All posts by Francis Mitterrand

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2025 Škoda Elroq has arrived

At the beginning of October, Škoda unveiled a new compact crossover and the successor to the Karoq model, the Škoda Elroq. With this car, the Czech manufacturer enters a new era of minimalist, lean and functional design.

Elroq is the first Škoda model with a new design under the slogan “Modern Solid”, which brings a shiny black Tech-Deck mask instead of the standard one that adorned the previous models. It is equipped with an extremely aerodynamic body with a drag coefficient of only 0.26, which was achieved through a series of innovative design elements that enable a top speed of 180 km/h. The new front end features a larger front bumper with a dark chrome insert like the one on the new Kodiaq, and there’s also the familiar “four eye” headlight graphic.

Inside, the Elroq offers plenty of room for passengers including the largest luggage compartment in its segment with a volume of 470 liters (up to 1,580 liters with the rear seats folded down). In front of the driver is a 13″ infotainment display with a new user interface. The cabin is equipped with a number of innovative sustainable materials, new Simply Clever features including smart compartments that offer 48 liters of storage capacity and a storage net for the charging cable under the parcel shelf. A wide range of intuitive connectivity functions, advanced assistance systems and up to nine airbags ensure superior driving comfort and the highest level of active and passive safety.

Škoda Elroq is a fully electric compact crossover available with three different battery sizes (55, 63 and 82 kWh). The Elroq 50 is powered by a single electric motor with 170 hp (125 kW) and 228 lb-ft (310 Nm) of torque, and thanks to a 55 kWh Lithium-ion battery it has a range of 230 miles (370 km). The Elroq 60 is powered by an electric motor with 204 hp (150 kW), and has a range of over 400 km thanks to a 63 kWh battery. Elroq 85 and 85x are the most powerful versions. Both versions are powered by an electric motor with 285 hp (210 kW), and thanks to the 82 kWh battery, they have a range of over 560 km.

The Elroq 60 and Elroq 50 models have maximum charging capacities of 165 and 145 kW, and charge from 10% to 80% in less than 24 minutes (Elroq 50) and less than 25 minutes (Elroq 60). More powerful versions have a maximum charging capacity of 175 kW, and can be recharged from 10% to 80% capacity in just 28 minutes.

When it comes to price, in some markets the Škoda Elroq starts at around €33,000.

Source: Škoda

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2025 Škoda Elroq has arrived
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EU decided: Additional tariffs of 35% on EVs imported from China

New EU tariffs of 35% on all imported electric vehicles made in China come into force in November. This is a definitive decision of the EU that was made after the vote of 27 member states.

Two years ago, the European Commission launched an investigation into the privileged position of electric vehicles produced in China due to subsidies. “These can also be vehicles from other manufacturers if they have used subsidies in China,” said Executive Vice President of the European Commission for an Economy Valdis Dombrovskis. In order to protect European car manufacturers, it was decided that EVs from China will be subject to an additional customs duty of 38.1%. However, the EU gave the companies a chance to cooperate in the investigation, so it was decided that those who accept cooperation will have temporary lower tariffs (20.8% instead of 21%), while those who refuse cooperation will have tariffs of 37.6 percent.

In the meantime, the European Commission completed an investigation that concluded that Chinese manufacturers receive large subsidies from the Chinese government, which destroys European manufacturers. Chinese authorities rejected the results of the investigation and threatened to impose tariffs on cars and food from the European Union.

Also, the European Union specified that any alternative to these tariffs, such as the minimum price, must comply with strict requirements, which are aligned with the rules imposed by the World Trade Organization (WTO).

It should be noted that some European manufacturers, such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Volkswagen, were against additional tariffs on EVs from China. Some members even asked for tariffs of 45%. However, the European Commission has announced that it will start a new round of negotiations with China in order to solve the problem for a long time.

Source: Reuters

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Buyers don’t want BMW XM

At the end of 2022, BMW presented its new crossover SUV, the BMW XM. Although it achieved poor sales results from the very beginning, customers are now increasingly moving away from this SUV. In the last couple of months, demand for the XM model has dropped by 30%.

The BMW XM is a large and expensive SUV, and in Q3 2024 only 307 units were sold, which is 136 units less compared to the same period in 2023. This makes the XM less popular than the Z4 model (543 units), a segment that is certainly not achieving good sales results. Sales of the Z4 did increase by almost 64%, but that was only an increase of 212 units.

In the first six months of 2024, BMW sold 1,096,486 cars worldwide, which is a growth of 2.3 percent compared to the same period in 2023. Although the biggest growth was recorded in the sale of electric cars, and 180,000 of them got new owners ( +34%), customers still mostly opt for cars powered by internal combustion engines and hybrids.

However, in the last three months, the Bavarian manufacturer has recorded a significant drop in demand for almost all models. In Q3, BMW sold 5% fewer passenger cars, 8.5% less SUV models, 13.7% fewer Serie 3 units, while the once-popular Mini brand recorded a surprisingly large drop of 33% compared to 2023.

Source: BMW