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Fully Charged rolls into season 3 with VW XL1 and electric Land Rover

It's been some time since last we visited with British actor and electric car proponent Robert Llewellyn and his web-based video series, Fully Charged. The show, now sponsored by Ecotricity, has started rolling out its third season and now has available two episodes featuring a pair of truly unique – and diametrically opposed – vehicles. The first installment starts with some interesting numbers involving the host's Nissan Leaf and its energy consumption over the past 36,000 miles, but soon moves on to the ultra-aero, ultra-expensive Volkswagen XL1. Now, if you've already seen the footage from our own XL1 first drive review, there's not a lot new here except, perhaps, more enthusiasm and a better listen of the two-cylinder diesel kicking in. Still, it's a great reminder of a truly unique vehicle and we enjoyed the segment. The second episode features an electrified Land Rover Defender 110. This is a vehicle you'd more likely see on an African safari than at the local mall. It's not a home-built conversion either, but rather, something the company has put together "for the boffins to create the ideas and see if they work." Boasting a 50-mile range, it's certainly something we like to take on an off-road adventure. Llewellyn is given the chance to do just that, and though the course is somewhat milder than what we might attempt, it does feature a stretch of river and some rough, rutted tracks. You can watch both episodes by scrolling below let us know which vehicle you'd prefer in the comments. This writer is going with the four-wheel-drive. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. News Source: Fully Charged Green Land Rover Volkswagen Technology Emerging Technologies Electric Videos robert llewellyn fully charged vw xl1

Regulators consider adding more carmakers to Takata recall

Volkswagen's diesel emissions scandal has been getting a lot of press recently, but the Takata airbag inflator affair could be grabbing headlines again soon. According to Bloomberg, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is contemplating an expansion to the campaign that could add seven automakers to the 12 already affected. They are Jaguar Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz, Spartan Motors, Suzuki, Tesla, Volvo Trucks, and VW Group. To be clear, there's no recall for any of these automakers, yet. The government is simply asking for a full list of vehicles that each of them have with Takata-supplied inflators containing ammonium nitrate propellant. The agency is concerned this substance could play a roll in the ruptures. "NHTSA is considering not only whether to issue an administrative order that would coordinate the remedy programs associated with the current Takata recalls, but also whether such an order should include expansion of the current recalls," the letters say. All seven can be viewed, here. From a report supplied by Takata, the government already knows that the company supplied 887,055 inflators with ammonium-nitrate propellant to VW and 184,926 of them to Tesla. In an incident during the summer, a side airbag allegedly burst in a 2015 VW Tiguan. In early September, NHTSA put out a revised report that there were 23.4 million inflators to be replaced in 19.2 million vehicles in the US. An earlier accounting from the agency had about 34 million of the parts in 30 million cars. High humidity is still believed to be among the biggest risk factors for the ruptures. Although, if ammonium nitrate also gets the blame, some already recalled models might need to be repaired again. Related Video:

Ford's J Mays feels vindicated by Fusion reception

It's hard to think back now, but the same man overseeing the design of the 2013 Ford Fusion also presided over a rather lackluster period in Ford design, highlighted by vehicles like the Five Hundred and Freestyle. With the redesigned Fusion receiving high praise, J Mays tells Automotive News that he feels vindicated from criticisms suggesting he's not a daring enough designer.
When Mays took over as lead of design in 1997, he admits to having quite an ego ("My head would barely fit through the door some days. I've long since gotten over myself") and the workload to match. With the Blue Oval's portfolio full of premium brands like Aston Martin, Jaguar, Land Rover and Volvo at that point, along with the bread-and-butter Ford, Lincoln and Mercury models, Mays certainly had quite the challenge.
It was in the mid-2000s that Mays took over just the premium brands, and took on the new title of Chief Creative Officer. At the time, Mays endured some criticism for looking backwards to retro styling, rather than setting a new standard for American car design - criticism that Mays says he is free from with the all-new Fusion.