Good morning and welcome to our daily digest of automotive news from around the globe, starting with…
U.S. Energy Department To Lend GM Battery Cell Manufacturing Arm $2.5 Billion
Ultium Cells will get a $2.5 billion loan from the United States Energy Department. The company, which is a joint venture between General Motors and LG Energy Solution, will use the funds to help finance the construction of a battery manufacturing plant in Tennessee and Michigan.
Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato First Offical Teaser Takes Us Beyond The Concrete
The rally-inspired Lamborghini Huracan Sterrato has been teased for the first time, showing off its redesigned bodywork, skid plates, extra lighting, and chunky tires. The teaser clip gives us a good look at what to expect from the new car, despite the camouflage paint scheme. In fact, it looks like the leaked photo from last April -which showed the off-road supercar totally undisguised– was right on the money.
Mini Shows Off Future Of Design With Aceman EV Concept
Say hello to the Mini Concept Aceman, a preview of an electric crossover that will slot between the Mini Cooper and Countryman in size. It’s both longer than a Mini Cooper, and taller than the Countryman but is said to display “charismatic simplicity” as the design team tried to stay true to what makes a Mini a Mini.
Koenigsegg Wonders How Hypercars Can Justify Their Prices In An Electric Age
Christian von Koenigsegg has shed light on a very real challenge that supercar manufacturers will soon have to tackle. With the performance of “normal” electric vehicles putting the figures of supercars to shame, how do high-end manufacturers differentiate their performance-oriented offerings? “I think you need to have a reason to exist,” said von Koenigsegg. “Just making it cool but not adding any features or functions of meaning, and then charging ten times more, that doesn’t do it for me.”
2024 Honda Prologue EV Spotted During Testing, Is It Blazer EV Based?
Although we’ve known that the 2024 Honda Prologue would be built on the Ultium platform from General Motors, these latest spy photos indicate that the upcoming EV SUV may share a lot more with its GM cousin than first thought. Hardpoints seem to be shared between the Chevrolet Blazer EV and the Honda Prologue, including the wheelbase, front quarter glass, and rear three quarters.
BMW Returning To Le Mans In 2024 With M Hybrid V8
BMW returns to the FIA World Endurance Championship and the 24 Hours of Le Mans in 2024 with the new M Hybrid V8, adding another new automaker to the series that already includes Ferrari and Porsche. It also marks BMW’s first running of a prototype in 25 years, as the Hybrid V8 enters the Hypercar class.
DeLorean Goes Back To The Future With A Trio Of Fictional ‘What If’ Concept Cars
The world lost the DeLorean brand in 1982, and although the company is set to make a return with its Alpha5, the question remains, what would its future have looked like had it survived? Well, the company has envisaged just that, with three rendered concept cars that could have been the company’s legacy had it stuck around.
What Else Is Making The News
Spotify Axes Car Thing
Spotify has quietly dropped its Car Thing device. In the company’s latest earnings reports it was announced as having cost the company €31 million (Approx $32 million). Speaking to TechCruch, a spokesperson for the company cited product demand and supply chain issues as part of the decision.
Russia Further Cuts Gas Supplies To Germany
Gas prices across Europe have soared nine percent after Russian state-owned energy firm Gazprom further cut supplies to Germany through the Nord Stream 1 pipeline. The company blames the latest cut on maintenance work, a claim that is refuted by German authorities, while Ukraine has accused Russia of waging a “gas war,” reports the BBC.