With Tesla in a mad dash to finish its Gigafactory and Faraday Future poised to break ground on its own massive battery production facility, large automakers are looking for a way to catch up.
Autocar is reporting that Jaguar/Land Rover (JLR) has joined a conversation between Ford and BMW about co-developing a battery factory that could scale production for the range of new EV models on the way from each brand. Though FF and Tesla require giant facilities to supply their purely electric line of cars, other automakers only need a fraction of the production to supply a few hybrids and EVs.
Currently, JLR doesn’t have a single electric vehicle, but it’s eager to incorporate one — likely in its new F-Pace crossover. Meanwhile, BMW sources its batteries from Samsung and Ford receives its batteries from an LG entity. By pooling resources in one facility, all three brands could experience lower developments costs, more efficient production processes, and better battery technologies.
Read More: JLR Is Designing Cars That Can Drive Better Than You
Though Ford currently builds the all-electric C-Max and Fusion, its first from-the-ground-up EV model could be the “Model E.” Tesla attempted to use the nameplate before settling on the Model 3, so it’s doubtful Ford would put up a fight to save the badge without using it.
BMW’s next generation i3 and an all-electric i8 are most certainly in the works, along with the rumored i5. BMW has already committed to adding electrified powertrains to current models and to developing more i Series models, so we can expect the automaker’s need for batteries to swell.
Ford, BMW, and JLR are probably not alone in their quest to co-develop EV technologies. Though the EPA has been stalled in its attempts to drastically improve fuel economy figures and reduce emissions, the restrictions will continue to tighten and automakers will be forced to add alternative energy models. Getting the foundational work done now will mean better products and cheaper development bills.
BYD has launched the third-generation Qin Plus DM-i in China, and the first thing that caught my eye is its price. According to CarNewsChina, the plug-in hybrid sedan starts at 79,900 yuan, which is about $11,980. That’s an incredibly low price for a brand-new car, especially by US standards.
What’s even more impressive is the range. The Qin Plus DM-i can drive up to 137 miles on electricity alone, which should cover most people’s daily commutes without using a drop of gas. Once the battery runs out, the 1.5-liter engine takes over. Thanks to its 17-gallon tank and roughly 91 mpg with a drained battery, the combined range reaches up to 1,423 miles.
Apple won the PC market’s worst quarter, but that’s not the entire story. It won the race by stumbling less than everyone else.
PC makers shipped just 57 million computers worldwide in Q3, which might look good, but it’s a 21% year-over-year plunge (via Counterpoint Research). And despite Apple’s Mac shipments falling by 11%, to 5.6 million, its market share rose from 8.7% to 9.8%. How did that happen?
Update (October 22 23:54 PT): In response to our query, GM clarified that offline recording support is already available on eligible vehicles. Like Tesla's Sentry Mode, it requires owners to connect a USB drive to save incident recordings, which can be viewed on the vehicle's infotainment screen. The upcoming Connected Cameras feature will build on this by giving owners remote access to these recordings via the revamped OnStar app, allowing them to check footage without walking out to their car.
General Motors has announced plans to add a new Connected Cameras feature to its OnStar service starting next year, giving drivers a way to monitor parked vehicles remotely and capture footage of certain incidents.