Which electrical truck maker would possibly cease manufacturing at 500 autos?
Why oh why are steering wheels falling off EVs?
That is our look again on the Week In Reverse—proper right here at Inexperienced Automotive Studies—for the week ending March 10, 2023.
Are EVs just like the Ford F-150 Lightning ineffective within the excessive chilly as a result of they lose all their vary? We took a take a look at F-150 Lightning vary, charging, and every part in between in subzero climate to present you a extra life like view of what dwelling with an EV is perhaps like within the excessive chilly.
2023 Ford F-150 Lightning
Ford additionally on Friday confirmed a battery-related recall on the 2023 F-150 Lightning—to exchange the packs on 18 Lightnings that made it to dealerships or prospects with a battery cell manufacturing defect.
Scout Motors, the brand new electrical automobile model from Volkswagen, on Friday confirmed that its first mannequin will likely be an SUV within the $40,000 vary, constructed at a brand new $2 billion manufacturing unit in South Carolina. That mannequin gained’t arrive till 2026, however will probably be adopted by a bigger electrical pickup truck.
2024 Mercedes-Benz AMG EQE SUV
Mercedes-Benz has priced its U.S.-made EQE SUV, and at just under $80,000 to start out, the absolutely electrical SUV makes the EV tax credit score minimize. This luxury mannequin will land between the EQB and EQS SUV in its lineup, and towards the likes of the BMW iX and Audi Q8 E-Tron.
Tesla has as soon as once more minimize costs on the Mannequin S and Mannequin X. With these cuts of $5,000 to $10,000, Tesla is now successfully bringing the Twin Motor Mannequin S just under the value of the dual-motor Lucid Air Pure that beats the equal Mannequin S in vary. It’s additionally bringing Plaid variations of the Mannequin S and Mannequin X to their lowest costs but—each to the identical $111,380.
2023 Tesla Mannequin X – Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.
Hyundai this week supplied a first take a look at the 2024 Kona Electrical. On the way in which to the U.S. later this 12 months, the Kona Electrical will get slightly extra battery and vary, extra space inside, and V2L tech for backup energy, in addition to over-the-air updates and vastly upgraded interface and active-safety tech.
Nissan is seeking to share extra elements between its EVs and e-Energy hybrids, in an effort to minimize powertrain prices for electrified autos by 30% in just some years—with worth parity for hybrids by 2026. E-power hybrid vans is perhaps a part of this plan, in accordance with a report.
Lordstown Motors’ manufacturing of the Endurance electrical truck stays stalled, as the corporate works by a recall concern with the high-voltage system on the vans. Regardless of not seeing a transparent monetary path to construct greater than the preliminary 500 vans, the corporate is seeking to future fashions made with Foxconn.
Fisker PEAR rendering
Fisker isn’t but delivering its Ocean EV within the U.S., however as a part of an organization replace final week it revealed a bit extra about its second act, the Pear. Along with a pair extra renderings of the upcoming $29,900 Fisker city EV, the corporate pointed to a really revolutionary electronics structure and so-called Blade Pc.
Mercedes-Benz has made effectivity and adaptability core focal factors for the new era of eSprinter electrical vans lately revealed. With LFP battery packs, heat-pump tech, and modular propulsion methods, these vans will likely be prepared for a spread of upfits, if not the Vanlife fairly but.
2024 Mercedes-Benz eSprinter
Whereas air suspensions have prior to now been a mandatory compromise in some EVs to take care of consolation and efficiency, Hyundai’s expertise provider is boasting that in next-gen kind they may assist assist EV vary and defend batteries.
Simply forward of SXSW in Austin, beginning now, a U.S. startup known as Lightship introduced it needs to turn into the Tesla of RV makers with the solar-supplemented, self-propelled L1, a 27-foot journey trailer that, the corporate claims, will protect the towing EV’s vary. And Airstream and the design agency that’s an extension of Porsche have labored collectively to give you the primary “garageable” Airstream journey trailer within the firm’s 90-year historical past. The small-footprint idea can be the first Airstream optimized for towing with EVs.
Lightship L1 battery-powered journey trailer
One of many nation’s largest utilities, in Minnesota, needs to construct an enormous EV charging community funded partly by ratepayers. The proposal is controversial from the beginning, as it will increase utility charges throughout the board, whether or not prospects personal EVs or not.
Whether or not it’s the value of vogue or practicality: SUVs are fueling world oil demand and fouling CO2 targets, whereas neither electrical SUVs nor electrical autos as a complete are doing sufficient to offset that, in accordance with a brand new evaluation from the Worldwide Power Company (IEA). Downsized autos with smaller batteries, battery swapping, and different tech advances would possibly although.
2023 Nissan Ariya
Nissan is recalling some 2023 Ariya EVs as a result of steering wheels would possibly detach. And if this sounds acquainted, that’s as a result of it seems to carefully parallel a number of current accounts made public on social media relating to the Tesla Mannequin Y. Nicely, this morning NHTSA posted an open investigation into Mannequin Y steering wheel detachment, primarily based on two current incidents
And in accordance with a wide-ranging research of homeowners and lessees of 2020-2022 mannequin 12 months autos from survey large J.D. Energy, EV house owners are a lot much less glad with their dealership than gasoline automobile house owners. All of the recollects are a giant a part of it.
_______________________________________
Comply with Inexperienced Automotive Studies on Fb and Twitter
