“Solid state” usually means a new type of battery that uses a solid material instead of a liquid. The goal is to make EV batteries safer and potentially able to store more energy.
This is about comparing the cost of driving an EV (charging) versus driving a gas car (petrol). Because electricity and gas prices change, the cheaper option can switch depending on where you live.
A sodium-ion battery is another type of EV battery that uses sodium instead of lithium. It’s being explored because it could be cheaper, though it may not match lithium-ion in every performance area.
A joint venture is when two companies team up to work on something together. In this story, the partnership couldn’t continue once one side pulled back.
“Solid Core” is MG’s name for its new battery technology. The podcast also points out it’s not truly solid—so it’s more like a middle step toward solid-state batteries.
In a normal EV battery, there’s a liquid inside that helps the battery work. This segment says they’re keeping some liquid, but using less of it to improve safety and longevity.
A semi-solid battery is a middle ground between traditional liquid-electrolyte lithium-ion and fully solid-state designs. By reducing the amount of liquid electrolyte, engineers aim to improve safety and durability while still keeping good ion flow for performance.
Kilowatt-hours (kWh) measure battery capacity—how much electrical energy the pack can store. Higher kWh generally means more potential range, though real-world range also depends on efficiency and vehicle weight.
The Opel Astra is a compact car that’s meant to be practical for everyday driving. The podcast mentions it because someone remembers it feeling fast and fun to drive. It’s being used as a reference point for driving impressions.
That means the van can be changed to carry cargo, and later changed back again. Because it can go back to normal, it’s usually easier to sell later for a better price.
All-wheel drive (AWD) sends power to both the front and rear axles. On EVs, AWD can improve traction and acceleration, especially in low-grip conditions, but it also adds weight and complexity.
A fuel shortage is when gas isn’t available the way people want it to be. Sometimes it’s real supply problems, but sometimes it’s just people buying too fast and emptying stations.
Panic buying is when people rush to buy something because they’re worried it won’t be available later. With fuel, that can empty stations fast and create a temporary shortage.
An EV is a car that runs on electricity stored in a battery. Instead of buying gasoline, you usually charge it. The host is saying you shouldn’t be rude or smug about driving one.
Concept
Liquid Fuel Emergency Act
The host mentions an Australian law that could kick in during a fuel emergency. If that happens, the government could limit how much people can spend on fuel.
Rationing refers to limiting access to fuel or other scarce goods, often during conflict or supply disruptions. In the automotive context, rationing language can trigger panic buying—drivers fill up early even if they don’t strictly need to, worsening shortages.
Fleet electrification means organizations are switching their work vehicles to electric ones. Instead of charging at random places, they usually charge at a home base or depot.
That number is how strong the electric motor is. Higher power usually means quicker acceleration and more effortless driving, especially when you need to speed up.
Charging infrastructure is the network of places and equipment where EVs plug in. For businesses, it matters because they need chargers that can handle their vehicles reliably.
A depot charging scheme supports charging at a company’s own facilities (depots), which is often the most practical setup for fleets that return to the same location daily. Depot charging can reduce reliance on public chargers and help manage predictable charging schedules.
Silicon carbide is a special material used inside EV chargers. It helps the charger work more efficiently, so it can be smaller and waste less energy while charging your car.
Rolls-Royce is a British luxury automaker known for high-end, highly customized vehicles. The segment describes a Rolls-Royce “coach build collection,” emphasizing exclusivity and bespoke customer access.
Homologated means the car has been officially approved to be legal on public roads. It has to meet the rules for safety and other requirements for that area.
Coach built refers to vehicles that are built or heavily customized by a specialist bodybuilder, often on a customer’s order. In ultra-luxury circles, it usually means bespoke styling, interior, and sometimes unique engineering details.
Ferrari is a luxury sports-car brand. Here they’re talking about how electric cars can feel too intense for people because the power comes on very quickly.
NASA is referenced as a source of research into human tolerance for acceleration and motion. In the segment, Ferrari is portrayed as consulting NASA and medical centers to understand when G-forces become neurologically disturbing, implying a comfort-focused approach to EV tuning.
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It's the original HBIC here.
If you are out here living your life, being fabulous,
And now they even offer easy and hair loss treatment
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Okay, welcome back to the podcast.
Let's get into the second half.
The facelifted Vauxhall Astra is now on sale in the UK.
This is what mainland Europeans
would call the Opel Astra.
Vauxhall here though, it's $29,995.
That is very good value for money.
Not saying it's a cheap car,
but for what you get as a family car, that's good value.
Plug-in hybrid or full electric,
full EV in both hatchback and estate or sports tourer,
trims and body styles,
they'll be cheaper petrol variants
following later this year.
Plug-in hybrid uses a 17.2 kilowatt hour battery.
That's up from 12 in the last model
and it'll do 52 miles of official electric range
plus has a 10% company car tax rate.
And that could be good if you're using that
as your company car.
Real world EV range would probably be about 40 miles
I reckon on that.
Boot space, of course, shrinks,
gotta put the battery somewhere.
However, at $29,995, that's six and a half grand cheaper
than a Golf E hybrid.
And if you charge it every night, could work.
The Astra Electric uses a 154 horsepower motor,
55 kilowatt hour battery pack on the smaller end
for vehicles in the family class,
but still 281 miles of range,
a little bit less on the estate.
DC charging, yeah, stuck around 100 kilowatts
and that seems like quite outdated technology now.
That's an 80% charge in 30 minutes.
So, obviously with the estate version,
you get loads more boot space.
That could be up against maybe a Kia EV3,
which is probably best in class,
but also bested on price by the Astra.
I'm excited about this vehicle.
I don't think many people are excited
about the new Vauxhall Astra,
but this is a really useful, well-appointed, quite large,
family car in multiple powertrains.
And as you know, it's a nameplate
that everyone knows what an Astra is in certain countries.
And so, I like it.
Right, let's move on.
The UK government has committed one billion pounds
to accelerate commercial fleet electrification,
split across two programs, targeting vehicle costs
and charging infrastructure.
The zero emissions truck and van scheme
covers up to 40% of purchase costs,
grants can reach 81,000 pounds
for the heaviest electric trucks
and 5,000 pounds for EV vans.
This represents a reduction from the previous scheme,
which could offer 120,000 pounds.
The package also extends an incentive
for heavy goods vehicles.
A separate uplift to the depot charging scheme
is also in there, very important to charge the vehicles.
SK Signet has launched its new all-in-one DC fast charger,
and that would be 400 kilowatts of power.
Productions underwired its Texas facility,
the South Korean SK Group subsidiary,
plans a US rollout before entering Europe this year.
The charger uses silicon carbide power electronics,
is highly efficient and reduces its physical footprint
by over half compared to its previous model.
For space constrained retail sites,
for instance, petrol stations, urban car parks,
this is good news.
So 400 kilowatts of power is, yes,
if you've been watching closely or listening
to the spin-off EV News China podcast,
nothing to write home about in the grand scheme of things,
but 400 kilowatts is still faster
than most of the cars on the road today
could actually charge.
Of course, in North America,
they will come with CCS and Nax as well.
What's interesting about this huge screen,
a 32-inch portrait mounted outdoor touchscreen,
so controlling the entire charger experience,
maybe showing some ads, who knows, plug and charge,
auto charge, credit card payments, RFID,
and of course, for operators,
that's a nice big billboard they can have
a little play around with.
Moving on, Rolls-Royce has launched
its electric coach build collection,
and if you need to ask the price,
as the saying goes, you can't afford it.
The new electric coach building program
targets only the most ultra high end of Rolls-Royce clients.
Funny to think there's some clients of Rolls-Royce
is that are considered, well, the paupers.
Unlike predecessors, every vehicle
will be fully road legal and homologated.
They won't be show car, they won't be concept,
but they will be unique coach built things.
Clients gain access to the private office,
is of Rolls-Royce, in Dubai, Seoul, Shanghai, New York,
and of course, Goodwood, here on the South Coast,
along with testing and studio visits.
The first model in the coach build collection
is going to be fully electric, no images released,
but fair to say, you and I can't afford one.
We probably can't afford a Ferrari either,
but NASA have joined forces with Ferrari
to try and make new Ferrari owners,
well, not feel so sick driving an EV.
Ferrari says their first fully electric EV,
the Luce, is all about the experience
and not about winning drag races.
So it should be.
The chief executive, Benedito Vigna, says Ferrari
even worked with NASA and medical centers
to find out the point at which G-forces become disturbing,
neurologically disturbing.
The problem in Ferrari's view is how linear
in the way in which EVs deliver their power,
and it comes too fast and too relentlessly
for passengers and some drivers as well, actually.
So what are Ferrari saying?
The best thing about combustion engines
and having a gearbox is that it gives you a brief respite.
Okay, well, I mean, I think Ferrari's
are pretty powerful enough, aren't they?
Already with engines, but the electric one,
it's kind of a nice humble brag, isn't it?
Oh, we had to consult NASA
because our EV was going to be too fast.
How do you focus on people not feeling nauseous
or things like that?
So they want to make it a driving experience,
cornering, things like that,
putting the weight in all the right places
and things like that.
Now, let's talk about this final story today.
This is kind of the worst case scenario, really,
for owners of these vehicles, and I would say China.
Let me explain.
X-Pung's distributor in Australia,
their Sydney-based true EV is their name.
They've entered administration
and launched legal action against X-Pung.
Insolvency specialists have been appointed
to manage and sell any existing stock
that is now in Australia.
Receivers have taken control of 200 vehicles
in Melbourne, Brisbane, Willingong and Fremantle.
The administration appears to have been triggered
by a lender.
Their action was tied to financing arrangements
for vehicle stock.
At the same time, a legal dispute between true EV and X-Pung
has escalated now to the courts.
The case concerns the terms of their relationship.
That leaves X-Pung's Australian launch in doubt.
The Chinese brand entered in 2024
with the G6 electric SUV
and was going to expand its local model line up through.
This year, the plan included the X9,
that's a people mover, and the G9, a big SUV.
Neither X-Pung nor the administrators have said
what it means for the existing customers
for future deliveries, for dealers,
but more importantly, for servicing.
And that silence has raised concerns about continuity
for current X-Pung owners in Australia
and about the broader rollout of Chinese vehicles
in the market.
And this is kind of the worst-case scenario,
not only for X-Pung,
because it's not great reputation-ly.
It's not obviously great for the people running,
the local distributor there.
But I would argue this is bad for China
because, okay, let me paint it this way.
If you bought a Fisker,
you knew you were taking a bit of a punt.
Some Fisker owners might have thought,
well, they're well-funded,
they aren't going to be going anywhere,
other Fisker owners might have thought,
well, I know it's a gamble,
but you only have a gamble with money
that you can afford to lose.
And I think this is worse,
because clearly, if you bought a Fisker
and other car companies that have gone bust,
you potentially get left with a lemon.
The argument that Chinese EVs are making
is that they can dislodge the Western car makers.
They can turn up in markets like Australia and Europe
and the West and the UK and Canada now
and do business and be there for customers.
And one thing that I've argued at times
is the pricing is very low
and I've owned two Chinese EVs.
I still own one.
I owned the MG ZS, the mighty MG,
and my current Polestar is a Chinese car.
And so, okay, yeah, Polestar is Swedish
and yes, it's a company listed in the UK,
but ultimately it's owned by the Chinese.
And with that comes some risks,
some things like service.
I had to wait a long time for one part for the MG
that wasn't even in the country.
Frustrating, not even in stock.
And MG's huge over here.
Not on a parts shelf, anywhere in the country, they said.
It was on a boat from China.
That was frustrating.
But what about if MG had gone bust while I owned it?
Now you might think that's not likely
and you might think Polestar won't go
and so I'm insulated personally.
But what about all those buyers
who are thinking of buying a Chinese EV
and then hearing stories of,
well, they've gone, you know, X-Pung
and now you got the support for their vehicles in Australia.
And there could well be.
And there could be solutions and X-Pung could step in
and sort these things out.
But reputationally, I think this is probably more harmful
than the actual impact on X-Pung owners in Australia
because it sows the seed of doubts, doesn't it?
Should I take a gamble on a Chinese?
Yeah, they might not be here tomorrow.
Or just buy a Toyota that I've always bought.
It's interesting.
It's a topic for debate.
I'm sure you have an opinion.
And that's your podcast for today.
Thanks for listening
and thanks to our premium partners.
That'll be National Car Charging on the US mainland
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And Test TV, Avalu's trusted partner
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in Australia and New Zealand.
Have a good and see you tomorrow.
And remember, there's no such thing
as a self-charging hybrid.
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The National Education Association, NEA's,
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is the nation's largest celebration of reading,
helping students of all ages connect with diverse,
inclusive books that make them feel seen
and expand their worlds.
America's educators are committed
to inspiring a nation of readers,
sharing the joy of reading by creating classrooms
and communities where every student can access books
that make them feel reflected and respected.
But right now, access to diverse,
age-appropriate books is under attack like never before.
The past four years have brought
an unprecedented number of book bans,
6,870 in the 2024-25 school year alone.
NEA's Read Across America celebrates the joy of reading
through curated book lists, recommended authors,
and ready to use resources
that help every parent and child
find the stories they connect with.
Join NEA's Read Across America
and celebrate the magic of books.
Learn more at readacrossamerica.org.
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About this episode
Sony Honda’s EV project Ophelia is scrapped after Honda’s EV retreat left the JV without a viable path to market, with refunds for California buyers. MG opens a Frankfurt engineering center and teases a “Solid Core” semi-solid battery for Europe, aiming for mass production by end-2026. Renault and Volvo expand EVs into fleet “van” roles with the electric Twingo van and the EX30 cargo. Australia’s petrol shortage headlines are blamed on panic buying. The UK spotlights the new Vauxhall Astra (PHEV/EV) and a £1B fleet electrification push, plus a 400 kW SK Signet charger. Rolls-Royce launches an electric coachbuild program, Ferrari consults NASA on EV nausea/G-forces, and Australia’s TrueEV distributor enters administration—raising fears about long-term support for Chinese EVs.
