
German carmakers have always used a peculiar mix of solid, retro engineering and dazzling technology to create machines that were built like safes but loaded with features that, if not invented by the Germans, were refined by them – anti-lock braking, all-wheel drive, stability control, adaptive suspension and other gadgets. The combo turned Germany in the postwar decades into an automotive superpower.
The German automotive minds were less adept at leading-edge drivetrain technology. They were slow to mass produce pure electric vehicles and hybrids, handing that market to Tesla in the United States and, lately, to the Chinese auto giants, among them BYD, Geely and SAIC Motor. Of course, the German automakers’ showrooms are full of EVs, but they are neither mass produced nor bargains for average families.

