Everything EV

George went back to the updated BYD Seal 18 months on – and calls it 'bloody brilliant'. Richard asks whether the 443 bhp BYD Atto 3 Evo really needed all that power, and the pair dig into VW pausing the electric ID. Golf while eyeing XPeng's CEA platform. George says an emotional goodbye to the Polestar 2, his first EV, before the European Car of the Year shortlist goes all-electric for the first time in 63 years – and a wine bet is struck. Plus: used EV searches jump 50% as fuel prices bite, charging perks, the ZEV mandate limbo, Ricciardo turning down Formula E, the Gen 4 build-up and Fiat's roofless Topolino Dolce Vita. More at evpowered.co.uk.
 
Presented by Richard Alvin and George East. Everything EV is an EV Powered podcast.
 
CHAPTERS
0:00 Coming up
0:35 Intro: This Week's EV Headlines
1:50 BYD Seal: George Is Converted
5:41 BYD Atto 3 Evo: 443 bhp Overkill?
7:51 VW Pauses the ID. Golf
8:54 VW Eyes XPeng's CEA Platform
11:14 Polestar 2 Bows Out
14:29 All-EV Car of the Year Shortlist
16:48 The Car of the Year Wine Bet
17:21 Used EV Searches Jump 50%
18:48 Why Nobody Goes Back to Petrol
19:58 InstaVolt, Omoda & Jaecoo Perks
22:41 Does Your Bank Reward EV Charging?
23:28 ZEV Mandate & Pay-Per-Mile Limbo
25:45 Ricciardo Snubs Formula E
28:23 Formula E Gen 4: A Turning Point
30:41 Fiat Topolino Dolce Vita Goes Roofless
33:05 BYD Seal Review & China Book Picks
34:37 Next Week: Madrid Testing & SMMT Data
 
CREDITS
Footage and images courtesy of BMW Group, Citroen / Stellantis, FIA Formula E, Fiat / Stellantis, Polestar, Skoda Auto, Volkswagen AG.

Recorded on Tuesday 27 October, the day before the Budget. Richard Alvin and George East ask who is actually going to decide Britain's electric future, now that the Prime Minister has stepped back from the ZEV mandate decision.
Plus Tesla's bruising week, China's megawatt charging war, roads that charge your car, the BMW iX5, Citroën's 2 CV Concept, Li Auto, Volvo, Alpine, a million Geely EX2s, Formula E at COTA and more.

(00:00) Intro
(01:46) Burnham steps back: who decides the ZEV mandate?
(10:50) Tesla's bad week: Cybertruck axed in Australia
(16:09) China's megawatt charging war
(18:36) Roads that charge your car
(21:28) BMW iX5 beats its own charging figure
(25:40) Citroën's 2CV comeback
(27:32) Li Auto is coming to the UK
(29:06) Volvo's cheaper electric SUV
(31:55) Alpine: brand before volume
(34:24) Geely EX2 hits a million
(35:33) Formula E v F1 at COTA
(37:23) Niclas Grönholm's RallyX return
(38:50) Used Audi Q4 e-tron buyer's guide
(40:13) Electric motorbike gearbox and next week

More at evpowered.co.uk · @evpowered · editorial@evpowered.co.uk

Images: BMW Group, Citroën, Li Auto, Volvo Cars, Alpine, Formula E, Audi AG, Electreon. Via Wikimedia Commons: Tesla Cybertruck by Alexander Migl, CC BY-SA 4.0; BYD megawatt charging by iMoD Official, CC BY 3.0; Geely EX2 by Ethan Llamas, CC BY-SA 4.0; FC1-X by Calreyn88, CC BY-SA 4.0

Richard Alvin and George East cover a bumper fortnight of EV news. Europe's retro fightback at the Paris Motor Show (Peugeot E-T16, Citroën 2 CV, RCZ Vision, Renault E-Space, Alpine A310). China's next wave (BYD Atto 8, Zeekr 9X, Li Auto, Avatr). Tesla's new Roadster with thrusters and its delivery small print. Plus Waymo, Geely and Chery's UK push, Volvo and NVIDIA, touchscreens vs phones, the UK Budget, Formula E's Tinder deal, and reviews of the MG4, Polestar 5, Xpeng L03 and Fiat Topolino.
 
More EV news, reviews and test drives: https://evpowered.co.uk
Presented by Richard Alvin and George East. Everything EV is an EV Powered podcast.
 
CHAPTERS
0:00 Coming up
0:46 Paris promises, Texas theatrics
2:06 Paris Motor Show: Peugeot E-T16, 2 CV, RCZ Vision, E-Space, A310
4:55 Heritage vs originality: can Europe beat China?
8:46 BYD Atto 8 and Chinese build quality
12:24 Zeekr 9X vs Range Rover
14:07 "It's just a car"
17:03 Li Auto and Avatr come to Europe
20:07 Tesla Roadster revealed: thrusters and a "flying car"
24:17 The small print: deposits and delivery
26:10 Halo cars: SpaceX, Jaguar Type 01 and the E-Type
28:02 Waymo vs a New York yellow cab
29:13 Tesla's promises and Q3 numbers
31:01 Will teenagers still learn to drive?
32:40 Chinese brands' UK rollout: Geely, Chery, iCAUR
36:39 Volvo and NVIDIA: eyes-off driving
39:47 Touchscreens vs phones: Euro NCAP
43:45 UK Budget and charging infrastructure
49:09 Our new Formula E podcast
49:59 Formula E: Tinder, Gen4 and Season 13
56:47 Reviews: MG4, Polestar 5, Xpeng L03
58:44 Fiat Topolino

Matt Allan and George East are fuelled by rage this week. Matt loses 20 minutes hunting for the Mazda 6e's rear demister, September is a record month for UK EV registrations, Jaguar finally reveals the Type 01, Porsche confirms the electric Boxster and Cayman, Aston Martin pushes its first EV back again, and George can't see the point of Kia's new GT range. Then Matt cheers everyone up with the Polestar 5.
(00:00) Intro
(00:58) Matt's Mazda 6e rant
(06:48) Record September for EVs and the ZEV mandate
(12:19) Jaguar Type 01 revealed
(19:44) Porsche confirms electric Boxster and Cayman
(22:08) Aston Martin delays its first EV
(25:13) Kia's EV3, EV4 and EV5 GT
(31:30) Polestar 5 driven
(38:36) Wrap-up and what's next

More at evpowered.co.uk · @evpowered · editorial@evpowered.co.uk

Volkswagen's ID.4 is becoming the ID. Tiguan, Geely says it can charge an EV in four minutes, and an Audi A6 e-tron has driven 831 miles on a single charge. In this week's Everything EV, Matt Allan and George East go through the biggest electric car news, plus first drives of the Peugeot E-208 GTI and MG4 Urban.
First up is the Volkswagen ID. Tiguan. VW has sold around 900,000 ID.4s, but the car has never quite won people over. The updated model now takes the name of a car that has sold 8.3 million. Matt and George look at why familiar badges matter, and how the ID. Tiguan fits alongside the ID. Polo and ID.3 Neo.
Then it's the Chinese charging race. Geely has unveiled a 2.25MW system that takes a battery from 10 to 70% in four minutes, beating BYD's 1.5MW flash charging. The fastest-charging cars on sale in the UK manage around 400kW. Can the grid keep up, and does anyone need charging that fast?
There's good news closer to home. New SMMT figures show 171 electric models on sale in the UK, double the number of three years ago, and the average EV now offers 300 miles of range. Add 46 EVs priced under £30,000, and the team reckon range anxiety is running out of road.
Also this week: European Rally Champion Miko Marczyk drives an unmodified Audi A6 Sportback e-tron 831 miles on one charge, beating Lucid's 748-mile record. And the Tesla Roadster launch is postponed again, this time to 15 October.
In this episode:
Volkswagen ID. Tiguan: the ID.4 gets a new look and a famous name
Geely's 2.25MW charging against BYD's flash chargers, and the grid problem behind them
SMMT data: 171 EVs on sale in the UK and a 300-mile average range
Audi A6 Sportback e-tron sets an 831-mile single-charge record
Tesla Roadster launch delayed to 15 October
MG4 Urban driven: dull to drive, but big, cheap and efficient
Peugeot E-208 GTI driven: 0-60mph in 5.5 seconds, but would Matt swap his Cupra Raval for one?
Also from EV Powered: Plugged In
Our long-form interview podcast, Plugged In, is running alongside the weekly show. Episode one, with Richard Morgan of Electric Classic Cars, is out now. Next up is Dr Andy Palmer on getting the Nissan Leaf off the ground, joined-up energy infrastructure and how legacy brands can take on the Chinese challengers. Search "Plugged In EV Powered" wherever you listen.
Read more on all these stories at evpowered.co.uk, email the team at editorial@evpowered.co.uk and follow @evpowered on social media and YouTube.