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Weekly round-up: the Budget, Black Friday leasing and Road Safety Week 2017

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Author: | Updated: 24 Nov 2017 14:52

The news has been nothing if not varied at the ContractHireAndLeasing news desk this week. Philip Hammond’s budget has dealt a further blow to diesel, it’s Brake’s Road Safety Week and, to top it all off, today is Black Friday! So, where to start?

Top left clockwise: new A-Class interior, Black Friday, Road Safety Week, Philip Hammond.

We’ll get the dreary (although arguably the most important) story out the way first: the Budget. Speculation has been somewhat quiet on any further plans for changes to the automotive industry as the dreaded B(rexit) word remains the main focal point of any and all spending.

As it turned out, the chancellor made quite a few automotive announcements on Thursday, with a further downer for diesel and extra funding for EVs. He announced that first-year Vehicle Excise Duty (VED) for new diesel cars that don’t meet new real-world emission standards (RDE2) will be pushed up a band from April 2018.

Philip Hammond Budget 2018

The thing is, manufacturers aren’t required to conform with RDE2 regulations until 2021. While some are already doing so under the new WLTP rules, many of them will have to play catch up if they want to avoid their vehicles’ road tax being notched up. 

He also confirmed that the existing diesel supplement on company car tax will rise to 4%, with the proceeds going toward a new £220m clean air fund.

Hammond also used his speech to reaffirm the government’s commitment to bring “genuine driverless vehicles” on to Britain’s roads by 2021. Whether or not his announcement was a ploy to deflect other issues in the budget isn’t clear, but the chancellor seems pretty keen on an automated future.

He said: “It will happen, I can promise you. It’s happening already […] It will revolutionise our lives and the way we work, but some people will find this challenging.”

Mercedes-Benz recently presented its ‘holistic electric drive strategy’

While automated vehicles are still a way off, in the nearer future we can look forward to numerous all-electric cars hitting the market, and this is something the government is keen to encourage. As such, £400m has been set aside to create a charging infrastructure, while the government’s plug-in car grant received a boost of £100m too. Talking of EVs…

Elon Musk: P.T. Barnum for 2017?

Not a week goes by without some electric-related announcement, and this week it came from Mercedes-Benz. It confirmed that all its commercial vehicles will soon be offered with some form of electrified drivetrain, the first of which will be the mid-size eVito van. You can expect the next gen of Sprinter to feature hybrid tech, too.

A modern-day P.T Barnum?

Car or van, supermini or saloon, more and more will be going electric in the coming years. When it comes to supercars however, it would seem Tesla will be leading the way with its new Roadster.

But in truth, its affordable Model 3 has failed to reach production targets so far. Forget a 1.9-second 0-60mph time and a nuclear-proof truck, we think convincing people he could build more cars has been showman Elon Musk’s greatest trick so far

Is it wrong to put a price on car safety?

There’s no denying car safety has moved on leaps and bounds over the last few decades, but unless you plump for a top-of-the-range trim level or don’t mind a few extra ticks the options list, it’s still a fact that some cars aren’t as safe as they could be.

Don’t know what we mean? Just take a look at some of the cheaper, entry-level cars Euro NCAP tested this year. You’ll find some of them get two ratings: one for the cars in their most basic form, and one that features additional safety options like autonomous emergency braking (AEB).

Road Safety Week: The facts behind speed and road safety

Safety systems such as these protect occupants and pedestrians alike, and aim to avoid a collision occurring in the first place. So why aren’t they standard across all cars? For Road Safety Week, we consider if it’s wrong for car makers to put a price safety features.

A-Class leader?

Despite the flurry of other stories this week, we always make time to check out the latest cars and when they’ll be available to lease. Topping the list this week, it’s the upcoming Mercedes-Benz A-Class.

It’s due to be revealed at next year’s Paris Motor Show and, while we haven’t seen any external pics yet, if its plush interior is anything to go by, it might just be the class-leader if you’re after a premium hatch.

Mercedes has revealed the first official pictures of its upcoming A-Class.

Elsewhere, Jeep has revealed full specs and price details for its upcoming Compass crossover. Sitting between the Renegade and Cherokee, this is the car Jeep hopes will take on the likes of the Nissan Qashqai and Mazda’s CX-5.

Bonkers Black Friday – is it worth the fuss?

Looking for Black Friday car leasing deals? So are lots of people. In fact, around £2.6bn is expected to be spent today. But it’s fair to say some people get more caught up in Black Friday hype than others…

Black Friday UK madness

Let’s consider a fact: Which? has already warned that more than half of last year's Black Friday deals were cheaper or the same price at other times of year.

That’s why, here at ContractHireAndLeasing we think people should be able to get the best deals all year round, and with over two million personal lease car deals on site right now we certainly have you covered if you’re after a new car.

Black Friday lease deals: all they're cracked up to be?

Research, shop around; you’ll be far better equipped to find the best car leasing deals. Whether you’re a fan of Black Friday or not, we’ve put together a dedicated page where you’ll find info on the best value cars and some tips on how to get a great leasing deal.

Did you have to defrost your car this morning? Winter is now well and truly upon us, so we’ll leave you with a review of the perfect supermini for the job. The Suzuki Swift Allgrip is proof enough that you don’t need a big chunky car if you want a four-wheel drive… Here’s our thoughts on this plucky little supermini

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