Electric vehicles are all the rage, but for many potential owners, the inconvenience of frequent and long charging sessions looms large. Nio, China’s prominent EV company, takes a different approach with its expanding network of battery swap stations. It’s not about plugging in anymore, it’s about swapping out. Nio just reached a significant milestone, inaugurating its 2,000th battery swap station in China. Located at the Baoji West service area on the G30 Lianyungang-Khorgos highway. With this achievement, Nio inches closer to its ambitious target of establishing 2,300 swap… More…

Toyota’s Gazoo Racing division unveiled the FT-Se concept car at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo. And if this is what the future electric Toyota MR2 is going to look like – sign us up! The GR sub-brand’s first electric sports car concept promises a driving sensation that, according to Toyota’s top man, Koji Sato, stands apart from anything else out there. The production version will be “small, low, light, and fun”, he adds. This isn’t the first time we’ve heard murmurs of such a concept. In late 2021, there was a reveal of an unnamed Toyota MR2-sized concept which seems to be the… More…

Back in April of last year, Honda and GM announced plans to develop a series of affordable EVs by 2027, which would use a new architecture based on GM’s Ultium batteries. They spoke about putting together production capacity for millions of such vehicles even. Today, Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe revealed that the entire aforementioned plan has been canceled. “After studying this for a year, we decided that this would be difficult as a business, so at the moment we are ending development of an affordable EV. GM and Honda will search for a solution separately. This project itself has been… More…

Toyota’s unveiled its FT-3e concept vehicle at the Japan Mobility Show in Tokyo. The sharp lines of the 4×4 five-seat SUV make it look like a far more refined Toyota bZ4x. According to Toyota AI was employed in designing the vehicle, helping achieve what the company says is a simple yet aero-optimized body. We get a full width rear light bar, squared-off panels, and alloy wheels colored to match the bodywork. There are digital displays running from the wheel arch up towards the door mirror, showing the battery charge, cabin temperature, and air quality. And, in a little flair the… More…

Mazda’s participation at the Japan Mobility Show 2023 began with the announcement of the Iconic SP, a a sports car concept with an innovative powertrain. The car looks like a hearty salute to the beloved Mazda MX-5 (or Miata, as many revere it), but it brings plenty of cutting edge tech. Most notably, Mazda’s two-rotor EV system. So the EV concept uses a twin-rotor rotary engine (reminiscent of yet another classic – the RX7 FD) powered by carbon-neutral fuel for electricity generation. An interesting take on an EREV (Extended Range Electric Vehicle) then. The… More…

Honda CEO Toshihiro Mibe personally unveiled the Prelude concept – Honda’s first true sports EV. Mibe called it the specialty sports model, the concept embodies the “joy of driving” and “Honda’s unalterable sports mindset”. Mibe continued to describe Prelude as an “introductory or preceding performance.” and said the EV will “offer (an) exhilarating experience that makes you want to keep going forever and extraordinary excitement you never felt before.” Honda is “diligently progressing with (the) development” of the Prelude so it should eventually arrive as a full-fledged… More…

Kick-starting the Japan Mobility Show Nissan dropped a real bomb: the Nissan Hyper Force concept. If you’ve been tracking Nissan’s series of innovative “hyper” concept vehicles, then this is the climax you’ve been waiting for. Unlike the other wild concepts, this one is not just another pipe dream – this is the potential future face of Nissan’s iconic GT-R. Nissan is pivoting to an all-electric platform, but one that befits the legendary name. The Hyper Force boasts an impressive 1,000 kW (equivalent to 1,341 hp) all-electric powertrain. Expect acceleration to be nothing short of… More…

If you were to ask thieves about their favorite cars to pilfer, chances are, Teslas wouldn’t make the list. And no, it’s not because they’ve developed an eco-conscious mindset overnight or a sudden appreciation for Elon Musk’s tweets. Thanks to a built-in GPS tracking feature, Tesla’s fleet has comfortably settled atop the list of America’s least stolen vehicles per Highway Loss Data Institute’s latest report. The study is based on US insurance industry data spanning 40 million vehicles with 18,000 theft claims. And who can blame the crooks? Stealing a car only to have it digitally… More…

After discounting its all-electric pickup truck, the F-150 Lightning last week, the company is now slashing the prices of its Mustang Mach-E with new incentives. Until January 2, Ford is offering a Retail Customer Cash bonus and combined with a €3,490 EV tax credit to reduce the price of some configurations of the Mach-E by €9,000. You’d have to be buying cash to get the advantage of the Retail Customer Cash bonus. The Red Carpet Lease Cash offer is eligible for buyers looking to lease and depending on the trim, you get either €3,960 or €1,160 rebate. The former discount applies to… More…

For fans of the Chevrolet Equinox EV, or the Silverado EV, or the GMC Sierra EV, we have some bad news. GM has chosen to delay the production of the three models for “just a few months”, in order to “protect pricing” and “enhance viability”. According to GM CEO Mary Barra, the delay will somehow “make the trucks more efficient and less expensive to produce, and therefore more profitable” in the future. So it’s not “protecting pricing” to offer you better prices, it’s “protecting pricing” to increase its profit margins. Chevrolet Equinox EV GM is also becoming less optimistic about… More…

Li Auto’s Li Mega MPV broke its first record before it’s even officially unveiled. The car achieved a mind-boggling peak charging rate of 552 kW. Even as the battery surged past the 80% mark, the vehicle could still pull in a hefty 315 kW of power. This enabled the EV’s sizeable battery to go from 10% to 80% in just 10 minutes. In fact the 6% to 80% took just 11 minutes and 2 seconds, absorbing 77.3 kWh of energy in that span. The previously reigning champion was the Xpeng G9, which had a maximum charging speed of 445 kW. The Lotus Eletre and the Porsche Taycan, respected names in… More…

Zeekr – the luxury electric vehicle arm of the Geely Holding Group – is about to unveil its latest addition, the Zeekr 001 FR (Future Road). And three days before its grand reveal, this electric supercar has already begun its journey off the assembly lines. Zeekr’s new ride promises a gut-wrenching 1,265 horsepower, making Tesla Model S Plaid’s 1,020 horsepower look like a leisurely stroll in the park. The Zeekr 001 FR claims to shoot from a standstill to 100 km/h in a mere 2.07 seconds. The official launch of this electric supercar is penciled in for October 27 at 19:30 Beijing time…. More…

Yet more details on the Tesla Cybertruck were revealed today. The polarizing, wedge-shaped vehicle’s VIN documents surfaces at NHTSA’s website. The documents, spotted by a sharp-eyed user from the Cybertruck Owners Club forum, confirm the existence of a version with three electric motors. Secondly, this futuristic truck will tip the scales at over 4,080 kg. There’s no mistake – that’s over 4 metric tons. In the world of VINs, digits 6 and 8 are the celebrities. Digit 6 tells us about the vehicle’s gross weight. The intriguing ‘G’ tells us this vehicle hovers between 3,629… More…

Mercedes announced it’s opening orders for the updated EQA and EQB in Europe and the cars are expected at dealers in early 2024. The EQA 250 is €48,992, the 250+ goes up to €50,420. Then there’s the 300 4MATIC at €51,735 and 350 4MATIC tops the range with its €54,638 price. Trim levels are the baseline Progressive, featuring ARTICO man-made leather, leather steering wheel, and 18-inch alloy wheels. A move up to the Electric Art opens up nicer 18-inch alloys, nicer interior materials, and a multifunction sports wheel in nappa leather. The AMG Line adds AMG styling, sports seats, AMG… More…

The Kia EV9 is about to become available to the general public and as of yet, most people haven’t been able to see it in person. That included us but we had the chance to meet up with the flagship SUV here on the Old Continent and snap a few images and gather some early impressions. We got a look at the higher-end GT line model which comes in a satin Blue paint job with black matte accents. It’s a mature but sporty look that goes nicely with the full-sized SUV. The satin finish has a really cool look to it, but it does take a lot of extra effort keeping clean. Opt out of the GT and you… More…

The updated Tesla Model 3, also known as ‘Highland’ has started shipping to buyers in Europe. A lucky few from Germany and the Netherlands have gone on X (formerly Twitter) to boast of their just-arrived Model 3’s. If you go on Tesla’s German configurator you’ll get a 2 to 6-week estimate for the Model 3 Highland. Meanwhile, potential buyers in the States get the old model with a November shipping estimate. It’s unclear when the new Model 3 will become available to US buyers. The car is also on sale in China and there have been reports of a fleet of new Model 3s being readied for… More…

Stellantis hosted a “Commercial Vehicles Ambition Day” today in Amsterdam, where it announced an impressive fleet of 12 second-generation electric vans. As part of its Pro One commercial vehicles program, these bring comprehensive upgrades, including better efficiency, longer range and newer tech. Europe gets updated Citroen e-Berlingo, Fiat Doblo, and Opel/Vauxhall Combo, while North American will see the arrival of the Ram ProMaster EV by the end of 2023. And for those longing for a bit more muscle, the Ram 1500 REV electric truck is set to make its debut by the end of… More…

The world has been waiting for this electric car showdown for a while now. Lucid Motors, in a demonstration of automotive prowess, finally showcased the capabilities of its Lucid Air Sapphire. Set against the backdrop of the picturesque Sonoma Raceway in California, the EV faced its much-discussed rival: the Tesla Model S Plaid. Driven by Ben Collins, known to many as the enigmatic “Stig” from the popular British show, “Top Gear”, the Lucid Air Sapphire achieved a speed of 249 km/h and completed the quarter-mile run in a mere 8.989 seconds. A new shade of speed. Witness @BenCollinsStig… More…

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is finally taking action and launches an investigation regarding Tesla’s exaggerated range estimates on its EVs, following a report from late August. The probing was confirmed by a Tesla document filed at the FCC, stating that DOJ is requesting information from the company regarding “personal benefits, related parties, vehicle range and personnel decisions”. This isn’t the first time Tesla has been accused of presenting overly optimistic range estimates and the automaker even set up a “Diversion Team” to deal with all the complaints. That’s because… More…