Author: EVAI

Bentley in 2022 launched the Batur, an exclusive coupe based on the platform of the Continental GT and built as a sendoff for the automaker’s venerable W-12 engine. On Tuesday, the automaker showed a Batur Convertible and confirmed just 16 examples will be built. That makes it more exclusive than the coupe whose production run will span 18…

BMW has begun building a battery-assembly facility at its San Luis Potosí, Mexico, plant in anticipation of production of its Neue Klasse EVs.

In addition to the battery facility, BMW said in a press release that it is also expanding the body shop and making other upgrades to the site, with a total investment of 800 million euros (about $860 million at current exchange rates). The automaker also aims to generate 20% of the plant’s power from solar panels, and increase use of treated wastewater.

BMW cylindrical battery cells

BMW announced that it would build Neue Klasse EVs in Mexico, as well as two European production sites, in February 2023. The battery side will supply cylindrical cells with 20% greater energy density than current cells, helping to boost charging speed and range by 30%, BMW claims. The automaker believes this tech could put it ahead of Tesla.

The groundbreaking for the expanded Mexican site was delayed, according to The Yucatan Times. BMW is however sticking to its original timeline for the end products, with Neue Klasse (German for “new class”) models set to begin rolling off Mexican assembly lines in 2027. That will be preceded by European production.

BMW cylindrical battery cells

The first Neue Klasse model, an SUV previewed by Vision Neue Klasse X concept, is scheduled to start production in Hungary in 2025. A sedan based on the minimalist Vision Neue Klasse concept will follow the SUV into production in Germany in 2026. The SUV will also be the first electric model assembled at the Mexico factory, which opened in 2019 and currently builds combustion BMW 3-Series and 2-Series models.

Named after an iconic family of BMW models from the 1960s, the Neue Klasse will be affordable and distinct, but without the polarizing design and packaging of the previous BMW i3, development boss Frank Weber said in a 2023 interview.

The car that caused the incident took a lot more damage than the Cybertruck.

BMW looks to be readying the first major update for the iX since the electric midsize SUV arrived for the 2022 model year. A camouflaged prototype for the updated iX has been spotted, revealing some of the design tweaks BMW has planned. The changes on the outside are likely to be minor. The headlights feature new daytime running lights similar to…

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The Subaru Forester fits in as the middle child in the brand’s crossover SUV lineup, often blending in, easy to overlook among the firstborn Outback and the spunky, smaller Crosstrek. It’s the Jan Brady in this bunch, with the Ascent as Alice called in to help out for heavier family duty. Fret not, middle child. Car shoppers appreciate…

 Electrify America is on an expansion streak. EVs are part of the solution to remedy unhealthy air. Tesla has dropped the base Model Y for a 320-mile version that only costs $2,000 more. And will the Tesla connector fix charging? This and more, here at Green Car Reports. 

Tesla has canceled its cheapest Model Y, while adding a rear-wheel-drive Model Y Long Range version with a range of 320 miles for just $2,000 more. Additionally, CEO Elon Musk suggests that recently delivered base Model Y versions can tap into all or nearly all that range as an upgrade, pending regulatory approvals.

Will the Tesla NACS connector bring more reliable charging? As a report recently underscored, the answer to that is no, as the vast majority of charging issues relating to EVs isn’t due to a failure of the connector but to the maze of interoperability that manufacturers, hardware makers, and networks face.

According to a recent annual report from the American Lung Association, 39% of the U.S. population lives with unhealthy air. While recent EPA emissions rules for passenger cars and commercial trucks will help clean up particle pollution, ozone pollution remains a challenge. EVs are part of the remedy, as progress is also made in curbing pollution from power plants. 

And on the sixth anniversary of its first EV fast-charger installation, last week—the same week that Tesla laid off its Supercharger team—Electrify America confirmed big expansion plans. It aims to boost its total number of fast-chargers by 25% through the year, to 5,000 chargers. That’s about 20% more by the end of the year versus what it has today. 

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The excitement surrounding the 2024 Lexus GX 550 seems warranted. It’s the first time in 14 years the nameplate is new. One way the new GX improves over the outgoing model is in towing capacity, which improves from 6,500 to 9,063 pounds. I hooked up 5,000 pounds of fiberglass walleye boat to see how well the GX tows. During a week of towing…

Nearly every EV brand in North America is adopting Tesla’s North American Charging Standard (NACS) connector and gaining access to the automaker’s Supercharger network. But despite that network’s fairly good reputation for reliability, the NACS connector alone may not guarantee an overall improvement in charger reliability, says one expert.

Joerg Heuer is the CEO of EcoG, a company that provides operating systems for EV chargers. In a recent interview with Charged EVs, Heuer emphasized that interoperability will be the key to reliability as more EVs charge with NACS connectors or adapters.

Ford EVs at Tesla Supercharger

“Right now, we’re looking at a landscape with about 100 charging station manufacturers and a growing number of EV manufacturers,” Heuer said. “Achieving interoperability means testing over 500 combinations of cars and chargers.”

Helping a bit is that NACS, which is being formally standardized as SAE J3400, is similar to the Combined Charging Standard (CCS) hardware already used by most EV brands. There’s about “90% to 95%” commonality between CCS and NACS, according to Heuer, with nearly everything except the plug itself being similar enough to easily facilitate interoperability. That’s not the case with the CHAdeMO standard, which was harder to reconcile with CCS, according to Heuer.

Rivian R1T at Tesla Supercharger

Tesla pushed other automakers to use its connector starting in 2022, but most didn’t bite until Ford announced plans to adopt NACS in May of last year. Most automakers selling plug-in vehicles in North America followed after that. Adapters for some brands have started to show up, and users have thus far noticed that charge rates are a wash. Measures like Rivian’s route-planning grades may help prioritize the ones that work best and most reliably, though.

The switch has left the auto industry wondering if Tesla Supercharger reliability will extend to other brands’ EVs, but to think it’s simply a matter of switching the connector or favoring Tesla’s network is naive. Some of it will depend on feet-on-the-ground support—now potentially less present for Tesla with the layoff of its charging team—but as with much about charging, it’s complicated. 

Air pollution remains a major threat to the health of many Americans, but stricter emissions rules could help, according to the American Lung Association.

The organization’s 25th annual “State of the Air” report found that 131 million people—39% of the U.S. population—live in areas with unhealthy areas of air pollution. And spikes in deadly air pollution are the most severe recorded in the history of the report. That’s based on air quality assessment data from 2020-2022 (the most recent available), and accounting for new EPA particulate-pollution rules finalized in February 2024.

2024 Volkswagen ID.4

The report also found that people of color are disproportionately exposed to air pollution. A person of color in the U.S. is 2.3 times more likely than a white person to live in a community with a failing grade on all three of the report’s measures for air pollution—short-term particle pollution, long-term particle pollution, and ozone.

The American Lung Association acknowledged recent regulatory efforts, including stricter EPA emissions rules for passenger cars and commercial trucks, as a way to “help clean up particle pollution and address climate change.” But the organization is now pushing for stricter national limits on ozone pollution as well.

2024 Ford Mustang Mach-E GT

In the meantime,  EPA tailpipe rules for model years 2027-2032 are much tighter in key pollutants, per vehicle, but they don’t mandate EVs. A Department of Energy decision to delay a key factor in how vehicle emissions are calculated on a fleet basis may undermine those rules in the short term though, leading to more plug-in hybrids that could pollute more than billed if not plugged in regularly.

EVs aren’t a silver bullet, though. Research from 2021 looking at the Los Angeles region suggested that EVs won’t completely solve that metropolitan area’s pollution issues. Powerplant emissions remain an issue as well. Electricity generated from fossil fuels still affects the carbon footprint of an electric car.