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Ford MD Lisa Brankin speaks to us, new Nissan Micra first look & Gowan Motors go Chinese!
144 Plays1 day ago
Season 2 kicks off with a bang!
Mark heads to sunny Spain to get behind the wheel of the all-new Nissan Micra EV and sits down with one of its designers for an exclusive chat. Meanwhile, Paddy is head-over-heels for the reborn Renault 5 — a car we partly record the episode in (yes, really).
We’re also joined by Lisa Brankin, Chair and MD of Ford UK & Ireland, who reflects on her career at the Blue Oval and dives into the Ford Power Promise — a bold initiative to win over EV skeptics as it launches in Ireland.
Plus, we break down the latest industry headlines, including the big news: Gowan Motors becomes the official Irish importer for Leapmotor starting September 2025.
And finally, another listener sends in a classic car-buying dilemma — you know we had to get involved.
Driver's Republic is back. Let’s drive.
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Transcript
Introduction to Drivers Public Podcast
00:00:00
Speaker
Welcome to the Drivers Public Podcast brought to you in association with Dundeele Motors where more Irish drivers find their next car from a trusted dealership than anywhere else. why Because Dundeele's trusted dealership programme means verified dealerships and the kind of backup that matters like warranties and history checks giving you confidence from your very first click.
00:00:22
Speaker
Welcome back to the Drivers Public Podcast and thank you Dundeele for your continued support. Yeah. Anyway, how are you Paddy? Well sure I'm grand. We're sitting here cosy in a Renault 5 EV.
00:00:34
Speaker
It is quite cosy. I do wonder do we look like two Gardie accents. On a stakeout. Yeah exactly. Huge microphones in front of us. Did you see him there Mikey did you?
Interview Preview with Lisa Brankin
00:00:44
Speaker
Yeah, well, we've um just been interviewing the boss of Ford UK and Ireland, Lisa Brankin, and you'll listen to that in the next few minutes. Hang around long enough, you'll hear her?
00:00:54
Speaker
Yeah, she was a she was a very interesting and an interesting interview and and tells us an
Renault 5 EV: Success in Retrospective Design
00:01:00
Speaker
awful lot about... Their plans for Ireland and also an new initiative they have about getting more people into EVs. And and as we sit here in a very, very green St. Patrick's Day green Renault 5 EV, Mark, you've been in this car.
00:01:13
Speaker
I just love it. but don't know about you. Yeah, my one was yellow. I specifically asked them for a yellow one. I am a diva that sometimes. But look, ah they they could have got this car so wrong. if They could have been a bad caricature of itself. It could have been too big, too heavy, too lumpy.
00:01:30
Speaker
But it um they've nailed it. They've absolutely nailed us They have. I mean, just everything. Just the the way people look at it. who Is that a Renault logo when it starts up? Oh, that's very nice.
00:01:41
Speaker
and Just the retro bits. They've done enough nodding to the original. um i I like how it drives.
00:01:52
Speaker
I actually haven't driven the 120 brake horsepower version with the smaller battery. No, and I don't imagine that many people will either because I think, you know, in a world of PCP, people are going come in and go, okay, how much is it per month?
00:02:04
Speaker
Give a nice one. But I would, I'd like to try it from two perspectives. One, it's a little bit lighter. i think it's over 100 kilos lighter again. And I find, particularly in the wet, it can actually be a little bit hard to get traction in this car accelerating away. And I wonder, does the 120 actually make it the more drivable car?
00:02:21
Speaker
Also, have you been on the configurator? On the website? Yeah. No. there's ah There is a steel wheel option at the entry entry point and it looks really good. You have a weird quirk for these weird things on cars. I do, yeah. No.
00:02:34
Speaker
Steel wheels. And I get hubcaps. I love a basic Dacia duster. Yeah. Especially the previous generation one. but um I know, but... But no, no, it's one of those specs and absolutely no one will probably ever see, but it's available in theory if you want one, but no, most people will go garish colours, I hope, and all the bells and whistles, which they should
The New Nissan Micra: Design Innovation
00:02:56
Speaker
as well.
00:02:56
Speaker
The other thing is that I have also sat in this car, and it's not this car, it's a Nissan Micra. I'm here in Barcelona at the brand new Nissan Micra with Bert de Haas, who is one of the designers who's worked across the project.
00:03:09
Speaker
Welcome to the podcast, first of all. ah Welcome. well Thank you it's for welcoming me. I love how you don't even know what you've been welcomed to, but trust me, it's okay. So look, we have to talk about the elephant in the room. Okay. This is on the Umpere platform, this the Renault-Nissan Alliance.
00:03:26
Speaker
So... There is going to be, I'm sure you've been asked this question a lot. There is this car called the Renault 5. It has made it in a good way, a really big big impact in the world.
00:03:37
Speaker
So how difficult has it been to put your twist on that car? ah Difficult and not that difficult. I think as a designer, you expect to to have constraints, you know, and that's that's that's the job of a designer.
00:03:52
Speaker
Working about, you know, around constraints and making constraints strengths and i think that's what we have done so the the good things of the platform so the nice stands and the kind of sporty feel we used and on that we have given really a micro expression so with the very iconic timeless qualities ah that we looked at of the previous micros and that made micros kind of love through some of the generations before
00:04:25
Speaker
So we were looking mostly at micro. k twelve of micro third generation. If you look at this car, it still feels very modern, very ah yeah surprisingly actually after all these years, ah very iconic. So the designers really wanted to take some of these elements, but with with the platform we were given, we also could make sure that not only we have this iconic timeless elements, but we also have a very sporty kind of confident look.
00:04:59
Speaker
yeah It's probably fair to say because of the platform it's on. yeah ah you know For example, this Micra has bucket seats. i don't I don't know if a Nissan Micra ever had bucket seats in the past.
00:05:10
Speaker
So it's probably now going to be one of the better Micras to drive. so this is the benefits. Yeah, this is, yeah. I think this, it it fits, I mean, the image is correct. I think all what it shows now, more sporty stands and more like ah kind of this chunky look, but also like, you know, like you say, the interior seats are sporty. I think everything is correct. Everything is, it's very important for us to make a car that is kind of honest, you know, that when you see the design, it it does what it what it says it it should do.
Car Design Challenges and Trends
00:05:44
Speaker
So, and I think this is something, you know, we we achieved. So I know people can't see, but we'll just walk towards the front of the car. So this is probably the part that really does capture the Micra. I think when you look at it even if you glance in traffic with the round headlights, you'd go, ah, that's what you maybe not MicroStraight A, but you't you'd know it's a Nissan.
00:06:06
Speaker
yeah um Just talk us through the the front and how it's different. Well, thank you. and Nice to hear that ah that's what we intended to do. So, yeah, the first thing you would notice is the signature headlights. So these oval shapes that are very much stretched from the front to the top of the vehicle.
00:06:25
Speaker
So, a very, you know you know, define the 3D kind of corners of the car. And, the you know, when you see a headlight like this with this shape, it gives a bit of a cute feeling.
00:06:39
Speaker
Like, it makes you smile when you see the car. Yeah, it's friendly. friendly loss it It has that friendly ah feel, which is, again, appropriate for an EV. The idea is, you know, it's easy to use. Again, the kind of the honesty about it.
00:06:50
Speaker
On the other hand, the sporty image, you have the horizontal kind of, functional part of the headlight, it's this kind of more sporty horizontal look. So you have these two elements that are contrasting each other.
00:07:05
Speaker
And we have a start-up sequence actually that shows these both elements. you know We have this kind of more robotic in the horizontal part, like a light that goes from left to right.
00:07:18
Speaker
it's It's almost like a silent kind of light that that appears. yeah And then you have the wink kind of ah oval that that it's a car winking at you. so yeah, you have this high tech element with the kind of friendly element.
00:07:33
Speaker
and And above and be below the headlights. A lot of cars will do above the headlight, but this obviously has two aspects to it. Can you talk about your gelato scoop? for people going, what is a gelato scoop on a car? Yeah, the gelato scoop is, if you imagine, you know, take a gelato spoon and you kind of scoop the ice cream out.
00:07:54
Speaker
So with almost that precise section, we created this ridge on the side of the vehicle. And so what it does is recreating a little bit also what you see on this third generation micro.
00:08:06
Speaker
and But instead of ah a ledge kind of... a shoulder if you like. it's ah it's like It's along the shoulder line. Yes, it's along the shoulder line and it connects the the lamp, so the headlight graphic with the rear.
00:08:22
Speaker
But rather than going all the way connecting to the rear, it stops kind of somewhere. almost at the end of the rear door and you feel that kind of scoop effect but visually of course it connects with the rear graphic there is an element in the rear graphic of the rear light that that connects this line up and what it makes as well when you step back there is a real simplicity to its construction now you have the real arch the wheel arch graphics, quite voluptuous wheel archess.
00:08:52
Speaker
And then this line on top of it, it's not really shoulder, but it has that structure, rigidity that connects the front with the rear. So yeah, it makes this very,
00:09:03
Speaker
simple graphic almost, you know, when you ask, when you see a car and you ask someone after, you know, five minutes, can you draw that car without looking at it? yes You could recreate it. And I think that's quite ah nice. That makes for an iconic design if you can do this.
00:09:20
Speaker
Where is the strangest place you've had to draw early sketches of a car? The strangest place? Where i had to draw? Like not in the studio, but like, I don't know. It's like if you're a musician.
00:09:31
Speaker
music Musicians sometimes say these lyrics came to me and I woke up at 3 a.m. m and I wrote them there and then. Have you ever, don't know, woken up from a bad dream and like, but there was a good bit where there was a car in it? Well, sometimes you are thinking so much about design that actually you know, you can dream about it and you maybe wake up and you thought, oh that was something there. Like, that was so cool. I was really into it.
00:09:55
Speaker
But then maybe ah when you try to recreate that, it's maybe not what you but she thought ah about it, you know. Or maybe, you know, trying to do design after, you know, a few pints or something that might be, sometimes you think that's a good idea, but maybe the day after when you really look at your sketches is maybe...
00:10:13
Speaker
Yeah. and Sometimes it works, sometimes not, you know. and What are your thoughts as a car designer on the last few years of SUV after SUV? Do you think now we're going to see maybe for the next few years smaller cars or? Yeah, I think.
00:10:31
Speaker
The future lack of mobility and and all this, I think you we will see something for every customer. you know There will be a lot of different things. I think companies will have to make the decisions what they want to express, what they want to do, and there will be different.
00:10:48
Speaker
different things, you know, for you know yeah for different people, for different customers. So a lot of customers like the SUV because just, ah you know, you sit higher, it's it's protective that that, you know, certainly maybe women like to kind of sit higher and look around.
00:11:03
Speaker
Of course, some people like the agility or like just lightweight, like low car, you know, and the aero benefits, whatnot. So, yeah, I think, you know, the market will provide different solutions. It needs to be commercial, you know, viable. And then in the end, yes.
00:11:21
Speaker
You sound like a car designer, but also a realistic car designer. so yeah like after yeah yeah You have your dreams and then you have what's real. I've in car design a long time, but it's still, you know, say these these things make also make design interesting.
00:11:35
Speaker
If it was just about shapes and, you know, yeah. think I think you would get maybe tired of it. It's it's everything, you know. It's it's yeah creating a product that people can use and offer good value and can fall in love with. it There's still, of course, the emotional value. That's what it's designed about.
00:11:51
Speaker
It's a bit of psychology involved there, you know, what makes people fall in love with the car. And a lot of stuff is subconscious. So, yeah, these are all fascinating things to to consider.
00:12:06
Speaker
I'm glad you mentioned that because there there are a lot of cars over the last decade maybe that it could be a Kia, it could be a Volkswagen. A lot of cars tend to kind of look a little bit samey. So this is definitely a personality based car. yeah and With 40 years of Micra as heritage, the customer, a typical Micra customer, I don't know, it could be a young person, who could be a retired person. it's it's it's car It's a car that is a lot of things to a lot of different people. that' That's, yeah. So what what was the brief when you were designing it from Nissan?
00:12:38
Speaker
mean, that's how I feel as well. But I think just like, ah you know, it how it, in the beginning of the project, this came to life very organic, I would say very natural.
00:12:49
Speaker
So because we had, the you know, the Ampère platform that we could have a look at and, you know, could we use this? So, and when we came out very quickly with this kind of very emotional design and,
00:13:03
Speaker
the Everything, the project came to you know to life very organically, I would say. So we want to make this, I think, funky car, you know, that is bringing the Micra into the EV era.
00:13:18
Speaker
and And like I said, we were very inspired by some of the elements of previous Micras, mostly the third generation, the K12. which I'm sensing that was your favorite Micra.
00:13:29
Speaker
ah Well, you know, yes, but it's, know, it seems to be, it's interesting talking with some journalists from different countries. It seems to also mean something different in different countries. Like in Italy, there was also much left. In Ireland, it was a lot of people's first car because of low insurance, yeah you know, a small car. So it was a lot of people had it as their their first, first and maybe second car. But it's, yeah.
00:13:53
Speaker
When you see it now, it's still it's still around on the road and you look at it exterior and interior actually, you can really appreciate some of the design qualities. you know that yeah It was actually quite timeless and iconic and and some so simplicity to it.
00:14:09
Speaker
So which we want to take the good things of that car, but I think also with that platform here, we managed to also give it that oomph, a little bit of sporty. the sporty stands and et etc. Do you think not just on this car but as like ah as a car designer any car when as you say you look back at a car maybe 20 years old and it hasn't aged is that where you go yes I got that one right i I think so, you know. I like this kind of... ah It's like when you listen to music, you know, some know some music maybe you think, oh that's catchy and stuff. And then like after a few times listening, you're tired of it. yes
00:14:51
Speaker
And some in the beginning, that's a difficulty about, you know, doing this design. In the beginning, maybe music that actually you will appreciate most. It takes really time to get into And then maybe after a while you can always get back to it and actually maybe even gets better you know with time.
00:15:10
Speaker
And that's what you strive for, I think, you as a designer. you know yes So over the next few years, Nissan will release four new EVs, including a new version of of the LEAF. Will you be working on any of those projects? And can you tell us or is it all secret? Yeah, so we we will be launching you know it like yes LEAF, as you know, and we will have a new Juke.
00:15:30
Speaker
So there's a lot of ah projects coming, but they are already you know designed very basically. you know Design is always a few years ahead. so So the stuff we haven't seen yet, you can't you can't tell us No, yeah that's like, a yes, and that's the the generation after that. So, yes. ah Do you feel, actually one last question, do you feel like other brands that maybe haven't got into this space yet in this kind of new era of cars are watching Now the Micra, the Renault 5, the Volkswagen ID.2, are they looking at those spaces, you think, thinking, let's see how that goes?
00:16:06
Speaker
Or would it would it inspire them to also start making smaller cars again? Yeah, i think the market is probably... you know but wanted to do that kind of no more A segment, B segment, kind of entry level of electric vehicles.
00:16:24
Speaker
it's It's kind of tricky to to guess the the right time for EVs, for sure. And when we say we always know give the customer what they want and so we are kind of... But it's very difficult to do to play right at that time. We know that the market is adapting and And, you know, more and more EVs are sold, you know. So, and of course, the network for charging is getting there. And so it it will become more and more standard. So I think with this also, yeah, you will see more cars into the market, you know, that are... In that smaller segment. In that smaller segment as well.
00:17:00
Speaker
well Well, we'll watch this space.
Nissan and Renault Collaboration
00:17:02
Speaker
and Thank you very much for talking to us and good luck with the car. Thank you. That was in the last couple of weeks, or last week? About two weeks ago, I went to... um So is it this car reshelled?
00:17:13
Speaker
Yes. Reskinned? Yes. Not the first time. So Nissan had an alliance with Renault quite a few years ago with the Kajar. It was a cash car underneath. Yeah. ah This happens a lot. Volkswagen and Ford do it. There's other brands. I mean, it's not quite the same, but Hyundai and Kia are the same company.
00:17:30
Speaker
Who knew? Badge engineering. So, yeah well, that the Micra... I think actually is probably going to be the most exciting Nissan Micra that's ever been made. It's around over 40 years and I don't need to tell you, but you know, you probably maybe did some driving lessons in a Micra, but... Your granny had one. Yeah, it's it's potentially an older... Now look, some younger people obviously did drive it because it was cheaper to insure and all that stuff.
00:17:53
Speaker
But now it's probably the, I mean, it has bucket seats because it has lots of leftovers from this car. Obviously doesn't have numbers in the seats and some of the interior doesn't have quite the retro feel of the Renault 5. But in many other ways, the interior, apart from the badge and the steering wheel, is identical.
00:18:11
Speaker
Is this and European only model or is it also on sale worldwide? ah European only from what I can tell. Okay. Because one, like, you know, I don't know if they've ever had a micro in America. It's probably too small.
00:18:24
Speaker
um Australia. Japanese market, I was thinking. of That was the Nissan March for a while there, but I don't know. Well, they do have Mount Fiji on the left pillar for the boot.
00:18:38
Speaker
And they also, so here on this car, you have a Renault 5 where the wireless charging plate is. They have that also there. And on the charging port, they have the little inscript inscriptions on the thing to make out the letters for Nissan in Japanese. Nice.
00:18:55
Speaker
So they have put their own little... Anything distinctive? I mean, apart from the obvious design, have they done anything differently in terms of battery sizes, power, etc. for the Micro? No. All the same? The exact same. Same power outputs, big battery, small battery. um The interior, as I said, is very, very similar. They've even left in this patterned roof, okay which the Renault 5 is now famous for.
00:19:19
Speaker
um Obviously the air intake now charging display is not on the bonnet. They've put their own curved eyebrow type lights on the front. um But, you know, this is the most powerful Micra they've ever had. ah It's potentially the the funkiest looking. It has a pretty nice, there's 14 different colour combinations when you include max changing the route colour compared to rest the car.
00:19:43
Speaker
So it's definitely not a granny mobile anymore. The main thing that has to be right with it is if you can buy a Renault 5 for a shade under 26 grand, you're always going to buy a Renault 5 rather than a micro, no?
00:19:57
Speaker
Well, I would have thought so, but maybe there are people who have a certain fondness. Like, both of these cars are really plucking at the heartstrings of nostalgia. So maybe there are people whose their first car was a Micro or they learned drive in a Micro or whatever. So the there might be the fact that the Renault 5 doesn't mean anything to them. so Yeah, did well, they are absolutely. And that's a very accountant type of answer because my next question was, do they need to sell the Micro cheaper than the Renault 5? Because it's not a Renault 5.
00:20:26
Speaker
I would have thought so. ah You would hope that they've done their due diligence rather than just sticking the car out and hoping for the best. But, and you know, Nissan need a win. they yeah They really need a win. their Their numbers aren't brilliant. at And there's, you know, their sales figures in Europe, sales figures certainly across in the US.
00:20:43
Speaker
In the US s in particular, hemorrhaging money. So they really need a win soon. And hopefully this will this will do that for them. I mean, the US are probably only really interested in, as as cars we know in this sort of the world, the X-Trail.
00:20:54
Speaker
really? Pathfinder, those sorts of larger SUV, Armada was another one they had there but I was listening to a a u podcast this week, Doug DeMora's one and they were just talking about the fact that they are absolutely, they're losing billions in the US market currently so they really need a ah win pretty soon too.
00:21:12
Speaker
and They are about to unveil a new Nissan Leaf ah also which it will be in the next little while, that's that's their own car. Yeah, so the Leaf, i you know, obviously the OG of the EV world, but I presume it's going to start becoming in in line, you know, no more Shadowmo, CCS charging, probably a bigger battery.
Nissan's EV Market Strategy
00:21:30
Speaker
So, you know, it that there won't be hopefully any compromise in owning a Leaf anymore, whereas there has been a little bit.
00:21:36
Speaker
You know, if you wanted a cheap car now, the leaf is the current Leaf is one of the cheapest EVs you can buy. And and obviously, if you want a cheap runaround, You can pick end up up an early leaf, which is going to be, you know, an 80 to 100 kilometre range car on a good day for a couple of grand.
00:21:53
Speaker
I was talking to a Nissan, ah suppose I suppose, know if they're called dealer principles, but that's kind of what he is few weeks ago. And of course, you could say, well, he would say that, but I was asking him about...
00:22:04
Speaker
not even stuff that they're maybe selling anymore because they don't retail cars that old. But I was saying, ah what sort of state of health are you seeing on old, old Leafs? And he said, they're still coming back, something about 93, 94%.
00:22:17
Speaker
Which is incredible. I mean, look, obviously it's a lot it was how they were driven, etc. So, you know, it depends on on how they were treated. But look for for a lot of people who just nip into the shops and want to dip their toe into the EV world, you're talking a very limited and small outlay just to get into an EV like that, yeah?
00:22:34
Speaker
I'm trying to think what else have I been driving that's been... Well, it's been a few weeks, so there must have been a few. You've been in and you've been in and out of airports, so... I have done a airports. Well, I drove the Renault 4 as well. that was That was also
Renault 4 and Dacia Bigster: Market Analysis
00:22:46
Speaker
nice. Great video on that, actually, by the way. you Go and check out that on NoBeyOnCars. I really enjoyed that video, actually.
00:22:50
Speaker
The weather was lovely. So the Renault 4, of course, you know, we remember them from on Pust vans and aircon vans over the years. it's Is it a bigger Is it the same sort of vibe As this Renault 5 we're in But with a slightly bigger Rear space Is it a roomier car It is a bit roomier and It's still not You know A huge Canyon behind The driver's seat Depending on who's driving it The boot is Bigger um It's a taller car I suppose Yeah it's it's got a bigger footprint And Not quite as sharp to drive as as this, but it on the other hand, it's ah it's a bit more comfortable because it's you know it's dampened a little bit differently. and
00:23:31
Speaker
and Still, I mean, I i think... Is there only some far retro will, you know, is is there, how big is the pool of retro customers? You know, so will the Renault 5 sell more than it? I'd imagine so. ah is there plan Are there plans for a commercial one? Not yet, apparently, but I think it could work as a commercial vehicle.
00:23:51
Speaker
And do we know, know, when it comes, pricing, anything like that? and Not yet. I was just told it would be considerably under 30. Okay. Considerably is a good word. Yeah. and domestically and and you've done it before you know recently we had the Dacia Bigster now it's here um first impression first impressions first impressions still a pretty affordable car I mean it's ah it is only a 10 or under 30,000 euro and actually by the time you add your delivery charges and all that stuff you know it is going to be over 30 that's a pity because it's a 25 grand car in Europe all day long But I watched your video on it and do check it out on Nobby on Cars if you get a chance. You did a video at the day of the launch. Yeah.
00:24:34
Speaker
And you were talking about it in terms of being a Tiguan rival at a significantly lower price point.
Volkswagen ID Buzz: Design and Recall Issues
00:24:41
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, it is a Tiguan rival if you compare it as in it's a car that can carry a family, it's a car that can carry five people and it has a good size boot. Yeah.
00:24:51
Speaker
But in terms of us quibbling over it being less than 30 grand, I mean, I think it has some wiggle room to be over, as in you know, considering. If you want the physical space, if you want the the bulk of that EV, that high up stance, this boot space, the rear space, you know, for for a lot less than you're to paying.
00:25:09
Speaker
Even compared to a Qashqai, it's going to be considerably cheaper. um There is a bit of wipe clean to the interior and a bit of, you know, underneath the wheel arches there are evidence of lower grade quality materials. But look, I did notice as compared to the, so the international launch was earlier on this year and there is no doubt those cars had different prep.
00:25:31
Speaker
particularly when you go digging under the boot. As soon as I went looking under the Irish cars, I was seeing exposed metal way quicker than I was seeing on those cars. I know we've spoken about this before, but yeah, sometimes it does happen. um But yeah, I mean... And we have to talk about your stat from the last time as well, of it being the first DASIA to have a sunroof. It does, an opening sunroof, yeah. um Which is nice, because I am a fan of a sunroof, but only when they can open. i These...
00:25:58
Speaker
Glass houses. I know they say, oh, they don't get as hot and they have solar reflection. I'm just not into it. so If it doesn't open, what's the point? Well, Car, you and I both drove pretty recently. um I just added it was the Volkswagen 90 Buzz seven seater. Yeah.
00:26:12
Speaker
but I really did like it. What a family car. I mean, as is it possibly the perfect family car? Well, the the most memorable thing for me for the Buzz, well, two things really, is how how it looks because, you know, it just looks great.
00:26:26
Speaker
And that car now is out, ooh, coming up in, is it four years? No, Buzz is maybe two it's definitely three. Two to three, yeah. Because I was definitely at the launch at the end of 22 maybe.
00:26:39
Speaker
and And the second thing is how much, like, no matter what your seven-seater is, if it's a Volvo XC90, if it's a Kia EV9, None of them can, you can comfortably sit as an adult in the third row.
00:26:52
Speaker
No. And you can in the bus. It's enormous. You know, it's plenty of space in the second row, though that third row can come out as well, of course. and But I would, as a six foot two guy, I would quite happily sit in the rear most seats yeah with my air conditioning, with my USB-C and...
00:27:09
Speaker
Yeah, it's a heavy vehicle. Yes, the aerodynamics are dog shit because it's like a brick. But it's, you know, range. like I wasn't seeing much more than 21, 22 kilowatts per hundred on a good day. so Nice sunny conditions. So I would say... i did see 15 the day I collected it. saw that at the start of your video. Yeah, yeah.
00:27:30
Speaker
But i I don't know, maybe it was... Blake Boland, I would imagine. Who was driving before me? Almost certainly Blake Boland, yeah. One of these EV lunatics yeah who can like drive 700 kilometres without stopping for a wee.
00:27:42
Speaker
Here's a weird one. So there's a recall on the Audi Buzz. i think I think it is the long wheelbase. It is, yeah, in America. Because the rear bench is too wide.
00:27:53
Speaker
And they're afraid that another passenger will plonk their bottom in between the two other passengers and there's no seatbelt.
Leap Motor's Entry into Ireland
00:28:03
Speaker
And there's no warning. And that sums up how stupid but some Americans are. Yeah.
00:28:07
Speaker
One thing i know i don't i didn't like about that car, I don't know if you'd noticed it, I kept finding that the seatbelt kept falling down into the tiny little hole by the driver's door.
00:28:18
Speaker
I kept having to dig out the seatbelt out of out of the side there. Wasn't twisted or anything was it or? No the that when you'd open the door there was a little little slot and the seatbelt itself kept falling down small minor quibble Didn't notice that Never mind but look what a car well great vehicle Great vehicle look it is perhaps um you know on the expensive side like a lot of new cars however I challenge you to find really a seven seater with that much space for that price m you We have another new entrant to the market. Gowan Auto have a announced they're going to be the national importer for Leap Motor. and I was wondering. don't know who Leap Motor are.
00:28:57
Speaker
Okay, so I was wondering, first of all, who was going to, if anyone was going to get involved in this company. Now, for those of you watching a lot of football, you will have noticed Leap Motor on even some Irish games.
00:29:11
Speaker
There was a Leinster game I was at a few months ago in Nivea and they had Leap Motor, sorry, it was Croke Park. They had Leap Motor signs all over the pitch. Before people knew what it was, they've just been planting the seed, yeah so to speak. Okay, interesting. So they they do need, obviously, a big automotive house to push them in in Ireland. I was wondering, would MDL be the you know the natural home, because they're the home of Xpang and BYD? But also, I suppose, there's no point if one house has all these Chinese brands, there needs to be competition.
00:29:44
Speaker
So this is good news.
Road Safety Advocacy in Ireland
00:29:45
Speaker
But just reading the press release here, that's um they've appointed some really, really strong people to look after it. So it'll be spearheaded by Managing Director of Gown, James Brooks. um We have Steve McGrath, formerly of the Volkswagen Group, Ireland of Harish, who's formerly Head of Product and Pricing at Peugeot and DS, who's Brand Manager. Mark Brennan, and formerly Marketing Executive DS Ireland, has a been appointed Marketing Manager.
00:30:09
Speaker
So that's a really strong team. So that, you know, that's a, it looks like they're taking this one seriously. Yeah. what are we What are we looking at with these? ah is it an is it a but Is it another sort of variant of various SUV SUVs? Well, the yeah, the larger the larger car is... Look, they were they were coming here one way or another, so, but you know, there're the people at Gown know how to, you know... So in the release, we have the T03, a compact B-segment hatchback offered in the ace at an A-segment price.
00:30:41
Speaker
The C10 is a D-segment SUV. And um the B10 is a C SUV sized vehicle. So a few models coming by the sounds of things.
00:30:53
Speaker
Yeah. um and And I don't know what Gowan are going to do. Are they going to put these cars into some of their existing showrooms? and They are, you know, encouraging investment. They've just announced a new Honda dealership because Klonsky Motors, for those of you familiar with it I only drove a by today.
00:31:09
Speaker
It had huge signs, retirement sale in the windows. I imagine Klonsky Motors are the home of, will be very, very fancy apartments in the next couple of years, just across the road from UCD, for those familiar with um We're recording this on the eve of Bank Holly weekend.
00:31:27
Speaker
You know, all joking aside, they it traditionally a pretty rubbish month or British period for the road. Yeah, well, I mean, unfortunately, even the weekend just gone, there was, I think, three three women killed.
00:31:38
Speaker
Five. Five as of as of this week. Yeah, we had a we had a lady in there in County Laod in her 80s. and So that brought the the fatalities to five this week.
00:31:49
Speaker
a time of recording So yeah, look, the RSA are obviously urging, as usual, um you know, slow but This down, they're really focusing on on drink driving for this bank holiday weekend.
00:32:00
Speaker
I know that it's been ah ah traditionally a bad weekend for the roads. You know, i remember figures of... Around 600 collisions over the course of a bank holiday weekend and and years gone by. 600. And, you know, we've seen weekends where there's been 9, 10 more fatalities. So look, just if you are listening, to slow down, throw the phone in the glove box.
00:32:22
Speaker
And it's not those calls aren't that important. Yeah, I mean, I i still said it before, we don't really, we don't, there's no learnings from these tragic, fatal accidents from from my perspective. We don't find out what was the cause really. You don't, I mean, there might be a Carnot report someday, but um the other the other thing that I suppose isn't isn't the human side of blame and I spoke to a guy recently who lives in Wexford and he was talking about you know the same stretch of road near him there's been multiple people killed over the years there's always talk of we're going to upgrade that bit of road and it just doesn't necessarily happen
Lisa Brankin on Ford's Strategy and Diversity
00:32:57
Speaker
and whether it's a bad bend whether it's incorrect road markings you know whether but there should be more i think I find those signs that flash back at you with your speed are quite effective they always make me go oh
00:33:10
Speaker
And do you know what? we will We will hopefully have someone from the Road Safety Authority coming up in the next couple of weeks. So you do have questions for them, please ah please do send them on driversrepublicpodcast at gmail.com. And of course, if you have any questions, do send them on.
00:33:24
Speaker
Right. Next up on the podcast, we need to get into the heads of the people of Ford, Ford Ireland and Ford UK. And we're going to be talking to Lisa Brankin, who's basically the boss.
00:33:37
Speaker
Welcome back to the Drivers Republic podcast, which is brought to you by Dundeele Motors, home of the Trusted Dealer Programme, helping you buy with confidence from verified dealerships. Paddy, hello.
00:33:48
Speaker
Hello, Mark. Good to be back after what was a short break of just a few weeks, but season two begins again and... ah We feel very delighted to be ah joined in this m but possibly boiling hot room in a Dublin hotel by yeah Lisa Brankin from Ford UK, Chair of Ford and Managing Director of Ford UK in Ireland. Welcome to Dublin. Not your first time in Dublin, I suspect. No, it's not my first time in Dublin, but thank you very much for inviting me and having me on the podcast.
00:34:16
Speaker
So, and look, tell us here a little bit about your story and from that accent. to your You're ah not far from Dublin. So I grew up just outside Lisburn, which is in County Antrim. I went to school there, i went to university in Belfast and then found myself, couldn't get job at home, right went across to the south-east to work and I ended up on a graduate training programme with Ford, thinking that I would kind of work there for a couple of years and, you know, come home and I never did.
00:34:46
Speaker
And that's sort of it. But I mean, your story is incredible and incredible, incredible rise through the ranks. and And, you know, for people who are listening as well, quite an inspirational story for people who start off in a career. And, you know, we talk about apprenticeships. It was pretty much an apprenticeship, yeah what what you did. And now you're you have that you have the number one job. So. Although to be honest, I look back to joining Ford and what I was like as a graduate tree and honest to goodness, I think I would have, if it was me, I think I would have sacked me.
00:35:14
Speaker
So fortunately people were very patient and they gave me a chance to you try lots of different stuff. I learned a lot and I've done lots of different jobs through my career. I've now called it a career before I thought it was just a job.
00:35:29
Speaker
And yeah, I've had a really good time and I've really enjoyed it and I've worked with lots of really great people and it's been really good. Set the scene of Ford and the car industry when you started, well you know when you were starting as ah as a trainee.
00:35:42
Speaker
What did the industry look like and what does it look like now in comparison? So it was much... So fewer few manufacturers in Ireland and in the UK and in the rest of Europe. We had many, many more dealers, much more traditional manufacturers At the time, I didn't realise this, but probably not really an industry where lots of women worked. But again, that hadn't occurred to me as a thing to think about.
00:36:12
Speaker
And it's changed very much over the years. so you know Many more manufacturers, many more models, what we sell, the way we sell it's different. Technology's moved on in leaps and bounds. um And it's actually just an outrageously competitive industry to work in. um But one of the things that's been great about it is that it's constantly changing and evolving. So you're never are doing the same thing um too long before it changes and you've got to adapt.
00:36:36
Speaker
And certainly in the past five years, since we kind of all hit COVID semiconductors, electrification, it's become even more challenging. When you mentioned gender and you didn't really, it wasn't a thing for you, it wasn't a noticeable thing. Do you think the car industry in general is now more welcoming to to women workshops or not these freezing cold dirty places anymore if if you're going to start at that level and that area of the the industry?
00:37:02
Speaker
Two things have changed. I think young women are a little bit bolder in terms of where they're prepared to go work and what they're prepared to do. you know, they don't really conform as much as maybe my generation would have done.
00:37:15
Speaker
And I think, um you know, in Ireland, you've got a really low unemployment rate. So you kind of got to open your, or broaden your horizons about who are you're going to employ.
00:37:26
Speaker
I know that a few of the dealerships in and Ireland have got young women technicians and young women apprentices. So I think people's perspectives have changed as to you know what what the workplace needs to look like. And also I think um my perception is that as ah men have grown up and have become, the younger generation of men have grown up and become parents, they're more involved in childcare.
00:37:51
Speaker
So if you've got someone a work saying, actually, i need to go and um pick my child up from school, that could could sometimes be as much a man having to do that as a woman. So I think you know the perceptions of how you work has changed as well. So i just think the world's a very different place.
00:38:06
Speaker
I spoke to a guy a few weeks ago who was getting six months off for paternity. And my youngest child is nearly seven, but it was two weeks even then. And that time it's it's kind of changed so much. So it's a very interesting point that you raised because, yeah, I think employers...
00:38:25
Speaker
they've definitely had to adapt as well. I don't know if this kind of stuff would reach your desk. Probably you don't have people saying, oh look, I need to, I don't know, the the child has a dental appointment at half 11. Can I have an hour off work?
00:38:38
Speaker
But are you kind of, would you be one of those leaders who sort of look, I don't need to hear about this, just as long as everyone's happy yeah and the work's done. So I think that it's different depending on where you work. yeah So if you work in Ford and you work on a production line,
00:38:52
Speaker
You can't just nip it for half an hour, right? Or if you are a technician in a workshop, you can't work remotely. You've got to come into work. But by and large, ah you before um before COVID, we had reasonably flexible policies in the sense that as long as things, the important thing is that things get done.
00:39:14
Speaker
it's not necessarily that it has to be done ah this time on a tuesday it's important that they get done and you sort of have to have a degree in of trust in the people that that work with you because otherwise it it all just sort of falls apart and also you know if you manage people you can't do everything yourself you have to trust them and let them go on and do it so there's an element of that but i think also post-covid having that those you know I felt like endless weeks of everybody working remotely has changed a little bit of the way that we um manage people and how they work.
Career Advice from Lisa Brankin
00:39:48
Speaker
And also when you've got a workforce that isn't in the office nine to five every day, he's um and like you kind of don't know what everybody's doing all the time. So you've got to stop focusing desk time and face time and focus on output and how things get done, i think.
00:40:05
Speaker
It's about treating people as adults as well and just, you know, having a trust in the people around you and letting them get on with it really, isn't it? Yeah, it is. And I think most people on most days live up to that. Yeah, and but you're right because, I mean, at your job, you can't, I'm sure you don't want to, but you can't micromanage everybody. You get nothing done.
00:40:23
Speaker
but But, I mean, honestly, i couldn't do half the jobs with people that work for me anyway, so it would be useful you to give me some of the things to do. So, yeah, you just have to trust people. what you think in what what job in Ford could you think off the top of top your head that if you had to start doing tomorrow morning at nine o'clock for even for one day would be that I don't even where to start So obviously, if we kind of rule out all the stuff, you obviously our engineering teams are really highly qualified and they really know what they're doing and I'm not. So I couldn't do that.
00:40:53
Speaker
But the worst thing for me would be to give me um yeah a mass of spreadsheets. I've got to um automate and make work effectively with accurate data. And that would probably you know not not be good in any kind of way at all.
00:41:08
Speaker
Okay. I love the honesty. As one of the most senior women in the car industry as a whole, you know, what advice would you give to particularly young women who are considering a role now? i You know, there's so much variety and so much change over the last 20, 30 years in the industry. What, you know, what advice would you give to a 17 or 18 year old or even to to a young you all those years ago who said were starting off? What would you say to them?
00:41:38
Speaker
So I think that um one I'd say to people that they should consider the automotive industry because it's changed a lot and it's a really interesting and dynamic place to be with a range of different kind of jobs.
00:41:53
Speaker
So if you look at our franchise dealers, they've got jobs in finance, they've got jobs in HR, they've got jobs in marketing, they've got jobs in PR. So you aren't just if you kind of think that you're going to work in a workshop or work in a showroom, there are lots of other options. And the other thing I'd say is be confident and in your own ability and just you've kind of got nothing to lose.
00:42:15
Speaker
know, people say to well, what's the worst thing that could happen? And the worst thing is you don't get the job. You know, and does that matter? No, it doesn't. You move on to the next one. And and if you if you join and maybe start in a direction that isn't quite what you want, you can change nowadays.
00:42:32
Speaker
um no Well, apart from me, obviously, but nobody has a job for life. You know, they change direction, they alter their course correct. ah So I just think you should just try it and go for it is what I was saying. I have confidence in in yourself as you step forward.
00:42:48
Speaker
when you mentioned a job for for life there, is it just one of those things you can't imagine yourself doing something else? Well, the thing is, um so I think people move jobs when they get bored of what they're doing and they want a new challenge. And when I joined Ford, our European headquarters were based in the UK and I was based in that building.
00:43:10
Speaker
So there were lots of different opportunities. So when I got a bit fed up or bored, I sort of looked around and saw vacancies and thought, well, i I'll see if I can do that. So I was really fortunate. I've I'm not going to tell you how long I work Ford because that'll tell you how
Ford's Electrification Strategy Q&A
00:43:22
Speaker
old I am.
00:43:22
Speaker
But I've worked for them for a really long time and sort of every few years I change roles. So I think I've probably done between 15 and 17 jobs in the time I've been with Ford. So I've kind of bounced around and done lots of different stuff.
00:43:35
Speaker
So I never really got to the stage where I was really, really, that I wanted to change. I couldn't have one. And maybe that shows a tremendous lack of imagination. But I've just been um really fortunate and been given a chance to do stuff. You must be a fast learner as well to be able to you know do so many roles within the one company and have to hit the ground running every time probably.
00:43:57
Speaker
Well, have you heard the expression you fake it to make it? I have. There you go. That's how we live our lives. yes Yeah, there you go. So ah can you tell us one of the reasons you're here is obviously talk about Ford's electric strategy and and the power of promise. It's been a pretty good year so far in Ireland for sales. It's been a nice bounce back compared to last year. and So what's it all about?
00:44:17
Speaker
So we've just completed the launch of our full passenger vehicle electric lineups. We've got our smallest vehicle, Puma, is now electric. We've got an Explorer, a Capri and a bigger Mustang Mach-E.
00:44:29
Speaker
So they're all in the marketplace. And we have been talking to customers and hearing what they're saying about electrification. And we know that... Some people have some concerns about making a transition into electric.
00:44:42
Speaker
So we thought we'd come up with a power promise us to help reassure customers. So charging is a big deal for customers. So we're giving away a free home charger with a standard installation.
00:44:53
Speaker
We know that customers are concerned about what might happen if they can't charge um on the road, if they run out of charge on the road. So we've given we're giving away five-year free servicing and also with that comes roadside assistance and if for any reason you run out of charge, your vehicle gets recovered to a charge point or home.
00:45:11
Speaker
um We also know that customers are really concerned about battery life. They think that a car battery is a bit like a phone battery. So we're giving an eight-year warranty on our our batteries and ah and allied to that, we've got um the Blue Oval Charging Network and FordPass which just helps make planning your journeys and billing for charging a lot easier.
00:45:33
Speaker
we tried to think of all all the things that people might be a bit worried about and put this little package of offers together to give people the confidence to hopefully buy electric and if not buy, to come and try electric. And that's on cars and also and we've got a range of um electric and some plug-in hybrid commercial vehicles coming as a well. And I know this has come up at at other events.
00:45:55
Speaker
Is there a limit to how many times Ford will send a truck to you if you deliberately keep running out of battery? No. No, there isn't. Because it probably doesn't help very much. it is a layer of peace of mind. I don't think, i'm actually, that's a really good question. I don't know the answer in my head ah about how many times that people are recovered without charge.
00:46:16
Speaker
But I think it's virtually none. ah But i that's a bit of information that I really should know and I need to find out. The only thing I'll add to that is there's a finite amount of times your EV will like running out of charge. Yeah. Because it doesn't enjoy that.
00:46:29
Speaker
No. But let's not worry about that part. No, no. it's a it It might and it might not happen. Just in relation to that... Do you think, obviously at the start of the EV journey, the customers were really, really super educat educated because they were the real early adopters. They often knew more than the sales staff or and they you know they were coming in armed with all this knowledge and would probably put up with a bit of the the the gremlins at the time. We're we're beyond the gremlin stage, really. Range is pretty good.
00:46:57
Speaker
But as you find as we get to the point where... It's a really wide group of people buying EVs. Are you seeing that you're nearly having to start again in some cases with the education process? So I think that there are a lot of misunderstandings out there around electric vehicles, um mostly because i think...
00:47:19
Speaker
So we talk about buying electric as though you're saying to somebody, oh well, you're driving diesel, why don't you have a petrol? When actually it is a bigger change than that for someone. And I think there's a lot of kind of barriers and re people are making up reasons why not.
00:47:34
Speaker
And I think... Yes, it is switch, yes, it's a change in how you you drive and how you you don't go to pedal stations, you charge at home. um And I think there there are still, there may be a few customers where it's not relevant for, but I think it's so its more relevant for more people than maybe they give them credit for.
00:47:53
Speaker
And I suppose the Power Promise is our way of trying to start a conversation. to try to get people to consider it. um And actually, when you consider it and actually think about the way that most people drive on most days, electric is ready is is really usable.
00:48:09
Speaker
think I saw some stats in Ireland that says most people's journey is less than 20 kilometres. And, mean, if you did 20 kilometres a day, you may be charging every... I don't know how many weeks, but it's not terribly frequently and you can charge at home.
00:48:22
Speaker
And also the cost of running off an EV is significantly less than a petrol or diesel. there's lots of really rational reasons. It's just trying to overcome that inertia or um concern that customers have got.
00:48:36
Speaker
Yeah, certainly CSO stats would back that up. and Even nationally, the the average commute is less than 50 kilometers round trip. So certainly i think you know we've we've talked to other industry leaders and they've said similar things that we're now at a stage where people coming in really don't have any perception because they it wasn't on their radar. But now there's so much choice.
00:49:00
Speaker
And I think that's probably, you know, what's interesting about this power promise and what you're talking about today is that you're you're preempting a lot of the the things that people might be concerned about and say, okay, don't worry about this, don't worry about this, don't worry about this, here's the car. It's pretty much the same as you've been used to off you go. And I think that's that's pretty clever. I think um we take a step off, if you've had an electric vehicle and used it, you probably don't, ask yeah we underestimate the concerns people might have, which is why I think it's really important that we get people into electric vehicles. And even the first time,
00:49:36
Speaker
that I ah borrowed an electric vehicle. ah remember taking it to the first public charging point and not even having a clue how to plug the darn thing in. So all that basic stuff that if you've done it once or twice, it's really familiar. But if you've never done it ever before, you can't really imagine what it's like. And we need to help people with all of that. It's overwhelming for people, yeah, it can be, yeah.
00:49:55
Speaker
Yeah. And, you know, when you kind of rock up and you've got to have 42 different apps on your phone because you don't, you you know, all that sort of stuff is really hard. So that's why we encourage
Ford's Market Strategy and EU Regulations
00:50:04
Speaker
them. If you aren't kind of walking in to buy today, come in to have a conversation and for sure try to test drive and see what it's like. And is there the the facility for people to to borrow the car for an hour or a few hours just to say, look, this is what I'm thinking of, but without having to commit to anything too serious yet? I mean, obviously, I would desperately hope that all the Ford dealers in the Republic are desperately trying to sell everybody an electric vehicle.
00:50:27
Speaker
But if you show an interest, then they'll be really happy to let you test drive. On that note, actually, so over the last few years and your career is so rich in Ford's history, um my first car was a Fiesta, my second car was a Focus. Don't about you, Paddy.
00:50:42
Speaker
There's been some there, yeah. There's been a few in the heritage, but if you're not ready to go electric, at the moment, Ford don't have a huge array of non-electric passenger cars for customers. The Fiesta has disappeared, although maybe it'll come back someday.
00:50:54
Speaker
The Focus is is finishing up the Mondeo. There's a huge legacy of cars there that aren't available anymore. is that going to be like that forever do you think or? so um So I don't have any news i can tell you right now.
00:51:09
Speaker
um I think what we've done as a manufacturer is thought about where we can be profitable. So it's really important that we can sell a range of um cars and vans and it allows us to be be profitable.
00:51:24
Speaker
And we've picked the segments where we think we can win. And actually what people buy is changing. So if you... unpale all the sales stats and look at and the types of cars that people are buying in Ireland.
00:51:38
Speaker
That Fiesta segment, that B segment has disappeared to virtually nothing and all the kind of vehicles that people are buying are sort of semi-SUV shaped vehicles. So things like Pumas, Cougars, Explorers, that's where the market is.
00:51:52
Speaker
So we've kind of followed the market and to some degree or lesser degree the whole of Europe is going in that direction. So a bit of the changes we've made have been because of the market. um Some of it's because of the transition to electrification and remember that the EU and Ireland have said they're going to ban the sale of petrol and diesel vehicles in 2035. So we've kind of got trajectory we've got to get to.
00:52:16
Speaker
So our line up on cars reflects that and to some degree on commercial vehicles as well. And does your current line-up sort of allow Ford to have wait-and-see approach?
00:52:27
Speaker
It must be very frustrating as a carmaker when the EU keeps saying, oh, well, maybe 20, 30, 35, oh, well, we're not sure. So it's really hard plan when developing a car takes a rate on time and costs an awful lot of money.
00:52:43
Speaker
And you've got to kind of bet where the market's going to go. And based on you know really really, really clear and firm at EU direction, we've kind of bet on our our vehicle line-up.
00:52:54
Speaker
Now, we've still got petrol for sale and and in Ireland and on commercial vehicles, we've got diesel in sale. and But we are slowly and surely transitioning into, particularly on commercial vehicles, plug-in hybrid and then back to electric vehicles because that's sort of a direction of travel.
00:53:12
Speaker
And ah obviously, we've got, like all manufacturers, we've got, um ah European CO2 requirements and targets to hit as well. So all in all, it's kind of like four or five moving targets you're trying to hit as you're transitioning through.
00:53:28
Speaker
It's kind of like whack-a-mole. It is a wee bit. Making cars for Europe. It is, yes. There's been a real resurgence recently of of designers, manufacturers looking back, you know, lots of lots of retro designs.
00:53:42
Speaker
I arrived here in ah in a Renault 5 EV. yeah People were stopping, having conversations, photographs. Other brands are doing as well. you know, Ford has such a rich history and heritage of of models that mean an awful lot to people, especially, you know Ireland's a small market, but we had our assembly in Cork till 84.
00:54:01
Speaker
it I'm not asking you to tell us any secrets, but do you think that's that's something that Ford might look at in the future of ah really, like whatever about calling a model of Capri, of really dipping into that heritage and the fact that with EVs, it's like scale electrics.
00:54:16
Speaker
You can have a ah platform and you can put whatever the hell you want on top. you know Is that something that could happen? So anything happen. Yeah, that's a great answer. make a free um Anything could happen.
00:54:30
Speaker
Would you like to see that happen? well as ah As a Ford fan. Well, I think it'd be really exciting to see what's possible. And I'm really going to take back the message that it's just like to our designer team to tell them it's just like Scalette Strikes. I don't know what's so hard about it. I'm going to do that. Exactly. Yeah, ill I'll be shot for that one. Yeah, good. to So look ah you look, as an industry leader, what excites you about the industry currently and the future of mobility?
00:54:56
Speaker
So I think, um so there's been a huge number of challenges that we've been um facing and sometimes you get a bit bowed down in that. But actually what I think is the most exciting stuff that we've been doing is where we've been actively coming into the market with things that help.
00:55:15
Speaker
customers. And one of the bits of the market I'm really excited about is commercial vehicles, actually. I think um we've had, we thought about great products. so we've got a completely new commercial vehicle lineup. and And we're bringing, ah i mentioned before, we've got a range of plug-in hybrids, also electric versions of those ah commercial vehicles. But more than that, we're focusing on what we can do with data to help improve We call it uptime. It's the amount of time a van's on the road for customers, i.e.
00:55:46
Speaker
they they don't have breakdowns. So we can look at data, providing we've got the right data sharing in place, that can tell us, actually, this van has got higher oil wear, so this needs to have oil replacements sooner than that van.
00:55:59
Speaker
And what that means is if you do that preventative work, it can prevent an engine blowing up. and prevent catastrophic time off the road and costs for a company.
Commercial Vehicles: Data-Driven Innovations
00:56:09
Speaker
so I'm really excited about the start we've made in that space and the direction of travel that we're going there.
00:56:14
Speaker
Some of the clever things that I've loved in Fords over the years, whether it's the transit steering wheel that you could use your laptop on, the GigaBox, the Megabox the in the Puma, like the boot is ridiculously big for the size of the car and you can drain if you get dirty footballs.
00:56:30
Speaker
Do people knock on your door and say, i had this great idea, what do you think? So actually, there's a little group of people based in East London and their kind of reason for a living is to think about solutions to problems that customers have got.
00:56:44
Speaker
So the steering wheel came from them and um they spent some time with people that drive transats. And one of the things they observed was that they used their cab spaces in office, but they had nowhere to put um their laptop or to write on.
00:57:03
Speaker
And that was a cardboard cutout made up thing that then got put into production. So there are people somewhere in Ford doing odd and weird things to see how we um improve products.
00:57:20
Speaker
That's amazing isn't it? Well it is, I mean and some of the stuff is, even and in the Capri and the Explorer, the way you can lock away your items if you don't want You know, we're forced so many times now to bring our phone with you for a walk, even if you don't want to bring your phone with you, in that car you can lock it away and no one can get at it.
00:57:36
Speaker
ah Paddy would like to ask you a question about savoury items on the north of the border versus the south the island. I'm not going to get involved in this debate because I you know i understand how really emotive it is I just want to tell you that I'm right. so Right. Okay.
00:57:53
Speaker
I don't think I've ever tried Northern Ireland. have. I went to Queen's University. I spent my three years in Balfour. So yeah, Northern Ireland and Tateau versus Republic of Ireland and Tateau. Is better. Which is better?
00:58:04
Speaker
Well, obviously the Northern Irish version. Right. I mean... you not think they're a damp? No, I don't. And and also the packaging colour is wrong down here as well. So I think you just need to sort of all out, chaps. Right. OK. Well, look, um let's we we asked the cutting edge question, so we we're we're on the fence for that one. Speaking of colours, actually, because the new Puma Jenny comes in this lovely bright yellow, as as does the Capri. But year after year, especially in Ireland anyway, grey, silver, black...
00:58:32
Speaker
Can you tell people listening to stop being afraid of brighter? Is is it a used car probably down the road or why is it So I think some of it's about just people being really conservative and concerned about used car values.
00:58:45
Speaker
Because there is a perception that if you've got your bright yellow or bright green or bright orange, that you might love it, but nobody else will. And and you know I'm sure there's enough customers out there to want to buy a second-hand bright yellow.
00:58:59
Speaker
yeah But I think Ford are one of the few brands left now offering... interesting colours and you know obviously others some others are but it's some brands literally you look at their brochure and it's grey, black, white.
00:59:11
Speaker
I think that's kind of safe isn't it? Well it is safe yeah. Defusing on the car part but safe. Tell us about a little bit about your car history. can you remember your what was your Where did you learn to drive in? What was your first few cars?
00:59:22
Speaker
So my dad was a coal man and he had um a TK Bedford and he taught me how to move that around our yards. So that's how I learned to drive-ish, sort of.
00:59:34
Speaker
um And then when I passed my test, he had a Chevette van and that was all I was allowed to drive. So after that, um everything else was a vast improvement.
00:59:46
Speaker
But there must have been some interesting Fords over the years. Please say you had to Focus RS as a company car. I did have a Focus RS as a company car, which is really great. I didn't have any points in my license at the end of that. So that was a big success.
00:59:59
Speaker
um I recently just train just changed in one of our ah three litre petrol Ranger Raptors, which was lovely. I can recommend that to anybody. and And I'm currently driving a Focus or a Focus ST just to kind of have a final Harab before that goes. It's a bit like asking, you know, what's your favourite child? But if you have a favourite Ford of all time.
01:00:23
Speaker
Oh, that's a really difficult question. oh might be Might be one you need to pass on, but it's... ah it's So I think so the So probably um the car that I've probably driven most, if I look back over my time in Ford, the one that I've kind of gone back to would have been a Fiesta ST, I think.
01:00:44
Speaker
Fabulous car. um Yeah, that probably would. Mark, yours? i was that That is still... And at the time of filming, maybe four years ago, it was €29,000. It's still of my favourite ever-priced cars to have. It's just the pops and bangs, the drama. That's the fun.
01:00:59
Speaker
You can leave, no one's going to key it. You know, they might try and nick it because it's a desirable car, but apart from that, it'll be left alone. Just a great car. And and also when the when the Focus launched on that Focus RS, I'll never forget watching the episode of Top Gear where they had that car.
01:01:15
Speaker
It was just amazing. Mine's different. Ford Racing Puma. Oh, yes. What a car. That was just a work of art. So actually, thought the, so Ford Racing Puma was great, but the normal Puma, the 1.7 engine was really great as well. Oh, brilliant car. That was a nice car. I was involved in that program. You still see a few around as well, but there's quite a, there's still a handful of racing Pumas here.
01:01:41
Speaker
And that was, oh my God, such a car, such a car. The wheels. And it properly, the exhaust had a little bark and cough and spark out the back. It was a fabulous thing.
01:01:52
Speaker
if If I was to finish up, in terms of, if I could ask you one government policy in either UK or Ireland that you could change or or or that would make the industry a little bit easier and also for EV adoption, and what would you what would you ask for?
01:02:09
Speaker
So I think I'm not going to answer that question directly, but what I'm going to say to you is that so where EV adoption has worked really, really well is Norway. So they're basically an electric market and they've done that transition relatively quickly. And to do that, so they had policy that was really joined up.
01:02:27
Speaker
So they had taxation, they had incentives, they had even the bus lanes, you could use a bus lane if you had an EV, their parking incentives, everything was joined up to focus everyone on transitioning into EVs.
Listener Engagement and Future Guests
01:02:44
Speaker
And I guess I would say to UK government and the Irish government, if that's kind of where you want to get to, then you kind of need to have joined up policy because it doesn't kind of work just one thing or another.
01:02:55
Speaker
Lisa Brankin, are we allowed to call you the Queen of Ford? No, I don't think can. Thank you for talking to us. Thank you very much for having me. Stay with us. There's more to come on this first episode of Season 2 on the Drivers Republic podcast.
01:03:07
Speaker
We have a reader slash listeners question. Welcome back to the Drivers Republic podcast brought to you in association with Dundee Motors, where more Irish drivers... find their next car from a trusted dealership than anywhere else. Why?
01:03:19
Speaker
Because Dundeele's Trusted Dealer Programme means verified dealerships and the kind of backup that matters, like warranties and history checks, giving you confidence from your very first click.
01:03:30
Speaker
And speaking of a speaking of choosing your next car, we've had we've had an email. And it's ah it's coming to us from a reader, and his name is...
01:03:41
Speaker
And don't forget if you'd like to send us an email or a query, a question, question about going electric, used car, should I still buy a diesel? Anything you like, driverspublicpodcast at gmail.com is how you'll get us. So Paul Crocken has got in touch. I think I'm pronouncing his name right. and But he says, hi there, I am of an age where my next car could be my last car to buy. ah Yeah, no, take it handy there.
01:04:04
Speaker
As you never know when you may not be able to afford a new car or indeed be able to drive. My car history is Fords, so we talked to the right person today, up to 2010, then Qashqai with one Maka.
01:04:15
Speaker
Current car is 212 Qashqai with 18,500 You've had lot Qashqais, Mark. eighteen thousand five hundred kilometers thus you've had a lot of kaka mark My last three cars were Qashqais and my usage is mainly long trips and the Qashqai is so comfortable.
01:04:28
Speaker
I never know when I get out of it that I have been driving for two hours. There Born in the 1960s. Jeez, you're only a young fella. I have a fanless for the new Renault 4 as my first EV. I went to see the model in Dundrum Shopping Centre in April.
01:04:41
Speaker
It is nice but smaller than the Qashqai. Obviously, there is a wait before dealers will talk on price. I've been pricing new and pre-registered 2025 cash cars and I'm considering being offered 60-68% trade-in value of my own with nearly new cars, well-discounted, circa 13% off the new price. You've done your research.
01:05:00
Speaker
It is tempting to buy an e-power cash car. The size is good and the price is attractive... I'm obviously getting a good trade-in from garages that sell Nissan. Do I wait and take a chance on getting a car my heart wants, Renault 4, or do I buy with my head and grab a 251-1 Qashqai e-Power? Please help, Paul.
01:05:18
Speaker
Well, first thing I'd say to you is they're a good option scenario comparison, if that all makes sense, because Windsor Motors will sell both cars you're talking about. So in theory, you should be able to trade in your Nissan and ah versus a Renault and it shouldn't make a difference that you're not going back to the same brand because essentially they'll put your Qashqai in one of their dealers and away go.
01:05:41
Speaker
The e-power Qashqai is essentially doing what a lot of you know Toyotas and stuff have tried to do. It's a self-charging hybrid, but the battery motor actually powers the wheels of the car.
01:05:53
Speaker
Petrol engine tops up the battery. and Quite smooth to drive. ah My experience of it was, i didn't find the the fuel efficiency hugely different. It was better, but hugely different between that and and the other versions. It was a 1.2 Kashkai was it maybe a 1.3 actually. It was the one we had for quite a while, which I actually found relatively thirsty. It was like eight, nine litres per 100 kilometres. Right. and If you do really want the Renault 4, I'd hang on and wait. and Yes, it is a little bit smaller than Qashqai. It doesn't sit as high as a Qashqai.
01:06:25
Speaker
don't know if your seating position will be quite the same. um And by the sounds of things, Paul's not going to be bringing a whole lot of passengers. He doesn't mention that, yeah. so like I don't think, Qashqai is not built to the same focus of cost, I don't think.
01:06:43
Speaker
As the Renault 4? No. Okay. Like, for example, i don't know if you've realised this, Paddy, but if I open the window of this car, ah it was just put on the ignition further there.
01:06:56
Speaker
So, window's going down. Now, look, this is probably car proper car and nerd stuff, but listen to this. I've seen you do this. Yeah.
01:07:08
Speaker
Insulation. So that's the roof of the Renault 5. Window's going bang up. And look, they have to one of the reasons probably for that is weight. ah Steel is so much more... The life cycle of steel, yes, you can do stuff with aluminium as well, but it's much cheaper to do stuff with steel. Right. in the Even in the afterlife of it being in the car.
01:07:31
Speaker
So I don't know the specific reason for that being that tinny, but I guarantee if you tap the roof of a cash guy, it won't sound like that. And my only concern for this, by the way, is if it's pelting down rain... going to be noisy. Will this sound like you're sitting in an old shed with... ah those kind of well it's lucky it doesn't rain in Ireland then Mark no exactly and so I don't think you're you're comparing the same type of car and Paul probably knows that really but all that said you know and the cash guys had a nice facelift this year back hasn't really changed but the front is quite quite different now and
01:08:02
Speaker
and Is it the same kind of personality type of car? Yeah, but Cascade doesn't have a huge amount, does it? Of personality at all? No, but that's what mean. And look, you know, you could definitely argue that Cascade is one of those boring cars in the world.
01:08:16
Speaker
People like boring. Look at the amount of Cascades they've sold. They're still built in Sunderland. Yeah, it's choice it's boring in its efficiency yeah and that being excellent at what it does. It's a Toyota Corolla for a Nissan. That's what it is. um And I think, yeah, we had like four of them in the house and we've moved to an Aria now. It was so different.
01:08:34
Speaker
ah him I'm reading between the lines of this email and I think i think Paul wants to make a bold choice. He's he's he's tired of... cotton chips for dinner yeah and he'd like maybe he'd like a little bit of sushi yeah well it's French he's probably talking something a little bit more exotic it'll still be raw it'll still be raw yeah exactly French and raw raw meat chopped up in a bowl exactly buy a Renault 4 Yeah, I mean, look, yeah i think that whole Windsor thing is is is helpful.
01:09:05
Speaker
But you can go and drive side by side. Yeah, exactly. um I will say, like just check, i don't know if you do use some on finance. Obviously, you're getting a good trade-in price and all that.
01:09:16
Speaker
um Just check the the APR on Renault. Not always the best. No, certainly not. And can make cars... remember we we nearly looked at an Arcana instead of one of the cash cars and the Arcana was well received in the house but the the interest rate was just too high.
01:09:37
Speaker
Yeah, it does, you know, it is a factor, because especially when you look at what, you know, Skoda, Volkswagen Group, lot of 0% floating around, especially in Skoda as well. Yeah, I mean, Volkswagen Group, in Ireland, anyway, is all we can really talk for, they are chasing market share like you wouldn't believe. And the good news for a customer is they just wanted you to buy one of their cars.
01:09:58
Speaker
So now's a great time to buy car from them. and But... Yeah, I think, if look, if you don't need... It's not like the Qashqai is huge compared to the Renault 4. It is a little bit bigger. um Look, if you fancy a change, if he wants a bit of strange.
01:10:12
Speaker
Exactly what he wants. And look, life's too short to drive boring cars all the time. And the Renault 4 is not... dull and and you know Renault as we sit here in one are knocking it out of the park at the moment on on most of their range they really are they've they've been bold they've they haven't over egged the pudding when it comes to the design and either they're they're they're interesting they look good but they're not overly bloated and heavy and and certainly from watching your video on the Renault 4 it's a very appealing car and and it's one that
01:10:46
Speaker
you know what? It's nice to have a conversation about your car. It's nice to be standing next to it and someone comes up and goes, ah, that's lovely. That's a good way looking at it. You know, when you meet a mate for a coffee or a pint whatever, Paul, and, ah, did you change the car at the end? What did you get? I went for another Qashqai. End of conversation.
01:11:03
Speaker
What did you get? do you know what? I bought a Renault 4. What? 904 like that old thing that used to be yeah oh there's an EV version now you know it is a car that's on trend at the moment but even with this i this is out a few weeks now I'm not one of the first people in it I'm a few weeks down the line and I had a 10 minute conversation with a gentleman from Morocco here earlier on who stopped me and just said look can I see it I remember these driving around my country when I was younger ah the Renault 5s and you know he just was interested in it and you know I've had people take pictures of the car I've had teenagers take pictures of the car i was in my own home trying to draw it last night and had 14, 15 year old boys a really tough audience yeah who have no concept of what a Renault 5 is no taking pictures of it and that's not going to happen a cash guy
01:11:50
Speaker
but No, no. I don't know if it'll happen in a Renault 4. Maybe it will. I think it will. it' it looks It's striking enough that it it it looks... and it's not to today It's not as dramatic as this car for sure, but in comparison to a a cash guy... but that But that is very interesting because I often say one of the few brands that teenagers will look at boys is a Cupra. And youre right the the fact that they have no recollection of a car from the 70s they're just judging this car on face
The Power of Car Appearance in Marketing
01:12:19
Speaker
value.
01:12:19
Speaker
Yeah, I mean, look, with this is... It's green. This is St. Patrick's Day green. with But, like, yeah that's the point. yeah that They're actually doing something that is making people like that making their head turn, and that doesn't happen. So, you know, are you doing something... Like, a huge proportion of cars is marketing.
01:12:36
Speaker
And if your car can really market itself even parked in the street, you know, job done. That is job done, exactly. If you do have more questions, we know a little bit about cars, so do send them in to driversrepublicpodcasts at gmail.com. We're happy to to answer your questions on both new and used car purchases.
01:12:55
Speaker
That's it for this week, Mark, I think. That is it for this week, Paddy. But I'll tell you what, we have some very, very spicy guests over the next few weeks. Some interesting guests, people that are household names, people that like to rub some people up the wrong way, ah but maybe they're actually lovely in real life.
01:13:11
Speaker
Yeah.
Closing Remarks and Listener Interaction
01:13:12
Speaker
So look, subscribe to us wherever you get your podcasts. And it is a bank holiday weekend. Please be safe on those roads and talk to you next time. And if you see Paddy in a bright green Kermit Carr, give him a wave.