DAILY: Ford Loses More On EVs, Mercedes GLC Pricing and XPeng X9 Spotted In Europe | 24 Oct 2025

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Welcome back to the podcast. Today Ford still loses money on EVs. Mercedes GLC pricing and the

X-Pung X9 spotted here in Europe. Plus, stay tuned because later in the show I'll tell you how

the UK is combating charger cable theft. Advanced warning, that's probably me done for four days.

It's the school holidays for a week or so and I'm gonna take my lad camping if all looks okay.

It's pretty wet at the minute, but we can deal with the weather, but he's kind of coming down

with something. Honestly, if we were still testing, that's where it was COVID because he's not very

well at the moment. So we'll see. Sometimes kids shake these things off within 24 hours and they're

bouncing off the walls the next day. I don't know. If he's not very well, I'll be here doing

maybe some weekend shows and I'll be here Monday, Tuesday. If he is good, then I should be back on

the podcast either Tuesday night or Wednesday morning. So some advanced warning. I'll take a

couple of days off. These times are precious when they're on their school holidays. And so I'll

take him off, take the bikes and head off to the forest somewhere and do some camping

and some cooking outdoors and stuff like that. He's seven now. A little bit of a dad time.

That'll be good fun. Now let's kick off with Ford posting their Q3 revenue, which was good,

by the way, $50.5 billion topping Wall Street's estimate of $44 billion, revising its previously

suspended financial outlook for the year to account for supply chain disruptions. The company said

results will be affected by the tariffs in the US. And there's been a recent aluminium

aluminum plant in New York with a fire affecting their supply chain. What about the EVs? That's

another $1.4 billion in Q3 on $1.8 billion of revenue for July to September, producing,

if you're interested, a Q3 EBIT margin of negative 79% and a nine month margin,

negative 66.7% year to date model EV $3.6 billion in losses, $800 million Q1, $1.3 billion Q2,

and now $1.4 billion. So Q3 revenue was down from last quarter as well, but rose year over year.

Ford revised its guidance, model E's 50% year over year revenue growth accompanies some near-term

losses as well. Look, the vehicle is good. I always say this is about Ford. The F-150 Lightning

is cracking and the Mustang Mach-E is great and the Trans is not a massive seller, but it's a great

van. That's all they've got. And they're all kind of long in the tooth. And if you want one, you

probably got one. And although they're changing the pricing and doing new trims and all the things

that OEMs do to keep things alive and bubbling over, Ford don't have anything significant coming

for quite a long time. Also some turnover at their senior management in their model E division as

well. Nothing crazy, but odd times at Ford, odd times. Now let's move on. Mercedes GLC

electric gets its pricing and specs. I'll give you UK pricing and you can work it out from there.

Orders for the GLC are open here in the UK, £60,000. That's about 10% above the internal

combustion version. It debuts with the next generation grille and a dashboard sized infotainment

touchscreen and launches as the GLC 400 4Matic. It's a twin motor, almost 500 horsepower,

62 mile an hour in 4.3 seconds and 94 kilowatt hour battery, WLTP at 406 miles. This thing

is a bit of a beast. It also charges over 300 kilowatts, by the way. Five trims, sports AMG

line, AMG line premium, AMG line premium plus, just keep adding words to it. And the premiere

edition tops out about £74,000 here in the UK and different power outputs. The most efficient

variant when we can get that will do 435 miles. Now we did get all those details around a couple

of days after BMW revealed the iX3, which is 500 miles on Neue Classe. And of course any other day

Mercedes-Benz come with a GLC that does 435 miles. That's headline news. That's huge range.

How often can we say that about an EV, but it was somewhat overshadowed, which I felt a bit

bad for the Mercedes team about because it came so close after iX3 and which does really overshadow

it, but that's still an amazing number. Now let's talk about the big people carrier from X-Pung,

the X9. Now this thing's really, really special. The X-Pung X9 has been on sale in China for a

drive hypercharger in Denmark. Now this has been spotted by the industry website Electrive and

there's only one reason it'll be over here on charge is because they're doing some work on

that vehicle in Europe. When we get it, we don't know nothing else that we know about it, but covered

in camouflage, it is the X-Pung X9, which we know it was on display at the IAA show in Munich

in September. 5.3 meters long, 3.16 meter wheelbase, 7 passengers in more than comfort.

In China, premium electric vans of this size are often VIP shuttles, luxury chauffeurs,

even mobile offices. You tend to be driven in them. Volvo already sells a similar China-only

electric van. Mercedes is reporting targeting the segment as well with the successors to the EQV.

I think they're called VLE and VLS, so very interesting. This very high level of people

carry a seven-seater of three-row, very large vehicle. I can't remember the charging speeds on

that. I'll look it up, but that'd be fascinating if indeed it did come here. Now let's talk a little

bit about the BYD ATO2. That is a Ford Puma-sized vehicle. BYD is going plug-in hybrid with it.

It's the smallest SUV that it offers, the ATO2. Move is part of BYD's plan to diversify the

powertrains here in Europe, trying to match where Europeans are in the demand for various powertrains.

They call it the DMI plug-in hybrid, 56 miles of electric-only range. So that's not huge,

but it would do a lot of people, by the way, European mileage for commuting. That would

probably do it if you're charging it overnight. Two plug-in hybrid versions with different battery

capacities. BYD not disclosing all the configurations of the little petrol engine and things like that.

There's an ATO2 Pure EV. Of course, that comes in either 174 or 201 horsepower configurations,

depending on trim, and both do 62 miles an hour in 7.9 seconds. This DMI powertrain with a plug-in

hybrid, they talk about being very clever, very intelligent, saving energy for when you need it,

and if you're doing long journeys, it'll do that. Yeah, but kind of plug-in hybrids have

really been doing that a long time, and I've not driven that, so I can't say that I've

got personal experience of it. Maybe it has got a little bit of magic built into it,

or maybe it's a good way just to advertise it. I don't know, but that would, a plug-in hybrid at

that price in the 20s over here, that is a market of one, by the way. If you want a small SUV

with a plug-in hybrid powertrain, your option is going to be the BYDSO2. There's just nothing

else. There's small EVs, loads of small EVs, by the way, but nothing that size that's a plug-in

hybrid, so kind of fascinating. If that's what you are after, they've got the market to themselves

for now. Anyway, let's talk about making cars in Thailand and shipping them to Europe. Of course,

Chang'an Automobile is going to be the first to send their consignment of vehicles,

the 1,000 units of the DPAL S05. That's about a compact SUV. The move follows BYDS expansion

of its Thai production and builds on Chang'an naming the UK as a big export market since the

last couple of years, actually. When the plant opened in May this year, it was announced the

factory will produce left-hand drive models of European markets and right-hand drive for the

UK, Australia, New Zealand. Chang'an intends to increase local content as well at the Thai plant

up to 80% by the end of the decade, they say, so working on all things like that.

Making the cars in Thailand and then shipping them over to the UK. Now, we'll finish off by

talking about another Chinese car, just the way the news fell, by the way. I have a lot of listeners

all over the world on the podcast. Big US audience, apologies for doing another UK story right now,

but it's where I am. I noticed it. Cherry is launching the Tego 9. The Tego 9 is coming.

It's a seven-seater and it's a plug-in hybrid. It's an SUV and it offers stronger performance

and a longer electric range than most of its rivals. Of course, Cherry doesn't mean too much

to many people, but it's a massive automobile business. They entered the UK this year with the

Tego 7 and the Tego 8. Now, they have sibling marks on that called the O-Moders and the J-Cous,

and they are doing really, really well in the last few months. The Tego 9 is a big seven-seat,

three-row SUV, starts at £43,000, so not even really close to the expensive luxury car tax

that we have to pay over 40K. They will easily be the least expensive seven-seat plug-in hybrid

in this class again. There's plug-in hybrid versions of things like Volkswagen Teirons and

Kia Sorento's. There's a smaller version that they make called the Tego 8, which is a little

cheaper, closely related to the incoming J-Cous 8. This uses, again, what they call the Super

Hybrid drivetrain, so 1.5-litre engine, two electric motors, and a 34.5-kilowatt-hour pack

under the floor. So that works out on WLTP at 91 miles on a large SUV. That's, well, that eclipses

about everything else. There's not too much. I mean, China has loads of big mileage hybrids,

but the Volkswagen Golf and all those related vehicles as well, that new E-Hybrid powertrain

is up there, but it's not more than 91, is it? I'm trying to rack my brains while I talk to you

about this. So I think 91 miles is right up there with the longest range plug-in hybrids,

if not one of the most, here in the UK. Look, that's almost 100 miles of range. Okay, not real

world, but still, as long as you charge that thing overnight, you've got to charge it overnight.

Come on, people. Don't just run it on petrol. Then I'm not sure you're making many trips

to go and fill up the tank. All right, we'll take a break. We'll come back.

Loads more to talk about. Italy's got a new incentive deal, and regulators in the US have

already noticed Mad Max Mode in Tesla's, and they're not happy. I'll tell you why. Stick around,

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All right, welcome back to the podcast. Now, General Motors will be eyes free. Doesn't

that mean eyes off? But anyway, eyes free in 2028. Supercruise by then, they say, will be

allowing you to remove your hands from the wheel and remove your eyes from the road.

Removing the requirement to be visually focused on the road and have your hands on the wheel.

The capability will debut, they say, on the Cadillac Escalade IQ, and will be classified as a level

three ADAS system. And so that's where they take on the liability, which Mercedes do already,

by the way. They have microphones in the car listening out for sirens and things like that.

And they have lights on the outside of the car. This happens in China quite a lot as well. The

lights or there's kind of running lights on the outside that will often turn like a turquoise

blue or something to let other road users know you're in autonomous mode in level three. So GM

say they'll get there by 2028. Look, three years away, promises are made. We won't hold on to it

if they don't do it. It'll use LiDAR on the Escalade IQ, which is a big difference from the

current Supercruise architecture, which is solely cameras, radar, GPS as well. But rolling out LiDAR.

Look, LiDAR's got so dirt cheap. And I understand why. I totally understand why Mr Musk, the CEO

of Tesla, planted his flag many years ago and said, LiDAR is a crutch. We'll never use LiDAR.

Vision only is the way to go. Yeah, but in the last 10 years, like in the last five years,

LiDAR has gone from the thousands to the hundreds now to the tens of dollars. There's different

qualities of sense to those different resolutions. But broadly speaking, LiDAR is coming down in

price so quickly. We're going to sit on so many more vehicles. And again, Tesla have just sworn

themselves off LiDAR. But that was a different era. But again, not the kind of person who I think

probably easily admits defeat, perhaps. But we'll wait and see. So maybe Tesla go LiDAR one day,

it's getting very, very cheap. So many China cars have it at ridiculously low prices.

Italy is launching some state backed bonus programs to go EV, offering subsidies to private

buyers and small businesses, 11,000 euros if you're a private buyer to a new passenger electric car.

That is, again, you've got to jump through a few hoops to get that. And that is up to

$30,000. I think on the purchase price of the car small businesses can receive up to 20,000 euros

for light commercial vehicles. Applications are open. And you must submit it before you purchase

the vehicle. And you must scrap a combustion vehicle up to Euro five, which is a set of

emissions regulations and be registered in your name for at least six months. You can't go and get

one from the scrap yard, trade it in. Now, the NHTSA, the regulator safety regulator in the United

States has already noticed that Mad Max mode is back on Tesla, a driving mode that is added to its

latest full self driving supervised update Mad Max, as added to sloth mode for lower speeds.

Mad Max, Tesla said driver profiles now have a stronger impact on the behavior of the vehicle.

More assertive, the profile, the higher the maximum speed. And now the NHTSA

have launched an inquiry following social media posts from multiple Tesla drivers saying the new

mode causes the software to exceed the speed limits. Yeah, this happened with Mad Max mode

since autopilot in 2018. I think there was a time when I'm not sure it even had an upper limit

when it would just blow three stop signs, ignore speed limits. I'm surprised given the current,

I would say, not contentious relationship, but it's a little bit spiky at the moment.

Between perhaps the regulators in the US, there's a new head there that's previously in his old

role gone up against Tesla. And also, after what seemed like a little bit of thawing of

relationships in terms of the politics of the head of Tesla and the White House,

things seem to have gone a little bit frozen again. So it's an odd thing to do to be rolling out a

mode which is intentionally breaking the law. I'm not saying the goading regulators, but I think

it's an interesting bit of timing. And we'll see where that goes. Let's talk batteries. Quantum

Scape has now begun delivering new samples, B1 samples of their new solid state cells,

including ceramic separators made with Quantum Scape's new manufacturing process,

which they launched in June. The separators are central to their planned lithium metal batteries

with a solid electrolyte. And Quantum Scape not disclosing who it's going to, but Volkswagen is

probably it because they're a big backer of Quantum Scape and they've got those cells running

around in test vehicles, motorcycles actually, evaluating them on the road. Uber is going electric.

Earlier this week, Uber said they would offer $4,000 incentive to drivers who switched to electric.

They're renaming Uber green to Uber electric. Eligible drivers can apply the rebate to new

or used EV purchases in New York, California, Colorado, and Massachusetts, combined with

state programs. And Colorado's clean fleet program is one example of that,

means that you could get a lot of money off a vehicle. Uber reports around 200,000 EV drivers

globally now, which is why they've renamed it Uber green to Uber electric, because, well,

they are electric vehicles. Back in the day, green could mean hybrid, plug-in hybrid,

shabby hybrid, like Toyota do, like 48-volt systems, or hydrogen people talked about at

all green technologies. But now we know that all of those are ridiculous and that the best way

forward is pure electric. Then they've renamed it Uber electric because, well, obviously.

And finally, the UK charging sites that are being targeted by idiot thieves for what is probably

15 pounds worth of copper cable and cutting cables. UK charging sites are now using a cable protector,

which is a US invention called CatStrap, and a new distribution partnership

with Evolt charging over here. Earlier this year, the CatStrap drew attention when reports said

that Tesla was testing it out using the dye defender system. So that's kind of like the DNA

sort of dye, that if you cut it, it sprays out and it indelibly links you to that point in time.

It's kind of a unique invisible dye that will tie you to the crime, has huge conviction rates,

they use it in transporting money around and stuff like that. And so the business Evolt over here

doesn't include that ink solution though, but it does include the mechanical version of it,

the mechanical protector that goes over the top of the cables. It slips over the existing fast

charging hose and has two 30 millimeter wide flexible steel straps, which are hardened to

a very high hardness rate and exceeds most cutting blades. So whether you're trying to use a hand

tool to cut it, or even if you turn up with an angle grinder or something, the blade gets

blunted or breaks and the cable does not get severed. The business CatStrap says that even

after three minutes of cutting 90% of the cables should remain intact. I would hope that we see

these as long as it's affordable, relatively compared to replacing the cables for the charging

companies. I think this is going to get rolled out to MFG, that's a British fuel retailer.

And again, you know, we shouldn't have to be doing this, just more evidence that we can't

have nice things with some people in the world. However, if it can be retrofitted at a reasonable

price, this does sound more like a deterrent. So yeah, you probably could get through the cable

with enough time with the right tools, but you'd see it and you know, a bit like

cameras on the side of your house and security lights and all those kind of things,

hopefully more of a deterrent. And then this weird phase we've had over a year, 18 months of people

cutting cables for a few quid a copper can go away. That's your podcast for today.

Thank you so much for listening. Thanks to our premium partners, Porsche of the village in

Cincinnati, Audi of Cincinnati East and Volvo cars of Cincinnati East National Car Charging

on the US mainland and the low-high charge in Hawaii and octopus electroverse global public

charging made simple with one app and one map. Have a good and sit tomorrow and remember, there's

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DAILY: Ford Loses More On EVs, Mercedes GLC Pricing and XPeng X9 Spotted In Europe | 24 Oct 2025

About this episode

aluminium

Tesla Model Es

Ford F150 Lightning

Ford Mustang

Mercedes-Benz GLC

kilowatt hour

BMW iX3

X-Pung X9

IAA show

BYD ATO2

plug-in hybrid

electric-only range

horsepower

trim

BYD SO2

BYD

Chang'an Automobile

Deepal S05

Chery Tiggo 9

Kia Sorentos

WLTP

Mitsubishi Eclipses

Volkswagen Golf

E-Hybrid powertrain

level three ADAS system

Cadillac Escalade

autonomous mode

LiDAR

Supercruise

Euro 5

NHTSA

lithium metal batteries

incentive

rebate

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