Author: Casper Benedict

Dacia is preparing another significant update for the Spring, Europe’s cheapest electric vehicle, just two years after its 2024 facelift. The 2026 version of the compact EV will deliver stronger performance, faster charging, and improved driving stability, as the Romanian brand continues refining its entry-level model amid rising competition in the budget electric car segment. The latest update brings two more powerful motors. The base version, previously rated at 45 horsepower, now produces 70 hp, while the higher trim jumps from 65 hp to 100 hp. The performance improvement is substantial: the base Spring now accelerates from 80 to 120…

UK-based autonomous vehicle technology firm Oxa said on Monday it is expanding its use of NVIDIA systems to speed up the development of its self-driving software for industrial automation, a move it says will strengthen a transatlantic technology alliance and accelerate commercial rollouts. The company said it will integrate NVIDIA Cosmos World Foundation Models into its Oxa Foundry development framework and adopt next-generation NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Thor developer kits. See also: Bradshaw, Oxa Launch Autonomous T800 Tow Tractor for Industrial Logistics The initiative is aimed at advancing Oxa’s position in the $2 trillion industrial mobility automation market, which covers applications…

Toyota said on Tuesday it will invest $1.5 billion in new capital to back startups across mobility, climate technology, artificial intelligence and industrial automation, in a strategy aimed at supporting companies from their earliest stages through maturity. The Japanese automaker unveiled two initiatives that expand its role in the startup ecosystem and tie into Woven City, Toyota’s experimental 175-acre hub at the foot of Mount Fuji designed to incubate innovation. Toyota said it has formed a strategic subsidiary, Toyota Invention Partners Co., with about $670 million in capital, while growth-stage arm Woven Capital has raised a second $800 million fund.…

Lucid Motors’ interim CEO Marc Winterhoff said the company is seeing growing interest from Tesla owners, particularly those dissatisfied with the brand’s aging vehicle lineup. Speaking in an interview with the Financial Times, Winterhoff said Lucid has recorded “an uptick, that’s definitely the case, in Europe and also here in the US,” as former Tesla drivers switch to its premium EVs. Winterhoff pointed to the Model S, Tesla’s long-running luxury sedan, as one of the reasons buyers are exploring alternatives. “The Model S, nothing has changed in 12 years now. . . (customers) are actively looking for other options,” he said, suggesting that…

Great Wall Motor’s electric vehicle marque Ora has introduced its first SUV, the Ora 5, marking a return to new product launches after more than two years of limited activity in China’s competitive EV market. The unveiling comes as the company seeks to reinvigorate the Ora brand and expand its offerings beyond compact sedans and hatchbacks. The Ora 5 adopts a conventional SUV design language while retaining styling cues from earlier Ora models such as the Good Cat, with similar detailing at the front and rear. The compact SUV measures 4,471 mm in length, 1,833–1,844 mm in width, and 1,641…

A new analysis from ChargerHelp reveals that the U.S. electric vehicle (EV) charging network faces persistent reliability issues despite high reported uptime. The 2025 report, which draws on more than 100,000 charging sessions across 2,400 stations, finds that nearly one-third of charging attempts fail, indicating that traditional uptime metrics may overstate real-world performance. ChargerHelp advocates for the first-time charge success rate (FTCSR) as a more accurate measure of infrastructure effectiveness, capturing whether drivers can successfully initiate a charge on their first attempt. The report shows that while new chargers average around 85% FTCSR, this figure falls below 70% within three…

U.S. battery developer Lyten has received final approval to acquire Swedish battery cell manufacturer Northvolt, clearing the way for the deal to close by the end of October, according to the company’s insolvency administrator. The green light came from Sweden’s Inspektionen för strategiska produkter (ISP), which oversees strategic goods. Lyten, founded in 2015 in San Jose, California, specializes in lithium-sulphur batteries, while Northvolt has focused on NMC cell chemistry. The takeover, first announced in August, surprised many given Northvolt’s larger scale and ongoing projects in Sweden and Germany. “With approval from the ISP, Lyten now has all the approvals it…

Hino Motors, Toyota Group’s commercial vehicle subsidiary, said it will launch Japan’s first mass-produced fuel cell heavy-duty truck, the Profia Z FCV, on October 24. The hydrogen-powered model is intended to support the country’s efforts to cut emissions from the commercial transport sector. The Profia Z FCV uses Toyota’s second-generation fuel cell stack, first introduced in the Mirai sedan in 2020 and produced at Toyota’s Honsha plant. While output figures for the truck have not been disclosed, the Mirai’s system produces 128 kW. The heavy-duty truck is equipped with six hydrogen tanks capable of storing 50 kilograms of hydrogen at…

Leapmotor will unveil its first D-series model next month, stepping up competition in the mid-to-large SUV segment as the Chinese electric vehicle maker pushes into higher price tiers. The company’s new flagship, the D19, will make its global debut on October 16, Leapmotor said on Weibo on Wednesday. A teaser poster indicated the model is an SUV, and its naming suggests it could become the brand’s highest-priced vehicle, as the number 9 typically denotes supremacy. Spy photos of an undisguised D19 circulated briefly on Chinese social media last week before being taken down. Leapmotor currently sells models across its T,…

Chery has launched its new Fulwin X3L, equipped with the Kunpeng Golden extended-range CEM-S system, as the automaker expands its lineup of rugged SUVs. The model is offered in four configurations priced from 119,900 to 159,900 yuan ($16,500–22,000), with trade-in incentives reducing prices to between 109,900 and 149,900 yuan ($15,100–20,600). The Fulwin X3L adopts a box-shaped design similar to Chery’s iCar 03T, featuring a bold front fascia with a black horizontal trim that connects the headlights. Its square side profile includes hidden door handles, while the four-wheel-drive version stands out with 21-inch tyres measuring 265mm wide. The SUV measures 4,545mm…

Qt Group announced that Suzuki has chosen its framework to power the digital cockpit of the automaker’s first battery electric vehicle, the e VITARA, marking a key step in Suzuki’s move toward Software-Defined Vehicles (SDV). The collaboration aims to bring intuitive and visually engaging digital experiences to a wider range of EV drivers. The Qt framework will support Suzuki in creating advanced, responsive human-machine interfaces (HMI) on embedded vehicle hardware, addressing limitations in performance and cost. Leveraging Qt’s cross-platform tools, Suzuki can design, test, and reuse UI components across multiple models from a single codebase, reducing development time and costs…

Czech transport company Metrans, part of Hamburger Hafen und Logistik AG (HHLA), has added six Volvo FH Electric trucks to its fleet for urban and suburban deliveries, in a move to reduce emissions and advance the group’s climate targets. The FH Electric model, introduced by Volvo Trucks in 2022 and updated in 2024 with the Aero version, features improved aerodynamics, a camera system in place of exterior mirrors, and battery options ranging from 360 to 540 kWh. The truck delivers up to 490 kW of power and can reach 300 km on a single charge, with a long-distance version offering…