Car Companies To Try Bold New Strategy Of Building EVs People Can Actually Afford

Electric vehicles aren’t cheap yet. I mean, to be fair, no cars are cheap anymore with an average transaction price above $48,000, but now “luxury” EV makers looking to capitalize on a market looking for cheaper all-electric vehicles. Tesla, Rivian, Lucid and even VinFast are planning on bringing cheaper offerings to the U.S. and more and more people are turned away by high-priced electric vehicles.

Tesla’s Cybertruck Has Finally Arrived

Right now, though, these automakers are all planning how to entice car buyers further downmarket to get into one of their cars. Automotive News laid out exactly how each company plans to do just that. Here’s what it says Tesla is planning to do with its mostly ancient lineup:

The segment leader, Tesla, is promising affordable models next year using an updated version of its compact vehicle platform that underpins the Model Y crossover and Model 3 sedan, although the company hasn’t provided details.

Tesla’s lineup is aging rapidly, leading to a sales slump in the U.S. through the first half of the year. Of Tesla’s five models, only the Cybertruck pickup is new. The Model Y, Model 3, Model S sedan and Model X crossover are still in their first generation. Tesla is also planning a dedicated robotaxi, without human controls.

To be fair, Tesla is probably the trickiest automaker to try and make predictions about due simply to the unpredictability of CEO Elon Musk. All of these plans could die on the vine at a moment’s notice.

Anyway, here’s what Rivian and Lucid have planned to get cheaper models on the market that’ll slot under the R1T and R1S for Rivian and the Air for Lucid, according to AutoNews:

Rivian Automotive has revealed its more affordable models, the midsize R2 crossover coming in 2026 and the R3 hatchback later in the decade. R2 pricing is expected to start around $45,000 before shipping and the R3 will start lower, Rivian said. The startup predicts flat sales this year for the R1T pickup and R1S crossover.

Lucid Motors is launching its second vehicle, the Gravity large crossover, this year, with a starting price of around $80,000 before shipping. But it’s also planning more affordable vehicles in 2026 on a midsize platform, starting at around $48,000 before shipping. Lucid expects sales this year of just 9,000 for its Air large sedan.

Finally, AutoNews took a look at what can be expected from nascent automakers like VinFast and Scout. It’s going to be very interesting to see where these two cement themselves in the market since they’re so new.

Vietnamese automaker VinFast plans to import multiple models to the U.S. market to join the lone vehicle on sale, the VF 8 two-row crossover. VinFast said its three-row VF 9 will go on sale this year and smaller, more affordable crossovers will arrive next year. The VF 8 had 1,500 registrations in the first half of the year, S&P Global Mobility said.

Startup Scout Motors, backed by Volkswagen Group, is set to be one of the newest entrants into the EV automaker space.

Scout’s initial vehicles will be an SUV and pickup. The brand has shared few details except that the models’ body-on-frame platform is unique to Scout and that the vehicles will be rugged. Scout is aiming for production at its South Carolina plant in late 2026 with sales beginning soon after.

Only time will tell if this bet on going downmarket will pay off for these automakers – or if their plans will even pay off, but one thing is for sure: EV makers have got to do something to entice more people to get behind the wheels of their cars.

Head on over to Automotive News for the full rundown on what these companies have planned for the future.