America is missing out on the best electric cars

To buy one of the cheapest cars in the world, the professional car reviewer Jason Torchinsky placed an order on Alibaba. The Changli Freeman, a $1,200 electric vehicle with a top speed of roughly 25 miles, arrived on his doorstep after a months-long voyage from China. “The Changli is at the bottom of a deliriously varied electric-car market in China that should make Americans feel deeply jealous,” Torchinsky writes.

Imagine a fleet of EVs with augmented-reality dashboards, refrigerators, massaging seats, and customizable emoji headlights. These features are available in Chinese models, popular in Europe but largely unavailable in the United States because of steep tariffs and trade barriers. Americans aren’t just missing out on some of the best (and most fun) cars on the market—they just might be losing the EV race too.

Today’s newsletter brings you stories about the future of electric vehicles in America.

• “America Is Missing Out on the Best Electric Cars ,” by Jason Torchinsky. Whatever kind of EV you might want, chances are China has it.
• “Electric Cars Are Already Upending America ,” by Saahil Desai. After years of promise, a massive shift is under way.
• “Bring on the Boring EVs ,” by Emma Marris. The next step toward electric cars just becoming cars is playing out on your TV screen.
• “EVs Are Sending Toxic Tire Particles Into the Water, Soil, and Air ,” by David Zipper. Electric cars fix one pollution problem—and worsen another.
• “The Inconvenient Truth About Electric Vehicles ,” by Andrew Moseman. The experience of owning, charging, and driving an electric vehicle makes the rising inequality of America more visible in new and subtle ways.

— Stephanie Bai, associate editor