Author: EVAI

Drivers of Ford Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning electric vehicles are getting more EV trip-planning options, via Google Maps, in Ford’s latest over-the-air software update.

Part of Android Auto, this feature makes use of vehicle data to show an estimated battery level upon arrival at a destination, suggest charging stops along the way, and estimate the amount of charging time needed. The feature was announced at CES 2024 in January but is now rolling out, Ford product manager Anthony Phillips explained last week in a LinkedIn post.

Ford already offers Apple Maps EV trip planning, via Apple CarPlay, on the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning. That system, as this Google system, taps into the vehicle’s state-of-charge data and includes battery preconditioning functions.

2025 Ford Mustang Mach-E Rally

The update also lets Google Maps show Tesla Supercharger stations, where Ford EV owners can charge with adapters the automaker began shipping earlier this year (some of which already need to be replaced). For all DC fast-charging stations, trip planning includes en-route preconditioning of the battery pack once one of these stations is selected as a stop.

This feature requires both the most recent Ford over-the-air (OTA) update for vehicles and the most recent version of Google Maps for smartphones. Once drivers have downloaded both, they can access EV route planning by opening Android Auto.

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning Flash

In addition to the Apple CarPlay or Android Auto trip planning, Ford also offers its own embedded navigation features.

Google first added EV charging sites to its navigation app in 2018, but only as points of interest. Only in early 2023 did it announce a deeper level of data on charging stations, allowing some EVs with Google built-in features to contribute state-of-charge and range estimates necessary for dynamic navigation with charging stops. This has been essentially limited to brands using Google-based infotainment systems, including Volvo, Polestar, Cadillac, Chevrolet, and GMC.

Meanwhile, as this Ford update rolls out, Google also on Friday marked the debut of new Gemini AI-curated Maps functionality, which appears to extend to route planning, and previewed it as headed into Rivian vehicles.

Google teases AI summaries in Rivian EVs

The tech giant pointed to its initial ability set as able to generate custom visualizations relating to EV chargers, services, and more.

“Next month, Rivian will start using this feature to show summaries of restaurants, shops and supermarkets on their infotainment screens—so drivers can quickly and easily learn more about a place,” said Google.

Ford couldn’t yet comment to Green Car Reports on how this next twist will impact the in-vehicle experience, but it’s clear that it’s among the automakers aiming to provide drivers with plenty of information to make road trips easier.

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The Chevrolet Silverado EV is getting its own version of the CrabWalk mode already available on its GMC Sierra EV sibling, Chevy confirmed Friday.

Chevy’s version is called Sidewinder, not CrabWalk, but it provides essentially the same functionality. It utilizes the Silverado EV’s rear-wheel steering to turn all four wheels in the same direction, allowing for diagonal driving at speeds up to 20 mph.

2025 Chevrolet Silverado EV Sidewinder mode

Drivers can select Sidewinder mode by going to the Rear Steering page under the Controls menu in the infotainment display. Graphics on the display, as well as a confirmation message in the instrument cluster, appear when the mode is activated.

Sidewinder mode is standard on the 2025 Chevrolet Silverado EV RST and will be added to 2024 Chevrolet Silverado EV RST First Edition models via an over-the-air update. That update will be pushed to both leftover 2024 models still on dealer lots and trucks already in customer hands, Chevy confirmed.

2025 Chevrolet Silverado EV

The CrabWalk-branded version of this feature first appeared on the GMC Hummer EV, and was standard on the 2024 GMC Sierra EV Denali Edition 1. That was the main difference between the Edition 1 and the Silverado EV RST First Edition—the low-volume launch versions of each truck. The same feature will also be available on the 2025 Cadillac Escalade IQ SUV, branded as Cadillac Arrival Mode.

Other changes to the Silverado EV for 2025 include range increases to 460 miles for the RST grade and 492 miles for the base WT model, with the larger Max Range pack, plus a new LT grade slotting in between those models.

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If you don’t like the look of the latest Ferrari F80 hypercar or the Purosangue SUV, get used to it. Chances are they’ll be sticking around for a long time. “More than 90% of the total Ferrari production—beyond 300,000 cars—is still on the road,” Andrea Scioletti, head of Ferrari pre-owned, said in an interview with Australia’s Drive…

• The Porsche Taycan Turbo GT and Lucid Air Sapphire are two of the most powerful sedans ever built.
• In a new video, Edmunds pits them head-to-head on in a race that incorporates drag race, braking and cornering performance.
• The Porsche may be lighter and have a two-speed transmission, but it can’t match the tri-motor Lucid Air in acceleration.

In 2000, a four-digit horsepower figure in a production car was unheard of. In 2006, Bugatti made it possible in the hypercar market. In 2024, you can get over 1,000 hp in a pickup truck, in a hypercar in a family sedan. Among those family sedans, two reign supreme: The Lucid Air Sapphire and the Porsche Taycan Turbo GT. Now, Edmunds has pitted them against each other.

And yes, me leaving out the Tesla Model S Plaid was intentional. Because it’s one thing to provide 1,000 hp. It’s another to build a chassis and braking system that can handle that output competently, then tune them well enough for everyday customers. That matters here, because Edmunds‘ U-Drag race involves braking and cornering, in addition to the quarter-mile drag race. I’ve driven a Model S Plaid hard on a canyon road, and I can only describe the braking experience as “frightening.” A Taycan Turbo S on the same road was a lot more fun, and quicker in the real world. And now, there’s the Taycan Turbo GT.

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The ultra-Taycan offers 777 hp and 855 lb-ft of torque in every day usage, far from the quad digits. But hit the “boost” button and you can get 1,092 hp and 988 lb-ft for 10 seconds. It also has a two-speed transmission to help its high-speed acceleration, and carries a few hundred fewer pounds than the bigger Lucid Air Sapphire.

That extra cash buys you something: Bragging rights. As the U-Drag shows, the Taycan can’t keep up with the Lucid on the drag race portion, and its braking and cornering performance aren’t enough to overcome its power deficit. I’d think that Porsche’s two-speed transmission would help as speeds increase, but the 457-hp gap means the Lucid keeps pulling away. If straight-speed is your drug, the Lucid Air Sapphire is the best dealer in town.

But that doesn’t mean it’s the better performance product. While Edmunds’ test does incorporate a high-speed U-turn, it doesn’t involve as much cornering as a race-track test. There, I’d expect the lighter Porsche to edge out the Lucid, as the Turbo GT achieved a Nurbürgring EV lap record. Even if Xiaomi may have beaten that record, Lucid hasn’t. Yet. So if you want a brutally fast EV sedan, you can’t go too wrong with either car.

Polestar on Friday confirmed its first customer deliveries of U.S.-built electric vehicles.

Every Polestar model to date has been manufactured in China, but the 2025 Polestar 3 is assembled at a South Carolina plant shared with Volvo. Production started there in August following software-related delays.

First U.S. Polestar 3 deliveries

The Polestar 3 is a platform-mate of the Volvo EX90, which is built at the same South Carolina plant. But where the Volvo offers three rows of seats, the Polestar sticks to two, with total seating for five, with a sportier character. It offers up to 315 miles of range from a 111-kwh battery pack, with a standard dual-motor all-wheel-drive powertrain rated at 489 hp and 620 lb-ft of torque, or 517 hp and 671 lb-ft in optional Performance Pack spec.

The Polestar 3 has a base price of $74,800 that’s under the $80,000 federal tax-credit cap for electric SUVs. But even with that, and U.S. assembly, it’s unlikely to qualify for a federal tax credit for the foreseeable future. In addition to more stringent sourcing requirements, new “foreign entity of concern” language disqualifies subsidiary companies if a “parent entity” in China, Russia, Iran, or North Korea holds more than 50% in the company.

First U.S. Polestar 3 deliveries

Polestar has said it will pass on a $7,500 credit for leases, following the approach of other automakers in exploiting what’s being called the EV leasing loophole. This allows use of a provision intended for commercial vehicles by automakers with captive financing arms to claim a credit and pass the savings on to customers even if vehicles don’t otherwise qualify.

Building cars in the U.S. does at least avoid recently-hiked tariffs on Chinese EVs. In a more complex solution to the same problem, U.S.-market versions of the coupe-like Polestar 4 will be built at a Renault plant in South Korea. That’s scheduled to start in the second half of 2025.

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