Lucid Air charging boost, Mercedes range extenders, EVs losing money: Today’s Car News

Lucid adds a heat pump and subtracts charging time for its range-leading Air electric sedan. Mercedes-Benz might not see what Ram sees in a plug-in range-extended vehicle. And why is each EV still losing thousands to full-line automakers? This and more, here at EV kind of cars. 

The 2024 Lucid Air Grand Touring is now being delivered, and once again it hits a 516-mile EPA range—the best of any EV. But with the addition of a head pump, improved automatic preconditioning, and up to 30% faster DC charging, it’s likely to cut the time spent at road-trip charging stops even more. 

Mercedes-Benz has reportedly scrapped its extended-range EV powertrains under development, at least partly because they were too expensive and seen as a technological patch. The plug-in series hybrids would have used dramatically downsized engines—a turbo-2 for the EQS—while halving the EV battery pack. 

And if $50,000 EVs still lose $6,000, according to a recent analysis, when will EVs become profitable? Various financial incentives will help; so will range and efficiency; but the simple answer may rest on production volume. 

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