Today, BMW announced that the BMW 7 Series will get Level 3 driving assistance by next spring. The feature will be available for order this December and the first cars with it will ship in March 2024. Strangely enough the eDrive50 and M70 xDrive aren’t eligible so you can only get it on the middle eDrive60 drivetrain. Right now, the company is offering Level 2 automated driving that includes features such as automatic lane change and adaptive cruise control, allowing the driver to take their hands off the wheel but you still need to pay attention to what is happening on the road. The… More…

Renault Korea Motors (RKM) is embracing the EV future with help from an unlikely partner. Starting in the second half of 2025, RKM’s Busan plant will produce and export pure electric vehicles, beginning with the much-anticipated Polestar 4. The agreement, forged between Polestar, Geely Group, and RKM, marks a significant milestone for the South Korean auto manufacturer. The partnership aims to roll out the Polestar 4, a pure electric vehicle, not just for the domestic South Korean market but also for exporting to North America. Located with direct access to major exporting ports,… More…

A few days ago Zeekr announced that it’s going to unveil its first ever sedan, the Zeekr 007, on November 17 (a huge missed opportunity to do it on November 7, we think, but anyway, let’s not digress). Today the brand’s official global X account shared the images you can see below, which pretty much give away the entirety of the car’s looks – and we’re not complaining, since it does look stunning. The 007 has LiDAR technology, as is obvious by the sensors sitting up top. This will be the first time a Zeekr features LiDAR, although the popularity of LiDAR in the Chinese EV market has… More…

Samsung’s SmartThings is possibly the biggest smart home platform in the world and is now offering integration with EvLoop’s EV charging network. The integration is also working with some EVs. The SmartThings app now allows you to track and control the charging process, just like the native Loop EV Charger app. For instance, you can schedule the charging process to start during off-peak hours. Additionally, the SmartThings app can monitor and manage your charger with the app available on your smartwatch, tablet, TV and even the fridge. The future is now! EvLoop is a charging network… More…

The first production models of the BYD Yangwang U8, an electric SUV under BYD’s premium Yangwang brand, have started rolling off the factory line, marking a significant milestone for the new brand. Officially launched on September 20, the Yangwang U8 has already generated over 30,000 orders – a clear indication of the market’s enthusiasm for this luxury electric SUV. This high demand could be attributed to its unique blend of off-road prowess and advanced technology. The U8, priced at approximately RMB 1.098 million (just over €140,000), is assembled at a BYD production site in… More…

The Volkswagen ID.4 GTX is the latest car we’ve got for review and we are currently busy putting it through its paces. And while the full set of trials will take a while longer to complete we are now done with the range test, so we figured we might share the findings of that one with you. The ID.4 GTX version comes with a 82 kWh battery of which 77 kWh are available to use. That’s among the highest capacities in the price range and its WLTP rating of about 515km sounds very promising. In fact that’s after the range penalty that comes with the dual motor AWD drive of the 250kW GTX model… More…

In the first half of the year, CATL was still the reigning king in terms of EV battery market share. The global EV battery capacity sold in the first six months of 2023 grew 54% compared to the same period last year, reaching over 300GWh, according to Counterpoint Research. During the same period, global EV sales also experienced a 43% year-on-year growth. The leading regions in EV battery installations were China, the US, and Europe, unsurprisingly. CATL’s share of the market was 34%, followed by BYD at 16%, LG at 14%, Panasonic at 8%, SK Innovation and Samsung SDI at 5% each…. More…

Volkswagen has hit yet another bump on its electric vehicle journey. The company has announced a temporary halt in EV production at its Zwickau plant in Germany, attributing it to a shortage of electric motors. This news comes on the heels of a similar production halt at Volkswagen’s Dresden site last month, highlighting the challenges the auto giant faces in its transition to electric mobility. The Zwickau plant, Volkswagen’s largest EV production site in Europe, plays a pivotal role in the company’s ambitious electric plans. In 2018, Volkswagen invested nearly €1.21 billion to transform… More…

The Swiss Federal Council has announced that it’s removing the 4% import tax break on EVs, which was in place since 1997. The reason for the decision stems from the rampant adoption rate of EVs in the country and now 23% of all imported cars are EVs. The drop in average EV prices is another reason cited by the Swiss government. The Swiss government is also looking to improve the public transport and highway system, so the removal of the 4% credit will raise some additional funds for projects. The government estimates an additional revenue of at least €2.05 to €3.08 per year. The… More…

Volvo Trucks North America claims to have taken a serious leap forward with its groundbreaking SuperTruck 2. This tractor-trailer was aiming to meet the US Department of Energy’s challenge for a 100% efficiency increase and even exceeded it, achieving a 134% boost in efficiency. However one may argue that the task wasn’t so difficult since the baseline was set by a 2009 truck. At the heart of SuperTruck 2’s efficiency is (unsurprisingly) its aerodynamic design. The cabin is shaped into a sleek wedge, complemented by a wraparound windshield. This design, coupled with meticulously engineered… More…

Tesla’s much-anticipated Cybertruck is about to start deliveries by the month’s end. Amidst a sea of delays and hushed whispers of specifications, a new leak finally provides some specific numbers. Spanning a length of 5,660 mm, the Cybertruck sits between the hefty full-size trucks and the more agile mid-size alternatives. It’s a conscious dance on the edge of regulatory thresholds, with its 2,029.5 mm width just ducking under the 2,030 mm mark that would demand additional safety lighting. The height, however, tells a story of modesty in a segment known for its towering statures…. More…

EV sales kept climbing in September, nearly 9.5 million plug-in models have found their new owners in 2023 so far, of which over 6.5 million are BEVs. That’s around 16% of all cars sold in 2023 and 12% share for the BEVs alone. The data comes from EV-Volumes by way of Jose Pontes. September saw a record 1,291,077 new passenger plug-in cars sold, of which the majority – 890,000 – were EVs. Breaking down the total numbers by individual models, it’s no surprise that Tesla Model Y dominates with 121,258 sales in September. BYD’s Yuan Plus (aka Atto 3) is the next EV in the list with 35,378,… More…

Polestar’s Q3 report reveals the company is both accelerating and hitting speed bumps. The company’s third quarter of 2023 tells a story of growth, challenge, and strategic reorientation. Polestar’s revenue soared to €571 million, a robust 41% year-on-year increase. This growth is primarily fueled by the price hikes for the 2023 and 2024 model years, alongside an expansion in vehicle sales across various markets. The delivery of 13,976 cars is a 51% yearly increase and it underscores Polestar’s growing appeal in the electric vehicle market. Polestar 3 Despite the revenue uptick,… More…

Chrysler’s next new model will be an EV crossover launching in 2025, which will be based on the Chrysler Airflow concept presented in 2022 and seen in the image below. The new crossover will use the STLA Large architecture, shared with other models from Stellantis (which owns Chrysler). Chrysler Airflow concept The news comes straight from Chrysler CEO Christine Feuell. This will be a two-row crossover, and the brand is also considering, at some later point, the introduction of an all-new EV sedan to its lineup, to replace the long-running Chrysler 300, which is currently being… More…

Rivian’s recent third-quarter financial report reveals a fascinating juxtaposition of soaring sales against a backdrop of substantial financial losses. This dichotomy paints a picture of a company at the cusp of significant growth, albeit grappling with the challenges inherent in the EV industry. Rivian has boldly revised its production target for 2023, now aiming to manufacture a staggering 54,000 units of its R1T and R1S electric vehicles, up from its previous goal of 52,000. This adjustment comes in the wake of a remarkable 121% increase in vehicle production in the third quarter,… More…

Niron Magnetics is a small US-based startup company that just received $33 million in funding from one of the big automakers in the country – General Motors. Previously, Volvo Group and Stellantis have chipped in as well. The company aims to deliver “clean Earth permanent magnets”, which are essential for the production of electric motors in EVs. They are called “permanent magnets” because, within the motor unit, they constantly generate force, which is used for turning electricity into mechanical energy. And Niron Magnetic is proud to say that its version of magnets is “the first and… More…

XPeng keeps teasing its upcoming electric MPV, the X9. Judging by the first photo released by the company – the future of family travel is quite luxurious. XPeng X9 MPV is a foray into the family vehicle segment, built on the SEPA 2.0 platform. It features rear-axle steering to retain maneuverability despite its size. The X9’s interior features starship ambient lighting, while the back row boasts a dual tabletop, a separate air conditioning control panel, a refrigerator, and a rear ceiling screen. The XPeng X9 stands at 5,293 mm long, 1,988 mm wide, and 1,785 mm tall so it… More…

Lucid Motors announced a significant reduction in its production targets for 2023. This announcement in the aftermath of the company’s Q3 report, which showed increasing operational losses. Initially, Lucid Motors had ambitious plans to manufacture between 10,000 and 14,000 units of Lucid Air this year. After later revising that to the lower end of the interval the company has now admitted that it will miss even that and will deliver 8,000 to 8,500 vehicles. This adjustment represents a drastic cut of over 40% from its upper-end target set in the fourth quarter of 2022. Lucid… More…

Tesla’s ambitious promises of a Full Self-Driving (FSD) system have recently faced scrutiny from the UK legal system. Edward Butler, a Tesla Model 3 owner, has successfully challenged the electric car giant, securing a settlement of approximately €9,000. The victory circles around Tesla’s claims of FSD capabilities that, according to Butler, have failed to materialize, thereby breaching the Consumer Rights Act of 2015. In 2016, Tesla introduced the FSD system as a futuristic addition to its electric vehicles, making both promises of cars capable of navigating the hustle of traffic lights… More…

Behold, the next Renault Master van! Or rather, its silhouette, which is the only thing that Renault is showing us for now. Fret not, however, for the full design will be revealed in the next few days. The new Master has an “Aerovan” design for “ever greater efficiency”, according to Renault, and you should expect up to 21% lower consumption from the EV. Renault has sold more than three million Master vans since 1980, and the new generation will “move up a gear”. The next-gen vans will be more efficient, “100% connected and innovative”, as well as “designed for optimum use”. It will… More…