Chinese automakers rolled out more than 600 new and updated vehicles during the 1st half of 2026. They’re fast and lean and hit record sales last year, and domestic brands like Geely and BYD are crushing foreign manufacturers like GM and VW. But they’re starting to have serious problems of their own, reports Headlight.News.
If you’ve purchased a new vehicle lately chances are you’re extremely satisfied with what you drove home, reflecting improvements in design, features and quality. Porsche topped the charts in the latest JD Power APEAL study – but there were some surprises. For one thing, electric vehicles outperformed all other powertrain technologies, reports Headlight.News.
Nissan is giving its original battery-electric vehicle a new personality. The Leaf Nismo went on sale in Japan this week and offers a notable upgrade in performance and handling, in line with more conventional Nismo packages. Headlight.News has more.
The management team at Daimler-Benz has changed things up for its next generation EVs. Rather than continuing them with a separate platform, the marque is developing its cars to run on electric or combustion-based powertrains. Headlight.News spent a week in one of the new variants, the 2026 Mercedes-Benz CLA 250+. Check out the review and see what’s different.
Despite a billion-dollar decline, largely due to EV write-offs, General Motors beat Wall Street’s earnings forecast for the second quarter – and raised its full-year guidance, Headlight.News reports.
The growth of China’s auto industry is posing a threat to long-established automakers, who are looking for protection even as consumers, pressured by the rising price of new vehicles, take a serious look at what brands like BYD, Geely and Zeekr have to offer. How long can they remain locked out of the American market? More from Headlight.News.
Honda will end production of the Prologue, its only remaining battery-electric vehicle offered in the U.S., at the end of the 2026 model year. The move caps a frantic retreat by a company that, not long ago, wanted to become a dominant player in the American EV market. Now it’s shifting focus to a complete line-up of hybrids – and may build a new U.S. plant to produce them. More from Headlight.News.
While Rivian showed it could deliver an impressive EV with its first-generation R1 series, it now has to take things into the mainstream. Headlight.News had a chance this week to check out the new R2 and discovered how “creative subtraction” added up to not just a solid, affordable product but one that can put the struggling EV start-up into the black.
Lucid denies it is preparing to file bankruptcy but the company is clearly in trouble. And that raises new concerns about a handful of other battery-electric brands, like Rivian and Slate still hoping to find their own niches. Only a few years ago a flood of EV start-ups seemed ready to kick the established automakers to the curb. What went wrong? Just about everything.
The Polestar 4, the latest performance EV from the Swedish brand is an impressive ride, but sadly, it will also be the last to come to the U.S. Perry Stern, our newest contributor, says goodbye to Polestar and explains why the brand is leaving America.
Toyota has ordered a two-month delay in the launch of its next battery-electric vehicle, the Highlander EV, the 3-row model now pushed back until early next year. Headlight.News has the exclusive reason for the delay.
BYD’s new Denza Z supercar is ready to take on all comers, especially high-performance battery-electric vehicles like the Ferrari Luce. But if you’re looking to buy one you’re out of luck – at least if you live in the U.S. It’s one of a growing list of high-performance Chinese EVs effectively barred from the American market. Headlight.News has more.