2020 Mercedes-Benz EQC 400 – first drive – Norway, May 2019
We're among the first to drive the Mercedes-Benz EQC. Volkswagen plans to invest $1.1 billion in a new battery factory in Germany. Hyundai and Kia invest $80 million in Croatian EV startup Rimac. And our Twitter poll asks how EV drivers should contribute to road maintenance. All this and more on Green Car Reports.
In a first drive outside of Oslo (practically native habitat for luxury electric cars), the new 2020 Mercedes-Benz EQC electric SUV proved itself among the quietest and most luxurious EVs we've driven. But solid range measurements remained elusive.
As VW and other German automakers are scrambling to build local battery supplies in Europe, the country's largest automaker announced plans to build a new battery factory—along with a partner—in its home state of Lower Saxony.
Korean auto giant Hyundai, along with its sister company Kia, gave Croatian EV sports-car startup Rimac a big boost in its bid to become a Tier 1 supplier of electric drivetrain components to the auto industry, with a big investment and plans for a new Korean electric sports car.
Our Twitter poll this week asks our readers how electric-car drivers should contribute to road maintenance, traditionally funded by state gas taxes.
Volkswagen also previewed a new digital dashboard for its upcoming 2020 redesign of the Golf.
Finally, the NHTSA will give up on new requirements, first adopted in light of the Toyota unintended acceleration problem in 2011, to require brake override software on new cars.
_______________________________________