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If I was buying a Tesla (or a Polestar for that matter) and needed to trade, I would sell my car to CarMax, Autonation, KBB etc separately. Or even Carvana, which would give you less than the others I mentioned, but they are hassle free. You get their offer, and unless you completely lied about the cars condition, they come pick it up and hand you a check
Oct 24 (Reuters) - California's auto regulator said on Tuesday it has suspended General Motors' Cruise autonomous vehicle deployment and driverless testing permits, effective immediately, citing "an unreasonable risk to public safety."
Cruise issued a statement saying it "will be pausing operations of our driverless AVs in San Francisco."
Cruise said the California Department of Motor Vehicles reviewed an incident on Oct. 2, when one of its self-driving vehicles was putting on the brakes but did not avoid striking a pedestrian who had previously been struck by a hit-and-run driver.
Cruise said that in that incident, "a human hit and run driver tragically struck and propelled the pedestrian into the path of the AV" which put on the brakes but still hit the pedestrian.
"When the AV tried to pull over, it continued before coming to a final stop, pulling the pedestrian forward," the company said.
"Our teams are currently doing an analysis to identify potential enhancements to the AV’s response to this kind of extremely rare event," it added.
The suspension is a major setback to GM's self-driving technology unit. The automaker reported on Tuesday that it lost $723 million on Cruise during the third quarter.
Tesla could be next in fact I'm surprised regulators have not shut down FSD already. Note: I think this is EV related since autonomous vehicles are almost always BEV.
Tesla could be next in fact I'm surprised regulators have not shut down FSD already. Note: I think this is EV related since autonomous vehicles are almost always BEV.
The Robo taxis have had a few accidents, as well as incidents where they unnecessarily held up traffic by getting confused. I'm not sure why the city of SF even allowed them. I would feel the same about cars with FSD and no driver...as much as it has potential, it's not ready yet
Electrify America To Replace 600 Chargers In California, Invest $172 Million
EV charging stations, like any machines or devices, require replacement and maintenance over time
Electrify America has announced plans to upgrade 600 chargers across 130 cities in California, as per its latest “Cycle 4” regional investment plan. The network's reputation isn't really exemplary when it comes to charging experience – it ranked below the Tesla Supercharger, Charge Point, and EVgo in JD Power’s 2023 Customer Satisfaction Index, and has acknowledged the need for improvement in its latest announcement.
EV charging stations, like any machines or devices, require replacement and maintenance for a few simple reasons like degradation from regular use, safety concerns, possible environmental damage when they’re located outdoors, and more importantly, to keep up with technological advancements.
Electrify America installed the first tranche of its charging stations back in 2018, during what the company calls Cycle 1 and Cycle 2 of its expansion plans. Those chargers have now approached the end of their useful life in 2023. Electrify America mentioned “wear and tear” on the hardware, which negatively impacted charger reliability and charging experience for EV owners.
America will continue addressing this issue as it has in the past by investing approximately $172 million in charging infrastructure in California. $80M has been allocated for the upgrades and maintenance of existing sites, and $92M for expansion. Before replacing the chargers, it will examine factors such as the age of the charger, utilization rates, uptime performance, number and type of work orders, customer sentiment, location on key travel routes, parts availability, and serviceability.
It also mentioned a “custom redesign” of Electrify America’s Gen 4 chargers with an improved human-machine interface (HMI) screen, 18-foot cables, and enhanced remote diagnostic abilities. The company didn’t mention the completion timeline for the replacement of the older chargers, and it’s unclear if all replacements will entail Gen 4 hardware. It’s also unclear what the roadmap is for replacing chargers across the US. InsideEVs has reached out to Electrify America for additional details.
After completing the Cycle 4 upgrades, Electrify America will have invested $800 million in California over 10 years. As for its nationwide network, the company had 800 stations in 2022, which dispensed 173 gigawatt hours of electricity. It claims to have saved over 21.5 million gallons of gasoline.
It was bound to fail before it even got off the ground. My prediction is the only car companies that will be successful at producing and selling EV's will be
Tesla
Hyundai
Polestar
BMW
Mercedes
Rivian
Nissan (possibly)
Toyota says EVs don’t make sense in Australia, but Tesla’s Model Y is proving them wrong
Speaking at the global reveal of the updated 2024 bZ4X, a Toyota executive claimed electric vehicles don’t make sense in countries like Australia. Meanwhile, as the bestselling EV in the region, Tesla’s Model Y is proving that idea wrong.
“Right now, hybrid-electric vehicles are a better fit than BEVs for most consumers,” the Toyota Australia VP of sales, marketing, and franchise operations, Sean Hanley, told journalists Wednesday (via Car Sales).
Like many Toyota executives, Hanley continues pushing hybrid technology, where the company excels. “BEVs make sense right now in places like Norway where most energy is renewable, and incomes are high,” He added, “But Australia is not Europe.”
The comments come as Australia’s EV market is beginning to heat up. Toyota has long led Australia’s hybrid market, with nearly 90% of hybrid sales in the region last year.
Although Australia was late to the EV party, with electric models accounting for only 3.8% of overall car sales last year, the country is turning it around this year.
EV sales are up 80% in 2023, with over 65,000 Aussie drivers taking an electric car home. Thanks to new affordable EVs from China like BYD’s Atto 3, electric cars now account for 7.3% of new vehicle sales in Australia.
Toyota’s skepticism over EVs disproved by Tesla
Despite Hanley’s comments, electric vehicles continue gaining momentum in the country. In fact, Tesla’s Model Y is the bestselling SUV (gas or electric) through September.
The Model Y has already surpassed Toyota’s RAV4, Ford Ranger, and Mazda CX-5 to become the nation’s top-selling SUV.
Australia’s government introduced a new National Electric Vehicle Strategy in April to boost EV adoption. The strategy has three main goals, including:
Increase the supply of affordable EVs.
Establish the resources, systems, and infrastructure to enable rapid EV uptake.
Encourage increased EV demand.
The strategy seems to be working with several affordable models available on the market and rising demand for zero-emission options.
Despite his enthusiasm for hybrids, Hanley clarified he is “not saying hybrids should be used instead of BEVs everywhere and forever.” He pointed out that Toyota is “accelerating its advances in electric vehicle technology,” including a new development center.
By 2026, Toyota plans to launch a new dedicated EV platform with 10 new electric models. The company will begin selling its first EV, the bZ4X, in Australia in February. Toyota Australia has committed to at least three EVs by 2026.
Electrek’s Take
This is not the first time Hanley has taken a stance against EVs. After presenting the new EV strategy, Toyota’s sales boss in the country said the company would “lobby for a standard with a generous time frame that will cut pollution without cutting vehicle options.”
It sounds like Toyota wants its hybrids to stick around a while longer. Hanley highlighted that in most Australian states (and other countries like China), power generation is still dependent on fossil fuels.
However, Australia is quickly moving toward a cleaner future. The country plans to increase the share of renewable energy to 82% by 2030, up from around 32% last year.
Australia’s installed solar power generation capacity has increased by over 200% since 2018, ranking sixth globally last year as one of the fastest-growing renewable energy producers. So, if Australia is moving forward, why is Toyota still trying to hold them back?
