January 22, 2024
European Car Manufacturers Association ACEA published the sales figures in Europe last year. In 2023, the EU car market concluded with a solid 13,9% expansion compared to 2022, reaching a full-year volume of 10,5 million units. All EU markets grew in the past year except for Hungary (-3,4%). Double-digit gains were recorded in most markets, […]
January 19, 2024
Starting in January 2024, Valorauto, a joint venture between Stellantis and recycling specialist Galloo, will expand its end-of-life vehicle recycling service to private owners. This service offers a free and responsible solution to the end-of-life management of vehicles weighing under 3,5 tons, for both passenger cars and light commercial vehicles (LCVs), regardless of the brand […]
January 18, 2024
After four years of decline, the sales of Renault group are going upwards again (+9%). In 2023, the group sold 2 235 000 vehicles worldwide. Sales to individual buyers represent 65% of total sales in the five most important European markets. In a press release on Wednesday, the Group says to be “in a dynamic […]
January 18, 2024
The administrative court of Schleswig-Holstein in Germany has once again declared that the update for diesel engines Volkswagen proposed in the aftermath of dieselgate is also illegal. The homologation by the official German car agency Kraftfahrt Bundesamt (KBA) is invalid. The German NGO Deutsche Umwelthilfe (DUH) has presented the update to the court and welcomes […]
January 17, 2024
The French micro-mobility specialist Ligier will import K-Ryole’s electric transport solutions to Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. The purpose is to offer even more zero-emission micro-mobility solutions for building and logistics. K-Ryole is a French manufacturer of innovative, electrically supported bike trailers and trolleys, especially suited for last-mile delivery. The bike trailers are mainly used […]
January 17, 2024
At the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas, California-based AC Future presented the ETH, a fully electric RV concept designed by Pininfarina with expandable walls that convert it into a luxurious living area and a mobile workspace. The AC Future eTH stands for ‘Electric Transformer House’, which is a great way to describe the […]
January 16, 2024
BMW chief financial officer Walter Mertl said in a recent media roundtable BMW has passed the tipping point for combustion engine vehicle sales and now generates most sales growth from electric cars. “The tipping point for the combustion engine is already there,” the CFO said, adding that, in his view, it had been passed last […]
January 15, 2024
Volkswagen has published its Group-wide sales figures for the past year. According to the figures, the Volkswagen Group delivered 771 100 fully electric vehicles worldwide in 2023. Across all drive types, Volkswagen achieved total sales of 9,24 million vehicles in 2023, an increase of 21% compared to 2022. The 771 100 fully electric vehicles delivered […]
January 15, 2024
The French start-up company Tiamat Energy is planning a factory for sodium-ion battery cells with an annual capacity of 5 GWh in northern France and is receiving financial support from Stellantis, among others. Tiamat Energy is a sodium-ion cell developer spun off from the French National Research Centre CNRS (Centre National de la Recherche Scientifique). […]
January 12, 2024
After a brief flirtation with warmer months, the North American International Auto Show NAIAS), also known as the Detroit Auto Show, is returning to its original January exhibition month. Rod Alberts, executive director of the Detroit Auto Dealers Association (DADA), told the Detroit Free Press on Thursday that the 2025 Detroit auto show will begin […]
January 12, 2024
Since September last year, Wolfgang Bremm von Kleinsorgen (52) has been CEO of Mercedes-Benz Benelux. He took the alternative Mercedes motor show event ‘Defining Class Star Days’ in his own headquarters as an opportunity to talk to the outside world for the first time. The new CEO originates from Aachen, Germany, and knows Belgium fairly […]
January 10, 2024
The BMW Group sold a total of 376 183 all-electric vehicles in 2023. That is 74,4% more than in 2022, with the BMW core brand achieving even stronger growth thanks to several new models, while Mini only saw a slight increase. In 2022, the BMW Group sold 215 755 fully electric vehicles of the BMW […]
January 09, 2024
The in-car digital experience of both the present day and the future is the dominant theme of the BMW Group’s presence at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) 2024 in Las Vegas, U.S. New infotainment products for the current BMW model portfolio will be shown at the event. At the same time, the BMW Group is […]
January 09, 2024
Toyota Belgium, one of the market leaders in the segment of individual buyers with its Yaris model, ordered a survey showing great uncertainty reigning in this market segment about when and what to buy. Toyota Belgium asked marketing research specialist Ipsos to investigate the buying intentions of individual car buyers. 1 000 respondents (only potential […]
January 08, 2024
According to market research ordered by Mobia, the Belgian car buyer will be more impacted by a premium to buy an electric car than by the eventual expansion of LEZ zones. Mobia, the overarching association of car sector federations Febiac (new car market), Traxio (second-hand car market), and Renta (car leasing and renting), has done […]
January 08, 2024
Volvo Cars set a new global sales record as the company reported full-year sales of 708 716 cars during 2023, an increase of 15% compared to the entire year of 2022. Volvo Cars will also get a €420 million loan from the European Investment Bank (EIB) to develop a new electric car platform. Volvo Cars […]
January 05, 2024
The California based EV car manufacturer Fisker Inc. today announced that the company is developing an innovative Dealer Partnership model in North America. In Europe, Fisker intends to pursue a hybrid of direct sales and dealer arrangements. “As we saw throughout 2023, the EV market has changed dramatically, said Chairman and CEO Henrik Fisker. “As […]
January 05, 2024
Last year, 2,84 million cars were sold in Germany, or 7,3% more than in 2022. Electrified vehicles, however, struggle to find buyers, primarily due to the disappearance of practically all incentives for buying them. 979 000 of the cars sold were simply gasoline engine powered, and that’s a 13% growth, while the pure electric cars […]
January 03, 2024
At least 22% of new cars sold by manufacturers in the UK this year must be zero-emission. New rules requiring car manufacturers to sell a minimum proportion of zero-emission vehicles have come into force, the Department for Transport (DfT) in the UK announced. The mandate became law on Wednesday. Zero emission means, in practice, that […]
January 03, 2024
In 2023, the car market in Belgium and Luxembourg (Belux) booked its best result since the pandemic broke out and ended close to the sales average of the last ten years (476 675 cars registered compared to 483 670 as the decade average). In December 2023, 25 715 new cars were registered, which is still […]
January 03, 2024
The Chinese car manufacturer BYD (Build Your Dreams) has a very ambitious goal: to become the world’s biggest car manufacturer and overtake Toyota and other VWs by 2030. It is now the biggest producer of electrified cars in the world. BYD sold a record number of new energy vehicles (NEVs) in December, reaching its full-year […]
January 02, 2024
Volvo Cars is working on an electric version of its luxury saloon, which will probably launch in 2025 as the ES90. According to media reports, the carmaker has already built the prototypes at its plant in Shanghai. Deliveries will kick off in mid-2025. According to information from the specialized site motor.es, the Volvo ES90 will […]
December 29, 2023
Some EV experts and sector federation Traxio say there is an urgent need for a reliable battery test and the appropriate certificate to regulate upcoming sales of second-hand electric vehicles. Recent tests of battery packs in second-hand full-electric vehicles have shown that batteries still can be in good shape after years of use and can […]
December 29, 2023
American powertrain manufacturer Cummins has to pay almost $1,7 billion as a fine for selling devices that can bypass emissions sensors. The US Department of Justice sees this as a direct violation of the Clean Air Act and has imposed a fine, which is the second-largest in the history of the Act, which was installed […]
December 27, 2023
Toyota Motor Corp. said on Wednesday that its global output from January to November reached 9,23 million vehicles. That’s a new single-year record with still one month left in 2023. The result is also achieved thanks to robust demand in North America and Europe. The all-time high came as the automaker’s worldwide production for November […]
December 27, 2023
The Chinese car manufacturer BYD, the world’s number one in building and selling electrified cars, will build a car plant in Hungary as part of its plan to conquer Europe. “BYD is preparing to build its first car manufacturing plant in Szeged, Hungary, and is hereby making an important step towards green mobility in Europe,” […]
December 26, 2023
Toyota is not experiencing its best week ever, on the contrary. At its daughter Daihatsu, part of the Toyota Group, serious fraud has been discovered running already for decades. Toyota has recalled more than one million vehicles in the US with a possible airbag safety issue. On Thursday, the Japanese Ministry of Transport started an […]
December 22, 2023
The Russian car manufacturer Avtotor has released the first pictures of a new electric prototype called Amber. It’s 100% made in Russia and has been developed in partnership with the Russian Polytechnic University of Moscow (MAMI). Since the start of the Ukrainian war, the Russian industry has been almost entirely on its own since all […]
December 21, 2023
BMW Belux will be celebrating its 50th anniversary of presence in Belgium and Luxembourg with the third consecutive number-one place in the market in 2023. At a press meeting, Belux CEO Alexander Wehr and his colleagues looked forward to consolidating this success. The fact that three premium brands are in the top five of car […]
December 21, 2023
After intense negotiations, Volkswagen managers and employee representatives have agreed on key points in a paper for the ‘Accelerate Forward/Road to 6.5’ plan announced in June. The 6.5 describes the key target, a return on sales of 6,5% for the core brand of the VW Group by 2026. It was first announced in June when […]
December 21, 2023
The harmonization organization SAE International (created by the Society of Automotive Engineers) published a corresponding document that turns Tesla’s de facto North American Charging Standard (NACS) into a harmonized connector standard. The development prompted the Department of Transportation (DoT) to look into infrastructure funding. Volkswagen is also joining the band for good. The ‘SAE J3400 […]
December 20, 2023
According to the sales figures assembled by the European Car Manufacturers Association ACEA, the EU’s car market grew by a modest but reasonably robust 6,7% in November 2023. Despite a relatively low comparison base, solid growth persisted, marking the sixteenth consecutive month of expansion. Some markets had substantial double-digit gains, including two of the largest: […]
December 19, 2023
Negotiators from the EU Parliament and the EU member states agreed on the new emission limits for cars, buses, and other (heavy) vehicles, commonly known as the Euro 7 standards. As the original proposals of the European Commission have been weakened by both the member states and the EU Parliament, reactions to the final decision […]
December 19, 2023
The German government announced a direct halt of the environmental bonus in 2024 after it had to compromise its budget for the coming years. First, it sounded like Germany would phase out EV incentives earlier than planned; now, it has been scrapped entirely as of last Sunday. “We will phase out the environmental bonus, i.e., […]
December 18, 2023
GM daughter Cruise, a robotaxi company, is said to have fired one out of four employees. That’s approximately 900 people and 24% of all full-time equivalents (FTE). Most of these employees work in the non-technical part of the company. Last Thursday, an email explaining the decision was sent to all personnel members. Strange accident The […]
December 18, 2023
Chinese car manufacturer Maxus, daughter of the SAIC group, presents its first SUV in Belgium, a fully electric one. The eUniq6 is a 5-seater with ample cargo space (754 liters of boot volume). The SUV is driven on the front wheels by a 130 kW/177 hp electromotor, providing also 310 Nm of torque. The car […]
December 15, 2023
In April 2024 in Milan, Alfa Romeo will unveil its first ‘Sport Urban Vehicle’ in its history, which will also be available in a 100% electric version. It will be named Milano as a tribute to the city where it all began on June 24, 1910. With the Alfa Romeo Milano, the brand rejoins the […]
December 15, 2023
Volkswagen is planning a second version of the upcoming, affordable ID.2 small EV. It will be a compact SUV version based on the same MEB platform and with the same drivetrain. Stepan Rehak, spokesperson for Design at VW Passenger Cars, posted the teaser image on social media. Rehak also confirmed it will arrive in 2026. […]
December 14, 2023
The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) warns the European authorities of a Chinese dominance of the EV supply chain and the US government incentives for domestic automakers. According to ACEA, the EU electric vehicle industry risks losing ground even more without a robust EU industrial strategy. It risks putting the EU on the back pedal […]
December 14, 2023
Jaguar Land Rover has opened the waiting list for people who want to have one of the first fully electric Range Rovers, due in 2024. Meanwhile, the extensive testing phase for the prototypes has started, and JLR gives a glimpse of what we can expect. “With more patents anticipated to be filed for New Range […]
December 13, 2023
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles (VWN) will also offer the successor to the T6.1 Transporter as a BEV. The sales launch is scheduled for 2024, and VWN does not want to present the exact technical data of the electric van until then. The entirely newly developed Transporter and its shuttle variant, Caravelle, will be available as a […]
December 13, 2023
Now that 2023 is ending, it’s already apparent that the best-selling EV worldwide is the Tesla Model Y, according to recent research by Clean Technica. Also very noticeable is the ubiquity of Chinese brands in the EV top 20, with BYD as an absolute shiner. Of course, we have only verified data for the first […]
December 13, 2023
Citroën has presented the new edition of the ë-Berlingo in detail. The most important fact of the update is the switch to an LFP battery with a better net energy content of 50 kWh. At the premiere at the ‘Stellantis Commercial Vehicles Ambition Day’ in October, it was suggested that the key data of the […]
December 12, 2023
More details about the fake manual transmission for electric cars developed by Toyota have emerged from a recently published patent application. Toyota’s alibi gearbox could have up to 14 simulated gears. In a recent article about Toyota’s financial forecasts and EV strategy, we mentioned the plans for a ‘manual transmission’ Toyota has been experimenting with […]
December 12, 2023
The German automotive supplier Bosch is considering significant job cuts in its powertrain division. Bosch is considering cutting up to 1 500 jobs in development, administration, and sales, said a spokeswoman on Monday. A report in the specialized German magazine Automobilwoche triggered the announcement. The shift of the automotive industry away from combustion engines and […]
December 11, 2023
According to the often well-informed German newspaper Handelsblatt, Volkswagen is considering collaborating with Renault to develop and produce the sub-20 000-euro car. Both companies declined to comment on these rumors from sources familiar with the matter. According to Handelsblatt, VW is talking to potential partners, but Renault is definitely one of them. At the moment, […]
December 08, 2023
Luxembourg’s newest car classified site, mycar.lu, announces ‘Picture Search’, an innovative feature to the online car marketplace. It’s an advanced AI-powered tool that enables users to take pictures of any car they encounter on the street and instantly find the brand and model on mycar.lu’s platform. “This cutting-edge development is set to revolutionize the way […]
December 08, 2023
The four-year-old German LaneCharge project on inductive charging, has presented the results of its practical tests of this ‘pioneering inductive charging system. The proved to be successful. Launched back in 2019, together with industry partners, researchers at Hanover University of Applied Sciences and Arts wanted to develop a fully functional inductive charging system, which was […]
December 08, 2023
BMW Group Belux, the BMW, Mini, and BMW Motorrad importer in Belgium and Luxembourg, is investing almost €30 million in the complete renovation and rethinking of its headquarters in Bornem (Antwerp province), known as the BMW campus. When everything has been refurbished, the 400 BMW Belux employees will be joined by 180 colleagues of BMW’s […]
December 07, 2023
In a meeting on Wednesday at the Renault headquarters, the four Alliance leaders tried to reassure the outside world of their determination to create a future for the Alliance between Mitsubishi, Nissan, and Renault. “The future of the Alliance is ‘exciting’, ‘resilient’, and ‘innovative’,” the four stressed. “This Alliance is more flexible, open, eager, and […]
December 07, 2023
Renault Group is launching a plan to transform its industrial base fundamentally. Between now and 2027, it is seeking to cut production costs per vehicle by 30% for internal combustion vehicles (ICE) and 50% for electric vehicles (BEV). Renault Group’s Industrial Metaverse will play a vital role in the transformation, enabling the Group to accelerate […]
December 06, 2023
The coming Mini Cooper SE electric 3-door model will also be available in the John Cooper Works trim to emphasize the brand’s racing history. With 160 kW and 330 Newton meters of maximum torque, the more powerful Mini Cooper SE version can sprint from 0 to 100 kph in 6,7 seconds and offers a range […]
December 06, 2023
The current (and re-elected) president of the European Car Manufacturers Association (ACEA), Luca de Meo, has called for European ‘Kei Cars’ as one of the solutions to boost electric car sales and solve acute urban mobility problems. De Meo did so in his speech at the ACEA headquarters in Brussels while presenting the lobbying group’s […]
December 06, 2023
The electric vehicle manufacturer EV Electra has bought the rights to the Emily GT project, also called ‘the new Saab’, from NEVS (New Electric Vehicle Sweden) and could produce the sporty electric saloon in the former Saab factory in Trollhättan, Sweden. Last August, we reported about the Emily GT, citing that an ‘unknown investor’ had […]
December 05, 2023
The electric car manufacturer Fisker is lowering its production forecast for 2023 once again. After last lowering its forecast to between 13 000 and 17 000 vehicles produced in 2023 as a whole, Fisker now only expects to produce just over 10 000 units. The reason given for this is the decision to produce fewer […]
December 05, 2023
Toyota wants to expand its range of electric cars in Europe to six models by 2026. That’s what we wrote on Monday, talking about the brand’s two concepts unveiled at its annual Kenshiki event in Brussels. But the Japanese company is also providing more details on its battery roadmap and hydrogen plans. With the presentation […]
December 04, 2023
At last week’s Toyota Motor Europe (TME) 2023 Kenshiki event, a team of global and European executives presented the company’s latest electrified products and technologies. Today, we’re paying attention to two new BEV concepts arriving in Europe reasonably soon. Toyota provided a preview of its future battery electric vehicle (BEV) strategy for Europe by unveiling […]
December 04, 2023
With 37 552 new cars registered in Belgium and Luxembourg, November was the best since 2017 and scored 26,1% higher than in 2022. For the first eleven months of the year, this means a total of 450 960 new cars registered, 32% more than last year for the same period. More than 47% of them […]
December 01, 2023
Hyundai and Kia have presented a new wheel drive system called the Universal Wheel Drive System (‘Uni Wheel’ for short), designed for taxis, shuttle buses, and other special purpose vehicles of all sizes. The Uni Wheel creates extra space in electric vehicles by moving the reduction gear to the wheel hub. The Uni Wheel relocates […]
December 01, 2023
Renault will present the R5 E-tech electric, its B-segment EV, Zoe successor, and Renault 5 reminiscer at the Geneva Motor Show on the 26th of February. In anticipation, the manufacturer has already shown some details of the production version and launched a teaser campaign with an R 5 R Pass for early potential buyers. “Renault […]
