Toyota says California-led EV mandates “impossible” to meet

2023 Toyota bZ4X Limited AWDToyota on Friday gave the first indication of a renewed pushback against California's ability to set stricter emissions standards and wind down sales of gasoline cars. "At this point, it looks impossible," Toyota North America COO Jack Hollis said in a virtual roundtable with CNBC and other media, regarding California rules that call for 35% of...

2025 Kia Niro EV still costs $40,975 despite added standard equipment

2025 Kia Niro EVThe 2025 Kia Niro EV receives a few more standard features, but costs the same as the 2024 model. That means pricing still starts at $40,975—including a $1,375 destination fee—for the Niro EV Wind base model. For 2025, the Wind receives a larger 10.25-inch digital instrument cluster and switches to a rotary shifter. The higher-level...

Asics sneakers reuse vehicle airbag fabric, win design award

Asics shoes made of recycled vehicle airbag materialLeftover fabric from car airbags is now being used in sneakers, helping to lower the environmental impact of cars and footwear alike. The Asics Gel-Sonoma 15-50 uses airbag nylon fabric remnants from Toyoda Gosei, one of Toyota's captive suppliers, in its upper elements. Launched in January 2023, the sneaker won a Good Design Award 2024 from the...

GM exec believes ditching Apple CarPlay in EVs is the path forward

2024 Chevrolet Silverado EVGM is phasing out Apple CarPlay in its lineup New Chevy, Cadillac, GMC, and Buick EVs won't have Apple CarPlay GM's software boss believes the automaker's making the right call General Motors is still committed to phasing out Apple CarPlay and Android Auto smartphone connectivity in future EVs, software boss Baris Cetinok said in a recent...

Electric Mazda SUV arriving in 2027, CX-5 hybrid under development

2025 Mazda CX-5Mazda on Thursday provided an update on its powertrain development efforts, which will emphasize bringing more development work on all-electric and hybrid powertrains in-house going forward. After launching the low-range MX-30 crossover, which has already been discontinued in the U.S., with all-electric and range-extended powertrains, Mazda has...

Tesla Model S Plaid reports for police duty

Tesla Model S Plaid police car by Unplugged PerformanceThe next Tesla to become a cop car is the Model S Plaid UP.FIT, a division of Unplugged Performance created the police package for the Model S UP.FIT has also made a police-spec Cybertruck Unplugged Performance is displaying a new Tesla police car from its UP.FIT division at the 2024 SEMA show in Las Vegas. This time, it's the Model S Plaid that's...

Karma Invictus positioned as Revero performance variant

Karma InvictusThe Invictus is a limited-edition performance version of the Karma Revero PHEV Only 30 units of the Invictus will be built at a later, unannounced, date Karma hasn't said how much the Invictus costs Karma Automotive this week unveiled yet another update of the long-lived Revero plug-in hybrid. The Karma Invictus is a more performance-focused...

Honda previews first electric performance motorcycle

Honda EV Fun conceptHonda on Tuesday unveiled a performance electric motorcycle concept as part of what the company says will be an ongoing emphasis on two-wheeled electrification. Previewing a production model scheduled to go on sale in 2025, the Honda EV Fun concept aims to "provide a new emotional experience that is very different to ICE motorcycles," according to...