Automotive

There's a certain sense of pride that comes with bringing your teenage son into the family business. Teaching him the ropes, passing down knowledge, and preparing him to carry on the family legacy are all part of the dream. Of course ... that dream gets a little messy when the family business allegedly involves stealing millions of dollars worth of Lamborghinis, Rolls-Royces, and Bentleys. According to Houston news outlet KPRC 2, a mother, father, and their teenage son are among five people charged in an elaborate luxury vehicle theft ring involving approximately $3 million worth of high-end cars. The Houston Police Department allege that this crime ring stole 15 vehicles in just three months. And these were not your ordinary Hyundais and Hondas either: “They targeted a lot of Mercedes, a lot of Cadillacs—Cadillac Escalades—Range Rovers, Lamborghinis, Rolls-Royces, Bentleys, pretty much anything that had a very high price point, well over $100,000,” said Sargent Ben LeBlanc of the Houston Police Department’s Auto Theft Division. The sophisticated theft ring didn’t rely on old-fashioned Slim Jims or high-tech key-cloning scanners to gain access to the vehicles.

Kia launched a first-of-its-kind remote car-sharing program in Korea using the PV5 electric van. Kia is using the PV5 EV van for remote car-sharing

Two Massachusetts cranberry bogs that had stopped making financial sense to farm are growing berries again – with solar panels overhead helping pay the bills. The Black Cat project in Plymouth and the Ring Road project in Kingston combine cranberry farming, community solar, and battery storage. Distributed Energy Infrastructure (DEI), which built the projects, says income from leasing the land for solar has made it viable to cultivate the long-idle bogs again.

Subaru has filed a patent application for a hollow camshaft that could help its engines operate more smoothly and with less vibration. Hollow camshafts are often used in racing engines to cut weight. Subaru’s engineers also add a balance weight in the shaft to curb vibration caused by the exterior cams. The patent is based on use in a four-cylinder horizontally opposed engine, Subaru style, but it could also be used with a V or inline engine design. The idea for the first camshaft, it’s said, dates all the way back to Mesopotamia, where it was found in inventor Ismail al-Jazari’s writings from 1206. Now, 800 years later, engineers are still hard at work on improving it. Case in point: Subaru has filed a new patent for a hollow camshaft with a lockable balance weight meant to reduce vibrations. "Restraining the resonation” is how patent lawyers say it, but if this technology makes it to production, we’re sure it’ll be referred to as “smooth.”The lowly camshaft might still hold some engineering secrets. A new patent from Subaru reveals a hollow camshaft concept that could reduce an engine’s operating vibration thanks to a restrained balance weight.

What It IsThe Chrysler Airflow is a compact crossover that is set to arrive for the 2028 model year, bringing the largely dormant American brand into one of the most popular and competitive segments in the United States. While Chrysler had previously shown an Airflow concept in 2022, the automaker’s plans have shifted substantially, and the production Airflow will ditch the concept’s seaglass-smooth styling for a boxier look with pronounced creases across the body. The Airflow will be built on a new flexible platform that will be capable of handling everything from gas powertrains to fully electric setups, although it will likely arrive first with gas and hybrid models. Why It MattersChrysler had been trudging along with a small lineup for over a decade, and with the departure of the 300 sedan after the 2023 model year, Chrysler only had one model left: the Pacifica minivan. The Airflow will bring a much-needed SUV to Chrysler’s arsenal, something the brand hasn’t had since 2009, when the full-size Aspen died.

Last night, we reported on a new –um, we’ll call it a car, sure – that was called Roadster. The Roadster that was shown was, and I want to make this very clear, not a roadster. This is because words have meanings, specific meanings, and while words can evolve and change over time, you can’t just change the meaning of words arbitrarily. That’s not how language works. And the word “roadster” does not mean what that car called a Roadster is. Words matter! I feel like we’re already in danger of losing the fight for the word “coupé” which is – and I want to make this abundantly clear – a two door car. If it has four doors, it’s not a coupé. In much the same way, a roadster has a clear definition: it’s a small, open-topped car.

Credit: Sheilah Villari ProsAlso a battery chargerThree charging levelsConsRelatively largeIt’s right there in the ubiquitous name. Many enthusiasts refer to all trickle chargers as “battery tenders” because the Florida-based company has been around so long and makes such a darn good product. Even a pro like Coe habitually referred to all of these devices as “battery tenders” during our conversation. Having used Battery Tender products for years, I had a sense of what to expect: straightforward, no-nonsense performance and solid reliability. The unit itself is larger than the others in the test; it comes with alligator clips as well as ring terminals, making it easy to hook up to whatever you’re keeping on standby. This wasn’t the flashiest charger in our test, but it was one of the most intuitive. I connected it to the battery in my Lincoln Continental, which hadn’t turned over on its own in a few weeks, and the Battery Tender quietly got to work. There’s an LCD readout that displays the current charge percentage of your battery, which I loved. The unit transitions seamlessly into maintenance mode once a full charge is reached—no need to babysit.

The app you used to use to print driving directions now helps you avoid the surveillance state Remember MapQuest? Maybe not, but it was an invaluable digital co-pilot for millions of American drivers years before Maps was a glint in Google's eye, and it might just have made itself a must-have app for 2027 and beyond. Because MapQuest now shows drivers the location of something sinister they really might want to avoid, something you won't be alerted to on Google Maps or Waze.

Marc Urbano|Car and DriverNo falcon-wing doors here. Those died with the Model X. Marc Urbano|Car and DriverTypical Tesla: a stark interior with a huge touchscreen. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverThe second-row chairs power-fold. Marc Urbano|Car and DriverThe third row is roomier than in the regular Model Y. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverKeep scrolling to see more pictures of the Model Y L interior. Marc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverMarc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverMarc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverMarc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverMarc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverMarc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverMarc Urbano|Car and DriverAdvertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverFor Sale Near YouSee all results for near m6c 1c7

Marc Urbano|Car and DriverCompared to the regular Model Y, the L is longer, taller, and rides on a stretched wheelbase. Marc Urbano|Car and DriverThe Model Y L arrives in Premium trim, with dual motors that make 496 horsepower. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverRange is either 320 or 325 miles, depending on which wheels are fitted. Marc Urbano|Car and DriverThe L uses the Model Y Premium's single-valve adaptive damping, although the suspension is tuned for the L's larger chassis. Advertisement - Continue Reading BelowMarc Urbano|Car and DriverPricing for the Model Y L Premium starts at $63,630.

10/16/26 UPDATE: This review has been updated with instrumented test results. When Tesla announced this April that it was nixing the Model X from its lineup, customers looking for a three-row electric were left wondering about their options. Sure, eventually we might all be carried in the arms of humanoid robots to our destinations, but in the meantime, how are we to get the kids to lacrosse? There is an option for a third-row seat in the Model Y, but it doesn’t offer much breathing room for passengers. To fill the gap left by the Model X, Tesla is bringing over a model that has already been available in most of Asia—the Model Y L. The L stands for Long, as in wheelbase. The Model Y L initially comes only in Premium Launch Series trim, which means a dual-motor, all-wheel-drive configuration that Tesla says makes 496 horsepower, accelerates to 60 mph in 4.4 seconds, and has an EPA-estimated range of 328 miles when outfitted with our test car’s 20-inch wheels. New wheels are cool, but the bigger body is the bigger news.

Nine years after first trying to resurrect the Roadster, Tesla is apparently trying again. CEO Elon Musk might have relocated its HQ to Texas, but yet again he has returned to California’s showbiz industry to hawk his wares; last time it was a Hollywood back lot for the remote-controlled Cybercab demo, last night it was decades-old stunt technology to make a show car do tricks in the air. The new Roadster, we’re told, will be unlike anything else, although the angular, wedge-shaped styling owes more than a little to Giorgetto Giugiaro’s original Lotus Esprit—Musk is known to own a James Bond prop car—as well as the more recent Lamborghini Gallardo. At the rear are four giant exhaust pipes; these do not signal Tesla’s sudden embrace of hydrocarbons beyond those emitted by private aviation.

There are plenty of e-bike conversion kits designed to turn your existing bicycle electric, but most involve at least a bit of wrenching. Spiny 2 takes a different approach, using a removable friction-drive system that can apparently snap onto your bike in just three seconds. Now let me start by saying that this is a crowdfunding project on Kickstarter, so it’s a “buyer beware” situation. My long-time readers will know I have a rule about crowdfunding campaigns. I don’t cover them unless they either A) come from a company that has a track record of delivering products in the past, or B) I personally test out the product in advance to confirm it’s legitimate and works. In this case, I haven’t personally tested the Spiny 2 e-bike kit, but the brand does appear to have delivered hundreds of their previous version of the kit, so this isn’t a brand new, fly-by-night company.

BMW's i3, the electric 3-Series, went on sale in the U. S. and Europe this fall, bringing with it the brand's Neue Klasse architecture, some of the quickest charging speeds in the industry, and the promise of more than 400 miles on a single charge. It sounds like a great EV package, until you learn that there's another i3 that pushes even further. Sadly, this version is completely off limits to Western BMW fans. We're talking about the i3 50L, a unique version of the 3 Series EV built specifically for the Chinese market. BMW claims the 50L recently covered an incredible 754 miles (1,213 km) while competing in a long-distance endurance challenge, Car News China reports. The sedan arrived at its destination with 1% charge remaining, and presumably with its drivers breaking the 100 m world record on their way to the bathroom.

Once retirement starts, plenty of folks spend that time playing golf, traveling, or simply enjoying a slower pace of life. Sobiesław Zasada evidently isn't one of them. At 96 years old, the Polish rally legend is still involved in motorsport—and his latest adventure has taken him back to Argentina, where he scored one of the biggest victories of his career almost six decades ago. To understand why this return matters, we need to go back to October 1967, when Zasada arrived in Argentina to compete in the Gran Premio Internacional de Turismo—a grueling rally that covered more than 1864 miles. The route took competitors through mountains, deserts, and flooded plains. Nearly 400 entrants took part, including teams with factory backing. Zasada, driving a red Porsche 911 affectionately nicknamed "Porschito," managed to beat them all. PorscheHis co-driver, engineer Jerzy Dobrzański, helped him navigate the challenging course, but it's how he did so that matters most: their Porsche featured an intercom system that hadn't been used in competition there. That tech might sound rather ordinary today, but in 1967, it was a genuine advantage.

Credit: Michael SimariProsThe fastest and easiest way to eliminate light scratchesSaves tons of timeConsRequires drillMeguiar's Scratch Eraser Kit is our choice for the best overall, thanks to its effectiveness, ease of use, and speed. The downside? You need a drill for the scratch eraser pad. But if you have a drill in your toolbox, this is the kit to get. The process is straightforward: Simply apply some of the scratch remover on the pad in an X shape, use your drill to run the pad back and forth along the scratch, and wipe away the excess with a clean microfiber cloth. The pad was faster and easier to use—and worked far better—than conventional rub-on scratch removers. If you have a good drill, this is the best kit to get for light scratches on your vehicle. Before/During/AfterMichael Simari|Car and DriverThis kit worked so effectively that we decided to use it to remove the sections that didn't turn out so well after our testing.

Us automotive journalists have a weird, maybe fetishistic, love for station wagons. Sporty wagons. It’s not universal among us car writers, but it’s close enough that it may as well be. The problem is that, over the years, there have never been enough buyers of sport wagons to sustain the species. Except, maybe, now. John Pearley HuffmanKia doesn’t market its K4 Hatchback as a wagon. But the silhouette is pure wagon to my eyes. Encountering Kia’s new K4 GT-Line Turbo Hatchback is what brought this to mind. The K4 isn’t as quick as it should be, can’t be had with a manual transmission, and has the sort of relentless styling that could have stopped several flourishes earlier. But the first time I saw it, I thought it was a wagon. And I loved it for that. So, what if Kia calls it a hatch? The profile is more Volvo C30 from the aughts or P1800ES from the 1970s than it is a traditional hatch. Squint a bit, throw your eyes out of focus, and pant enough to induce respiratory acidosis, and there’s even a hint of 1955 Chevrolet Nomad. Hatch smatch, I say it’s a wagon. VolvoVolvo produced the P1800ES only during 1972 and 1973 as the last riff on the beloved P1800 sports car.

Look for a host of major updates to the next-gen electric van The Volkswagen ID Buzz might be one of the most unique-looking family haulers with references to the iconic microbus, but it is far from being a sales hit — especially in the U. S. market. With the VW Group planning to axe half of its models by 2035, many feared this could spell the end for the retro-futuristic EV. Still, the company boss has officially confirmed that a new generation is already under development, aiming to correct everything that's wrong with the current model.