TL;DR
- Tesla Model Y returns to top of German EV sales at 37.7% plugin market share, highest in nine years.
- Ford and Geely announced Valencia joint venture to make Geely electric SUVs and Ford Bronco starting 2028, reviving an idle Spanish factory.
- Polestar Mona L03 launched globally July 16 with second-gen autonomous driving standard across all trims.
- Geely exported 102,874 vehicles in June, a 157% year-on-year surge and first-ever monthly peak above 100,000 units.
New models and reveals
Ford and Geely reshape Europe's stalled factory
A joint venture at Ford's underused Valencia plant marks the second major European foothold for the Chinese automaker, producing vehicles from 2028.
Ford and Geely announced a joint venture at Ford's idle Valencia, Spain factory, where output had dropped to under 100,000 units in 2025. From 2028, the plant will produce three Ford-branded vehicles including a Bronco, two Geely electric SUVs, and a crossover, with capacity eventually targeting 500,000 units. Geely pays €221 million. (via Yahoo Finance)
Polestar's Mona L03 launches with standard autonomous driving. Polestar unveiled the Mona L03 on July 16 in Munich across 64 markets, with the company's second-generation VLA 2.0 self-driving system included on every trim as standard. The pure-vision approach uses cameras instead of LiDAR. (via TechTimes)
Nissan delivered its 100,000th electric vehicle in the UK. The milestone arrived as the all-new MICRA reached a customer, capping 15 years of sales spanning 1.25 million electrified vehicles across Europe since 2010. (via ElectricCarsReport)
EV and battery tech
Germany's EV dominance accelerates, Tesla regains top spot
Plugin electric vehicles now account for over one-third of German sales as government support and oil prices push adoption beyond expectations.
Plugin EVs hit 37.7 percent of German car sales in Q2 2026, up from 28.6 percent a year earlier. Tesla's Model Y retook the bestseller crown with 10,401 units, its first top spot since Q1 2024, as subsidies and oil prices lifted demand. Analysts expect plugin EVs to reach mid-40 percent by year's end. (via CleanTechnica)
BYD's Seal 08 adds 400 km in five minutes. The flagship sedan delivers up to 905 km of CLTC range. BYD's Flash Charging hits 1500 kW peak output—six times Tesla's fastest charger—adding 400 km in five minutes or charging 10 to 97 percent in nine minutes. The firm targets 20,000 stations by year-end 2026 and is expanding to Europe. (via Electrek)
Wayve, Uber and Nissan team for Tokyo robotaxi pilot. The three firms will deploy Nissan LEAF vehicles piloting Wayve's AI Driver in Tokyo by late 2026, marking the first confirmed driverless tech rollout in the city at scale. (via Nissan Newsroom)
Industry and sales
Geely's export surge breaks records as Polestar exits America
China's second-largest private automaker shipped over 100,000 vehicles overseas for the first time in a single month, while Polestar abandons the US market.
Geely Auto sold a record 102,874 vehicles overseas in June—up 157 percent year on year and first-time peak above 100,000 units. New-energy models made up 58 percent of exports. First-half 2026 total shipments reached 474,228 vehicles, already exceeding all of 2025's full-year overseas sales. (via CnEVPost)
Polestar will exit the US market after 2027. The US Department of Commerce declined to allow sales beyond 2027, citing Chinese ownership, though parent Volvo secured an exemption. Polestar declined to pursue the carve-out; the US accounted for 6 percent of 2025 sales. (via Carscoops)
Policy and charging
BYD's megawatt charging expands across Europe
The Chinese maker's Flash Charging network is opening in multiple European countries with the aim of undercutting traditional fossil fuel refueling times.
BYD is rolling out megawatt Flash Charging across Europe in Germany, France, Italy, Spain, the UK, and Netherlands, adding 400 km of range in five minutes to compatible cars. The firm targets 20,000 stations in China by year-end 2026 and is scaling overseas, supporting any car with a CCS2 plug. Peak output hits 1500 kW. (via Electrek)
Motorsport and tech crossover
XPeng's next-gen autonomous car launches in Europe
The Chinese maker's pure-vision self-driving system debuts globally and signals plans for Level 4 autonomy by 2028.
XPeng unveiled the Mona L03 on July 16, arriving in 64 countries with second-generation VLA 2.0 autonomous driving standard on every trim. The pure-vision system uses cameras instead of LiDAR. The firm aims for Level 4 autonomy by 2028 and plans to deploy VLA internationally from 2027 with multilingual voice control, directly challenging Tesla in Europe. (via Benzinga)