A Car Dealer Just Led a $22 Million Bet on the Robot That Calls You About Your Oil Change
A dealer group led STELLA Automotive AI's $22.1 million round. The real prize is the service drive, and federal robocall…
Government Regulation
NHTSA Wants to Delete Two Safety Tests. The Upgrades They’re Paying For Just Slipped to 2029.
NHTSA wants to drop the Fishhook rollover maneuver and side air bag out-of-position testing from its 5-Star program. The same…
Hyundai Wants Guardrails Against Chinese Cars. Its Own History Says They Only Buy Time
Hyundai's CEO wants U.S. limits on Chinese automakers. The bigger news is his admission that Chinese car tech is ahead,…
BYD Already Has an American Factory. Washington Wrote a Law Around It.
BYD has built buses in California for over a decade. Congress still wrote it out of federal transit money. That…
Volkswagen Just Wrote Off €6 Billion of Porsche. The 911 Is the Only Porsche Still Growing.
Volkswagen's roughly €6 billion Porsche write-down isn't a verdict on the 911. It's the bill for a China, SUV and…
Flock Can Build the Cameras. It Can’t Build the Roadside.
Florida and Texas did not ban plate-reading cameras. They pulled the roadside permits and public money Flock depends on, and…
California Opened the Door to Robot Semis. Most of the Homework Gets Done in Texas.
California's new heavy-duty AV rules demand a million autonomous miles before a driverless semi can deploy, but up to 800,000…
Tesla’s Semi Plant Opens, Rivian Recalls Nearly 99,000 EVs, and What Else Moved
Tesla's Semi factory opens, Rivian recalls 98,828 EVs over backup cameras, Geely hits four-minute charging, and the BYD question hangs…
Today in Automotive History: September 24, 1948 — Honda Is Founded With 1 Million Yen and a Bicycle Engine
Honda was founded on Sept. 24, 1948, with 1 million yen and a bicycle engine. The company born that day…
1,043 Radiators, Declared at $5.54 Each. The Parts Weren’t Fake — the Importer Was.
CBP seized 1,043 automotive radiators in Norfolk that were imported on a stolen American identity and declared at $5.54 each.…
Florida County Has No Idea Where Mysterious LPR Cameras Came From
St. Lucie County revoked authorization for 52 license plate readers on county right-of-way, then discovered its own permit file could…
The Nitrous Ban Headed for a House Vote Protects Whipped Cream. Racers Get a 1972 Loophole.
H.R. 7945 would make any consumer product containing nitrous oxide a banned hazardous product 180 days after enactment. The bill…
He Imported 44 Fake Honda Airbags. The Trademark Is What Made It A Federal Crime.
Twenty counterfeit Honda airbags reached the United States labeled as desktop night lights. The federal case that followed rests on…
The Feds Want To Write One Company’s Patented Part Into America’s Next Crash Test Dummy
A new NHTSA notice on the THOR-50M crash test dummy proposes specifying a patented Humanetics spine, while a rival Kistler…
California Just Made CARB’s Silence Mean Yes on Aftermarket Parts
Governor Gavin Newsom signed three car bills on September 16. Two of them got a...