Future Tesla Autopilot chips may come from Samsung self-driving push

2017 Tesla Model S testing at Consumer ReportsThe race to build self-driving cars is heating up, with Google (Waymo), Tesla, Uber, Lyft, Ford, GM (Cruise), and others all vying to build the first reliable self-driving system. Now add Korean electronics giant Samsung to that list—with a twist. Its first client could be one of the major competitors in the business, Tesla. Tesla once had a...

A million electric cars sold in the U.S., led by California

EVgo charging station in Union City, California with resused BMW i3 battery backupDrivers are buying electric cars, and advocates are keeping track. Last month, Veloz, an electric car advocacy organization consisting of regulators, automakers, charging manufacturers and networks, utilities and others, announced that the U.S. had surpassed 1 million electric car sales. That's still less than 1 percent of the approximately 270...

Honda presents new battery chemistry that could succeed lithium-ion

Honda Clarity Electric at Honda R&D Center, Tochigi, Japan, June 2017Researchers from around the world are looking for the successor to the lithium-ion battery for electric cars, power tools, and electronics—one that will store more energy with less size and weight, charge more quickly, and have improved safety. All battery chemistries come with tradeoffs. The challenge for researchers is to figure out how to...

VW releases video of electric I.D. hatchback testing in South Africa

2020 Volkswagen ID Neo spy shotsVolkswagen has heard the naysayers. After being caught cheating on emissions tests with its diesels and being forced to promote electric cars through various legal settlements around the world, the company clearly realizes it has a steep climb to convince consumers it is serious about selling a wide range of electric cars it has planned. DON'T...

Tesla Model S catches fire–twice–after flat tire in California

2018 Tesla Model SA day after Tesla claimed it found a bullet hole, shot from inside the car, in the battery of a Tesla that caught fire in 2014, another brand new Tesla Model S caught fire in California. The owner told local news crews that he was driving on Highway 17, which runs from San Jose to Santa Cruz, California when the low tire pressure warning suddenly...

How Nissan hopes to market its future electric cars

2018 Nissan LeafThe Nissan Leaf with a roughly 60-kilowatt-hour battery was expected to make its public debut at the LA Auto Show earlier this month. It didn’t. That car is expected to appear “very soon,” perhaps at the 2019 Consumer Electronics Show to be held in Las Vegas a month hence. DON'T MISS: Long-range Nissan Leaf missing from LA Auto...