Electric Vehicles & Cars - Page 2

Tesla has issued a public recall of nearly 400,000 Tesla vehicles over failing power-assisted steering systems, according to a new statement by the U.S National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

A new safety recall report posted to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration details Tesla is voluntarily recalling precisely 376,241 vehicles across the US, which includes Model 3 and Model Y vehicles that were manufactured between Feb. 28, 2023, and October 11, 2023. Additionally, the vehicles were equipped with an older software release.

According to the document, the printed circuit boards (PCBs) within the affected vehicles could become overstressed, resulting in the power-assist steering failing and the driver having to exert more force to turn the wheel, thus increasing the risk of a collision. Reports indicate Tesla has informed the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration that as a remedy, it has offered an over-the-air software update and that it isn't aware of any crashes as a result of the issue.

The Boring Company has just announced its exciting new Dubai Loop, to build a 17-kilometer pilot Loop transportation system as the initial phase of the project.

The initial Dubai Loop pilot will feature 11 stations and 17 kilometers (10.5 miles) of tunnels, transporting over 20,000 passengers per hour, with The Boring Company's goal to ultimately expand into the Dubai Loop: a next-generation underground transportation system throughout the Emirate of Dubai.

Elon Musk's company explained on its website: "This collaboration will explore the use of sustainable, innovative technologies to safely and efficiently transport passengers via The Boring Company's proven Loop system, which has already transported over two million passengers across Las Vegas, USA since 2021. Vegas Loop is currently under active development and has been entitled for 104 stations and 110 kilometers of tunnel, eventually transporting over 90,000 passengers per hour throughout the system".

Sir Lanka's energy minister confirmed to the press the nation's power grid was brought down after a monkey came into contact with the grid transformer, resulting in 22 million people being left in temperatures above 86 degrees (30C).

The nationwide power outage was traced back to a power station located south of the capital, Colombo, and according to energy minister Kumara Jayakody, a monkey interacted with the grid transforming, resulting in an imbalance in the power system and the eventual outage. Sri Lankan media and social media users were very quick to start poking fun at the situation, with some pointing out that even just one monkey can cause total chaos across a nation. On a more serious note, some users pointed out the flimsiness of the grid if it can be brought down by one explorative monkey.

Jamila Husain, editor-in-chief of local newspaper the Daily Mirror, wrote: "Sri Lanka's national grid is so outdated that even a monkey can cause an island-wide blackout." How did this happen? According to the Power and Energy Ministry, a group of monkeys made their way into the Pandura Power Station and a fight between the monkey's broke out. During the brawl one of the monkey's hit the transmission line, resulting in an immediate imbalance in the power grid and the outage.

Tesla has reported Q4 2024 results pulling in $25.7 billion in revenue for the three-month period, delivering over 495,000 cars, with Elon Musk saying this will be the "biggest year in Tesla's history".

In a new post on X, the official Tesla account said that the company expects Model Y to become the world's best-selling car of any kind for the 2nd year in a row. Not only that, but it's become even better with the introduction of its new Model Y launching in all markets, with Tesla promising production will begin ramping at all factories with deliveries following all regions later in Q1 2025.

Tesla says that its Semi factory construction continues, with the first Semi truck builds scheduled for the end of 2025, ramping up in early 2026. Cybercab lines are being prepared at Giga Texas with volume production planned for 2026, an exciting glimpse into the future.

Tesla has announced that its vehicles are now autonomously driving from the factory floor, to loading bays, without any humans needed in the process.

The company posted to its Tesla AI account on X, showing it has automated the process that saves dozens of employees, and thousands of hours of time per year. Tesla is using its FSD (Full Self Driving) technology in unsupervised mode inside of their software to drive this (no pun intended).

In the video that Tesla shared, you can see the electric vehicles navigating intersections on their own, finding its way to an available bay, and parking itself. This is achieved by using the AI hardware inside of each Tesla car, as well as the computer vision system, also inside of every EV it makes.

Tesla has just unveiled its new Model Y for 2025 with maximum efficiency, smoother rides, and an all-new interior. Check it out:

The new Tesla Model Y features a redesigned exterior with improved aerodynamics that unlocks improved range, performance, and longevity. The company has updated the wheels on the new Model Y, as well as the tires and brakes, with retuned suspension for a smoother ride in the refreshed 2025 Model Y. Tesla is using a single, cross-car lamp that the company says is the first indirect reflective taillight of its kind in the world, and that's just on the outside.

On the inside, we've got new ambient interior lighting, refined materials, and ventilated first-row seats. In the rear, we've got power-folding second-row seats, as well as a Bluetooth-compatible 8-inch touchscreen in the back. Tesla's new Model Y has a quieter cabin, thanks to acoustic glass all around the vehicle.

A lithium-ion battery facility located in California has caught fire, sparking fear from surrounding residents after the state declared on Friday.

The battery facility, one of several located at the former Moss Landing Power Plant, and is owned and operated by Vistra Energy. Notably, the facility is described as the largest of its kind in the world, with its total capacity reaching a stunning 750 MW / 3,000 MWh. The cause of the fire is currently unknown, but according to county officials cited in reports, approximately 75% of the facility has been burned down. For those that don't know, lithium-ion battery fires are extremely difficult to put out due to a chain reaction called "thermal runaway."

Thermal runaway occurs when a battery cell overheats, causing a fire, which causes neighboring battery cells to increase in temperature and catch fire. This process can result in a lasting fire that can even go out and reignite. How can it be stopped? Firefighters have begun dealing with more lithium-ion battery fires since the rise of electric vehicles, and in the instances of EVs catching fire, emergency responders have had to douse burning vehicles for approximately 90 minutes, sometimes wasting as much as 4,500 gallons of water.

Goldman Sachs has just updated its views on Tesla for its 2027 estimates, saying that it assumes Tesla's robotaxi business will "begin commercial operations" in 2H 2026, reaching around $115 million in revenue in 2027.

The analyst firm expects to see Tesla use remote assistance and geofencing to launch its robotaxi service, adding that "directionally similar to the approaches used by robotaxis on the road currently from competitors". Goldman Sachs analyst Mark Delaney says that the company believes the use of remote assistance, and a narrow geographic environment "could help to improve technical performance compared to Tesla's FSD service on consumer vehicles, although limit the rate of scaling for at least the next few years".

Elon Musk recently came out and said that Tesla will be 100x safer than human drivers by 2025, adding that they "just won't crash". Elon also said that Tesla is capable of driving anywhere, "even an alien planet". You can read more about those stories and his comments below:

Elon Musk says that Tesla will be 100x safer than human drivers... this year... the company feels confident that it'll be 10x safer than a human driver, and then 100x safer, until we get to the point where they "really just won't crash".

During the interview, SpaceX, Tesla, and X boss Elon Musk said: "In about three months, basically Q2 of this year, we feel confident of passing, having a probability of an accident that is better than the average experienced driver. And then we'll keep going from there. I think it's going to be 10 times safer than a human driver. And then 100 times safer - like, to the point where it really just won't crash. That's happening this year with Tesla".

Tesla's fleet of vehicles are powered with AI, with Elon saying that AI will be able to do everything -- so what will humans do? He replied, saying: "AI will do anything you want and even suggest things you never even thought of. So, I mean, AI really within the next few years will be able to do any cognitive task. It obviously begs the question, what are we all going to do?"

We caught our first glimpses of the Afeela exactly a year ago at CES 2024. With the Afeela still in its infancy, Sony took to the stage, highlighting the vehicle's design, entertainment capabilities, and, of course - AI integration features. 

The division of labor between the two brands was simple: Honda built the architecture, and Sony took care of the tech. Fast forward a year to CES 2025, and we've taken a closer look at the technical features in Sony's answer to Tesla. What's among them is impressive -  AI-enhanced self driving, screens that span the entire dashboard, Sony's signature noise-cancelling technology, a 'media bar' allowing you to display messages on the front bumper.

But the most important of all: is being able to play Baldur's Gate 3 on your commute through your on-board PlayStation 5. Sony did not specify exactly how, and where the console is accessed. However, one would assume it's through one of the many large screens located on the interior.