Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

NedS

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81968590#Comment_81968590

They increased the threshold to £50,000 for EV (zero emission) cars from 1st April 2026 (whilst still £40,000 for ICE), so that £10,000 increase should more than offset for any EV subsidies to list price.

https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/vehicle-excise-duty-for-expensive-car-supplement-threshold-increase-for-zero-emission-vehicles/increase-in-the-vehicle-excise-duty-expensive-car-supplement-threshold-for-zero-emission-cars

Martyn1981

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81968602#Comment_81968602

You beat me to it. And it's been back dated, for the first owner.

Martyn1981

Couple of news items from the 'big population boys'.

China has seen PEV sales drop a bit, due to regulatory tax changes. But the good news, they were still over 50% PEV in March (35% BEV). Last year the average went over 50% (whole year) with the later months ~60%. This year, so far, the PEV share is 45%, but fingers crossed, is on the rise once again.

BYD Wins In A Slow Return To Normal — China March EV Sales Report

After the December end-of-incentive sales rush (NEVs are no longer exempt from purchase tax this year), and the following sales slump, March is signaling a slow return to normal, despite the numbers still being negative.

In March, the overall market was down 15% YoY, to around 1.6 million sales, while BEVs were down by 12% YoY, to 568,000 sales. So, BEVs did better than the overall market. But the PHEV drop was harsher than average (-19%).

Share-wise, March saw plugin vehicles hit 52% market share. This is the same market share as in March 2025. Full electrics (BEVs) alone accounted for 35% of the country’s auto sales, which is already above the 34% score of March 2025.

This result pulled the 2026 share to 45% (in the same period last year, it was at 48% share). BEVs alone were also up, to 28% (30% BEV in Jan–March ’25).

And in the similarly populous country of India, the BEV/PEV market is starting to grow, though a few years behind China. The two (and three) wheeler market has discovered BEV's. Quick bit of Googling, suggests two-wheeler sales in Mch of 191k is ~10% of the market.

Two and three wheelers are very important (worldwide) as they tend to have proportionately high pollution.

What really caught my eye though was the ~250mile range given for one of the cheap scooters. Even if overly generous range estimate, that's still very impressive, especially combined with swappable batts.

India’s Electric Two-Wheeler Market Surpassed Targets in 1st Quarter

The Indian electric two-wheeler market is entering a new phase of maturity in April 2026, defined not just by record sales but by a clear expansion in product ambition and consumer segmentation.

After a historic March that saw nearly 191,000 electric two-wheelers sold, up 45 percent year over year, manufacturers have opened the new fiscal year with models that push beyond earlier limits on range, performance, and price positioning.

What is emerging is no longer an experimental or subsidy-driven segment, but a competitive, innovation-led market where differentiation increasingly matters.

The mid-April debut of the Simple Ultra marks a turning point for range expectations in India’s electric scooter segment. Developed by Simple Energy, the Ultra carries a 6.5 kWh battery and delivers a certified IDC range of 400 km, or roughly 248 miles. That figure alone places it in territory previously reserved for niche or conceptual models.

Exiled_Tyke

Small but very significant development in the expansion in EV take-up.

https://www.theguardian.com/business/2026/apr/21/ev-charging-shake-up-looks-to-help-uk-households-solve-off-street-parking-problem

shinytop

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81974316#Comment_81974316

As a motorcyclist I do try and follow EV developments on two wheels. The 400km range scooter sounds good but it's very expensive for India at $2500. A regular petrol scooter is around £1000. I think the smaller, cheaper ones with removable batteries is where the real growth will come in countries like India.

If we could get one of them here for $2500 I'd have it like a shot…

Martyn1981

April car data is out. Big YOY increase for all sales (except diesel), with BEV's up 59%. PEV's at ~40%

UK Car registrations: SMMT April 2026

JKenH

It surprised me how downbeat the SMMT press release was, given that April had seen an almost 60% rise in BEV sales y-o-y.

 Two millionth electric car registered as market rebounds strongly from tax changes - SMMT

The SMMT were for several years very bullish about BEV sales but in the past few months I have noticed a change, with their recent report on decarbonisation suggesting that government policy is going too far too fast: that natural demand isn’t keeping up with the ZEV mandate and attempts to force the transition through are damaging to the UK car industry.

EV adoption has remained consistently

behind government’s ambition, behind

even the expectations government had before

regulatory intervention.

Its original outlook suggested that a new car

market without a mandate would reach 26%

battery electric vehicle (BEV) share in 2025.

Yet even with the mandate, and despite billions

invested in new products and technologies, a

massive choice of vehicles in every segment

and discounting totalling at least £10 billion in

the first two years of the ZEV Mandate, drivers

have proved less willing to move to electric

vehicles than anticipated – with 2025’s market

share reaching 23.4%

The pandemic years delivered significant

growth in BEV uptake. While this undoubtedly

raised expectations and informed government

policy, that growth could not be sustained. Such

over-optimism was not confined to the UK –

with BloombergNEF stating in August 2025: “As

we get into the second half of 2025, it’s worth

recognising that the optimistic EV adoption

forecasts were also off the mark. Over the last

decade, a steady stream of forecasters offered

rosy views on EV adoption that simply haven’t

come to pass. Worse, many of them were never

revisited, leaving lessons unlearned.”

Battery costs have not decreased in line with

expectation. In 2021, BloombergNEF estimated

that EV batteries would cost less than $100/kWh

by 2024 - potentially reaching as low as $80/

kWh in 2026. While battery prices have indeed

reduced, as of the end of 2025, they were still on

average $108/kWh.

https://smmtweb.lon1.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/03/Same-Destination-Smarter-Route-SMMT-Electrified-report.pdf  

QrizB

Q. What do BEV buses do overnight?

A. Help to balance the grid!

https://news.firstbus.co.uk/news/first-bus-launches-uk-first-trial-to-support-national-grid-using-electric-bus-depots

By flexing when buses are charged, the depots can increase demand at times when there is excess renewable energy on the system, particularly wind power in Scotland, and reduce demand during peak periods. This helps reduce the need to curtail renewable generation and supports a more efficient, flexible energy network.

Scotland generates significant volumes of wind energy, but limitations in grid capacity mean some of this power cannot be transmitted to where demand is highest. As a result, renewable energy is sometimes curtailed. By increasing demand at key times, electric bus depots can help absorb this excess energy.

More at the link.

Netexporter

A lot of US school buses have gone electric for the same reason. Known periods of idleness for soaking up solar make them ideal for load shifting.

Magnitio

https://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/discussion/comment/81991337#Comment_81991337

Unfortunately, a lot of the old decrepit smoky diesel buses near us seem to finish their lives transporting school children.