Why is Europe getting all the fun new electric vehicles? After its electric SUV, the EV3, has already become a top seller in Europe, Kia is doubling down with new models, like the EV5 and EV4. Thanks to the new tariffs, Kia is pushing for EVs in Europe while the US gets left on the back burner.

Which EVs is Kia launching in Europe and the US?

After launching the EV3 in late 2024, Kia’s compact electric SUV “started with a bang,” as the most popular retail EV in the UK in January.

Through the first half of the year, the Kia EV3 has remained the UK’s best-selling EV among retail customers, with nearly 6,300 registrations. Including commercial vehicles, it was the fourth most popular EV overall.

Kia looks to build on its success with a flurry of new EVs on the way. After opening orders for the EV4 hatchback in June, its first all-electric hatch, Kia introduced the Fastback version, or sedan model, less than two weeks later.

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And then, last month, we got our first look at the upgraded EV5, the European version of Kia’s Tesla Model Y-sized electric SUV, which has been on sale in China since 2023.

Kia plans to begin EV4 deliveries in Europe in September. The hatchback will be the first EV Kia builds in Europe at its Zilina plant in Slovakia. Kia said the move will speed up deliveries. However, the sedan will still be built in South Korea.

The EV5 will arrive in Europe later this year. Kia is launching the EV5 in North America in early 2026, but it will be “exclusive to the Canadian market.”

Next year, Kia will introduce the smaller, more affordable EV2. The EV2 will sit underneath the EV3 as Kia’s new entry-level electric vehicle.

Outside of the EV4, which Kia will launch in the US in early 2026, no other models have been confirmed for the US. Although it was spotted testing in the US again this week, the last official release from Kia specifically said the EV5 will be exclusive to the Canadian market in North America.

The EV4 will arrive, but only as a sedan. It will feature up to 330 miles of driving range and a built-in NACS port for charging at Tesla Superchargers.

Kia has yet to reveal prices, but the EV4 is expected to start at around $35,000. In the UK, the hatch starts at £34,695 ($47,700) with up to 388 miles WLTP driving range. The Fastback, or sedan variant, is priced from £40,895 ($55,000) with a driving range of up to 380 miles.

And that’s not even touching the PV5, Kia’s first electric van. Kia is launching the PV5 Passenger and Cargo models across Europe, but whether it will arrive in the US is still up in the air.

Electrek’s Take

Kia’s decision to prioritize Europe over the US is thanks to the Trump Administration’s new tariffs on vehicle imports. Imported vehicles from South Korea are subject to a 15% tariff.

On top of this, the $7,500 federal tax credit is set to expire at the end of September, which will make the US EV market even more competitive.

Kia’s electric vehicle sales are already down significantly this year. Through July, Kia has sold nearly half as many EV9 and EV6 models as it did in 2024. The Korean auto giant is expected to offset slower EV sales in the US with new models arriving in Europe.

A judge has ruled to allow a class-action lawsuit against Tesla over claims that the company has been misleading customers about its self-driving capabilities for years.

It’s the latest of a series of legal actions against Tesla regarding its deployment of advanced assisted driving systems, which the automaker describes as self-driving.

As we reported earlier this month, the floodgates of lawsuits opened against Tesla after it was found partially liable in a wrongful death case following a fatal crash involving Tesla Autopilot.

There are now a dozen similar cases moving forward against Tesla.

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On the other hand, Tesla has also been fighting legal actions from owners who felt misled by the automaker regarding the capabilities.

Tesla claimed that all vehicles built since 2016 have the hardware capable of achieving “full self-driving”, which isn’t the case, and Tesla has been selling a software package called “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) that it claimed would deliver unsupervised level 4-5 self-driving, and it hasn’t.

For years, owners of HW3 vehicles, which Tesla confirmed wouldn’t achieve unsupervised self-driving, have been trying to sue Tesla under a class action to be compensated for the failed promises, but Tesla has been trying to weasel out of the class action lawsuit due to its force arbitration clause in its sales contracts in the US, and claims that self-driving deployment is subject to “validation and regulatory approval.”

Today, U.S. District Judge Rita Lin said that the claim that Tesla lacked hardware to achieve the promise level of autonomy and its inability to “demonstrate a long-distance autonomous drive with any of its vehicles” justified group lawsuits by two sets of drivers who bought its FSD package.

In short, it amounts to false advertising, but one of the problems with making this a class action lawsuit is the fact that Tesla doesn’t do mass advertising and was making these claims through blog posts, its website, social media posts, and its CEO.

Judge Lin commented (via Reuters):

“While these channels alone may not ordinarily be enough to establish class-wide exposure for a traditional car manufacturer, Tesla’s distinctive advertising strategy warrants a departure from the typical approach.” 

The class action was certified with two subclasses:

• The first one covers California residents who purchased FSD packages between October 2016 and May 2017
• The second one covers FSD owners who opted out of Tesla’s arbitration agreement between 2017 and mid-2024.

On top of the damages to these Tesla owners, the legal action is also seeking an injunction to stop Tesla from making similar statements about its products in the future.

Electrek’s Take

Tesla has been trying to weasel out of this for years. This is a step in the right direction, even though it doesn’t go far enough in my opinion.

To me, it’s as simple as Tesla promised and sold something that it didn’t deliver.

Due to its forced arbitration in its sales contracts, which buyers have a limited time to opt out of following the purchase, it can limit the damages, but that’s just a technicality.

Ultimately, I think this will get the ball rolling to try to get Tesla accountable for not delivering on its promises.

This is just the beginning. There are approximately a dozen other lawsuits involving Tesla’s self-driving features currently pending in US courts.

I’m going to have more on that soon.

Ford is promising more affordable electric vehicles, but it’s still looking to make a profit. After kicking off production at its new EV battery plant in Kentucky, Ford is already looking for buyers to sell extra batteries.

Is Ford planning to sell EV batteries?

BlueOval SK, Ford’s joint venture with SK On, officially began production at its Glendale, Kentucky, plant on Tuesday.

The batteries will initially be used to power the F-150 Lighting electric pickup. However, Ford has bigger plans for the facility.

During an interview with Bloomberg, BlueOval SK CEO Michael Adams said, “Both of our parents are looking for opportunities for new business.” According to Adams, securing new clients to sell batteries to is “fairly high.”

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Potential buyers could involve energy storage businesses or other EV makers, Adams explained. A Bloomberg report earlier this year claimed that Ford’s joint venture was closing in on a deal to sell batteries to Nissan, but no official confirmation has been made.

Ford’s new plans to sell excess batteries comes as it faces slowing EV sales and upcoming policy changes. The company’s EV sales are down nearly 10% through the first seven months of 2025 compared to the same period last year.

With the $7,500 tax credit set to expire at the end of September, the market will get even more competitive from here.

The joint venture has already scaled back plans at the Kentucky facility. Initially, the plant was expected to employ 2,500 workers. Now, it will have 1,450 employees.

Ford is also pausing production at a second plant in Kentucky as part of a broader strategy shift. According to Adams, the third battery plant, in Tennessee, will still begin producing batteries in 2027 despite Ford delaying its next-gen electric pickup until the following year.

Adams said everything is moving slower than expected, adding, “We’re in a monitoring phase and just being conservative in what we do in order to make sure that we’re safe.”

Ford has overhauled its EV strategy with plans to launch smaller, more affordable electric cars. The company is betting on its new “Ford EV Universal Platform” to unlock more affordable electric vehicles while still making a profit.

The first vehicle based on the platform is expected to be a mid-size electric pickup with a starting price around $30,000. Customer deliveries are set to begin in 2027.

Ford will utilize lower-cost lithium-iron-phosphate (LFP) batteries, manufactured in Michigan with licensed technology from China’s CATL, to power the new platform.

Electrek’s Take

Like most automakers, Ford is aggressively looking to cut costs to turn a profit on electric vehicles. After its EV business, Model e, lost $5.1 billion last year, Ford is warning that it could lose even more this year due to investments in its next-gen models.

According to Farley, the first model will need to be profitable in its first year on the market. Selling extra batteries could be a new source of revenue for Ford as it looks to turn things around.

Ford isn’t the only automaker that wants to sell EV batteries in the US. Earlier this year, a Nikkei report claimed Toyota would begin selling batteries to power Honda’s hybrid vehicles from its new plant in NC, starting in 2026.