Author: Joshua Morris

Consumer demand for electric cars in Germany is weaker than headline figures imply, as dealers and manufacturers increasingly register vehicles themselves to meet targets and support sales statistics, the ZDK motor vehicle trade association said on Monday. The group said self-registrations – vehicles registered by dealers or automakers rather than end customers – have risen sharply and now distort the appearance of market growth. “Nearly one in four newly registered cars in October was self-registered,” ZDK President Thomas Peckruhn said, calling the trend a warning sign. “This shows that the market’s growth is not currently driven by genuine customer demand,…

Ford Motor has introduced the 2026 refresh of its E-Transit electric van, bringing updates aimed at improving technology, efficiency, and customization options for fleet and commercial users. The 2026 E-Transit retains its 12-inch central infotainment touchscreen with wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, while an eight-inch digital instrument cluster is now available. Standard safety equipment includes the Co-Pilot360 suite with features such as Post-Collision Braking, Pre-Collision Assist with Automatic Emergency Braking, Auto High-Beam Headlamps, lane-keeping assist, and Forward Collision Warning. Optional Co-Pilot360 2.0 adds Blind Spot Information System, Adaptive Cruise Control, and a 360-degree camera. New configurations expand the van’s…

WeRide has obtained Switzerland’s first permit for fully driverless Robotaxi passenger services, marking a significant expansion of the company’s global autonomous driving footprint. The approval from the Federal Roads Office (FEDRO) authorizes operation on public roads in the Furttal region and positions WeRide as the only autonomous mobility company holding permits across eight countries. The authorization falls under the iamo (Intelligent Automated Mobility) pilot program led by the Swiss Transit Lab with support from the Zurich and Aargau Cantons and Swiss Federal Railways. The operating area covers 110 km with 460 designated stops, allowing vehicles to travel at speeds of…

ia’s fully electric PV5 has been awarded the 2026 International Van of the Year (IVOTY), marking the first time a Korean vehicle has received the global light commercial vehicle honour. The decision was unanimous among 26 commercial vehicle journalists who announced the winner at the SOLUTRANS 2025 exhibition in Lyon, France. The PV5, introduced earlier this year as part of Kia’s new Platform Beyond Vehicle (PBV) strategy, outperformed six other finalists to secure the title. Kia CEO Ho Sung Song called the recognition “an exceptional honor,” adding that the achievement reflects the potential of fully electric commercial vehicles and the…

Beta Technologies has begun integrating autonomous capabilities into its Alia electric aircraft platform, a move the U.S. developer says could expand applications for both military and commercial operators. The company disclosed on Thursday that it has conducted more than 1,000 uncrewed flight hours using subscale aircraft equipped with its in-house autonomy system, demonstrating a range of 158 nautical miles on a single charge. The system has been under development “for the past several years,” according to the company. The electric aircraft maker is building vertical takeoff and landing (VTOL) and conventional takeoff and landing (CTOL) variants of the Alia, alongside…

Firefly, the premium compact electric vehicle brand under Nio Inc, said on Friday it has reached 30,000 cumulative deliveries, seven months after launching its first and only model, the Firefly EV. The announcement was made at the opening of the 2025 Guangzhou auto show. The latest milestone suggests Firefly has delivered 3,758 vehicles so far in November, based on earlier cumulative figures of 26,242 units through October. The brand recorded close to 6,000 deliveries in each of the past two months. Firefly said it aims to accelerate its expansion outside China after beginning deliveries in the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium…

Xiaomi EV, the electric vehicle division of Xiaomi, unveiled an upgraded version of its driver-assist system on Thursday, adding world model capabilities as part of the company’s continued push into advanced assisted driving technologies. The enhanced system, called Xiaomi HAD (Hyper Autonomous Driving) Enhanced Edition, debuted at the opening of the 2025 Guangzhou auto show. Xiaomi said the updated version incorporates reinforcement learning and world model functionality built on its dataset of 10 million driver-behavior clips. The company noted that its ViSE algorithm won the world-model category at the 2025 ICCV professional challenge, while a paper related to its Genesis…

Edenred, the French corporate services and mobility solutions provider, has expanded its electric mobility offering by integrating Tesla Superchargers into its charging network, the company said on Thursday. The move aims to improve charging access for electric and hybrid fleet operators across Europe. Edenred said the partnership will give its fleet customers access to more than 20,000 Tesla Supercharger points across over 1,500 locations in Europe. The chargers, which can deliver up to 250 kW, will be available through Edenred’s UTA eCharge and Ticket Fleet Pro platforms to provide unified access for business users. The company said the integration broadens…

China’s Guangzhou Automobile Group (GAC) will manufacture its electric Aion V model at a Magna plant in Austria, the companies said on Thursday, a move aimed at reducing exposure to the European Union’s tariffs on China-made electric vehicles. The vehicle will be built at Magna’s facility in Graz, which supports gasoline, hybrid and electric models on shared production lines. The EU last year imposed provisional duties of up to 37.6% on EVs imported from China, citing concerns over subsidized competition. “Europe is a vital market in GAC’s global development,” said Wei Haigang, President of GAC INTERNATIONAL. “Partnering with Magna enables…

BYD has sold a cumulative 50,000 vehicles in the United Kingdom since entering the market in March 2023, company officials reported on social media. The milestone was reached 32 months after the brand launched its operations in the country with the Atto 3, also known as the Yuan Plus. The Chinese automaker’s current UK lineup includes nine models, comprising six battery-electric vehicles (BEVs) and three plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs). The most affordable EV in the UK market is the BYD Dolphin Surf, known in other regions as the Dolphin Mini, Atto 1, or Seagull. See also: BYD to Double…

European electric truck charging network operator Milence announced plans to implement market-oriented, country-specific pricing across its network beginning 1 January 2026. The change marks a departure from the uniform pricing previously applied in eurozone countries. The joint venture between Daimler Truck, Traton and the Volvo Group currently operates 30 public fast-charging stations across eight European countries, including ten in France. Previously, customers in eurozone countries paid a flat rate of 0.399 euros per kilowatt-hour, with different prices applied in the United Kingdom and some other non-eurozone markets. Under the new model, tariffs will vary by country to reflect local energy…

An Idaho-based dealership has filed a lawsuit against Monarch Tractor, claiming the California electric tractor startup failed to deliver on promises that its vehicles could operate autonomously. Burks Tractor, which purchased ten Monarch tractors in early 2024, alleges in the complaint that the machines “continue to experience significant problems and do not operate autonomously.” The lawsuit, originally filed in September in Idaho state court and now moved to federal court, cites breach of contract and alleged warranty violations. The dealer claims Monarch “expressly represented” the tractors would be fully autonomous, with demo videos showing them performing autonomous tasks. “Upon receiving…