Articles by Leon Poultney, EVs correspondent

Leon has been navigating a world where automotive and tech collide for almost 20 years, reporting on everything from in-car entertainment to robotised manufacturing plants. Currently, EVs are the focus of his attentions, but give it a few years and it will be electric vertical take-off and landing craft. Outside of work hours, he can be found tinkering with distinctly analogue motorcycles, because electric motors are no replacement for an old Honda inline four.

Articles by: Leon Poultney

“I think it can be a point of no return” — experts issue warning as Chinese EV manufacturers hunt for European manufacturing plants

By Leon Poultney published 15 May 26

Chinese EV makers are pushing into Europe with plans to snap up idle manufacturing facilities

“If you’re manufacturing EVs that can’t be repaired, it’s going to be a real challenge to sustain residual values” — experts call for more repairability in the battery industry

By Leon Poultney published 14 May 26

Experts are calling for more EV repairability, as range-focussed battery packs could seriously hurt residual values

Think EV battery swap tech is a gimmick? Chinese EV company Nio says it swapped a million batteries in a week

By Leon Poultney published 13 May 26

Nio is swapping more than 1 million EV batteries a week, as China pulls away on the innovative EV charging technology

Android Auto gets a massive AI-powered upgrade with YouTube, Dolby Atmos, and immersive 3D Maps

By Leon Poultney published 12 May 26

Android Auto gets a premium new look, the ability to watch videos, and better integrated Gemini

'It’s real proof that the company wants to be more than a "Temu Tesla". It wants to usurp it’ — I’ve driven the new Xpeng G6 and it's more of a Tesla rival than ever, but it’s not perfect yet

By Leon Poultney published 9 May 26

In less than a year, Xpeng updated its Tesla-rivaling G6 model with over 20,000 incremental developments and I’ve driven it

This Californian start-up just shocked the haulage world with its weird, cab-less autonomous delivery bot

By Leon Poultney published 8 May 26

The Humble Hauler wants to change the face of freight with innovative and driverless truck

Tesla recalls all of its ‘budget’ Cybertrucks over fears that the wheels might fall off

By Leon Poultney published 6 May 26

Off-road EV faces recall over faulty brake rotors, but also reveals just how few Tesla actually sold.

Google Gemini is coming to more cars, but some consumers aren’t cheering

By Leon Poultney published 5 May 26

Google Gemini is rolling out to millions of cars, but some owners are concerned about data privacy.

The internals of an electric car showcasing a fast-charging battery, next to a person at a Beijing Auto Show stand for an electric battery

'Light years ahead of the rest of the world': China shows off the future of EV batteries at the Beijing Auto Show — as CATL and BYD race to cut charging times down to just five minutes

By Leon Poultney published 2 May 26

The Beijing Auto Show played host to numerous rapid-charging demos, as China looks to cut EV charging time to a minimum

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The first Tesla Semi finally rolls off the production line — 7 years after Elon Musk unveiled the long-haul EVs

By Leon Poultney published 30 April 26

It might be seven years later than planned, but the first Tesla Semi truck rolls off the mass production line

A Tesla Supercharger next to an angry man shouting out if his car window

Get in line! Tesla Supercharger fights are on the rise over queue-jumpers — so the EV giant is rolling out a new 'Virtual Queue' system to help diffuse 'screaming arguments'

By Leon Poultney published 27 April 26

No more fisticuffs at Tesla Supercharger stations, as EV company introduces 'Virtual Queue' system to avoid fights over queue-jumping.

'Long term, the only manually driven car will be the Tesla Roadster': Elon Musk says future lineup is going to be almost entirely autonomous

By Leon Poultney published 23 April 26

Tesla's CEO says that the only non-autonomous vehicle in the company's future line-up will be the Roadster.

The exterior of the Kia Vision Meta Turismo concept car next to an interior shot of the driver's seat

'EVs have to be fun': Kia lifts the lid on its wild Vision Meta Turismo concept that uses a joystick as a gear shifter

By Leon Poultney published 22 April 26

Kia unveils a Vision Met Turismo concept that hints at future sporty electric saloon for the brand.

A new ‘color’ Lidar breakthrough just made 'hands-off' self-driving cars a reality, experts say — Chinese tech will 'significantly enhance' spatial intelligence and reduce the need to 'guess' objects like traffic lights

By Leon Poultney published 21 April 26

A new color-capable Lidar system has been hailed as a “fundamental innovation” for self-driving car technology.

The interior of the Hyundai Ioniq 3 next to an external photo on a white background

Hyundai reinvents the hatchback with the 300-mile range Ioniq 3 — a compact, aerodynamic EV that runs on Android Automotive

By Leon Poultney published 20 April 26

Hyundai reinvents the humble hatchback with the 300-mile range Ioniq 3 — a compact, aerodynamic EV that majors on interior roominess.

'I’ve waited seven years!': Tesla owners in Europe demand $7,500 refund as Full Self-Driving is locked out for older vehicles

By Leon Poultney published 17 April 26

Anger rises in Europe as Tesla's Full Self-Driving system isn't available on older vehicles, despite years of promises

Rolls-Royce launches its most 'ambitious work' to date — as limited edition Project Nightingale takes electric luxury to a new level

By Leon Poultney published 16 April 26

Project Nightingale will be based on the Rolls-Royce Spectre but limited to just 100 units.

A person in a self-driving Tesla next to the Optimus robot standing in front of a grey background

Elon Musk reveals Tesla’s powerful new AI5 chip — but don't expect it to improve Full Self-Driving anytime soon

By Leon Poultney published 16 April 26

Tesla lifts the lid on its most powerful chip to date, but it’s destined for the Optimus robot and its supercomputers first.

The interface of a Tesla car next to an image of self-driving mode

Tesla's massive Spring update leaves older cars behind — as owners spot fresh clue about a big Full Self-Driving change

By Leon Poultney published 14 April 26

Tesla's big Spring software update has landed — and its new Self-Driving app leaves a lot of questions unanswered.

'The decision is deeply troubling': Tesla gets a green light for Full Self-Driving in Europe — but not everyone is happy about it

By Leon Poultney published 13 April 26

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving system has just been approved in Europe for the first time, but critics have called the decision "deeply troubling" — here's why.

The BMW iX5 Hydrogen next to a row of fuel cells

Hydrogen isn’t dead — BMW teases iX5 with space-saving fuel cell system that offers emissions-free motoring for up to 385 miles

By Leon Poultney published 9 April 26

BMW says its iX5 Hydrogen will go into production in 2028, but is there really still life in hydrogen cars?

I've driven the new Renault Twingo — and it's the closest thing to affordable, lightweight electric motoring without the compromise

By Leon Poultney published 4 April 26

Renault continues its run of excellent retro reimagining with the cute, compact Twingo. Affordable electric motoring done right.

A Baidu robotaxi in the middle of the road

'I was stuck on the overpass with dump trucks all around me': A mass Baidu robotaxi outage just caused traffic mayhem in China

By Leon Poultney published 2 April 26

Collisions, delays and traffic chaos have been reported due to a mass robotaxi outage in China.

A Tesla Model S car next to Elon Musk looking sad

'We will have an official ceremony to mark the ending of an era. I love those cars' — Elon Musk mourns the officially retired Tesla Model S and Model X

By Leon Poultney published 2 April 26

Tesla officially kills off the once-pioneering Model S and Model X, as it focusses its future on autonomy.

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ChatGPT comes to Apple CarPlay but only if you are willing to talk to a robot

By Leon Poultney published 2 April 26

Recent Apple iOS update introduces ChatGPT to the CarPlay environment for the first time

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