Despite all the prophecies of doom, the switch to electromobility, especially in Europe, seems to be taking place much faster than many expected. The first car manufacturers are gradually saying goodbye to their once beloved combustion engines and this will continue in the coming year. The car year 2022 brought spectacular vehicles such as the new BMW 7 Series, which is currently one of the best cars in the world as a combustion model and as an electric version i7. In a similar vehicle class, a direct competitor celebrated its 50th birthday this year. In 1972, the top model from Mercedes officially became the S-Class. The W116 generation heralded a new era of international luxury sedans and is still a legend to this day – not only as the 450 SEL 6.9. On the road in his footsteps – the Mercedes EQS SUV. And while we’re on the subject of the best cars in the world, the new Range Rover isn’t far away either, which not only sets new standards in the luxury off-roader class – available with BMW technology as a petrol, diesel, plug-in hybrid and from 2024 also as an electric version. It will be just as long before the Mercedes G-Class becomes electric. Until then, the new hardcore version of the 4×4 squared will delight. Even wilder: the lobster is back – of course, electric and with side shrimp if desired.
2022 will also go down as a year of great changes. Ford announced the end of the Fiesta – one of Europe’s best-selling small cars for almost half a century. It will be replaced by an electric mid-range crossover, which is on the road as a cooperation model based on Volkswagen’s modular electric kit. Ford reinvents itself in the coming years, saying goodbye to a large part of its European portfolio. In the future, electric models will set the tone and powerful bestsellers from the USA such as Mustang, Bronco or F-150. In the US, Ford launched the Lightning, an electric version of the world’s best-selling car. In addition to undoubted qualities, the F-150 Lightning has the advantage that the competition from Chevrolet Silverado EV, Ram EV and Tesla Cybertruck is not yet on the market.
More than ever, 2022 brought a disillusionment in terms of autonomous driving. Even highly automated vehicles with driver assistance level three are hard to come by, so drivers should be able to keep their hands firmly on the wheel for many years to come. Ford and Volkswagen, for example, stopped working closely with Argo AI – and even though Mercedes recently received level four approval for autonomous parking, the automotive world seems further than ever from highly automated driving functions in everyday life. The fact that these are missing did not detract from the success of the VW ID Buzz. The electric family van has been sold out for months, like most of its electric brothers, but it brought more emotions to the Volkswagen brand again. No wonder that many are already looking forward to the variant with a long wheelbase. Completely different and even hotter: the Porsche 911 GT3 RS – more 911 is not possible.
The year 2022 clearly showed that car shows are long gone and that the big international shows in particular have no future. The situation is different with events such as the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas or the major event in Pebble Beach as part of the Monterey Carweek. Despite Corona, these events were booming more than ever. The chances for regional or local car events are significantly better – these special fairs are more popular than ever. International self-runners: campers, caravans and off-roaders.
Tesla and its controversial CEO Elon Musk didn’t launch any new cars this year; were not only a hot topic in the car scene due to the takeover of the news service Twitter. When it comes to electric cars, the Koreans are more than ever in the limelight. The Kia EV6 GT shone with the driving performance of a high-performance sports car, as did the cool Hyundai Ioniq 5. The Chinese pushed their way into the European car market in an impressive manner. Manufacturers such as MG, Great Wall with its brands Ora and Wey as well as Nio, BYD, Aiways and Polestar – they all step on the gas with electric models worth seeing and do not have to hide from the local competition – on the contrary.
More than most car models, the topic of charging stations has been a topic of conversation in the past twelve months. Like fuel prices, electricity costs have also been steadily increasing for most providers. If you recharge with a Hypercharger, you sometimes have to pay more than 0.80 euros for a kilowatt hour. Things looked much worse at the pump, especially in the middle of the year. A liter of premium or diesel sometimes cost over 2.50 euros per liter – in other European countries it was sometimes even more expensive. The only thing that helps is an electric car with low consumption – Mercedes showed this with the high-tech study of the EQXX, which managed well over 1,000 kilometers with one battery charge without recharging. The production version will follow in two years.
