BRIEFLY: Mercedes VLE, Chevy Bolt, Cayenne S & more | 11 Mar 2026
EV News Daily - Technology and Business of EVs
Martyn Lee
4.8 • 749 Ratings
🗓️ 11 March 2026
⏱️ 4 minutes
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Summary
It's EV News Briefly for Wednesday 11 March 2026, everything you need to know in less than 5 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.
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Mercedes is launching the all-electric VLE on its new VAN.EA platform to replace the V-Class, offering two battery options: an 80 kWh LFP unit charging at 300 kW and a 115 kWh NMC pack from CATL on an 800-volt system charging at up to 315 kW, with a WLTP range of around 700 km. The cabin offers up to 8 seats, a 31-inch 8K rear cinema screen, electric sliding doors, a centre-console fridge, and pricing from roughly €68,000 to €135,000 in Germany.
GM has brought back the Chevrolet Bolt for 2027 as the cheapest EV in the US at $28,995, featuring a 65 kWh LFP battery, 210 hp, 262 miles of EPA range, and 150 kW NACS fast charging with a 10–80% time of 25 minutes. However, GM plans only one model year of production, as ending Bolt output frees its Kansas City plant to shift Equinox assembly from Mexico to the US.
Porsche has added the 2026 Cayenne S Electric at $128,650, slotting between the 435 hp base model and the 1,139 hp Turbo with 536 hp standard and 657 hp on launch control, hitting 0–60 mph in 3.6 seconds. It shares the range's 108 kWh battery and 400 kW peak DC charging, reaching 10–80% in under 16 minutes, and borrows the Turbo's direct oil-cooling system for improved thermal resilience.
Volkswagen's energy subsidiary Elli has connected its first large-scale battery storage system—a 20 MW / 40 MWh PowerCentre across 13 containers—to the grid in Salzgitter, Germany. The system uses cells from VW's PowerCo plant, trades energy on the European Power Exchange, and is designed to stabilise grids and support renewable energy integration.
A camouflaged Genesis GV90 has been photographed charging at a Tesla Supercharger in Mesquite, Nevada, confirming the model will feature a standard NACS port as Genesis rolls out NACS across all new US-market EVs from 2026 onward. The GV90 is expected to ride on Hyundai's new eM platform, which promises 50% more range than the current E-GMP architecture, with higher trims set to feature coach doors and panoramic displays.
Slate Auto has replaced founder and CEO Christine Barman with Peter Faricy, a former Amazon VP and Ford executive, less than a year before the planned launch of its low-cost electric truck. Barman, the company's first hire and one of only two women leading a US automaker, moves to the role of president of vehicles at the Jeff Bezos-backed startup.
Dacia is preparing a second small EV to sit alongside the Spring, developed in under 16 months and targeted at under €18,000, built on Renault's AmpR Small platform that also underpins the Renault 5. The unnamed model is part of Dacia's plan to launch four new EVs by 2030, with design direction hinted at by the Dacia Hipster concept unveiled in October 2024.
Iveco has launched a real-world dynamic wireless power transfer (DWPT) trial on the A35 Brebemi motorway in northern Italy, using a production eDaily van fitted with inductive charging hardware that can charge both while stationary and while driving over embedded road sections. The project moves DWPT beyond lab testing into live traffic conditions, though it remains a technology demonstration rather than a commercial rollout due to the large infrastructure investment required for wide deployment.
BYD, Chery, and Geely are preparing to enter the Canadian market by end of 2026 following a January trade reset between Canada and China, under which Canada agreed to allow 49,000 China-made EVs at the most-favoured nation tariff rate in exchange for lower Chinese tariffs on Canadian agricultural goods. Up to 15 additional Chinese brands could follow, though homologation remains the key bottleneck, with Tesla, Volvo, and Polestar best positioned to move quickly under the quota as they already have certified vehicles and established retail networks in Canada.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | It's TV news briefly for Wednesday 11th of March, everything EV, in less than five minutes, |
| 0:04.9 | if you haven't got time for the full podcast. Let's get you up to speed. Mercedes is launching the |
| 0:09.5 | All-E Electric VLE van on its new van.e.a platform to replace the V-class offering two battery |
| 0:16.5 | options, 80-kilwatt hour LFP pack, a 300-kil kilowatt DC fast charging, or 115 kilowatt hour pack |
| 0:23.2 | NMC from CATL, both at 800 volts architectures and a WLTP range up to 700 kilometers. |
| 0:31.3 | The cabin, highly luxurious depending on spec, 6, 7 or 8 speed seats. |
| 0:36.7 | You can even get a 31 inch 8K rear cinema screen, which at the press of a button, |
| 0:42.8 | folds down from the roof, shuts the roof blind and the window blinds, |
| 0:46.8 | and puts you in cinema mode. |
| 0:48.8 | Electric sliding doors both sides, a centre console, fridge, both front and back, |
| 1:00.5 | pricing from 68,000 euros, and their take on, well, a very high end. |
| 1:07.0 | They say a limousine, well, yes, it's also a van, but it's a really, really nice van. |
| 1:09.0 | It's coming later in the year. |
| 1:12.9 | General Motors has brought back the bolt, and it's now with dealers for a 2027 model year. And it's the cheapest electric vehicle on sale in the United States at |
| 1:19.2 | 28995. Has a 65 kilowatt hour LFP pack, 210 horsepower, 262 miles, EPA range. And unlike the old 55 kilowatt charging, |
| 1:31.1 | this one charges at 150 kilowatts, which doesn't break the bank, I must admit. But |
| 1:36.8 | early videos show the charge curve is really robust. So, 10 to 80 time of 25 minutes. |
| 1:46.2 | And honestly, that's entering road trip territory for some people who don't mind stopping |
| 1:51.5 | for 25 minutes. |
| 1:53.3 | And you can't say that about the previous bolt. |
| 1:56.4 | Certainly, Porsche has added the KyanS to the lineup, |
| 2:01.4 | slotting between the base model and the turbo bonkers version, 3.6 seconds, naught to 60, 108 kilowatt hour pack. |
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