Electric Vehicles & Cars News - Page 1

All the latest electric cars (EV) and ICE cars news covering new and upcoming releases and technologies to hit the market.

Follow TweakTown on Google News

Lead Cybertruck engineer pleads with owners to stop the torturing

Jak Connor | Mar 16, 2024 12:33 AM CDT

Since the release of Tesla's Cybertruck, we have seen many owners put Tesla's toughness claims to the test by firing bullets at its stainless steel exterior, burning it, breaking windows, and more.

Lead Cybertruck engineer pleads with owners to stop the torturing

Wes Morrill, the lead engineer for the Cybertruck has had enough of these durability tests and has taken to X to ask owners to stop breaking the new EV as it has already lived a "tortured life for entertainment". Morrill wrote that Cybertruck has already been jumped on, kicked, burned, and shot at multiple times, which the engineer says is enough to soundly say "we've confirmed its tough".

Morrill is right. There have been many toughness tests popping up on YouTube, with my personal favorite being YouTuber JerryRigEverything deciding to fire a .50 caliber bullet at the metal exterior. Notably, most people who are purchasing a $100,000 vehicle aren't going to be doing a durability test, which means that the vast majority of owners aren't trying to break their new Cybertruck for entertainment - it's just the few who want to benchmark the vehicle for reviewing/reporting purposes.

Continue reading: Lead Cybertruck engineer pleads with owners to stop the torturing (full post)

Tim Cook teases new Apple Vision Pro app during Porsche's new EV unveiling

Jak Connor | Mar 12, 2024 2:36 AM CDT

Porsche has just finished launching its new Taycan Turbo GT electric vehicle, and the company had a surprise for Apple Vision Pro users close to the end of its presentation.

Tim Cook teases new Apple Vision Pro app during Porsche's new EV unveiling

The livestream was predominately dedicated to the new Taycan Turbo GT EV but also featured a surprise appearance from Apple CEO Tim Cook, who congratulated Porsche on its new EV lap record and overall progress in the EV market. The Apple CEO commented on the demonstration by Porsche CEO Oliver Blume, who can be seen using the coming Apple Vision Pro app called Race Engineer Cockpit.

The new app is designed to allow Vision Pro users to experience different angles of the race all at once; this includes driver-facing camera angles, over-the-shoulder road perspectives, TV coverage angles, and real-time driving data such as the speed of the vehicle, lap time, battery levels and more.

Continue reading: Tim Cook teases new Apple Vision Pro app during Porsche's new EV unveiling (full post)

Apple's design for its secret electric vehicle is nothing like you would have expected

Jak Connor | Mar 12, 2024 12:53 AM CDT

It was only a few weeks ago that Apple axed its secretive electric vehicle project internally called Project Titan, and now we have received more details about what the company was working on.

Apple's design for its secret electric vehicle is nothing like you would have expected

Rumors surrounding an Apple Car have been circulating the internet for 10 years now, with as many as 5,000 employees working on the project at its height of development to 1,400 recently being given the choice of finding a division of the company to enter or laid off. Throughout those 10 years of development, hardly any details about Project Titan were leaked, but now the project is officially canceled Bloomberg's Apple insider Mark Gurman now has many details about it, including what the secret EV would have looked like.

According to the insider, Apple's EV 2020 design was similar to a Canoo Lifestyle Vehicle, or a futuristic minivan that featured adjustable window tint, an all-glass sunroof, a white exterior, whitewall tires, an identical front and back, and full self-driving optimizations. In Apple fashion, the design of Project Titan was completely unique, with its interior echoing Apple's iconic minimalistic design approach, which is seen across all its products. The report states its interior would have featured "seats you'd normally see on a private jet or limousine," and when seated, it felt like sitting in a "contoured bubble."

Continue reading: Apple's design for its secret electric vehicle is nothing like you would have expected (full post)

YouTuber fires .50 caliber bullet at Cybertruck to test its bullet proof metal

Jak Connor | Mar 11, 2024 9:45 AM CDT

A YouTuber has decided to pull Tesla's claims about the Cybertruck being bulletproof to the test by firing various rounds at its stainless steel exterior.

YouTuber fires .50 caliber bullet at Cybertruck to test its bullet proof metal

YouTuber "JerryRigEverything" has gone from testing the durability of tech products, such as the latest mobile phones and the Apple Vision Pro, to now firing a .50 caliber rifle at a Tesla Cybertruck. Firstly, the YouTuber fires a 9mm handgun at the Cybertruck with 115-grain full metal jacket bullets. The Cybertruck's stainless steel alloy prevented each of the shots from going through the metal, proving Tesla's claims that the Cybertruck is "bulletproof".

However, two of the test shots landed in the same spot, cracking the metal exterior. Moving onto faster bullets, the YouTuber tests a 4.5 mm round, and an AR 5.56mm round, which both penetrated the metal exterior. The last test was easily the most interesting as a .50 caliber round was fired at the Cybertruck and unsurprisingly passing through both sides of the door.

Continue reading: YouTuber fires .50 caliber bullet at Cybertruck to test its bullet proof metal (full post)

Elon Musk unveils when the Tesla roadster will ship and how fast it'll go 0-60mph

Jak Connor | Mar 1, 2024 1:16 AM CST

It has only been a few weeks since the release of the Tesla Cybertruck and company CEO Elon Musk is already teasing the Roadster, a highly anticipated electric vehicle that was first announced back in 2017.

Elon Musk unveils when the Tesla roadster will ship and how fast it'll go 0-60mph

The Roadster is one of the most anticipated vehicles to come out of Tesla since it was announced in 2017 and supposed to go to market in 2020. However, the vehicle was delayed several times reportedly due to pandemic-related supply chain issues, but now we have a new release window per recent X posts from Musk. The company CEO took to his personal X account on Wednesday to state that the "design goals" for the Tesla Roadster have been "radically increased" and as a result "there will never be another car like this, if you could even call it a car".

Musk said that the new Roadster is just built by Tesla but is a collaborative project between Tesla and his rocket company SpaceX. It's currently unclear how or why SpaceX is involved in the production of seemingly Tesla's next vehicle release, but it could be something as simple as the design of the car and not so much what's under the hood.

Continue reading: Elon Musk unveils when the Tesla roadster will ship and how fast it'll go 0-60mph (full post)

Apple has axed its secretive autonomous electric car project

Jak Connor | Feb 28, 2024 2:46 AM CST

It has long been rumored that Apple is working on its own electric vehicle (EV) that would be fully autonomous, and now publications have learned that the project has been axed and that hundreds of employees are likely being let go from the company.

Apple has axed its secretive autonomous electric car project

TechCrunch and Bloomberg have reported that Apple executives announced in a short meeting with the team working on the EV project that all work will be stopped and that some remaining employees will be moved over to Apple's generative AI division, where they will begin working on various AI-powered products. As for those who won't be going to Apple's generative AI division, they will have 90 days to find another role within the company, and if they can't fit in anywhere, they will be fired.

Reports indicate that Apple's secretive EV project was being worked on by approximately 1,400 employees, according to one employee who spoke to TechCrunch under anonymity. Notably, Apple has reportedly been working on its EV since 2014, and internally, it was known as "Project Titan." while there were hardly any details about the project, the company did, at one stage, have as many as 5,000 employees working on it.

Continue reading: Apple has axed its secretive autonomous electric car project (full post)

These are the vehicles to buy if you want to use Apple's car key feature.

Oliver Haslam | Feb 25, 2024 6:00 AM CST

It might not seem like it but it's been almost four years since Apple announced a new iPhone and Apple Watch Wallet feature that would allow car owners to unlock their vehicles without the need for a key or key card. Instead, all they would need is their iPhone or Apple Watch and they'd be able to unlock, lock, and start their vehicles. Unfortunately, that requires that carmakers also get on board.

These are the vehicles to buy if you want to use Apple's car key feature.

As is so often the case with features that Apple adds in relation to cars - CarPlay is another example - it has taken some time for carmakers to either update or release vehicles that support the new car key feature. 9to5Mac has put together a list of all the vehicles that can be used with the Wallet car key offering, and it's a surprisingly large number - although the majority have a BMW logo on the front.

The full list reads:

Continue reading: These are the vehicles to buy if you want to use Apple's car key feature. (full post)

Tesla engineer responds to claims Cybertruck's are rusting in the rain

Jak Connor | Feb 21, 2024 4:56 AM CST

Last week, a small group of Cybertruck owners took to forums to report tiny orange speckles forming on the exterior of their Cybertruck, which at the time was widely reported as "rusting".

Tesla engineer responds to claims Cybertruck's are rusting in the rain

These new Cybertruck owners took some photos of the orange speckling as pictured above, and others referred to the new electric pick-up truck's manual, which states the exterior of the vehicle is subject to contamination. One owner said they were warned by Tesla staff when they were picking up their vehicle that there was a possibility the up to $99,900 vehicle could rust in the rain.

Now, a Tesla engineer who has been at the company for more than 13 years, per his LinkedIn account, has responded to the claims of Cybertruck exteriors rusting. Cybertruck engineer Wes Morrill took to X to say the orange spots some owners are complaining about are actually caused by metal particles either from the manufacturing factory or the railway when they were transported. Morrill further explained that when "free iron" sits on the stainless steel exterior of the Cybertruck, it will "rust", but it is only "surface contamination" that can be "cleaned off easily".

Continue reading: Tesla engineer responds to claims Cybertruck's are rusting in the rain (full post)

Cybertruck's are already rusting despite being stainless steel

Jak Connor | Feb 15, 2024 12:02 AM CST

A group of Tesla Cybertruck owners have taken to social platforms to share images of their Cybertruck's developing rust from what appears to be just rain.

Cybertruck's are already rusting despite being stainless steel

One Cybertruck owner called Raxar took to the Cybertruckownersclub forum to say that when they picked up their Cybertruck from their respective Tesla dealership, the advisor specifically told them the vehicle is prone to developing orange rust marks on its exterior if it's exposed to the rain. According to Raxar, these orange rust marks need to be buffed out. Another Cybertruck owner took to the same forum to share some images of what appears to be corrosion developing following the vehicle being exposed to the Los Angeles rain, cold weather, and some sunlight.

The Cybertruck owner said they washed to make sure the specs weren't just dirt, and since they stayed present on the metal, the owner booked a service appointment. According to the Cybertruck owner an individual at the facility said they have a "procedure/guidance for how to fix it, but they don't have the tools on hand, nor have they done this repair before." Notably, this Cybertruck owner had only clocked 381 miles on it during the 11 days they had it their custody.

Continue reading: Cybertruck's are already rusting despite being stainless steel (full post)

The Apple Car project suffers another setback as key executive leaves for Rivian

Oliver Haslam | Jan 28, 2024 3:29 AM CST

The Apple Car project, known internally as Project Titan, has had something of a difficult life over the years. The project has reportedly gone through a variety of incarnations with a number of executives and engineers moving through the project. It still isn't 100% clear whether the project will ever turn into a vehicle that can be bought, but Apple seems reticent to drop it completely after spending so long - and presumably so much money -on the project. Now, it's reported that Apple has lost yet another executive.

The Apple Car project suffers another setback as key executive leaves for Rivian

Writing for Bloomberg, Apple-focused reporter Mark Gurman says that Apple has lost a key executive to a competitor in the form of Rivian, a company that has been making popular electric vehicles for some time. DJ Novotney was reportedly involved in the Apple Car project since the beginning and was a vice president of hardware engineering before informing colleagues of his decision to leave the company this past Friday. Novotney will reportedly take over as senior vice president of vehicle programs at Rivian.

Gurman reports that Novotney worked at Apple for almost 25 years before his decision to leave and that he was instrumental in the development of a number of Apple's most iconic products including the iPod and iPhone. He was also chosen to lead the development of the iPad, too. It's also reported that he was part of the Apple Watch launch which speaks to how integral he has been in a number of huge launches for Apple. It's easy to see why he would have been chosen to be involved in the Apple Car project, but that involvement will now come to an end.

Continue reading: The Apple Car project suffers another setback as key executive leaves for Rivian (full post)