Tesla has completed its new research and development centre at the Gigafactory in Shanghai. The facility is the electric carmaker’s first R&D centre outside the US. In parallel, Tesla has raised a data centre in Shanghai and opened a large delivery centre. The new facilities signify a further localisation of Tesla’s activities in China. Media […] More…

Hyundai Mobis, an automotive supplier belonging to the Hyundai Motor Group, has unveiled an ‘e-corner’ module that integrates the steering, braking, suspension and electric drive systems in one wheel. It will serve as the basic technology for a future platform, which is expected to be released in 2023. Hyundai Mobis says it will accept series […] More…

Following the launch of the new generation Mercedes C-Class presented in February, the first plug-in hybrid versions can now be ordered in the form of the C 300 e and C 300 e Estate, which are advertised with electric WLTP ranges of more than 100 kilometres. This is supposed to be made possible by a […] More…

The electric truck with integrated solar system developed at Fraunhofer ISE together with industrial partners has received road approval. Road tests will now show whether the installed photovoltaic (PV) modules can actually cover the targeted five to ten per cent of the truck’s energy demand. The 18-tonne truck with solar modules integrated into the box […] More…

Panasonic has presented a prototype of its 4680 cell for Tesla. Test production of the cells is scheduled to begin in Japan in March 2022. It is not yet clear when series production will begin. To date, Panasonic is the only known supplier commissioned by Tesla to build the 4680 cells. Panasonic’s battery boss Kazuo […] More…

The South Korean car manufacturer Ssangyong has gone through a restructuring process and has now apparently found a buyer. According to media reports, the potential new owners want to turn Ssangyong into a carmaker focused on electric vehicles within three to five years. Ssangyong has been majority-owned by the Indian Mahindra Group since 2011. Last […] More…

The London Metropolitan Government has extended the Ua Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) to the northern and southern parts of the ring road. The expanded ULEZ is now 18 times the size of the original zone in central London. Announced back in June 2018 – for 2021 – the expansion to these exact dimensions means the […] More…

The French government is extending its subsidies for electric cars and plug-in hybrids at the current level until 1 July 2022. The original plan was to further reduce the currently granted subsidies from 1 January 2022. Similarly to Germany, France had decided to increase the subsidy rates in May 2020 as part of a restructuring […] More…

The Italian government is making another 100 million euros available from 27 October, primarily for the promotion of electric and hybrid vehicles. However, the ‘Ecobonus’ is scaled according to CO2 emissions and vehicle classes – so the full amount is not simply available for fully electric vehicles. Specifically, 65 million euros will be allocated to […] More…

Originally, Volkswagen had called on its managers to choose cars that were as CO2-friendly as possible as company cars. A special rule on this was already softened in June due to the lack of available EV models. Now the situation has apparently worsened due to the electric boom and the chip shortage: Volkswagen just informed […] More…

Toyota has just partnered with Italian gas network operator Snam and the Portuguese bus manufacturer CaetanoBus to accelerate the introduction of hydrogen mobility in both heavy and light transport. Snam has revealed that the aim is to support public administrations, companies and private institutions in Italy and other European countries with hydrogen mobility. The three […] More…

The car rental company Hertz has ordered 100,000 electric cars from Tesla. These are to be delivered by the end of 2022. Customers will be able to rent the Tesla Model 3 at selected Hertz locations in the USA and Europe from the beginning of November this year. The car rental company justifies the investment […] More…

The Berlin-based micromobility provider Tier Mobility has raised $200 million (171 million euros) from existing and new investors in its Series D funding round. Tier plans to use the funds for acquisitions and strategic investments and to expand its international presence in strategic growth markets. In June this year, Tier secured $60 million from Goldman […] More…

The Israeli flying car start-up Air has presented its first electric flying machine, the Air One. This is an all-electric two-seater eVTOL that is to be sold mainly in the USA from 2024. Pre-orders for the model are already being taken. Unlike many eVTOL start-ups, Air (formerly Porality Mobility) does not want to build vertical […] More…

The British energy company BP and the Italian scooter manufacturer Piaggio have signed a memorandum of understanding to promote electric mobility on two and three wheels in Asia and Europe. The plan is to develop charging stations and replaceable batteries, as well as various services related to batteries and vehicles. The initial focus of the […] More…

The planned Envision AESC battery factory at the Nissan plant in Sunderland, England, will have an annual capacity of 11 GWh when it opens in 2024 and an annual capacity of up to 38 GWh in a potential final expansion stage. Both figures exceed those previously made public. According to the original announcement, the planned […] More…

Chinese electric car manufacturer Xpeng announced several innovations at its Tech Day, including an 800-volt electric car platform with silicon carbide technology and a fast-charging station with up to 480 kW of charging power. Basically, Xpeng only touched on all its product and innovation news at the Tech Day. There is therefore no detailed background […] More…

The German chemical company BASF and the Chinese battery cell manufacturer SVOLT have agreed on a comprehensive partnership. The two companies want to cooperate in the development of new battery materials and the supply of raw materials, as well as in recycling. According to BASF, the partnership will “combine the strengths of both parties on […] More…

The US state of Nevada has now become the sixteenth state in the nation to adopt clean car standards. The regulations will be implemented for the model year 2025. The legislation will also develop $100 million in charging infrastructure during the next three years. Nevada Governor Steve Sisolak celebrated the State Legislative Commission’s passage of […] More…

After the electric car division of the heavily indebted Chinese real estate group Evergrande Group recently declared that it would stick to its plans to produce electric cars, Evergrande boss Hui Ka Yan has now announced his plans for Evergrande New Energy Vehicle. A sale that had been rumoured in the meantime seems to be […] More…