Every year since 2019 has been the best yet for electric vehicles. Sales have been burgeoning in Europe and China, with increasingly positive signs in the USA. The market is moving so fast, it’s hard to keep up with every new development. As 2022 draws towards a close, it is time to look back at some of the key moments that have defined the direction of this year.
Electric Racing Is Coming Of Age
If there is resistance to EVs for personal transportation, there is even more negativity about electrification in motor racing. Naysayers bemoan the lack of engine noise and claim the competitive drama will be lost if internal combustion is replaced by electric power. While the engine noise argument is hard to deny, the claims that drama is lacking are looking increasingly weak.
The all-electric McMurtry Speirling, which smashed the Goodwood hill climb record in 2022.
James Morris
Perhaps the defining example of this in 2022 was when the Batmobile-like McMurtry Speirling smashed the Goodwood Festival of Speed hill climb record in the UK. The cornering of this car achieved on its run was so ridiculously sharp, and the pace so frenetic, that some people thought the video had been sped up. But it hadn’t. The Speirling is really that fast. It’s intended to be a track racer and has the potential for some of the quickest competitive laps ever when it becomes more widely available.
The most established electric race series, Formula E is holding steady too. In 2022, it completed its eight season and announced a vastly improved Gen3 car. This is significantly faster than the previous generation, with a faster top speed and much more power. It also has no rear brakes, relying entirely on regenerative braking that runs the motors in reverse to put energy back into the batteries. Only the front wheels have conventional friction brakes. Ultra-rapid 600kW charging will also be trialed at a few circuits in the next season.
FIA World RX Launch Norway in Hell , Norway on 11th August 2022 // @World / Red Bull Content Pool // … [+]
@World / Red Bull Content Pool
World Rallycross (RX) also went electric in 2022, with its inaugural EV competition for its main season in Hell, Norway. The powerful all-wheel-drive electric cars now used by World RX are perfect for its short circuits, mixed paved and unpaved surfaces, and limited number of laps. The short range of the cars’ batteries aren’t a problem when the races are only a few minutes long. However, the World Rally Championship (WRC) has taken the route of sustainable fuel instead. Although an EV could last for many rally stages, WRC cars also do more than one per day and drive between them on public roads, making electrification of this sport more problematic, at least for the time being.
The poster child of electric motor racing is almost becoming Extreme E, however. The series completed its second season in dramatic form in Uruguay, with the championship winner only confirmed a few minutes after the final race was complete. A penalty for one team elevated Lewis Hamilton’s X44 Vida Carbon team onto the top of the series podium, beating out Nico Rosberg’s RXR team. But the strong sustainability message of Extreme E, such as highlighting Uruguay’s rapid adoption of renewable energy, is what makes it the clearest proponent of electrification in racing.
EVs Can Be Long Haul Trucks Too
If the controversy of electrifying motor sport is in large part about emotion, when it comes to trucks the concerns are much more practical. The general image of EVs is that they have a range problem, which would make them far from ideal for long-distance road haulage. Some years ago, Elon Musk claimed he would change that by creating the Tesla Semi.
The Tesla Semi will change road haulage as we know it.
Tesla
There was a lot of skepticism at the time, and the Semi has arrived later than promised (doesn’t that always happen with Musk’s Tesla predictions?) But in 2022 the initial production Semis have started shipping to the first commercial customer, Pepsi. The truck has managed to carry 81,000lbs (36.7 metric tons) over 500 miles. It also supports 1MW charging that can replenish 350 miles of range in half an hour. It looks like EVs really could cope with long-distance road haulage after all.
Elon Musk’s Twitter Obsession Threatens Tesla
While the Semi is looking like a triumph, other areas of the world according to Elon Musk aren’t doing so well. After much to-ing and fro-ing, he finally completed the purchase of Twitter, and many feel it immediately took a political turn to the right. This led to a mass exodus of advertisers and prominent members, followed by further controversy.
Is everything OK with Elon Musk? (Photo by Win McNamee/Getty Images)
Getty Images
This could have been irrelevant to Tesla’s fortunes, but there are signs that it hasn’t been. Many long-time Tesla fans have claimed they will no longer support the brand. Although it remains to be seen if they really do this, there are clear signs that Musk’s antics on Twitter have adversely affected Tesla share prices. After he banned journalists from the social media platform, Tesla shares hit a two-year low of $150.04, when in November 2021 they were at a peak of $381.59.
Many other brands now are pushing hard on electrification now, but Tesla is still the technology leader in key areas. The Twitter-related troubles at Tesla are threatening the momentum of EVs, making it a massive relief that Musk appears to have gotten himself voted out of being CEO of the social network. Maybe he will concentrate more on his electric car company again.
New EVs Go From Strength To Strength
Of course, the main driving force behind electrification is the release of new EVs, and there have been some stunning launches in 2022. Swedish (but Chinese owned) pure-electric company Polestar has announced its next product, the Polestar 3, which is expensive but capable. New Italian electric hyper SUV brand AEHRA teased its first vehicle, and it looks stunning.
The AEHRA doesn’t have wings (that we know of). These are its “Elytra” doors.
AEHRA
Jeep has launched its first electric car, aimed at the European market, called the Avenger. There will be more Jeep EVs to come in 2023 for the US market as well. The Nissan Ariya finally arrived, taking the Japanese giant automaker back into the EV space with a bang. As one of the EV pioneers with the Leaf, Nissan has been surprisingly slow to release further electric vehicles. That looks set to change, and it’s about time too. Hyundai Motor Group’s brands (Hyundai, Kia, Genesis) are all building strong electric portfolios and Japanese automakers will need to move fast if they are to prevent their Korean neighbor from taking an EV lead.
Chinese electric brands are also beginning to venture outside China now with a vengeance. You will see lots of Build Your Dreams (BYD) EVs in Norway, and they will be rolling out in other European countries in the next few years. Premium Chinese brand XPENG announced this year that it will now begin targeting Europe. But the brand that is doing the most to bring EVs to the masses in Europe is MG. Its MG4 is the best value electric vehicle available outside China and set a new benchmark for price when it was launched in 2022.
The MG4 could be the affordable electric family hatchback we have been waiting for.
MG engine
So much has happened in EVs this year. Electric racing has become a lot more exciting, and EVs are providing they can be viable for most forms of vehicular transport. Elon Musk’s distraction from Tesla is a worry, but there has still been a slew of great new EV releases from other companies. In general, 2022 has been incredibly bright for electric vehicles. Roll on 2023, because the pace of development shows no signs of slowing down.
