About this episode
It's EV News Briefly for Thursday 05 March 2026, everything you need to know in less than 5 minutes if you haven't got time for the full show.Patreon supporters fund this show, get the episodes ad free, as soon as they're ready and are part of the EV News Daily Community. You can be like them by clicking here: https://www.patreon.com/EVNewsDailyMIDDLE EAST CONFLICT LIFTS UK FUEL AND ENERGY COSTSBrent crude surged past $84 per barrel and UK gas prices spiked to a three-year high of £1.44 per therm after Qatar halted LNG exports following Iran's threat to attack tankers in the Strait of Hormuz, with the RAC warning UK forecourt prices will feel the full impact within a week. Home EV charging costs are shielded for now by the energy price cap — fixed at 24.67p per kWh for electricity until end of June — but wholesale price rises could push the cap higher from July, making both home wallbox and public charging more expensive.?EUROPEAN FLEETS COULD SAVE €246BN BY 2030A new EY and Eurelectric report finds that fully electrifying Europe's corporate fleets could deliver up to €246 billion in cumulative savings and cut one billion tonnes of CO2 by 2030. However, the authors warn that cheaper running costs alone will not drive mass uptake, calling for coordinated action from manufacturers, policymakers, grid operators and finance providers to tackle high upfront costs, uncertain residual values, and charging infrastructure delays.CUPRA BORN FACELIFT BRINGS SHARP NOSE, SMALL TWEAKSCupra has facelifted the Born with a "shark nose" front end, triangular matrix LED headlights, a continuous rear light strip, and new 235 mm tyres across all five wheel options, while the aerodynamically improved 79 kWh variants now claim around 600 km (373 miles) of WLTP range. A new entry "Born Plus" trim pairs a 58 kWh battery with a 140 kW motor — figures that match Ford's Capri LFP option and strongly suggest a switch to LFP cells from the updated MEB+ platform — though Cupra has not confirmed drivetrain details and appears to be saving that announcement for a related reveal, likely the VW ID.3 facelift later in 2026.FORD EV SALES SINK 71% AFTER LIGHTNING EXITFord's US EV sales collapsed 71% in February 2026 to just 2,122 units, the steepest monthly drop in its EV history, driven by the discontinuation of the F-150 Lightning and the expiry of the federal EV tax credit. Ford's Model e division lost $4.8 billion in 2025 and is forecast to lose another $4–5 billion in 2026, with profitability not expected until 2029; the company has already booked a $19.5 billion writedown and is pivoting to a new ~$30,000 midsize electric pickup it hopes will revive the business by 2027.LUCID PATCHES GRAVITY SOFTWARE AGAINLucid Motors has pushed software update 3.4.4 to the Gravity SUV, targeting AC charging improvements and Drive Assist a
