While several automakers have demonstrated second-life use of EV battery pack, one California-based company is actually making money using Nissan Leaf packs for energy storage. B2U Storage Solutions has turned about 20 used Leaf battery packs into an energy-storage array that supports a 1MW solar farm in Lancaster, California, according to a video… More…

Production of the 2022 Chevrolet Bolt EV and Bolt EUV electric cars is back on temporarily as General Motors continues to work through a large-scale battery recall. GM initially halted Bolt EV and Bolt EUV production at its Orion Assembly plant in Michigan in August as part of the recall, which was triggered by battery-fire concerns. Automotive… More…

On Friday night, with the expected bipartisan support, the U.S. House of Representatives passed a $1.2 trillion infrastructure bill that designates $65 billion for upgrades of the nation’s electric grid and $7.5 billion for the nationwide deployment of EV charging stations. Such a buildout potentially represents more than triple the number… More…

Volkswagen’s electric bus may soon have a rival from Mini. In a press release detailing sustainability initiatives, Mini said it is developing a production EV that could take design inspiration from the Vision Urbanaut concept first shown in 2020. The release said Mini is “working on the development of a new vehicle concept for the premium compact… More…

Panasonic is preparing to mass produce large-format 4680 battery cells for Tesla, and facing new manufacturing challenges as part of that process, the head of the company’s new consolidated battery division in a recent interview with Nikkei Asia. “In terms of product development, the technological goals have largely been achieved,” Kazuo Tadanobu… More…

The most controversial part of the expanded $12,500 EV tax credit so far hasn’t been the spending itself, but the requirement that vehicles getting the top amount—$4,500 of the $5,000 boost the program is being given—will need to be union-made. As part of an updated measure spanning climate issues and social spending introduced… More…

Volkswagen on Wednesday teased a prototype version of its Microbus-inspired ID.Buzz electric van that could closely resemble a production version due for customer deliveries in 2023. A camouflaged ID.Buzz was shown briefly by Klaus Zellmer, head of marketing and sales for the VW brand globally, during the livestream of the ID.5 crossover reveal… More…

Volkswagen is giving the ID.4 the crossover coupe treatment. Unveiled on Wednesday, the Volkswagen ID.5 provides European buyers the option of a sleeker electric crossover, but it’s unlikely to reach the United States. Apart from the curved roof, the ID.5 looks identical to the ID.4, and both models have a common interior design as well. The ID.5… More…

Hyundai has given an additional glimpse of an all-electric SUV concept that previews its upcoming Ioniq 7, due in 2024. The concept, called Seven, is due to be fully revealed at the LA auto show later on November 17. According to the company, the Seven concept “captures Hyundai Motor’s future design and technology innovation in the… More…

Tesla has once again made changes to the Model 3 lineup, including a price increase for the base version. The Tesla Model 3 Standard Range Plus, which was previously the de facto base model, has been replaced by an unnamed base rear-wheel drive Model 3 trim level, per Tesla’s website. All-wheel drive Long Range and Performance versions remain in… More…

Fisker and CATL on Tuesday announced a battery-supply deal for the Fisker Ocean electric SUV, which Fisker said is on track for a November 2022 production start. Under the terms of the agreement, CATL will supply two battery packs for the Ocean and a total of 5 gigawatt-hours of cells annually from 2023 to 2025, Fisker said in a press release. The… More…

Volkswagen Group of America is launching a joint research project with the Department of Energy’s Oak Ridge National Laboratory (ORNL) and the University of Tennessee, Knoxville, to develop high-power wireless charging for electric cars. Using a Porsche Taycan as a test bed, teams from VW, ORNL, and UT Knoxville have upped the power level of… More…

Non-Tesla electric cars can now charge at 10 of the automaker’s Supercharger stations in the Netherlands. It’s a first step toward potentially opening the network to other EVs. The pilot program opens 10 stations to owners of EVs that accept the Combined Charging Standard (CCS); they’ll still have to use the Tesla app to access them, an explainer… More…

Battery-electric vehicles, plug-in hybrids, and hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles already produce lower overall emissions than the average gasoline small SUV, and have a pathway to further reducing emissions, according to a recent Department of Energy report. The report considered the well-to-wheels and cradle-to-grave emissions of all propulsion types… More…

A software update could soon add range to earlier-production Audi E-Tron electric SUVs, but it won’t be done over the air. Vehicles from model years 2019 and 2020—the first two model years of E-Tron production—can now get an update good for 12.4 miles of WLTP range, Audi said in a press release. Audi of America couldn’t confirm timing… More…

Tesla is recalling certain 2019-2021 Model 3 and 2020-2021 Model Y electric cars to address front suspension lateral link fasteners that could loosen over time. A pair of these fasteners attach the lateral link to a vehicle’s subframe. If not secured to the proper specification, the fasteners could loosen or separate from the subframe, according… More…

Toyota on Friday revealed a whole lot more about its upcoming fully electric SUV, the 2022 bZ4X, which leads a lineup of “bZ” EVs and is described as “overturning the common idea that electrified vehicles are tedious.” From a yoke not entirely unlike the one Tesla introduced earlier this year on the Model S Plaid to a solar… More…

Truck buyers love to accessorize their rigs. And GMC doesn’t see going electric as any exception to the rule. The GM truck brand on Thursday announced that it will give a sampling of nearly 200 official accessories as it displays a trio of GMC Hummer EV Edition 1 models at next week’s Specialty Equipment Market Association (SEMA) show… More…

A maximum $12,500 federal EV tax credit, including a bonus for union-made vehicles, appears to have survived the negotiation process and is now a likely part of the infrastructure bill. In its current form, the framework still includes a tax credit that “will lower the cost of an electric vehicle that is made in America with American materials and… More…

Chinese battery supplier CATL and Hyundai Mobis on Wednesday announced a partnership and license agreement for CATL’s cell-to-pack technology. Cell-to-pack refers to the direct integration of cells into a battery pack, without the modules used in most current pack designs. The deal will allow for use of this tech in electric cars and other… More…