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BRIEFLY: BMW, EV Prices, Tesla Energy & more | 16 Mar 2026
Mar 17, 2026
Show notes
It's EV News Briefly for Monday 16 March 2026, everything you need to know in less than 5 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.
Patreon supporters fund this show, get the episodes ad free, as soon as they're ready and are part of the EV News Daily Community. You can be like them by clicking here: https://www.patreon.com/EVNewsDaily
BMW SETS 18 MARCH FOR I3 DEBUT BMW will unveil the fully electric i3 sedan on 18 March, extending its Neue Klasse platform into the compact sedan segment, with assembly already underway at its Munich plant and series production expected to begin in late autumn. The i3 50 xDrive will be the first version to reach customers, featuring an 800V platform with up to 400kW peak charging and an expected range exceeding the iX3's 805km rating. EU EV PRICES FALL AS RULES BITE EU EV prices fell by an average of €1,800 in 2025, a 4% drop that ended five consecutive years of rising prices, taking the average to €42,700, driven by tighter CO2 emissions targets forcing carmakers to compete on price. T&E expects further price falls as more budget EVs launch, with affordable and mass-market EVs projected to outsell large and premium vehicles by 2027, alongside full price parity with ICE vehicles across all segments. TESLA WINS UK POWER SUPPLY LICENCE Tesla has been granted an electricity supply licence by Ofgem, allowing Tesla Energy Ventures to sell power directly to homes and businesses across England, Wales and Scotland from 11 March 2026, completing a six-year effort to become a full-service energy provider in Britain. Ofgem approved the licence despite over 8,400 objections citing Elon Musk's political activities, ruling that Tesla met all statutory requirements, and Tesla must now comply with standard UK consumer protection and billing obligations. UK MAKERS BEAT 2024 ZEV TARGET UK car makers met their 2024 ZEV mandate obligations despite a raw EV sales mix of 19.8% falling short of the 22% headline target, by using CO2 credits under the Vehicle Emissions Trading Scheme to reach an effective 24.1%. The result gave manufacturers surplus credits to carry into future compliance years, with the government set to begin a ZEV mandate review later in 2026 and findings due in the first half of 2027. GREEN NCAP LINKS WITH CHARIN ON CHARGING TESTS Green NCAP and the Charging Interface Initiative (CharIN) have agreed to collaborate on EV charging interoperability and performance transparency, with the goal of giving consumers independent, verified data on how well EVs work with charging infrastructure. The CharIN Label will be referenced within Green NCAP's Driving Experience assessment for electric vehicles, with testing following CharIN's own processes or recognised partner organisations. ARVAL DATA SHOWS STRONG EV BATTERY LIFE Arval's analysis of 24,000 battery health certificates across 11 European countries found that EV and PHEV batteries decline by just 1% per 25,000km after an initial drop, with vehicles reaching 160,000km or six years of service still retaining battery health above 90%. Newer-generation models outperformed older ones by two to three percentage points, and the entire fleet comfortably exceeds the incoming Euro 7 requirement of 72% battery capacity retention at eight years or 100,000 miles. AUSTRALIA EV TAX BREAK FACES BUDGET THREAT Australia's Electric Vehicle Discount, which allows workers to reduce their tax bill by purchasing a new EV through salary sacrificing, is under review with reports suggesting the upcoming federal budget could remove it. Renewable energy advocates are opposing any scrapping of the scheme, arguing the timing is particularly poor given rising global fuel prices. ŠKODA POSTS RECORD 2025 RESULTS Škoda posted record 2025 results with revenue up 8.3% to €30.1 billion, operating profit up 8.6% to €2.5 billion, and net cash flow reaching €2.3 billion. Electrified vehicle deliveries more than doubled to 218,700 units, with the Elroq ranking as the second best-selling BEV in Europe and plugged-in models accounting for 25.7% of European sales. SEAT SEES 2026 PROFIT LIFT AFTER TARIFF CUT Seat expects profitability to recover in 2026 after the EU dropped an additional tariff on the China-built Cupra Tavascan, which had cost the company an estimated €250 million in 2025 and forced it to absorb around €7,000 per vehicle rather than pass costs to buyers. EV margins still trail combustion-engine equivalents, but Seat expects improvement with the launch of the Cupra Raval small EV on April 9, priced comparably to combustion-engine cars and weeks away from series production. NISSAN LEAF BATTERIES RETURN AS VIGO CHARGERS Nissan has partnered with Spanish firm Little Electric Energy to deploy a second-life battery charging system at the Port of Vigo, using 12 decommissioned 30 kWh Nissan Leaf packs to power four charging points supporting both 22 kW AC and 240 kW DC ultra-fast charging. The Green Charge Flex system targets sites with limited grid capacity by charging slowly from the available connection and delivering stored energy rapidly to EVs, avoiding costly grid upgrades.
BRIEFLY: Used EVs, Global Sales, Honda Prologue & more | 15 Mar 2026
Mar 16, 2026
Show notes
It's EV News Briefly for Sunday 15 March 2026, everything you need to know in less than 5 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.
Patreon supporters fund this show, get the episodes ad free, as soon as they're ready and are part of the EV News Daily Community. You can be like them by clicking here: https://www.patreon.com/EVNewsDaily
USED EV SUPPLY SET TO JUMP Over 300,000 EVs are expected to come off lease in 2026, driven by a post-2022 surge in EV leasing fuelled by a federal tax credit loophole under the Inflation Reduction Act. Used EVs are already selling faster than petrol cars, making the incoming supply wave a significant affordability opportunity for buyers. GLOBAL EV SALES FALL AS CHINA CORRECTS, EUROPE MOVES FORWARD Global EV sales hit 1.1 million units in February 2026, down 11% year-over-year, with year-to-date totals of 2.2 million units, down 8% versus 2025. Europe was the standout performer, up 21% year-to-date, with Italy posting a record February thanks to subsidies of up to €20,000, while North America fell 36% and China dropped 26% though Chinese EV exports surpassed 500,000 units. PROLOGUE STUMBLES ON AS HONDA RETREATS FROM EVS Honda has cancelled three planned US EVs — the 0 Series SUV, 0 Series Saloon, and Acura RSX — citing declining EV demand and the rollback of US EV incentives under the Trump administration. Honda is pivoting back to hybrids, and reports suggest the Prologue will also end production in December, though Honda has called that speculation. BYD SETS PARIS DEBUT FOR FLASH CHARGING BYD will unveil its Flash Charging technology and the Denza Z9 GT in Paris on 8 April, showcasing a second-generation Blade Battery that charges from 10% to 97% in nine minutes. The Flash Chargers can deliver up to 1,500 kW using two cables simultaneously, though BYD has not confirmed European cable standards or peak output for that market. GERMAN MOTORWAY CHARGING OPENS TO COMPETITION A Düsseldorf court ruled on 6 March that Germany's motorway EV charging market must open to full competition, ending Tank & Rast's de-facto monopoly over fast charging at around 360 motorway service areas. The decision, brought by Fastned, requires open tenders for charging installations later in 2026 and could set a Europe-wide precedent for breaking up incumbent charging monopolies. UK POWER NETWORKS STARTS UK-FIRST V2G TRIAL UK Power Networks and Octopus Energy have launched a vehicle-to-grid trial in Amersham, Worthing, and Enfield, allowing EV owners to feed power back to the grid during peak demand. The initiative includes automatic approval of V2G charger connections — a UK first — with UK Power Networks approving 80% of requests compared to the national average of just 11%. GOVERNMENT HOLDS LINE ON ZEV REVIEW The UK government has rejected industry calls to bring forward the ZEV mandate review, maintaining a 2026 review with findings due in early 2027. Ministers say the timetable will properly identify pressure points, though the car industry's lobby group SMMT argues the transition was built on assumptions that have since proved incorrect. ZERO SELLS XB AND XE DIRECT Zero Motorcycles will sell its XB and XE electric dirt bikes directly to consumers online, shipping them in a crate for home assembly of key components like the battery and front fork. Dealers will continue to sell and service both models, with the direct channel aimed at streamlining fulfilment and better competing with electric off-road rivals. BMW TEASES 2027 7 SERIES REFRESH BMW has teased the updated 2027 7 Series ahead of its world premiere next month, with the mid-cycle refresh retaining the kidney grille rather than adopting Neue Klasse styling. The i7 electric variant is expected to receive a larger battery, silicon carbide inverters for better efficiency, and the full-width Panoramic Vision display from the iX3. NISSAN TO END LEAF REMOTE APP ACCESS Nissan will shut down the NissanConnect EV app on 30 March, stripping remote charging, pre-heating, and battery monitoring from older Leaf models and e-NV200 vans. The move has drawn criticism from owners who note EVs often remain in use for over 12 years, highlighting a broader industry problem where digital features can become obsolete long before the vehicle itself does.
BONUS: BYD Tech Day – The Impossible Dream
Mar 14, 2026
Show notes
On 5 March 2026, BYD held a landmark technology event unveiling the second-generation Blade Battery, a 1,500 kW megawatt Flash Charging network, eleven new or updated vehicle models, a next-generation LiDAR sensor from Robosense and an upgraded Gods Eye 5.0 ADAS suite.
BRIEFLY: Lucid Cosmos, Rivian R2, Polestar 3 & more | 14 Mar 2026
Mar 14, 2026
Show notes
t's EV News Briefly for Saturday 14 March 2026, everything you need to know in less than 5 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.
Patreon supporters fund this show, get the episodes ad free, as soon as they're ready and are part of the EV News Daily Community. You can be like them by clicking here: https://www.patreon.com/EVNewsDaily
LUCID SHOWS COSMOS AHEAD OF 2026 LAUNCH Lucid Motors revealed the Cosmos, a midsize SUV targeting "upscale nurturers," with production planned by end of 2026 but meaningful sales not expected until 2027. The cab-forward SUV rides on an 800V architecture with Atlas drive unit motors, a J3400 charging port, and a new centralised electrical architecture designed to cut wiring costs and lower insurance expenses. LUCID SHOWS LUNAR ROBOTAXI CONCEPT Lucid unveiled the Lunar, a two-seat robotaxi concept with steer-by-wire, no steering wheel or pedals, and a large central display, built on the same 800V midsize platform as the Cosmos. It targets an impressive 5.5–6 miles per kWh efficiency and DC fast-charging performance of 200+ miles of range in 15 minutes, achieved through aggressive aerodynamic tuning that allows a smaller battery pack. UBER NEARS SECOND LUCID ROBOTAXI DEAL Uber is finalising a deal with Lucid to deploy its midsize platform as a robotaxi at volumes comparable to the existing 20,000-unit Gravity SUV contract. If confirmed at similar scale, the combined Lucid-Uber robotaxi programme would total roughly 40,000 vehicles across two platforms. RIVIAN R2 TIMELINE TIGHTENS Rivian has unveiled the R2 Performance starting at $57,990, but buyers cannot yet configure the car online and reservation holders won't learn their estimated order time until June. This puts Rivian's previously stated Spring delivery window in serious doubt, as orders won't enter production until June at the earliest. POLESTAR 3 ADDS 800V TECH FOR AUSTRALIA Polestar has updated the Polestar 3 with 800V architecture enabling up to 350kW DC fast charging and a 10–80% charge time of just 22 minutes, alongside a new NVIDIA DRIVE AGX Orin processor replacing the older Xavier chip. The range now spans three trims with battery packs of 92kWh or 106kWh, and existing owners will receive a complimentary hardware retrofit for the upgraded computing platform. STELLANTIS HOLDS TALKS WITH XIAOMI AND XPENG Stellantis is in talks with Xiaomi and Xpeng about deals that could include Chinese carmakers taking stakes in Stellantis brands like Maserati and accessing European manufacturing facilities. In return, Stellantis hopes to gain EV and software technology it has struggled to develop competitively, and is also exploring a deeper tie-up with Leapmotor for affordable EVs in Europe. VOLKSWAGEN MISSES EU CO2 TARGET, AVOIDS FINES Volkswagen missed its 2025 EU fleet CO2 target, finishing at 100g/km against its 95g/km limit, despite BEV deliveries rising 32% to nearly 1 million units. The EU's three-year compliance mechanism means no immediate fines, but the group must now meet fleet limits in 2026 and 2027, primarily through an accelerated BEV push built around its Electric Urban Car Family rollout. LEAPMOTOR B10 OTA ADDS ONE-PEDAL DRIVING Leapmotor pushed a major OTA update to the B10 six months after launch, adding one-pedal driving, Apple CarPlay, Android Auto, split-screen navigation, and a Quick Start mode — all without requiring a dealer visit. The update also brings customisable steering wheel shortcut buttons and more natural adaptive cruise control behaviour in bends, with the B10 priced from €33,300. GM BACKS RARE EV1 RESTORATION GM is actively supporting the restoration of V212, one of the few surviving EV1s, after the car sold at auction for over $100,000 following its discovery in a Georgia impound lot. GM President Mark Reuss invited the restoration team to GM's Global Technical Center, supplying parts and technical documentation, with the goal of completing the project before the EV1's 30th anniversary in November 2026.
BONUS: Rivian R2 – Full Specs, Range and Price Confirmed From $45,000
Mar 13, 2026
Show notes
Rivian has spent four years and billions of dollars building electric vehicles that most people cannot afford. The R2 — a mid-size SUV that starts at $45,000 and tops out at $57,990 — is the company's answer to that problem. Full pricing and trim details dropped today, 12 March 2026, and deliveries of the first Performance variant begin this spring. If it works, Rivian becomes a proper carmaker. If it does not, the maths gets ugly fast. From Concept to Concrete The R2 platform was first announced in 2022, with production originally pencilled in for 2025 at a planned factory in Georgia. That changed in March 2024, when RJ Scaringe, Rivian's founder and chief executive, unveiled the production-ready R2 alongside the smaller R3 and R3X crossovers at a packed event at the Rivian Theater in Laguna Beach, California. Mr Scaringe also confirmed he was scrapping the Georgia plan — at least for now — and would build the R2 at the existing Normal, Illinois plant instead. That decision saved more than $2.25 billion in capital expenditure and, crucially, pulled the launch date forward. Within 24 hours of its unveiling, Rivian had taken more than 68,000 reservations at $100 apiece. By July 2024, the company's VP of manufacturing Tim Fallon said reservations had surpassed 100,000 and were still climbing. Rivian has not updated that figure publicly since. Production began in January 2026. Validation vehicles rolled off the Normal line first, and the factory is now ramping toward a target capacity of 155,000 R2 units per year — alongside the R1 models it already builds there. Each R2 takes roughly 15 hours to assemble, down from 18 hours for an R1. Why the R2 Matters More Than Any Vehicle Rivian Has Built The R1T pickup and R1S SUV earned Rivian a devoted following and the top spot in Consumer Reports owner satisfaction surveys. They also bled money. Rivian posted a net loss of $3.65 billion in 2025, on top of a $4.75 billion loss in 2024. The R1S starts near $75,000 (around £59,000) — a price that limits the addressable market to a sliver of American buyers. "R2 is really instrumental for driving the business to positive cash flow and overall profitability," Mr Scaringe told CNBC in February. He was not exaggerating. The bill of materials for the R2 is roughly half that of the R1. Rivian slashed the number of computing units from over 60 in a traditional vehicle to seven, and cut wiring length by about two miles (3.2 km). The result is what Mr Scaringe called "a dramatic reduction in the cost structure to build it." Rivian did scrape together a positive gross profit in the fourth quarter of 2025 — a milestone, though the margin was wafer-thin at around 2%, compared with Tesla's 17%. The R2, with its leaner architecture and lower price, is meant to close that gap at volume. Analysts expect around 15,000 R2 deliveries in 2026, though some believe Rivian could exceed that figure. By 2027, with three full shifts running, the Normal plant could produce roughly 155,000 R2s annually. Today's Pricing: What You Get The lineup spans four trims, all sharing an 87.9 kWh usable battery and a $1,495 destination charge. Here is how they break down: The Performance trim arrives first, this spring, at $57,990 (around £46,000) including the Launch Package. It runs dual-motor all-wheel drive with 656 horsepower, 609 lb-ft (826 Nm) of torque and a 0–60 mph (0–97 km/h) time of 3.6 seconds. Highway overtaking is savage: 50–70 mph (80–113 km/h) in 1.55 seconds. EPA-estimated range sits at up to 330 miles (531 km). The Launch Package bundles lifetime Autonomy+ access, a tow package rated at 4,400 lbs (1,996 kg) and an exclusive Launch Green paint option. The Premium trim follows in late 2026 at $53,990 (around £43,000). It shares the 330-mile range and dual-motor AWD layout but dials the power back to 450 hp and 537 lb-ft. Zero to 60 takes 4.6 seconds — hardly slow. The Standard RWD Long Range arrives in the first half of 2027 at $48,490 (around £38,500). A single rear motor delivers 350 hp and 355 lb-ft, reaching 60 in 5.9 seconds. Rivian estimates range at up to 345 miles (555 km) — the longest in the lineup, because rear-wheel drive is more efficient. Finally, the Standard RWD variant lands in late 2027 at approximately $45,000 (around £35,700). It uses a smaller battery pack and offers 275+ miles (443+ km) of estimated range. Rivian has shared few other details so far. All trims charge from 10% to 80% in 29 minutes via a native NACS port, which grants access to the Tesla Supercharger network. CCS adapters are supported too. Built Lighter, Built Tougher The R2 rides on an entirely new mid-size unibody platform — a departure from the R1's body-on-frame architecture. The result is a vehicle that weighs nearly 2,000 lbs (907 kg) less than its bigger sibling while sitting on a 115.6-inch (2,936 mm) wheelbase. At 185.9 inches (4,722 mm) long and 75 inches (1,905 mm) wide, it is squarely in Tesla Model Y territory. The weight savings translate directly into agility, but Rivian has kept the off-road DNA intact. Ground clearance of 9.6 inches (244 mm) is best in class — nearly three inches more than a Model Y. Approach and departure angles of 25° and 26° respectively, plus a wading depth of 19.7 inches (500 mm), mean the R2 can do more than look adventurous in a car park. The Performance trim gets semi-active suspension, eight drive modes including Rally and Soft Sand, and a low centre of gravity courtesy of the structural battery pack. Inside, the cabin seats five adults with 40.4 inches (1,026 mm) of rear legroom and headroom — enough, Rivian says, for occupants over six feet (1.83 m) tall. Total enclosed storage is 90.1 cubic feet (2,551 litres), with a front trunk that swallows a carry-on suitcase and a backpack, fold-flat rear seats that create a level loading surface, and dual gloveboxes. The rear drop glass — a powered window that lowers completely into the liftgate — is a genuine talking point, allowing surfboards and other long cargo to slide in or a breeze to sweep through. It is included on Performance and Premium trims. Materials lean sustainable: upcycled Birch wood accents, a headliner made from recycled ocean plastics and Rivian's second-generation Adventex material, which is designed to withstand muddy boots and wet dogs in equal measure. The Technology Play Rivian calls the R2 a "software-defined vehicle," and the specification sheet backs that up. The perception stack comprises 11 HDR cameras with a combined 65 megapixels and a five-radar system — hardware that comes standard on every trim. Rivian Autonomy+, the company's Level 2+ hands-free driver-assist system, covers 3.5 million miles (5.6 million km) of roads across the United States and Canada. It costs $49.99 per month or $2,500 as a one-off purchase. The Launch Package includes it for the lifetime of the vehicle. Every R2 gets a 60-day trial. On-board AI compute runs to 200 TOPS, dedicated to the in-cabin experience. This powers the forthcoming Rivian Assistant — a voice-controlled system that processes complex requests locally, even when offline. The 5G-connected architecture ensures updates arrive over the air, while the offline capability means the vehicle is not hobbled in areas without signal. At the steering wheel, Rivian's in-house Haptic Halo dials replace conventional switchgear. These context-aware controls scroll, push, pull and tilt with distinct tactile feedback for different functions — an attempt to bridge the gap between touchscreen convenience and physical control that many rivals have abandoned entirely. Two digital displays complete the cockpit: one behind the wheel for driving data, and one in the centre for everything else. The Elephant in the Room: Tesla The R2 lands in the most contested segment of the electric vehicle market. The Tesla Model Y — the best-selling EV on the planet and briefly the best-selling car of any kind in 2023 — starts at $44,000 in the United States and delivers up to 357 miles (575 km) of range. It has a vast Supercharger network, a mature software ecosystem and years of manufacturing refinement behind it. The R2 fights back with 3 inches (7.6 cm) more ground clearance, genuine off-road hardware, a richer interior (Model Y's cabin has always divided opinion) and that distinctive outdoor-adventure identity that Rivian has cultivated since its founding. Whether that is enough to prise buyers away from Tesla — or from the Hyundai Ioniq 5, the Ford Mustang Mach-E and the Chevrolet Equinox EV — remains the central question. Why Failure Is Not an Option Rivian burned roughly $3 billion in the first nine months of 2025 alone. It ended 2024 with about $5.3 billion in cash, a figure being steadily eroded by capital expenditure and operating losses. The Volkswagen joint venture — worth up to $5.8 billion in total — provides a lifeline, as does the potential for Department of Energy loan access. But lifelines do not last for ever. The company's stock tells its own story. Rivian went public in November 2021 at $78 a share, briefly touched $170 and now trades around $15. A 90% decline from the peak concentrates the mind wonderfully. The R2 must do three things at once: attract a materially larger customer base than the R1 ever could, generate a positive gross margin per vehicle and ramp to volumes that spread fixed costs across enough units to bend the loss curve downward. At a planned capacity of 155,000 units per year from Normal alone — with a second factory in Georgia eventually to follow — Rivian has the industrial ambition. The Volkswagen partnership supplies software licensing revenue and engineering credibility. Mr Scaringe has described the R2 as "the most important thing that we've developed as a company." On the evidence of today's specification sheet, it is also the most complete. The range is competitive, the technology is ambitious, the price is within reach of mainstream buyers and the off-road capability gives it a personality that few electric SUVs can match. None of which will matter if Rivian cannot build it at scale, on time and at a cost that leaves room for profit. The company that once dazzled Wall Street with a $170 share price now needs to dazzle customers with a $45,000 truck. That is the harder trick — and the one on which everything depends.
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