Car April Fools 2021 from Dacia, Skoda, Caterham, Alfa Romeo…and ‘Voltswagen’

It’s April Fools day 2021, and car makers are lining up with their little pranks, including Dacia, Kia, Caterham and Volkswagen.

For one day of the year – this day, April Fools Day – big corporate car makers shake off their woke armour and indulge in a little frivolity, although this year things have been a bit different.

Thanks to a huge gaffe by Volkswagen this week – essentially an April Fool joke gone wrong and then totally mis-managed – it does seem fewer car makers are prepared to put their clown hats on toady. But some have.

Skoda In Tune perfects your in-car singing

We all love to sing along to the radio or streams in the car, but most of us aren’t exactly vocal stars. That doesn’t matter when we’re alone in the car, but it can cause consternation when you let rip with your lack of vocal talents with passengers onboard.

But Skoda has the answer with its new In Tune software activated from the touchscreen, which detects you singing, automatically corrects the pitch, and play it back through the car’s speakers.

Carrie O’Key, Skoda’s Head of Vehicle Audio, said:

We know music is good for the soul but caterwauling certainly is not.  This software will hopefully add some much-needed light-hearted fun to every essential car journey.

‘Dustar’ sees Dacia reach for the Stars

Dacia say they are the best value for money car brand in the world, and they’re now extending that value to space flights. Yes, Dacia is heading in to space with the world’s first affordable Space adventure.

Dubbed ‘DUSTAR’, Dacia say they have launched a Dacia Duster in to space. Noel Armstrong, Dacia’s Head of Dustar, said:

Going to space is a dream for many, but we want to show that you can make a little go a long way and make it a reality. I’m over the moon that we begin by sending our rugged and robust Dacia Duster to seriously new heights today

Alfa Romeo ‘Nuova Luce’ brings Italy to your Alfa’s windows

With foreign holidays banned for the UK, Alfa Romeo launch a taste of Italy with new Instagram-inspired ‘Nuova Luce’ (New Light) technology which brings Italy to the windows of your Alfa.

The new technology projects an image of some of Italy’s greatest scenery – Roma, Milano, Torino, Como and Cinque Terr – on to the windows using state of the art technology to match the filters and locations of the locations.

Phil Terre, Head of Ambient Lighting, said:

We know people up and down the country are desperate to go overseas. We’re hopeful that while it’s no replacement for the real thing, this world first technology brings a taste of Italy to the UK for Stelvio drivers.

Caterham Seven Lube to get you in to a Caterham with ease

Caterham Cars has launched the perfect aide to help you get in to the very cosy cabin of the Caterham Seven – Seven Lube.

Caterham say Seven Lube, with its Lard-like consistency – can be lightly applied to grease you effectively and let even the rotund slip in to the Seven with ease.

Caterham CEO, Graham Macdonald, said:

We’re aware that it can be a challenge [getting in a Seven] until you’re used to it and, if you’re of a more rotund persuasion like a rugby player or a competitive eater, it can be tricky however experienced a Seven driver you are.

We hope that, with this new product – which has been developed over the last 17 months by our world-class engineers – we can make getting in and out of a Seven just as easy as any mainstream vehicle. And still easier than a Kamaz truck, which requires you to climb a ladder.

Volkswagen’s ‘Voltswagen’ April Fool gone wrong

April Fools started a bit early this year for Volkswagen with the ‘accidental’ release of a statement declaring that, as EVs become the core of VW, they would be changing their name to ‘Voltswagen’.

It looked like an April Fool and smelled like an April fool, so we assumed it was. But when challenged VW doubled down on its statement declaring it was all true. But it wasn’t. Oh, dear, not exactly the way to garner trust for a company still trying to get the world to forget the lies of Dieselgate.