#Europe

Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares’ pay increase has annoyed a subset of shareholders as the automaker positions itself for more layoffs and attempts to shift the production of electric vehicles to countries where labor is cheaper. Meanwhile, the automaker's unwillingness to renegotiate contracts with suppliers had created additional tension with its business partners.

The Italian Minister for Business has criticized Stellantis for manufacturing the Alfa Romeo Milano outside of the country, suggesting that the automaker had likely violated the law.

The Porsche 718 is now dead in Europe after it failed to meet the European Union’s so-called “cybersecurity” regulations. The Cayman and Boxster be joining the gasoline-powered Macan SUV in the afterlife, which encountered its own regional demise for similar reasons. While all models will reportedly return as electric vehicles, we know things will never be the same.

Updated European safety certifications may discourage global automakers from leaning so heavily upon touch controls in the future. While not a formal government regulator, the European New Car Assessment Programme (NCAP) is extremely influential in a manner similar to the United States’ Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). These are the entities testing the crash worthiness of modern automobiles, or bench-marking industry safety standards, and Euro NCAP has elected to make distracted driving a major issue moving forward. By 2026, any vehicles sold within the European market will need to include physical controls to be deemed truly safe.

A British friend of mine recently asked my opinion on several vehicle models, saying he was browsing company cars. What I assumed would be a quick chat quickly devolved into my being educated on British tax codes, especially the benefit-in-kind (BIK) taxes applied to any items of value provided to employees. While familiar with the concept, I was not ready to traverse the graphs and tables required to determine how much you’re on the hook for depending upon what type of vehicle you’ve chosen.

With New York City having decided to embrace European-style congestion charging as local residents express their displeasure, it might be wise to take time to look at other roadway initiatives that might soon migrate across the Atlantic to see how they’re fairing. Ultra Low Emission Zones (ULEZ) seem to be the next step, as they’re reliant on the same camera systems and vehicle tracking used for congestion taxes. However, they’re also following a similar trajectory as Britain's speed cameras in Europe. Disgruntled citizens have not only continued destroying the devices, they’re reportedly picking up the pace.

Don’t expect to see many SUVs in the background of future photos of the Eiffel Tower. Results of a weekend referendum have tripled parking rates for some types of vehicles in Paris, France. Based on weight, the new rules target out-of-towners who bring SUVs into the City of Light.

While we’re constantly hearing about tightening emissions regulations, the relevant timelines issued by government actors are rarely adhered to. Electric vehicle subsidies went from temporary to indefinite and combustion bans have gone from right around the corner to anyone’s guess. This is also true of the industry itself, which often makes bold promises designed to appease a subset of the public only to repeatedly move the target date back a few years. 

With this in mind, Porsche’s CFO was recently quoted as saying European combustion bans will probably need to be delayed and there’s good reason to believe him. 

Regulators in Germany have opened an investigation into alleged diesel exhaust rule circumvention on the part of BMW. Claims have been made that the automaker used an illegal defeat device on select models to achieve lower tailpipe emissions during testing. It’s a situation reminiscent of the Volkswagen Dieselgate scandal from 2015. However, government regulators have been on the offensive ever since — roping in loads of manufacturers and leaving a subset of the public wondering whether modern emission laws are even tenable.

Croatian hypercar manufacturer Rimac Automobili has thrown the world a bit of a curveball. The business is reportedly in the middle of a plot to develop robotaxi services for Europe and making some decent headway at that.

It may have been cuter than a first-generation Civic but Honda’s entirely electric supermini didn’t last very long. Introduced in 2020, the Honda e is being pulled from the European market just one year after it was discontinued in its native Japan.

At the start of autumn months, the United Automobile Workers (UAW) launched a strike amid contract negotiations with domestic carmakers. Initial demands were lofty, designed to force the industry into making compromises that benefited union labor, and included things like a four-day work week for those on the assembly line.

While dubbed ridiculous by some Americans, Lamborghini now appears to be offering its workers a three-day weekend in Europe. The involved unions claimed it was the first time in the European automotive sector reduced hours while simultaneously increasing wages.

With Mercedes-Benz having updated volume models GLA family earlier this year, everyone knew it was a matter of time before changes were made for the high-performance AMG variants. But how much would change was the big question. With Mercedes having promised to electrify everything new AMG produced from 2025 onward, the model is poised to become an EV during its next re-imagining.

This is reflected in the refresh. The 2024 Mercedes-AMG GLA 45 S 4Matic+ doesn’t see a lot of mechanical changes and has instead adopted some new styling cues and updates to the interior.

In 2017, General Motors sold Opel and Vauxhall to Frances PSA Group — which later merged with Fiat Chrysler to form Stellantis — basically ending its involvement with the European market. However, the company vowed a return in 2023 and that’s now taking place in Switzerland.

Volkswagen intends to temporarily limit production of the SEAT Cupra Born and its very own ID.3 EV in October. The company has cited market forces as the cause, noting that its Zwickau and Dresden plants in Germany would be throttled down for a couple of weeks.