Europe
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Wealthy countries are buying the vast majority of the electric vehicles for Europe—and it has to do with widely varying stimulus programs.
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Former Smart plant was headed all-electric, now might make diesel SUVs
The Grenadier, a gasoline- or diesel-powered SUV, might keep the assembly line moving at a Daimler factory once focused on urban and electric.
Stephen Edelstein -
France is making EVs and plug-in hybrids the basis for $9 billion program
The program incentivizes plug-in vehicles but also calls on automakers to bring development and production of such vehicles into France.
Stephen Edelstein -
Germany on track to become biggest electric vehicle market in Europe
German automakers have been making major commitments to EVs, and with generous incentives, the public is buying in.
Bengt Halvorson -
Tesla picks Berlin for European Gigafactory
European factory is expected to make Model Y, Model 3, and energy products for the EU and beyond—perhaps as soon as late 2020.
Bengt Halvorson -
Volkswagen ID 3 might be sold in Canada, definitely not US-bound
A report indicates VW in Canada might aim to sell the ID 3 after 2021 or so—but that doesn't mean the model is any more likely in the U.S.
Bengt Halvorson -
Tesla claims that its Model 3 electric sedan again in the first quarter of the year outsold all other mid-size sedans from what it considers premium brands—selling 60 percent more units than the closest runner-up. That’s the good news from the California electric car maker, in a production and deliveries update released Wednesday afternoon. DON'T MISS: Leading the way: Tesla trounces luxury competitors in year-end sales tally The challenging twist for Tesla, that it underscored, is that production during the quarter far exceeded deliveries. Tesla produced 77,100 vehicles in all...
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Tesla Model 3 could charge faster in Europe, charging network results suggest
Deliveries of the Tesla Model 3 in Europe have just started. So too have some accounts of the most significant difference included in European-market versions of the electric sedan: their CCS Combo DC fast charging port. One of those first accounts has come from the European charging network...
Bengt Halvorson -
New government in Italy plans 1 million electric cars by 2022, could cost $10B
Italy has been an electric-car backwater in Europe, but a new populist government has dramatic plans to change that. According to a Bloomberg report, the new Five Star government elected in March is calling for incentives to put 1 million electric cars on Italy's roads by 2022. Last year, data from...
Eric C. Evarts -
Cutting carbon, meeting real-life emission tests, new electric cars to hurt profits, VW says
Well, that's awkward. At its annual media briefing on Wednesday, Volkswagen Group executives said the costs of meeting new emission tests in the EU, lowering carbon emissions globally, and launching multiple new electric models would eat into the company's profits. With the company's diesels in...
John Voelcker -
Electric car sales in Germany finally start to soar: Tesla leads
It's starting to look like China will lead the world in adoption of plug-in electric cars, but which carmaking nations will follow it? While electric cars were launched simultaneously in Japan and the United States, Europe lagged somewhat behind. Now, however, Germany—home to the largest...
John Voelcker -
2019 Toyota Corolla Hybrid hatchback debuts in Geneva for Europe
Remember hatchbacks? Actually, come to think of it ... remember passenger cars? You know, the sedans and wagons and hatchbacks that don't have all-wheel drive and aren't jacked up 6 to 9 inches off the ground? They used to roam this fair land of ours, but lately, they seem to have been routed by...
John Voelcker -
The Honda CR-V Hybrid, a more fuel-efficient version of the company's best-selling compact crossover, has been around for almost a year now. It's on sale in China, announced for Japan, and now, as of Tuesday, it's slated to arrive in European markets early in 2019. As for North America? The company offers radio silence, saying only it will offer information "when the time is right." WATCH THIS: 2019 Honda Insight video preview from Detroit auto show Honda said it intends to offer electrified versions of two-thirds of its vehicle lines in the U.S. But the date it has set for achieving that...
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Fiat Chrysler to end diesel engines in cars by 2022 (but not trucks): report
Fiat Chrysler will abandon the use of diesel engines in all its passenger vehicles by 2022, according to a report Sunday. Demand for diesel versions of passenger cars in Europe is waning and car makers face extraordinarily high costs to get diesel engines to comply with emission limits in...
John Voelcker -
Germany's hydrogen stations exceed US; California beats Japan on density
As of today, there are 39 hydrogen fueling stations in the U.S., all but four of them in the state of California. They serve roughly 39 million Californians, whereas 284 million Americans outside the state have no access to hydrogen fuel-cell cars nor stations at which to refill them. Germany, on...
John Voelcker -
Where will we see the most electric-car innovation? Twitter poll results
Innovation can be a hard concept to define as it relates to electric cars. Sure, there are the powertrains and structural designs of the vehicles themselves—including new proportions for the cabin enabled by the compact running gear and battery packs under the floor. But there are also many...
John Voelcker -
Opel to swap Ampera-e (aka Bolt EV) for all-electric Corsa model in 2020
It's been six months since General Motors completed the sale of its Opel division in Europe to PSA Group, the French parent of the Citroën, DS, and Peugeot brands. With the sale came licenses to run out the model life of GM-designed vehicles sold as Opels (and Vauxhalls in the U.K.) while PSA...
John Voelcker -
Where will we see the most electric-car innovation? Take our Twitter poll
It hasn't emerged much into the public eye, but some advocates and auto-industry sources have had quiet discussions on whether the U.S. will continue to lead the world in electric-car technology in a new decade. California remains the epicenter of plug-in car adoption, with roughly half the...
John Voelcker -
Europeans will soon have the opportunity to enjoy quiet, emission-free, long-distance motoring with far shorter charge times when driving electric cars along Germany's autobahns. The charging network Allego has rolled out its first 175-kilowatt ultra-fast charging stations—dubbed "Ultra E"—at its first location in Kleinosthei, along the A3 motorway near Frankfurt. The four fast-charging stations represent the first ultra-fast chargers publicly available in Europe, and Allego plans to upgrade half of them to 350-kilowatt service later this year. DON'T MISS: BMW, Mercedes, Ford, VW...
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VW extends dirty-diesel bonus in Germany; 8 percent traded for new electric car
A scrappage scheme in Germany launched by Volkswagen to take the dirtiest diesels off the road has been extended beyond its planned end date of this month. Two years after the diesel emissions scandal that cost it over $25 billion, Volkswagen is extending an incentive program aimed at owners of...
Mark Stevenson -
Preventing the next Dieselgate: EU can now oversee, overrule new-car approval by member countries
With the exception of California's longstanding ability to set its own tougher emission standards, any car legal to sell in one state of the U.S. is legal to sell in all of them. And aside from a handful of differences—daytime running lights, speedometers marked in km/h—Canadian-market...
John Voelcker -
VW CEO: European subsidies for diesel should end
One of the most powerful automotive CEOs in the industry at a company that once found monumental success in diesel-powered cars has delivered a commandment to European governments from atop his throne in Wolfsburg. Thou shalt not subsidize diesel. That commandment, from VW CEO Mattias Müller...
Mark Stevenson -
European electric and plug-in hybrid sales for Jan-Oct 2017
The more things change, the more they stay the same. Europe's October electric vehicle sales saw significant growth versus a year ago as 56 percent more battery-electric and plug-in hybrid hybrid vehicles found new homes and the Volkswagen e-Golf shot up the standings. But, atop that growing...
Mark Stevenson -
Where will EVs have the highest market share in 2025? Poll results
How, where, when, and to what degree electric cars will increase their share of the world's billion-plus vehicle fleet is a topic of much debate these days. Combined with autonomy, connectivity, and sharing, the growing electrification of personal vehicles is a major transition for carmakers old...
John Voelcker