Audi is eager to see current lessees of its electric models buy out their vehicles at the end of their terms, and it’s offering some pretty generous incentives to encourage them to do so.

A recent Audi BEV Lessee Buyout Option Incentive, sent to dealerships on September 1, reveals that current e-tron GT lessees are being offered a $10,000 discount to purchase their vehicle at the end of the lease term. In addition, a $5,000 purchase incentive is available for the Q4 e-tron, while a $4,000 one has been confirmed for the Q8 e-tron.

Read: Audi’s New A2 Revives A Genius Idea That Was 25 Years Too Early

In addition, dealerships stand to benefit as they will receive $500 for each lessee who uses the incentive to buy out their vehicle. This incentive program was first launched in July, but now the Q4 e-tron’s discount has increased to $5,000 from the original $3,000, CarsDirect reports.

The move may make it a little easier to digest the extraordinary depreciation Audi EVs and other electric models from premium brands continue to experience in the United States and elsewhere.

In the case of original Audi RS e-tron GT models, a car that once started at around $140,000, it’s now easy to find relatively low-mileage examples for under $55,000. Prices of the updated 2025 RS e-tron GT Performance have also cratered, from an MSRP exceeding $170,000 to less than $120,000.

It’s worth noting that Audi discontinued the Q8 e-tron in the United States more than 18 months ago, so those who currently lease one won’t be able to replace it with a like-for-like electric SUV from the German brand. The Q4 e-tron continues, and it was recently updated in Europe.

Sources: CarsDirect

Lexus has stepped up for Californian residents who are ineligible for the MyFirstEV Program discounts, announcing an incentive it hopes will drive sales of the all-electric RZ and the new ES EV.

Under the MyFirstEV Program, shoppers receive an instant rebate of up to $3,500 for new zero-emission vehicles and $1,750 for used models, but only if you’ve never owned a ZEV previously and are a verified California resident, so many locals aren’t eligible. There’s also an MSRP cap of $50,000.

Read: First-Time EV Buyers To Get $3,500 Instant Rebate In California

The MyLexusEV Rebate does not have these same restrictions, providing an instant $2,500 rebate with no MSRP cap, regardless of whether someone is a first-time EV buyer.

The good news doesn’t stop there for interested buyers of the RZ and ES EV. The MyLexusEV Rebate can be stacked with other discounts, including a current $4,000 Lease Cash Incentive for the 2026 RZ, boosting savings up to $6,500, CarsDirect notes. There are currently no other incentives available for the Lexus ES EV.

Lexus is no doubt eager to boost sales of the RZ and ES EV in the United States. Through the first half of this year, 7,814 examples of the RZ had been sold, an impressive 106.8 percent increase from the 3,779 sold in the first half of 2025. By comparison, sales of the ES, which just entered its eighth generation, have slipped 79.7 percent this year to just 3,896, down from 19,181, although this can be largely attributed to the model change, rather than a huge decline in demand. Sales of the all-electric version haven’t been published, but it’s unlikely to sell in numbers to rival the combustion model.

Update: A Toyota spokesperson in the US told Carscoops the company has not changed the timeline it announced back in July, which targets a 2027 launch, likely within the first months of the year. That framing sits at odds with Nikkei Asia’s report of a fresh delay to “2027 or later”. Revised article follows below.

The all-new Toyota Highlander EV was unveiled in February 2026 and was supposed to enter production this autumn. Then, in July, Toyota said the timeline had slipped by at least “eight weeks” for “final adjustments.” Earlier today, Nikkei Asia reported the start of assembly has moved back again by several months, possibly by as much as a year, pushing the electric SUV’s market launch “to 2027 or later.”

More: Toyota’s Third Best-Selling Vehicle Has A Supercar-Style Waiting List

The Highlander EV will be built in Georgetown, Kentucky. According to Nikkei Asia, the three-row SUV is expected to reach the line in January 2027 “at the earliest.” The same publication says Toyota has already notified its supplier network about the revised schedule. A January start would sit inside the early-2027 window Toyota says it has been working toward all along.

Toyota Says It’s About Quality Checks

A representative for Toyota’s North American division clarified that the extra time is allocated to final checks and quality validation before rolling out full-scale production. This aligns with the automaker’s previous stance in July, when a media preview was postponed.

Subaru’s Getaway Is Stuck Too

Toyota has insisted that the holdup has nothing to do with EV demand in the US, and points out that its EV sales are “still growing.” The numbers back that up, to a point, as US EV sales fell 21% year-over-year in Q2, while Toyota’s own EV deliveries more than tripled over the same stretch. Growing from a small base is easier when the lineup keeps expanding, which is exactly what Toyota has been doing in the region.

The Highlander EV shares its bones with the Subaru Getaway, and both three-row EVs will be built on the same Georgetown line. Subaru confirmed its own delay in July, saying production would slip “to allow sufficient time for final adjustments before launch.” Toyota used almost identical wording, which suggests the two are moving in step. Subaru still hasn’t named a new date or said whether deliveries will shift.

Ford isn’t setting modest goals for its $30,000 Fathom electric pickup. The automaker reportedly expects to sell more than 100,000 during its first year, a number no individual EV from anyone besides Tesla has managed in America.

That’s according to the Wall Street Journal, which spoke to Ford insiders about the automaker’s ambitious sales target. If buyers turn up in the numbers Ford expects, the little four-door truck would immediately become one of America’s biggest-selling EVs.

Related: New Ford Fathom Prototype Breaks Cover Ahead Of Its 2027 Debut

For perspective, GM sold almost 170,000 EVs in 2025, but needed three brands and multiple models to do it. Tesla remains in another league, shifting around 357,000 Model Ys and more than 190,000 Model 3s last year. Rivian, by contrast, moved just 42,000 units in 2025, though the arrival of its smaller R2 will boost this year’s numbers.

Photos Ford

Ford’s confidence has surprised some industry watchers because America’s EV market is currently going backwards. Electric cars accounted for 5.7 percent of US sales in August, according to Motor Intelligence data cited by the WSJ, versus 10.3 percent a year earlier. August EV sales plunged 48 percent year over year.

The Fathom is Ford’s attempt to prove price can change that equation. Starting at $28,350 before a $1,595 destination charge, it promises more passenger room than a Toyota RAV4, along with familiar conveniences including a touchscreen and power windows.

Minimalist Rival

Those last two features sound unremarkable until you meet its $24,950 rival, the Slate Truck. That minimalist two-seat pickup uses crank windows and skips a factory stereo and touchscreen entirely. And though Ford has yet to release technical specs for the crew-cab Fathom the chances are good that it will equal or better the Slate’s 205-mile (330 km) claimed range and 1,550 lb (703 kg) payload. It should also almost chop the Slate’s 8-second zero to 60 mph (97 kmh) time in half.

To keep build costs low, Ford is gambling on a radically different way of building the Fathom. Its reworked Louisville factory will assemble the front, rear and structural battery-floor sections simultaneously on separate lines, then bolt and bond them together. Ford says the system should build vehicles 15 percent faster than the plant’s previous process, though retooling cost $2 billion.

To make that investment work it needs 100,000 Americans to sign up every year for the Fathom when it goes on sale early in 2027. How do you rate its chances?

Baldauf

Like any other Porsche vehicle, the Macan Turbo Electric is very nice. However, the seller of this one in the US was no doubt shocked when they sold it on Cars & Bids for almost exactly $50,000 less than MSRP, despite only been driven 2,100 miles (3,379 km).

Read: Porsche Ends Gas Macan Production In July With No ICE Successor For Years

It’s no secret that premium EVs often lose an unbelievable amount of money the moment they drive off the lot, but even this result is quite shocking. After 37 bids, the Macan sold for $97,000, which wouldn’t have been a terrible result had this example only cost the seller $112,700, the Turbo Electric’s MSRP.

Cars & Bids

However, it actually cost $146,340 as it is laden with expensive options. These include a $2,150 rear-axle steering, a $2,440 black leather interior, $2,700 22-inch Macan Sport wheels, a $4,960 Burmester high-end surround sound system, $1,140 Drive Assist, $1,710 passenger display, $1,040 Sport Chrono Package, and a $2,660 augmented reality head-up display. The seller drove the EV only 2,100 miles in the span of three months, meaning they lost over $500 on it every single day.

Dropping Like A Stone

Cars & Bids

This isn’t the first time we’ve seen the value of a Macan Turbo Electric plummet on the used market. In April, bids on an example with just 1,500 miles (2,414 km) maxed out at $88,500, despite a sticker price of $121,855. The depreciation comes despite the EV offering plenty of performance, using twin motors to deliver 630 hp and 833 lb-ft (1,130 Nm) of torque, enough to hit 60 mph (96 km/h) in 3.1 seconds.

In the next couple of years, Porsche will introduce a new combustion-powered compact crossover to fill the void left behind by the old ICE Macan, and once that model launches, values of the electric Macan could drop even further. It’s expected to use the VW Group’s Premium Platform Combustion architecture, just like the new Audi Q5, and will slot below the Cayenne.

Cars & Bids

Usually when a product isn’t selling as well as hoped, companies make it more affordable to persuade drivers to give it consideration. Tesla seems to have found that approach too conventional. Despite the Cybertruck struggling to attract buyers so badly it makes Ford’s Edsel look like a smash hit, two versions have just become $5,000 more expensive.

The Dual Motor AWD now starts at $74,990, up from $69,990, while the Premium AWD climbs from $79,990 to $84,990. Nothing else about the models appears to have changed.

Related: This Is All That’s Left Of A Ford F-150 After A Cybertruck T-Boned It At 111 MPH

The Dual Motor Cybertruck still claims 325 miles (523 km) of range, can tow 7,500 lbs (3,400 kg), and reaches 60 mph (97 km/h) in 4.1 seconds. The Premium promises the same 593 hp (600 PS / 441 kW), electric range and performance, but is able to tow 11,000 lbs (4,990 kg).

Tesla doesn’t break out Cybertruck deliveries, but third-party estimates paint an uncomfortable picture. Cox Automotive reckons US sales fell 48 percent in 2025 to 20,237 units, while first-quarter 2026 sales dropped 45 percent year over year to 3,519, Investor’s Business Daily reports. Those numbers look tiny beside CEO Elon Musk’s earlier suggestion that annual demand might eventually support more than 250,000 Cybertrucks.

Cybertruck pricing has been a roller coaster from the start, the first production models debuting in late 2024 with MSRPs far higher than originally promised. Tesla introduced a cheaper Dual Motor for $59,990 in February 2026 as a short-lived promotion, but that later returned to $69,990 and has now reached $74,990. That’s a $15,000 journey in only a few months for fundamentally the same truck. Tesla briefly offered a single-motor Cybertruck during 2025, but it was quickly axed due to weak demand.

Cyberbeast Now Within Reach

The flagship Cyberbeast is the one Cybertruck trim to escape this latest increase. A tri-motor, 845 hp (857 PS / 630 kW) monster capable of reaching 60 mph in 2.6 seconds, it’s still listed on Tesla’s website at $99,990. That means the Premium AWD now sits only $15,000 below the range-topper, making the Beast look like a better deal than last week.

Tesla has already scrapped the Model S and Model X to clear the way for production of the company’s Optimus robots, and between that and the Cybercab robotaxi, it feels like Tesla is focused on a new path. The Cybertruck is just being left to fade away, a rather embarrassing failure that serves to remind us that not everything Elon Musk touches turns to gold.

Maybe slapping $5k on the price will really help make the Cybertruck more profitable because it covers rising production costs and Tesla figures it won’t really affect sales. Or maybe it’s just one of Musk’s impish experiments, you know, just to see how much worse things can get.

Tesla

It’s been almost two full years since Tesla unveiled its autonomous Cybercab, and it now appears to be gearing up for a public launch of the vehicle, adding the EV to its existing robotaxi service in Austin, Texas.

Tesla has spent recent months testing its Cybercab on public roads but, up until this point, has not allowed any members of the public to experience the self-driving car. Last month, it started allowing employees to take the Cybercab on rides through private roads near its Austin headquarters.

Read: Tesla’s Cybercab Weighs 700 Pounds Less Than The Lightest Model 3

Unnamed sources have told The Information that, following the trial with employees, the public launch of the Cybercab is scheduled for later this month. Prior to receiving approval to roll out the new EV in its robotaxi service, Tesla recently completed emergency training with first responders across Austin, specifically on handling Cybercab-related issues.

Tesla this week teased the Cybercab’s impending introduction to its robotaxi fleet, announcing that those who use the current fleet before August 23 will go into the running to attend the launch event. It says the more rides someone completes, the better their chances are of securing an invite. Whether an invitation to the launch event will include a ride in a Cybercab remains to be seen.

Tesla Still Only Has A Small Robotaxi Fleet

Although adding the Cybercab to its self-driving taxi service in Austin will be a big step for Tesla, it’s worth noting the service remains small and has failed to grow anywhere near the levels Tesla boss Elon Musk has promised. There are currently just 186 Model Ys registered in its Austin fleet. Production of the Cybercab started in Texas in July, although it’s not expected to reach volume production until next year, so it’s unlikely a large number will be added to the fleet in the coming months.

Recent prototypes of the Cybercab have been seen both with and without pedals and a steering wheel. There’s no word on whether the cars initially added to the fleet will have these traditional controls or forgo them. If this report about the impending launch is accurate, we won’t have to wait long to find out.

Live in the US and want a Chinese EV? Not happening. The federal clampdown on cars from the world’s second-largest economy has been comprehensive enough to keep every mainstream Chinese brand out of American showrooms, and nobody in Washington is in a hurry to change course. Thousands of Chinese-built robotaxis from Zeekr have been rolling off ships onto American docks anyway.

The decision traces back years, to when Google-owned Waymo needed a vehicle for its next generation of self-driving taxis and passed over the American automakers to sign with Zeekr for a dedicated electric van. Known as the CM1e in China and the Ojai within Waymo, the compact electric van has since become part of the company’s robotaxi fleet.

That agreement was signed long before the Trump administration rolled out its sweeping tariffs on Chinese goods, which left one obvious question unanswered. Could Waymo keep importing Zeekr products at all?

Read: You Can Now Chat To Waymo’s Newest Robotaxi As It Drives You Around

As it turns out, Waymo hasn’t let the tariffs get in the way of its plans. It’s been revealed that more than 3,200 Zeekr vans have been imported into the US since 2024. Of these, more than 2,600 have found their way onto local shores this year, Forbes reports.

Expensive, But Cheaper Than Jaguars

US import declarations reportedly put the Ojai’s value at around $38,000, close to the CM1e’s $39,000 sticker in China. Forbes pegs US tariffs on Chinese EVs at 127.5 percent, which means that $38,000 van lands at roughly $86,500 before a single sensor gets bolted on. Factor in Waymo’s Gen 6 hardware and software package at about $25,000 per vehicle and the running total per Ojai climbs comfortably past $100,000.

Evidently, Waymo has crunched the numbers and determined that using the Zeekr Ojai still makes financial sense. Each of the current Jaguar I-Pace models in its robotaxi fleet is estimated to cost it upwards of $200,000, so the Zeekr is significantly cheaper, all while having a more spacious cabin, better suited to ferrying passengers around.

The company says “more than 100” of the Zeekr-built vans are already in service, including in Los Angeles and San Francisco. How many of the 3,200-plus imported examples are testing, sitting in a lot, or waiting on a deployment date is anyone’s guess.

Kia has revealed pricing for the 2027 EV3, the cheapest EV it sells in the US. The starting figure lands under $30k, and the SUV carries design and tech cues from the flagship three-row EV9.

The entry-level Kia EV3 Light starts at $29,890, roughly $10k less than the discontinued Niro EV ($39,600). It also slips under rivals including the Volvo EX30 ($40,345), the Chevrolet Equinox EV ($34,995), the Hyundai Kona Electric ($32,975), and the Nissan Leaf ($29,990).

More: Kia’s Affordable Niro Gets An Upscale Makeover For 2027 And Drops The EV

At the top of the range, the flagship EV3 GT reaches $45,890. That figure overlaps entry-level RWD versions of larger electric crossovers such as the Tesla Model Y ($39,990) and the Ford Mustang Mach-E ($37,795).

The EV3 Lineup

Kia EV3 GT Line

The EV3 range runs through Light, Wind, Land, GT-Line and GT trims. The cheapest Light comes only with a single electric motor making 201 hp (204 PS / 150 kW) and a 58.3 kWh battery good for 221 miles (356 km) of EPA range. Standard kit includes dual 12.3-inch screens, a six-speaker stereo, 17-inch alloys, rear privacy glass, and an ADAS suite.

More: 2027 Kia Seltos Has A Higher Price To Match Its More Upscale Design

The mid-spec Wind and Land step up to the larger 81.4 kWh battery, which pushes range to 321 miles (517 km), and both can be optioned with the dual-motor AWD setup producing 261 hp (265 PS / 195 kW). On equipment, the Wind adds a battery heater, SynTex upholstery, heated seats and a 10-way power driver’s seat, while the Land adds 19-inch wheels, ventilated seats, taller roof rails, a power sunroof, a smart tailgate and more.

Kia EV3 GT Line

The higher-spec GT-Line and GT come in AWD only, with the GT lifting output to 288 hp (292 PS / 215 kW) alongside a sportier suspension and steering tune. Both use the 81.4 kWh battery for 280 miles (451 km) of EPA range. The EV3 handles 350kW DC fast charging through its NACS port, so a 10-80% top-up takes around 31 minutes.

More: Kia’s Next Sportage Is Getting A Rugged Redesign

The GT-Line and GT models are visually distinguished by different bumpers, though only the more powerful GT gets the machined 19-inch wheels with Neon Green brake calipers. Both include Harman Kardon audio, V2L capability, a heat pump, and power-folding mirrors, with the GT adding a 12-inch head-up display and sport seats with suede inserts.

Finally, also offers the Nightfall Package, which brings black 19-inch alloys, matching exterior accents, bridge-type roof rails, and a dark gray interior. Below are the prices for every EV3 trim in the US, excluding a $1,495 destination fee.

2027 Kia EV3 US Pricing

Few things grate more than driving at night while an oncoming car’s headlights sear your retinas. Usually that’s just the price of the powerful LEDs bolted to most new cars, but on certain Model 3s and Model Ys, Tesla has admitted the low beams genuinely exceed the maximum intensity allowed in the US, which is what triggered the recall.

The recall impacts 2017-2023 Tesla Model 3s and thousands of 2020-2023 Tesla Model Ys. According to Tesla, the headlights, sourced from Marelli Automotive Lighting, exceed the permitted intensity in the outer upper-right and outer upper-left areas. As Tesla’s recall notice rightly points out, this could reduce visibility for the driver and other road users, increasing the risk of a crash.

Read: Over 150 Complaints Of Teslas Losing Front Suspension Just Put 1.2 Million Under Probe

Interestingly, while the recall impacts Model 3 and Model Y vehicles from several different model years, surprisingly few vehicles are impacted. In the case of the Model 3, 1,614 examples are being recalled, all of which were manufactured from July 24, 2017, to December 2, 2023.

As for the Model Y, a total of 18,735 need to be repaired. These were built between February 11, 2020, and December 24, 2023.

An Issue Uncovered In Canada

Tesla became aware of a potential issue on January 16, 2024, several months after Transport Canada’s annual compliance program found the low beam headlights of a 2019 Tesla Model 3 failed to comply with local safety standards. The automaker first announced a recall related to the fault on March 9, 2024, and a few weeks later, petitioned the NHTSA for an exemption, claiming the fault was inconsequential to motor vehicle safety. The NHTSA denied this petition three weeks ago.

Most of the Model 3s and Model Ys impacted by this latest recall are the same as those originally covered by the 2024 recall. However, Tesla has added 432 vehicles to the list after discovering non-compliant headlights continued to be used in service longer than it had originally thought. Tesla is still working on a fix.

Yale Zhang is the managing director at the consultancy Automotive Foresight in Shanghai. He’s well-versed in the Chinese auto industry, and he knows all about the tariffs that keep its cars out of the USA. Despite them, he believes that Americans will force politicians to let Chinese cars into the USA sooner rather than later. Mexicans and Canadians with access to more affordable Chinese EVs could help sway them, too.

“[US carmakers] would face complaints from consumers who are supposed to enjoy affordable smart EVs [made by Chinese companies],” Zhang told the South China Morning Post. Mexico already has access to Chinese cars and benefits from the lower prices they can come with. Canada is also now opening up the way to sell Chinese cars after the start of a trade war with the USA.

More: Chinese Cars Got Cheap, So Toyota’s Are Getting More Expensive

Washington has made it abundantly clear that it sees Chinese vehicles as both an economic and a national-security concern. Chinese-built EVs face a 100 percent tariff, and connected-car rules make direct entry still harder. A Chinese badge on an American dealer lot is not exactly around the corner.

Plenty of new cars are wildly expensive, and affordable EVs remain even harder to find. Ford CEO Jim Farley recently told employees that Chinese automakers could enter the U.S. within five to 10 years. Ford is trying to get ahead of that with its own affordable EV program, but Farley has been more candid than most about the ground Detroit needs to make up.

Canada’s decision to permit up to 49,000 Chinese-made EVs each year and Mexico’s growing appetite for Chinese brands will give American buyers plenty of nearby examples. That does not mean the U.S. will suddenly throw open the gates. It may never happen through simple imports, either. Local assembly, familiar brand names, partnerships, and Chinese-built technology could all be part of the route in.

For now, tariffs can buy domestic automakers time, but they can’t build a compelling $25,000 EV. If the Big Three can’t figure out how to do that fast enough, consumers might get impatient and unwilling to wait any longer.

Lead Photo: BYD

A lawsuit filed in California late last week alleges that Lucid retaliated against a former engineering manager who says he warned about issues with the Air EV’s half-shafts, months before the automaker issued two separate recalls for the car in late 2025 and in March 2026, Runtimewire reports.

In total, 3,852 Lucid Air models have been recalled in the United States. According to the most recent recall, the half-shaft bolts on Lucid Air Pure models may not be properly secured, meaning the half-shaft could disconnect from the drive unit, resulting in an immediate loss of power.

Read: Lucid’s Fix For Losing Drive Power Is A Notification That You’re About To Lose Drive Power

According to the lawsuit he filed, Neil Milne warned Lucid of “multiple failure modes” of the part in April 2025. He says he consistently challenged Lucid’s testing, validation, and documentation for safety-critical engineering work, alleging weak manufacturing controls, insufficient auditing, and missing records for important engineered decisions. The complaint states that just 225 vehicles were recalled last October, with an additional 3,627 named in a separate recall by March this year.

The lawsuit doesn’t specify whether the faults Milne reported were the same as those listed in the recalls, though he contends the timing and similarities point that way.

In an email the complaint says was sent to Lucid product-safety officer Rick Clementz on January 13, 2026, Milne wrote, “Will say what I said originally 9 months ago. Bad design, with multiple failure modes,” Runtimewire reports. Per the same report, Lucid initially relied on a “lash detection” algorithm to analyze the Air and identify vehicles with loose half-shaft bolts while investigating the half-shaft concerns, but determined that hundreds of vehicles had slipped through, which the report links to the second recall earlier this year.

Passed Over For A Promotion And Then Terminated

After Milne raised concerns about the half-shafts, he alleges Lucid progressively stripped him of his authority, allegedly starting by moving him out of his senior-manager role for power-electronics systems and onto thermal programs. In February this year, he was told his performance rating “does not meet expectations,” and he claims he was passed over for a charging leadership role because he had raised the half-shaft concerns.

Milne alleges Lucid retaliated against him for whistleblowing and has also accused the EV maker of wrongful termination. According to the complaint, he is demanding a jury trial and seeking lost pay, bonuses, equity, and benefits, along with punitive damages, legal fees, and damages for emotional distress.

Electric cars do not work for everybody. They can be a terrible fit for apartment dwellers without dependable charging, certain rural routes, and buyers who regularly tow long distances. But President Trump took the familiar issue of range anxiety and turned it into “a disease” during remarks in Las Vegas on Wednesday.

Speaking at the Red Rock Resort, Trump claimed he had “ended the electric mandate,” before suggesting that previous policy would have required everyone to drive an EV “within a very short period of time.” He said EV drivers begin worrying about where to charge when their battery is still three-quarters full, calling them “crazy.” These are real statements that were said out loud.

More: Trump Doesn’t Renew US-Mexico-Canada Trade Agreement

There is a real point buried beneath all the theatrics. Public charging still needs work, especially outside major metro areas and on parts of America’s vast rural highway network. Someone who cannot charge at home has a very different EV ownership experience than someone who plugs in every night, and long-distance travel requires more planning than filling a gas tank.

Still, calling that a disease is silly. A driver who sees a charger 89 miles off-route might reasonably factor that into the trip, but three-quarters of a battery is generally not panic territory in a modern EV. For most people who can charge at home, it is barely something they think about day to day.

The claim that there was “no way” to charge electric cars does not hold up either. The Department of Energy’s charging database now shows more than 250,000 public charging ports nationwide. That does not make the network perfect, reliable, or evenly distributed, but it is a far cry from nonexistent.

Trump also said EVs account for 7 percent of U.S. vehicle sales. The latest Kelley Blue Book estimates put the second-quarter figure at 5.8 percent, so the larger point is fair. EV demand has cooled sharply since its 2025 peak. That is a real market correction automakers cannot ignore. But it’s also partially a byproduct of Trump’s move to end the $7,500 federal EV tax credit.

What is not accurate is the idea that Americans faced a federal order to buy an electric car by 2030. Biden’s policy set a 50 percent target for new zero-emission vehicle sales, while emissions and fuel-economy rules pressured automakers to sell more of them. Trump’s own 2025 executive order targeted those policies, subsidies, and California’s waiver, not a retail rule forcing somebody to trade their F-150 for a Model Y. EVs are not a universal answer. Neither is pretending the people who buy them are sick.

Subaru has thrown an extraordinary amount of money at selling EVs in the US, and it has almost nothing to show for it. The Solterra, Uncharted, and Trailseeker remain exceptionally niche vehicles for the automaker. In July, the WRX almost outsold all three of them combined.

The company ramped up incentive spending during the April-June period, and it shows. Those expenses cut ¥24.9 billion ($153.8 million) from global earnings and accounted for most of the decline. Marketing costs in the US jumped 40 percent in the second quarter, averaging $2,698 per vehicle, even as the company poured more into its electric models.

According to Autonews, citing industry data from Motor Intelligence, incentives on cars including the BRZ, Outback, and Legacy rose 27 percent, while average spending on trucks climbed 49 percent.

Read: WRX Sales Nearly Quadruple In June After Subaru Slashed Prices By Over $5,000

Even after the increase, Subaru’s average incentive spending stayed below the industry average of $3,479 per vehicle. Its 40 percent year-over-year jump, however, dwarfed the wider market’s 4.4 percent rise.

The EV Math Gets Ugly

Motor Intelligence reports that Subaru spent an average of $9,155 for every Uncharted sold last quarter, $9,650 for every Solterra, and $8,982 per Trailseeker. For comparison, average incentives on the Outback ran $3,036. None of the three electric models looks capable of meaningfully expanding Subaru’s slice of the EV market.

The heavy spending follows the repeal of federal EV tax credits last year, which stripped away support that had propped up demand.

Big Expenses, But Low Sales

Sales data shows that through the first seven months of this year, Subaru delivered 5,275 examples of the Solterra, down 34.6 percent compared to 8,063 sold over the same period last year. In July, sales tumbled 91.2 percent from 1,562 to just 138 units. The Trailseeker and Uncharted are newer entrants to Subaru’s range, so sales figures can’t be compared to this time last year, as they weren’t available.

Nonetheless, they’re certainly not setting any records. Year-to-date, 3,513 Trailseekers have been sold, and 2,850 Uncharted models. In July, 359 Uncharted models were delivered, as well as1,077 Trailseekers. Add up that month’s figures for all three EVs, and you get just 1,574 units, barely ahead of the WRX’s 1,438.

As the spending climbed, Subaru’s operating profit fell from $472 million in the fiscal quarter ended June 30 last year to $263.2 million over the same period this year.

Subaru Sales July ’26

Ford has taken the wraps off the name and starting price for its new electric midsize truck. The Fathom will be the first vehicle riding on Ford’s flexible Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) architecture, and it targets mainstream buyers with an aggressive $28,350 sticker for the standard-range model. Factor in the $1,595 destination charge and you’re at $29,945. That lands $3,545 above the Slate Auto, which opens at $24,950 for a bare-bones truck with crank windows and no speakers, before a $1,450 destination fee brings its total to $26,400.

That $28,350 keeps Ford’s sub-$30k promise honest, at least until you get to taxes, title, registration, and fees. Pre-orders open in early 2027, with the first deliveries later that year.

More: Ford Killed Off Its Affordable Cars To Become the ‘Porsche Of Off-Road’

Baldauf

As for the name, Ford skipped a numerical badge like the F-150 and spent nine months hunting for the right word. Fathom started as the span of outstretched arms, then became a nautical verb for measuring water depth, and eventually a metaphor for deep comprehension. For Ford, that makes it a fitting stand-in for the work of understanding the customer.

Ford says the new model will have “more passenger volume than a Toyota RAV4,” seating five adults on top of a frunk and a bed. It also comes with a large touchscreen, bidirectional charging, a digital key, and Apple Maps, and every truck is BlueCruise-capable for hands-free highway driving.

More: Ford’s $30K Electric Truck Will Run Apple Maps, Not Google

The company also put out an animated teaser video built around all the memories a truck can help create. The scenarios run the gamut. including surfing, playing music, mountain biking, camping, getting married, starting a business, moving into a new home, road trips, and more.

What We Know So Far

The Fathom is the brainchild of Ford’s California-based skunkworks team, formed in 2022 to work outside the usual corporate bureaucracy and build an affordable yet profitable EV.

It’s the first production model to ride on the new Universal Electric Vehicle (UEV) platform. According to Ford, large aluminum unicastings trim 27% of weight versus rival setups while cutting parts by 20%, fasteners by 25%, and factory workstations by 40%. The truck also uses a 48-volt electrical architecture, with a wiring harness that comes in 4,000 feet (1,219 meters) shorter and 10 kg (22 lbs) lighter than the ones in Ford’s first-generation EVs.

More: Ford’s New $30K EV Truck Barely Clears An Expedition’s Shoulder

Baldauf

Power comes from lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) battery cells built at Ford’s BlueOval Battery Park in Marshall, Michigan, using technology licensed from China’s CATL. Entry-level models get a basic pack, while extended-range variants are expected to manage 300 miles (483 km) despite using one-third fewer cells than the automaker’s first-gen EVs.

Designers and engineers leaned hard on aerodynamics, dropping the roof height as far as they could to stretch range.

Production rests on a $2 billion investment in the Louisville Assembly Plant in Kentucky, which ditches the traditional linear assembly line for a parallel “tree-shaped” layout. Expect more Fathom details over the coming months as pre-orders in early 2027 draw closer.

Ford

While the cheap electric truck from Slate has grabbed most of the headlines over the past year, it isn’t the only small electric pickup in development on US soil. Telo has another, and the company has spent the past three years quietly refining its compact MT1. Tiny it may be, but the towing numbers tell a different story.

Telo got its start in 2022, founded by Jason Marks, Forrest North, and Yves Béhar. There’s a strong Tesla connection here too, as North helped engineer the battery packs in the original Tesla Roadster, and actual Tesla co-founder Marc Tarpenning sits on Telo’s board and has put money into the company twice.

Read: Telo’s First Electric Truck Promises Tacoma Utility In A Pickup The Size Of A Mini

The MT1, which is roughly the same length as a two-door Mini Cooper, manages to cram in a sizeable 106 kWh battery pack and dual electric motors with a combined 500 hp. Aside from the probably impressive acceleration, the powerful dual-motor setup allows the MT1 to tow more than a normal Tesla Cybertruck, rated at 7,500 lbs (3,400 kg), despite its tiny footprint. Admittedly, higher-spec versions of the Tesla can tow up to 11,000 lbs (4,989 kg).

Earlier on during the truck’s development, Telo said it’d be able to tow 6,600 lbs (2,993 lbs), which is a respectable figure. In the course of extensive testing, Telo co-founder and chief technology officer Forrest North revealed the company has been able to safely push this up to 8,000 lbs (3,628 kg). Keep in mind, the Telo weighs around 4,400 lbs (1,995 kg), so that means it can almost tow double its weight.

How Much Will it Cost?

Although Telo’s creation could be easily compared to the Slate truck, it isn’t targeting the same price point. Whereas the most basic Slate will start at $24,950, the cheapest M1T from Telo is said to cost $41,520, with the base model offering a single electric motor with 300 hp and 260 miles (418 km) of range. The all-wheel-drive model, in addition to boosting power to 500 hp, will also provide around 350 miles (563 km) of range, and is expected to start at around $50,000.

Last year, Telo received $20 million in Series A funding to help put its electric truck into production. The current aim is for production to begin before the end of this year, although in the startup automotive space, delays are not uncommon, so don’t be surprised if that date gets pushed out.

Ford sales continue to falter in the United States, and the decline accelerated last month, dropping by 10.2 percent compared to July of last year. Although Ford was probably expecting this, it may not have been prepared for the huge decline of its electric and hybrid vehicles.

In July, sales of Ford’s electrified vehicles fell 40.3 percent from 27,042 units last July to just 16,151 last month. This consisted of 2,065 EVs, a decline of 74.9 percent, and 14,086 hybrid vehicles, down 25.1 percent compared to the 18,813 sold in July 2025. Year-to-date numbers are also rather awful. Through the first half of the year, Ford sold just 18,671 EVs in the US, down 60.5 percent, while hybrids declined 20.5 percent to 108,408 vehicles.

Read: Ford Sales Plummet Nearly 14% Even With Employee Pricing For Everyone

In July, the Mustang Mach-E performed particularly poorly. Just 1,863 units found new homes across the country, down 64.9 percent from last year. Through the first half, Mustang Mach-E sales are down 50.2 percent, from 27,093 to 13,495. Then there’s the F-150 Lightning, which Ford ended production of last December. This year, 4,622 have been sold from its inventory, down 70.9 percent, and 141 were sold in July, a 95 percent decline.

In addition to these models, demand for the electric E-Transit has fallen off a cliff. Just 554 have been sold this year, down 87 percent from 4,264, and only 61 were sold in July, a 32.2 percent drop.  

Several other models are suffering this year. For example, the Escape is down 71.5 percent year-to-date to 26,736 units after production of it ended late last year. Expedition sales were down 22.9 percent in July, Ranger dropped by 2.5 percent in the same month, and Mustang was down 19.5 percent last year, although it’s now up 15.7 percent this year.

The Lincoln brand has also suffered. Its year-to-date sales are down 12.6 percent to 55,099 units, led by a 46.2 percent drop for the Corsair, which has shifted just 8,148 units this year.

Total Sales

Ford Sales

Lincoln Sales

After years of what looked like unstoppable growth, sales of new electric vehicles in China are down 14 percent year on year, dragged lower in part by a slowing local economy and the government pulling some incentives.

Figures released by the China Passenger Car Association show that 4.7 million new EVs have been delivered in China this year. July treated some brands more kindly than June did, though major players like BYD and Geely are still feeling the downturn, as are smaller local firms including Xpeng and Nio.

Read: China’s Electrified Car Sales Sank 13%, And The World Is About To Feel It

In July, BYD sold 239,370 vehicles locally, down 9 percent from the same month in 2025 but up 4.9 percent from June. Geely followed a similar pattern, with July sales up 4 percent on June yet down 29.1 percent against last July, the South China Morning Post reports. What’s helping both automakers cushion the home-market slump is a surge in overseas exports.

Brands like Xpeng, Nio, and Li Auto all have some footprint abroad, but their home nation still accounts for the vast majority of sales. Xpeng’s July deliveries slipped 5.2 percent to 38,027 vehicles versus June, Nio’s fell 11.5 percent to 35,934, and Li Auto’s dipped 1.4 percent to 30,468.

AlixPartners expects that by the end of this year, new car sales in China will have dropped by 10 percent to 24.6 million vehicles. The wider economy isn’t doing EV sellers any favors either. GDP grew just 4.3 percent year on year in the second quarter, China’s slowest pace since late 2022.

Incentive Pain

The government’s decision to trim incentives has had an immediate impact on sales. Earlier this year, any new car purchase came with a 15,000-yuan ($2,220) subsidy. That figure was recently cut by 33 percent, and the subsidy now equals 10 percent of a new vehicle’s purchase price, capped at 10,000 yuan ($1,480). For some of the nation’s most affordable EVs, the payout is now 5,000 yuan ($740) lower than before.

Lotus had big ambitions about selling the all-electric Eletre in the United States. The SUV was supposed to arrive from just $107,000, a figure that reads reasonably against the performance and technology on the table even if six digits is hardly pocket change. An Eletre costing just north of $100,000 never made it to a single American driveway.

Just months after Lotus announced its plans for the SUV in the US, the Biden administration jacked up tariffs on Chinese-built EVs from 25 percent to 100 percent. Lotus was forced to change plans and decided to import a small number of well-equipped models based on the Eletre R, which was initially going to start at $145,000. The new model, known as the Eletre Carbon, cost an eye-watering $232,900.

Read: The First Chinese EVs Reaching Canada Aren’t The Bargains Buyers Were Promised

Speaking with Motor Trend, president and chief executive of Lotus Americas, Massimiliano Trantini, revealed that after the allocation of Eletre Carbon models was sold out for 2025, no other examples have been imported into the country.

What Went Wrong?

“We planned to bring the Eletre into the U.S.,” he told the magazine. “We made all the activity to prepare the car, we got all the homologation. We were ready. When we decided to bring the car, the tariffs started kicking in, so we had to select carefully the car we wanted to bring. There was a moment where, with 100 percent tariff, we could still manage. We decided to take the highest trim—the Eletre Carbon, a fully loaded car—sold then as model-year 25 in a limited edition.”

Trantini added that when the import duty was increased once again, this time to 150 percent, Lotus could no longer find a business case for selling the Eletre in the U.S. market.

While the Eletre is now available internationally as a plug-in hybrid, it’s highly unlikely either it or the Emeya will come to the US, given the Connected Vehicle Rule, which bans new vehicles with Chinese technology. Thankfully, Trantini said that the Emira remains compliant through the 2027 model year. Given that it’s built in the US, rather than China like the Eletre and Emeya, there’s hope it’ll remain on sale for several years to come.

Kia keeps rewriting its own US sales record, and July gave it another line in the book. Last month stood as the brand’s best July ever, with several models posting record numbers for the month, the Carnival family hauler among them.

The Korean automaker moved 75,857 vehicles in July, a 7 percent gain over the same month last year. Through the first seven months of 2026, the running total reaches 506,584 units, up 4 percent, which puts Kia on course for a fourth straight annual sales record in the US.

Record-Setters Across The Lineup

According to Kia, the Sportage, Carnival, Telluride, Seltos, and K4 all logged best-ever July sales. The Sportage led the pack with 16,083 sales (+11.7%), trailed by the K4/Forte at 12,094 (+8%), the Telluride at 11,816 (+13%), the Sorento at 9,038 (+13.5%), and the Seltos at 8,807 (+79.1%).

More: Kia’s Next Sportage Is Getting A Rugged Redesign

The one that caught our eye, though, is the Carnival minivan. Its 7,279 deliveries marked a hefty 22.8% climb over last year and landed within striking distance of its all-time monthly best of 7,362 units, set in November 2025. A recent study found millennials are fueling a minivan comeback, sold on the practicality and value SUVs can’t match, and Kia’s numbers appear to reflect the trend.

Kia introduced the current Carnival in 2020, and it reached the US for the 2022 model year. A mid-cycle refresh arrived in late 2023 for the 2025 model year, bringing a sharper face and a hybrid powertrain option. Pricing now runs from $37,490 to $53,590, with buyers choosing between a 3.5-liter V6 and a turbocharged 1.6-liter hybrid.

EV Sales Down, Hybrids On The Rise

Strong as the month was overall, Kia’s electric lineup told a rougher story. EV6 deliveries nearly halved to 674 units (-48%) in July, dragging its year-to-date figure to 4,717 (-34%). The three-row EV9 dipped more gently to 1,650 units (-5%), though its year-to-date total still runs ahead of last year at 8,685 (+30%).

Hybrids went the other direction, and hard. Total hybrid sales jumped 108 percent year-over-year. The Sportage Hybrid posted the steepest growth among electrified models at 76%, while the Sorento Hybrid and Carnival Hybrid each managed a 16 percent gain over last July.

More: 2027 Kia Seltos Has A Higher Price To Match Its More Upscale Design

Kia plans to keep the momentum going with the new Seltos and the entry-level EV3 electric crossover, due later this year.

Kia US Sales 2026