BYD more likely to build it’s own plant in Europe than take over Ford’s
Just weeks after reports stating Ford was considering selling its German manufacturing facility to BYD, the Chinese automaker appears more keen on erecting its own EV facility in Europe, according to an executive at the company. Here’s the latest.
BYD Auto is the automotive subsidiary of BYD Company that develops and produces passenger cars, buses, and trucks in China, in addition to rechargeable batteries and energy storage solutions we are seeing implemented more and more in the US.
In the summer of 2022, BYD shared plans to begin selling its EVs outside of China by entering the Japanese market. Ten days later, the company promised EV deliveries in Germany and Sweden before the end of 2022.
BYD EVs will be on sale in countries above, in addition to Norway, Denmark, the Netherlands, France, and Belgium. To support its growing sales footprint overseas, BYD shared its intentions for at least one, if not two, manufacturing facilities in Europe.
These new facilities will also soon support EVs going to the UK, as BYD announced sales in yet another territory. In late January, we reported that Ford was looking to sell its existing production facility in Saarlouis, Germany and had been in talks with BYD as a potential suitor looking for brick and mortar in Europe.
Following recent comments from an executive at BYD however, talks with Ford appear to have fizzled out, leaving the Chinese automaker to mull building its own plant(s) in Europe.
BYD says Ford plant out, but no target country in Europe yet
In a recent interview, BYD executive vice president Stella Li said the automaker is more likely to explore the construction of its own EV plant in Europe rather than acquire Ford’s facility.
We are not focusing on certain companies’ facilities. We are doing feasibility studies to see our plans for the future. Like if we set up our facility in that region, what is the best solution out there?
The best solution appears unclear at this time, as the company states that it has “no target countries to build facilities yet.” What does seem clear, however, is that Ford’s plant is off the table and BYD will seek land in Europe elsewhere.
Ford should be alright, though. According to the original report from the Wall Street Journal, the American automaker was courting 15 potential suitors for the plant Germany. BYD on the other hand, is already erecting a new facility in Thailand to support consumers in Australia, Japan, and Singapore.
The expected facilities in Europe should also help shorten supply chains and support its pending sales and dealer networks along with service centers. We’ve seen fellow Chinese Ev automaker XPeng Motors implement a similar entry strategy in Europe, ensuring it has the brand recognition and physical footprint to support dealers and customer service needs before officially beginning sales.
What still remains unclear is whether BYD plans to enter the US market after Europe, Ford’s home turf. BYD’s potential competitors in Europe are scrambling to cut costs and move production to North America in order for their EVs to once again qualify for federal tax credits under revised terms in the Inflation Reduction Act – a piece of legislature Li says is not “helping the US to be competitive in the EV race or helping US consumers enjoy the best, the most innovative technology.”
Instead, the BYD executive believes China and Europe will lead the global pack when it comes to EV adoption. Time will tell as BYD opens up its order books in Europe, but it will certainly need some manufacturing overseas to support that venture, whether it’s a Ford plant or its own.
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Over the weekend, Tesla began offering many Cybertruck trade-in estimated values above the original purchase price, apparently due to a glitch in its system.
Tesla offers online trade-in estimates for individuals considering purchasing a vehicle from them.
Over the last few days, Cybertruck owners who submitted their vehicles through the system were surprised to see Tesla offering extremely high valuations on the vehicle, often above what they originally paid for the electric truck.
Here are a few examples:
- $79,200 for a 2025 Cybertruck AWD with 18,000 miles. Since this is a 2025 model year, it was eligible for the tax credit and Tesla is offering the same price as new without incentive.
- Here Tesla offered $118,800 for a 2024 Cybertruck ‘Cyberbeast’ tri-motor with 21,000 miles.
- In this example, Tesla offers $11,000 more than the owner originally paid for a 2024 Cybertruck.
The trade-in estimates made no sense. Tesla has been known to offer more attractive estimates online and then come lower with the official final offer, but this is on a whole different level.
Some speculated that Tesla’s trade-in estimate system was malfunctioning, while others thought Tesla was indirectly recalling early Cybertrucks.
It appears to be the former.
Some Tesla Cybertruck owners who tried to go through a new order with their Cybertruck as a trade-in were told by Tesla advisors that the system was “glitching” and they would not be honoring those prices.
Tesla told buyers that it would be refunding its usually “non-refundable” order fee.
Electrek’s Take
That’s a weird glitch. I assume that it was trying to change how the trade-in value would be estimated and the new math didn’t work for the Cybertruck for whatever reason.
It’s the only thing that makes sense to me.
The Cybertruck’s value is already quite weird due to the fact that Tesla still has new vehicles made in 2024, which are not eligible for the tax credit incentive, while the new ones made in 2025 are eligible.
There’s also the Foundation Series, which bundles many features for a $20,000 higher price.
All these things affect the value and can make it hard to compare with new Cybertrucks offered with 0% interest.
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![At $28,000 off, is the Jeep Wagoneer S the best EV deal going? [update]](https://i0.wp.com/electrek.co/wp-content/uploads/sites/3/2025/06/jeep_wagoneer_deals.jpg?resize=1200,628&quality=82&strip=all&ssl=1)
Like a 90s “gifted” kid that was supposed to be a lot of things, the electric Jeep Wagoneer S never really found its place — but when dealers started discounting the Jeep brands forward-looking flagship by nearly $25,000 back in June, I wrote that it might be time to give the go-fast Wagoneer S a second look.
This month, the discounts are even better.
UPDATE 23AUG25: I found you some even better EV deals!
Whether we’re talking about Mercedes-Benz, Cerberus, Fiat, or even Enzo Ferrari, outsiders have labeled Jeep as a potentially premium brand that could, “if managed properly,” command luxury-level prices all over the globe. That hasn’t happened, and Stellantis is just the latest in a long line of companies to sink massive capital into the brand only to realize that people will not, in fact, spend Mercedes money on a Jeep.
That said, the Jeep Wagoneer S is not a bad car (and neither is its totally different, hideously massive, ICE-powered Wagoneer sibling, frankly). Built on the same Stellantis STLA Large vehicle platform that underpins the sporty Charger Daytona EVs, the confusingly-named Wagoneer S packs dual electric motors putting out almost 600 hp. That’s good enough to scoot the ‘ute 0 to 60 mph in a stomach-turning 3.5 seconds and enough, on paper, to convince Stellantis executives that they had developed a real, market-ready alternative to the Tesla Model Y.
With the wrong name and a sky-high starting price of $66,995 (not including the $1,795 destination fee), however, that demand didn’t materialize, leaving the Wagoneer S languishing on dealer lots across the country.
That could be about to change, however, thanks to big discounts on Wagoneer S being reported at CDJR dealers in several states:
- Jeff Belzer’s in Minnesota has a 2025 Wagoneer S Limited with a $67,790 MSRP for $39,758 ($28,032 off)
- Troncalli CDJR in Georgia has a 2025 Wagoneer S Limited with a $67,590 MSRP for $42,697 ($24,893 off)
- Whitewater CDJR in Minnesota has a 2025 Wagoneer S Limited with a $67,790 MSRP for $43,846 ($23,944 off)
- Antioch CDJR in Illinois has a 2025 Wagoneer S Limited with a $67,790 MSRP for $44,540 ($23,250 off)
“Stellantis bet big on electric versions of iconic American brands like Jeep and Dodge, but consumers aren’t buying the premise,” writes CDG’s Marcus Amick. “(Stellantis’ dealer body) is now stuck with expensive EVs that need huge discounts to move, eating into already thin margins while competitors focus on [more] profitable gas-powered vehicles.”
All of which is to say: if you’ve found yourself drawn to the Jeep Wagoneer S, but couldn’t quite stomach the $70,000+ window stickers, you might want to check in with your local Jeep dealer and see how you feel about it at a JCPenneys-like 30% off!
Jeep Wagoneer S gallery
Original content from Electrek; images via Stellantis.
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Multinational equipment brand SANY just launched a clever new 50-ton reach stacker that pairs gravity and an F1-style KERS system to generate electricity, improve operating efficiency, and reduce costs. The best part: they’re putting that smart tech to work by helping clean up (and shore up) the grid.
Short for Kinetic Energy Recovery System, KERS was a staple of Formula 1 in the late aught and 2010s. Essentially an advanced form of regenerative braking, KERS captured the kinetic energy of a car at speed that would normally be lost as heat when the brake pads pressed against the brake discs. Instead of heat, KERS converted that energy into electricity (storing it in a battery or flywheel), to be deployed later.
Sebastian Vettel explains KERS
In practice, KERS gave drivers an extra boost of horsepower at the push of a button, enabling them to attack or defend their position on track and adding a fresh strategic element to the sport. In SANY’s case, that stored power is fed back into the reach stacker’s electric hydraulic system, reducing pressure loss across the high-pressure setup by 50%, and lowering the machine’s overall energy consumption by more than 60%.
Energy recovery is a key feature. The potential energy of the boom, lifting gear and energy storage cabinets during the boom’s descent can be recovered efficiently with an overall recovery efficiency of over 65%. That means every 1 kWh of consumption in lifting can be recovered by 0.4 kWh during descent.
The 50t reach stacker is available with a 512 kWh swappable battery pack that’s compatible with other SANY heavy equipment assets, and supports both DC fast charging when swapping isn’t practical or (for whatever reason) desirable.
On a single charge and backed by the onboard KERS, that’s good enough for the machine can lift and move containers for more than 7 continuous hours, which SANY claims significantly reducing downtime for charging compared to other, similar equipment assets.
The new SANY reach stacker can stack six 50-ton containers, greatly enhancing a site’s container and battery storage density within a limited space. The first units will reach unnamed customers building out a utility-scale energy storage project by the end of this month.
Electrek’s Take
All the great stuff I was saying about the new 65-tonne XCMG still holds true for the SANY (especially when they take the wraps off their own 65t BESS-specific unit later this year), but the SANY adds smart battery swap tech and what seems to be more efficient operations, too.
Regardless of which one you choose, it seems like the available options for reach stacker operators are just getting better and better!
SOURCE | IMAGES: SANY.
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