Category: General

• Leaky door handles halted ID.4 production and deliveries in September
• With replacement parts ready, VW is soon restarting production
• Fixing customer cars and dealer stock is the priority

Volkswagen on Friday reported some disappointing U.S. delivery numbers for the year for what had been set to be its mass-market electric vehicle. It sold 17,021 ID.4 EVs in the U.S. in 2024—down 55% versus 37,789 sales in 2023.

Partly, the issue was simply that the ID.4 lineup wasn’t on sale for much of the year—first with a pause as refreshed 2024 models rolled in, then with a recall that stopped production and deliveries.

VW also on Friday confirmed that the ID.4 is back on track. It has enough replacement door handle hardware to restart deliveries of its ID.4 and fix a backlog of vehicles in dealer stock—and, within the next few weeks, to resume production at its U.S. plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

VW issued the recall of all 2021-2024 ID.4 models in September, amounting to 98,806 vehicles, as it ramped up a remedy for defective door handles that might cause the EV’s door to open unexpectedly. The recall effort has since been expanded to include 99,064 vehicles in the U.S. plus 20,790 vehicles in Canada. 

2024 Volkswagen ID.4

2024 Volkswagen ID.4

At that time, VW also issued a stop-sale for the ID.4, covering both new and pre-owned vehicles in dealer inventory, and it stopped production of the model in both Zwickau, Germany, and Chattanooga, Tennessee. 

Concerns focused on the design of the door handle itself, and a part that couldn’t effectively keep out water. According to recall documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), water could enter the door handle, reaching a printed circuit board and causing “communication issues” between the handle and control unit. That might result in a clicking noise that VW said in those documents was similar to what the door makes when it’s normally unlocked.

2021 Volkswagen ID.4 1st Edition

VW has already sent letters out to owners, and it’s shipping a redesigned door handle out to dealerships, which will be using them not only to perform the recall fixes but get deliveries of their own stock restarted once again. “The priority is to get existing cars repaired and to get cars that were sitting on dealer lots into the hands of customers,” said Volkswagen spokesperson Mark Gillies. 

Under the recall, dealers will inspect and replace the door handles as needed, and update vehicle software. VW stressed that under federal rules, the recall must be completed before delivery. 

2025 Volkswagen ID.4

2024 Volkswagen ID.4

2025 Volkswagen ID.4

The 2024 Volkswagen ID.4 is a top-seller and up until now received a series of meaningful improvements resulting in quicker acceleration and more range, plus speedier new infotainment hardware and a much-improved interface. The interface had especially soured the experience for some early adopters (it recalled 2021-2023 models for those screen issues). Considering the ride, handling, and packaging advantages this model has had all along, the ’24 now feels like what it was supposed to be at launch. 

All 2024 VW ID.4 models have qualified for the full $7,500 EV tax credit—bringing the base $41,160 price effectively to $33,660 for some), while the 2025 VW ID.4 has missed the cut, as of yet. But the 2025 ID.4 gets ChatGPT functionality that sets the stage for a next-generation in-car voice assistant. 

With megawatt charging slow to ramp up, General Motors appears to have an alternative solution to speed up charging for electric commercial vehicles.

This is discussed in a patent filing published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Nov. 26, 2024, although it was originally filed by GM about two years earlier. In the document, GM notes that medium-duty and heavy-duty electric vehicles require large battery packs that can be time-consuming to charge using conventional methods.

General Motors multi-port charging system patent image

GM’s proposed solution involves equipping vehicles with multiple charge ports and dividing packs into smaller “subpacks” that can be connected in parallel. This allows individual subpacks charged from either a single charge port or both ports simultaneously, instead of charging the entire pack through a single port.

This solution is aimed at larger vehicles that would require bigger packs than the average passenger car (don’t be led astray by the passenger car used in the filing’s example, above), but GM’s inclusion of medium-duty vehicles wouldn’t leave out the GMC Hummer EV or the largest GMC and Chevrolet electric pickups, which do fall into that category based on weight.

General Motors multi-port charging system patent image

Megawatt charging was announced several years ago as a charging solution for electric big rigs, but it’s been slow to roll out, partly because of the on-the-ground electrical realities. Tesla confirmed megawatt charging for the Cybertruck and Semi, but its Supercharger V4 tech hasn’t truly yet arrived.

We’re already seeing a number of different solutions to speed up charging based on what’s currently available at the connector level. The GMC Hummer EV essentially uses 400-volt battery packs connected in parallel most of the time, albeit with just one charge port. Meanwhile, Porsche splits its 800-volt Macan battery pack into two 400-volt virtual packs to increase charging speed.

• After many years of gains, Tesla sales and deliveries dropped
• Tesla’s share of the U.S. EV market has fallen below 50%
• U.S. registration figures are yet to come

Tesla sales and deliveries turned downward in 2024, after a seemingly unstoppable trajectory of double-digit gains for many years. 

Globally, Tesla delivered about 1,789,226 million vehicles in all of 2024, with production of about 1,773,443 million vehicles. Both of those figures are down versus the reported 1,808,581 deliveries and 1,845,985 vehicles made in 2023. 

That’s just over a 1% drop in deliveries in 2024 and a nearly 4% drop in production for the year. And it might have been worse without a rally in the fourth quarter. Tesla noted that it posted a delivery record for Q4, at 495,570 vehicles.

To compare, a year ago Tesla was touting some very different results. Its 2023 deliveries and sales grew 38% and 35%, respectively, over 2022. Tesla’s 2023 sales surge was strong, and its sales numbers exceeded 2022 numbers every single month of the year according to DOE data. That said, China’s BYD continued to edge up on Tesla on the global front in 2023.  

Tesla CEO Elon Musk at Cybercab event (screenshot) – Oct. 2024

In 2023, Tesla CEO Elon Musk became political and by extension so did Tesla in a way it never had been before. By April 2024, reputational studies were showing the relationship, as even more of the American car-buying public connected Tesla with Musk. At this point, it’s hard to ignore an array of consumer-sentiment data points suggesting that the world’s richest man may be getting in the way of Tesla sales growth, especially in California, where it’s held more than a tenth of the new-vehicle market. 

Tesla’s share of the EV market shrank in 2023 despite price cuts, to around 50% of the U.S. EV market, and with 2024 EV sales expected to rise overall by about 20% versus 2023, it will certainly lose more of that in 2024. Tesla had continued those price cuts in 2024, with an April move that repositioned the Model Y below the Model 3, thanks to the federal EV tax credit that Musk has backed eliminating. 

The Model 3 and Model Y composed the vast majority of Tesla’s global total. Just 94,105 of its global production and 85,133 of its global deliveries were of “other models”—likely including the Model S, Model X, Cybertruck, and Semi. 

2024 Tesla Model Y. – Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.

As a footnote to this: It’s not yet clear whether Tesla saw sales sputter in the same way in the U.S., looking at the entire year. Through October they were down, however. Citing registration-based figures through that month, Automotive News tallied 499,870 sales through that month, versus 535,834 for the equivalent period in 2023. 

Tesla doesn’t report U.S.-market sales figures, which generally rely on state registration numbers and their commensurate lag. But we’ll have an idea on those, and whether Tesla managed to achieve U.S. sales gains for the year, within a few weeks. 

• Support for the federal EV tax credit stands at around 50%
• Nearly 80% of EV owners would buy another one without incentives
• Three out of five Americans want state and local EV incentives if Trump kills the federal credit

Even as the Trump Administration is expected to take aim at electric vehicle purchase incentives, they’re actually quite popular with car buyers, according to a new poll published by California-based EV advocacy group Veloz.

The poll, which was conducted by Probolsky Research for Veloz, asked respondents whether the government should provide such EV incentives—and 67% answered in the affirmative. However, that number shrank to 50% when respondents were asked about the federal government specifically.

Adding to the complexity of this picture, 61% of respondents said they wanted state and local governments to “increase their support and invest in electric vehicles” if the federal government ends EV incentives. That’s what California has pledged to do if the Trump Administration nixes the $7,500 federal EV tax credit.

U.S. consumer interest in EVs (from 2024 Veloz poll)

If state and local governments don’t step up and provide this support, EV sales momentum may not be completely halted, the poll indicates. The majority of current EV owners (78.2%) said they would still choose an EV without any incentives that reduce the vehicle’s purchase price, as did 38.1% of non-EV owners.

These results are based on a sample of adult residents of California, Texas, Florida, New York, Pennsylvania (excluding Philadelphia metro), Georgia, Michigan, Washington, Colorado, Hawaii, and Maryland. Veloz and Probolsky Research claim this sample accurately represents the demographic characteristics of each state.

Michigan had one of the lowest rates of those who don’t now own an EV who would consider one. As a post-election report recently suggested, a high-level pro-Trump disinformation campaign (unanswered by Democratic candidate Harris) may have worked very effectively in swaying public opinion—perhaps in a way that sticks beyond the election.

2025 Kia Niro EV

Regarding specific reasons for not choosing an EV, this poll emphasizes, along with so many others before it, that cost is the prohibitive part of EV adoption, with charging and battery concerns coming after that. Nearly half (48.4%) listed the cost to buy an EV as their main concern, with 38.7% citing charging and maintenance costs and 38.3% citing concerns that batteries won’t last long enough.

Yet cost savings were also the top reason for considering an EV. Saving money on gas was the main reason for both EV owners (51.9%) and non-owners (60.3%), followed by improving air quality.

So it seems that sensitivity to cost cuts both ways, with buyers potentially concerned that spending less money on gas will be cancelled out by a high purchase price and charging costs. That’s certainly something incentives could help address.

·  Macan Turbo Electric has 288 miles of range

·  It weighs a lot, but Macan Turbo Electric handles well

·  With 800-volt architecture, Macan Electric can charge at up to 270 kw

Sporty electric vehicles face a major obstacle: weight. With the Taycan hatchback and wagon, Porsche has been able to—mostly—overcome that issue to create a sharp-handling and engaging car. Now it’s the compact Macan’s turn as it morphs into the Macan Electric.

I recently drove the 2024 Macan Turbo Electric—one of Green Car Reports’ Best Car To Buy 2024 finalists—and found that the transition of Porsche’s top-selling vehicle to fully electric power has its plusses and minuses for dynamics, as energy efficiency of course skyrockets. 

Once again, Porsche mostly succeeds in making a sporty and engaging vehicle, even one weighing a few 9-volts shy of 5,400 pounds.

2024 Porsche Macan (electric)

2024 Porsche Macan (electric)

2024 Porsche Macan (electric)

Macan Electric marks debut of PPE

A decade ago, for the gasoline version of the Macan, Porsche engineers had to modify VW Group’s MLB platform to make the Macan handle like a Porsche rather than the very similar Audi Q5. This time around, they were involved from the start to create the new Premium Platform Electric (PPE) architecture. 

That left little to do to the platform itself to get the Porsche character. According to a Porsche spokesman, the main change versus other PPE vehicles (most notably the 2025 Audi Q6 E-Tron) was to flip the rear motor 180 degrees to improve the weight distribution and leave space for the available rear-wheel steering rack to fit between the motor and battery. The result is a near-perfect 48:52 front-to-rear weight balance.

A skateboard-style electric platform, PPE makes room for an 800-volt, 100-kwh battery in the Macan Electric with 95 kwh of usable capacity. A duo of permanent-magnet motors, one on each axle, team up to produce 576 hp and 811 lb-ft of torque, which can improve to 630 hp and 833 lb-ft with 10-second shots of overboost. Porsche says the electric motors allow for five times faster control of the all-wheel drive system, and the distribution of power changes with the drive mode.

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

Macan Turbo Electric: A Porsche-specific driving feel for an EV

Without much work needed on the platform itself, the Macan Electric gets Porsche-specific suspension tuning and a lot of performance equipment to create that Porsche feel, especially in the top-of-the-line Turbo model. Every Macan Electric has a four-corner air suspension, adaptive dampers, and a quick 14.2:1 steering ratio. The Turbo also comes with an electronically controlled locking rear differential and a set of 14.8-inch front rotors with 6-piston calipers (an inch larger than the base model with two extra calipers) and 13.8-inch rear rotors with single-piston floating calipers.

My Turbo tester also came with the optional rear-wheel steering and a set of 255/40R22 front and 295/35R22 rear Pirelli P Zero Corsa summer performance tires rather than the standard 20s on all-seasons. The rear steering can turn the rear wheels up to 5 degrees opposite of the fronts at low speeds and in phase with the fronts at high speeds for more stability.

My drive involved track time at Atlanta Motorsports Park and street drives on twisty northern Georgia roads. The Macan Electric performed admirably in both venues, well mostly. It felt familiar yet different at the same time. The steering had the quick, direct response expected in a Porsche, and the small-diameter steering wheel felt on point as well. While it provided some feel, it wasn’t the kind of telepathic feedback you get in gas-powered Porsches. That big, heavy wafer of battery between you and the road saps feel. The ride was always firm but never harsh, like a Porsche ought to be.

The battery had a noticeable effect on handling, both good and bad. On the track, the low center of gravity worked with the air springs and adaptive dampers to help this compact crossover turn in sharply. The difference, though, was the feel of a quick weight shift below me every time I turned into a corner. From there, the suspension took a set, leaned in a controlled manner (not bad for 6.7 inches of ground clearance in Sport+ mode, down from 7.2 inches regularly), and carved precise lines through even the tightest turns.

The brakes had a natural, progressive feel, and they held up well on the track, which is impressive given they had to arrest 5,393 pounds of SUV. The tires, on the other hand, didn’t. After about 25 laps around the 2.0 miles of Atlanta Motorsports Park, they frayed as big chunks of rubber separated from the edges. That could be the effect of all that weight, it could be the tires, or both. It’s likely both as the same model tires did the same thing on the Hyundai Ioniq 5N.

I was also impressed that track time didn’t sap too much battery or cause the motors and/or battery to overheat. Each four-lap session drained the battery by about 9%, so we were able to go for half a day without having to recharge the Macan Turbo Electric for more track sessions.

2024 Porsche Macan (electric)

Porsche Macan Electric charging and range

The battery can be treated as a single 800-volt unit or two 400-volt packs. Plug it into a 350-kw fast-charger on the driver’s side and the Macan Electric can charge at a rate of up to 270 kw, which will add 155 miles in 10 minutes or take 21 minutes to go from 10-80%. Make that a 400-volt charger, and software will treat it as two batteries, adding 75 miles in 10 minutes and going from 10-80% in 33 minutes. The charge port on the passenger side is only for a Level 2 (AC) home charger, which requires 10 hours to charge from 0-100%.

Even with all its power, the Macan Turbo Electric has good range. It’s rated for 288 miles on a charge, as is the 502-hp 4S model. The 402-hp 4 model has 308 miles and the 335-hp base model tops out at 315 miles with an efficiency of 2.9 miles per kwh.

2024 Porsche Macan EV

Macan Turbo Electric: Power galore

The current top Macan gas model is the GTS. Its twin-turbo 2.9-liter V-6 makes 434 hp and 405 lb-ft of torque, which is good for a 4.1-second 0-60 mph run. While the Macan Turbo Electric weighs 1,000 pounds more, its 630 hp unlocks a 3.1-second run to 60 mph when using the standard launch control function. No launch control is needed to tap into that power at any time, though. The power comes on immediately, but it was well controlled on the track and didn’t upset the balance when rolling into the throttle on corner exit or even with dabs of maintenance throttle through longer corners. Thanks to the overboost function, max power was available in every straight because it resets whenever you let off the gas, for instance for a corner.  

On the road, it has more power than you’ll ever need and can knock you back in your seat when flooring it in a straight line. It’s also content to toddle along at city speeds with conservative throttle application, and it doesn’t feel like a greyhound that always wants to run.

The tradeoff here is sound. Rather than the growl of the GTS’s twin-turbo V-6 or the throaty howl of a Porsche flat-6, the Macan Electric’s motors make no sound at all out of the box. For $490, Porsche will sell you a Porsche Electric Sport Sound that creates the spaceship whir we’ve come to expect in some EVs. It seems about right, and raises in pitch with more throttle, but doesn’t compare to a good engine sound.

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

Macan Electric cabin does it better than gas Macan

The Macan Electric stretches 2.3 inches longer than the gas model on a wheelbase that is 2.4 inches longer. The larger size gives it more rear seat space, though it is still cramped for tall passengers, and Porsche isn’t even pretending it’s meant for five adults as the brand calls it a 4+1 rather than a five-seater. The fast rear roofline also saps some space, as the Macan Electric tops out at 16.5 cubic feet behind the rear seat and 46.5 cubes with the rear seat folded down, figures that trail the gas model’s 17.7 and 53.8 cubes, respectively. A little of that space is added back in the form of a 2.9-cubic-foot front trunk.

Otherwise, the Macan Electric feels much like other recent Porsches as it takes a step forward versus the aging gas version. A small, knurled lever on the dashboard serves as the shifter like it does in the new Cayenne and Panamera, and the dash takes on the stacked horizontal shape of the 911. A small-diameter steering wheel fits the sporty character, and the Sport Chrono clock timer sits atop the center of the dash. Porsche provides few buttons, and the separate haptic touch controls for the climate system feel low-end.

The Macan Electric gets a standard 12.6-inch digital instrument cluster and a 10.9-inch infotainment touchscreen. The gauges aren’t hooded, and the scooped out area looks odd from the passenger seat, but I noticed no sun glare on the screen. Options include a head-up display with an augmented reality overlays and a 10.9-inch touchscreen for the front passenger that can control navigation, phone, and music functions, as well as connected home, steaming, and other apps.

The infotainment screen is home to the Sport Chrono timers, the My Porsche app, and a cloud-based charging planner that the Porsche says works faster than a native version. 

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

2024 Porsche Macan EV

Porsche Macan Electric price and features

While the 2025 Porsche Macan Electric starts at $77,295 with the addition of a base rear-wheel-drive Macan Electric, the Macan Turbo ups that to $107,295, including a $1,995 destination charge. It comes fully loaded, though, with leather upholstery, 8-way power-adjustable front seats, heated front seats, a heated steering wheel, wireless smartphone charging, ambient lighting, wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, a panoramic roof, carbon-fiber interior trim, a power tilt/telescoping steering wheel, a synthetic suede roof liner, a 14-speaker Bose audio system, and all-season tires on 20-inch alloy wheels.

In true Porsche fashion, Porsche offers many options. My tester had rear-wheel steering ($2,040), the Sport Chrono Package ($980), 22-inch Exclusive Design wheels with carbon-fiber aeroblades ($7,410), the InnoDrive driver-assist system ($960), the passenger display screen ($1,570), the augmented reality head-up display ($2,520), Copper Ruby Metallic paint ($2,490), and the Premium Package $1,300) with four-zone automatic climate control, cooled front seats, and heated rear seats. That brought the price to $130,725.

That’s a heavy price for a heavy vehicle, but the 2024 Porsche Macan Electric wears its weight well and a high price is to be expected for a top-end Porsche. It’s faster than its gas brother, handles almost as well, feels similar inside, and looks like a next-generation model. It does it all while foregoing gas for electrons and, perhaps, by leaving our air a little cleaner in the process.

• FX 5 and FX 6 would together span $20,000-$50,000 price range
• California EV maker has shipped prototypes from “collaboration partners” in China
• Would offer EVs with/without gasoline range-extenders; claims to be entering U.S. regulatory testing

Faraday Future plans to show prototypes of affordable electric vehicles at CES 2025, scheduled for Jan. 5-7 in Las Vegas.

The prototypes are part of a new sub-brand called FX (short for Faraday X) that Faraday outlined in a September investor presentation. At the time, the company said it was planning two models called FX 5 priced at $20,000-$30,000 and FX 6 priced at $30,000-$50,000. Both are also slated to be offered with fully electric and gasoline range-extended powertrains.

Those targeted prices are far below the current listed base price of $309,000 for Faraday’s only production model thus far, the FF 91 electric SUV. In contrast to the main brand, which Faraday has struggled to build itself, the FX sub-brand will be an asset-light operation—like the now-defunct Fisker—with limited marketing and an online-only sales model.

Faraday Future FF91 2.0 Futurist Alliance

Faraday said in a November press release that the FX prototypes were due to leave Beijing for Los Angeles, following up with another release on Dec. 19 confirming that they had reached U.S. shores. After CES, they’ll go to Faraday’s manufacturing facility in Hanford, California, for development work and testing, according to the company.

Faraday promised additional updates about the FX rollout at CES. The company previously said it was targeting a 2025 production start, subject to funding. In a Dec. 22 press release, Faraday claimed $30 million in new financing commitments from “certain institutional investors”—a small drop in the bucket for other automakers, but apparently enough to keep the now-scrappy EV maker going.

Faraday Future FF91

Faraday has a long-established record of turnover, abrupt strategy changes, and missed timelines. Former GM EV1 chief engineer Pete Savagian, more recently at Canoo, was the senior VP of Faraday Future up until 2018. He was one of several of Faraday’s initial core executives, as former CEO Jia Yueting held tight, to leave the company amid a relationship (and $2 billion lifeline) with Hong Kong based Evergrande gone sour. 

Financial issues contributed to a drawn-out launch for the FF 91. It was first shown in production-bound prototype form at CES 2017, but the first customer example wasn’t delivered until August 2023. And that’s with what was intended as a low-volume flagship without the scaled-up volume Faraday is eyeing for the FX EVs.

Ford is recalling 11,922 F-150 Lightning electric pickup trucks due to an issue that could cause suspension components to detach, potentially leading to loss of control.

The recall includes 2023 and 2024 models. These vehicles may have front upper control arm ball-joint nuts that weren’t properly tightened at the factory, which could allow the control arm to detach, according to the NHTSA. Control arms extend out horizontally from the vehicle’s frame or body structure and attach to the wheel hub, keeping the hub and its attached suspension components aligned on their vertical axis.

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning Flash

The ball-joint nut represents one of those attachment points, and if it’s loose the control arm can separate, causing loss of directional control and increasing the risk of a crash, the NHTSA noted. If the ball-joint nut is loose or missing, drivers may also notice vibration and hear a clunk or rattling sound during suspension jounce and rebound, the NHTSA said.

Ford told the safety agency that it is aware of one accident attributed to this issue, as well as two field reports and a warranty claim, the latter representing two incidents related to the problem. As for the cause, Ford believes changes in the alignment or orientation of a tool used to attach suspension components may have prevented it from being properly seated during assembly.

2024 Ford F-150 Lightning Flash

Dealers will inspect the affected ball-joint nut and, if necessary, replace it and/or the related knuckle assembly. Ford expects to mail owner notification letters Feb. 3, 2025. Owners can also call the automaker’s customer service department at 1-866-436-7332 for more information. Ford’s reference number for this recall is 24S76.

The Lightning arrived for the 2022 model year and received a handful of updates for 2024, including a range-boosting heat pump and a new Flash grade positioned between the XLT and Lariat models.

• Recent data suggests infrastructure has built out to handle peak EV charging demand
• There are about 50% more public charging connectors in 2024 vs. 2023
• Public EV charging is making progress in reliability

U.S. public electric vehicle charging infrastructure kept up with EV sales growth in 2024, and even improved in reliability, according to a study released in early December by Paren, which provides data services for EV charging.

The study looked at end-user experience for fast charging sessions during the Thanksgiving travel week—described as the “Super Bowl of fast charging.”

The study found that the number of charging sessions increased nearly 50% during Thanksgiving week of 2024 compared to the same period in 2023. But the number of charging connectors also increased by about the same amount.

The Thanksgiving week served as 2024’s “pressure test” for the charging sector, as it’s when motorists are out on the highways at once in a way that’s not rivaled by any other holiday time—even the Christmas and New Year’s week, when travel tends to be spread among many days.

Comparison of Thanksgiving week EV charging sessions and utilization rates (via Paren)

As a result, the average rate of utilization—defined here as a measure of total charging session minutes per connector as a percentage of open hours (typically over a 24-hour period)—declined slightly from 24% to 22%, year-over-year. It shows that infrastructure is keeping up with the increased number of EVs on U.S. roads.

And the number of EVs in the U.S. did indeed increase steadily throughout 2024, with sales up by more than 10% year-over-year in the latter months of the year, and EV market share inching closer to 10% of the overall U.S. light-vehicle market. But 2024 has definitely been a year in which infrastructure gets out ahead of sales growth for EVs—surely a good thing to set the stage for the market. Lack of public chargers was a dealbreaker for nearly half of shoppers in a 2023 J.D. Power survey.

The progress is due in part to lots of filling-in of road-trip fast-charging stations across the nation, allowing far more than the couple of cross-country routes that existed just a few years ago. Electrify America has also tested the idea of limiting fast-charges to 85% at busy stations, and networks seem to be getting smarter about when they need more chargers. For instance, Tesla is adding temporary Superchargers to ease one of the busiest times.

Love’s Travel Stop EV charging

Paren also saw increased reliability, based on the company’s own index that emphasizes the frequency with which drivers are able to successfully initiate and complete charging sessions. This saw an increase of 3.4 percentage points compared to last year, reaching 85.5%. But it’s unclear how much further progress will be made in building out reliable public charging infrastructure over the next few years.

A 2023 Energy Department study suggested that we may need as many as 182,000 publicly-accessible DC fast-charging ports by 2030, to support anywhere from 30-42 million EVs on the roads by then. But given the outcome of the election, it may give infrastructure another chance to work ahead.

• The Toyota Previa was the automaker’s minivan in the ’90s
• Toyota might bring back the Previa nameplate
• The resurrected Previa might feature electrified powertrains

With its aerodynamic shape and mid-mounted engine, the Toyota Previa minivan remains one of the Japanese automaker’s most daring designs. And it might return with plug-in powertrains.

According to a report in Japan’s Best Car magazine spotted by Forbes, a new Previa is slated for a 2026 launch using the TNGA-K platform that underpins the Toyota Camry, Crown, and RAV4, among others, with the intention of accommodating both plug-in hybrid and all-electric powertrains. A hydrogen fuel-cell powertrain was also reportedly considered but the discarded.

This report, which is based on conversations with an anonymous Toyota source, doesn’t mention the U.S. market. But the fact that the TNGA-K platform is already homologated for use here in so many other models could perhaps give Toyota a head start on making the new Previa U.S.-ready.

1991 Toyota Previa

Granted, the original Previa wasn’t very successful in the U.S. While it gave Toyota an up-to-date entry in the then-booming minivan segment, sales gradually tapered off from its introduction in 1990 to its discontinuation in 1997. Just 3,780 were sold in that final year, Forbes notes, before the Previa was replaced by the more conventional Toyota Sienna.

The Previa stood out thanks to its rounded exterior, often described as egg-like in period. The new Previa will reportedly feature similar styling, while offering seating for up to seven. If it reaches the U.S., it will be a counterpoint to the Sienna, which is now hybrid-only, but still more conservative in design.

1991 Toyota Previa

Among U.S.-market minivans, all but the Honda Odyssey have switched to hybrid powertrains. The Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid has been a plug-in hybrid for years and as we’ve seen, can go more than 30 miles without the engine.

For the U.S., the Volkswagen ID.Buzz is the first time the minivan—or passenger van—has gone all-electric. But it might not be alone soon. Kia has teased another quirky possibility in the PV5, one of a series of electric vans based on an extremely modular architecture. And an all-electric Chrysler minivan is in the works—potentially as soon as 2027.

Kia is recalling 22,883 EV9 electric SUVs because they may be missing mounting bolts for their second- and third row-seats.

The EV9 arrived in the U.S. as a 2024 model and is currently being sold here as a 2025 model. The recall includes a mix of vehicles from both model years that may have left the factory with missing seat bolts due to an error by an assembly-line worker, Kia told the NHTSA. All of the affected vehicles were assembled in South Korea; Kia began building EV9s at its U.S. plant in June, but has only produced small numbers of the SUVs there.

2025 Kia EV9

Without these mounting bolts, seats may not be able to properly restrain occupants in the event of crash, increasing the risk of injury, the safety agency said. Owners may also notice ratting or looseness of the seats if bolts are missing.

Kia estimates that just 1% of the recalled vehicles are missing the bolts in question, and told the NHTSA that it is not aware of any crashes, injuries, or fatalities related to this issue, which was discovered during a quality-control inspection.

2025 Kia EV9

Dealers will inspect the seats and replace any missing bolts free of charge. Kia plans to mail owner notification letters Jan. 24, 2025. In the meantime, owners can contact Kia customer service at 1-800-333-4542 for more information. Kia’s reference number for this recall is SC329.

This recall follows two in October. One addressed a remote parking system issue in 12,400 vehicles from the 2024 model year equipped with that feature. The other addresses a software issue in both 2024 and 2025 models that could cause digital instrument clusters to fail.