Geely joins charging arms race and makes 4 minute top-ups reality

September 25, 2026

Geely Auto has unveiled a 2.25-megawatt smart-charging system that charges its electric cars from 10 to 70% in four minutes and 30 seconds. That is roughly thirty seconds quicker than BYD’s latest Flash Charging 2.0 platform, the previous benchmark.  The company officially announced the record-breaking charging system at its Safety Center in Ningbo. It’s not […]

Infrabel and Siemens sign €215 million contract for Belgian digital rail

September 25, 2026

The Belgian rail network operator Infrabel has signed a new contract with Siemens Mobility to maintain, further develop, and modernize the Operational Control System (OCS), a digital system that ensures trains run safely and smoothly across the Belgian railway network. The framework agreement, worth 215 million euros, will run for 11 years and is also […]

Leapmotor gets rid of the 12-volt battery in EVs

September 23, 2026

Chinese automaker Leapmotor is removing the 12-volt battery from its future electric cars, relying solely on the high-voltage battery. The new approach is part of a broader redesign of the company’s technical architecture, which will increase cars’ interior space. While electric cars have a high-voltage battery to feed their electric motor(s), they also have a […]

Toyota plans 400,000 factory robots: is human workforce at risk?

September 22, 2026

Humanoid robots are reshaping the factory floor, especially in China. Toyota is joining the bandwagon, targeting 400,000 units to modernize its production infrastructure. Can the bots take over from humans? Toyota has told investors it may need 400,000 robots and roughly 1 trillion yen ($6.4 billion) a year from 2028 to upgrade its factories. The […]

Belgian Solar Team finishes second in 24h European solar race in Zolder

September 21, 2026

Twente University’s Top Dutch Solar Racing has won the 24h iLumen European Solar Challenge on the circuit of Zolder. The Belgian Innoptus Solar Team, run by KU Leuven students, came second in their BluePoint Atlas car, losing its European title. Over the past weekend, the Belgian Zolder circuit was the place to be for solar […]

Only minor Tesla self-driving accidents in Belgium, as fatal crashes reach peak in the U.S.

September 21, 2026

Flanders Minister of Mobility, Annick De Ridder (NV-A), has published the first safety data from three months of Tesla’s supervised self-driving system on Belgian roads. The encouraging results report only five minor incidents. At the same time, FSD had its deadliest month in the US.  Since June, owners of Teslas equipped with FSD are allowed […]

New Audi A4 e-tron delayed until 2029?

September 18, 2026

Audi has seemingly postponed production of the all-electric Audi A4 e-tron to the first half of 2029. The reason, once again, appears to be issues with introducing the Volkswagen Group’s new SSP electric architecture. First introduced in 1994, the Audi A4’s model history has confused some customers in recent years: Audi changed its naming convention, […]

Toyota wants 76% fewer parts to increase profitability

September 17, 2026

Fierce competition in the automotive world, with Chinese brands aggressively trying to expand to the rest of the world, is forcing legacy brands to reconsider their strategies. Toyota’s new CEO, Kenta Kon, thinks he has part of the answer: fewer parts. Kon, who replaced Koji Sato earlier this year, wants to lower production costs to […]

Green hydrogen production starts at former Opel site in Antwerp

September 16, 2026

The U.S. company Power to Hydrogen will start production of green hydrogen this Friday in the Port of Antwerp. The site opens at the so-called NextGen District, the innovation hub of Port of Antwerp-Bruges on the premises of the former Opel factory. The goal is to produce 50 metric tons of green hydrogen annually. The […]

VW Mission Efficiency: 6,89 kWh/100 km and ‘production-ready’

September 15, 2026

Volkswagen has presented a new electric concept car, the Mission Efficiency. The aerodynamic and ‘production-ready’ 2+2 was built on the brand’s MEB+ platform and promises a record-low power consumtion. Volkswagen’s Mission Efficiency concept looks like a modern reinterpretation of the brand’s iconic XL1. But unlike the innovative coupe VW launched in 2013 and sold in […]

Renault Trafic wins van 2027 crown, but can EV vans pay off?

September 15, 2026

Renault’s new Trafic Van E-Tech electric has been named International Van of the Year 2027, even before the first customer vehicles hit the road. The 26-member jury voted unanimously for Renault’s new mid-sized electric van at the IAA Transportation show in Hanover. The award is Renault’s sixth IVOTY title, but the more interesting question is […]

E-bike fires are rising, and battery quality may be to blame

September 14, 2026

There is an urgent need for research into the quality of bike batteries and the causes of the fires involving them. That is the view of fire prevention expert Tim Renders. According to Renders, the numbers of reported e-bike fires in Flanders and the Netherlands rose from 38 in 2021 to 102 in 2023 and […]

Renault learns ‘China speed’ just as China starts hitting the brakes

September 14, 2026

Renault will not follow Chinese rivals into ever-shorter vehicle development cycles. CEO François Provost says around two years is effectively the lower limit for an all-new platform and its first model if the French group wants to preserve proper testing, validation and quality. That is a striking line for a company that has spent the […]

Green Hell, new rules: BMW’s anniversary M models face electric age

September 14, 2026

BMW M is preparing a conspicuously old-school birthday present for the Nürburgring. To mark the German circuit’s centenary in 2027, it is launching six M cars and three M motorcycles in a ‘100 Jahre Nürburgring’ edition, all finished in historical Nürburgring Green and dressed with Nordschleife references. The timing is almost more interesting than the […]

BMW industrialises hydrogen iX5 while Europe stops buying H₂ cars

September 13, 2026

BMW is moving its hydrogen program another step closer to series production. The next-generation iX5 Hydrogen is undergoing real-world testing while prototype assembly, supplier industrialization, and production preparations are running in parallel. Technically, BMW is increasingly demonstrating that a hydrogen passenger car can work. The harder question in 2026 is whether enough customers will still […]

Geely plans to chase BYD in Europe with 1.800 kW megawatt chargers

September 11, 2026

After BYD, Geely is joining the race to superfast charging. The company claims it is running test cars in China filling up in five minutes at 1.800 kW superchargers. Europe is also on the radar. Tesla once built an empire by selling electric cars accompanied by the charging stations that power them and that could […]

Mitsubishi Eclipse Cross gets an entry-level battery straight from Renault’s shelf

September 11, 2026

After the Renault Scenic got an update, its Japanese twin model gets the same treatment, upgrading to two battery options, increasing range to 650 kilometers. Mitsubishi has updated the Eclipse Cross with two new battery choices, ditching the previous single 87 kWh pack for a more flexible two-tier lineup. Whereas Mitsubishi only offered the larger […]

The China Syndrome: Ford needs Beijing more than Trump grants it

September 10, 2026

The White House thinks Ford has gone soft on Beijing. But CEO Jim Farley believes that Chinese players are ahead of the game and that you need to join them cause you can’t beat them. The paradox keeps Ford in a tight space. US Transport Secretary Sean Duffy fired off a letter this week demanding […]

China’s cheap LFP batteries close the gap with NMC

September 10, 2026

China’s battery industry has pushed lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells beyond 200 Wh/kg in a new fourth-generation high-compaction benchmark. The number sounds technical, but the consequence is simple: the cheaper battery chemistry that dominates China can store more energy per unit weight, making it increasingly suitable for longer-range EVs in Europe, too. Chinese battery expert […]

Maserati in advanced talks with Chinese Huawei to build cars together

September 09, 2026

As the electric Folgore strategy has failed on the Italian trident brand, the car maker has reached out to the Chinese smart-car tech company Huawei and the manufacturer JAC to explore a collaboration. The question is what this could entail for the brand’s defined Italian luxury image, as well as its prospects on the US […]

Polestar Formula 2030: a pretty face for ugly numbers

September 08, 2026

The Swedish EV brand Polestar has unveiled a first glimpse of what the new 2 and 7 will look like. Is the timing of the design meant to mask the tough news that accompanied the latest publication of its balance sheet? Geely-owned Polestar has pulled back the curtain on the Formula 2030 design study at […]

Audi prices new A2 e-tron aggressively from €38,450

September 07, 2026

A month after revealing the technology behind its new A2 e-tron, Audi has answered perhaps the more important question: what will its new electric entry model actually cost? In Belgium, prices start at €38,450, while the version offering the headline 646-kilometer WLTP range comes in at €48,550. That puts the A2 e-tron in an interesting […]

Tesla’s Cybercab finally goes public but may not be road-legal

September 07, 2026

Tesla’s Cybercab, the pinnacle of the company’s future, has been officially revealed and put to the test in the streets of Austin. Instantly, the first problem arose: Washington isn’t convinced it’s legal. Tesla has officially put its purpose-built Cybercab robotaxi into commercial service in Austin, Texas. The company kicks off a new chapter in its […]

Mazda CX-6e driven: European manners, Chinese-tech cabin

September 07, 2026

When we first met the Mazda CX-6e at its static Belgian presentation in June, the central question was obvious: can an electric SUV developed together with Changan and built in China really feel like a Mazda? After roughly three hours behind the wheel around Düsseldorf, the answer is clearer. On the road, surprisingly often yes. […]

Supersonic is back, the business case isn’t – yet

September 04, 2026

Travelers, aircraft manufacturers, aviation enthusiasts, and those nostalgic for the Concorde are dreaming aloud of a comeback for supersonic flight. Now that regulations in the U.S. are being amended to lift the absolute ban on supersonic flight over the country, nothing seems to stand in the way of a return of commercial flights at speeds […]

Range Rover Electric: a V8 without the emissions

September 04, 2026

Range Rover’s first battery-powered car is a flagship model that promises V8 prowess without the emissions from gasoline. According to the brand, it is a Range Rover first and an electric second. But is that good enough to persuade the wealthy buyers who sidestepped the electric Mercedes G-Class? Maybe the real competitor here is exactly […]

This robot dog ‘poops’ your parcel, while selling you ads

September 03, 2026

America’s Robot.com is proud to present R-dog, the new delivery robot with a friendly face and WALL-E-like eyes, a red cap, and an approachable design. It can wiggle its furry tail and then ‘poop’ your package onto your porch. The R-dog has four articulated legs with wheels at the ends, so it can roll efficiently […]

EV batteries age better than feared, 500,000 tests show

September 03, 2026

A massive analysis of more than 500,000 EV battery tests suggests that most electric cars retain at least 90% of their original battery capacity after 150,000 kilometers. But the averages hide large differences between individual cars – precisely why Belgium is already adding battery-health data to the Car-Pass and why calls for an independent battery […]

The Volvo EX30 (finally) gets Vehicle-to-Load

September 03, 2026

Thanks to a new software update announced in February of this year, the Volvo EX30’s charging port can now finally power external devices. In addition to this Vehicle-to-Load (V2L) function, the compact electric car built at the Belgian Volvo Ghent plant for certain markets also gets Plug & Charge. The software update bringing V2L is […]

Belgian speed pedelec gets two motors and 200-km range

September 02, 2026

Belgian speed-pedelec start-up Specter has started production of its second-generation Specter 2, promising up to 200 kilometers of range and two-wheel drive. But the real achievement may be less spectacular than those headline figures: Specter has found a way to make much of the technology of its €10,000-plus first generation considerably more affordable, while bringing frame […]

MyWheels puts Tesla FSD in shared cars, but driver still carries the risk

September 01, 2026

Dutch car-sharing company MyWheels wants to become the first major European operator to put Tesla’s Full Self-Driving Supervised system into shared cars. It plans to deploy at least 50 FSD-equipped Teslas in 2026, with the first car already in service. But after questions from Newmobility.news, MyWheels is adding an important nuance to its original claim. […]

BYD turns tiny Racco into weapon for Europe’s €20,000 EV fight

August 31, 2026

When BYD unveiled its tiny Racco for Japan earlier this year, it looked like a very specific answer to the peculiar rules of the Japanese kei-car market. Six months later, it is becoming clear that some of its technology could also shape BYD’s next generation of small, affordable EVs for Europe. According to reports from […]

VW’s electric California solves weight problem by leaving kitchen at home

August 31, 2026

Volkswagen has finally shown the ID. California Cruise at the Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf. But anyone expecting an electric equivalent of the familiar California Ocean may be surprised. VW appears to have solved the weight problem that once put the ID. Buzz camper on hold by keeping this first version deliberately simple. That makes the […]

Renault’s new Trafic enters EV van battle: 450 km is only the start.

August 31, 2026

Renault will use the IAA Transportation show in Hanover to take the next commercial step with its completely new Trafic Van E-Tech electric. The van itself is no longer a secret: the definitive production version was shown at Solutrans last November. What appears to be new on September 14 is the opening of the order […]

South Africa builds silent electric 4×4 ‘bakkie’ for the bush

August 28, 2026

No diesel clatter, no exhaust fumes, and no engine vibration while creeping up on wildlife. Electric propulsion may be particularly well suited to safari driving, and South African start-up Thula Solutions has designed a rugged 4×4 ‘bakkie’ specifically to exploit those advantages. Its Electric Safari Vehicle, or ESV, is not Africa’s first battery-powered game viewer. […]

KU Leuven students bring hydrogen racer to life for Le Mans bid

August 28, 2026

KU Leuven’s HydroTeam has reached an important milestone on its road to the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Its hydrogen-powered prototype has moved under its own power for the first time, completing laps inside Eastech Park in Leuven. That appears to make it Belgium’s first functioning race car powered by a hydrogen combustion engine. The […]

BYD brings Belgian chip specialist Melexis into its inner supply circle

August 27, 2026

Melexis, the Belgian designer and developer of chips primarily for automotive sensors, has signed a Master Purchase Agreement (MPA) with China’s largest electric car manufacturer BYD. This partnership agreement gives Melexis more direct access to China’s enormous market to sell its chips in mass production, while BYD gains faster access to Melexis’s specialized sensor and […]

Geely is developing a 1,000-volt architecture for shorter charging times

August 27, 2026

Geely is developing a new 1,000-volt architecture for electric cars to further reduce charging times. The Chinese group has already installed charging points with peak outputs of up to 1,500 kW. Its latest charging tests show just how quickly its current models can recharge. In its current electric vehicles, Geely is increasingly adopting 800-volt technology. […]

Renault refuses to kill buttons but its stalks can still confuse drivers

August 26, 2026

Renault says it will not follow the industry trend of putting virtually every function behind a touchscreen. Physical buttons and switches will remain part of its interiors, even though the French manufacturer admits they are more expensive. The reasoning is simple: frequently used functions should stay within easy reach so drivers can keep their eyes […]

Dreame’s 0.9-second hypercar was too good to be true

August 26, 2026

Four months ago, Newmobility.news wondered whether Dreame’s rocket-powered hypercar was simply “too good to be true”. We now have an answer. Yes. The Chinese vacuum-cleaner manufacturer is dismantling its car business, while former employees reveal that the spectacular vehicles used to promote it were far from functioning prototypes, as Dreame suggested. This wasn’t entirely a […]

Mahle thinks drop-in range extenders can accelerate path toward cleaner trucks

August 26, 2026

Range anxiety is genuinely a more cumbersome problem in heavy haulage than in passenger cars. Stuttgart supplier Mahle thinks the answer is not bigger batteries but a compact generator where some of those batteries used to sit. The concept will be presented at the next IAA Transportation in Hannover, next month. In the truck sector, […]

Opel’s next-generation Corsa is EV-only and comes in 2028

August 25, 2026

Opel is preparing a rival for the Renault 5 E-Tech and the Volkswagen ID.Polo. But don’t expect it anywhere soon. The new all-electric Corsa is suffering from delays and won’t arrive before 2028. Opel CEO Florian Huettl has unveiled further details about the upcoming Corsa. Even though parent company Stellantis has softened its stance on […]

Renault upgrades its hit R5 before rivals can catch it

August 25, 2026

Renault is already giving its electric R5 a surprisingly substantial technical update less than two years after launch. The headline figure is a longer 430-kilometer range, opening at the bottom of the range. Renault is introducing LFP battery technology in the R5 for the first time, making its cheapest version more powerful and finally giving […]

Emergency door handle triggers China’s largest recall action in history 

August 24, 2026

China just launched the largest coordinated vehicle recall in its history. More than 4.3 million cars from at least ten brands are heading back to the workshop because of the mechanical emergency release inside the cabin. Tesla is the biggest single name on the list. Illegal in 2027 The use of electrically actuated flush door […]

Genesis presents electric flagship GV90: not subtle, but slated for Europe

August 21, 2026

Genesis just pulled the wraps off its GV90 flagship SUV. A newcomer in the electric segment that is impossible to ignore. The setting, in San Francisco, might seem fitting for a 5.2-meter-long behemoth. But here’s the thing: it is heading toward Europe as the largest battery-electric vehicle you can buy. The GV90 is the production […]

BMW shows details of the electric M3 Concept

August 21, 2026

BMW showed its ‘beast’, the M3 Concept based on the Neue Klasse platform, for the first time at the 24 Hours of Le Mans. Now, BMW showed it for the first time in the U.S. at the Monterey Car Week, with a lot more pics and details. Officially, the M Concept Neue Klasse aims to […]

Plug Power exit pushes Antwerp closer to hydrogen import-hub role

August 19, 2026

Another setback for hydrogen advocates in the Port of Antwerp-Bruges: The American company Plug Power is permanently scrapping its plans to build a hydrogen plant on the former Opel site in the Port of Antwerp. Last week it was reported that Fluxys is having difficulty finding customers for its hydrogen pipeline network. Due to this […]

Horse powertrain bets on methanol for range-extended electric vehicles

August 19, 2026

The Renault-Geely powertrain joint venture Horse Powertrain has unveiled a methanol-only range extender system. While this might not be the best fit for Europe, methanol-based drivelines are a big thing in China. But are they CO2-friendly? The D20 Methanol driveline from Horse was presented at Auto China 2026. It pairs a 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engine […]

Belgium’s 12,000-liter Seagle wants to become Europe’s new fire bomber

August 18, 2026

From the High Fens in the Belgian Ardennes to the island of Skyros in Greece: Europe is desperate for every drop of water to put an end to wildfires, but amphibious firefighting aircraft are, of course, also crucial for extinguishing large-scale forest fires. Unfortunately, Europe is currently facing a severe and critical shortage of these […]

Europe wants circular cars, Belgium already has 98% recycling system

August 18, 2026

Europe has tightened the rules governing what happens to a car throughout its life. Since 13 August, the new European Vehicle Circularity Regulation has been in force, requiring manufacturers not only to recycle vehicles but also to design them for easier dismantling and reuse, and to feed recovered materials back into new cars. Belgium starts […]

Belgium builds hydrogen highway, but customers don’t bite

August 17, 2026

The new 48-kilometer hydrogen pipeline that Belgian gas network operator Fluxys is constructing between the industrial clusters of the ports of Antwerp (Kallo) and Ghent (Zelzate) is facing a difficult period. According to the business newspapers De Tijd and L’Echo, no binding contracts have yet been signed with any customers. The pipeline network is intended […]

NIO’s new swap station welcomes Firefly, but Europe is left out

August 17, 2026

NIO has opened the first of its fifth-generation battery-swap stations in China, finally giving the compact Firefly access to the company’s swapping network. It is an important step for NIO’s technology, but one European Firefly owners should not get too excited about. In Belgium and the Netherlands, swapping is unlikely to become part of the […]

DAF sources Einride for Level 4 autonomy into its electric line-up

August 14, 2026

Einride has been running autonomous freight for years, but always on its own hardware. That changes now. The Swedish operator is partnering with DAF to integrate its Einride Driver software into the Dutch manufacturer’s electric truck production. It’s the first time Einride’s autonomous technology is climbing into somebody else’s cab rather than building its own. […]

Chinese C199 aims to break the Airbus/Boeing duopoly

August 13, 2026

A C919 aircraft from the Chinese state-owned company Comac made its first international flight yesterday between Beijing and Mongolia. The flight marks an important milestone for China: after all, the C919 is set to compete with the Airbus A320 and the Boeing 737 MAX, medium-sized aircraft that have dominated the market for decades. Yet this […]

How do you keep a hydrogen car on the ground at 654 km/h?

August 13, 2026

At 654 km/h, most aircraft would already have been airborne long before. Andy Green’s job was the opposite: keep four wheels firmly on the Bonneville Salt Flats while pushing a hydrogen-powered machine to a new world speed record. The 64-year-old Briton, who in 1997 became the first and so far only person to break the […]

Too drunk to drive? Renault wants your finger to tell

August 12, 2026

Renault is testing a new way of stopping drunk drivers before they even move: putting a finger on a sensor could be enough to determine whether someone has had too much to drink. The idea sounds futuristic, but it is not entirely new. Car makers and researchers have been experimenting with alternatives to the traditional […]

Belgian army dumps China-built DS 9 over spying fears

August 12, 2026

The Belgian army will stop buying Chinese-built service cars for its top brass from September, citing growing concerns over espionage and cybersecurity. The decision means the DS 9, a French-branded luxury saloon built exclusively in China, will no longer be procured for the general staff. The case illustrates how quickly the security debate around connected […]

Car owner’s manual is dying. Your next mechanic may have blinking eyes

August 11, 2026

The thick owner’s manual buried somewhere in the glovebox may finally have met its natural predator: artificial intelligence. Ford now wants an AI assistant that knows your car, explains what is wrong, and eventually lives in the dashboard like a virtual mechanic. There is just one awkward comparison. Chinese premium EV brand NIO’s little round-headed […]

American students show a ‘surplus energy producing’ solar vehicle

August 11, 2026

Students at Clemson University in Greenville, South Carolina, US, have unveiled the Deep Orange 17 electric car prototype. The solar-powered research vehicle can generate more energy than it consumes. BMW and the Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems ISE supported its development. Sixteen students of Clemson University who recently completed their Master of Science in […]

Mitsubishi turns engine factory into humanoid robot plant

August 10, 2026

Mitsubishi Motors is preparing to enter the humanoid robot race on an unusually ambitious scale. Together with University of Tokyo spin-off Highlanders, the Japanese carmaker plans to develop and mass-produce humanoid robots at its Kyoto plant, with production targeted for early 2027 and capacity eventually reaching up to 1,000 units a month. The project goes […]

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