There’s been a new addition to the Challen family over the past month – of the automotive nature, rather than human or animal, I’m pleased to report. The eldest Challen Jnr has invested in a 2010 Volkswagen Golf S and he loves it – and so do I! A five-speed manual gearbox, over 100k miles on the clock and a few honest bumps and scrapes on the bodywork, but it’s lived a life.

It’s all so simplistic – compared to cars of today – and that’s in a good way. Yes, I did find myself hunting for the screen for the reversing camera in the first few days of having it, but very soon I was reminiscing about my first car (a 1988 Fiat Uno ‘Bianca’), which was also pretty basic. There was no reliance on technology (although the Golf does have a speed limiter) and having a manual again (something I very rarely do, these days) really makes you appreciate the joy of driving.

But this is EV Fleet World, why am I banging on about an old ICE motor that a fleet driver would probably never go near as their daily transport? Well, as I’ve alluded to, it’s a reminder that today’s – and tomorrow’s – cars are laden with tech. These advanced innovations might be designed to help keep you safe on the road but, with them comes confusion. I’ve noted before in here, and in Fleet World, about how beeps often come out of nowhere as I’m driving along, occasionally leaving me wondering why they sounded in the first place.

But is it time to rein it all in a bit and keep the safety technologies but without the aural (and sometimes physical) interference? Are cars of the future ever likely to be mass-produced in a more basic spec, or have we – as a society – moved beyond that? Maybe a defining point might be where drivers are ‘encouraged’ to pay for certain services. Shunning the investment could make some appreciate driving like it used to be in ‘the good old days’. Or maybe I’m just in the honeymoon period of driving a mature car and the novelty will wear off soon. Time will tell, but I’ll keep you posted.

Looking forwards, there are some exciting models coming in 2024, ones that are likely to be near the tops of people’s lists when looking to replace company cars. This issue features a specially expanded ‘Cars on the horizon’ feature that focuses on some of them.

Enjoy the issue.

John Challen Editor