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Which automaker revealed a hydrogen-combustion performance-car concept? 

Can government agencies really get the Ford F-150 Lightning?

This is our look back at the Week In Reverse—right here at Green Car Reports—for the week ending December 9, 2022.

In a series of introductions in Europe this past week, Toyota continued to go against the EV grain—or, at least, the unified front that some other automakers have in seeing EVs as the future. The C-HR Prologue Concept, previewing a next-generation C-HR plug-in hybrid, is set for Europe. It also revealed the hydrogen-combustion Corolla Cross H2 Concept—with a hydrogen-fueled turbo-3 engine and manual transmission, but borrowing hydrogen storage expertise from the Mirai fuel-cell vehicle. Hydrogen internal combustion still produced tailpipe emissions, but Toyota said that the tech “illustrates another possible alternative path to zero emissions.”

Toyota Corolla Cross H2 Concept

Polestar is offering an over-the-air update that boosts power of nearly any dual-motor Polestar 2 by 58 hp and 15 lb-ft. It’s a permanent upgrade, for a $1,195 one-time fee, and it’s the first time an automaker has offered such a boost to the U.S. market. 

A battery change has boosted efficiency for the 2023 Nissan Leaf—slightly. Leafs with the larger battery now get a 60-kwh pack, as opposed to 62-kwh previously, but driving range is down just 3 miles from most previous numbers, Nissan verified that there are battery chemistry changes plus “minor aerodynamic enhancements for this model year.”

2023 Nissan Leaf

Volkswagen is preparing to release a long-awaited software upgrade for its ID.4 electric crossover that will improve infotainment performance while adding other interface features. It will be offered to 2021 models first, then some 2022 models, but those with the 2021 will need to make a dealer visit. 

Ford confirmed on Monday that its Ford Pro unit will deliver 2,000 E-Transit electric delivery vans to DHL by the end of 2023. The deal also includes an MOU for future EV supply and DHL’s implementation of the full Ford Pro fleet-management-suite—a win-win for Ford as it makes a business push around software. 

Hyundai teased two “rolling lab” N Brand performance cars—including the hydrogen fuel-cell-powered N Vision 74. It says that development of the car’s powertrain has continued—with suggestions that there might be a performance fuel-cell vehicle in the brand’s future. 

2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Pro

The U.S. Forest Service is currently evaluating the Ford F-150 Lightning electric truck, but it can’t actually place orders for them. The sought-after model was the first electric pickup to make the vehicle list from the federal government’s GSA, which handles vehicle purchases, but it’s since been dropped because Ford isn’t accepting orders. 

After looking at dealer proposals, General Motors is ready to start deploying up to 40,000 Level 2 chargers to communities in the U.S. and Canada, to expand charging access in “underserved rural and urban areas where EV charging is often limited or non-existent,”

AAA mobile EV charging availability

AAA has launched a new mobile EV charging pilot program. Set to cover 14 U.S. metropolitan areas at first, the expanded offerings come more than a decade after the group first tested mobile charging with its own prototype mobile charging trucks. 

While prices on used EVs are finally dropping, several pricing experts recently noted that they’re not dropping as much on long-range EVs. Charge time may also play a role. 

Polestar 2 battery pack

And the record-moment of the past week came in the form of an annual survey of lithium-ion battery pack prices from Bloomberg New Energy Finance, finding that they’ve reached $151/kwh this year, a 7% increase over 2021. That’s the first time average pack prices have risen since BNEF started tracking prices in 2010, and it delays EV price parity with internal-combustion models. 

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