Scout's Home State Blocks Direct EV Sales. This Bill Might Change That - Related to be, home, 80%, aims, ceo:

Ford CEO: We Have To Beat China In A 'Street Fight'

We hear it all of the time. "The only reason that China's auto industry is so far ahead on electric vehicles is because it was so heavily subsidized by the government," critics say But that sentence is only partially true. It's certainly accurate that some Chinese automakers are state-owned, and that nearly all have benefitted generously from national, state and local subsidies and tax exemptions—some $231 billion over 15 years, by certain projections.

Yet that's only part of the story. The other part is that China's automakers leveraged lower labor costs and the country's massive engineering workforce, learned from their Western joint venture partners and other companies (especially Tesla) and dealt with intense internal competition within the country's growing new car market. All of those factors combined to create a generation of new EVs, plug-in hybrids and extended-range EVs (EREVs) that the rest of the world is trying to catch up to.

I bring this up because Ford's investors certainly did this week during the Dearborn automaker's fourth-quarter earnings call. And in Ford CEO Jim Farley's mind, regardless of whatever help the Chinese automakers get, the American ones still need to get ready for a "street fight."

"We need to work with our government partners to make it a level playing field as much as possible," Farley presented. "But at the end of the day, it's management's responsibility to beat the [Xiaomi] SU7 straight-up in a street fight."

The SU7, a hot-selling Chinese software-defined EV from the global smartphone giant, is a car Farley knows well. Last year he revealed he imported one from Shanghai directly and spent several months driving it to suss out its competitive advantages. By the end, he expressed he didn't want to give it up.

But even Farley will admit that Ford has a long way to go before it can compete with China on battery tech, as well as the advanced software functions that make the SU7 special, like deep integration with Xiaomi's phones and tablets and their vast app ecosystem.

Farley was asked if he thought [website] tariffs—which currently impose 100% duties on China-made EVs—would be enough to keep those cars out of the country long-term. He demurred on the topic of if or when Ford might have to compete with the likes of BYD on its home turf; most auto executives have shied away from weighing in on that directly. But he stressed that it's an ongoing concern for Ford.

"The overall tariff and trade situation, the growing importance of digital vehicles, the Chinese [automakers] growing to become a global reality, these dynamics will all play out for some time to come, but Ford controls its future," Farley expressed.

Photo by: Ford 2025 Ford Mustang Mach-E With Sport Appearance Package.

Ford has had its share of wins when it comes to the future. The Mustang Mach-E is perennially one of the top-selling non-Tesla EVs in the [website] and the F-150 Lightning was the first modern electric pickup from a legacy automaker. It's also made some big inroads into fleet electrification, charging access and next-gen software.

But Ford has struggled where it counts—namely making money from those EVs. Ford breaks out its EV division's financial results separately from those of its gas-powered cars, and due to still-high capital and battery costs, it lost $[website] billion on going electric in 2024. This year is projected to see similar losses. That, and sales below once-rosy projections, have led Ford to rethink its EV strategy over the past year.

Ford canceled a three-row electric SUV last summer and delayed an all-electric pickup truck expected to be a Lightning successor. It is still, however, working on a from-the-ground-up "skunkworks" platform designed to compete with low-cost Chinese EVs, and is focused on hybrids and now EREVs in the meantime. On that call, Farley noted he sees less of a future path for large electric utility vehicles due to their battery costs, but thinks there is value in large commercial trucks for other end-consumers.

For now, Ford doesn't have to compete with Chinese EVs in the [website] But if the trade environment were to change, it's going to be a different calculus.

"On the kind of 'unfair' part, or the subsidy part, I think we will have to sort that out as a country," he added later. "Because they're part of the competitive environment that, when you list the kind of advantages the companies have, it's like a page long. So we have to resolve that. But at the end of the day, what I learned after 40 years in this industry is the firm has to stand on its own, toe-to-toe with the cost of those companies, and the product appeal of those companies."

Photo by: InsideEVs Ford's Cancelled Three-Row EV.

Farley has been candid before about the [website] auto industry's struggles when stronger new players from Japan, Europe and Korea entered the market in force. Especially against the Japanese automakers, import tariffs didn't work in the 1980s. They led the companies to build cars domestically and establish luxury brands like Lexus that could charge higher premiums than your average family sedan.

That may also be why Farley suggested that automotive imports face tariffs across the board, and not just when they're from China.

"What doesn't make sense to me is why are we having this conversation while Hyundai-Kia is importing 600,000 units into the [website] with no incremental tariff, and why is Toyota able to import half a million vehicles in the [website] with no incremental tariffs," Farley mentioned. "If we're going to have a tariff policy... it superior be comprehensive for our industry. We can't just cherry-pick one place or the other because this is a bonanza for our import competitors."

At the same time, all three of those competitors—the South Korean ones in particular—are ramping up domestic production of their EVs. The Hyundai Motor Group now builds the Ioniq 5 and Kia EV9 in the [website], and soon will do the same with the Ioniq 9 and Kia EV6. And Toyota in the recent past opened a new battery factory in North Carolina in anticipation for more domestically-built hybrids and eventually more EVs, including an expected three-row SUV.

In the meantime, Ford is gearing up for that "street fight" Farley mentioned by focusing on software development and revenue, future EV models due out by 2027 and growing the BlueCruise automated driving system's user base. But Farley warned investors that Ford has a tricky year ahead with those EV costs and tariff uncertainty on top of it. Plus, the new car market is skewing toward more affordable cars in general, and that's especially true on the electric side.

"We are going to invest in affordable vehicles, but we have to do it profitably, which means a transformation at Ford," he introduced.

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Scout's Home State Blocks Direct EV Sales. This Bill Might Change That

Volkswagen-backed Scout Motors broke ground on its new $2 billion electric vehicle plant in South Carolina last year. That factory is expected to roll out EV and EREV trucks and SUVs in the 2027-2028 timeframe. Scout also wants to skip the dealers and sell directly to you through an online portal. But that plan faces huge hurdles, starting in its home state of South Carolina itself.

Welcome to the Friday edition of Critical Materials, your daily round-up of EV news and events shaping up the world of electric cars. Also on our radar today: South Korean battery giants are in trouble as EV sales grow at a slower-than-expected pace worldwide. Plus, Tesla's sales in China dropped sharply in January. Let's begin.

30%: Scout Wants To Change State Laws For Direct Sales.

The Volkswagen Group revived the iconic Scout moniker (of the International Harvester Scout fame) last year. Scout plans to launch two EVs in the 2027-2028 timeframe: the Terra pickup truck and the Traveler SUV.

It wants to sell those EVs directly to you, circumventing the dealers, just like Tesla, Rivian and Lucid. But the direct-to-consumer sales model is set to face huge hurdles, as two dozen [website] states ban automakers from selling vehicles to clients directly.

Now, Scout wants to change that practice nationwide, starting with its home state of South Carolina. Lawmakers presented a bill in the South Carolina General Assembly proposing an amendment allowing direct-to-consumer sales for automakers.

Scout is determined to get the law changed to help them as well as other EV makers like Tesla and Rivian. They have gone on a media blitz that includes stories in local outlets. They are also trying to secure support in a Republican-dominated state with an argument that consumers should be free to buy whatever they wish directly, without a middleman. Scout also is armed with a 2000 Attorney General’s Office opinion on the bill which would weeks later would become law and serve as the most recent major overhaul to South Carolina’s laws on new car buying. “If a manufacturer cannot sell his own product, but must constitutionally pass that product through a ‘middle man,’ then our understanding of the free market system is way off base. The Internet is a worldwide web for trade, not a local instrument for protectionism,” wrote then-Republican state Attorney General Charlie Condon in the opinion, which is not binding and an educated guess on what a judge might do if someone sued over the law.

A study from data analytics firm CDK Global last year showed that traditional car dealers are not excited about selling EVs. They prioritize selling gas-powered cars that bring recurring service income, and so far have been easier to sell at a profit.

However, much of that hesitance also stems from the lack of understanding of the benefits of EVs and not educating the sales staff. It's one of the reasons Tesla skipped the middlemen. It somehow managed to circumvent direct sales bans in conservative states through legal loopholes like leasing, processing purchases as out-of-state transactions and opening stores on tribal lands exempt from dealership mandates.

Scout is hoping for laws that would make direct sales easier. As the research above notes, if that doesn't happen, its EVs could end up costing more. The Traveler and Terra EVs are expected to start at $60,000, which isn't cheap. If that price increases over time, it could negatively impact sales.

Plus, Scout wants its sales experience to be highly digital, where owners can customize their EVs through an app.

While the EV ecosystem is capital-heavy and loss-making—barring Tesla and a few Chinese brands who have turned profits—it's also worth noting that the EV transition is more than just focusing on profits.

It's about moving towards sustainable transportation and cutting carbon emissions before the planet reaches a breaking point. Last year was the hottest since record-keeping began and last month was the hottest January ever.

At some point, the industry will have to move beyond the dealer-versus-carmaker feud and focus on what truly matters: accelerating EV adoption before time runs out.

60%: South Korean EV Giants Are Experiencing A Slump.

South Korea is home to some of the world's biggest electric vehicle companies.

Hyundai and Kia have emerged as behemoths in the EV space. The country is also home to some of the world's leading battery makers, namely LG Energy Solution, SK On and Samsung SDI, which also has a strong stateside presence.

All of them are facing industry headwinds in some capacity. Business outlet Nikkei Asia reported on Friday that earnings of the three major South Korean battery makers plunged last year due to production cuts by American and European automakers.

SK On's sales dropped 51% to [website] trillion won ($[website] billion), LG Energy Solution was down 24% to [website] trillion won ($[website] billion) and Samsung SDI's sales fell 23% to [website] trillion won ($[website] billion), . Operating profits also fell for all three battery makers.

Demand slowdown in its home country and global regulatory uncertainties also prompted Hyundai to pause production of the Ioniq 5 and Kona Electric at its mothership in Ulsan, Korea, .

90%: Tesla Sales Fall Sharply In China, Is The [website] Next?

The sales slump goes beyond just Korean automakers—who are actually doing super well here in the [website] China is Tesla's second biggest market globally behind the [website], and things aren't looking great there.

Sales of Tesla's China-made EVs reached 63,238 units in January, an [website] drop over the same period last year, . Month-over-month, deliveries of the Model 3 and Model Y declined by [website].

Tesla sales have also dropped sharply in Europe lately and the revised Model Y now has a massive task at hand: revitalizing Tesla's passenger car business. However, unlike the Korean companies, some of what's hurting Tesla is self-inflicted.

Polls show that CEO Elon Musk's antics are hurting the brand. The billionaire CEO, also leading the meme-inspired Department of Government Efficiency, is reportedly on an unchecked and aggressive crusade to undermine long-standing government agencies.

100%: Do You Prefer Direct Sales Over The Dealership Model?

Scout Motors and Sony Honda Mobility are the latest to join the list of carmakers wanting to bypass the dealership model. They're now facing a pushback from the National Automobile Dealers Association and will likely face legal challenges.

Haggle-free pricing and more transparency indeed favor the clients. But the dealers may have a bigger role to play in the transition to EVs than they think. Legacy automakers rely on their dealer network and they may want to tap into that established customer base to showcase their new, high-tech, software-defined electric offerings. Plus, dealers compete with each other. So if you don't like the price at one, you can shop around.

What's your preferred car purchasing method? Through a dealer? Online? Or on Amazon?

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Lucid Aims To Be 20% Car Company, 80% Tech Supplier: CEO

Peter Rawlinson isn’t just building a car organization. In fact, Lucid Motors' CEO and CTO sees cars as only a small fraction of the electric vehicle startup’s future business.

"I’d love it to be 20-80. Twenty percent doing cars, 80% licensing," he told InsideEVs in an interview at the BloombergNEF Summit in San Francisco. "Because the vision I have for Lucid is: Just as there’s an Intel inside your laptop, there’s a Lucid inside a Honda or a Toyota."

Intel rode the personal computing revolution by supplying processors to electronics companies like IBM and Apple. Rawlinson thinks Lucid could play a similar role for EVs—by selling its EV powertrains to the world’s car manufacturers.

He didn’t specify a timeline for when Lucid might begin raking in 80% of its revenue from licensing deals with other automakers. But he made clear that a big reason for Lucid selling cars at all is to market its underlying technology.

"People think, 'Oh, why didn't you just be a supplier, Peter?' Because we need the cars as a shop window for our product," he expressed. Lucid also plans to expand the reach of that "shop window." It’s targeting production of 1 million cars per year by the early 2030s, up from around 9,000 in 2024.

Packed with tech developed in-house, Lucid’s cars make for a compelling showcase. The California-based corporation’s first model, the Air sedan, hit the scene in 2021 as the first EV able to drive over 500 miles on a full battery. With 520 miles of range, it went over 100 miles more than any Tesla can do right now. The top-of-the-line Air Sapphire makes 1,234 horsepower, hits 60 mph in under two seconds and still manages to go an EPA-estimated 427 miles per charge.

Listen to Rawlinson speak in an interview or on an earnings call, and the conversation will invariably shift to energy efficiency, which the CEO sees as a primary edge. Even if "miles per kilowatt-hour" isn't exactly a concept that resonates with the general public, he makes a strong case for why it matters. Lucid’s laser-focus on squeezing out incremental efficiency gains throughout its cars means the Air and just-released Gravity SUV can go farther than rivals while—importantly—also requiring fewer expensive batteries. Rawlinson sees a huge cost advantage there going forward, even if the business is unprofitable today.

Lucid has supplied battery tech in the past for Formula E, the electric racing series. And one automaker has signed on as a customer too: Aston Martin. The British carmaker inked a $450 million deal to use Lucid’s motors, battery technology and "Wunderbox," which facilitates charging, in its upcoming electric model. The startup has stated it's in talks with other car companies too.

Under the Aston deal, Lucid will make powertrain components at its factory in Arizona and ship them to the [website] But, ideally, future arrangements will work a bit differently, Rawlinson noted. He wants to license Lucid’s tech to carmakers, so they can manufacture components like battery packs, motors and transmission units themselves.

"But if you're going to do a big automaker, we'd license the tech. They'd manufacture the hardware under license in their factories… But that wouldn't work until the encrypted flash of software comes from us," he mentioned. "You flash your Microsoft Office—ka-chunk—Bill Gates gets his royalty, doesn’t he? And I want to be like that."

This is part of why, as the EV policy landscape seems poised to shift dramatically in the [website] under the Trump administration, Rawlinson isn’t too worried. Sure, he says, something like the tax credit for EV leases going away would be "less than ideal." But at the end of the day, if a rollback of clean-car incentives and regulations pushes rivals to pump the brakes on EV development, that’s a boon to Lucid.

Photo by: Lucid Motors The Lucid Gravity SUV goes on sale to the wider public this year.

"Isn’t it great they’re going to slow down," he expressed. "In a few years' time, there'll be this realization—'Oh my god, we're going to have to go to a sustainable mode of transportation'—well, then we will be in a much more effective position to offer those companies that haven't invested in the technology our technology through licensing."

With earnings coming up soon and a quiet period in place, Rawlinson takes care to mention that the 80% figure is less of a concrete business plan and more of a general vision for the corporation.

"I'm not making any promises," he expressed. "And the reason that is not baked into our financials is I can't guarantee that any of that's going to happen."

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