Batteries
The small crossover is taller and has a wider wheelbase than the Renault 5, making it more practical for families, much like the original icon built from the 1960s until the 1990s.
The MEB Plus platform with cheaper lithium iron phosphate battery chemistry is seen as the “next big step” for EVs to achieve profit margin parity with combustion-engine cars.
CEO Toshihiro Mibe says the Japanese carmaker never expected that the USMCA free trade pact between the U.S., Mexico and Canada would suddenly be in jeopardy.
Honda will shift its focus to gasoline-electric hybrid vehicles, including a next-generation technology debuting in 2027.
Honda said it is delaying its scale-up in the community of Alliston, which includes a battery plant and retooled vehicle assembly line, for about two years as it monitors market conditions.
Tests by Stellantis and Mercedes bring solid-state battery technology closer to commercial introduction for global automakers.
EVs using lithium manganese-rich cells are expected on the market by 2028, starting with pickups and full-size SUVs.
CATL, the global leader in EV battery sales, plans to use much of the proceeds from a new major stock sale for international expansion in Europe, notably a big factory in Hungary to supply top clients like Mercedes-Benz.
Japanese-headquartered battery maker AESC will build the facility in Sunderland, northern England. The government said it would provide batteries for up to 100,000 EVs per year.
Volvo agreed with Northvolt to take over its 50 percent stake in the company following the battery maker’s bankruptcy.
