Happy Friday, and welcome to Critical Materials, your source for the biggest stories shaping the future of the auto industry.

Every Friday, we break down the week’s biggest EV news, keep you up to speed on the cars we’re testing, and recap must-read stories from around the web on driverless cars, batteries, charging, and more.

– Today’s email was written by Tim Levin, Kevin Williams, Rob Stumpf, and Suvrat Kothari

No matter how you may feel about China, there’s no denying its power and influence on the global automotive landscape. This year's Beijing Auto Show hosted a whopping 180 debuts of both concept and production models. The show was so big that it stretched nearly a mile from end to end. And yeah, my ankles are still in pain from all the walking.

The Beijing Auto Show wrapped up a few days ago. Here are three big takeaways from the expo and from the ten days I just spent in China observing the latest in its car market.

1. The Shift To Bigger, Higher-End Cars

China’s New Energy Vehicle market has always had premium aspirations. Sure, there are plenty of mainstream, small, and cheap fully electric or extended-range EV (EREV) models to buy on China’s market, but this show seemed to turn the attention to more expensive offerings. Take the BYD Yangwang U9 Xtreme, for example. This 3,000-horsepower hypercar may just be China’s most expensive car ever. BYD only plans to sell 30 of them, priced at nearly $3 million each.

Hypercars aside, other brands are reaching upmarket and rolling out bigger, more luxurious vehicles. Stellantis’ Chinese partner Leapmotor introduced the D19, a large EV or EREV SUV aimed at other premium seven-seaters like the Li Auto L8. At roughly $35,000, it sounds like a bargain for Americans, but it is significantly more expensive than the rest of Leapmotor’s lineup.

Similarly, BYD’s Great Tang crossover just entered China’s big luxury three-row market, as did Xpeng’s Range Rover-esque SUV, called the GX. BYD’s Denza and Fangchengbao brands both showed off near-production concepts of models that clearly are meant to poach buyers who would’ve bought cars from Porsche or Mercedes-Benz. 

2. Non-Chinese Automakers Are Stepping Up Their Game 

Non-Chinese auto manufacturers have been pretty vocal about the collapse of sales in China. Now many of them are rolling out new, more competitive cars for the Chinese market, and I think this time it could work out.

Hyundai’s Ioniq V is the standout for me. This wedge-shaped car is striking, promising 373 miles (CLTC) on a charge and an infotainment system that’s more advanced than what we’ve got here at home. It’s developed with Hyundai’s Chinese joint venture partner, BAIC, and is part of a multi-model vehicle launch meant to put Hyundai back at the top of the sales charts.

Volkswagen was also out in full force, showing off several production models and concepts developed with its local Chinese market partners. The Jetta X and Audi E7X are two crossovers at either end of the spectrum (one cheap, one not-so-cheap) using Chinese tech and developed much quicker than usual.

3. Foreign Media Is More Interested Than Ever

Two years ago, I felt like one of the few folks on the show floor who wasn’t from Asia. This year, the show was full of media, experts, and others from all over the globe. No matter where you’re from, everyone’s interested in the Chinese car industry. For Americans, who won’t see Chinese vehicles anytime soon due to policy barriers, this may be part of an effort to size up the global competition. However, for other countries, the show presented a real avenue to see which products could be headed to their respective home countries.

Canada recently announced it would let in a small number of Chinese vehicles at lower tariff rates, and I noticed many Canadian media outlets at the show. Chery reportedly hosted a group of nearly two-dozen Canadian car dealers as it eyes an entry to that market. 

All told, there’s more foreign interest in China’s car industry than ever—from car buyers, dealers, and manufacturers alike. But that market is evolving quickly, too. I’m curious to see how much the landscape has shifted by this time next year. 

(For a deeper dive into the latest from the Beijing Auto Show, check out my conversation with Tim on the Plugged-In Podcast above or wherever you get podcasts.)

-Kevin Williams

Get up to speed on the news that caught our eye this week:

The USMCA, a trade deal from Donald Trump's first term in office, is set to enter review in July. Automakers are urging the U.S. Trade Representative to extend the trade deal to make sure that domestic automakers can "remain globally competitive [...] at a time of rapid technological change and intensifying international competition." Or, in other words, faltering would mean potentially allowing China to eat their lunch.

BMW hit a major milestone in the EV sector: 2 million battery-electric cars sold. That puts BMW in third place (by volume) behind other Western automakers like Tesla and Volkswagen.

Speaking of BMW, the new 2027 BMW iX3 xDrive 50 is about $5,000 cheaper than its comparable gas equivalent. It also packs a whopping 434 miles of EPA range, 463 horsepower, and charges from 10% to 80% in just 21 minutes.

Ford may sell at least part of its Body 3 assembly plant in Valencia, Spain to Geely (the parent company behind Volvo, Polestar, and other brands). This would allow Geely to make use of Ford's unused capacity in order to circumvent Europe's 18.8% tariff on its imports, and in exchange, Geely could build a model for Ford based on its existing platforms.

Ford is also pushing ahead on making its next-generation EVs. We recently went behind the scenes at Ford skunkworks EV development center to see exactly how the Blue Oval is planning to take on China. That starts with a $30,000 pickup truck arriving next year on the so-called Universal EV Platform.

Slate is making progress too. Its factory in Indiana has been shaping up to build a no-frills, affordable pickup that undercuts even Ford's planned pricing—or that's what's planned, at least. Slate says it will release its final pricing next month.

Mercedes-Benz is working on the anti-EV EV (that's an electric car for folks who can't stand them). The new Mercedes-AMG GT is one of the first true EV sports cars packaged up like a grand tourer with some serious power to boot.

Rivian may be looking to vertically integrate more of its R2 supply chain. CEO RJ Scaringe says that while it could partner with a Chinese company for the upcoming SUV's lidar sensor, it plans to make its own lidar hardware in-house rather than outsource production to a third-party. Scaringe says that Rivian is in "active discussions" with solid-state lidar makers regarding solutions, including a possible joint venture.

We finally know how big the Tesla Semi's battery is: 822 kilowatt-hours. The massive 23,000-pound truck recently entered volume production, according to Tesla, and will offer two battery sizes (the Standard Range being 548 kWh) capable of delivering up to 500 miles on a full charge. 

Lexus revealed its first three-row electric SUV, the Lexus TZ, just dropped and it looks absolutely tough. It comes with up to 402 horsepower, 300 miles of range, and a native NACS charging port.

-Rob Stumpf

Toyota killed the quirky C-HR hatchback in 2022 after sluggish sales, but the nameplate is now reborn as a fully electric compact crossover with a sleek, coupe-like design. I drove it for a week in New York, and it turned out to be a bit of a mixed bag.

The big picture: The EV market is moving toward more affordable options, and the $37,000 C-HR (before destination fees) is a meaningful entry. Toyota is finally showing up to a fight it sat out for too long.

What works:

What doesn't:

The bottom line: The C-HR is a promising, stylish, and punchy EV at a relatively accessible price point. If Toyota fixes the ergonomic issues and adds native trip planning, it will be an easy recommendation for city dwellers and suburban buyers alike.

-Suvrat Kothari

This fascinating video came across my feed the other day. Apparently old, battered, near-end-of-life Priuses are finding homes with Mongolian herders.

Thanks for reading Critical Materials. See you next week!

-Tim Levin