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McLaren DOESN’T stop production of the MP4-12C to fix problems.

McLaren MP4-12C problems haven't stopped production The McLaren MP4-12C is McLaren’s first road car in almost twenty years, and it appears that the new 458 competitor from Woking has a few problems. Reports have been cropping up for some weeks that MP4-12C owners have been plagued (well, plagued is harsh) by a raft of problems including a battery drainage issue (something many cars suffer from early on), headlight condensation and glitchy door operation. McLaren are adamant none of the issues affecting the 12C are safety related and it is therefore continuing to build the cars, so although there will be a delay for some new owners in delivery, the issues should cause no long term back log in deliveries.

Better Place Electric Car visitor centre opens

Better Place have opened a visitor centre in Israel to demonstrate their battery swap technology for electric cars Last October we wrote about a start-up company in Israel – Better Place – that had a new way forward for electric cars by taking the purchase of battery packs out of the equation, and was developing a system for ‘Battery Swap’ stations where electric car owners could drive in and swap their battery pack for a fully-charged one in a few minutes. That story first brought to our attention our favourite quote of last year – by Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn – who said “A hybrid is like a mermaid: if you want a fish, you get a woman; if you want a woman, you get a fish.” Which probably explained why Nissan – and its partner Renault – got involved with Better Place. Better Place aims to address the main concerns of electric car drivers by making the battery packs in electric cars ‘swappable’.

Best Western Hotels rolling out EV charging points in the UK

We’re electric car sceptics – or at least sceptical about their ability to replace the ICE car as our principal form of personal transport – although EVs do have their place as runarounds in urban areas, where their limited range isn’t really a factor. But taking your EV off for a weekend jaunt does pose logistical problems when the average range is probably no more than 80 miles, and something worth making the effort for a weekend away is almost always going to be further away than that. But a bit of smart marketing by Best Western Hotels – a group of 270 or so independently run hotels round the UK – means EV drivers will soon be able to plot their weekend away on the basis of Best Western Hotels en route, with Best Western planning on fitting EV charging points in their car parks, with half their hotels having free charging points by September.