electrification

Nick Mokey / Digital Trends In many ways, my 2019 Hyundai Ioniq PHEV is one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. Thanks to its 27-mile EV range, my wife and I can drive it for months on end around town without using any gas. Or we can drop everything and drive 10 hours to San Francisco without range anxiety, getting 45 miles per gallon the whole way. It has heated leather seats, room for a week’s worth of luggage and a 100-pound dog in the back, and Apple CarPlay, a feature I never wanted and now can’t live without.…

Tesla has shared a video of five Cybertrucks performing a synchronized light show. It’s not clear why the automaker has done this, but with the Cybertrucks’ frunks lit up red, and the vehicles front lights shining bright white, there’s a definite nod to the festive season here. During the 100-second show, the lights flash and dim and pulsate in various coordinated patterns to a music track called The Arrival. Don't Miss In a message accompanying the video, the automaker suggests getting…

Chris and Julie Ramsey in their Nissan EV after arriving at the South Pole. Chris and Julie Ramsey A couple from Scotland has completed an epic pole-to-pole drive in an electric vehicle (EV) in what’s believed to be a world first. Chris and Julie Ramsey began their 18,000-mile (29,000-km) ride 10 months ago. In achieving their ambitious goal the pair crossed 17 countries in North and South America before arriving in recent days at the South Pole. The Nissan Ariya e-4ORCE EV that got them there was modified with…

Joel Patel / Digital Trends General Motors and Ford are getting Supercharger access quicker than we thought. According to a Tesla employee who recently spoke at a city planning committee meeting about a new Supercharger station, Ford and GM will get Supercharger access as early as 2024. Almost all major automakers have announced that they’ll switch to NACS (the same Tesla connector that Tesla uses) by 2025 — meaning that we should start to see non-Tesla cars with the connector sometime in mid-2024. Of course, it’s…

Tesla It looks like Tesla’s federal tax credit status could change pretty significantly in the near future. On the order page for the Tesla Model 3, the company says that “all new Model 3 vehicles currently qualify for a federal tax credit for eligible buyers. $7,500 tax credit will reduce to $3,750 for Model 3 Rear-Wheel Drive and Model 3 Long Range on Jan 1, 2024.” That’s not good news for those that might be interested in buying a Tesla in 2024. It gets worse though — only 10 electric cars will qualify for the…

The newly restyled and re-engineered Polestar 2 is priced from £44,950 (RWD, single motor) We’re often told by OEMs how versatile certain of their vehicle platforms are. Geely’s Compact Modular Architecture must be one of the most adaptable yet. Back when…

A new complaint with the FTC alleges that Toyota is engaging in false and misleading marketing of its vehicles, leading to consumer confusion over how “electrified” they really are. Last month, we covered how Toyota’s greenwashing hasn’t really changed since its new CEO, Koji Sato, took over for Akio Toyoda. Now, Public Citizen, the organization that we talked to for that story, has formally aired its grievances about Toyota’s tactics with the US Federal Trade Commission. This is just an FTC…

Fiat Stellantis is partnering with California-based startup Ample on EV battery swapping, potentially allowing EVs to swap depleted battery packs for fully charged ones in just a few minutes. On Thursday, the two companies announced a binding agreement to integrate Ample’s battery-swapping tech into Stellantis EVs. That will start with a fleet of 100 Fiat 500e hatchbacks that will be deployed by Stellantis’ Free2Move car-sharing service in Madrid in 2024. Ample currently has four battery-swapping stations in the…

Toyota could be finally ready to take electrification a little more seriously. The Japanese automaker has been extremely slow to manufacture electric cars — but it recently took the wraps off of the new Toyota Urban, which will be Toyota’s attempt at a low-cost, mass-produced EV. In particular, the Urban could go head-to-head with cars like the Volvo EX30 and Hyundai Kona Electric as another small SUV that’s built to be an affordable alternative to higher-cost cars like the Tesla Model Y, Hyundai Ioniq 5, and Kia…

Tesla It’s finally happening. Up until now, we’ve had a few different connector types on electric vehicles, but everyone is finally moving toward one connector. The NACS connector, invented by Tesla, is set to become the dominant (or only) charging connector on electric vehicles in North America. But the actual connector is only part of the story if we want better EV charging. It’s an important one, sure, but to create a truly convenient charging experience, software is as important as hardware. What is Plug &…