Honda and Nissan have put aside the “traditional approach” of fierce rivalry to join forces and work together on electric vehicle technology as Japan’s carmakers try to catch up with Chinese competitors. The Japanese manufacturers will work together on technology for EVs, including components and software, after signing a memorandum of understanding on Friday. Honda and Nissan, respectively the country’s second- and third-largest carmakers behind Toyota, aim to cut costs by combining resources. Traditional manufacturers are struggling to compete profitably with upstart rivals as the electric vehicle sector grows rapidly,…
Tag: Motoring
Post-Brexit watchdog ‘ready’ to investigate flood of cheaper Chinese electric cars
The head of Britain’s post-Brexit trade watchdog has said it is ready to follow Brussels in launching an investigation into Chinese companies flooding the market for electric cars, but the government has not asked it to do so. Oliver Griffiths, the chief executive of the UK’s Trade Remedies Authority (TRA), which advises the government on trade defence, said it was keeping lines of communication open with ministers and had been in close contact with the car industry. “We’ll be ready to go if anyone does come to us,” he told…
The east German town at the centre of the new ‘gold rush’ … for lithium
It has been called the new gold rush – a rush to catch up with China in producing and refining the materials needed in everything from computers to cars: but has it come too late to save Europe’s car industry? Deep inside a former East German town lies the first fruits of the EU’s grand plan to “de-risk” and wean itself off dependency on imports for the green revolution. In Bitterfeld-Wolfen, 140km south-west of Berlin, an Amsterdam-listed company is scrambling to complete construction of a vast factory that will be…
China’s share of Europe’s electric car market accelerates as UK leads sales
China’s share of the European electric car market has more than doubled in less than two years as the world’s second largest economy tries to take the lead in the transition away from petrol and diesel cars. The UK is the largest market in Europe for Chinese electric car brands, accounting for almost a third of sales in 2023 so far, according to data from Schmidt Automotive Research on the 18 largest European car markets. About 5% of all new car sales in the UK were from Chinese brands in…
Lotus produces record 2,200 sports cars in first half of 2023
The British carmaker Lotus produced a record number of sports cars in the first half of 2023, as it gears up for a huge push behind sales of a new electric SUV under its Chinese owners’ expansion plans. Lotus, which marked its 75th anniversary this year, produced 2,200 vehicles in the first six months of the year at its factory in a former second world war bomber factory at Hethel in Norfolk. The bulk of the vehicles built were the Emira sports car, the first new Lotus product since the…
Battery power: how China could take charge of the electric vehicle market
If you bought an electric vehicle in the UK this year, there’s a good chance it was an MG4. The fully electric hatchback, which launched in 2022, sold 5,200 units in the first three months of this year, the second-best selling EV behind Tesla’s Model Y. With prices starting at about £27,000, it is also substantially cheaper than the Tesla at £45,000. And while MG is one of Britain’s most famous car brands – with a century of carmaking in Birmingham until MG Rover’s 2005 collapse – the secret to…
Chinese owner of Lotus Technology to list a stake in US via blank cheque firm
The Chinese owner of Lotus is to list a stake in a division of the luxury sports car group in the US as part of deal with a firm backed by the world’s richest man. China’s Geely said on Tuesday that it plans to merge electric carmaker Lotus Technology – an offshoot of the Norfolk-based sports car brand – with a special purpose acquisition vehicle (Spac) founded by L Catterton, which is backed by LVMH and its billionaire founder, Bernard Arnault. The Nasdaq listing is expected to value the business…
China takes great leap forward in Australia’s car market with EVs leading the charge
China is rapidly becoming one of the largest sources of new cars for Australian buyers with Chinese carmakers’ increasing dominance of electric vehicle sales in their home market potentially accelerating the transition off fossil-fuel powered transport. In 2022, sales of Chinese-made vehicles in Australia totalled 122,845 units, a 61.1% increase on the previous year, according to Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries data. In December, imports from China were more than double a year earlier. The increase made China the fourth-largest import source, narrowing the gap with larger rivals. Cars sourced…