Free Republic

If you live in Northern California, you know this already. In a few years, driverless cars will be everywhere. You will likely use them if you travel to the city. If you live in a town of any substantial size, you or someone you know will likely use them.The numbers on the increase where they are currently permitted are simply amazing. In less than a year, the Google company called Waymo has increased its weekly ride volume from 10,000 in August 2023 to more than 250,000 today. It has passed 10 million successful trips. These cars are everywhere on the...

President Donald Trump plans to sign a trio of resolutions Thursday to revoke California’s nation-leading vehicle emissions standards. Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.), author of a resolution to nix the state’s electric vehicle sales mandate via the Congressional Review Act, and Rep. Kevin Kiley (R-Calif.) confirmed that the White House has scheduled the signings at 11 a.m. on Thursday. Trump’s signature will finalize his administration’s monthslong effort to thwart California’s authority to set stricter electrification rules for passenger vehicles and commercial trucks, along with higher standards for heavy-duty diesel engines. Trump’s EPA revoked an earlier version of California’s vehicle emissions...

Are you a child of the 1980s or 1990s? Your ideal new/old Mustang is here. The so-called "Fox body" Ford Mustangs, the third-generation cars built from 1979 through 1993, are enjoying a sort of nostalgia-driven renaissance in interest these days. Unsurprisingly, this is because those who were young when the Fox bodies were on sale are now older, maybe with some extra cash and spare garage space to start collecting these Mustangs off-lawn, so to speak. How "in" are Fox bodies these days? Ford is even getting in on the action with a new FX package that celebrates the Mustang...

These days, it seems like every automaker and its rivals have some sort of electric car out on the market. Years ago, Elon Musk and Tesla were one of only a handful of manufacturers on the block producing electric vehicles, but today’s EVs come from a smattering of brands that include familiar mainstream names like Ford, Chevrolet, and even Hyundai and Kia. However, while there are more choices in the American EV market than ever before, a new customer survey conducted by the American Automobile Association reveals that Americans may not be as interested in electric cars as they think....

The US States Planning to Ban Sales of Gas-Powered Cars 8 US States are currently planning on banning the sale of Gas-powered vehicles in the near future. Here are the States that are planning on doing so and by when, as well as if this legislation is likely to come into effect.

Ahead of Prime Video's first weekend streaming a NASCAR Cup Series race, the first half a four-part documentary on the late, great Dale Earnhardt was released. The show immediately shot to No. 1 among trending shows on the streaming service, and remains inside the top five a full week later as the final two parts were released.

General Motors is investing $888 million in its Tonawanda Propulsion plant in Buffalo, New York, "to support the production of the sixth generation of GM’s V-8 engines," the automaker announced Tuesday. The investment is a shift from a previously announced $300 million commitment to make electric-vehicle drive units at the plant, as the V-8 engines are used in GM's full-sized trucks and SUVs. GM says the newer engines will provide drivers better fuel economy and reduce emissions by utilizing "new combustion and thermal management innovations." "Our significant investments in GM’s Tonawanda Propulsion plant show our commitment to strengthening American manufacturing...

Sales of electric vehicles are on the rise in the United States, but the road ahead for charging infrastructure looks a whole lot bumpier. Despite growing interest in EVs, the pace of building high-speed chargers isn’t just lagging, it’s actively falling behind. Add in looming policy shifts under the Trump administration, and the gap between supply and demand could widen even further. It’s understood that the number of high-speed EV chargers being installed across the US dropped more than 21% through the first quarter compared to last year. With this in mind, BloombergNEF has cut its expectations for EV installations...

The GOP-led Senate voted Thursday to take away California’s ability to set its own tailpipe emissions standards, effectively killing the country’s biggest driver of EV investment. The vote was 51-44. The move nullifies a measure, enacted by the state in 2022 and later adopted by 11 other states, banning the sale of new gasoline-powered cars by 2035. The House already passed the same resolution. Now it heads to President Trump for his signature. U.S. carmakers and auto dealers argued that keeping in place the waiver—which permits California to set stricter emissions rules than the federal government—could cripple the industry by...

WASHINGTON, May 19 (Reuters) - The U.S. Transportation Department is expected to declare that fuel economy rules issued under then President Joe Biden exceeded the government's legal authority by including electric vehicles in setting the rules, automakers said on Monday. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said the department's National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Friday submitted its interpretive rule, "Resetting the Corporate Average Fuel Economy Program" to the White House for review. He said in a statement the prior administration had "illegally used CAFE standards as a backdoor electric vehicle mandate – driving the price of cars up."

Ford has announced a recall of over 250,000 vehicles over a potential issue that could make their brakes defective. Ford announced in a filing to the National Highway Traffic Administration that it would be recalling 273,800 Expedition and Lincoln Navigator SUVs due to braking issues. The report stated, “SUVs’ front brake lines “may be in contact with the engine air cleaner outlet pipe,” causing possible brake defects. “A brake line leak may cause longer-than-expected brake pedal travel and result in a reduction in the rate of deceleration,” added Ford. Check out what Fox Business reported: Ford is recalling 273,800 Expedition...

Vermont Governor Phil Scott paused the state’s electric vehicle sales requirements for passenger cars and medium and heavy-duty trucks on Tuesday, amid broader concerns about the feasibility of zero-emission vehicle rules pioneered by California. Vermont is one of 11 states including New York, Maryland and Massachusetts that have adopted California’s zero-emission vehicle rules, which seek to end the sale of gasoline-only vehicles by 2035. California’s rules require 35% of light-duty vehicles in the 2026 model year to be zero-emission models. Scott, a Republican, cited warnings from automakers that they could limit supply of gas-powered vehicles to dealers in the state...

The Environmental Protection Agency is rolling back fuel economy incentives for start-stop technology, a system that automatically shuts off a car’s engine when stopped at a red light or in traffic. EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin announced the decision, calling the feature a “climate participation trophy” that drivers overwhelmingly dislike. The move marks a significant shift in federal policy, reversing regulations that encouraged automakers to include the system in new vehicles. Start-stop technology was introduced as part of Obama-era emissions rules, designed to reduce fuel consumption and lower carbon emissions. The system became widespread, with 65 percent of new cars featuring...

(Gray News) - A man was sentenced for his role in transporting thousands of stolen catalytic converters across state lines, laundering money and other related crimes. Tou Sue Vang, 33, was sentenced to 12 years in prison, according to Acting U.S. Attorney Michele Bechwith. According to court documents, Tou Sue Vang, along with his brother Andrew Vang and mother Monica Moua, purchased stolen catalytic converters from thieves in California and sold them to a buyer in New Jersey for more than $38 million. The buyer then sold the converters and the precious metals to a metal refinery for more than...

This is the most idiotic government regulation of the last decade (and that's saying something). The technology shuts off the engine every time the vehicle stops in traffic or at a red light/stop sign. The average driver might save $1,000 over a decade of using the vehicle if they live in an urban area with frequent stops, but Enhanced Flooded Batteries and heavy-duty starters also cost more, meaning maintenance swallows up much or all of their savings. (They also have to put up with the psychological torture of having their car turn off and on every five seconds.) Here's YouTuber...

Škoda is a well-known carmaker, but many may be unaware of the brand’s two-wheeled roots. The 130-year-old Czech company started out as a bicycle and motorcycle maker – and it looks like it might just get back to that. Škoda has just unveiled a sparkly new concept, called the Slavia B, reviving one of its first two-wheeled models from 1899 with a futuristic twist. It's part of the company's "Modern Solid" design research initiative, which aims to demonstrate how traditional designs could be modernized for contemporary times. Created by Škoda’s in-house external designer, Frenchman Romain Bucaille, the cafe racer concept...

Ask someone who drives a gasoline-powered car why they wouldn't want to get an electric one, and you're almost certain to hear this answer: they take way too long to charge. They're not even entirely wrong. Even though DC fast charging times are getting shorter and shorter for modern electric vehicles, they can seem totally unacceptable for anyone who's used to fueling a gas-powered car in a matter of minutes—and that still describes most people in this country. To counter this, the Chinese carmaking giant BYD, which recently surpassed Tesla in EV sales, came up with an idea so ambitious...

The second largest carmaker in the world will be relocating the manufacturing of its luxury brand to the United States after President Donald Trump has been encouraging car companies to do business in the US. Volkswagen Group, which is the second largest car manufacturer in the world, will be joining a number of other car manufacturers in moving production to the United States for the German automaker's luxury brand, Audi, per the Daily Mail. A spokesman for the company told the outlet, "We want to localize more strongly in the USA. To this end, we are currently examining various scenarios....

Comedian says it would benefit auto enthusiasts, while environmentalists say it would increase air pollutionShould old cars get a break from California’s smog check laws? Former Tonight Show host and avid car collector Jay Leno thinks so. He’s thrown his support behind a bill in the state legislature that would exempt vehicles 35 years or older from the state’s requirement to pass a smog check test that most other California vehicles face every two years. “I know there’s nothing more annoying than Hollywood people involved in politics,” Leno said at a rally at the state Capitol last month. “But this...

In today’s environment, buying a new car has become a stretch for many households - fueling demand in the used-car market. But not all used vehicles are created equal, and reliability plays a major role in long-term ownership costs.For buyers looking to avoid expensive repairs down the road, brand reputation is more important than ever.In this graphic, Visual Capitalist's Marcus Lu ranked the best used-car brands of 2025, using data from Consumer Reports.Data & MethodologyTo come up with these reliability scores, Consumer Reports asked its members to report how many problems they’ve had with their vehicles over the past 12...