Is There Really an Electrification Race for US/Western Automakers to Lose?

Welcome to the latest issue of autoevolution weekly!

We begin by putting Lexus in the spotlight: they’re growing complacent, which isn’t great for them (or for consumers, either). But there is hope yet, in the next-gen IS.

Next, we put to rest all this talk of “we’re losing the electrification race!!!” that keeps coming up in the media in the form of oversimplified (or just plain wrong) arguments.

Diehard, lifelong, “real” Audi fans might not like the A5, but after testdriving the Avant version, we feel it’s quite balanced and, dare we say it, a great candidate for a daily driver.

If you have your eye set on a new F-150 but can’t decide which V6 engine is best for you, this next article has you covered for sure.

In this week’s spy photo round-up there is a lot, and I mean A LOT of german power from all the big performance 3: AMG, Audi Sport and BMW M.

Meanwhile, it seems like Samsung has big plans in the car infotainment/navigation space with Auto DeX, an Android Auto look-alike if I ever saw one.

Lastly, if this newsletter was forwarded to you, here’s a handy link if you’d like to subscribe.

Table of Contents

• Editorial: The problem with Lexus

• Is there really an electrification race to win or lose?

• Driven: 2025 Audi A5 Avant // Perfectly balanced, …

• Ford F-150: EcoBoost or PowerBoost?

• German overload: spy photos & videos of the week

• A challenger appears: Samsung Auto DeX vs. Android …

• The finish line

Editorial: The problem with Lexus

By: Sergiu Tudose (editor-in-chief)

If you value reliability over everything else, then I can understand why Lexus might be your number one choice. The thing is, reliability and luxury seldom go hand in hand. Lexus might be the most reliable premium carmaker in the world (according to reliability studies), but it’s nowhere close to being the best at any of the other metrics that people care about when buying a premium product.

Let me just start off with the positives. Generally speaking, Lexus build quality is super solid. They also happen to make good hybrid systems and, of course, you’ve got that incredible long-term reliability and low maintenance costs to throw at the naysayers – not to mention the high resale value and customer satisfaction.

The fact that the RX is one of the best-selling premium SUVs in the world (the U.S. in particular) isn’t lost on me. Neither is the fact that the LFA, a car that proves Lexus can implement both passion and precision when it chooses to, is absolutely exceptional. It was lightning in a bottle. Unfortunately, it was just a one-time flex.

As for their mainstream line-up, I've seen my fair share of Lexus models that feel more like Toyotas with better leather and a bolder grille. The ES? A posh Camry/Avalon. The TX? A nicer Grand Highlander. This is by no means a crime, since platform sharing is an industry standard. But when you’re selling at a somewhat similar price point to Mercedes, BMW, and Audi, the bar should be higher.

I’m not saying that German carmakers are perfect, but they do offer something that Lexus rarely delivers on: depth. Be it a Porsche, Audi, Mercedes or a BMW, you’ll find a wealth of engine choices, trims, and drivetrains tailored to all types of drivers.

Then there’s interior quality – often cited as a Lexus strength. And yes, it’s solid. Materials are durable, the fit and finish is good, and the cabins are generally serene. But that alone doesn’t equal luxury. Lexus interiors often feel like they were designed by committee. No visual drama, no clever ergonomics, no layered sophistication like you get in a Mercedes. Even worse, their on-board tech has historically lagged behind.

One might say that Audi revolutionized all-wheel drive on conventional family cars. Meanwhile, BMW made sport sedans a global obsession. As for Mercedes, their brand is pretty much synonymous with both luxury and performance. What did Lexus do? They figured out how to put a Camry on stilts and sell it as a status symbol for suburban America. Maybe that’s a bit harsh, but sometimes it does feel like that’s the gist of it.

Note: this is an abridged version, you can find the full article on our site.

Is there really an electrification race for US/Western automakers to lose?

By: Gustavo Henrique Ruffo

The short answer is “no”, even though automotive and business media love to say the US is “losing the electrification race”. The long answer? Keep reading.

Note: what follows is a version of this article that has been edited for length. You can find the full text on our site.

The first mistake is to put the government in the role of promoting or killing the "race." Whenever people talk about such a phenomenon, it is only in the hands of governments if the discussion relates to an arms race, for obvious reasons. By definition, a race involves a competition among individuals or entities, each with their own reasons to try to be the best. In other words, it emerges almost spontaneously, targeting palpable benefits. They are what justify and sustain the race.

The second mistake derives precisely from this attempt to qualify what is happening as a "race." Automakers were convinced this was so until they realized the sales volumes they wanted to achieve or even just to preserve were a lot lower than they expected. It was life-threatening for companies selling millions of vehicles, even if it seemed enough for startups. And that was not always the case.

Rivian lost an average of $33,000 per unit the last time we checked. Lucid was even worse, with an average loss of "only" $264,000 per BEV sold in 2024. I say "only" because the average was $467,000 in 2023. Legacy automakers cannot afford to do the same. After developing BEVs to beat the "competition" and hitting a wall, what are they racing for? Which is the prize? Massive sales? Where are they, even with incentives?

You can't say that BEVs or wind and solar power are profitable if they need incentives to survive. If they were truly in a race, it would be rigged. They would naturally lose it, like a tortoise competing with a hare. That only failed to happen in Aesop's fable because the idea was to show how persistence, humility, and discipline could deliver an almost impossible outcome. The people worried about the end of incentives seem to think government money will do the same as these three character traits.

In either form, the "electrification race" is something politicians and green activists are trying to impose – with enormous difficulties. If we were truly talking about a race, things would be much smoother. Investments in wind power, solar power, or BEVs would occur naturally because these markets would be financially attractive. If that were a race between China and the US, who would want to compete in such an unfair scenario? 

Incentives would be a way to level the field by cheating, like the EU said the Chinese are doing. China is a communist state that looks capitalist from certain angles. That means they do not follow the same game rules as most other countries, as Kevin O'Leary recently chronicled. The main irony in all this "electrification race" is that their advocates want to promote sustainability in a financially unsustainable way. Either we find a way to get there, or we just settle for buying BEVs, wind, and solar power from China. Oh wait, we already do the latter.

Driven: 2025 Audi A5 Avant // Perfectly balanced, as every daily driver should be

By: Sergiu Tudose

The all-new Audi A5, available both in sedan and wagon form, replaces the old A5 and A4 lines, but only acts as a direct replacement for the latter. It’s a tiny bit confusing, and Audi should have known better than to rush into this half-EV half-ICE lineup nomenclature. The good news is that the new-gen A5 is a solid car, and there’s really nothing wrong with it.

From a design standpoint, the all-new A5, be it the fastback or the wagon, looks and feels completely new. Which, of course, it is.

It embraces a more angular approach, with sharper creases and a more sculpted body, creating a sense of tension as car designers put it. Meanwhile, the singleframe grille is wider and flatter, while the new angular light units resemble those on the A6 e-tron, albeit not quite as narrow.

Since our test car was an Avant, that’s what I’ll be focusing on here. Right off the bat, this looks extremely modern and elegant, only perhaps not as sporty as one might expect from an Audi. The carmaker has frequently used square designs and straight angles to create a sense of dynamism – it's been doing that for decades. Not anymore, though.

The first thing that comes to mind when looking at the A5 Avant is: “That’s an EV”; even though it isn’t. It’s available with gasoline and even diesel engines. Everything screams futuristic, from the touch-sensitive flush door handles to the clean aesthetic and LED light strip at the back. Speaking of which, I think we’ve gone a little overboard with LED light strips – everyone’s doing them, and it’s really hard to get creative with a horizontal line.

Audi has historically built interiors that felt unmistakably... Audi. Meaning they were dark, cocoon-like cabins with deep leather tones, precise switchgear, and iconic circular design cues such as those turbine-style air vents, the circular steering wheel hub, and so on.

In the all-new A5, the circular forms have been replaced by clean, linear surfaces and rectangular screens. The dashboard layout is simplified, almost Scandinavian rather than German in terms of feel – more of a lounge than a cockpit. In fact, if you simply removed the badge from the steering wheel, you’d struggle to say this is an Audi. It’s modern, yes. It’s clean and comfortable. But it doesn’t scream “Ingolstadt.”

Meanwhile, the materials are fine but no longer exude the richness that made older Audis stand apart from BMW and Mercedes. Audi has also gone the route of cost-cutting when it comes to interior build quality. Everyone is doing it. But I also think they’re doing a better job hiding it than both BMW and Mercedes.

So, what gives? Well, all three German brands have significantly reduced interior material quality and increased their reliance on shared, cheaper components, especially in non-flagship models. It results in thinner door cards, more hard plastics, and simplified interfaces. Yet, Audi seems to be pulling ahead slightly with regards to perceived quality.

This interior relies heavily on visual cohesion, even where the plastics may not be top notch. The panel gaps are tight, the surfaces are clean, and the ambient lighting does its job well. I also like the displays in the new A5 more than I do those in the 3 Series and C-Class. In the Merc, that opulent-looking screen is surrounded by cheaper feeling plastics, while the BMW’s floating tablet feels like a bit of an afterthought – I’m still a big G20 3 Series fan, especially since its quality standard dates to the pre-cost cutting era.

If you’d like to learn more about this 2025 Audi A5 Avant, including my impressions regarding how it drives and what it’s like to live with, make sure to read the full review on our website.

Ford F-150: EcoBoost or PowerBoost?

By: Mircea Panait

Which Ford F-150 with V6 muscle is best for you? To answer this question, you first have to ask yourself what are you going to use your truck for the most.

If towing is the name of the game, the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 is the engine for you as long as you're fined with compromised rear legroom due to the limitations of the SuperCrew cabin.

The compromise is even bigger if payload is your most important requirement because maximum payload is only possible with the Regular Cab and 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6. Those who intend to use their F-150s mostly for commuting and family travel won't need the capability of the aforementioned, but rather the fuel economy of the 3.5-liter PowerBoost hybrid powertrain. Reliability, meanwhile, favors the less complex 3.5- and 2.7-liter EcoBoost V6s.

Powertrain reliability depends on many factors, of which getting your oil and filters changed on time makes a world of difference. Every 7,500 to 10,000 miles is perfectly so for normal driving, but if you drive mostly in the urban jungle or in extreme conditions, then change your oil and filters every 5,000 miles or just over 8,000 kilometers in metric speak.

F-150 customers who desire off-road chops are presented with a number of choices, beginning with the FX4 Off-Road Package. It's compatible with both the 2.7-liter EcoBoost and the 3.5-liter EcoBoost, as well as the hybrid option. The contents of the FX4 depend on a variety of factors, though all trucks equipped with said package benefit from FX4 Off-Road bodyside decals and off-road front shock absorbers.

You can't go wrong by spending extra on the F-150 Raptor, be it the standard 35-inch specification or the F-150 Raptor with the 37-inch tire package. The 720-horsepower 2025 Ford F-150 Raptor R features 37-inch tires by default. It's a terribly expensive truck, although the same can be said about the most basic of F-150 Raptors available today.

Excluding freight, you're looking at 79,005 dollars for the Raptor and 11,470 bucks on top of that for the 37-inch tires and associated goodies. The most affordable PowerBoost is the XLT SuperCrew. It starts at 48,055 dollars with the standard 2.7-liter EcoBoost, whereas the hybrid powertrain adds a simply ridiculous $8,375 to the final price. Said price further adds 4x4 and the 301A equipment group over rear drive and the XLT's standard 300A equipment group.

Note: this is an abridged version of the article, for many more details and tips see the full text on our site.

German overload: spy photos & videos of the week

By: Mircea Panait

Mercedes-Benz AG has been a little busy this past week, testing a plethora of AMG models in the scorching heat of the Sierra Nevada mountain range and at the Nurburgring Nordschleife. Taking a cue from the CLA with EQ Technology, the mid-cycle refresh of the S 63 E PERFORMANCE is getting starry headlights and taillights.

Mercedes-Benz AG was also spied testing the first-ever AMG CLA Shooting Brake with EQ Technology, a fabulous-looking compact with a trick active spoiler throning over its liftgate. Hearsay suggests in excess of 500 horsepower from a three-motor setup for the full-electric successor of the CLA 45 Shooting Brake, and the rumored max output seems to be perfectly so if you consider the added weight of the battery-electric powertrain over the 2.0-liter turbocharged inline-four mill of the retiring 45 series.

Rival automaker Audi and rival performance division Audi Sport are putting the finishing touches on the heavily anticipated replacement for the C8-generation RS 6 Avant, with the C9 flaunting electrical assistance for improved emissions and more oomph. Buffer than lesser members of the 2026 Audi A6 family, the redesigned Audi RS 6 further stands out by means of twin oval-shaped exhaust finishers.

The Volkswagen Group-controlled marque did a marvelous job with the front-end styling as well, but alas, the C9 will not be to everyone's liking due to hybridization. Just like BMW's plug-in hybrid M5, the next iteration of the RS 6 will eclipse half-ton pickup trucks in terms of curb weight.

Germany's Teutonic triad wouldn't be complete without BMW and the mad lads and lasses at M, who are sneakily testing a performance version of the iX3 with body panels from non-M specifications of the all-electric SUV. Believed to be an M Performance model rather than the iX3 M, said prototype likely previews the 2027 model year iX3 M60.

A challenger appears: Samsung Auto DeX vs. Android Auto

By: Bogdan Popa

The week started horrendously for navigation apps, as a bus driver smashed into an overhead barrier while using Waze. The 62-year-old driver was more focused on Waze navigation than on the road ahead and didn't observe the construction, eventually hitting it violently.

Samsung is believed to be working on an Android Auto alternative called Auto DeX. We published a detailed look at this upcoming system ahead of its imminent release as part of the revamped foldable lineup. 

Samsung Auto DeX could also include a phone component similar to Android Auto for phone screens. If this idea eventually comes to fruition, users can get an Android Auto-inspired experience in any car by turning their phones into ad-hoc infotainment units.

Apple Maps made the headlines in two opposite ways. First, a new leak revealed that Apple was working on an AI-powered search feature for Apple Maps, allowing users to look for places using natural requests. This isn't surprising, as Google has been working on something similar, integrating Gemini into Google Maps.

Second, Apple Maps struggled with an error that suggested toll roads when the app was requested to avoid them. Some users were forced to pay extra fees because Apple Maps ignored their settings.

Congratulations for reaching the finish line!

🏁 🏁 🏁 🏁 🏁

From all of us at autoevolution, a sincere thank you for reading! Feel free to reply with suggestions. Replies to these emails are monitored!