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First-quarter deliveries will be significantly down, say analysts, with the CEO and his links with Donald Trump the ‘core toxic issue’ Tesla investors are bracing for evidence of declining global demand this week as the electric carmaker battles headwinds including a consumer backlash against its chief executive, Elon Musk . On 2 April, the US company will release data for first-quarter deliveries – a proxy for sales – that is expected to show a dip on the same period last year. The figures follow global protests on Saturday against Musk and Tesla, targeting the carmaker’s showrooms. Continue reading...

The long-running series in which readers answer other readers’ questions on subjects ranging from trivial flights of fancy to profound scientific and philosophical concepts Why don’t car side doors – particularly the driver’s side and the passenger seat – have wipers on the windows? Lenny Denby, London Post your answers (and new questions) below or send them to nq@theguardian.com . A selection will be published next Sunday. Continue reading...

Elliott Ingram was stunned at how a thief made off with his Ioniq 5 deploying a device to mimic the smart key – and says he should have been warned The motor manufacturer Hyundai faces legal action over allegations it failed to warn its customers that one of its most popular models of electric cars could be stolen “effortlessly in seconds”. Elliott Ingram, an expert in digital security, was stunned when a CCTV camera installed at his home recorded a hooded thief stealing his Hyundai Ioniq 5 car in less than 20 seconds. The thief is believed to have used a device, available online, to mimic the car’s electronic key. It is the latest in a spate of thefts involving the vehicle, and many owners now resort to a steering lock. Ingram’s car was later recovered by police, but he is terminating the lease and seeking compensation from the motor company. He says the South Korean car giant should have alerted customers to the security vulnerabilities. Continue reading...

Some voice regret over Musk’s backing of Trump, but others say CEO’s views do not detract from the car’s appeal Tesla showrooms across the world are expected to face anti-Elon Musk protests on Saturday, as Musk’s senior role in the Trump administration has contributed to a European consumer backlash by some Tesla owners and prospective buyers. It follows a 44% drop in Tesla sales in Europe on average last month, according to the research platform Jato Dynamics. Tesla’s European market share fell to 9.6% last month, the lowest it has registered in February for five years. Continue reading...

Opposition says Labor’s national vehicle emission standard is ‘poorly designed’, despite data showing uptick in green vehicle sales See all our Australian election 2025 coverage Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast Australia’s love-hate relationship with fuel-guzzling utes and SUVs is now a looming election issue, after the Coalition indicated it may rethink Labor’s vehicle emission standard. On Tuesday the shadow transport minister, Bridget McKenzie, called Labor’s vehicle emission standard “poorly designed” and said the Coalition will have “more to say” about it when the opposition releases its own transport policy before the election. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Talks to take place with operators about the scheme, announced in 2020, which has failed to make any grants Ministers are considering diverting money from a £950m scheme to install rapid chargers for electric cars on the UK’s motorways, announced five years ago, after it failed to make a single grant. Much of the cash allocated to the rapid charging fund (RCF) could be redirected to investments in other charging schemes, or to support the transition to electric vehicles more broadly, although decisions have yet to be made, according to a person close to discussions in government. Continue reading...

BYD, a Chinese carmaker once dismissed by Tesla’s CEO, claims to have outpaced western rivals with charging tech that’s as fast as filling petrol engines Tesla’s boss, Elon Musk, once thought the idea that China’s BYD could compete with his company was laughable . In 2011, he smugly dismissed the Chinese carmaker as unimpressive, its products unattractive and its technology “not very strong”. He’s not laughing now – and not just because Tesla’s stock has plummeted amid a boycott by motorists protesting against his embrace of far-right politics. More pressingly, Mr Musk, like other western carmakers, has been outpaced by BYD. Last week, the Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer unveiled new charging technology that, it says, is capable of delivering 400km (249 miles) of driving range in just five minutes – as quick as filling up a petrol car. The system, released next month, will be fitted in two EVs, priced from 270,000 yuan (£29,000) – comparable to Tesla’s most affordable...

Motoring figures | The power of music | Art appreciation | Friends’ joint accounts | Drummer jokes “Fresh incentives to boost a flatlining electric car market are urgently needed, according to the UK automotive industry,” you report ( 13 March ). According to figures compiled by the Society of Motor Manufacturers & Traders, electric vehicle sales rose 18% on the previous year in 2023, a further 21% in 2024 , and are up 42% in the first two months of 2025 on the same period in 2024. Could you or the carmakers explain to me which part of this curve is flatlining? David Farrar Sheffield • I am a regular reader of the Guardian so am used to good journalism. However, the heartfelt honesty of John Harris’s writing about the impact of music on his autistic son’s life took my breath away ( ‘He nails it on the first take’: how the Beatles helped my autistic son find his voice, 15 March ). Margaret Coupe Longnor, Staffordshire Continue reading...

The Chinese carmaker’s shares have jumped as investors speculated it could outdo Elon Musk’s Tesla BYD says new charging system could be as quick as filling up a tank The leading Chinese electric carmaker BYD has surged in value after it said its latest batteries charge fast enough to add 400km (249 miles) of range in only five minutes . BYD’s Hong Kong-listed shares gained 4.1% on Monday to hit a record high of 408.80 Hong Kong dollars ($40.58), as investors bet that the company could strengthen its already commanding market position. Continue reading...

Despite the government pledging extra funds and one hole being filled every 18 seconds, motoring groups say situation looks ‘bleak’ for drivers The cost of fully fixing the pothole-plagued local roads of England and Wales has reached a new high of almost £17bn, according to the latest industry report. The record sums required come despite increased government funds to target road repairs – and one pothole being filled every 18 seconds. Continue reading...

BYD reveals new platform with charging speeds of 1,000 kW, which would be twice as fast as Tesla’s superchargers Chinese electric vehicle (EV) maker BYD has unveiled a new charging system that it said could make it possible for EVs to charge as quickly as it takes to refill with petrol and announced for the first time that it would build a charging network across China. The so-called “super e-platform” will be capable of peak charging speeds of 1,000 kilowatts (kW), enabling cars that use it to travel 400km (249 miles) on a five-minute charge, founder Wang Chuanfu said at an event livestreamed from the company’s Shenzhen headquarters on Monday. Continue reading...

With power unlikely to be restored in some areas for weeks, EV owners are finding clever uses for their ‘batteries on wheels’ Get our breaking news email , free app or daily news podcast When Kat Hickey and her husband talked about what they would do if Tropical Cyclone Alfred knocked out the power in their north Brisbane home, they were more concerned than most. The pair have a nine-month-old daughter and a three-year-old son – having a reliable way to sterilise bottles and boil water for formula was critical. Sign up for Guardian Australia’s breaking news email Continue reading...

Letter from Elon Musk’s firm to US trade representative warns of ‘downstream impacts’ of tit-for-tat tariffs Business live – latest updates Elon Musk’s Tesla has warned that Donald Trump’s trade war could expose the electric carmaker to retaliatory tariffs that would also impact other automotive manufacturers in the US. In an unsigned letter to Jamieson Greer, the US trade representative, Tesla said that it “supports fair trade” but that the US administration should ensure that it did not “inadvertently harm US companies”. Continue reading...

Automotive body says current policy is leading to job losses and has become a ‘driver of de-industrialisation’ Fresh incentives to boost a flatlining electric car market are urgently needed, according to the UK automotive industry, whose leaders called on the government to act fast and “revisit the mandate” for zero emission vehicles (ZEV). The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) said its research showed growth in consumer demand for EVs was lower than expected, with only one in eight new buyers planning to switch in the next three years, putting jobs at risk. Continue reading...

Swedish firm unable to ‘secure the necessary financial conditions to continue in its current form’ Northvolt, the Swedish electric vehicle battery startup, has filed for bankruptcy in Sweden, marking the end of a company once seen as Europe’s best hope of challenging the dominant Asian battery industry. The company said in a statement it had been unable to “secure the necessary financial conditions to continue in its current form” in Sweden. Continue reading...

Committee warns of serious injustice to disabled motorists and those reliant on public chargers The rollout of electric vehicle chargers across Britain is “patchy”, behind deadline and ignores the needs of disabled drivers, the parliamentary spending watchdog has found. A report published by the public accounts committee (PAC) warned that the charging points needed to give drivers confidence for the switch to EVs were still lacking, particularly on Britain’s biggest roads. Continue reading...

Affected roads include vital routes for holidaymakers, including A2 towards Folkestone and parts of A303 and A30 A quarter of England’s most important A-roads have electric car charging “cold spots”, according to government figures that suggest significant gaps remain in the infrastructure needed to switch away from fossil fuels. Twenty-nine out of 107 A-roads that are part of the strategic road network have at least one cold spot, according to data obtained by charging company Zest from the Department for Transport. Cold spots are defined as points where a vehicle with only 10% of its battery remaining would not be able to reach a site with at least six rapid or ultra-rapid devices. Continue reading...

Study finds wealthy have larger carbon footprints but are uniquely positioned to have positive effects Better-off Britons are well placed to accelerate the transition towards low-carbon technologies , but only if they are prepared to curb their excessive consumption to lower their outsized carbon footprints, a study has found. Researchers found people from the richest 10% in the UK were more likely to invest in electric vehicles, heat pumps and other clean energy alternatives, and were more likely to support green policies. Continue reading...

Sales of battery-powered cars jumped in February, with Model 3 and Model Y most popular after Mini Cooper Sales of Teslas in the UK rose by more than a fifth last month as demand for battery-powered cars increased, despite the prospect of a buyer backlash over Elon Musk’s controversial and divisive behaviour since becoming a key figure in Donald Trump’s administration. Almost 4,000 Teslas were sold in the UK in February, with the Model 3 and Model Y proving the second and third most popular after the Mini Cooper, according to the latest new car registration figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Continue reading...

Environmental groups say two-year grace period allowed by Ursula von der Leyen ‘rewards laggard’ manufacturers European carmakers are to be given two extra years to meet this year’s pollution target, the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, has said, in a further rollback of her green deal climate policies. Companies who sell too many dirty vehicles this year will be allowed to compensate by selling more clean vehicles in the two years that follow, under a proposal that would stretch the window of compliance for the 2025 fleet emissions target to 2027. Continue reading...

Tesla once appeared the future of vehicles. Then Musk’s salutes and support at Trump’s inauguration left owners feeling ‘saddled with a symbol of hate’ Don’t let a billionaire’s algorithm control what you read. Download our free app to get trusted reporting . When Elon Musk unveiled Tesla ’s “truck of the future” in 2019, Filipos could barely contain his excitement. He quickly paid $100 to get on the waitlist. Filipos described himself as a “true Tesla fanboy”, and the Cybertruck would be the third vehicle he’d buy from the company. “When the Cybertruck came out, I watched the live event that night, and my wife was sitting there going, ‘No. No. No,’” said Filipos, who lives in a suburb of Philadelphia and whose last name is being withheld for fear of online retribution. Despite his wife’s disapproval, Filipos loved the bulky trapezoidal truck. “I was truly geeking out on it,” he said. Continue reading...