Europa

While Paris is expanding bike paths and shunning SUVs, it’s different in Berlin. Here, the car is king, at least for the city’s conservative government, which is unleashing a culture war against cyclists and drivers – but cyclists are on the losing end this time.

Just days after Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares divulged the automotive conglomerate was mulling building electric vehicles for joint venture partner Leapmotor in Europe, the always interesting Tavares spoke further, sharing an openness to also assemble the Chinese EVs in North America, most likely the US, if necessary. Here’s the latest.

Plan A isn’t working, so it’s time for Plan B. Three major legacy automakers are considering a creative approach to staying in the game amid fierce competition from Tesla and Chinese rivals – all in an effort to make cheap EVs, and a whole lot of them.

Four months after announcing a joint venture with Chinese EV automaker Leapmotor, Stellantis is reportedly mulling taking the strategic cooperation further by building hundreds of thousands of BEVs for its new partner in Italy to serve the European market.

Forvia, a major supplier for Stellantis, Volkswagen, Tesla, and Ford, plans to cut as many as 10,000 jobs in Europe over the next five years. The news falls days after major auto supplier Continental announced that it too was cutting its workforce by 7,150 jobs.

In a huge push to give European automakers a fighting chance over China in the EV sector, Stellantis and Mercedes-Benz have raised nearly €4.4 billion to build four new EV gigafactories across the European Union in the coming years.

Just four months after France’s Prime Minister announced a new EV subsidy program to incentivize drivers to go all-electric, the government is putting a halt to the savings, at least for the rest of the year.

A mere two years removed from its initial entry into new markets of Europe, Build Your Dreams (BYD) is looking to expedite its expansion with the help of Arval – a major vehicle leasing company overseas. The two companies signed a Memorandum of Understanding to become leasing partners and ensure more BYD passenger and light commercial EVs are available to drivers.

Europe is installing more solar panels than ever before, thanks to a flood of cheap Chinese solar panels, driving installations by 40% last year. But it comes at a hefty cost: Local solar manufacturers are on the brink of a total collapse that could happen within weeks.

Ford is laying off some 3,500 workers in Germany as the automaker ends the production of the Focus – the once crazily popular car that never managed to get off the ground with its electric version – in 2025.

Europe’s coal electricity generation tanked by 26% and gas by 15% in 2023, according to a new report from energy think tank Ember.

Regulators hate them, saying all the popularity of massive, heavy SUVs runs counter to environmental targets. Paris even slapped some hefty fines on SUVs parking in the city. But European consumers are showing nothing but love for the SUV, in all shapes and sizes. In a new milestone, SUV sales took the market lead at 51%.

Parisians have voted to triple the parking costs for SUVs – including heavier electric ones and hybrids. This Sunday, the city held a referendum, with Parisians voting 56.6% in favor of increased parking fees for SUVs and heavy sedans, of all varieties.

Stellantis has been at odds with the Italian government for its lack of support in EV adoption and not backing home-grown brands Fiat and Alfa Romeo. But now Italy says it is open to buying a stake in Stellantis, Reuters reports, using the same model France uses for its beloved Renault.

 
China’s BYD is selling millions of EVs, famously outselling Tesla in the last quarter of 2023, and riding an enormous wave of success. But not many Europeans (and practically no Americans) have ever heard of it, much less trust it as a reliable brand. But as the EV giant makes inroads outside of China, it is looking to change that, the old-school way, dealer by dealer.

Germany is Europe’s biggest auto market, and it’s been one of the main drivers of EV growth. But now that is expected to change course, as EV sales are projected to drop – by 14% – for the first time in eight years.

On the heels of unveiling the long-awaited all-electric Porsche Macan SUV, the company’s chief financial officer Lutz Meschke delivered what could be some dreary news, if it happens: He said that Europe’s plan to ban ICE vehicles by 2035 may get pushed back due to a slowing EV demand, reports Automotive News Europe. 

EVs drivers in Italy are a rare breed. And Stellantis’s CEO Carlos Tarvares says the government needs to step in and do more, a lot more, to promote EVs in a country with only 4% EV adoption rate, reports Automotive News Europe. Italy has some of the oldest, most polluting cars in Europe, and is lagging way behind other European countries in EV adoption, with an incentive program that has been practically nonexistent.

Major car suppliers in Germany say they are struggling with the high upfront costs of shifting to EVs and “slow demand,” with companies looking to lay off thousands of workers, as much as 20% of total staff in some cases, in the coming years.

Chinese EV behemoth BYD may bring two off-road electric SUVs sold in China to Europe that could rival the Land Rover Defender, the Mercedes G-Class, and Ford Bronco. BYD claims one can float on water for a full 30 minutes.

Tesla has slashed the prices of its Model Y across Europe this morning, after it reduced prices of its Model 3 and Model Y prices in China to undercut BYD, according to CNBC.