DAILY: Ford’s Frunked-Up Options List, Hyundai Targets Pickup and Polestar Adds Grid Rewards | 27 Feb 2026

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Welcome back to EV News Daily.

Today, Ford's frunked-up options list,

Hyundai target to pick up,

and Polestar adds grid rewards.

Plus, stay tuned.

Later in the show, I'll tell you why Mexico

just did what the USA dismantled.

Link air quality to health

and push EVs to benefit everyone.

Over on EV News China today,

our spin-off podcast,

we dive into NEO's two million holiday swaps,

BYD's 2.1 megawatt charging

in their next generation chargers,

and the Hongguang Mini gets a refresh.

Let's kick off the news with Ford.

They're gonna drop the front trunk

from the standard equipment list

on the Mustang Marquee,

and it'll become a paid option.

Access to the underbonnet storage

now costs you $495.

Ford says an internal review

found many Mustang Marquee owners

rarely use the front compartment.

Product planners class the front

as low-use hardware,

and therefore delete it to cut costs,

or sell it to buyers as an option.

He want extra storage.

Ford says removing standard hardware

reduces build cost and complexity,

and charging for it can lift margins

without denting demand.

The move lands awkwardly.

Given how Ford pitched the car initially,

the front featured heavily in the original sales pitch

for the Mustang Marquee,

part of the idea that the EV packaging

would offer flexible cargo.

The original one was five cubic feet of space

with a drain plug.

I remember them stacking it full of ice

and saying, have a party.

At the front of your car,

owners would stash luggage or a hose out cooler

for ice and drinks.

Then in 2024,

a new heat pump design

reduced the front volume by half.

Even then, it was enough for a gym bag or a carry-on case.

Honestly, the one on my Polestar is pretty tiny,

but I use it for the charging cables

because I always want to make sure we have an AC charger

because over here it's untethered AC charging in Europe.

And so always have my Type 2 to Type 2

and always have the home slow charger,

which looks like it's still new six years later

in the first owner.

I don't think used it either.

And so always for emergencies, you'd want that in there.

And then when I have needed to,

I've used it for other things,

but it's not part of my day-to-day because it's not easy

because you've got to pull the bonnet release on the Polestar

and lift up the bonnet like you're refilling the water

or something on the washer fluid.

So it's not as convenient as a Tesla, but I do still use it.

But if Polestar were profiling me as a potential customer,

they'd say, well, use it once every three months,

we'll take it out.

But it is very useful.

And that's the thing.

Ford's decision sits in a wider trend

with EVs charging for features that used to be standard

from software unlocks to subscription features

and BMW found out very quickly

when they tried to rent you heated seats

on a monthly subscription basis.

People say no.

The bigger risk for Ford is the perceived value of this.

Ford's on the back foot right now.

They keep talking about the stuff they've coming,

the new UEV platform, the new $30,000 truck,

and that's great, but it's jammed tomorrow.

I've canceled F-150, the trans, it's a pretty good van.

And apart from over here,

where we've got the Puma, the Explorer, or the Capri,

many places just have the Mustang Mach-E.

And so, well, they're doing things to put people off.

Charging 2026 buyers for a feature

that earlier owners received as standard,

made jar with potential buyers.

Moving on, Hyundai plans to enter

the mid-size pickup segment in 2028

with a body-on-frame utility vehicle

that's gonna be different from something like a Kia Tasman.

The timeline traces back to September's CEO Investor Day

in New York, where Chief Executive Jose Munoz

said Hyundai would launch the truck

before the end of the decade.

The COO of Hyundai Australia, Gavin Donaldson,

said the project is a work in progress,

development proceeds alongside the American market.

The truck needs a body-on-frame chassis

to go head-to-head with things like Ford Rangers

and Toyota Hiluxes, but he ruled out

a rebadged Kia unibody type thing.

Branding hints to the electric angle

because trademarks for the Ioniq T7,

truck seven, suggest the pickup would be an Ioniq sub-brand,

though powertrain details are obviously not confirmed,

maybe it would be an E-rev.

Well, the platform may stretch beyond a pickup.

Hyundai may use it as a rugged four-wheel drive SUV,

going head-to-head with the Ford Bronco.

Now, they did show off the crater concept

at last November's LA Auto Show

and did wink-wink say that would be coming.

That was a pretty stunning concept

and they've got actually form

in bringing their concept vehicles to life,

so we'll wait and see.

Next up, Polestar will widen its energy program,

adding grid rewards in Germany and France.

The scheme runs in Belgium, Netherlands, Switzerland

and here in the UK already with Octopus Energy.

When I had to repair my Octopus Intelligent Go tariff recently,

it said, oh, by the way,

you now do this through the Polestar Charge app.

All right, another app, deep joy.

Polestar Energy pays drivers

who let the system shift charging

into cheap low-carbon off-beat windows in Germany.

They will, with Octopus Intelligent Go tariff,

cut home charging bills by 50% per session, they say.

Polestar flags annual savings of around 300 euros

for a typical German user.

Framing the rewards is a hedge

against high European energy prices.

Polestar's pushing the program beyond tariff

and into the car, rolling out car-controlled smart charging

for the Polestar 2 and the 4

across all 12 of its European markets via the app

that removes the requirement for the smart wallbox.

Yeah, because until now with Octopus,

I've had my energy wallbox be kind of the gateway to Octopus.

I've got a Zappi too.

And then obviously Polestar can use the car

to be the smart bit and treat the charger as dumb,

using price signals and household demand

to decide when to charge your car.

Polestar casts hardware complexity

as being one of the brakes on EV uptake

with drivers stuck sourcing

and integrating a compatible home charger.

It also claims smart charging cuts the use

of the carbon footprint of vehicles

by charging in windows when carbon emissions are the lowest.

Polestar Energy ran the UK pilot in 2024

and launched it last year here.

After launch, 12 more European countries scaled to

focusing on app-based scheduling,

coordinating with tailored tariffs as well.

I remember in California as well, late last year,

Polestar turned on vehicle to grid

and vehicle to home in California for Polestar 3,

allowing the energy to go back from the car to the grid.

All right, let's talk about Rivian

and putting the pieces together here,

but moving to a 48 volts low voltage architecture

is something that Tesla have been driving with Cybertruck.

Many reasons to do this, Ford say that they will move

to 48 volts ditching the old 12 volt battery,

which is a relic these days in electric vehicles,

but it's there for a reason.

In fact, there's a special podcast in your feed,

one of my bonus shows about why do our high tech cars

have 12 volt batteries?

And there are good reasons for that, by the way,

but moving to 48 volts is not the work of a moment,

but it should be done.

Rivian's job listings, including electrical distribution

system integration engineers,

say you must have experience in 48 volt DC architecture.

Rivian hasn't referenced 48 volt

in any public facing documents,

but the owner and enthusiast Chris Hilbert on X

posted this job role, duties like low voltage backbone,

looking for somebody who can tie all together

with 12 volt systems and cables and grounding

and things like that.

On its own, it's just a job ad,

but there have been other job ads previously

with people who are experts in steer by wire,

and that was based on 48 volt, I think,

and also autonomy ads that have come out,

mentioning this as well, taken together.

It does look like Rivian moving towards a 48 volt system

with steer by wire, rear wheel steering,

and a higher voltage, low voltage system.

If that makes sense, I think it does.

So a 48 volt system delivers the same power

as the conventional 12 volt batteries

that we have in all of our cars,

at a quarter of the current,

and that opens the door to thinner wiring harnesses

that cuts weight.

Oh, and the car makers love it,

because it cuts cost.

Wiring harnesses are some of the most complex,

heaviest, most expensive components in some vehicles,

apart from the battery itself,

and so, at least the traction battery,

and so anything that slims that down is a good thing.

All right, let's talk about Volvo refreshing the EX30

with a really nice new feature.

Adding software powertrain and trim,

the headline feature, though, vehicle to load.

EX30 needs a bit of good press,

because I told you in the last week or so,

how about a quarter of all the ones made,

that's 40,000 EX30s are having to be recalled,

a problem with the early ones, and their battery supplier.

This is not a Volvo problem, it was their battery supplier,

of which their parent, Geely, is invested in,

but still, customers don't care.

It's a Volvo, it's a Volvo, it's a Volvo.

That's the badge on the front,

and so, really bad press around that,

and nobody at the company will have wanted

to go through this, but it's a safety thing.

The risks are tiny, but they exist there,

so they're telling owners to park your EX30s outside,

not near a house, and don't charge it over 70%.

So, they need a bit of good publicity for the EX30,

great little car that it is,

and now you can power external equipment

from the traction battery via an adapter.

Volvo says vehicle to load will come via over the air

to new and existing owners, no dealer visit needed,

the same update reworks the portrait touchscreen interface,

adding a new customizable content bar,

and simple access to its core functions.

Volvo keeps the hardware unchanged,

the refresh also widens the powertrain.

The choice of powertrain,

Volvo will add a new 148 horsepower single motor

to the kind of below the existing 268 horsepower rear drive,

and that dual motor one is properly quick as well,

but anyway, the bottom of the range,

you can now get the small motor

with a 51 kilowatt hour battery,

or a 70 kilowatt hour version.

So, WLTP range between 180 and 250 miles,

depending on spec.

If Volvo brings it to the UK,

that would undercut the current's 33,000 pounds entry price,

probably under 30,000 pounds,

given where the competition lies,

and that would narrow the gap to small EVs,

like the Alfa Romeo Junior and the Mini Aisman.

Volvo not confirming though.

Chief Commercial Officer Eric Severinson

says the new powertrain aims to grow Volvo's

addressable market and move more customers

into fully the ownership,

rather than plug in hybrid, sell more cars to people,

account the pennies, don't be all back in a minute,

and we'll talk about Mercedes' baby G

and the GLEX5, stick around.

Potential, potential can sometimes feel daunting, scary,

but today's the day you decide to act on it

with a higher technical qualification.

Designed with employers,

it will give you the skills you need

to land the job you want,

because today is your day.

When anything is possible, if you make it happen.

It all starts with skills.

See how you can get started, search skills for life.

It's the ultimate business trip,

flying in Emirates First Class.

With your own fully enclosed private suite,

you can order from an extensive international menu

along with premium drinks.

There's even a bar and an exclusive shower spa

on the Emirates A380,

along with chauffeur-driven airport transfers

and the Emirates Lounge.

It's a better way to do business.

Book now on emirates.com.

Potential, potential can sometimes feel daunting, scary,

but today's the day you decide to act on it

with a higher technical qualification.

Designed with employers,

it will give you the skills you need

to land the job you want,

because today is your day.

When anything is possible, if you make it happen.

It all starts with skills.

See how you can get started, search skills for life.

All right, welcome back to the podcast.

Good news here, the UK government

is extending the electric vehicle charge point grant

and lifting it from 350 pounds to 500 pounds

from the 1st of April, no joke.

The grants launched in 2023 covers renters, flat owners,

home owners with no off-street parking and businesses now,

and the 500 pounds covers the installation cost

of your home charger,

including if you need it, cross-pavement gullies.

And this seems to be the settled upon solution

for the many, many people,

I'll get onto that in a minute,

who live in the UK without a driveway.

Like we're a pretty old country

in terms of the built up areas that we live

and many people park on the street.

And if you can get a parking space either outside,

your house, or perhaps like one or two spaces either side,

it does seem like these pavement gullies,

which are sunken into the pavement

for you to drop your cable into,

means it's not a trip hazard.

And it means that if with a long enough cable,

I've got a 10 meter cable on my charger

because we've got a quite long driveway.

And so that was quite expensive one,

but really handy to have a longer cable.

So maybe you could get your charge point

put in the front garden or on the front of your house,

and then enough cable to get to your EV

to charge it from home.

It's not a perfect solution,

but we do have to think about these solutions.

The politics hinge on who can charge at home.

The minister for aviation, maritime and decarbonization

as a job title, Keir Mather,

says the package will make EV ownership affordable

for everyone, not just those with driveways.

And I absolutely echo that and endorse his comment there.

That pushes many drivers back to the curb though.

Charge UK head of policy, Gerald Birch said,

most drivers rely on a blend of home and public charging

with the public charging network at 88 and a half thousand

charges, a separate 600 million pound fund

referenced in two tranches last year,

supports the government's pledge

to move public charger rollout across the UK as well.

Now Mercedes-Benz has dropped its EV only plan

for the baby G, although the baby G

is not the official name.

It's the G class, but put on a hot wash.

Oh, you shrunk it at 90 degrees.

It will now sell a hybrid version

as well as the pure Bev version.

Also car speculates, it'll use the CLA's hybrid powertrain.

So that's a 1.5 liter engine from horse powertrain

and an electric motor integrated

into an eight speed dual clutch transmission.

So a plug-in hybrid, not an E rev,

remains unclear whether Mercedes will tune it upwards

for the G class brand.

Mercedes will fit four wheel drive as standard

on both the Bev and the hybrid.

Baby G will ride on bespoke platforms,

not a reskinned existing model.

Mercedes insists the smaller model

will match the full size G class for capability,

just being smaller and cheaper.

Production penciled in for early next year

for the full Bev version.

Now, leaked pricing from the industry guide Redbook,

suggests Geely's EX5 lands down under

with an E rev variants priced at $1,000

over current models.

Redbook lists the EX5 extended range at $41,990

before on-road costs

and the Inspire extended range at $45,990.

Geely Australia is not officially confirmed either figure

nor official pricing, specs or on sale date.

The change centers on the LFP battery pack.

This is a 68.4 kilowatt hour Lithium Iron Phosphate battery pack.

That's eight kilowatt hours bigger than the outgoing pack.

14% more, WLTP range rises to 475 kilometers

for the complete extended range vehicle.

Wow, that's huge range and a massive battery as well

for $46,000 depending on trim.

Right, we'll finish off with talking about Mexico

going in the opposite direction of its neighbor.

Mexico doing what the USA is not.

In fact, what the USA is doing all it can to unwind

which is link emissions and pollutants to health quality.

Mexico needs to cut its transport emissions on two fronts.

It's gonna expand air quality monitoring

under the Ministry of Health and it needs to electrify

its medium duty fleet and heavy duty fleet.

On the 16th of February,

the Ministry of Health officially linked air quality

to respiratory and cardiovascular disease.

It's specifically named children, the elderly,

pregnant women and people who have to live

with chronic illness as the group's most at risk

from emissions.

It told residents to consult the Air and Health Index

and follow public guidance

if there are periods of high pollution.

Mexico already runs permanent air quality monitoring networks

during the dry, cold season,

particulate matter concentrations can spike,

prompting authorities to issue preventative advisories

and encourage protection of green spaces.

The public health message now sits closer

to transport policy.

Whether or not the agencies share the same building

or even sit at the same table in Mexico's government,

that matters because medium duty vehicles

and heavy duty transport are 25% of Mexico's vehicle fleet

but they generate more than a half of all the emissions.

We've talked about this countless times on the podcast

and if you knew, well, you haven't heard my riff on this one

and I won't bore you with it now.

Trust me, I will.

But it's the vehicles that drive the most

that we need to electrify

and it's particularly in the countries and places

and often communities where the poorest live

that get the worst of it and it's simply not right.

Cleaning up trucks and buses shifts the national totals faster

than persuading the everyday Joe, or should that be?

Joe's A, thank you, I'm here all week.

Two, move privately

because I don't know if I drove my car

any time in the last 24 hours.

I don't think I did.

My wife went to get our little girl from nursery

but that's actually walkable from our house

but I'm not having that fight with my wife.

And so our cars haven't really moved

but I can tell you that today was bin day

and the bin lorry would have been working all day.

I mean, like that, the bin van works all day every day,

doesn't it?

We certainly got a post delivery

and that would have been a van that is a working van.

These are the vehicles that can be electrified,

are cheaper to run in fleets.

You can charge them at the depot.

It's just that initial cost can be a little bit higher

but there are some really innovative finance schemes

and some capital coming into the markets that help,

I don't know, local areas, councils,

authorities, countries, towns and cities square the budget away

because you get the money back in the long term.

And so electric truck sales in Mexico

are surging 800% over the past three years up.

25 brands now offer more than 60 commercial EVs in Mexico.

Last mile van, city buses, heavy duty trucks,

some of them range is almost 300 miles.

Mexico has started to close the back door too,

introducing new rules to restrict the import

of used diesel vehicles and capping the engine age

at 10 years.

They're serious about this.

You link emissions to health and pollution

to a hard cost to the country.

Australia did this recently.

Melbourne University, but a hard figure of this

is the cost to our country on health-related illnesses

because of emissions and it becomes a no-brainer.

Like, let's depoliticize the whole, you know,

take out the never-bevers that hate EVs for whatever reason.

I don't know because they're political idol

or whoever has told them you must hate EVs.

Take out those people, right?

Take all the politics out of EVs.

It just makes financial sense.

And for a country, you'll spend so much less on health care

when people aren't suffering from these horrific illnesses

because of emissions.

I said I weren't going to give you the full spiel.

I think I gave you the greatest hit set at the end of that.

I'm sorry about that.

I'm rubbish at keeping to my word.

That's your podcast for today.

And thanks to our premium partners,

National Car Charging on the US mainland

and Aloha Charging Hawaii and Test EV.

Avalu's trusted partner for independent

EV battery health testing in Australia and New Zealand.

Thanks for listening.

I'll see you tomorrow.

Have a good one.

I want to remember there's no such thing

as a self-charging hybrid.

Potential.

Potential can sometimes feel daunting, scary.

But today's the day you decide to act on it

with a higher technical qualification.

Designed with employers,

it will give you the skills you need to land the job you want

because today is your day.

When anything is possible, if you make it happen.

It all starts with skills.

See how you can get started.

Search skills for life.

DAILY: Ford’s Frunked-Up Options List, Hyundai Targets Pickup and Polestar Adds Grid Rewards | 27 Feb 2026

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