It's now clear why Hertz is buying a so many Tesla cars. The company is making up to 50,000 Tesla EVs available for rent solely to Uber ridesharing drivers in the US starting on November 1st. Workers in Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Washington, DC will have the option of paying $334 per week (eventually dropping to $299 "or lower") for a package that includes a Model 3, insurance and maintenance.

Drivers will initially need at least a 4.7-star rating and 150 trips to be eligible. The program will expand across the country in the "following weeks."

The company saw the Hertz deal as helpful for both the environment and, potentially, drivers' bank accounts. It should reduce vehicle emissions and expose many people to EVs for the first time, Uber said. However, it could also lower some running costs. Drivers won't have to pay for fuel, after all, and Uber has incentive programs that offer more money per trip (up to $1.50, if it's an Uber Green ride) to EV operators.

Uber has strong motivations to adopt EVs. They could help the company reach its goal of zero emissions by 2040, and may tackle complaints that ridesharing makes CO2 emissions worse. The firm could burnish its image with eco-friendly cars roaming the streets. Even so, it's a big deal both for curbing car-based emissions and for EV adoption — 50,000 cars is a large chunk of Tesla's production, and likely one of the largest single-customer EV purchases to date.

Land Rover executives unveiled the latest iteration of the company's renowned flagship on Tuesday, showing off a strikingly well-appointed 5th generation SUV that's also surprisingly friendly to the environment, if not your budget.

The company's emphasis on modernism is on full display with the 2023 Range Rover's exterior. A gently sloping roofline contrasted against a rising sill line as well as other classic design details are joined by state-of-the-art amenities like retractable exterior door handles to help improve the vehicle's aerodynamic performance by nearly 12 percent compared to its previous iterations. The entire vehicle is built on Land Rover's new MLA-Flex architecture allowing for 11.6 inches of ground clearance and fording through more than 35 inches of water. 

Land Rover

An electronic air suspension, which debuted on the Range Rover back in 1992, will keep random road divots from detracting from the drive while the new Dynamic Response Pro system will electronically negate body roll during high speed cornering. Coolest of all, the 2023 Range Rover will offer 4-wheel steering, enabling the rear wheels to turn up to 7 degrees to help maintain stability while cornering as well as reducing the Range Rover's low-speed turning radius to rival that of a Honda Civic.

In terms of powertrains, the new Range Rover offers a slew of options. The base models will come with a 48V mild-hybrid 3.0L Turbocharged I6 — turning out 395 hp and 406 ft-lbs of torque — standard. Above that, a 523 hp (553 ft-lbs of torque) 4.4L Twin Turbo V8 is available as well. By the time the Range Rover hits US shores in 2023, Land Rover expects to offer it with an optional 434 hp plug-in hybrid engine capable of travelling up to 62 miles on electric power alone using its 38.2 kWh battery. And, come 2024, Land Rover has announced plans to offer its flagship with an all-electric drivetrain. 

But the luxury shown off during Tuesday's livestream comes at a price. A very steep price. The entry level P400 SE starts at $104,000 ($110,000 if you opt for the 7 seater variant) and climes to a whopping $163,500 for the P530 First Edition with the long wheelbase. Preorders for the new Range Rover are already open and deliveries are expected to begin next spring.

The 2022 Volvo C40 Recharge is the automaker’s first EV-only vehicle. Of course, it shares most of its design and all of its powertrain with the XC40 Recharge. But it sets itself apart with a fastback design that makes it both a more distinct vehicle and more efficient than the XC40 Recharge.

Starting at $58,750, the C40 Recharge has a range of 225 miles and includes the new Range Assistant feature. The question, is whether it’s worth the extra $3,500 over the price of the XC40 Recharge? We had a chance to drive the new C40 in Belgium to find out.

Tesla has just had a double-shot of good news on the sales front today. Hertz has ordered 100,000 Tesla EVs for its fleet, with plans to rent them out in major US markets and parts of Europe starting in November, according to Bloomberg. That would mark the largest electric vehicle order of all time and a major move by Hertz into electric car rentals.

The order is reportedly worth $4.2 billion for the fleet (which appears to be Model 3s) according to the report. It represents about a 1/10th of what Tesla can currently produce annually, possibly allowing Hertz to lock out other rental companies. It reportedly purchased well-appointed, rather than base model versions, and paid nearly the full list price for each unit.  

Hertz customers will have access to Tesla's supercharger network, and Hertz is supposedly also building its own charging infrastructure. Eventually, Hertz (which also owns the Dollar, Thrifty and Firefly brands) plans to go nearly fully electric with its half-million vehicle fleet. 

That's a pretty sharp turnaround for Hertz, considering that it went bankrupt in 2020 and only emerged in June of this year. It was purchased out of bankruptcy by distressed-debt firm Knighthead Capital Management (among other firms) for $6 billion. Following a big turnaround in the market, however, it's currently valued at $11.6 billion ahead of relisting on Nasdaq, Bloomberg reported. 

That's just half the good news for Tesla, though. The company's Model 3 was the best-selling car in Europe in September with around 24,600 registered units, marking the first time that an EV has topped the monthly standings, according to automotive analyst JATO. It's also the first time a vehicle manufactured outside the EU has led in sales. Tesla's sales were up by 58 percent over last year, and EV/PHEV sales in general rose 23 percent from 2020.

Last month, registrations accounted for 74 percent of [Tesla's] third quarter volume. Since its’ entry to the European market, the Model Y has also performed well, securing second position in the BEV ranking.

The news is big for Tesla and the EV industry in general, showing that EV sales in Europe are continuing to grow. Much of that has been driven by generous tax rebates and trade-in incentives on internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles. September was a particularly good month for Tesla, accounting for 74 percent of its third quarter volume, according to JATO

Still, the automotive sector as a whole has plummeted in Europe and elsewhere because of a global chip shortage. Renault recently said that it would produce at least 300,000 fewer vehicles this year due to the global semiconductor shortage, according to Reuters. "This year, the industry has responded well to the the pandemic, but it is now facing new supply chain challenges," said JATO analyst Felipe Munoz. "The growing popularity of EVs is encouraging, but sales are not yet strong enough to offset the big declines seen across other segments."

Tesla is no stranger to raising prices for its EVs, but its latest round has been more aggressive than most. Electreknotes Tesla has hiked prices for all four of its in-production vehicles in the past two days. The base Model 3 and Model Y variants now cost $2,000 more, and respectively start at $43,990 and $56,990. Spring for the Model S and Model X, meanwhile, and you'll pay $5,000 more at respective prices of $94,990 and $104,990.

You'll have to wait a long time for your order, too. The entry Model 3 arrives in June 2022 with larger wheels, and September in a regular configuration. The Model Y arrives one month earlier in both cases. You'll have to wait until June for a Model S, and the Model X doesn't appear until September.

As is often the case, Tesla hasn't explained the price increases. Production woes might play a significant role, mind you. Tesla idled Model S production for the first half of 2021, and the automaker is grappling with supply shortages that aren't helped by increasing demand. The higher prices could offset the impact of shortages on Tesla's bottom line, amd help Tesla catch up by cooling demand.

Today is the 20th anniversary of the groundbreaking Grand Theft Auto III. Although Rockstar Games didn’t mark the occasion with a sudden surprise release of Grand Theft Auto: The Trilogy — The Definitive Edition, it revealed when you’ll be able to get your hands on the upgraded versions of GTA III, GTA: Vice City and GTA: San Andreas.

The bundle arrives digitally on November 11th (the former release date for the PS5 and Xbox Series X versions of GTA V) on PC, PlayStation 4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S and Nintendo Switch. Physical editions will be available for consoles on December 7th.

Rockstar is charging $60 for the trilogy, which might be hard to swallow for some given that the original versions were often available for a few bucks each before the publisher pulled them from digital storefronts this month. It's worth noting that the remastered GTA: San Andreas hits Xbox Game Pass on November 11th and the upgraded GTA III will arrive on PlayStation Now on December 7th.

The most obvious changes to the games are upgraded, richer visuals. Rockstar has added higher resolution textures, enhanced the weather effects, improved character and vehicle models, overhauled the lighting system and increased draw distances — all while trying to hang onto each game's original aesthetic. Vice City, for one thing, looks far more vibrant than the original, but it's clearly still Vice City.

There are some platform-specific enhancements. PS5 and Xbox Series X players will be able to run the games in 4K at up to 60 frames per second. On PC, there's support for NVIDIA's Deep Learning Super Sampling (DLSS) upscaling tech. Switch players, meanwhile, will have gyro controls and can use the touchscreen to to navigate menus and to zoom and pan the camera.

Rockstar has tweaked the gameplay in other ways. The controller layout now matches that of GTA V, and there are changes to gunplay and targeting, the weapon and radio station selection wheels and minimaps (such as the ability to set waypoints). You'll also be able to immediately restart a mission after failing too, which is a great quality of life update.

Tesla will soon bring the Model Y to the UK. The company has opened pre-orders for the EV in the country, with deliveries expected to start in early 2022, according to an email to customers spotted by Elektrek.

The original plan was to start Model Y deliveries in Europe after Tesla started making them at its Berlin Gigafactory. However, Tesla has brought Model Y EVs from its Shanghai production facility to some European markets.

Most countries in Europe drive on the right, but the UK and Ireland stick to the left, so the steering wheel is generally on the right there. Gigafactory Berlin is supposed to start making Model Ys as soon as next month. Still, it's unclear whether Tesla will make Model Ys for the UK there or ship them from China.

The Model Y starts at £54,990 for the Long Range All-Wheel-Drive model and £64,990 for a Performance one, according to Tesla's configurator. Enhanced Autopilot costs £3,400 and the Full Self-Driving Capability add-on is £6,800, but that feature is in beta.

A few months ago, Volvo teamed up with Swedish steel producer SSAB to develop a type of steel it can use for its vehicles that doesn't use fossil fuels. Now, the automaker has revealed what it says is the world's first vehicle made of fossil-free steel: A four wheeled fully electric load carrier made for quarrying and mining. In addition to having no greenhouse gas emission, it's also autonomous and can follow a pre-programmed route to transport materials at a job site.

SSAB produces fossil-free steel by replacing the coal used during the manufacturing process with hydrogen from electrolysis. As Forbes notes, though, the whole vehicle isn't exactly fossil-free, since the steel used for its components provided by third-party suppliers, such as its electric motor, were made using traditional means. Still, Volvo Group CTO Lars Stenqvist told the publication that "majority of the steel" in the vehicle is fossil free. He said three tons of the carrier's 8.2-ton weight is made of green steel from SSAB, and those eight tons include other heavy components like the vehicle's tires.

Volvo plans to start a small-scale production for the vehicle next year and to scale up production, depending on the availability of steel from SSAB. The Swedish manufacturer is hoping to start mass-producing its fossil-free steel in 2026, so we may see more Volvo vehicles made using the material by that time.

Martin Lundstedt, President and CEO Volvo Group, said in a statement:

"This initiative with SSAB sets the benchmark for a fossil-free future. Just as the nations of the world come together at COP26 to address climate change, so too must organizations and industries work in collaboration to develop innovative new solutions for a greenhouse gas emission free future. Volvo Group is committed to pioneering partnerships such as this with SSAB to develop attractive, safe and efficient new vehicles and machines that pave the way for a more sustainable transport and infrastructure system adopted for the future."

E-bike maker VanMoof is looking to help riders get from A to B more swiftly with its first high-speed model. The VanMoof V is the company’s first hyperbike, which will be able to hit a top speed of 31 MPH (50 km/h).

VanMoof is pitching this as a car replacement for city life and longer commutes. The VanMoof V will have two-wheel drive, thicker tires, a new frame design and front and rear suspension, which could make lengthier trips more comfortable. Other features include intelligent motor control, VanMoof's Turbo Boost, a Kick Lock for keyless locking, automatic gear shifting and measures to combat theft.

Details about the e-bike's range haven't been revealed, but VanMoof noted the battery has a 700 wH capacity. The VanMoof S3 has a 504 Wh battery capacity and a promised range of 60-150 km (37-93 miles). The company sells a PowerBank accessory that can increase the range, but it's unclear whether that device will be compatible with the VanMoof V.

VanMoof

Speed limits vary across cities and counties, and the e-bike will have matching integrated speed settings. As it develops the VanMoof V, the company plans to work with lawmakers and local governments on e-bike rules, including geofencing and speed regulations.

VanMoof plans to start deliveries of the hyperbike in late 2022. The VanMoof V costs $3,498/£3,498/€3,498. The company is offering invite-only reservations for $20/£20/€20 starting today, with its current customers getting first dibs. Alternatively, you can join a waitlist on the VanMoof website. Reservation codes will be sent out periodically.

With the F-150 Lightning set to debut early next year, Ford plans to employ a group of “Charge Angels” to ensure owners of its EVs can find reliable charging when they need it. In an interview with Automotive News, Ford EV lead Darren Palmer said technicians in specially-equipped Mustang Mach-Es will travel the US to test out charging stations where connected vehicle data and “angry social media posts” indicate they may not be working properly.

“All they’ll do all day long is go and check them to see where they fail and why,” Palmer told the outlet. “There are a lot of plugs out there, but some of them are old and they don’t have the quality or reliability we want. Over 99.5 percent of customers go into a charger and get a charge. We’re pleased about that. But a number less than that get a charge the first time they charge.”

The company is reportedly finalizing the details of the program but hopes to have the first group of Charge Angels out on the road by the end of the year. Either way, it’s a smart move for an automaker that has a network of approximately 63,000 chargers across the US but ultimately depends on companies like Electrify America and ChargePoint for that infrastructure.