Is 2026 the “Year of the Electric Car in the USA?"

· 2 min read

 

Is 2026 the “Year of the Electric Car in the USA?"

 

A few months ago I visited a local Walmart to make a small purchase.  Out in front of the store were new EV charging stations under construction.  In the first half of 2026, Walmart has almost tripled their footprint to 100 locations with charging. Tesla is still growing faster.  IONNA is expanding at an astonishing rate.  

 

Ford canceled their existing EVs and are promising a platform-based systems approach for 2027.  Maybe they will get it right this time.

GM retooled a factory to build a limited run of the BOLT EV  and is also expanding to a new platform starting next year.  Although they still do not comprehend why Android Auto and Apple Car Play are important.

Toyota and Subaru have created a new platform, and each has three vehicles in their lineups: small, medium, and large.  

Kia, Hyundai, and Genesis did a slight retool of their platform in 2025 and have a nice series of improvements for ’26.  Including a much better system of over-the-air software and mapping updates.

I am not sure of all that Tesla has done, but the 2026 Model Y I drove a couple of weeks ago seems to have fixed things like suspension, and their V14 software platform updates even go back to some of the older models.  Although I am not sure that I would want GROK in my life.

We now see heat pumps instead of resistance heating. Improved 12V control system battery improvements in some brands.  AGM and lithium batteries are becoming the norm.

More of us can now use plug-in and charge to simplify payments, and credit card payment systems at many public charging systems are becoming the norm. Fewer apps to manage 

The standardization of NACS connectors for charging simplifies things for new car owners, but some companies are separating AC and DC charging on their EVs and have two plugs - DUMB

 

We are still way behind on owner and purchaser education on things like the importance of home charging and and understading what is the best way to keep your battery happy. Note: It can be a lot like your iPhone.  But I digress.

Oh, I almost forgot about the Slate truck that might actuall start shipping this year!  It may be Lego for truck drivers.

On a final note, we seem to have our first "electricity war" between Walmart and IONNA, reducing the cost of DC fast charging.