EV battery technology has progressed to the point that range anxiety is becoming a thing of the past – at least on paper. A new study from Consumer Reports found that real-world driving ranges often fall way short of automakers’ advertised range estimates, but some exceed their on-paper numbers.

Continuing to play fast and loose with the definition of the word ‘coupe’, Mercedes-AMG has rolled out its CLE 53 4MATIC+ Coupe for the upcoming 2024 model year. At least this one has two doors and isn’t applied to a high-riding crossover. 

Despite being pulled from our market in 2019, the Fiat 500e is coming back. Stellantis announced the model’s return in 2022 and has recently shared its specifications and pricing.

The vehicle remains a pint-sized runabout best suited for urban environments and short trips. But it is more useful than its predecessor with the 42-kWh battery pack yielding 149 miles between charges using the EPA’s testing protocols. That’s superior to the Mini Cooper SE and matches the Nissan Leaf S. Though the Fiat has additional tricks up its sleeve by way of faster charging options and liquid-cooled batteries that should (in theory) result in more consistent performance.

The 2024 Polaris Slingshot marks the next iteration of the three-wheeler that's fun to drive but also tends to be owned by annoying bros who bump music too loud while trawling in traffic.

It’s the end of an era. Maybe not the most impactful or exciting era, but the end, nonetheless. Jeep is killing the Renegade in the U.S. and Canada after several years of declining sales, ending the run of its most affordable model.

Rivian’s truck and SUV are two of the more compelling EV options on sale now, but the automaker wants to streamline its operations to increase volume and reduce costs. Company CFO Claire McDonough recently shed some light on how Rivian plans to get there.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is expanding a probe into over 500,000 late-model Hondas that could be suffering from a steering defect. Reports indicate that 2023 Honda CR-Vs, 2023 Acura Integras, and 2022-2023 Honda Civics could be affected. However, no formal recall announcement has been made and likely won’t be until the investigation has concluded.

Ford doesn’t sell the Fiesta, Fusion, or Lincoln MKZ in the United States anymore, but the automaker recently recalled all three for an interesting problem. High temperatures can crack part of the rear door latch, causing the door to open while driving.

Automakers work hard to stop leaks and make sure their products are kept under wraps until the time is right. They’re not always successful, however, and sometimes the leaks come from outside the company. This time, it’s the UAW’s documents giving out more info than Ford probably wants, as it recently confirmed that Mustang production will end in 2028.

But we can all go pound sand in North America, unfortunately. Such are the joys – and challenges – of our global marketplace. Nevertheless, off-road gearheads in other parts of the world will be able to avail themselves of this tremendously square beast, showing up for duty with a 2.8L turbodiesel.

Last night, Tesla finally unveiled the production Cybertruck. Four years after we first saw it -- "we" meaning society. Us TTAC folk weren't at either event.

Following eight reports of vehicle fires, Jeep has decided to recall 32,125 examples of the Wrangler 4xe PHEV in the United States. The vehicles come from the 2021-2024 model year, with roughly 13,000 being situated outside the U.S. While parent company Stellantis has said the vehicles can continue being driven, it's advising customers against charging them and has likewise recommended parking them outdoors away from anything you might not want burned.

The Chevrolet Volt was a surprisingly decent car with an innovative powertrain and attractive styling, but its time came to an end a few years back. The NHTSA hasn’t forgotten about it, however, as the government agency recently opened an investigation into the car and its reported tendency to lose power while driving.

Detroit now has a quarter-mile length of roadway with the ability to charge properly equipped electric vehicles as they drive. While similar programs have been pioneered in Europe, Detroit is the first and only city to do so in the United States. Governor Gretchen Whitmer offered her support when the plan was announced in 2021. 

Elon Musk has no trouble generating words, both the ones that come out of his mouth (and keyboard fingers) and the ones that breathlessly recap the first type. There was the post on X agreeing with an antisemitic statement, though Musk later apologized. More recently, the controversial CEO shared his thoughts (again) on unions, saying that he believes a Tesla employee union would be a mistake, among many other statements.

Automakers have pumped billions into EV development and production, but it will take even more work and money for them to reach the market share goals laid out by the companies. General Motors has invested more than many of its rivals, but the automaker is realistic about the costs it faces going forward. At the same time, CEO Mary Barra said that GM is looking to boost production in 2024 using software and automation.

Alert members of the B&B know we don’t tend to put much stock into “Of the Year” awards, for reasons with which you lot are intimately familiar. Witness the spectacle of Motor Trend awarding the Blazer EV its SUV of the Year trophy as Exhibit A of our feelings.

Nevertheless, an EV with its wick cranked to 641 horsepower tends to get out attention – as it did the crew of Top Gear across the pond.

Roughly 4,000 U.S. dealerships are asking President Joe Biden to reconsider proposed federal regulations they’ve alleged would mandate an unrealistic national shift toward battery-electric vehicles consumers simply aren’t buying.

BMW’s electric lineup can be found under the “i” branding in its overall catalog, but it will need to make changes to prevent a complete mess with its SUV naming convention. The current X3 and X5 have long, alphanumeric names that include drive wheel and other information, and tacking another letter onto the end could create a real mess of confusion. To avoid that problem, the automaker is reportedly looking at a more straightforward naming system for electric models.

Consumer Reports has concluded its annual car reliability survey and the resulting data for 2023 has not been kind to all-electric vehicles. For 2023, CR reported that EVs had 79 percent more problems than automobiles that use internal combustion. Plug-in hybrids were even worse with 146 percent more issues. However, standard hybrids actually outperformed every other group with 26 percent fewer problems than vehicles wholly reliant on gasoline.

Mercedes jumped into electrification with both feet but is now learning that buyers aren’t quite as excited about its more expensive models as it is. The automaker is eying plans to move production of the flagship EQS electric SUV to Germany to make room at its Alabama facility for a higher-volume EV.

Despite Toyota having revealed the redesigned mid-sized Tacoma pickup for the 2024 model year last spring, the company has waited until now to announce pricing. That may have been because the brand’s best-selling truck is accompanied by some unhappy price increases. Though the pickup has also been modernized, potentially softening the blow for some who liked the vehicle’s reputation for reliability and simply thought it was a little rough around the edges.

Volkswagen made big news when it announced a revival of the iconic American Scout name, and the automaker promised to build electric vehicles under the brand at a facility in South Carolina beginning in 2026. Automotive News Europe recently reported that to help rebuild the brand, VW plans to outsource production to Magna Steyr, a powerhouse automotive supplier that builds the G-Class for Mercedes and the Ocean for Fisker.

Updated Monday, December 4, 2023 with a correction to the Quartermaster's reservation status.

Ineos is one of the most unique automakers to hit the market in years, focusing only on building old-school, gas-powered off-road vehicles with more rugged capability than luxury and style. The company’s first vehicle is the Grenadier, an SUV that recently went on sale in several countries. Now, Ineos has begun production of its second vehicle, a pickup truck named the Quartermaster that shares the Grenadier’s boxy, old-school styling.

Most of us figured out long ago that, if we complain enough, it’s possible to get what we want. Off-road gearheads on this side of the pond (including this author) whined expressed an interest in the last-gen Ranger Raptor but that truck stayed on the other side of the pond. Now, we have a date for the ’24 model in America: The first quarter of 2024.

Tesla has revealed the maximum towing capabilities for the long-anticipated Cybertruck by including it in display materials located at some of the brand’s physical locations. As the company lacks a dedicated PR department, the information comes by way of social media accounts and dedicated forums. While this means Tesla hasn’t confirmed the figures, there is sufficient coverage to deem the number plausible. Until the manufacturer says otherwise, Cybertruck will be capable of towing 11,000 pounds.

Volkswagen needs to cut costs and to get there, the automaker is cutting jobs. Company CEO Thomas Schaefer said that VW’s growing costs and waning productivity have necessitated the cuts, which will take place over the next several years.

It’s the end of an era that many of you probably thought ended years ago: The Ford Crown Victoria’s time as a taxi on the streets of NYC is coming to a close, as the last two cars still eligible for duty are aging out.

Tesla recently started opening its Supercharger network to outside EV brands, but the influx of more vehicles to charge has put a strain on the system. To help with the surge, the automaker has started charging congestion fees of up to $1 per minute at busy Supercharger locations.

The Ford F-150 Raptor R is a seriously impressive truck with an equally serious price tag that puts it out of reach for most buyers. An Alabama Ford dealer has a solution, however, in the form of a base F-150 XL with a Roush supercharger and other upgrades.

The jumbo Nissan Armada has a higher entry-level price point for 2024 compared to last year – but it would be tough to solely blame inflation for this cost hike. Rather, customers should know the brand simply decided to bin a (relatively) low volume base trim.

The sprightly and engaging Hyundai Elantra N may be eligible for an engine upgrade in its next incarnation.

Albert Biermann may have retired from running the brand’s performance division. But he’s still serving as Hyundai’s senior technical advisor, continues to influence the brand’s designs and claims the next-generation Elantra will accommodate something larger than the 2.0-liter turbo that’s currently fitted to the N model.

Ford has said it will restart construction on the electric vehicle battery facility it’s building in Marshall, Michigan, after pausing work when the UAW strike kicked off a couple months ago. But the company has also announced that it would be “re-timing and resizing some investments.”

In what could be a tacit admission the transition to electric vehicles is going approximately as smoothly as a Michigan secondary road, it is being reported that suits at the Blue Oval are rolling back some of the requirements demanded of dealers in order to shill EVs to customers.

Hyundai recently rolled out the 2024 Tucson, but the automaker is already talking about the 2025 model. The popular SUV is getting an update for the model year, bringing fresh styling and a more sensible interior with physical buttons.

The Tesla Cybertruck is due for an official release next week, but the slow, steady drip of information isn’t stopping. According to forum users in Southern California, the automaker has two Cybertrucks on display at a mall in San Diego, and they claim to have new specs to share.

In yet another chapter of dealers (and their financial arms) behaving badly, Toyota Motor Credit has been levied $12 million civil fine and also order to fork over $48 million in restitution after a court found the organization played fast and loose with some rules.

While the United Auto Workers’ contract seems to be a done deal for all three Detroit-based automakers, Ford is the only brand that’s issued any formal statements on ratification thus far. But there’s not much to pick apart in the release. The company avoided opportunities to promote itself as the brand that seemed most willing to accommodate the UAW and only brushed against assertions that paying workers more would add to its operational costs.

Last week, a federal judge refused to have the courts reexamine a gaggle of class action lawsuits claiming automotive manufacturers had violated Washington State's privacy laws after allegations that on-board infotainment systems were recording customers’ private text messages and mobile phone call logs. Despite substantial evidence that the above claims are not only true but also just the tip of the iceberg as manufacturers have normalized some of the most egregious data harvesting we’ve seen, the Seattle-based judge said the allegations were not severe enough to be considered a violation of the Washington Privacy Act (WPA).

VinFast had some stumbles out of the gate with its U.S. vehicle launch, racking up seriously mixed reviews and delaying the rollout with technology hiccups. The company is now working to ease the ownership experience for owners who have problems with their EVs, offering payouts for service issues.

Cruise is going through some things right now. After one of its robotaxis hit a pedestrian, the company halted all autonomous vehicle operations and issued a recall for many of its units. It also lost the ability to operate in California, its home base, at least temporarily, and now, we’ve learned that its CEO and co-founder has stepped down.

Despite several large facilities voting against the UAW labor contract negotiated with Detroit automakers, the deal has been ratified by union members from both General Motors and Stellantis. This is based on the UAW’s own vote tracker and has put to bed any serious fears that GM might have to reenter negotiations.

While Ford’s voting hasn’t yet reached the point where we can say anything definitive, its negotiations with the union also went the best. The Blue Oval offered sweeter deals than rival automakers and sooner, too. It’s on the brink of ratification and may even have reached that point by the time you’re reading this.

The Formula 1 Las Vegas Grand Prix is this weekend, and things are off to a rough start. After seeing ticket prices fall due to softer-than-expected demand, race organizers are facing criticism after a manhole cover badly damaged one of the two Ferrari cars.

Thanks to GM’s investments in electrification, Cadillac is accelerating its EV development and has confirmed another new gas-free model coming in 2025. The Optiq will enter the automaker’s lineup as a compact electric SUV, slotting in beneath the Lyriq and flagship Escalade IQ.

Despite years of talk that Apple would eventually start building all-electric vehicles, China’s Xiaomi looks to have beaten the American brand to the punch by previewing the first production EV designed by an established consumer technology company. Though designed might be the wrong word to use as the front of the SU7 sedan appears to have been lifted off the McLaren 750 S while the back is pure Porsche Panamera.

Showing up at the sixth-generation of this long running nameplate, the 2025 Subaru Forester adds a yaffle of technology whilst smoothing out some of the old car’s odd styling choices.

At an event earlier this week in Los Angeles, the Genesis brand unveiled a revamped GV80 crossover plus a production version of the GV80 Coupe which jumps on the bandwagon occupied by cut-roofed rigs like the BMW X6 and Mercedes GLE Coupe.

LOS ANGELES -- In addition to the updated 2024 Sorento, Kia has unveiled two concepts today at the 2023 Los Angeles Auto Show -- the EV3 and EV4.

LOS ANGELES -- Boxes are in these days, it seems.

OK, that's probably a bit of an overstatement -- there are plenty of crossovers on the market with swoopy styling -- but the facelifted 2024 Kia Sorento is definitely following the rugged/boxy trend.

LOS ANGELES -- No, we haven't turned into a late-night infomercial, saying "but wait, there's more!"

We're quoting the tagline from the press release for the 2024 Hyundai Santa Fe: "Open for More." So tagged because the liftgate opening is larger.

And, well, there's more. Read on.

The Tesla Cybertruck is allegedly nearing its release, four years after its initial reveal. It’s been a long time, but if you can think back that far, you might remember the automaker showed an electric quad alongside the truck. Unfortunately, the toy had to be recalled for not meeting Consumer Product Safety Commission standards, but it recently returned to the market with less chance of injury.

LOS ANGELES -- High performance isn't just limited to vehicles that burn dead dinos in some way, shape, or form. EVs can get in on the fun, too.

The 2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N isn't the first high-performance EV -- there are several examples on the market. Instead, it's another reminder that EVs don't have to be boring commuter machines.

A recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) has claimed that large, blunt-nosed pickups and SUVs pose a greater risk to pedestrians than other vehicle types. It’s quite possibly the most obvious outcome to any study we’ve ever seen and it seems to crop up every few years even though the vehicles in question just keep getting bigger and squarer.

BMW has announced it is expanding its ChargeForward incentive program to drivers of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles living in the contiguous United States. The proclamation coincides with the launch of the brand’s all-electric i5 and is supposed to incentivize customers into “aligning their vehicle charging with times when renewable energy is highest on the grid.”

That’s progressive-corporate speak for charging vehicles when the demand for electricity is lower to ensure less energy is wasted. One of the biggest obstacles presented by EVs is that widespread usage would result in explosive energy demand many electrical grids may not be able to accommodate. BMW believes this can be mitigated with ChargeForward by ensuring user charging times are carefully monitored and scheduled. 

New cars have all sorts of driver monitoring tech on board that can tell when a person is paying attention or has their hands on the wheel, but the National Transportation Safety Board feels there’s a need for more. The NTSB asked 17 automakers to add anti-speeding tech to new vehicles going forward, following an extremely deadly crash in Las Vegas last year that left nine people dead.

Making good on its promise to show an SUV variant of its new Crown sedan, Toyota introduced the Crown Signia yesterday at an event in Los Angeles.

We’re not even out of 2023 yet, but we’re already talking about 2025 model-year vehicles. Toyota recently revealed a new version of the iconic Camry sedan for 2025, which will let go of the car’s powerful V6 option in favor of hybrid power, more tech, and top-notch safety equipment. The car goes on sale in spring 2024.

Unionized Ford workers in Louisville, Kentucky, and General Motors employees from Spring Hill, Tennessee, have voted no on the contract agreement reached by the United Auto Workers. While this only represents a fraction of the UAW votes needed to ratify the updated contract, it’s a sign that the deal hasn’t yet gone through and may not if the trend continues. 

The drama between Michael Andretti and the old guard of Formula 1 continues. While the sport’s governing body, the FIA, approved the American team’s entry to the grid with backing from General Motors and Cadillac, F1 itself has yet to accept the application. Even so, Andretti’s position recently got much stronger, as GM announced that it would develop and build power units in-house beginning in 2028.

The Tesla Cybertruck is finally getting a formal reveal on November 30, four years after Elon Musk first announced it. While we still don’t have many details on the long-awaited EV, it appears Tesla is taking early steps to preempt the flippers that have ruined so many other recent vehicle launches. The automaker recently updated its Motor Vehicle Order Agreement Terms and Conditions to state that Cybertruck buyers cannot resell the truck for the first year of ownership.