The Western Group of Motoring Writers was formed in 1983 to provide a body which can not only represent the views of its members when communicating with others in the motor industry, but also perform the role of event organiser for motoring events, test drives and new model launches.
The Western Group of Motoring Writers boasts over 20 full and honorary members with interests that cover the full range of motoring journalism, including regional and national press, broadcast media, trade press, photography, video and specialist publications.
Group activities are held throughout the region on a regular basis. We constantly strive to raise professional standards and protect our members’ interests and liaise with motoring writers’ groups in other parts of the UK.
The highlight of our year is undoubtedly the WGMW’s annual invitation-only PR Driving Day held at Castle Combe race circuit in Wiltshire each summer, when we see a wide range of cars available to be test driven by representatives of the motor manufacturers’ press office teams.
- From the Chair: July 2021
While the pandemic with its daily statistics and intermittent lockdowns has naturally dominated the news for a year-and-a-half, other matters of interest, not to say concern, have often been overlooked. A case in point is the rise and rise of urban clean air zones, hitherto largely unchallenged because the general public has so far felt largely unaffected by them. Clean air zones are of course nothing new and by 2023 more than a dozen […] - Stonehenge and the motorist: A 6000 year old story… so far – by Dave MossOn 12 November 2020, permission was granted to join up existing dual carriageways on the A303 in Wiltshire via a new dual carriageway section, running via a twin-bore four-lane road tunnel just south of Stonehenge. The decision reignited controversy which has raged over roads near this unique site for over 50 years, though since 2000, anger and frustration have grown exponentially concrening the 8 mile section of single carriageway road hereabouts, where drivers suffer […]
- From the chair June 2021Slowly, very slowly, things are getting back to normal for motoring journalists, prs, the industry and dealers but no-one knows what that “new normal” will be or how it will work out and that is potentially a sticking point for everyone which will not take forward change in a meaningful manner. This month, the European car makers’ body unveils “a change of look, a change of shape, a change of voice” but we have yet […]
- Robert Opron: Designer of the DS and the Citroën MaseratiRobert Opron whose memorable designs included the Citroën Maserati and the Alfa Romeo SZ has died aged 89. Born in Amiens, he was unable to complete his ambition to become an architect because of a bout of tuberculosis which confined him in a sanatorium for two years. By now in his twenties and too late to restart, he had to earn a living. He joined Nord-Aviation where he produced drawings for technical manuals, but […]
- From the chair: April 2021The recent Evergreen affair underlines just how much the motor industry is at the mercy of supply chains over which it has little control. The Suez Canal bottleneck will probably result in some shipments arriving three-to four-weeks late and for car manufacturers it comes after a series of major setbacks: WLTP caused vast delays largely because regulatory authorities could not process homologations quickly enough. At one point VW had 200,000 vehicles awaiting approval and […]
- Electric Future?JLR figured large in the UK business pages last month with the announcement that from 2025 the company would build only EVs. The man delivering this news was JLR’s new CEO Thierry Bolloré, who until October 2019 was CEO at Renault, no stranger to electric cars. Also announced in February, but rather overlooked by the British press was Renault’s 2020 result, a breath-taking €8bn loss. While Peugeot under Carlos Tavares makes grand acquisitions left […]
- From the chair: March 2021There are a few weeds to be taken care of as the motor industry, energy providers, related suppliers and authorities take us down the green road towards 2030 and onwards. The haste and race to have low emission cars and other vehicles on our roads is tripping over some serious issues, notably cost, and not just for vehicles and infrastructure but the expense of losing jobs. Ford and JLR recently announced their electrification plans, […]
- Aston Martin St Athan plant will play a crucial role in the company’s recovery and future plans.The luxury car maker will almost double production at St Athan and its Garden, Warwickshire sites this year after working through stock it’s held and which has plagued them since its 2018 shares floatation. The British company plans to make 6,000 vehicles this year compared to 3,394 last year, according to a statement on Thursday. It’s last quarter revenue and adjusted earnings beat estimates thanks to extremely strong demand for the DBX SUV it […]
