electric SUVs in the next five years, whereas this week, we’re salivating over the thought of what it feels like to accelerate from 0-60mph in under five seconds in a Defender! Available as in both two-door short-wheelbase ‘90’ form or four-door long-wheelbase ‘110’ form, the V8 Defender makes a colossal 518bhp and returns a rather shocking 19.5mpg. Just say it quietly, perhaps.
Toyota develops hydrogen fuel cell for customer use
Here’s a press release that you don’t read every day… Toyota has managed to develop and package a hydrogen fuel cell system into a compact module that can be easily used by many different customers, in many different applications. The new module is expected to go on sale to fuel cell product manufacturers from spring 2021. According to Toyota, the module is highly versatile and easy to install, with a wide (400-750V) voltage range. The release states that the modular unit can be connected directly to an existing electric device equipped with a motor, battery and inverter, thanks to a built-in, dedicated boost converter. So, is this the start of something big? Only time will tell.
UK car production at its lowest since 2009
Not wanting to put a dampener on your weekend, but according to this story from Auto Express, UK car production fell 27.3% year-on-year in January 2021, with ‘only’ 86,052 cars built. This makes it the worst month since 2009 and the 17th consecutive month of decline. Mike Hawes, chief executive of the SMMT, which released the figures, summarised the situation: “Yet another month of decline for UK car production is a grave concern and next week’s Budget is the Chancellor’s opportunity to boost the industry by introducing measures that will support competitiveness, jobs and livelihoods. Whilst there have been some very welcome recent announcements, we need to secure our medium to long-term future by creating the conditions that will attract battery gigafactory investment and transform the supply chain. Most immediately, however, we must get our Covid-secure car showrooms back open, ideally before 12 April. This will be the fastest way to UK automotive manufacturing recovery.”