Which are the lowest-priced U.S.-market EVs?
Which American-made EVs qualify for the new Clean Vehicle Credit?
This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending August 19, 2022.
We started out the week rounding up the cheapest EVs for 2023—all under $40,000, before counting any incentives or credits.
President Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act on Tuesday, instantly overwriting the previous EV tax credit and adding a North American assembly requirement, while price and income caps plus various supply chain and raw materials requirements are yet to be phased in. We looked at how limited the eligibility list might be in 2023 due to price restrictions, and then after guidance from the IRS and DOE we found a list of less than 20 American-made EVs and PHEVs that qualify for the rest of 2022.
Mostly because of Monterey car week events in California, this week has been packed with luxury-EV announcements. Acura pointed to the design future of its brand as it shifts to EVs, with the Precision EV Concept. And then it confirmed the name of the production electric SUV that follows it: Acura ZDX.
Lincoln also showed how it’s thinking far into the future with its Model L100 Concept EV. Although it offers up some near-term hints about Lincoln design, the rear-hinged doors and rood, a lack of a steering wheel or yoke, and a “social seating” layout visualize what the Quiet Flight brand might be like in an automotive era.
Lucid revealed its three-motor Air Sapphire. Set to slay the Tesla Model S Plaid, challenge the upcoming Dodge EV muscle car on the dragstrip, and perhaps even counter supercars from Rimac, the tri-motor Air Sapphire will be the most powerful sedan in the world, according to Lucid. Just set aside about a quarter million for it, OK?
That Dodge made its debut this week, too—back in Michigan, and in concept form. The Dodge Charger Daytona SRT electric muscle-car concept is loud and proud, with a multi-speed transmission, a retro look, and an “exhaust” that emits screaming loud noises to those outside. It’s polarizing, for sure.
Polestar confirmed that it’s building the O2 electric roadster concept it revealed earlier this year, as the Polestar 6. The electric roadster will be built on new aluminum underpinnings and with Polestar’s own motors, battery pack, and 800-volt architecture, and although it won’t arrive until 2026 it’s shaping up to be the closest rival to the Tesla Roadster 2.0 yet.
Mercedes-Benz provided a look inside the upcoming EQE SUV, a model it won’t reveal in full until October. The five-seat SUV will be built in the U.S. and is a counterpart to the Model S–sized EQE sedan, as well as a smaller alternative to the EQS SUV due later this year.
Pricing was released for the 2023 Kia Sportage Plug-In Hybrid midweek, just missing out on the EV tax credit for which it had previously qualified. As such, the Sportage PHEV costs a little less than the Toyota RAV4 Prime ut more than the Ford Escape and Hyundai Tucson PHEVs.
Rivian has dropped the least expensive Explore versions of the R1T and R1S electric trucks, citing supply-chain issues, effectively raising prices by up to $6,000. It says the timing is unrelated to the EV tax credit push. The EV maker is giving reservation holders until September 1 to opt for the more expensive Adventure version or get a refund.
The longtime iPhone maker Foxconn will be making a self-driving electric tractor for California’s Monarch at the same former GM plant where it’s due to make the Lordstown Endurance and Fisker Pear.
Chine’s Xpeng claimed that its upcoming G9 flagship electric SUV will be the world’s fastest-charging mass-produced EV. The five-seat G9 will be able to add up to 124 miles of range in five minutes; and Xpeng is rolling out 480-kw DC fast-chargers to help assure that.
BMW announced that it’s testing a four-motor system for future M Performance EVs. While it wouldn’t be the first to use the layout—think Rivian, Lordstown, or the upcoming Cybertruck, or the Rimac Nevera supercar—it would likely be the first time it’s offered in a widely available performance car. And then on the unofficial-news side, a new deal between BMW and China’s EVE Energy might confirm BMW’s broad shift toward cylindrical cells in upcoming mass-market EVs due in 2025, according to a report—and larger-format cells like Tesla’s 4680 might be part of it.
An updated analysis from the Union of Concerned Scientists finds that an electric truck cuts lifetime carbon emissions by 57% versus gasoline. As with previous versions of the UCS study, your situation will vary depending on the local grid.
First BrightDrop EV600 vans delivered to FedEx
An industry group’s court challenge against a California emissions rule tightening allowable heavy-duty diesel engine emissions has been dropped. The move might have slowed the rollout of the electric delivery vehicles that some of the group’s member companies have been pushing for, so it eliminates another one of the industry disconnects that are all too common.
As interest in the Ford Mustang Mach-E continues to surge, a report suggests that the Ford Mustang Hybrid that’s been officially on the way for years might not be arriving at all. But the entire Mustang lineup is due to go fully electric in five years.
And the Tesla Supercharger network again topped J.D. Power’s study of EV charging satisfaction. But the survey giant noted that there’s growing dissatisfaction with charger reliability across the ranks. Did the chargers work where you’re headed this weekend?
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Toyota is shifting some of its ICE plants over to EV batteries. BMW starts making fuel-cell stacks. And California doesn’t want you charging during today’s Labor Day weekend traffic time. This and more, here at Green Car Reports. On the eve of a holiday weekend, California asked that EV drivers not charge their EVs on Friday afternoon after 4 p.m., because of unusually hot weather and increased air conditioning use. Just a week after the state enshrined its shift to electric new-vehicle sales by 2035, that’s created some awkward optics. In Germany, BMW has started assembling...
Two Japanese facilities will be shifted to battery production as part of deeper commitments to EV manufacturing.
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The base Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV 450+ will be one of a short list of three-row EVs to top 300 miles of range.
The Sion promises around 70 free miles from the sun per week, plus home power-bank functionality with bi-directional charging.
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California commits to ban internal combustion vehicles when one brand dominates EV sales. The slate of EVs with more than 300 miles of range has grown, especially in 2022. And Rivian will help level your in-vehicle campsite. This and more, here at Green Car Reports. In its next over-the-air...
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The list of model year 2022 EVs offering at least 300 miles of range is diverse and now includes sedans, hatchbacks, crossovers, SUVs, and pickups.