EV battery prices are dropping again

Audi battery assembly at Brussels, Belgium, factoryFollowing substantial increases in 2022, EV battery prices are falling again, according to new analysis from Bloomberg New Energy Finance (BNEF). Lithium-ion battery pack prices have fallen 14% this year to a record low of $139 per kwh, BNEF reported this week. This was driven by decreases in raw-material and component prices, as well as...

Lotus fast-charging hardware delivers more than most EVs can handle

Lotus Flash Charge DC fast-charging hardwareLotus has long produced fast cars. Now it's also producing fast chargers. The automaker on Tuesday unveiled fast-charging hardware it claims to have developed in-house, including a liquid-cooled DC charger capable of up to 450 kw. It's designed to be used with a Lotus-developed power cabinet and 600-amp charging unit in a setup Lotus claims can...

Nissan confirms electric Juke, Leaf replacement among EVs for Europe

Nissan Chill-Out conceptNissan will build a Leaf replacement, as well as electric versions of two popular crossovers, in the U.K. for European sales. The Leaf replacement, along with electric Juke and Qashqai crossovers, will be built at Nissan's Sunderland factory—long the automaker's hub for European production—and will be inspired by three recent concept...

Report: VW’s Scout turns to Magna to develop electric pickup and SUV

Teaser for Scout Motors electric SUV and pickup truckThe Volkswagen Group's Scout EV brand may outsource development of its upcoming electric pickup truck and SUV to Magna, according to a new report. VW has given Magna Steyr, the division of the automotive supplier that builds the rugged G-Class for Mercedes-Benz in Graz, Austria, an order worth $492 million to develop the models, Automotive News...

Wireless charging aligns for automated use in EVs, plug-in hybrids

WiTricity and Siemens wireless charging stationSAE International finalized methodology this past week for an important hardware component of EV wireless charging systems. The organization announced a single wireless charging standard—officially J2954—in 2020. As part of the finalization process of that standard, the organization has settled on a methodology for hardware that aligns...

Review: 2024 Audi SQ8 E-Tron EV hustles in a hush

2024 Audi SQ8 E-TronBig, powerful electric luxury SUVs with sub-5-second acceleration times and ranges of 300 miles or more are now ubiquitous. That certainly wasn’t the case in 2019 when Audi E-Tron deliveries started, or in 2017, when Audi powertrain and chassis development chief Siegfried Pint promised me that the E-Tron’s tri-motor system would make...