Image used with permission by copyright holderIf you were to judge it by its cover, you’d certainly be impressed by Tesla and its sleek exteriors. But inside? Maybe it needs some work. So now, to help with this endeavor, Tesla has hired one of the biggest fish in the pond. Anders Bell, whose current title is Senior Director of Engineering and Head of Interior Engineering at Volvo. Bell will soon have a new title — well, the same title, but at Tesla instead.
Tesla managed to hire the top engineering talent from the Swedish automaker, Electrek has learned, and Bell confirmed the move himself by updating his LinkedIn profile in the last few days.
It’s a big move for the veteran Volvo engineer, who has overseen all interior engineering at the firm,from start to finish over the last two years, Electrek reports. But now, he’s leaving Sweden for sunny California.
While Bell boasts quite an impressive resume, his new role at Tesla will be no walk in the park. While the car company has enjoyed shining praise for most of its mechanics and its exterior aesthetics, a common complaint has been its sub-par interiors — at least when compared to other luxury cars. Given that they’re shelling out $60,000, a number of customers have been less than impressed by the ubiquitous black plastic, misaligned cubbies, and issues with cup holders. So now, Bell will be in a position to take everything he learned (and established) at Volvo, and help Elon Musk’s company step up its game.
Bell joins Tesla at a critical time, just as the company promises to ramp up its production and deliver more vehicles in 2017 than ever before. So if you’re not on a Tesla waiting list yet, now that its interior has a chance at matching its exterior, it may be high time to jump on the bandwagon.
The Kia EV3 could be the cheap electric SUV we’ve been waiting for
The Kia EV9 was already one of the cheapest ways to get an electric SUV, but now the company is taking things to the next level. After teasing the Kia EV3 last year, the car is now official.
The EV3 is built to be a slightly smaller, cheaper version of the EV9 -- following the path of the Rivian R2, which arrived after the Rivian R1S. It's certainly not as technologically advanced as the EV9, but it still looks unmistakably like a modern Kia, and is clearly a sibling of the larger SUV. On the outside, the vehicle has the same split taillights and very similar Tiger Face front. But it is quite a bit smaller. The vehicle will be available in nine finishes -- however only "Aventurine Green" and "Terracotta" are being announced right now.
Kia EV3: release date, performance, range, and more
Kia is on a roll. Hot on the heels of the success of the Kia EV6 and EV9, the company is already announcing what could be its cheapest electric vehicle yet -- the Kia EV3.
The Kia EV line seems to follow the rule of lower numbers indicating a lower price — and if so, the EV3 will end up being the cheapest electric car Kia has released to date. That, however, thankfully doesn’t mean that the EV3 will be a low-end car — it just means that Kia may be pushing the boundaries on electric car pricing.
Kia EV3 vs Tesla Model Y: Can Kia’s new entry-level car take on Tesla?
The Kia EV3 is finally coming, and it could well end up being the best small-size electric SUV to buy when it finally rolls out. It's smaller than the Kia EV9, but it offers many of the same design elements and features. But there's another small-size electric car that's currently one of the most popular vehicles out there -- the Tesla Model Y.
How does the Kia EV3 compare with the Tesla Model Y? And is one vehicle actually better than the other? We put the Kia EV3 and the Tesla Model Y head-to-head to find out.
Design
The design of the Kia EV3 is very different than that of the Model Y, though they're both reasonably good-looking vehicles.
