Extra, Extra....Read All About It!

[SpaceEVDriver]

This is gonna cost a small fortune right? I love the RS6 Avant but it cost as much as or more than my first house and I just can’t at that price point.

Wagon Here: Audi’s New Dirt-Ready A6 Allroad Is Coming to America in 2027

Audi has confirmed its new off-road wagon will be sold in the United States. Does its wide body preview the future RS6 Avant sport wagon?

bit.ly

It’s also a gassy car…

 

[J Alynn]

I think it’s too high for what it is.

View attachment 16462

Considering average new car price is $50K and you are only getting about half a car with the Slate the pricing seems spot on

 

[J Alynn]

This is gonna cost a small fortune right? I love the RS6 Avant but it cost as much as or more than my first house and I just can’t at that price point.

Wagon Here: Audi’s New Dirt-Ready A6 Allroad Is Coming to America in 2027

Audi has confirmed its new off-road wagon will be sold in the United States. Does its wide body preview the future RS6 Avant sport wagon?

bit.ly

One of the coolest vehicles but it’s elitist level pricing so just doesn’t make sense

 

[cyure]

It’s also a gassy car…

I know, but those wagons are beautiful! Someone needs to make an EV wagon. But as my son keeps reminding me we don’t get wagons and hot hatches in America.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I know, but those wagons are beautiful! Someone needs to make an EV wagon. But as my son keeps reminding me we don’t get wagons and hot hatches in America.

I’m afraid if they made a BEV wagon, my partner would buy one right away…

 

[cyure]

I’m afraid if they made a BEV wagon, my partner would buy one right away…

She has good taste!

 

[Logan]

I’m afraid if they made a BEV wagon, my partner would buy one right away…

I'm a wagon person too.

Our previous vehicle was the Mazda 6 wagon. Great form factor, horrible powertrain.

Although, we're continually encroaching closer and closer to wagon (and hatchback) territory with our "SUV's" these days.

I mean, its hard to look at a Lucid Gravity and not see some wagon influence (even my Ioniq 9 is getting close to that look). And Ioniq 5? someone tell me how that doesn't look like a hatchback.

 

[cyure]

I'm a wagon person too.

Our previous vehicle was the Mazda 6 wagon. Great form factor, horrible powertrain.

Although, we're continually encroaching closer and closer to wagon (and hatchback) territory with our "SUV's" these days.

I mean, its hard to look at a Lucid Gravity and not see some wagon influence (even my Ioniq 9 is getting close to that look). And Ioniq 5? someone tell me how that doesn't look like a hatchback.

I had an Audi A4 Wagon. Loved the wagon part but boy was it a gutless wonder. I had to put it in sport mode if I was trying to turn left into oncoming traffic. I only kept it 2 years and traded it in on an X3.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

I'm a wagon person too.

Our previous vehicle was the Mazda 6 wagon. Great form factor, horrible powertrain.

Although, we're continually encroaching closer and closer to wagon (and hatchback) territory with our "SUV's" these days.

I mean, its hard to look at a Lucid Gravity and not see some wagon influence (even my Ioniq 9 is getting close to that look). And Ioniq 5? someone tell me how that doesn't look like a hatchback.

The Gravity is on our list to watch the used car sites hoping for an unlikely deal...

 

[Gottesacker]

Closest EV wagon I can think of off the top of my head would be the Subaru Trailseeker.

I agree with Logan, it seems like we're just labeling everything as a CUV/SUV even though some are much closer to wagon/hatchback than they are to the former.

 

[Logan]

Closest EV wagon I can think of off the top of my head would be the Subaru Trailseeker.

I agree with Logan, it seems like we're just labeling everything as a CUV/SUV even though some are much closer to wagon/hatchback than they are to the former.

Exactly.

Especially the electric SUV's. Many of them have quite low ground clearance.

The Mustang Mach E has only .6in more ground clearance than my Mazda 6 wagon had (5.7in vs 5.1in).

Even though I"m not in love with CUV's being called SUV's, I'm at least a bit more ok with it when the ground clearance is better (my Tucson PHEV has 8.3in of ground clearance. Less than the ~12in in my Jeep, but meaningfully more than the ~5in or so you see on sedans and Minivans).

 

[Chuckles]

Patent Images Provide First Look at the Radical Lucid Cosmos

Get Your First Look at the Radical Lucid Cosmos in These New Patent Images

The American startup's third model is set to be revealed this summer and go on sale early next year as a competitor to the Rivian R2.

www.caranddriver.com

 

[Chuckles]

Ford's $30,000 Electric Truck Looks Promising in First Videos

Ford Gives First Official Look at Its Upcoming $30,000 Electric Truck in New Videos

The $30,000 EV pickup truck is one step closer to realization with the release of a new website dedicated to its production progress.

www.caranddriver.com

 

[chucchinchilla]

I had an Audi A4 Wagon. Loved the wagon part but boy was it a gutless wonder. I had to put it in sport mode if I was trying to turn left into oncoming traffic. I only kept it 2 years and traded it in on an X3.

Loved my '03 A4 Avant and while I could compensate for the sluggish 1.8T with a manual transmission, it was still slow and really could have used a 6th gear. I also love my 2016 A6 but looking at the new car, hard pass. The interior is a downgrade from my car filled with cheaper materials, lots of piano black plastic, and way too much real estate devoted to screens. Exterior is....okay. Add software/reliability issues and yeah this generation is one to skip over.

 

[cyure]

Ford's $30,000 Electric Truck Looks Promising in First Videos

Ford Gives First Official Look at Its Upcoming $30,000 Electric Truck in New Videos

The $30,000 EV pickup truck is one step closer to realization with the release of a new website dedicated to its production progress.

www.caranddriver.com

So the camo on their new truck has QR codes in the pattern and it takes you to their website on the new truck. That’s a good idea.

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

In my ~5 years and ~40-50k miles of road trips, I’ve found Electrify America to be the most reliable charging network.

EXCEPT.

Except they typically have only 4 to 8 plugs available, which means along high-traffic highways, they’re often busy. That means I often skip them unless I have a passenger who can check the app to see if there are open plugs.

EA is starting to address this issue. Two recent announcements are great.

First, they’ve installed their largest battery-backed charging station with 20 350 kW plugs. This is in Santa Barbara, which…whatever, let the rich pay for the pilot program.

https://media.electrifyamerica.com/releases/287

Second, they’ve added live station status to Google Maps. This means I can now glance at the navigation map to see the status of a charging station as I’m approaching it. No more just skipping a 4-plug station because it’s unlikely to be free.

Electrify America is now posting live charger status on Google Maps

Electrify America’s real-time charger data now shows up in Google Maps, giving EV drivers live station info.

electrek.co

Rivian’s Adventure Network seems to be just as reliable, but they weren’t available until just recently and they’re incredibly expensive, so I only use them if I have to.

 

[Logan]

In my ~5 years and ~40-50k miles of road trips, I’ve found Electrify America to be the most reliable charging network.

EXCEPT.

Except they typically have only 4 to 8 plugs available, which means along high-traffic highways, they’re often busy. That means I often skip them unless I have a passenger who can check the app to see if there are open plugs.

EA is starting to address this issue. Two recent announcements are great.

First, they’ve installed their largest battery-backed charging station with 20 350 kW plugs. This is in Santa Barbara, which…whatever, let the rich pay for the pilot program.

https://media.electrifyamerica.com/releases/287

Second, they’ve added live station status to Google Maps. This means I can now glance at the navigation map to see the status of a charging station as I’m approaching it. No more just skipping a 4-plug station because it’s unlikely to be free.

Electrify America is now posting live charger status on Google Maps

Electrify America’s real-time charger data now shows up in Google Maps, giving EV drivers live station info.

electrek.co

Rivian’s Adventure Network seems to be just as reliable, but they weren’t available until just recently and they’re incredibly expensive, so I only use them if I have to.

My recent road trip I used Electrify America exclusively.

I charged 14 times across 4 states, over the course of 3 weeks. On that trip, I found exactly 1 charger that wasn't working (Huntington Oregon). There were 3 additional chargers there, and the other 350kw charger worked (although couldn't access the app because of no cell reception which meant no member plan discount).

Almost every single one of the Electrify America locations I visited offered 4 chargers, with the exception of a few in Utah with 6-8. Most had 350kw chargers at each stall, but some of the 4 charger variants had 2x 350kw chargers, and 2x 150kw chargers.

However, I was surprised with how busy they were as well. I had to wait for a charger for 15minutes once, and on two other occasions I had people waiting for me as I was finishing.

I did try charging at a chargepoint charger at a car dealership, which should have supported plug and charge, but I never got it to work (tried 4 different chargers). An employee eventually swiped for me and I got a ~50kw charge for an hour or so. So the charger worked, but since I had no account, and it didn't have a card reader, there wasn't anything else I could do.

Also, my vehicles route planning vehicle has live charging station usage information right in the vehicle. So I can see from the in-vehicle nav how many chargers are available at any given charging station without needing the co-pilot to do that on the app (which also totally works, and is how I did it on the first half of the trip).

I hear good things about Rivian, Ionna, and Tesla chargers. But haven't tried any, and actively avoid the Tesla chargers if I can (because they charge my 800v vehicle slower).

 

[SpaceEVDriver]

My recent road trip I used Electrify America exclusively.

I charged 14 times across 4 states, over the course of 3 weeks. On that trip, I found exactly 1 charger that wasn't working (Huntington Oregon). There were 3 additional chargers there, and the other 350kw charger worked (although couldn't access the app because of no cell reception which meant no member plan discount).

Almost every single one of the Electrify America locations I visited offered 4 chargers, with the exception of a few in Utah with 6-8. Most had 350kw chargers at each stall, but some of the 4 charger variants had 2x 350kw chargers, and 2x 150kw chargers.

However, I was surprised with how busy they were as well. I had to wait for a charger for 15minutes once, and on two other occasions I had people waiting for me as I was finishing.

I did try charging at a chargepoint charger at a car dealership, which should have supported plug and charge, but I never got it to work (tried 4 different chargers). An employee eventually swiped for me and I got a ~50kw charge for an hour or so. So the charger worked, but since I had no account, and it didn't have a card reader, there wasn't anything else I could do.

Also, my vehicles route planning vehicle has live charging station usage information right in the vehicle. So I can see from the in-vehicle nav how many chargers are available at any given charging station without needing the co-pilot to do that on the app (which also totally works, and is how I did it on the first half of the trip).

I hear good things about Rivian, Ionna, and Tesla chargers. But haven't tried any, and actively avoid the Tesla chargers if I can (because they charge my 800v vehicle slower).

We used to have two 400V vehicles and now we have one 800V and one 400V. It really makes a difference which charger network you use on the 800V vehicle. We got worse charging speeds at the SCs with the Silverado than we ever did with the Lightning. And we spent more because the inefficiency was higher.

So I’m super excited for Ionna to move into the west and hopeful that EA will add more plugs at their stations.

The Scouts will have this issue too.

 

[Mousehunter]

Well, just from the glace - at least I don't have to worry about wanting to buy the next Ford EV.

 

[THil08]

I think the slate will be good for a first time car for teens, they can get their hands “dirty” working on them. And they will make some cool rides to show off in the parking lot.

Fords truck will be good for the city folks who like the extra storage of a truck, but can’t get a light duty truck like a f150 on city streets.


Those are my takes on these two affordable EVs