Chevy isn't the only one electrifying vintage cars to sell you on aftermarket EV motors. Ford has introduced an F-100 Eluminator concept that upgrades the circa-1978 pickup truck with two of the company's new Eluminator electric crate motor kit. The powerplants, taken from the Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition, give the F-100 a total 480HP and 634lb/ft of torque. Ford didn't discuss performance benchmarks or range, but it's safe to presume you could smoke some sports cars with that kind of power.

The truck has more customizations beyond the EV motors, including the vertical center-stack touchscreen from the Mach-E. You'll also see custom aluminum Forgeline wheels, a billet aluminum dash from JJR Fabrication and avocado-tanned leather from MDM Upholstery. This may look like a classic truck, but it's not appointed like one.

You can't buy this concept, as you might have guessed. Instead, Ford would rather you buy the $3,900 Eluminator motor for your project car. The automaker eventually hopes to supply everything you might need for an EV retrofit, including batteries, controllers and traction inverters. You'd only want to buy the motor right now if you have the resources to complete the rest of the puzzle yourself. This does, however, hint at a future where many beloved combustion engine cars can get a second life through an EV transplant.

Ford

ZipCharge has launched a new type of charging product for EVs that might be able to convince people worried about range anxiety to switch from gas vehicles. The British startup has introduced a powerbank for EVs called ZipCharge Go at the Cop26 climate summit. It's about the size of a suitcase and weighs around 50 pounds — plus, it has wheels and a retractable handle, so users can put it in their trunk and easily take it out when they need to charge. 

According to the company, the Go can provide up 20 miles of range after being plugged into the car for 30 minutes. A higher capacity version will be able to provide an EV up to 40 miles of range. The device works with any plug-in hybrid or EV with a Type 2 socket, and it can charge that vehicle to its full capacity between 30 minutes to an hour. Charging up the device itself is as easy as plugging it into any socket, and users will be able to control and monitor it through an app, where they can schedule future charges during off-peak hours for cheaper costs. 

While range anxiety is becoming less of an issue these days, it's still keeping those on the fence from making the leap. A company called Gogoro developed hot-swappable battery technology for scooters to address the problem, but batteries in electric cars typically can't be swapped out. SparkCharge has a portable EV charging system called the Roadie, but it's not nearly as easy to carry around as the Go. 

That said, the ZipCharge Go isn't available yet. According to InsideEVs, the startup plans to release a 4 kWh and an 8 kWh version, as well as to start deliveries in the fourth quarter of 2022. It can be leased for at least £49 (US$67) per month, though it will also be available for purchase to EV owners who don't mind paying for one and to businesses like hotels that don't have installed charging facilities. While ZipCharge has yet to reveal a price for it, The Sunday Times Driving section says the company aims to sell it for around the same cost as a 7.2kW home charging port installation.

Tesla has issued its second recall in as many weeks, although this may be more strategic than it is urgent. As the APnoted, The new recall covers 11,704 Tesla EVs from 2017 or newer (including the Model 3, Model Y, Model S and Model X) that were prone to "false-positive braking" after a buggy Full Self-Driving beta update from October 23rd led to a communications breakdown between two chips. The company fixed the issue on October 25th. The day before, it also cancelled the flawed update and disabled emergency braking on cars still using that beta release.

There were no reports of crashes or injuries, Tesla said. The automaker decided to issue a recall on October 26th.

The recall may have been meant to prevent conflicts with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The agency sent a letter to Tesla on October 12th asking why it didn't issue a recall when it fixed an Autopilot software issue that reportedly led to collisions with emergency vehicles. Tesla knows car manufacturers are required to issue recalls for any safety issues, the NHTSA said. It's not clear how Tesla responded to that inquiry before a November 1st deadline, but the company might now be in the habit of issuing recalls for software-related safety problems.

The notice highlights the changing nature of recalls. While recalls for hardware-only flaws haven't changed much (just ask Chevy and LG), software-related issues are another matter. Now that more and more cars accept over-the-air updates, it's possible for companies like Tesla to issue recalls for bugs they've already fixed. Brands may have to make it particularly clear when a recall demands real-world service, as that might not always be clear going forward.

Last week, a press release from Hertz indicated that the rental company had placed an order for 100,000 Tesla Model 3s for its rental fleet. Late yesterday, however, Elon Musk tweeted that the order is far from firm, saying that "no contract has been signed yet," Gizmodo has reported.

Hertz's announcement stated that it made "a significant investment to offer the largest EV rental fleet in North America... [which] includes an initial order of 100,000 Tesla's by the end of 2022." That release and a report from Bloomberg, combined with other good news about sales in Europe, may have motivated investors to push Tesla's value over the $1 trillion mark. 

Hertz only left bankruptcy four months ago after being purchased by distressed-debt firm Knighthead Capital Management and other firms for $6 billion. As such, announcing a purchase of 100,000 EVs valued at around $4.2 billion obviously raised eyebrows.

As Gizmodo pointed out, though, Hertz technically never said it signed a contract or purchase order for the vehicles. The phrase "an initial order of 100,000 Tesla's by the end of 2022" could be taken to mean that the order itself and not the vehicle deliveries will happen at the end of 2022. Tesla itself never responded to the initial news. 

Musk's tweet came in reply to Twitter user "Tesla Silicon Valley Club," which was thanking him for Tesla's recent stock price rise. He appeared to want to dampen down some of that hype, however, stating that any Hertz deal would have no impact on the company's sales and bottom line. 

“Tesla has far more demand than production, therefore we will only sell cars to Hertz for the same margin as to consumers. Hertz deal has zero effect on our economics." 

As promised earlier in the year, Tesla is expanding access to its Supercharger charger network. Starting today, the company is opening 10 locations in the Netherlands to non-Tesla EVs as part of a pilot program. Provided you live in the country and you’ve installed the Tesla app on your phone (version 4.2.3 or later), you can use them to charge your car. The stations are located in Sassenheim, Apeldoorn Oost, Meerkerk, Hengelo, Tilburg, Duiven, Breukelen, Naarden, Eemnes and Zwolle.

The one thing to note about the pilot is it's only open to EV drivers who live in the Netherlands. However, if you drive a Tesla vehicle and you’re visiting the country, you can charge your car as normal at the stations. Additionally, how the program expands beyond this initial pilot will depend on congestion at the stations. “Future sites will only be opened to Non-Tesla vehicles if there is available capacity,” the company said.

On Monday, the company also put a non-Tesla port home charger on sale. Both the pilot and charger are a sign Tesla is looking outside of its ecosystem for revenue. That said, it may take a while before we see the automaker open its charging stations in the US to EVs from other companies since those use a proprietary connector.

One of the most famous cars Chevrolet ever built is now an electric vehicle. The company teamed up with Cagnazzi Racing and Hot Rod publisher MotorTrend to electrify the 1957 Chevy Project X vehicle.

MotorTrend's defunct Popular Hot Rodding magazine bought the Project X car for $250 in 1965. Over the decades, it has been used to test a range of power technologies. Before the electric system, it had a Chevy LSX V-8 engine.

The car now has a 400-volt electric powertrain with an estimated 340 horsepower and 330 pound-feet of torque — those are very similar numbers to Cadillac's Lyriq EV. Chevrolet says the battery can store 30 kilowatt-hours of electricity. The range depends on the quick-change differential that's fitted, which can be swapped to optimize the car for acceleration or range. Still, Chevy claims the now-EV has "enough range for weekend cruising."

Although the car still has the front suspension that was installed in 2007, Cagnazzi Racing made some changes, such as swapping to an electric brake booster and electrohydraulic power steering pump. Some springs have been switched too, as there's less weight under the hood and more at the rear compared with the previous incarnation. Project X now has the same push-button gear selector as the 2021 Chevrolet Corvette as well.

This is the third straight year that Chevy has converted a classic car into an EV for SEMA. The automaker did so to show off the capabilities of the eCrate Connect and Cruise system, as Autoblog points out. That's an electric crate motor and battery combination designed to make it easier for tinkerers to build battery-powered projects.

Amazon owns a 20 percent stake in electric transport startup Rivian, according to a recent SEC disclosure spotted by Bloomberg. As of September 30th, the company said the stake was valued at $3.8 billion, up from $2.7 billion at the end of 2020. That Amazon should own a fifth of Rivian is not surprising. In 2019, the retailer led a $700 million investment round in the automaker, contributing about $440 million to that total. 

That same year, it announced as part of its 2040 climate pledge it would purchase 100,000 electric delivery vehicles from Rivian. The first of those EVs, a cutesy van, began making deliveries in Los Angeles at the start of the year. Amazon hopes to have 10,000 of its Rivian EVs on the road by the end of 2022.

As you might imagine, that has put pressure on Rivian to deliver for its biggest customer. Per Bloomberg, the company has prioritized manufacturing vans for Amazon at the expense of its consumer vehicles like the R1T and R1S. The former was supposed to debut in 2020, but following a series of pandemic-related delays, the first customer-ready vehicle only rolled out of the company’s Normal, Illinois factory this past September.

This past April, Toyota teased the bZ4X, the first of seven “Beyond Zero” fully electric vehicles the automaker said it would debut by 2025. Other than to reveal it was working with Subaru to develop the SUV and that it would include its upcoming e-TNGA powertrain, the company didn’t share many details about the bZ4X. On Friday, it changed that by unveiling the production version of the vehicle.

Toyota will offer the bZ4X in front-wheel-drive and all-wheel-drive variants. The former will feature a single 150 kW capable of accelerating the car from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 8.4 seconds. Per the WLTC standard, the automaker claims the FWD model’s 71.4 kWh battery will allow it to travel approximately 500 kilometers or 310 miles on a single charge. Expect that estimate to decrease once the EPA tests the car. It’s also worth noting these measurements come from the Japanese model, which may end up featuring different specifications to whatever model(s) Toyota releases in the US.

Toyota

The battery will support 150 kW DC fast charging, allowing it to go from dead to 80 percent after about 30 minutes of charging. As for the AWD model, it will feature two 80kW motors, one built into each axle, for a total power output of 160 kW. It can accelerate from zero to 100 kilometers per hour in 7.7 seconds. Toyota estimates the ranges of the AWD model at 460 kilometers or 285 miles on a single charge. In both variants, the battery is integrated into the chassis, a design choice the automaker helps lower the SUV’s center of gravity and improve the rigidity of the chassis.

Toyota also plans to equip the bZ4X with some nifty extra features. One of those is a solar roof the automaker says will generate about 1120 miles worth of free power generation. It will also offer a steer-by-wire system that removes the mechanical connection between the steering wheel and front wheels. Both features will be available in select models.

The bZ4X will debut in the US and other markets in mid-2022.

You won't have to buy a Lucid Air if you want a car with more immersive Dolby Atmos. Mercedes will equip its cars with Atmos audio on all models that use both its latest MBUX interface (introduced with the latest S-Class) and an optional Burmester 3D or 4D sound system. Whether or not you'll driving, you'll hear compatible music in a vertically enhanced sound field — it might not sound like a "live concert" as Mercedes claims, but it should be a step up from the usual stereo playback.

The 4D system includes 31 speakers, six of which create the 3D effect from above. Another four "near-ear" speakers sit in the front seats, and all four seats have two sound transducers (aka exciters) each. Throw in 1750W of total power (including an 18.5-liter subwoofer) and you'll likely be happy regardless of the audio processing.

Just don't plan on buying an Atmos-equipped car right away. The format will first be available in the Mercedes-Maybach in summer 2022, and the S-Class soon after. Other models will follow, but you might not want to count on buying an A-Class with Atmos any time soon.

Electrified versions of vehicles typically end up trading eco-friendly driving for the handling of a gas-powered counterpart. Batteries are heavy and while they lower the center of gravity, the extra weight does make itself known. Enter the 2022 BMW i4 M50, the first M-powered electric BMW that makes you forget about the 4-Series with all its petrol power.

Starting at $65,900, the i4 M50 is an all-wheel-drive delight behind the wheel that surprised us with its impressive handling and interior that’s actually more like a traditional BMW but with the latest version of the automaker’s infotainment system. We had a chance to drive it in the mountains and on the autobahn in Germany and, if you’ve been waiting for an electric BMW sedan that delivers that ultimate driving machine feeling, look no further. For the full story, check out the video below.