ev.news Briefly: EV Switching. 2026 Forecast, Jag Type01 & more | 13 Aug 2026
Aug 15, 01:19 AM
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➤ EARLY EV SWITCH CUT CO2 IN 92% OF UCSC SCENARIOS
➤ EV VOLUMES FORECASTS 23.3M PLUG-IN SALES IN 2026, UP 7.8%
➤ JAGUAR REVEALS TYPE 01 INTERIOR BEFORE 6 OCTOBER NEW YORK UNVEILING
➤ VW TO SHOW ELECTRIC ID. CALIFORNIA CRUISE AT CARAVAN SALON
➤ WAYMO HAS 684 FINISHED OJAI ROBOTAXIS WAITING AT MESA
➤ YASA WINS DRIVE35 GRANT FOR RARE-EARTH-FREE AXIAL FLUX MOTORS
➤ AION UT HATCHBACK REACHES UK IN SEPTEMBER BELOW £30,000
➤ ANALYST THINKS AMERICANS WILL FORCE USA TO ADMIT CHINESE EVS
➤ TATA TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPING MULTI-POWERTRAIN PLATFORM FOR HONDA, BLOOMBERG REPORTS
➤ WHITBY MORRISON DELIVERS ELECTRIC ICE-CREAM VAN TO HOCKING'S OF DEVON
It's ev.news Briefly for Thursday 13 August 2026, only todays headlines and nothing else, in just 4 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.
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EARLY EV SWITCH CUT CO2 IN 92% OF UCSC SCENARIOS
A University of California Santa Cruz study published in Science modelled over 400 vehicle scenarios and found that in 92% of them, switching to an electric car as soon as possible cut more emissions than keeping the combustion car, with the roughly three-year manufacturing carbon debt offset after about 21,500 kilometres in the case of the BMW iX3. Scrapping the old car rather than selling it cut lifecycle emissions by up to 44%, because selling it simply passes the petrol burning to someone else, though coal-heavy grids weaken the case and the study measured carbon rather than cost.
EV VOLUMES FORECASTS 23.3M PLUG-IN SALES IN 2026, UP 7.8%
EV Volumes expects global light-vehicle sales to fall in 2026 on economic and geopolitical pressures while plug-in sales rise 7.8% to about 23.3 million, taking share to 25.7% as BEVs climb 17.2% to an 18.5% share and PHEVs drop 10.6% to 7.2%. America is the drag, with US EV sales down 32.9% to 415,968 and a further 15% contraction forecast for 2026, while Western and Central Europe supplies the growth at 1.9 million sales, up 29.7%.
EV Volumes expects global light-vehicle sales to fall in 2026 on economic and geopolitical pressures while plug-in sales rise 7.8% to about 23.3 million, taking share to 25.7% as BEVs climb 17.2% to an 18.5% share and PHEVs drop 10.6% to 7.2%. America is the drag, with US EV sales down 32.9% to 415,968 and a further 15% contraction forecast for 2026, while Western and Central Europe supplies the growth at 1.9 million sales, up 29.7%.
JAGUAR REVEALS TYPE 01 INTERIOR BEFORE 6 OCTOBER NEW YORK UNVEILING
Jaguar has shown the uncamouflaged cabin of the Type 01, the four-seat GT leading its reinvention as an all-electric luxury marque, with a central spine splitting the interior into four single-seat compartments, a sparse dashboard carrying only a driver display and small touchscreen, and finishes in travertine stone and artisan textiles. Like the Polestar 4 it has no rear window or mirror, relying on a camera feed, and the car appears at Monterey Car Week this weekend in fresh camouflage before its New York unveiling on 6 October.
Jaguar has shown the uncamouflaged cabin of the Type 01, the four-seat GT leading its reinvention as an all-electric luxury marque, with a central spine splitting the interior into four single-seat compartments, a sparse dashboard carrying only a driver display and small touchscreen, and finishes in travertine stone and artisan textiles. Like the Polestar 4 it has no rear window or mirror, relying on a camera feed, and the car appears at Monterey Car Week this weekend in fresh camouflage before its New York unveiling on 6 October.
VW TO SHOW ELECTRIC ID. CALIFORNIA CRUISE AT CARAVAN SALON
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles will give the ID. Buzz-based ID. California Cruise its world premiere at Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf from 28 August to 6 September, calling it the first fully electric California and the foundation of a family of electric campervans. Alongside it is a concept for the California Beach featuring an inflatable kitchen under 10kg developed with Stuff Bubble and a convertible bed module of roughly 200 x 134cm, removable kit that lets buyers trade equipment weight against range.
Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles will give the ID. Buzz-based ID. California Cruise its world premiere at Caravan Salon in Düsseldorf from 28 August to 6 September, calling it the first fully electric California and the foundation of a family of electric campervans. Alongside it is a concept for the California Beach featuring an inflatable kitchen under 10kg developed with Stuff Bubble and a convertible bed module of roughly 200 x 134cm, removable kit that lets buyers trade equipment weight against range.
WAYMO HAS 684 FINISHED OJAI ROBOTAXIS WAITING AT MESA
A tracker counting Waymo's Mesa, Arizona site found 953 Ojai robotaxis, of which 684 are finished and idle without passengers, up from around 500 in early June, alongside 12 completed Hyundai IONIQ 5 robotaxis. The Zeekr-built, Magna-converted Ojai carries the sixth-generation Waymo Driver with 13 cameras and four lidars for under $20,000 per vehicle, and is intended to replace the ageing Jaguar I-Pace fleet across San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix.
A tracker counting Waymo's Mesa, Arizona site found 953 Ojai robotaxis, of which 684 are finished and idle without passengers, up from around 500 in early June, alongside 12 completed Hyundai IONIQ 5 robotaxis. The Zeekr-built, Magna-converted Ojai carries the sixth-generation Waymo Driver with 13 cameras and four lidars for under $20,000 per vehicle, and is intended to replace the ageing Jaguar I-Pace fleet across San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix.
YASA WINS DRIVE35 GRANT FOR RARE-EARTH-FREE AXIAL FLUX MOTORS
Oxford axial flux motor maker YASA has won UK government funding through the DRIVE35 Demonstrate competition for Project Resilience, which pursues two rotor pathways built on its existing stator, one using magnets free of heavy rare earths and one removing rare earths entirely. The work addresses a concentrated and politically exposed supply chain, but risks heat performance, and runs across the Mercedes-Benz subsidiary's Oxford, Bicester and Welshpool sites, which employ more than 300 people.
Oxford axial flux motor maker YASA has won UK government funding through the DRIVE35 Demonstrate competition for Project Resilience, which pursues two rotor pathways built on its existing stator, one using magnets free of heavy rare earths and one removing rare earths entirely. The work addresses a concentrated and politically exposed supply chain, but risks heat performance, and runs across the Mercedes-Benz subsidiary's Oxford, Bicester and Welshpool sites, which employ more than 300 people.
AION UT HATCHBACK REACHES UK IN SEPTEMBER BELOW £30,000
AION opens UK order books in September for the UT, a sub-4.3-metre electric hatchback with a 201hp front motor, 7.3-second 0-62mph time, a claimed 268 miles WLTP and a 30-80% charge in 24 minutes, priced below £30,000 though no exact figure has been given. Designed at GAC's Milan studio and following the V SUV as AION's second UK model, it takes on the CUPRA Raval, Volkswagen ID. Polo and Renault 5 with no dealer network or badge recognition to lean on.
AION opens UK order books in September for the UT, a sub-4.3-metre electric hatchback with a 201hp front motor, 7.3-second 0-62mph time, a claimed 268 miles WLTP and a 30-80% charge in 24 minutes, priced below £30,000 though no exact figure has been given. Designed at GAC's Milan studio and following the V SUV as AION's second UK model, it takes on the CUPRA Raval, Volkswagen ID. Polo and Renault 5 with no dealer network or badge recognition to lean on.
ANALYST THINKS AMERICANS WILL FORCE USA TO ADMIT CHINESE EVS
With Canada set to permit up to 49,000 Chinese-made EVs a year and Mexico already selling them, Automotive Foresight's Yale Zhang argues American buyers who can see cheaper cars a few hours away will pressure politicians to open the market despite the 100% tariff and connected-car security rules. Local assembly, joint ventures and technology sold under other badges could bypass import tariffs anyway, and Ford's Jim Farley has warned staff Chinese rivals could arrive within five to 10 years while Ford works towards a $25,000 EV.
With Canada set to permit up to 49,000 Chinese-made EVs a year and Mexico already selling them, Automotive Foresight's Yale Zhang argues American buyers who can see cheaper cars a few hours away will pressure politicians to open the market despite the 100% tariff and connected-car security rules. Local assembly, joint ventures and technology sold under other badges could bypass import tariffs anyway, and Ford's Jim Farley has warned staff Chinese rivals could arrive within five to 10 years while Ford works towards a $25,000 EV.
TATA TECHNOLOGIES DEVELOPING MULTI-POWERTRAIN PLATFORM FOR HONDA, BLOOMBERG REPORTS
Bloomberg reports that Tata Technologies is developing a platform supporting petrol, hybrid and electric powertrains across multiple vehicles for Honda, though neither company has confirmed the customer. Chief executive Warren Harris has referred only to a full vehicle programme won from an unnamed Japanese OEM in April, and India looks the likely market given Honda's pledge of ten models there by 2030 and Toshihiro Mibe's comments about using external development resources from 2028.
Bloomberg reports that Tata Technologies is developing a platform supporting petrol, hybrid and electric powertrains across multiple vehicles for Honda, though neither company has confirmed the customer. Chief executive Warren Harris has referred only to a full vehicle programme won from an unnamed Japanese OEM in April, and India looks the likely market given Honda's pledge of ten models there by 2030 and Toshihiro Mibe's comments about using external development resources from 2028.
WHITBY MORRISON DELIVERS ELECTRIC ICE-CREAM VAN TO HOCKING'S OF DEVON
British converter Whitby Morrison has delivered what it calls the world's first fully certified electric ice-cream van to Hocking's of North Devon, built on a Mercedes-Benz eSprinter Chassis Cab with up to 274 miles of range, 10-80% charging in 34 minutes and a 4.25-tonne weight that keeps it within a Category B licence. Designed as an EV from the outset, it uses the company's ePower system to run the freezing equipment from the vehicle rather than a kerbside auxiliary engine, removing the noise from a trade that has traditionally announced itself by sound.
British converter Whitby Morrison has delivered what it calls the world's first fully certified electric ice-cream van to Hocking's of North Devon, built on a Mercedes-Benz eSprinter Chassis Cab with up to 274 miles of range, 10-80% charging in 34 minutes and a 4.25-tonne weight that keeps it within a Category B licence. Designed as an EV from the outset, it uses the company's ePower system to run the freezing equipment from the vehicle rather than a kerbside auxiliary engine, removing the noise from a trade that has traditionally announced itself by sound.