Free Republic

EV owners could soon pay a $130 annual federal fee to help fund roads, since electric vehicle drivers don't pay federal gasoline taxes. Owning an electric vehicle may soon cost more. A transportation bill making its way through Congress would require EV owners to pay a new annual federal fee starting at $130. The fee could eventually rise to $150, while plug-in hybrid owners would pay $35. Supporters say the fee would help fund road projects because EV drivers don't pay federal gasoline taxes. The fees could take effect as soon as December if approved by Congress. It is part...

Some older BMW models have an electrical issue, including sedans, crossovers, coupes, convertibles, and SUVs. ... There’s a potentially severe issue with several BMW models produced for the 2012-2018 model years. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has announced that 720,796 Bimmers are being recalled (NHTSA recall number 26V733) due to a potential short circuit that increases the risk of a fire. Therefore, the NHTSA advises owners to park their vehicles “outside and away from structures” while BMW figures out how to fix the problem. Unfortunately, owners will be stuck with the potential hazard for a while yet, as notification...

DETROIT -- Korean automakers Hyundai and Kia are once again warning drivers of certain models of their vehicles to park outside due an increased fire risk. According to the Associated Press, 571,000 vehicles are being recalled due to a problem with the tow hitch harnesses which can catch fire when the car is parked or when it’s being driven. According to safety regulators, the fire risk stems from water which can get into a circuit board on the hitches, which can then cause short circuit even if the ignitions are off. Until repairs can be made, the automakers say owners...

Perfect driving records mean little as auto insurers try to squeeze monthly premiums to cover terrifying hidden repair costs and illegal uninsured drivers .... If you have opened a renewal notice recently, you have probably asked yourself: why is my car insurance so high? You have not had a speeding ticket in a decade, your driveway is completely free of fender benders, and your daily commute has not changed. Yet, somehow, the monthly premium automatically pulled from your checking account looks like it belongs to a reckless teenager driving a bright red sports car. You are certainly not alone in...

Hayward looks to be about two-thirds of the way up the I-880 if you were heading north to Oakland from San Jose. So, yeah - this had some sincere traffic impacts. All lanes of Interstate 880 in Hayward are open Wednesday morning after an electric Tesla semitruck caught fire on the freeway during the Tuesday evening commute. According to the California Highway Patrol, the fire was first reported in the southbound direction of the freeway between Winton Avenue and the Highway 92 interchange around 5:35 p.m. Officials closed the freeway in both directions due to the potential risk of hazardous...

A panel of judges handed a setback this month to New Mexico auto dealers attempting to derail mandates requiring manufacturers to deliver more electric vehicles to the state. The ruling by a three-judge panel of the New Mexico Court of Appeals means that the state remains on track to steadily increase the share of zero- and low-emission vehicles in new car showrooms between now and 2032. For vehicle year 2027, which starts this year, the state mandate requires that electric vehicles comprise 43% of new passenger cars and light-duty trucks delivered to New Mexico. That requirement is set to increase...

Prime Minister Mark Carney of Canada announced on Thursday a sweeping plan to offer billions of dollars in incentives and tax breaks for auto industry investment designed to help turn Canada into a global leader in electric vehicles.The new policies, Mr. Carney said, were meant to transform Canada’s economy and make it less reliant on a single trade partner after President Trump’s economic assaults and threats on Canada’s sovereignty have frayed relations between the two nations.“We must take care of ourselves,’’ Mr. Carney told reporters at an auto parts factory in Ontario. “We cannot control what others do.’’Mr. Trump has...

Over the past couple of years, I have had several posts here expressing skepticism about whether electric vehicles (EVs) were really the wave of the future. Most recently, I had a post on December 17 noting the rapid decline of EV sales in the U.S. during the fourth quarter of 2025, following the expiration of certain tax credits on September 30. Overall, my take has been that the EV market has been propped up by government subsidies and benefits and, like all businesses dependent on government handouts, would likely shrink drastically (if not completely disappear) without them. For a different...

The next generation of Fords could be powered in part by high-voltage batteries made by BYD, with the US and Chinese car giants reportedly in talks for a supply deal. According to the Wall Street Journal, insiders claim Ford is discussing with BYD the prospect of buying batteries for its hybrid models, though a formal deal is yet to be reached. The report alleges the batteries would be used on Ford products not made in the US – likely due to high tariffs on Chinese products – and instead power hybrids made in other Ford factories around the world. It...

Orlando Speed World Dragway, an NHRA member track, has decided to ban fully electric vehicles from competition, including test and tune days. The Dragway says they’re making this decision for safety reasons. After reviewing emergency response procedures for its track, for specific full electric vehicles the venue decided the risks fully outweighed the rewards. The mid-Florida track enumerated its rationale for banning full electric vehicles, with the ban taking effect immediately, applying solely to full electric vehicles but allowing hybrid vehicles to continue to compete, as well as to test & tune. The risks include the following: The battery may...

A Kentucky congressman responded to Andy Beshear Tuesday, days after Kentucky's governor blamed him for sweeping layoffs at an electric vehicle battery plant in his district. BlueOval SK said roughly 1,500 people at its Glendale plant would be laid off as Ford takes sole ownership of the facility after a partnership with a South Korean company fell through. Last week Beshear said U.S. Rep. Brett Guthrie, a Republican who represents Kentucky’s second congressional district, was partially to blame for any job losses due to his support for President Donald Trump’s “Big, Beautiful Bill." Beshear said Guthrie made no changes to...

FRANKFORT, Ky. (KT) – Gov. Andy Beshear took to social media on Friday to respond to news reports that production at one of two electric vehicle (EV) battery plants planned for Hardin County has been delayed because of concerns about demand. The plants are being built by BlueOval SK, a joint venture between Ford Motor Co. and South Korean partner SK Innovation. “First, the full project is still on. Construction is continuing on both of those battery plants,” said Beshear in a video posted on social media. “The two biggest battery plants on planet Earth and all of the hundreds...

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WDRB) -- All 1,600 employees of the brand new electric vehicle battery plant in Kentucky will be laid off before Ford converts it to manufacture batteries for data centers and other utilities. Ford will turn the Glendale factory into a battery-storage business for customers such as utilities, wind- and solar-power developers, and massive data centers that train artificial intelligence, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday. And Ford announced Monday it plans to begin shipping the battery energy storage systems from its Kentucky and Michigan plants in Late 2027, a shift to "higher-return opportunities." In total, the company said...

Americans were already feeling uneasy about purchasing an electric vehicle. Then the generous tax subsidies ended. Sales of EVs plummeted by nearly one-third in October after President Trump and Republicans killed the $7,500 federal tax credit. The end of EV subsidies follows a trio of regulatory changes that eliminate mandates on automakers to produce electric vehicles and are poised to push the decline in EV sales even further. “The policy reversal on EVs that has occurred this year is a remarkable return to sanity after decades of government actions to force EV production,” said Brent Bennett, a policy director at...

Uber driver Rosie Ramirez’s electric vehicle can go some 260 miles at full charge, which should be plenty on Oahu. But that mileage is quickly eaten up as Ramirez ferries passengers around the island, and she’s learned the hard way that she can’t count on EV chargers to be available for a top off. Ramirez said she starts planning where to charge once the range is down to about half, and even then she has to be prepared for chargers to be out of commission or for other drivers to have beaten her there. “It’s very frustrating,” she said last...

Bad news for electric vehicle owners in California. The California DMV is reminding drivers that federal regulations authorizing Clean Air Vehicle decals, which allowed qualifying cars to use carpool lanes with a single occupant or pay reduced toll rates in some areas, will expire on Sept. 30. The decals were valid for up to four years, but the federal government’s decision to end the program means all decals will become invalid on Oct. 1, regardless of when they were issued.

he Japanese automaker posted a nearly $1.6 billion operating profit loss, as it writes off losses from its EV efforts and tariffs. The ‘Power of Dreams’ brand is taking a massive loss Japanese automotive giant Honda is rethinking its strategy regarding electric vehicles as it absorbed red-ink losses stemming from their development and the impact of U.S. tariffs. In the first quarter of its 2025-2026 fiscal year (April 1 to June 30, 2025), Honda took a one-time charge of ¥113.4 billion (~$780 million) related to its EV-related troubles. In total, the impact of the EV charge and its exposure to...

Matson surprised customers this week with an announcement that, effective immediately, it would suspend transporting battery-powered electric or plug-in hybrid electric vehicles due to the hazardous material classification of their lithium-ion batteries. The ability to ship cars between the mainland of the United States, Hawaii, Guam, and Alaska was an important service both for individuals and car dealers. In a letter sent to customers, the company writes, “Due to increasing concern for the safety of transporting vehicles powered by large lithium-ion batteries, Matson is suspending acceptance of used or new electric vehicles (EVs) and plug-in hybrid vehicles for transport aboard...

A vehicle carrier transporting hundreds of Chinese electric vehicles (EV) sank in the Pacific Ocean after catching fire, fueling renewed concerns about the hazard associated with EV batteries, The Wall Street Journal reported Tuesday. The Morning Midas was carrying approximately 3,000 cars, including around 800 EVs, most of which were manufactured in China, according to the WSJ. While the exact cause of the fire is still under investigation, lithium-ion batteries used in many EVs are known to be highly flammable, and have been linked to similar maritime incidents in the past. The ship had been drifting in the ocean after...

The Supreme Court sided Friday with oil companies seeking to challenge California’s electric vehicle regulations. In a 7-2 ruling, the court allowed energy producers to continue their lawsuit challenging the Environmental Protection Agency’s decision to approve California regulations that require manufacturing more electric vehicles. “The government generally may not target a business or industry through stringent and allegedly unlawful regulation, and then evade the resulting lawsuits by claiming that the targets of its regulation should be locked out of court as unaffected bystanders,” Justice Brett Kavanaugh wrote in the majority opinion. “In light of this Court’s precedents and the evidence...