EV Geek Podcast

In this episode of The Friday Charge, we're breaking down the biggest electric vehicle stories of the week, including:

🔋 This Week's EV Headlines:

Honda's decision is especially surprising considering the Prologue was one of America's best-selling EVs last year. Is this the right move, or is Honda giving up on the EV market just as competition heats up?

We also discuss Hyundai's growing investment in U.S. battery production, Toyota's continued reliance on hybrids, and why performance EV fans have a new reason to celebrate with a more affordable Ioniq 5 N.

👇 Let us know in the comments:

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California just signed a brand-new $3,500 instant EV rebate into law called "MyFirstEV" (SB 168)—but there is a massive catch hidden in the fine print.

While the new program is designed to help first-time buyers go electric with an on-the-hood, point-of-sale discount, a highly specific "headquarters loophole" completely waives the $50,000 price cap for California-based EV brands like Rivian and Lucid. Meanwhile, Tesla (now headquartered in Texas) gets left out in the cold on its premium models. In today's episode, we break down exactly how this new $3,500 rebate works, why it's sparking a massive political feud between Gavin Newsom and Elon Musk, and how you can take advantage of the cash before the state's funding completely runs out.

Are you looking to buy your first EV this summer? What do you think about this new loophole? Let me know in the comments!

Are electric vehicles actually dying, or are we just looking at the ultimate market correction?

In this episode, we are breaking down the official Q2 2026 EV sales data from Cox Automotive to separate the mainstream media narratives from what’s actually happening on dealership lots. With EV market share stabilizing at 5.8% after the post-incentive crash, the game has officially changed. We sit down with two industry experts to tackle the hard questions: Is the current hybrid boom a gateway or a massive roadblock for BEVs? Can legacy brands like Toyota actually catch Tesla despite Tesla owning half the market? And is a surging used EV market about to completely cannibalize new car sales?

If you want to understand where the automotive industry is actually heading over the next five years—without the hype—this is the conversation you need to hear.

Let us know in the comments: Are you buying a hybrid next, or waiting out the EV winter?

This week on The Friday Charge, Joel and Sebastian break down the biggest EV news stories you need to know! Tesla officially unveils the long-awaited Model Y L in the U.S. with six seats, a longer wheelbase, and a premium Launch Edition—but is it worth the price? We also discuss massive Polestar discounts of up to $25,000, Ford's recall of more than 42,000 Mustang Mach-Es, Waymo's expansion into Las Vegas and three additional cities, rumors that Tesla could require Face ID to activate Full Self-Driving, and GM's recall and delivery stop for the Cadillac Vistiq. Join us as we separate the hype from reality and explain what these developments mean for EV buyers and owners.

Think Tesla owns the charging game? Think again. Walmart just doubled its ultra-fast charging network in 60 days, and they’re solving the biggest problem in EV ownership. Here’s how the retail giant is leaving traditional networks in the dust.

The premium electric SUV segment just got a massive wake-up call. On today's episode, we are diving deep into the massive news out of Munich: the official debut of the first-ever, all-electric 2027 BMW iX5 xDrive60. This isn't a minor refresh. Built on BMW’s dedicated "Neue Klasse" architecture, this luxury family hauler is completely rewriting the rules of highway range and road-trip charging speeds. We’re breaking down the full technical spec sheet, including: • The Structural Secret: How BMW used unique 120mm tall cylindrical cells in a cell-to-pack design to jam a massive 144 kWh usable battery pack under the floor—hitting a targeted 435 miles of EPA range (525 miles WLTP). • Meltdown-inducing Speeds: Why the iX5’s 460 kW peak DC fast-charging rate puts the competition on notice, pulling a 10% to 80% charge in just 22 minutes. • The Engineering Nuance: Why BMW ditched permanent magnets on the rear axle for an electrically excited synchronous motor managed by the 10x faster "Heart of Joy" supercomputer. • The Software-Defined Cockpit: A look at the pillar-to-pillar Panoramic Vision windshield projection and Alexa+ AI automated routines. • The Supply Chain Play: Why building the iX5 and its packs locally in Spartanburg and Woodruff, South Carolina is a genius operational shield against volatile automotive tariffs. Is an $81,250 starting price for a luxury EV with a 435-mile real-world range enough to make you switch your primary family hauler? Plug in, get the numbers, and let’s get into the charge!T

In this episode of The Friday Charge...

- Slate announces pricing

- The Polestar is dead.....in the U.S.

- Lucid layoffs

- Tesla new Supercharger contest

- EA going BIG on charging

Ford just dropped a absolute bombshell regarding the future of the Mustang Mach-E. Tucked away in a corporate Q&A, Ford officially confirmed that its highly anticipated, ultra-efficient "Universal EV" (UEV) platform will NOT be used for the Mach-E.

In this episode, we unpack why Ford CEO Jim Farley admits their first-gen electric vehicles were "designed the wrong way," the shocking 70-pound wiring harness difference between the Mach-E and the Tesla Model Y, and what this brutal pivot means for the survival of Ford’s most iconic electric passenger car. Is this the end of the electric pony? Let's dive into the data.

On this episode of The Friday Charge, Joel and Sebastian discuss:

-Ford Begins Production of their US LFP Cells

-Porsche "Updates" the Taycan for 2027

-BMW is on a ROLL! -

Telo Makes Big Claims

-Cybercab Specs are Out!

Questions? Comments? Interested in being a guest? Email us at [email protected]