Volkswagen ID. Buzz Stalls, Polestar 3 Shines, Foxconn Scales Up, and Mitsubishi Searches for Relevance

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A cult icon priced out of reach, a luxury EV that thrills and frustrates, and a contract manufacturing giant betting big on batteries—this one threads the real story of where electric mobility stands right now. We start with the Volkswagen ID Buzz, a vehicle that should have owned family EV nostalgia but ran into U.S. pricing, tariffs, and demand headwinds. Skipping the 2026 model year isn’t surrender; it’s a hard reset that only works if VW aligns content and cost with the $40–50K sweet spot and clears dealer inventory without draining brand heat.

From there, we jump into a full review of the Polestar 3. It’s quick, planted, and comfortable on long drives, with one-pedal grace and a minimalist cabin that feels genuinely premium. Yet living with it isn’t as effortless as the badge suggests: start-up quirks, menu-heavy controls, uneven speed-limit data, and no spare tire undercut daily confidence. The good news is meaningful price cuts, a strong range for the class, serious towing for an EV SUV, and over-the-air updates that can smooth the edges. If Polestar streamlines UX, this becomes a segment benchmark.

Then we widen the lens. GM’s multi-nameplate EV strategy shows why scale matters: costs fall, ranges rise, and the lineup stays credible while others pull back. Ford’s pause on a pure EV truck might save cash now but risks long-term leadership with innovation-first buyers. And quietly, Foxconn is assembling the most intriguing play in the room—homologating a U.S.-bound EV, standardizing battery plants on four-year timelines, and offering turnkey platforms that legacy brands can badge and sell. That’s the smartphone supply chain model coming to the auto industry.

We close with Mitsubishi: a brand with a history, dealers under strain, and a path forward only if its product, pricing, and partnerships align. A credible sub-$25K entry, a modern compact SUV, and a smart plug-in strategy could reintroduce the brand to buyers who barely know it’s here. The EV transition isn’t a cliff; it’s a climb. The winner's prize for reality, design for daily life, and keep building even when the headlines wobble.

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