Car Wearing: VW readies its Tesla Model 3 fighter

If you have trouble reading this message, view it in a browser.

VW truck unit preps its own electric semi, Polestar shows off the upcoming 5, and the 1972-hp Ford Pro Electric SuperVan goes for a spin. But first:

The VW ID. Aero Shows Sedans Have a Place

It's safe to say at the bulk of recent and upcoming EV debuts has landed squarely in the crossover and SUV category, with several automakers from Toyota to Nissan launching electric versions of their midsize best sellers. This also explains why the Tesla Model 3 has scarcely seen any direct competition at home or overseas.
That's about to change as Volkswagen gets ready to take the wraps off the ID. Aero sedan, set to arrive in 2023.
Wolfsburg has revealed a series of renderings to whet EV buyers' appetites, showing off a sleek and appropriately aerodynamic four door underpinned by the MEB platform currently serving as the foundation for most Volkswagen AG electric offerings, including the current VW ID.4.

Volkswagen's sleek ID. Aero promises an affordable sedan offering in a segment not overflowing such.

We expect the production version to be offered with a choice of at least a couple of battery capacities, as well as single- and dual-motor layouts, but perhaps it's the potential of the entry-level version that seems most promising—there is no shortage, after all, of six-figure electric luxury sedans at the moment.

A launch of an EV sedan at the opposite end of the price spectrum would be quite timely in this day and age, with this model slated to land on sale in China first in 2023, before making its way stateside.
Tune in on Monday, June 27, to see the real thing.

Finally, an Affordable Defender EV Conversion Kit?

Electrogenic's kit is meant to keep older Defenders running.

Classic Land Rovers converted to electric power have seemingly sparked an entire cottage industry in record time, catering to vintage 4x4 aficionados. But not all of these conversions are what we'd call affordable—and not all of them are easy to perform.
A new conversion kit by UK-based Electrogenic seeks to change this, with a "drop-in" approach that bolts an electric motor to the existing clutch bell housing, and puts a 52-kWh battery in place of the engine. The result is 120 hp and 174 lb-ft of torque, along with a range of a hundred miles. Most importantly, this kit is designed to not break the bank, with an announced target price of £24,000, or about $29,500. And it doesn't require a specialty shop to perform the conversion itself, the company promises.
The aim of the kit is to give older Land Rover Defenders in farm use, frequently diesel-engined, a second life instead of continued (and pricey) running costs.
Of course, there's still the question of coming up with the $29,500, but given typical Defender life spans, perhaps in a decade or so quite a few old Land Rovers in the UK could receive such conversions.

BrightDrop Delivers the First 150 EV Vans to FedEx

BrightDrop has handed over the first big batch of electric delivery vans to FedEx, marking an important milestone for GM's EV-only commercial van startup. Assembly of the Zevo 600 vans began last summer, making them the first vehicles to use GM's Ultium platform to enter production, and a few examples were actually delivered to the logistics giant in the days before the busy holiday season.

READ THE FULL STORY

VW Truck Unit MAN Gets Ready for Electric Semis

European truck maker MAN, part of Volkswagen's Traton Group, is among the latest heavy truck manufacturers outlining an electric future, with the company planning for the start of electric truck production in 2024. The truck maker has already produced some 20 prototypes of the upcoming eTruck, showing one off this May on the site of the former Berlin Tempelhof Airport, with the German Federal Minister for Digital and Transport Dr. Volker Wissing in attendance.

READ THE FULL STORY