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XIAOMI AUTO PASSES 800,000 DELIVERIES https://evne.ws/o4mw2

XIAOMI TO DEBUT DRAGONSCALE BATTERY WITH SKYNOMAD https://evne.ws/6elq4

VOYAH OPENS DREAM 9 PRE-SALES IN CHINA https://evne.ws/arn24

AISTALAND GX7 PRE-SALES START AT $37,000 https://evne.ws/cou57

CHANGAN OPENS QIYUAN Q06 PRE-SALES https://evne.ws/1nfmx

DENZA N8L EV SET FOR SEPTEMBER 14 LAUNCH https://evne.ws/my3ck

LI AUTO PLANS 2.65 BILLION YUAN SUNWODA EVB STAKE https://evne.ws/49yog

PROLOGIUM BEGINS 381 WH/KG CELL MASS PRODUCTION https://evne.ws/8ixyb

GEELY E2 REACHES BELGIAN DEALERS BEFORE LAUNCH https://evne.ws/rrhg3

CHINA IMPOSES LITHIUM BATTERY TAX https://evne.ws/dmkoh

CHINESE BRANDS OVERTAKE JAPANESE ON THREE-YEAR VALUES https://evne.ws/lmegx

Volkswagen is preparing to quit building cars at four German factories. Every one of them builds EVs.
On Thursday this week, in Wolfsburg, Volkswagen's supervisory board voted unanimously — a day ahead of schedule — to approve something called Future Plan 2030.
50,000 more job cuts by the end of the decade. The model range gutted and cut roughly in half by 2035. And four German plants placed under a review that could end vehicle production at all of them.
Those four plants are Emden. Zwickau. Hanover. And Audi's Neckarsulm.
Zwickau was the first large car factory in Europe converted entirely to electric vehicles and Emden was the second. Hanover currently builds the ID. Buzz whilst Neckarsulm builds the e-tron GT and the A6 e-tron.
Volkswagen spent something like 2.2bn euros converting Zwickau and Emden alone.
Six years later, the company says it cannot demonstrate a competitive future use for either of them.
So the question isn't "is Volkswagen in trouble."
We knew that already.
The question is why the factories it electrified hardest are the ones it now says it can’t justify - and what that tells you about how Europe built its EV industrial policy.

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GENESIS GV90 DROPS THE B-PILLAR https://evne.ws/pfmrd

GENESIS UNVEILS GV90 ELECTRIC FLAGSHIP https://evne.ws/exjvc

CHINESE AUDI EVS REACH EUROPE THROUGH IMPORTER https://evne.ws/xptav

EV OWNERS FLAG CHARGING GAP https://evne.ws/p4r3p

VOLVO PLANTS MAY BUILD GEELY MODELS https://evne.ws/4f2z3

CHERY SETS OUT BRITISH R&D PLAN https://evne.ws/gljo4

CHERY PREPARES GERMAN LAUNCH FROM FRANKFURT https://evne.ws/ln5bl

HYUNDAI AND GENESIS GET IONNA CHARGING DISCOUNTS https://evne.ws/f6n2d

HYUNDAI AND KIA LINK WITH KALUZA https://evne.ws/iqj0n

UNIVÉ LIMITS COVER FOR FOURTEEN BRANDS https://evne.ws/gcwqg

It's ev.news Briefly for Thursday 20 August 2026, only todays headlines and nothing else, in just 4 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.

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GENESIS UNVEILS 648BHP GV90 ELECTRIC SUV
Genesis has revealed the GV90, a production version of the Neolun concept and its largest, most luxurious model yet, measuring almost 5.3m long with a 123.5kWh battery, up to 311 miles of range, 800V charging at 350kW and a 648bhp dual-motor setup with limited-slip differentials on each axle. It goes on sale in South Korea next month and reaches Europe in the first half of 2027, with UK orders expected to open above £100,000.
IMPORTER BRINGS CHINESE-MARKET AUDI EVS TO EUROPE
Auto China is importing, homologating and registering Chinese-market AUDI E5 Sportback and E7X electric cars for European sale, undercutting Audi's own models — the 776hp E5 costs €28,000 less than the 543hp S6 Sportback e-tron — with a charging adapter and a two-year warranty through independent repairers. The risks include unclear parts supply, workshops unfamiliar with the cars, driver-assistance tuned for Chinese roads, and the precedent of Volkswagen suing over imported ID.6s in 2023, after which those cars were destroyed.
68% OF AUSTRALIAN EV OWNERS FLAG CHARGING GAP IN NRMA SURVEY
An NRMA survey of 42,472 members, including 1,730 EV owners, found 68% of EV owners concerned about a lack of charging infrastructure, while purchase price and range anxiety are fading and EVs near cost parity with petrol cars over a vehicle's life. Fuel costs were the top worry for combustion drivers at 75%, and electrified vehicles took 49.16% of Australia's new-car market in Q2, including 69,414 battery electric vehicles.
VOLVO'S EUROPEAN PLANTS TO BUILD GEELY BRANDS FROM 2028
Geely Auto Group's new chief An Conghui says Volvo's European factories are expected to build luxury models for sibling brands such as Zeekr and Lynk & Co from 2028, with the 61-year-old Ghent plant in Belgium a likely candidate following an upgrade deal with the Belgian and Flemish governments. Building in Europe would sidestep the EU's 18.8% tariff on Geely's Chinese-built EVs and support the group's target of 1.5 million annual sales outside China.
CHERY TO OPEN UK R&D CENTRE AT MILLBROOK IN LATE 2026
Chery will open a research and development centre at UTAC Millbrook in Bedfordshire in late autumn 2026, starting with chassis and driver-assistance tuning for British roads before extending into autonomous driving and AI, alongside a pact with Nissan to explore building its UK cars at Sunderland. Chinese brands took about 16% of UK registrations in the first half, with the Jaecoo 7 the third best-selling vehicle overall at 23,840 units, up 184%.
CHERY TO LAUNCH IN GERMANY IN 2027 WITHOUT AN EV
Chery is establishing its German headquarters at Frankfurt's Gateway Gardens and will launch the Chery brand in the first half of 2027 with four Tiggo SUVs, all hybrids or plug-in hybrids and no battery-electric model, despite EVs being Germany's fastest-growing powertrain. An electric Chery Q, compared with the Renault 5 E-Tech, will be unveiled at the Paris Motor Show in October, as the group targets 30 dealers at launch and 100 by the end of 2027.
HYUNDAI AND GENESIS DRIVERS GET IONNA CHARGING AT $0.31/KWH
From 20 August, Hyundai and Genesis EV owners in the US can stack two 10% discounts on Ionna's $0.39/kWh base rate, cutting it to $0.31/kWh, with one discount expiring 30 September and the other continuing indefinitely. Sessions must be started through the car maker's app or Plug & Charge rather than the on-site card reader, and eligible models include the Ioniq 5, Ioniq 9, Kona Electric, GV60 and Electrified GV70, but not the recently discontinued Ioniq 6.
HYUNDAI AND KIA PARTNER WITH KALUZA ON SMART CHARGING
Hyundai Motor Group has partnered with Kaluza to build smart charging into Hyundai and Kia EVs from August 2026, integrating with the Kia and myHyundai apps so drivers can set a ready-by time and charge on cheaper, cleaner power, launching in the UK first and then Australia. Vehicle-to-grid services are due from 2027, adding to Kaluza's existing work with Stellantis, Volvo, Volkswagen, Porsche and Mitsubishi Motors.
DUTCH INSURER UNIVÉ RESTRICTS COVER FOR 14 CAR BRANDS
Univé, a Dutch insurer with over 1.8 million members, has restricted or excluded 14 car brands based on parts availability, repair information and access to qualified workshops, limiting Dongfeng, Lucid, Firefly, Nio and Zeekr to third-party liability and fully excluding Hongqi, Changan, Voyah, KGM, Leapmotor, VinFast, Jaecoo, MHero and Omoda. The brands took 3.6% of July's Dutch registrations, up from 1.0% a year earlier, and dealers call the warning heavily overblown, with Chery saying it holds more than 30,000 parts at Schiphol-Rijk.

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FREELANDER 8 LAUNCHES FROM 289,900 YUAN https://evne.ws/a3zvu

BYD SEALION 08 GETS MORE THAN 12,000 ORDERS https://evne.ws/gu25d

CATL CHAIRMAN CITES 7.4 MILLION CHINA NEV SALES https://evne.ws/ern4n

CHERY PLANS 2027 SOLID-STATE ROAD TESTS https://evne.ws/1ztp9

CHINA NEV RETAIL SALES FALL 4% IN AUGUST https://evne.ws/q5vhc

AUDI AND SAIC CREATE SHANGHAI R&D CENTRE https://evne.ws/be5gb

XIAOMI AUTO SIGNS EIGHT GERMAN DEALERS https://evne.ws/sgwm0

HORSE UNVEILS 3DHT200 OFF-ROAD PHEV SYSTEM https://evne.ws/x9tq5

ZEEKR 7X GAINS 85 KWH PACK IN CHINA https://evne.ws/ruhfc

CHINA IMPORTS 125 BATTERY-ELECTRIC PASSENGER CARS https://evne.ws/r20x1

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BEVS BECOME UKS LEADING POWER SOURCE DESPITE INDUSTRY PUSHBACK https://evne.ws/yacje

STELLANTIS SETS NOVEMBER JEEP, MID-APRIL RAM PRODUCTION https://evne.ws/upt50

PHEVS EMIT 4.6 TIMES OFFICIAL CO₂ VALUES https://evne.ws/6kkvf

FORD AIMS FOR 100,000 FATHOM SALES https://evne.ws/jlarm

BEVS OUTSELL PETROL AND DIESEL IN AUSTRALIA https://evne.ws/rarkh

BATTERY TRUCKS PROJECTED TO BEAT DIESEL COSTS https://evne.ws/bpm7x

MAN PARTNERS PLAN AROUND €400M FOR EUROPEAN SERVICE SITES https://evne.ws/wyh3d

WAYVE AND UBER OFFER LONDON AUTONOMOUS RIDES https://evne.ws/47nxs

BARCELONA OFFERS FOUR MILLION EUROS ELECTRIC BIKE SUBSIDIES https://evne.ws/o7rvv

XIAOMI SIGNS EIGHT GERMAN DEALER ARRANGEMENTS https://evne.ws/ikay0

It's ev.news Briefly for Friday 04 September 2026, only todays headlines and nothing else, in just 4 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.

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BEVS BECOME UKS LEADING POWER SOURCE DESPITE INDUSTRY PUSHBACK
Battery electric vehicles took 30% of the UK car market in August, up from 23% a year earlier, making BEVs the largest single powertrain category ahead of hybrids at 29%, petrol at 22% and PHEVs at 14%, with plug-ins combined reaching 44%. The performance is comfortably ahead of the effective 24.6% target New AutoMotive calculates for this year, yet the government has opened a consultation on relaxing its EV rules under carmaker pressure — a move that could backfire, given Chinese manufacturers now hold 28% of Europe's PHEV segment, up 60% year on year, with PHEVs making up 60% of BYD's European registrations.
STELLANTIS SETS NOVEMBER JEEP, MID-APRIL RAM PRODUCTION
A supplier memo reviewed by Automotive News schedules electrified Jeep Grand Wagoneer production for November, six months later than the planned May start, and Ram 1500 REV production for mid-April, a nine-month slip from mid-2026 for a pickup originally due in 2025 as the Ramcharger. Stellantis maintains both extended-range models are on track — Jeep this year, Ram in 2027 — with the Grand Wagoneer built in Warren, Michigan alongside its petrol version and the Ram at Sterling Heights, delays that two supplier executives attribute to ensuring smooth launches.
PHEVS EMIT 4.6 TIMES OFFICIAL CO₂ VALUES
Plug-in hybrids registered in 2023 emitted 4.6 times their official CO₂ values in real-world driving, up from 3.5 times for 2021 registrations, according to an International Council on Clean Transportation study of nearly 920,000 vehicles that found longer electric range has coincided with less actual electric driving. The ICCT blames the EU utility factor formula, which assumes an 80% electric-driving share against a real-world figure of around 21% in 2022, with author Jan Dornoff arguing the rarely-achieved official values give PHEVs an unjustified advantage over combustion cars in manufacturers' CO₂ compliance.
FORD AIMS FOR 100,000 FATHOM SALES
Ford has set an internal target of 100,000 first-year sales for its Fathom electric truck, according to WSJ sources, a figure no non-Tesla EV model has ever reached in the United States. Production is expected to begin in Q1 2027 with a starting price just under $30,000, which would place the Fathom third among US single models if rivals' volumes hold steady.
BEVS OUTSELL PETROL AND DIESEL IN AUSTRALIA
Battery-electric vehicles outsold both petrol and diesel in Australia in August, hitting 27,078 units and 24.9% of a new-car market that grew 4.9% to 108,760 vehicles, against 25,824 petrol and 23,608 diesel cars, with BEV sales up 171% year on year. BEVs, hybrids and PHEVs together took 51.8% of sales, leaving combustion-only cars in the minority for the first time, and all eight best-selling EVs were China-built, including Tesla's Shanghai-produced Model Y and Model 3, the BYD Sealion 7 at 2,213 units and sixth overall, and the Geely EX5, up more than 385%.
BATTERY TRUCKS PROJECTED TO BEAT DIESEL COSTS
Battery-electric trucks are projected to undercut diesel on total cost of ownership across 70 to 90% of kilometres travelled in German heavy-duty freight by 2030, but that falls to a medium-scenario lower bound of 21 to 25% of economically feasible activities once daily range limits and charging availability are factored in. The Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research study in Nature, combining cost forecasts with real-world use profiles from four million European trucks, finds small-battery electric trucks competitive on 91% of freight activity by 2030 versus 69% for large-battery variants, with drivetrain efficiency, energy costs, battery size and usage intensity driving the outcome.
MAN PARTNERS PLAN AROUND €400M FOR EUROPEAN SERVICE SITES
MAN dealers, service partners and importers plan to invest around €400m (about $464m) in European service locations, on top of MAN's own €300m (about $348m) network investment by 2030, with board member Friedrich Baumann calling the combined scale unprecedented in company history despite ongoing cost cuts and job reductions. Roughly a third of the partners' spending goes to electromobility and digitalisation, including high-voltage staff training, battery repair centres and public charging at MAN branches, while a separate E.On partnership announced in 2024 targets up to 400 charging points at up to 170 European locations, up to 125 of them in Germany.
WAYVE AND UBER OFFER LONDON AUTONOMOUS RIDES
Wayve and Uber have launched supervised autonomous rides through the Uber app across London's entire urban area excluding airports, using battery-electric Ford Mustang Mach-E vehicles running Wayve's AI Driver with cameras and environmental sensors, each carrying a TfL-licensed safety driver who can intervene. UberX, Uber Electric and Uber Comfort passengers may be offered a Wayve ride at no extra cost before their trip, with London the first of twelve planned markets and a Tokyo service using the Nissan Leaf and Nvidia Drive Hyperion due later this year, though no date has been given for removing the safety driver.
BARCELONA OFFERS FOUR MILLION EUROS ELECTRIC BIKE SUBSIDIES
Barcelona is launching four million euros of electric bike subsidies running from 2027 to 2030, with the first call scheduled for publication in 2027, offering up to 400 euros (about $465) for pedal-assisted city bikes and up to 800 euros (about $929) for freight bikes, capped at 40% of the pre-VAT cost. Registered city residents and companies with premises in Barcelona will be eligible, with the scheme intended to extend cycling distances and open up the city's sloped areas, though the subsidy rules still require approval.
XIAOMI SIGNS EIGHT GERMAN DEALER ARRANGEMENTS
Xiaomi has signed agreements or letters of intent with eight German dealership groups, including Emil Frey, Penske Automotive and the Lueg Group, ahead of a planned 2027 European launch that will add another Chinese entrant to an already competitive German market. The company, which has sold roughly 700,000 SU7 sedans and YU7 SUVs in China since March 2024 according to President William Lu, is raising its profile at Berlin's IFA show from Sept. 4 to 8 with around 380 products, promoting a "Human x Car x Home" ecosystem linking more than 1,000 devices to the car, though it has not said which models Europe will get.

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POLESTAR 4 SUV LAUNCHES IN EUROPE https://evne.ws/nfwis

SCOUT REVEALS TWO TRAVELER CONCEPTS https://evne.ws/8tsmm

FRANCE BEV SHARE RISES TO 38% IN AUGUST https://evne.ws/8pl1x

MOST USED EVS RETAIN ABOUT 90% CAPACITY AT 150,000KM https://evne.ws/fb3mf

KIA OPENS CANADIAN ORDERS FOR 2027 EV4 GT https://evne.ws/fmhti

HONDA SEEKS 1.5 TRILLION YEN IN SAVINGS https://evne.ws/qr1fc

MNDOT OFFERS $41.2 MILLION FOR UP TO 40 SITES https://evne.ws/oc6b9

TESLA US SALES DROP 26% IN AUGUST https://evne.ws/cazzw

VOLVO GLOBAL SALES FALL 7.4% FROM JUNE THROUGH AUGUST https://evne.ws/cokv3

XPENG TAKES UK COMMERCIAL CONTROL https://evne.ws/v1ho8

35% OF SCREEN-EQUIPPED OWNERS NEVER USE THEM https://evne.ws/jrelr

It's ev.news Briefly for Thursday 03 September 2026, only todays headlines and nothing else, in just 4 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.

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POLESTAR 4 SUV LAUNCHES IN EUROPE
Polestar has launched the Polestar 4 SUV in Europe, its largest market, adding a more practical body variant with a linear roofline, vertical tailgate, conventional rear window and mirror, 25mm more rear headroom, standard roof rails rated to 100kg dynamic load, 1,665 litres of capacity with the 60:40 seats folded and a 15-litre front trunk. Rear Motor versions offer 200kW and up to 630km WLTP range while Dual Motor models produce 400kW and up to 600km, both using a 100kWh battery charging at up to 200kW DC for a roughly 30-minute 10-80% top-up, priced from €57,900 in Germany and £54,750 in the UK with first deliveries planned for Q4 2026 and Canada to follow Europe.
SCOUT REVEALS TWO TRAVELER CONCEPTS
Scout Motors has revealed the Mountainside and Trail-ready concepts based on its Traveler electric SUV, debuting at the Jazz Aspen Snowmass Labor Day Experience, with the rugged Trail-ready wearing Galvanized Steel paint, a Canvas roof, full-metal bumpers, elevated roof rack with trail lights, front winch, 18-inch beadlock wheels, 35-inch off-road tyres and a brick-red leather Denim District interior, while the refined Mountainside uses Morning Dusk charcoal-brown paint with gold flakes, 22-inch dish wheels, light-brown leather, grey fabric and recycled walnut trim. Scout has not confirmed whether either will be sold as a package or which features are optional; Traveler production starts next year with deliveries from 2028, and the range-extended Harvester, using a four-cylinder generator and 63kWh LFP pack for a claimed 500 miles, launches before the battery-electric version.
FRANCE BEV SHARE RISES TO 38% IN AUGUST
Battery-electric vehicles took 38% of France's new-car market in August 2026, up from 35% in July, with registrations climbing 113% year on year to 36,159 units according to the CCFA. Chinese brands took 7,070 registrations or 7.5% of the market, led by BYD on 2,195, MG on 2,003 and Jaecoo on 1,987, but were outsold by Renault alone on 13,128, ahead of Peugeot on 11,716 and Tesla on 5,038, of which 4,622 were the Model Y, France's best-selling BEV.
MOST USED EVS RETAIN ABOUT 90% CAPACITY AT 150,000KM
An Aviloo study of more than 500,000 battery-health tests across 20 popular models in North America, South America, Europe, Asia and Australia between 2022 and 2026 found most used EVs retained about 90% of usable battery capacity at 150,000km, with median state-of-health scores ranging from 87% to 94%, led at that mileage by the Mercedes-Benz EQA at 93.97% and Hyundai Ioniq 5 at 93.79%, and trailed by the Nissan Leaf at 86.67%, Mini Cooper SE at 87.11% and Renault Zoe at 87.33%. Chinese models were excluded for lack of data, air-cooled and smaller batteries such as the Zoe and Leaf degraded faster, the Leaf ZE1 showed a 13.5-percentage-point spread between individual cars, and with warranties typically covering eight years or 160,000km and requiring replacement below 70%, the findings strengthen calls for mandatory battery-health certification since identical age and mileage can mask very different treatment.
KIA OPENS CANADIAN ORDERS FOR 2027 EV4 GT
Kia has opened factory orders for the 2027 EV4 GT at certified Canadian dealerships from CA$58,595, its third "affordable" EV to get GT treatment, replacing the standard car's front-wheel drive with a 288-horsepower dual-motor all-wheel-drive system paired to an 81.4kWh battery for an estimated 431km of range. The GT adds GT-exclusive neon-accented brake calipers, 20-inch alloys, suede and synthetic-leather seats, a GT instrument cluster and a steering-wheel GT boost button, sitting above the standard EV4 that launched in Canada in late 2025 from CA$38,995 as what Kia called the country's most affordable EV.
HONDA SEEKS 1.5 TRILLION YEN IN SAVINGS
Honda is seeking 1.5 trillion yen ($9.4 billion) in savings by 2030 to improve its car business, expecting cumulative EV-related losses to exceed $12 billion and shifting towards hybrids while under pressure from Chinese manufacturers including BYD, which are taking share in Southeast Asia, Latin America and Europe on software, battery technology and the industry's lowest prices. Honda briefed major suppliers on the plan in spring and, according to internal documents, is targeting a 30% cost reduction in pressed and forged components, electrical parts and software-defined-vehicle parts, with individual targets issued to suppliers afterwards.
MNDOT OFFERS $41.2 MILLION FOR UP TO 40 SITES
MnDOT is offering $41.2 million in its third and largest NEVI round for fast-charging sites across Greater Minnesota, expecting to award up to 40 locations across 74 eligible areas with no more than one station funded in each, now able to go beyond I-35, I-90 and I-94 after the federal government certified those routes as fully built-out corridors. Funded sites must provide at least four NACS and four CCS1 connectors delivering a minimum 150kW per port with all ports in simultaneous use, be open during the host business's hours, and include an ADA-compliant charging space, adequate lighting, security cameras or staff, and snow removal within two hours of storms exceeding an inch — even though most earlier interstate sites have yet to open.
TESLA US SALES DROP 26% IN AUGUST
Motor Intelligence estimated Tesla sold 40,816 vehicles in the United States in August 2026, down 26% from 55,500 a year earlier and its largest year-over-year monthly decline of 2026, with demand appearing to stabilise around 40,000 units a month, below the 47,000 monthly average of the first half of 2025 and below tax-credit-inflated third-quarter volumes. Ending Model S and Model X production, extending Model Y and Model 3 offers, starting Model Y L deliveries, expanding a certified pre-owned programme from $20,600 and fully claiming California's MyFirstEV allocation within days did not materially change the trajectory.
VOLVO GLOBAL SALES FALL 7.4% FROM JUNE THROUGH AUGUST
Volvo Cars sold 148,239 vehicles globally from June through August, down 7.4% year over year despite a 13% rise in electrified sales — fully electric up 27%, plug-in hybrids down 1% — which made up 53.5% of global volume, with the decline blamed on China's continuing downturn and weaker US demand for electrified models. The company expects a significantly stronger second half as EX60 deliveries ramp up from Gothenburg production that began in spring at around $60,000 in the US, alongside European growth and continued US recovery, while shifting more output stateside to cut tariff exposure with XC60 production starting in South Carolina later this year and global Polestar 3 production consolidated there.
XPENG TAKES UK COMMERCIAL CONTROL
Xpeng is establishing its own UK national sales company, taking ownership of its UK operations and responsibility for strategic and commercial development while retaining International Motors — the Subaru and Isuzu importer that originally handled its UK shipping and retail — as a provider of operational infrastructure and local distribution expertise. Having entered the UK last year with the G6, delivering 1,800 units through 48 dealers in England, Wales and Scotland, Xpeng plans to add the X9 MPV as an ID Buzz rival and the L03 coupé-crossover, sold as Mona in China, though no UK launch date or pricing has been announced and an entry price below £40,000 would pitch it against the Skoda Enyaq and Ford Explorer.
35% OF SCREEN-EQUIPPED OWNERS NEVER USE THEM
JD Power's 2026 U.S. Tech Experience Index study, surveying 68,084 owners of vehicles with passenger screens, found 35% had never used the screen and only 6% used it every drive, even as the feature spreads through new vehicles. Smart ignition, climate control and driver-preference settings scored highest for satisfaction with the fewest problems while added complexity in driver-assistance features lowered scores, suggesting owners prefer predictable technology and that a screen — a cheap, simple way to make a plain dashboard look advanced, useful for passenger HVAC control or films on long trips — improves appearance rather than the ownership experience.