Good morning and welcome to our daily digest of automotive news from around the globe, starting with…

BYD Overtakes Tesla In Global NEV Sales In The First Half Of The Year

BYD is the new leader in new energy vehicles — an umbrella term for EVs, PHEVs, and hydrogen vehicles. With 641,350 NEVs shifted in the first half of 2022, BYD overtakes Tesla for the top spot, despite the American automaker selling 46 percent more cars than it did last year.

Hyundai Teases A New High-Performance N Model, Debuts Later This Month

Hyundai will be celebrating “N Day” on the 15th of July, as well as releasing a mysterious new vehicle. The cloaked silhouette seen in the teaser indicates the new car will be a sports coupe of some sort, with a long hood, and rakish windscreen. There’s not much else to go on, but there are reports that the company has been working on an electric sportscar with Rimac.

Tesla Quietly Unveils A Solar Range Extending Trailer

Without much fanfare, Tesla has revealed what could prove helpful to campers wanting to power up. Taking the form of a trailer, the newly revealed solution features retractable solar panels, which could have a mechanism to allow them to “follow” the sun. The trailer also features what looks to be a Starlink satellite receiver that could allow for high-speed internet on a campsite.

Salt Lake City Police Evacuate Building After Audi Timing Belt Tensioner Confused For Explosive Device

In one of the stranger cases this year, the Salt Lake City Police Department evacuated a building when a mysterious metallic object with a pull pin was discovered. The suspicious object was later identified by Twitter users as the timing belt tensioner commonly found on Audi vehicles.

2023 Honda Civic Type R Prototype Tackles Mid-Ohio, Production Model Arrives Later This Year

The Honda Civic Type R prototype has arrived stateside for the homestretch of its teaser campaign. Shown in prototype form, the highly anticipated hot hatch made a few hot laps around the Mid-Ohio Sports Car Course and also served as the lead vehicle at the start of the Honda Indy 200 on Sunday.

Renault 5 Diamant Is An Official EV Makeover Of A French Icon

The Renault 5 will celebrate 50 years since its introduction, and as part of the anniversary, the French manufacturer has teamed up with designer Pierre Gonalons for an electromod project. The now electric Renault 5 Diamant features a number of subtle design tweaks, including a rather unconventional steering wheel and numerous other details inside and out. This one-off creation will be auctioned in Fall later this year.

What Else Is Making The News

MotoGP Rider Francesco Bagnaia Faces Driving Ban After Drunken Crash 

Ducati Moto GP rider Francesco Bagnaia may face a driving ban, after crashing his Citroen into a ditch in Spain. He’s reported to have tested at four times the legal alcohol limit after the crash. Bagnaia has since issued an apology on social media.

Stranger Things 4 Crosses 1 Billion Hours Viewed

The fourth season of Stranger Things, Netflix’s SciFi drama, has become the platform’s second show to surpass a billion hours viewed. It makes it the second most-watched show ever, after 2021’s Squid Game.