Author: EVAI

Sixth-generation Subaru Forester gains hybrid powertrain in 2025 Powertrain will likely be new Strong Hybrid with uprated electric motor Rugged Forester Wilderness also in the works Subaru has offered hybrid versions of the Forester in other markets for years, but an electrified version of the popular compact crossover is finally coming to the…

• The 2025 Nissan Ariya costs $40,980
• The longest-range model will go up to 289 miles on a charge
• The Ariya now has Tesla Supercharger access

The Nissan Ariya lineup is condensed for 2025, with the longest-range variant lost in the shuffle.

The number of trim levels shrinks from eight to six. Prices hold steady after substantial cuts for the 2024 model year, with the base Engage model costing $40,980 after the mandatory $1,390 destination charge. That buys a single-motor front-wheel-drive powertrain and 66-kwh (gross, 63 kwh usable) battery pack.  A dual-motor all-wheel-drive powertrain, dubbed e-4ORCE, is a $4,000 option on this grade, with the same size pack.

2025 Nissan Ariya

Nissan continues to offer a 91-kwh (87 kwh usable) pack, which delivers 289 miles of range in the front-wheel-drive Evolve+ grade. That model, which is priced at $45,760 with destination, now offers the most range of any Ariya grade, as the 304-mile Venture+ model has disappeared from the lineup. So has the Empower+ front-wheel-drive grade.

All-wheel-drive models with the larger pack round out the lineup. The least expensive way to get this combination is the Engage+ e-4ORCE, which costs $46,760 after destination. Evolve+ e-4ORCE ($49,760) and Platinum+ e-4ORCE ($55,760) grades are positioned above it.

2025 Nissan Ariya

Wireless device charging is now standard on all grades, and Nissan has begun rolling out Tesla Supercharger access. For now, Ariya owners need a $235 adapter for this, but Nissan plans to begin fitting new EVs sold in the U.S. with Tesla-style North American Charging Standard (NACS) ports starting in 2025.

The Ariya was a Green Car Reports Best Car To Buy 2024 finalist, and will reportedly be joined by a smaller electric crossover replacing the long-serving Nissan Leaf, but it’s unclear if apparent merger talks with Honda will affect that plan.

A U.K.-based company plans to offer electric conversions of classic Rolls-Royce luxury cars starting in Spring 2026. Evice recently unveiled a prototype of its conversion package as a first step toward the planned commercial launch. Called the XP1, it’s a modified Rolls-Royce Silver Shadow sedan, but Evice aims to offer conversions of the Corniche…

• Vinfast recalled 4,888 VF 8 electric SUVs
• The center airbag mounted to the driver’s seat could deploy improperly
• Vinfast will replace the airbag free of charge

Vinfast is recalling certain VF 8 electric SUVs because of faulty airbags that could injure drivers.

The recall includes 4,888 vehicles from model years 2023 to 2025. The center airbag mounted in the driver’s seat in these vehicles “may deploy improperly” during a side impact, striking the driver’s arm and potentially causing injuries, according to the NHTSA.

Vinfast estimates that 100% of the recalled vehicles have this defect, which the automaker said it became aware of after a test conducted by the NHTSA in June that led to a safety inquiry.

2023 Vinfast VF 8

The defect is due to the cushion shape and inflation angle of the original airbag design, which allows the airbag to deploy between the driver’s arm and torso in some circumstances, the NHTSA said. Vinfast worked with the agency to redesign the center airbag with a different shape and deployment angle to prevent this from occurring.

Dealers and service centers will replace the center airbag with one of the new design free of charge. Vinfast initially pursued a direct-sales model like Tesla, with company-owned showrooms and service centers, but began pivoting to a franchised dealer model in late 2023.

Vinfast expects to mail owner notification letters Jan. 20, 2025. Owners can also call the automaker’s customer service department at 1-833-503-0600 for more information.

2023 Vinfast VF 8

The VF 8 is Vinfast’s first U.S.-market vehicle, but its launch hasn’t gone smoothly. An initial prototype drive indicated Vinfast had a long way to go, development-wise, before the electric SUV’s 2023 launch. And a follow-up test drive of the production version led us to warn that, even at that stage, it simply didn’t feel ready yet. But Vinfast’s first announced update was a Sony entertainment system that didn’t seem to address the VF 8’s core issues.

Things haven’t gone well for Vinfast since the launch of the VF 8. Earlier this year the company said it was falling behind with sales targets and delayed a planned North Carolina factory. Nonetheless, Vinfast is moving ahead with the launch of its three-row VF 9 SUV.

The Nissan GT-R earned its nickname of Godzilla The nickname was given to the R32 GT-R by Wheels magazine in 1989 The Australian Touring Car Championship series changed rules in 1993 effectively banning the GT-R from competing U.S. car enthusiasts have embraced the nickname “Godzilla” for the Nissan GT-R, but the moniker originated in Australia…

• EV sales are predicted to increase sixfold by 2030
• Demand for EVs and battery materials, could account for 95% of lithium supply
• Reuse, recycling, and alternative chemistries could take pressure off supply chains

Increased global demand for electric vehicles could tax supplies of raw materials by the end of the decade, according to new analysis from McKinsey & Company.

The firm estimates that EV sales will increase sixfold, from approximately 4.5 million vehicles globally in 2021 28 million in 2030. But analysts believe producers of raw materials may have trouble keeping up with this increased demand.

For example, while McKinsey anticipates increases in lithium supply from the widespread adoption of direct-extraction technology in mining, that will be in parallel with an increase in demand from battery suppliers. They account for 80% of global lithium use today but that could grow to 95% by 2030, McKinsey estimates.

Stack of Rivian battery cells

If demand for NMC-chemistry EV batteries continues to grow, as McKinsey expects, that could also potentially lead to a shortage of nickel despite anticipated increases in mining of that metal as well. in this case, the battery industry competes against the steel industry (which uses nickel to make stainless steel), with both sectors expected to consume more nickel through the end of the decade, McKinsey notes.

That’s assuming NMC continues as the dominant chemistry. McKinsey acknowledges increased interest in LFP chemistry, and notes that an uptick in LFP battery cell production could change the supply scenario.

So could cultivation of additional sources of raw materials as part of efforts by the European Union and U.S. to increase domestic battery production. Although the latter’s policies could be changed by the incoming Trump Administration, throwing away what could be a cost advantage over China on battery production.

Rivian Gen 2 battery pack

Several companies are also looking at reuse and recycling of battery materials, as well as further alternative chemistries beyond LFP, that could come into play at a small scale before the end of the decade, potentially taking some pressure off the main raw-material supply.

Analysis that paints a positive picture of battery raw-material demand—and perhaps those seeking investment—might not surprise those familiar with McKinsey’s work. Goldman Sachs, on the other hand, reported in November that EV battery prices could drop 50% by 2026 in part due to decreasing prices for raw materials like lithium and cobalt. So even among some big names in analysis and forecasting, there are some very different ideas of what path the future might take. 

• Complimentary NACS adapter will allow Supercharger access to CCS EVs
• Details coming early in 2025; Genesis also participating
• 2025 Ioniq 5 has NACS port, needs opposite adapter from CCS connector for max rate

Hyundai on Monday provided more information about when it will start providing adapters good for charging its EVs at Tesla Superchargers—and which Hyundai EVs are eligible for a free adapter. 

Drivers will be able to request a complimentary adapter, shipping included, starting in the first quarter of 2025, Hyundai said, with “details, instructions, and terms and conditions” all yet to be revealed. 

Those who own or lease a Hyundai EV by January 31, 2025—and currently have the vehicle—will be eligible to receive the NACS adapter. 

2023 Hyundai Ioniq 6

Especially of note is that Hyundai isn’t picking and choosing on eligibility; it’s essentially offering drivers of all of its U.S.-market EVs the adapter. Here’s the eligibility list:

Hyundai Kona Electric (model year 2018-2025)
Hyundai Ioniq Electric (MY 2017-2022)
Hyundai Ioniq 5 (MY 2022-2024)
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N (MY 2025)
Hyundai Ioniq 6 (MY 2023-2025)

Hyundai’s Genesis luxury brand is also included in the program, it said, with details set to be revealed in early 2025. 

It’s shaping up to be quite different than Hyundai’s Kia corporate cousin, which is only offering a NACS-to-CCS adapter only for EV6 and EV9 models delivered after September 4, 2024—just to the EV6 from the 2024 model year or the EV9 from the 2024 or 2025 model years. It’s skipping Niro EV buyers entirely in this and it’s not yet clear of the retail price of them to earlier buyers of models including the EV6. 

2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5

The fast-charge adapter dance: NACS-to-CCS, CCS-to-NACS

Kia, Hyundai, and Genesis also face an adapter issue in the other direction. Most of the 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 lineup gets a native NACS port, and it’s the first mass-market, non-Tesla vehicle to do so. The only exception in that lineup is the Ioniq 5 N, which remains built in South Korea for at least this model year. And Hyundai has already confirmed that when it’s introduced later this year, the 2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9 will also have a NACS port, not CCS. 

The 2025 Kia EV6, which is built on the same 800-volt E-GMP underpinnings, will also get a bigger battery pack for more range, plus a native NACS port and U.S. assembly. And the Alabama-made 2026 Genesis Electrified GV70 also gets a range boost and NACS port. 

2026 Hyundai Ioniq 9

As Hyundai has made clear, though, the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9 will charge slower with NACS on the Tesla Supercharger network than with their CCS adapter, which is needed to tap into the Ioniq 5’s maximum rate and 20-minute 10-80% fast-charging stops. That’s not because of the vehicles but because of the Supercharger network, which is finally due to get upgraded V4 Cabinets in 2025 that will allow full-rate charging of 800-volt EVs like the Cybertruck and these from Hyundai. 

So for a time we all may be juggling a lot of adapters—all for the sake of consolidating on one, eventually. 

What kind of vehicle is the 2025 Cadillac Lyriq? What does it compare to? The 2025 Cadillac Lyriq is a luxury EV with an SUV-ish body. Compare it to the Audi Q8 E-Tron, Mercedes-Benz EQE SUV, and Tesla Model X. Is the 2025 Cadillac Lyriq a good SUV? Absolutely, and in many ways it is the brand’s best overall model. It scores highly for its…

McLaren has issued a recall on its hardcore 765LT supercar due to the rear window potentially detaching. The recall covers examples of the 765LT coupe from the 2021 model year, and affects a total of 163 cars in the U.S. According to the recall notice published by the NHTSA on Nov. 28 (recall campaign number 24V901000), insufficient adhesive…

What kind of vehicle is the 2025 Kia Sportage? What does it compare to? The 2025 Kia Sportage is a compact SUV that compares well to the Toyota RAV4 and Mazda CX-50, not to mention the Honda CR-V and Hyundai Tucson. Is the 2025 Kia Sportage a good SUV? It’s a great overall choice, particularly when fitted with the refined, reasonably quick…