Industry

LAS VEGAS — The Ram Revolution pickup truck. The Sony-Honda Afeela. The BMW i Vision Dee concept. The vehicle unveilings made CES feel like a throwback to the halcyon days of auto shows. But the electric vehicles represented a small slice of the transportation technology showcased in and around the Las Vegas Convention Center last

LAS VEGAS — Automotive technology company Harman sees new cabin features such as monitoring a driver’s vital signs or upgrading audio experiences as an essential marketing strategy automakers can use to attract buyers. The tech, part of Harman’s growing automotive product portfolio, aims to enable car brands to create in-vehicle experiences that meet the unique

WASHINGTON – U.S. auto safety regulators said Tuesday in a landmark report that motor vehicle crashes, which are rising fast, cost American society $340 billion in 2019. In a comprehensive economic impact study, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration examined the costs of a single year of crashes that killed around 36,500 people, injured 4.5

WASHINGTON — Despite news last year of Cruise’s robotaxis being investigated by NHTSA and the shuttering of Argo AI, the AV tech startup backed by Ford and Volkswagen, Jeff Farrah remains optimistic about the industry’s future. “Every industry has its growing pains as it grows up, and our industry isn’t immune from that and isn’t

At gargantuan CES, a tiny transforming bike stood out. The more playful than practical design comes from Tokyo-based Icoma, which showed its electric Tatamel bike at the Las Vegas expo. A suitcase-size box transforms into a mini-bike that rides on 10-inch wheels. Though its dimensions are compact — box mode is 27 inches tall, 27

LAS VEGAS — As sensor technology underpins the auto industry’s push to produce more self-driving vehicles in the coming years, innovation will become a key differentiator among the many players. While the industry faces hurdles, including global economic headwinds, rising borrowing rates, mergers, bankruptcies and shutdowns, it remains one of the main features at the

LAS VEGAS — Mercedes-Benz said at CES 2023 it has received approval for Level 3 automated assisted driving in Nevada, making it the first automaker to attain regulatory approval for this technology in the U.S. The automaker’s Drive Pilot system allows the car to take control of driving functions under certain conditions, freeing the driver

U.S. chip designer Qualcomm Inc. and cloud-based software firm Salesforce Inc. plan to develop a new connected vehicle platform for automakers, the companies said at CES on Thursday. The platform for cars with internet access would use Qualcomm’s Snapdragon digital chassis and Salesforce’s cloud services to help automakers personalize user experiences using real-time data, according

Chrysler will be the first Stellantis brand in North America to deploy the automaker’s next-generation technology in the cockpit. Stellantis is demonstrating a mock-up of its two-seat Chrysler Synthesis layout during CES in Las Vegas this week. The Synthesis design incorporates several upcoming Stellantis tech platforms, including STLA Smart Cockpit, STLA Brain and STLA AutoDrive.

Making new sedans sexy to consumers is proving to be an increasingly heavy lift in the U.S. market, so Volkswagen has settled on ensuring that the debut of its upcoming electric sedan at CES is “lit” — albeit temporarily — while giving the car a new name to go along with its unique camouflage scheme.

SEOUL — South Korea’s antitrust regulator said it would impose a 2.85 billion won ($2.2 million) fine on Tesla for failing to tell its customers about the shorter driving range of its electric vehicles in low temperatures. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (KFTC) said that Tesla had exaggerated the “driving ranges of its cars on

Tesla Inc. delivered 405,278 cars worldwide in the fourth quarter, eking out a record despite rising interest rates, inflation and crimped production in China. The results, posted Monday, missed expectations. In an effort to clear inventory, Tesla dangled discounts of $7,500 to U.S. consumers who took delivery in the last days of December. Tesla delivered

As automakers continue their digitalization efforts, focus is shifting to the development of in-car applications and subscription services in the hopes of creating lucrative additional revenue streams. By offering paid apps — either through third parties or created in-house — automakers believe they can develop a closer relationship with customers after they purchase a vehicle

What it is: Each month, the U.S. Department of Energy’s Energy Information Agency compiles a running amalgam of statistics on electricity generation, transmission, usage and costs. The data highlights both current usage, nationally and regionally, as well as overall trends. Where it comes from: The Energy Department collects the data from regulated utilities and grid

Baidu Inc. and Toyota Motor Corp.-backed startup Pony. ai said on Friday they been granted the first licences to test fully autonomous vehicles without safety operators as a backup in Beijing. Baidu and Pony.ai said they would begin testing 10 driverless vehicles each in a technology park developed by the Beijing government as a step

Efforts to push and prod the U.S. Postal Service into ensuring electric vehicles make up a greater portion of its new mail truck fleet have delivered. The agency said Tuesday it will purchase more EVs through 2028 than initially anticipated. In total, 66,000 EVs will be included in the Postal Service’s overall plans to buy

DETROIT — Electric vehicles nearly match internal combustion vehicles in cost of ownership and the ownership experience, according to a new J.D. Power index gauging the industry’s shift to EVs. But wide gaps in four of the six categories measured — including charging infrastructure and consumer interest in EVs — show there is still a

Honda will use the 11th-generation Accord as a test bed for its first integration of Google — a step that promises the future ability to make changes in existing vehicles. The system, called Google Built-In, will be offered on the top Touring trim only. It essentially tethers the vehicle to its owner via their Google

Once flush with easy money, investors have soured on investing in electric vehicles and other mobility startups amid uncertain economic conditions. The total amount invested in the moblity tech sector dropped by 79 percent year-over-year in the third quarter of 2022, according to the latest figures from financial services firm PitchBook. Going forward, investors expect

Tesla owners love over-the-air software updates, which add features to enhance performance, convenience and safety. But the updates can also make the Tesla experience more fun around Christmas time. This year’s big “holiday update” brings a top feature that Tesla fans have been clamoring for: Apple Music on the infotainment screen. Also added was Zoom

WASHINGTON – U.S. auto safety regulators said Friday they have opened a formal safety probe into the autonomous driving system in vehicles produced by General Motors’ robotaxi unit Cruise LLC. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said it has received notices of incidents in which vehicles operated by Cruise “may engage in inappropriately hard

TuSimple Holdings Inc. appointed interim financial chief Eric Tapia on a permanent basis and reconstituted its audit committee, the self-driving trucking firm said on Friday, weeks after an internal probe revealed links to a China-backed firm. The company reappointed former CEO Cheng Lu as its top boss last month after it fired his predecessor Xiaodi

Automakers are starting to team up with electric utilities to accelerate the push to build out the infrastructure needed to make electric vehicles a viable option for more U.S. consumers. One of the biggest questions surrounding the mass adoption of EVs is whether U.S. power grids will be able to power the batteries of vehicles

Reda Riddle-Bigler heard about the autonomous vehicles deployed throughout the metro Phoenix area years ago. Sometimes she’d see the cars, with elaborate sensors affixed to their roofs, driving along the road. But it wasn’t until May, when she received a promotion to central district commander with the Phoenix Fire Department, that she understood self-driving technology

Redwood Materials plans to invest $3.5 billion to build a battery materials plant in South Carolina. The factory at Camp Hall commerce park in Ridgeville, S.C., will conduct recycling, refining and remanufacturing operations to capture and produce battery materials. The company said the plant would create about 1,500 jobs. The plant, near Charleston, will be

Self-driving yard truck developer Outrider has developed a system to robotically connect electric and pressurized brake lines to trailers and container chassis. The Golden, Colo., company’s TrailerConnect system uses robotic arms from Yaskawa Electric Corp. and reduces the need for drivers to constantly get in and out of truck cabs to manually make the connections.

SAN DIEGO — To bring new technologies to market faster, electric vehicle battery makers need to manage data in creative ways and consider different business models, industry executives said the Advanced Automotive Battery Conference on Dec. 6 “Companies that are able to build data infrastructure to understand what goes into their products and how they’re

Despite widespread electric vehicle buzz, studies show most Americans have never been EV passengers, let alone drivers. Their most likely first experience? A rental car, said Gregory Scott, spokesperson for the American Car Rental Association. Car rental companies are committing to sustainable mobility, Scott said. It’s an important statement, as the American Car Rental Association’s

INGERSOLL, Ontario — As General Motors rolls out a number of high-profile electric vehicles in 2023, including a battery-powered Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Hummer SUV, it’s also starting full-scale production of a much lesser-known EV that is key to achieving its financial goals. GM will begin producing the BrightDrop Zevo 600 electric delivery van on

DETROIT — General Motors is working to build a resilient battery supply chain as it moves into the next phase of electric vehicle development, drawing on lessons learned during the ongoing semiconductor shortage, CEO Mary Barra said Thursday. The automaker wants battery suppliers, many of which are new to working with GM, to source from