Free Republic

After debuting the Chevrolet Spark EV in 2012, the tiny electric tyke most known for a snazzy Lime color option went on sale four just three years, from 2013 to 2016. In that time, GM sold roughly 7,400 units, mostly in states with zero emissions vehicle mandates like California, Oregon, and Maryland. The grudging, compliance car aspect, old battery chemistry, tiny sales total explain why EV-Resource reports that GM has discontinued Spark EV battery packs. According to some Chevrolet parts departments the outlet contacted, the order system showed the hatchback's battery pack as unavailable as of April 7. An automaker...

The extra length means the load bay area is so expansive that Ikea's biggest flat-pack wardrobe would be no challenge for this particular vehicle. The Dodge RAM TRX it uses as a donor machine isn't exactly a shrinking violet itself, with the eight-cylinder powerplant in the tuned four-wheel SUV producing 702bhp. However, the addition of a 2.65-litre supercharger, high-flow fuel injectors and upgraded induction system, Hennessey has wrangled and extra 300bhp out of the V8 engine. The Texas-based car maker already sells a four-wheel Mammoth 1000 TRX with the same engine specification, which is claimed to be capable of accelerating...

You can always count on government to make things more expensive when they claim they want to help make things more affordable. For example, President Biden and his green commandos are helping drive critical electric battery component LITHIUM through the roof! Lithium hydroxide futures prices are through the roof making already expensive electric cars even MORE expensive. So much for making electric cars affordable! Of course, The Federal government will now have to subsidize GM and Ford and increase Federal tax credits to encourage consumers to purchase outrageously expensive electric cars. Thanks Joe for issuing your enactment of the Defense...

New Toyota Vehicle Inventory - Toyota Models Near Milwaukee, WI

Someone converted a vintage commercial truck into a one-of-a-kind pickup. Sometimes when a commercial truck gets retired from service, someone comes around and converts it into a pickup. The result is often garish, with feet of ground clearance and a bed that doesn’t fit the cab’s design. For a time, this niche was just popular enough that even commercial truck manufacturers joined in on the madness. But despite its handsome looks, this 1952 Ford F-7 Big Job never left the factory looking as good as it does now. Converting a commercial truck into a pickup is a creative way to...

DETROIT – General Motors will idle nearly all its assembly plants in North America starting Monday as the COVID-19 pandemic affects production of semiconductor chips overseas. The industry already has been experiencing a global shortage of the chips, used in a variety of car parts, since early this year. The chips are also used in small electronics and as more workers and children stayed home from work and school last year during the pandemic, demand for personal electronics, such as laptops, rose and created a shortage of chips.

President Joe Biden will allow E15 ethanol-blended gas to be sold throughout the US this summer, the White House said Tuesday, as part of measures to tackle soaring fuel prices in the wake of Russia's invasion of Ukraine. E15 gasoline, which is gasoline blended with 15% ethanol, is banned in most of the US during the summer because of air pollution concerns. But the White House said that the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is planning to issue a national emergency waiver which would allow E15 to be sold between June 1 and September 15.

San Francisco Police officers were left baffled recently when they pulled over a self-driving taxi and it took off on them. In a video posted earlier this month that went viral over the weekend, an autonomous Cruise driverless car can be seen being pulled over by police officers during a nighttime stop. The officer reportedly approached the vehicle because its headlights were off. He attempted to open the driver's door, evidently shocked that there wasn't anyone inside the car. When he walks back to the police car, the Cruise car drives off further down the road and it is once...

Downside of Electric VehiclesAn electric vehicle requires six times the mineral inputs of a comparable internal combustion engine vehicle, according to the International Energy Agency.At one time, “Saving the Environment” and “Fighting Climate Change” were synonymous. That is no longer true. The quest for Clean Energy through electric vehicles (EVs) epitomizes “the end justifies the means.”According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), an electric vehicle requires six times the mineral inputs of a comparable internal combustion engine vehicle (ICE). EV batteries are very heavy and are made with some exotic, expensive, toxic, and flammable materials.The primary metals in EV batteries...

Two female police dispatchers were smoking cigarettes while standing on the sidewalk outside the police department on Wednesday, Hamlin Police Chief Bobby Evans said. CCTV footage shows that moments after the women head back inside, a Tesla speeds onto the sidewalk and crashes alongside the building. The driver, who was not immediately identified, hit the corner of the city hall building and knocked down the awning pillars of five store fronts, Evans said.

Only around 18% of American drivers can handle a manual transmission, according to U.S. News and World Report. You know: the clutch pedal and the stick shift—three on the tree, four on the floor or, I don’t know, five to drive maybe. Different gears, manually engaged. Turns out that “basically” isn’t the same as “actually.” When my father’s Oldsmobile died this month, my family replaced it as the backup car with a used Chevy. Since I’m the backup driver, I climbed in, stepped on the clutch, started the car, stepped off the clutch. The engine promptly stalled. Only by grinding...

Nissan is working with NASA on a new type of battery for electric vehicles that promises to charge quicker and be lighter yet safe, the Japanese automaker said Friday. The all-solid-state battery will replace the lithium-ion battery now in use for a 2028 product launch and a pilot plant launch in 2024, according to Nissan. The all-solid-state battery is stable enough to be used in pacemakers. When finished, it will be about half the size of the current battery and fully charge in 15 minutes, instead of a few hours. The collaboration with the U.S. space program, as well as...

A great day in American History as Elon Musk appears at the opening of his giga factory in Texas. His historic speech is Here

...for 14 hours, 14 minutes and 11 seconds, since setting off at sunset from Austin, Texas, in a race to Sin City. Their mode of transport was a former prop car they were told was used on the set of “The Walking Dead.” Top speed, when they could get away with it: 140 miles per hour. “Waldo ran from us,” The rally, called Fool’s Roll because it is held each year near April 1, is a simple concept with a maniacal flourish. ... must drive the roughly 1,200 mile trek, on any route they like, in a vehicle that costs...

I’ve been a car enthusiast for a long time. In my early teens, I would take a bus from my town in the mountains, down to the city. I walked to the avenue where most of the car dealers were. To their chagrin, I would end up with a large collection of their glossy (and for them pricey) auto brochures. I would pore over these with great interest. In those days, a fast car would run the quarter-mile in roughly 13 to 14 seconds and do 0 to 60 between six and eight seconds. Such a vehicle would need a...

DETROIT (AP) — U.S. safety regulators have opened an investigation into electric and hybrid vehicle batteries after five automakers issued recalls due to possible defects that could cause fires or stalling. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration says the probe covers more than 138,000 vehicles with batteries made by LG Energy Solution of South Korea. General Motors, Mercedes-Benz, Hyundai, Stellantis and Volkswagen have issued recalls since February of 2020, most due to internal battery failures that can increase the risk of fires. The investigation is another bug in a growing global rollout of electric vehicles by all automakers to replace...

The Biden administration announced on April 1 it is raising requirements for fuel efficiency, reversing a rollback by the Trump administration.New vehicles sold in the United States will have to travel an average of at least 49 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026 under the new federal rules. The requirement would have been at 32 mpg if going by rules under the Trump administration.Specifically, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said fuel efficiency requirements will increase by 8 percent annually for 2024 and 2025 model years, and 10 percent annually for model year 2026.The Trump administration had in...

New vehicles sold in the United States will have to travel an average of at least 40 miles per gallon of gasoline in 2026, up from about 28 mpg, under new federal rules unveiled Friday. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said its fuel economy requirements will undo a rollback of standards enacted under President Donald Trump. For the current model year, standards enacted under Trump require the fleet of new vehicles to get just under 28 miles per gallon in real-world driving. The new requirements increase gas mileage by 8% per year for 2024 and 2025 year models and...

Many were shocked when back on March 25 NHRA dropped the bomb that Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park is set to close down for good next year. The tracks and other facilities in the park are doomed thanks to an expansion project for Interstate 10 in the Phoenix Metro Area. Since I live in the area and frequent there, this literally hits close to home for me. Just over a year ago, there was a proposed plan to redevelop the increasingly valuable land Wild Horse Pass Motorsports Park now occupies. With real estate prices absolutely rocketing out of control in...

A new study by researchers at the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor and Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh offers insight of how and where automation might replace operator hours in long-haul trucking. The study found that 94 percent of operator hours may be impacted if automated trucking technology improves to operate in all weather conditions across the continental U.S. Currently, automated testing is mainly being tested in the sun belt states due to the more predictable and less harsh weather. Sun belt states include Arkansas, Arizona, California, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, New Mexico, Nevada, Oklahoma,...