Watt Happened: Electrified News from Feb. 19-25
By Phil Royle – Feb. 26, 2021
This week’s news was largely dominated by a cold spell that swept the south, leaving millions of Texans freezing in their homes with no electricity. Texans owning a modern Ford F-150, particularly the PowerBoost hybrid variant with the onboard generator capable of exporting 2.4 kW of juice – 7.2 kW for those who opted for the upgrade – to their home. There were reports of some residents sheltering in their warm Teslas, while those with houses equipped with a Tesla Powerwall were the big winners.
New Ford F-150s sporting the built-in generator, like the PowerBoost hybrid variant of the pickup, proved immensely useful during this week’s Texas-sized winter storm. (Image courtesy Ford)
Lucid Motors CEO Peter Rawlinson told Reuters that “the world needs $25,000 [EVs] urgently,” but then added, “Lucid can't do it for another eight years realistically.” Yet this might not be completely true. According to the report, “Six well-known automakers have reached out to [Lucid Motors] over the last month and expressed interest in Lucid Motors' technology.” Should any of those deals pan out, Lucid thinks it could release a $25,000 EV in the next three to four years.
The 2022 Ioniq 5 was premiered on Tuesday, Feb. 23. Between Hyundai’s teases and various leaks, we already knew a lot of what was unveiled, like the fact that the Ioniq 5 will built on the 800V E-GMP platform. What we did learn is that the Ioniq 5 will be available with multiple battery configurations, although the U.S. will likely only receive the larger 77.4 kwh pack. The 5 will also be available in all-wheel drive and rear-wheel drive.
The 5 will also be uniquely proportioned, offering hot hatch good lucks while nearing the size of a Hyundai Palisade.
Hyundai’s 2022 Ioniq 5 reveal showed off an SUV sized hatchback. (Image courtesy Hyundai)
Mitsubishi followed its previous 2021 Outlander reveal with the announcement of the return of the Outlander PHEV. Per Mitsubishi:
“Outlander PHEV is substantially upgraded for 2021, and features a significantly revised powertrain, an enlarged battery pack offering extended all-electric range, and increased performance from a new, more efficient, 2.4 liter inline four-cylinder engine and a higher-output rear electric motor.”
“The vehicle is equipped with a more powerful and efficient 2.4L internal combustion engine rated at 126 hp and 148 lb-ft of torque, and the previous 60 kW rear-axle-mounted electric motor has been replaced with a more powerful 70 kW unit. Combined, total system output is increased to 221 hp, up 31 hp from the previous model. The Outlander PHEV's main drive battery capacity also grows from 12.0 kWh to 13.8 kWh, resulting in an increase of all-electric range from 22 to 24 miles. Additionally, this also allows increasing the top speed of all-electric operation from 79 mph to 83 mph.”
The Outlander PHEV remains at $36,295, which doesn’t include $6,587 in federal tax credits, an increase of $751 in tax credits compared to the 2020 model year.
The 2021 Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV features slightly more power, more range, and more all-electric speed. (Image courtesy Mitsubishi)
Rivian confirmed an R1T delivery date of June 2021 via a tweet.
Tesla dropped some prices:
"The recent price adjustment was rolled out this weekend, with Tesla now listing the Model 3 Long Range Dual Motor AWD at $45,990, down $1,000 from its previous price of $46,990. In the same light, the Model Y Dual Motor AWD also received a $1,000 price adjustment, from $49,990 to $48,990."
This comes on the heels of the Model 3 SR+ and Model Y SR price reduction last week. But don't order a Model Y SR just yet – because you can't. Tesla has removed that version of the SUV from its configurator, although Tesla’s Elon Musk tweeted that the SUV is still available, albeit “off the menu.”
Mercedes-benz CEO Ola Källenius said he’s not putting an end date on the company’s ICE vehicle production.
"Our combustion engine business is extremely robust and produces cash flows that we invest in the future. I think it's too early to definitively say what the market is going to look like in 2030.”
He then added: “It's our job to put ourselves in a position to address that market."
Mercedes-Benz isn’t ignoring EVs. In fact, it introduced its first fully-electric vehicle, the EQC, in late 2019. Just don’t expect the brand to rush to full electrification anytime soon. (Image courtesy Mercedes-Benz)
And Oshkosh Defense scored the USPS delivery truck contract with a bid for a combination of EVs and ICE vehicles.
Want to hear our take on some of these stories? Check out this week’s podcast.
(Main image courtesy Lucid Motors)
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