Kia keeps to EV goals but plans to enhance hybrid lineup

Kia EV4 conceptKia remains committed to an ambitious EV sales goal, but plans to keep hybrids and plug-in hybrids as part of its product mix, the automaker announced Friday in a presentation to investors. Kia still targets 1.6 million global EV sales annually by 2030. That's the same goal the automaker stepped up to in 2023, versus a previous target of 1.2...

New Jersey marks up EV ownership with additional $1,000 fee

2022 BMW i4 M50New Jersey is introducing an additional registration fee for EVs. Starting July 1, drivers will pay an upfront fee of more than $1,000 on top of existing registration fees. Governor Phil Murphy signed a law last week renewing New Jersey's transportation trust fund that adds an annual fee set at $250 this year, and rising $10 over the remaining...

Stellantis CEO claims EVs need battery breakthrough to be green

2025 Ram 1500 REVAutomakers must reduce EV battery weight by 50% in the next decade in order to make electrification truly green, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares said Wednesday during the automaker's Freedom of Mobility Forum. As Reuters reports, Tavares said that making a battery pack for an EV with a "decent range" of 250 miles currently takes, on average 1,000...

Tesla sets Robotaxi reveal for Aug. 8

2023 Tesla Model YTesla will unveil its Robotaxi August 8, CEO Elon Musk announced Friday. In his typical fashion, Musk made the announcement on X (formerly Twitter), the social media site he owns. The post included the date with no further details. According to a Reuters report earlier in the day, Tesla has reportedly dropped its $25,000 affordable EV project in...

Report: $25,000 Tesla Model 2 project nixed in favor of robotaxis

$25,000 Tesla teased for 2023  -  Battery DayThe most affordable Tesla may have been canceled. Again. According to a report Friday morning from Reuters, citing three sources familiar with the matter, the company has ceased plans to build a $25,000 Tesla that would slot below the Model 3 and Model Y in the lineup. If understood correctly by those sources, it would be quite a turnaround from...

Here’s how Nissan might electrify trucks and SUVs for the US

Nissan Surf-Out concept (2021)Not every automaker’s taking the same strategy when it comes to electrification. During an interview at the 2024 New York auto show Nissan North America’s Senior Vice President and Chief Planning Officer, Ponz Pandikuthira laid out for Green Car Reports the automaker’s viewpoint on where EVs, PHEVs, and series hybrids make the...

Tighter EPA emissions rules for big trucks don’t mandate EVs

Freightliner eCascadia electric semi-truckThe EPA last week announced stricter emissions standards for heavy-duty commercial vehicles, such as trucks and buses, for model years 2027 to 2032. Like the new emissions standards for passenger cars recently confirmed, these rules do not mandate EVs, but do set much tougher emissions targets that will likely lead to more EV sales. The exact...

Audi RS E-Tron GT, Porsche Taycan recall prompted by battery concerns

2020 Porsche Taycan 4S  -  Levi, FinlandAudi E-Tron GT, RS E-Tron GT, and Porsche Taycan electric cars are being recalled for a battery issue that could lead to short circuits and fires. The recall population includes 606 Taycans from model years 2020 to 2023 and 1,042 E-Tron GT and RS E-Tron GT vehicles from model years 2022 to 2024. Audi is conducting two recalls for the same issue...

Ford delays next-gen electric truck and SUV, plans hybrids across lineup

2025 Ford 3-row SUV - The electric future will take a bit longer than originally promised at Ford. On Thursday, Ford announced its next-gen electric truck, known as T3, will arrive a year later than planned while the unrelated three-row electric SUV will arrive two years later than planned. Subsequently, Ford said it plans to offer a hybrid powertrain in every...

Buttigieg likens EV rejectors to landline-phone luddites

2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E GTIn a recent Fox News interview, Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg said EV skeptics risk being left behind by technological progress. "I feel like it's the early 2000s," Buttigieg said in defense of the Biden administration's EV policies which aim for 50% EV sales by 2030, "and I'm talking to some people who think we can just have landline...

Quebec ends EV purchase incentives, in what could prove a market test

2024 Hyundai Ioniq 5Canada's Quebec province—widely seen as the "California of Canada" with respect to EVs and EV policy—plans to end its EV purchase incentives. Quebec currently offers incentives of up to $7,000 for new EVs and $5,000 for new plug-in hybrids, as well as up to $3,500 for used EVs (all amounts are in Canadian dollars). But the amounts will...

2024 Chevy Silverado EV RST coming with price cut, 440-mile range

2024 Chevrolet Silverado EVChevrolet confirmed on Wednesday that the 2024 Chevrolet Silverado RST First Edition—that’s the first version of the electric Chevy pickup available to individual buyers—is still coming. And at least in its top-of-the-line version it will be a better deal than it was when originally announced. The Silverado RST First Edition will...