What did Hyundai and Kia current as higher than in-wheel motors?
And which electrical truck are buyers most enthusiastic about? Trace: It’s not the Cybertruck.
That is our look again on the Week In Reverse—proper right here at Inexperienced Automobile Experiences—for the week ending December 1, 2023.
The Tesla Cybertruck was revealed Thursday in manufacturing kind, and the Cybertruck’s stainless-steel development, steer-by-wire system, and packaging like no different truck are all noteworthy firsts. Tesla made loads of claims about its efficiency—like out-accelerating a Porsche 911, whereas towing a 911—nevertheless it didn’t stay as much as among the key pragmatic targets it had beforehand set for pricing and vary. However the Cybertruck may also be the primary Tesla with bidirectional charging. With the rollout of Powershare, the Cybertruck and future Tesla fashions will be capable to present energy for worksites or campsites, or for dwelling backup, or for charging different EVs.
2025 Tesla Cybertruck – Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.
U.S. pricing for the 2025 Volvo EX90 electrical SUV is out—and at $77,990 to start out, this luxurious mannequin’s lineup picks up proper round the place the Kia EV9 tops out. And at beneath $80,000, this U.S.-made EV is prone to be tax-credit-eligible.
Some homeowners of the 2021-2024 Jeep Wrangler 4xe—sure, that’s the bestselling plug-in hybrid within the U.S.—are being instructed to not cost, and to not park close to buildings or different autos. In about 32,000 doubtlessly affected autos, Stellantis might be utilizing diagnostic software program to verify for a battery-pack challenge, however the variety of autos with the flaw is way smaller.
![2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe 2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe](https://images.hgmsites.net/lrg/2021-jeep-wrangler_100759590_l.jpg)
2021 Jeep Wrangler 4xe
Volkswagen’s Scout EV model is reportedly planning to outsource the event of its upcoming electrical SUV and pickup to Austria’s Magna—the identical agency that builds the Mercedes G-Class, Jaguar I-Tempo, and Fisker Ocean. These might be the 2 merchandise set to be made in South Carolina in 2026, so it’s but unclear how Magna may additionally change into concerned in that.
Nissan on Monday confirmed that it’s going to make the next-generation Nissan Leaf plus electrical variations of the Juke and Qashqai crossovers, at its U.Ok. manufacturing facility for the European market. With that, it confirmed the look of those upcoming fashions as taking after the Chill-Out, Hyper Punk, and Hyper City ideas, respectively.
![Hyundai and Kia Uni Wheel drive system for EVs Hyundai and Kia Uni Wheel drive system for EVs](https://images.hgmsites.net/lrg/hyundai-and-kia-uni-wheel-drive-system-for-evs_100907844_l.jpg)
Hyundai and Kia Uni Wheel drive system for EVs
Hyundai and Kia have proven a substitute for in-wheel motors that accomplishes among the similar packaging targets. Known as the Common Wheel Drive System, or Uni Wheel, it strikes a planetary gearset into the wheel, with downsized motors close by, bypassing the necessity for CV joints.
In response to the most recent annual survey from Shopper Experiences, EV reliability is worse than ICE fashions. Drawing from greater than 330,000 autos from the previous a number of mannequin years, CR discovered that autos with a cost port have been extra trouble-prone—with plug-in hybrids the worst—whereas hybrid reliability continues to surpass that of non-hybrids.
An annual survey assessing shopper curiosity in electrical vans, out this morning, confirmed “a slowdown in enthusiasm from buyers of all stripes”—though buyers stay very excited concerning the Tesla Cybertruck and the opportunity of a Toyota electrical pickup.
![Toyota EPU concept Toyota EPU concept](https://images.hgmsites.net/lrg/toyota-epu-concept_100903385_l.webp)
Toyota EPU idea
Stable-state battery tech guarantees features in power density and charging, and their arrival might be a game-changing second for the EV market. However in line with current figures from Toyota, which is without doubt one of the leaders in growing the tech, it’ll stay in area of interest provide even by 2030—a lot that, by then, Toyota seems to see extra hydrogen fuel-cell autos than solid-state EVs.
EV battery costs are dropping once more. Due to a lot of components—most notably, the underutilization of battery crops, which freed up supplies and lowered costs—lithium-ion EV battery pack costs have dropped 14% this yr to a brand new low of $139/kwh.
![Lotus Flash Charge DC fast-charging hardware Lotus Flash Charge DC fast-charging hardware](https://images.hgmsites.net/lrg/lotus-flash-charge-dc-fast-charging-hardware_100907709_l.webp)
Lotus Flash Cost DC fast-charging {hardware}
The efficiency model Lotus is understood for its quick vehicles, however now it’s providing up among the quickest EV chargers on this planet. Whereas they’re set to take advantage of its upcoming Eletre electrical SUV, the listing of EVs that may benefit from the additional cost energy at this level could be very brief.
Fewer EV drivers might have to fret about plugging in every evening because of some closing steering introduced final week concerning {hardware} elements for EV wi-fi charging. This “lacking piece” of standardization that permits car parking techniques to help with exact alignment over charging pads, may give the tech a long-awaited jumpstart.
Nio is on to one thing with its battery-swapping enterprise, which has lately began scaling up in Europe. Geely, the mother or father of Volvo, Polestar, and Lotus, has simply partnered with Nio for battery-swapping in China—and for future “a unified battery swap operation” between manufacturers.
![Hyundai at Tesla Supercharger Hyundai at Tesla Supercharger](https://images.hgmsites.net/lrg/hyundai-at-tesla-supercharger_100900107_l.webp)
Hyundai at Tesla Supercharger
And Inexperienced Automobile Experiences rounded up all of the manufacturers which have introduced a shift to the Tesla NACS cost port for EV charging. It began in Could with a joint announcement between Tesla and Ford CEOs, however the shift has continued even this month with bulletins from Subaru and Lucid. Getting EVs from all these manufacturers beginning to flood Supercharger stations subsequent yr might be one of many causes Tesla is imposing a $1-per-minute Supercharger congestion payment.
_______________________________________
Observe Inexperienced Automobile Experiences on Fb and Twitter