Tag Archives: Autos

Stellantis recalls more than 375,000 Jeep hybrid SUVs for fire risk

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In a case of deja vu, Stellantis is once again recalling two models of its Jeep brand plug-in hybrid SUVs. The company has recalled at least 320,000 of its Jeep Grand Cherokee 4xe and Jeep Wrangler 4xe cars in the US over concerns of fire risks while driving and while parked. Stellantis is also recalling 20,753 of the Jeep vehicles in Canada, 2,653 in Mexico, and 32,238 outside of North America. A statement from Stellantis said an internal investigation discovered 19 fires.

Jeep also recalled these same two 4xe models in October 2024. The issue then and now was with the EV batteries produced by Samsung SDI. Stellantis has been unable to address the fire risks with software updates and is expected to notify drivers when a remedy for the issue is ready. Until then, the owners of Grand Cherokee 4xe models from 2022 to 2026 and Wrangler 4xe models from 2020 to 2025 are being encouraged to park outside away from buildings and not to plug in their vehicles. So basically these cars are relegated to being very large sculptures until Stellanis can fix the battery problems.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/stellantis-recalls-more-than-375000-jeep-hybrid-suvs-for-fire-risk-215341226.html?src=rss

Elon Musk teases a flying car on Joe Rogan’s show

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Elon Musk has told Joe Rogan that he hopes to unveil a flying car "before the end of the year." As Gizmodo has reported, Rogan asked Musk about about the long-delayed second-gen Tesla Roadster in his show, when the Tesla CEO suddenly started talking about wanting the vehicle to fly. If you'll recall, Tesla unveiled a new Roadster in 2017 and had plans to start deliveries in 2020, but its production got delayed again and again. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman recently tweeted that he'd been having difficulties getting a refund on the $50,000 deposit he made for one way back in 2018. But instead of talking in depth about Roadster's status, Musk talked about getting close to an "unforgettable" product demo of a prototype instead. 

He was giving Rogan vague answers in the interview, but he eventually said: "Well, you know, my friend Peter Thiel, once reflected that the future was supposed to have flying cars, but we don’t have flying cars. I mean, I think if Peter wants a flying car, we should be able to buy one" He didn't want to divulge all the details in the show, but he claimed that the vehicle Tesla is supposedly working on contains "crazy, crazy technology." Musk said he wasn't sure it's a car but that "it loos like a car." He didn't answer when Rogan asked if it had "retractable wings" or mentioned if the vehicle would be VTOL, or a Vertical Take-off and Landing, aircraft. 

Musk has been talking about developing flying cars as early as 2014, as Gizmodo notes. However, take note that the CEO is rather infamous for being overly optimistic and ambitious with his timelines, not just for the automaker but also for his other companies like SpaceX. Take for example, the aforementioned Roadster, which is yet to go into production, and the SpaceX Falcon Heavy whose first launch didn't happen until five years later than he predicted. That said, it's also possible for Tesla to unveil a prototype that would still have to go through massive changes and improvements if and when it becomes ready for production. 

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/elon-musk-teases-a-flying-car-on-joe-rogans-show-120022824.html?src=rss

NVIDIA’s next move in autonomous driving is a partnership with Uber, Stellantis, Lucid and Mercedes-Benz

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NVIDIA has entered a partnership with Uber to equip more of the rideshare company's vehicles with its autonomous driving infrastructure. The deal centers on NVIDIA's Drive AGX Hyperion 10 autonomous vehicle development platform, a computer and sensor system that can make any vehicle capable of level 4 self-driving, as well as its Drive software. According to the press release, this partnership will see Uber's global fleet of autonomous vehicles growing to 100,000 vehicles over time, beginning in 2027.

Several notable auto brands are also collaborating with NVIDIA on the push toward developing truly autonomous vehicles. Stellantis, Lucid and Mercedes-Benz are working on vehicles that would support NVIDIA's L4 technology. Aurora, Volvo Autonomous Solutions and Waabi are pursuing work on implementing Drive AGX Hyperion 10 into long-haul freight vehicles.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/nvidias-next-move-in-autonomous-driving-is-a-partnership-with-uber-stellantis-lucid-and-mercedes-benz-194442126.html?src=rss

Toyota brings Apple Maps EV routing to its newest models

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Toyota battery electric vehicles (BEV) owners can now have Apple Maps help them plan charging stops along their route via CarPlay. Alongside an announcement that the Toyota bZ is now on sale, the automaker says all 2023 and newer battery-electric vehicles can now integrate real-time battery information to help drivers with iPhones find compatible chargers. In the US this would simply mean the bZ4X, which is being replaced by the bZ. 

Apple Maps will take into account factors like battery performance and elevation changes when estimating battery percentages on arrival and charging times.

CarPlay is Apple's in-car infotainment system offering maps, music, calendar tools, Siri and more. While it's currently compatible with over 800 car models, EV-charger routing requires access to the car's battery info, which means automakers must work with Apple to enable the feature.

The integration's rollout remains pretty limited, and before today's announcement the only compatible vehicles were the Ford Mustang Mach-E, the F-150 Lightning and the Porsche Taycan.

Toyota also said the 2026 bZ will have access to the Tesla Supercharger network, opening up more than 25,000 charging locations for the new model. The bZ features the NACS charging standard, first created by Tesla before being open-sourced for the entire industry.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/toyota-brings-apple-maps-ev-routing-to-its-newest-models-164103063.html?src=rss

Hyundai recalls over 145,000 EVs in the US

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Hyundai is recalling around 145,235 electric vehicles in the US, according to a report by Reuters. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said the recall was due to a loss of drive power. The safety regulator noted that integrated charging control units on these models are easily damaged, leading to an internal battery that won’t charge.

The recall includes a whole bunch of models, including certain Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 6 EVs, in addition to some Genesis GV70 and Genesis G80 luxury EVs from the model years 2022 to 2025. Click here for a full list of the impacted vehicles.

Hyundai says its dealers will inspect any vehicle that could have been impacted by the issue for free. These dealers will also replace the aforementioned parts and update the software at no charge.

The company’s sub-brand Kia was also impacted, adding another 62,000 EVs into the recall mix. Certain Kia EV6 models from the model years 2022 to 2024 are being recalled, and for the same reason of a potentially faulty integrated charging control unit. Just like Hyundai, Kia dealers will inspect and repair the issue for free.

Vehicle recalls happen quite regularly. In the past couple of months, we’ve seen Porsche recall over 27,000 Taycan EVs and Jeep recall 194,000 hybrids. Of course, Tesla products get recalled all of the time. That’s just part of the charm.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/hyundai-recalls-over-145000-evs-in-the-us-161651760.html?src=rss

Volvo EV drivers can start using Tesla’s Supercharger network this month

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You can soon top up the battery of a Volvo electric vehicle at more than 17,800 Tesla Supercharger stations across the US and Canada. That should make it much easier for Volvo drivers to find a place to charge, even though they already had access to tens of thousands of fast charge points.

Starting November 18, drivers can locate Tesla Superchargers via the Volvo Cars app or built-in Google Maps. It's possible to pay for charging sessions via the Volvo Cars app as well.

There's one teensy catch, however, especially if you have had a Volvo EV for a while: to access Tesla Superchargers and other North American Charging Standard (NACS) chargers, you'll need an adapter. This costs $230 ($310 CAD) and can be ordered from authorized Volvo retailers. The automaker will start shipping them to retailers on November 18, but adapters for the EX30 will be available at a later date. That said, Volvo is including the adapter with purchases of the new EX90 flagship SUV, EX40 or EC40 starting with model year 2025.

Volvo announced in June 2023 that it would support Tesla Superchargers and the NCAS. It's one of many automakers that have backed a more standardized approach to EV charging in North America.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/volvo-ev-drivers-can-start-using-teslas-supercharger-network-this-month-165541360.html?src=rss

Volvo EV drivers can start using Tesla’s Supercharger network this month

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You can soon top up the battery of a Volvo electric vehicle at more than 17,800 Tesla Supercharger stations across the US and Canada. That should make it much easier for Volvo drivers to find a place to charge, even though they already had access to tens of thousands of fast charge points.

Starting November 18, drivers can locate Tesla Superchargers via the Volvo Cars app or built-in Google Maps. It's possible to pay for charging sessions via the Volvo Cars app as well.

There's one teensy catch, however, especially if you have had a Volvo EV for a while: to access Tesla Superchargers and other North American Charging Standard (NACS) chargers, you'll need an adapter. This costs $230 ($310 CAD) and can be ordered from authorized Volvo retailers. The automaker will start shipping them to retailers on November 18, but adapters for the EX30 will be available at a later date. That said, Volvo is including the adapter with purchases of the new EX90 flagship SUV, EX40 or EC40 starting with model year 2025.

Volvo announced in June 2023 that it would support Tesla Superchargers and the NCAS. It's one of many automakers that have backed a more standardized approach to EV charging in North America.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/volvo-ev-drivers-can-start-using-teslas-supercharger-network-this-month-165541360.html?src=rss

Nissan is laying off 9,000 workers and giving its CEO a pay cut

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Japanese automaker Nissan is taking a big ax to its workforce. Reuters reports that the company plans to make some steep cuts to its operation, including 9,000 jobs and 20 percent of its global manufacturing capacity.

The cuts won’t just affect workers on the assembly lines. The New York Times reports that Nissan Chief Executive Officer Makoto Uchida is taking a 50 percent pay cut from his monthly compensation.

Japan’s third-largest automaker has to cut $2.6 billion in costs this fiscal year. Nissan revised its annual profit outlook by a whopping 70 percent as its struggles to sell cars in places like China and the US “where it lacks a credible line-up of hybrid cars.” Nissan’s global sales fell by 3.8 percent for the first half of the fiscal year, witha 14.3 percent drop in China and 3 percent drop in the US.

Nissan says in a press release that it’s taking “urgent measures to turnaround its performance” beyond just making cuts to its labor force. The automaker says its planning to introduce new energy efficient vehicles to China and plug-in hybrids and e-POWER vehicles in the US. So far, the only EVs in Nissan’s garage include the Leaf and the Ariya fleet.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/nissan-is-laying-off-9000-workers-and-giving-its-ceo-a-pay-cut-193050069.html?src=rss

Nissan is laying off 9,000 workers and giving its CEO a pay cut

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Japanese automaker Nissan is taking a big ax to its workforce. Reuters reports that the company plans to make some steep cuts to its operation, including 9,000 jobs and 20 percent of its global manufacturing capacity.

The cuts won’t just affect workers on the assembly lines. The New York Times reports that Nissan Chief Executive Officer Makoto Uchida is taking a 50 percent pay cut from his monthly compensation.

Japan’s third-largest automaker has to cut $2.6 billion in costs this fiscal year. Nissan revised its annual profit outlook by a whopping 70 percent as its struggles to sell cars in places like China and the US “where it lacks a credible line-up of hybrid cars.” Nissan’s global sales fell by 3.8 percent for the first half of the fiscal year, witha 14.3 percent drop in China and 3 percent drop in the US.

Nissan says in a press release that it’s taking “urgent measures to turnaround its performance” beyond just making cuts to its labor force. The automaker says its planning to introduce new energy efficient vehicles to China and plug-in hybrids and e-POWER vehicles in the US. So far, the only EVs in Nissan’s garage include the Leaf and the Ariya fleet.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/nissan-is-laying-off-9000-workers-and-giving-its-ceo-a-pay-cut-193050069.html?src=rss

Hyundai reveals its newest hydrogen-powered vehicle, the Initium

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Hydrogen-powered vehicles haven’t really caught on as an alternative means of eco-friendly transportation. Hyundai, however, hopes to fix that with a bigger investment in the technology and its newest hydrogen-powered concept SUV called the Initium.

Hyundai announced it plans to start production on the hydrogen SUV in the first half of next year. The Initium can run approximately 404 miles on a single refueling and can also run on electric power as a backup that can be recharged from a household electricity supply. The vehicle will also make its public debut at the LA Auto Show and Auto Guangzhou in China next month. It’s not yet confirmed where the cars will be available when they go on sale so a US launch isn’t guaranteed.

The Initium may just be a concept car for now but Hyundai seems committed to bringing its newest hydrogen car to drivers quickly, even if the fuel source hasn’t made nearly as many strides towards widespread acceptance as electric options. The South Korean carmaker is planning on investing $4 billion to develop its hydrogen vehicle technology and infrastructure to meet its complete carbon neutrality goal by 2045 with cars like the Initium and the electric Ioniq 5 unveiled last year.

Hydrogen may be an efficient alternative to gasoline but it still has a ways to go to be competitive with electric vehicles (and that’s without acknowledging the continued prevalence of gasoline-powered cars). There are only 59 hydrogen charging stations in the US with most of them in California, according to the US Department of Energy. There are only a handful of carmakers who still offer a hydrogen powered option including Hyundai (the Nexo SUV) and Toyota (the Mirari). Honda used to offer a hydrogen car with The Clarity but it ended production in 2021, according to Car & Driver.

This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/transportation/evs/hyundai-reveals-its-newest-hydrogen-powered-vehicle-the-initium-192235417.html?src=rss