The Nissan Leaf is back, though you might not recognize it. The first mainstream battery-electric vehicle is getting a complete makeover for 2026, returning in SUV form. It’s just one of the big announcements Nissan made Wednesday about its upcoming electrification plan including more U.S. and European EVs, new e-Power and PHEV models and more. Headlight.News has the details.
Mazda has been one of the slowest automakers to embrace electrification and its first battery-powered model in the U.S., the MX-30, didn’t last very long due to limited range. Now, however, the Japanese automaker seems to be getting serious about EVs and has offered the first look at an all-new platform expected to be used for a battery-powered SUV due out in 2027. But the automaker also is shifting resources to put more emphasis on hybrids, such as one coming for the next-gen Mazda CX-5 crossover. Headlight.News has more.
Mercedes is getting ready to pull the wraps off the new Vison V, a show car previewing the next-generation, all-electric vans it’s set to put into production next year. “The future model line-up will range from entry-level family vehicles and exclusive VIP shuttles to spacious and luxurious limousines,” the automaker said Monday.
Volkswagen released a pair of sketches showing off a new concept dubbed the ID.EVERY.1. They reveal the direction the German automaker plans to take when it launches a new, entry-level battery-electric vehicle in 2027. But what else have we learned about the show car and ID.1 production model to follow? Headlight.News has more.
Alef Aeronautics pushed ahead in the development of its flying car with a short test flight on a city street. The company’s prototype flew over another vehicle, simulating how a future driver might deal with blocked traffic. Find out more at Headlight.News.
With its planned merger with Honda now likely dead, Nissan desperately needs to come up with the products that can help it head off a further decline in sales and earnings. It’s dropped a teaser showing some of what it now has in the pipeline ready to debut over the next two years – and the emphasis is on electrified drivetrain technology, with a Rogue PHEV, e-Power models and even a new Nissan Leaf in the works.
BMW has an all-electric version of the venerable 3-Series in the works and, as with much of its upcoming line-up, the changes will be significant. And that doesn’t end with the switch to battery power. To make sure the 3-Series EV lives up to expectations, BMW has developed a “superbrain,” dubbed the “Heart of Joy,” that will help deliver the brand’s familiar driving experience. It’s offering some insight into what’s coming with the new BMW Vision Driving Experience concept vehicle. Here’s more.
Stellantis will reopen a now-shuttered assembly plant in Belvidere, Illinois, the company’s U.S. chief operating officer told employees in an e-mail. The factory will produce a new midsize Ram pickup, however, rather than the EV originally planned for the facility....
The Chrysler brand reportedly has halted work on a midsize electric crossover based on the Airflow concept vehicle. The move comes late in development as the EV was to have reached market later this year. The decision echoes one made by rival Ford which has also responded to slowing growth in the EV market by killing off a planned 3-row crossover.
Chinese automotive exports hit an all-time record last year – even while being effectively locked out of the U.S. market. But despite incoming Pres. Donald Trump’s threat to put still more tariffs on Chinese-made vehicles, the doors may not be locked forever. And anyone who checked out the new Zeekr brand’s news conference and display at the Consumer Electronics Show is likely to understand why that worries other manufacturers.
Once one of the most important auto shows in North America, if not the world, the annual Motor City event returned to its original January schedule after a brief summer run. But what has been renamed the Detroit Auto Show is a mere fraction of the size of what it was during its glory days. Headlight.News looks at what has happened — and why.
If you’ve got the floor all to yourself, why not do things with flair? That’s what Ford clearly had in mind when it crafted the Mustang GTD Spirit of American prototype that it unveiled ahead of the annual Detroit Auto Show on Thursday night. The red-white-and-blue exotic celebrates the achievement of Craig Breedlove, the one-time aerospace engineer who set an array of land speed records in a series of jet-powered racers.