Panasonic will not be able to start the volume production of its 4680 battery cells for Tesla before March 2024 like it had originally planned. According to Reuters, the company has delayed the battery's mass production and has decided to kick things off between April and September 2024 instead, so that it would have enough time to improve its performance. "Mass production rescheduled to begin during [the first half of the fiscal year ending in March 2025] to introduce performance improvement measures that will further enhance competitiveness," the company has revealed in its earnings report. 

The 4680 battery format has the potential to boost the range of electric vehicles by over 15 percent. Nikkei previously said that it could extend the range of the Model S from 404 miles on a single charge to around 465 miles. It's unclear what Panasonic means by introducing "performance improvement measures" and whether that would lead to even longer range capacities for electric cars. 

Tesla manufactures its own batteries in its Fremont, California facility and at the Gigafactory Texas, and it is expected to ramp up production in the latter. But the company still depends on its partner manufacturers, Panasonic being one of them, to be able to meet its battery needs. At the moment, Tesla is using the 4680-type cell for the base Model Y vehicles produced at Gigafactory Texas. The company plans to equip its other vehicles with it, though, including the Cybertruck, which will enter mass production in 2024. 

At I/O 2023 today, Google shared a few updates for both Android Auto and Android Automotive OS. Perhaps the biggest news is that Google is working with Zoom, Microsoft Teams and Cisco Webex to bring those virtual meeting apps to Android-equipped vehicles. If the thought of joining a video call in your car sounds like a driving hazard, don't worry: the meetings will be audio only with simplified controls on the infotainment display.

Google is also rolling out Waze in the Google Play Store for all vehicles with Google built-in. This means the popular navigation app will be available outside of just Android Auto and beyond Volvo and Polestar models. What's more, the company is allowing developers to integrate the instrument cluster with their navigation apps. As you might expect, this will put turn-by-turn directions in the driver's line of sight. Plus, developers can access vehicle data like range, fuel level and speed to give drivers even more insight on their trips. 

Google

Google has added new app categories to the Android for Cars App Library. That repository now allows developers to add IoT and weather apps for use in vehicles. For example, The Weather Channel app will be available alongside existing software like Weather and Radar later this year. The company is also making it easier for media apps (music, audiobooks, podcasts, etc.) to port their software to Android Auto and Android Automotive OS.

Additionally, the company has new categories for video and gaming apps in its library, with the goal of expanding to browsing apps soon. These are specifically designed for use when the car is parked or by passengers. YouTube is now available for all automakers to add to cars with Google built-in. Google says Polestar, Volvo and other "select partners" have committed to adding the video-streaming app via over-the-air updates. In terms of games, the initial slate includes Beach Buggy Racing 2, Solitaire FRVR, and My Talking Tom Friends. What's more, Google plans to add multi-screen support to Android Automotive OS 14, which will allow "shared entertainment experiences" between drivers and passengers. 

Google

Google says Android Auto will be available in almost 200 million cars by the end of 2023. The company also says that the number of cars with their infotainment systems powered entirely by Android Automotive OS with Google built-in should nearly double by the end of the year. That latter figure is spurred by adoption by automakers like Chevrolet, Volvo, Polestar, Honda, Renault and more. In March, GM announced it would phase out Android Auto and CarPlay in its EVs in favor of Android Automotive.

Follow all of the news from Google I/O 2023 right here.

Volvo has revealed the name for its upcoming fully electric small SUV in a teaser showing its official launch date. The vehicle is called EX30, and a previous report from the Auto Express suggests that it's targeting MINI's electric vehicles. Volvo first teased the compact SUV when it announced the EX90, which the company calls its "safest car ever," last year. Apparently, it shares several design components with the EX90, including its sharply angled hatchback form factor and its tail light. 

The EX30 will reportedly use the electric vehicle platform developed by Volvo parent company Geely. Smart, an automative brand established as a joint venture between Mercedes-Benz and Geely, already used the platform for its compact electric SUV called the #1. That's why Auto Express expects the EX30 to be available as a 268-horsepower single-motor vehicle like the #1 or as a 400-horsepower four-wheel drive vehicle similar to Volvo's older EVs.

Like other automakers, Volvo Cars aims to go fully electric by 2030 and unveiled its first electric vehicle, the XC40 Recharge SUV, back in 2019. It also launched a curvier version of it, the C40 Recharge, in 2021. The automaker will officially unveil the EX30 on June 7th, when the vehicle will also be available for pre-order in select markets. 

Qualcomm has agreed to acquire an Israeli fabless chipmaker called Autotalks, and according to TechCrunch, the deal will cost the company around $350 to $400 million. Autotalks creates chips and vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication technologies dedicated towards boosting road safety for both ordinary and driverless vehicles. In its announcement, Qualcomm said that Autotalks' "production-ready, dual mode, standalone safety solutions" will be incorporated into the Snapdragon Digital Chassis, its set of cloud-connected assisted and autonomous driving technologies. 

Nakul Duggal, senior VP of automotive for Qualcomm Technologies, Inc., said in a statement: "We have been investing in V2X research, development and deployment since 2017 and believe that as the automotive market matures, a standalone V2X safety architecture will be needed for enhanced road user safety, as well as smart transportation system... We share Autotalks’ decades-long experience and commitment to build V2X technologies and products with a focus on solving real-world road user safety challenges. We look forward to working together to deliver global V2X solutions that will help accelerate time-to-market and enable mass market adoption of this very important safety technology."

For makers of driverless and driver-assisted vehicles and systems, ensuring people that their technologies are safe is of utmost importance if they want to win them over. They may have to offer safety features that can assuage people's fears in order to get ahead of their rivals, since most people remain apprehensive about self-driving cars.

Qualcomm expects the automotive industry to be one of its biggest sources of growth and revenue over the coming years. At CES last year, it unveiled the Snapdragon Ride Vision platform, which is an "open, scalable and modular" tech automakers can use to build cars. And in late 2022, it said its automotive business pipeline, or its revenue-generating opportunities, had jumped to $30 billion from the $10 billion it announced during its previous earnings report. The company also said back then that it estimates its automotive business revenue to hit $4 billion by fiscal year 2026. It credited the Snapdragon Digital Chassis for the expansion of its future business opportunities, and Autotalks' acquisition could grow its customer base and client offerings even further. 

Tesla has unveiled a $20,000 track package for the Model S Plaid, finally allowing it to reach the 200 MPH top speed the automaker promised when it was first announced. The Model S Plaid vehicles the company delivered after they became available could only reach around 163 MPH, which is fast, but not 200 MPH fast. Turned out Tesla put a limitation on its software to prevent it from reaching its full potential. According to Electrek, the company wanted the vehicle to have bigger brakes first, so they could slow down better from really high speeds. 

When you visit the Model S Plaid order page, you'll see a note when you click the 200 MPH stop speed spec that the indicated spec requires paid hardware upgrades. The new track package will set you back $15,000 for a carbon ceramic brake kit package, or $20,000 for the brake kit and a wheel and tire package optimized for performance and track usage. You will need the ceramic brakes to be able to unlock the vehicle's top speed, but you can also purchase just the wheel and tire package for $6,000. 

The automaker first started offering the ceramic brake kit for $20,000 back in 2021, but it has yet to start installing it on customers' vehicles. (While there was a company that was able to push past the Model S Plaid's software limitations last year, it had to hack into the vehicle's software and install third-party brakes.) The new track package pages have a clear date for their availability, though: They will be out in June 2023 and can be purchased from the Tesla app.

Tesla has reopened orders for the long-range Model 3 in the US after putting them on hold last August. At the time, CEO Elon Musk said the waitlist for the electric vehicle was too long and Tesla would reopen orders after ramping up production.

As it has done with its other EVs this year, Tesla has cut the price of the long-range Model 3. It starts at $47,240. As Reuters notes, the company was selling the car for $57,990 before it stopped orders in the US and Canada. The car is eligible for a $3,750 government subsidy as well.

Tesla's configurator shows an estimated delivery window of June for the long-range Model 3 in the US. However, the company has not yet re-enabled orders north of the border. The Canadian version of the configurator only says that the long-range Model 3 will be available again later this year.

One important thing to note is that the long-range Model 3 is listed as having a range of "325+" miles. That's a drop from the 358 miles Tesla previously said the EV would be able to travel on a single charge. In November, it was reported that Tesla was redesigning the Model 3 to cut costs, and the revamp may have included changes to the powertrain. Tesla doesn't have a communications department that can be reached for comment.

Waymo is doubling the operational area for its fleet of self-driving taxis, making what the company calls “the largest fully autonomous service area in the world.” The rapid growth is limited to Phoenix and San Francisco, but Waymo has big plans for both territories.

In Phoenix, for instance, self-driving cars are no longer limited to just the metro area and will travel to nearby communities like Chandler, Tempe and Mesa. This totals 180 square miles of territory and is four times larger than the initial service area back when it launched in 2020. Phoenix also hosts a true open beta of the service, as anyone in the area with the Waymo One app can order up a piping hot robo-car. Waymo opened up a second physical ride-hailing station in the city to help shuttle folks to and from the airport.

The company has only been in San Francisco for several months, so don’t expect the same kind of growth as seen in Phoenix. Still, Waymo says the service is expanding to new parts of the city, like North Beach and Fisherman’s Wharf. You must be enrolled in the company’s Trusted Tester program to hail a self-driving car in the city for now, as the company’s still waiting for a final permit to open up the program to the general public. To that end, Waymo says there are currently “tens of thousands” of San Francisco residents on the waitlist.

“Waymo One remains the only and largest 24/7 fully autonomous ride-hailing service in the world — serving thousands of rides in multiple key markets — and we’re scaling quickly,” said Saswat Panigrahi, Waymo Chief Product Officer.

The company touts more than ten thousand trips per week with a proposed increase to 100,000 trips by next summer. To get there, Waymo says it’s implementing software updates to increase reliability, with improved hand gesture detection, more versatile multi-point maneuvers and new tools to deal with inclement weather. The Alphabet-owned brand is also converting to an all-electric fleet. Finally, Waymo hasn’t forgotten about Los Angeles, its newest trial city, saying it continues to “grow rider-only testing operations” in the area.

Nearly eight years after the start of Dieselgate, one of the highest-ranking executives implicated in the scandal is set to plead guilty. The New York Times reports former Audi CEO Rupert Stadler has agreed to accept a plea deal that will see him confess that he allowed Audi to continue selling diesel cars even after Volkswagen, the automaker’s parent company, admitted its vehicles had illegal software designed to cheat government emissions tests. Per The Times, a Munich state court said on Wednesday that Stadler would also pay a €1.1 million fine and serve a sentence of up to two years. The former executive is expected to make his confession in about two weeks.

Since the start of his trial in 2020, Stadler had maintained he was innocent of any wrongdoing. In court, Volkswagen has insisted that Dieselgate was the work of employees who hid the software they created from the company’s leadership. While at Audi, Stadler also served as a member of Volkswagen’s management board. Alongside Stadler, German prosecutors are set to convict two other former executives: Wolfgang Hatz and Zaccheo Giovanni Pamio. The former previously led engine development at Audi and Porsche, while the latter was involved in designing the software that allowed Volkswagen vehicles to cheat emissions tests.

In 2017, Volkswagen agreed to pay $4.3 billion to settle fraud and other criminal and civil charges brought by the Department of Justice after the company admitted that nearly 600,000 diesel cars sold in the US were compromised by its “defeat device.” Those vehicles were programmed to detect when they were being tested on a set of rollers and would, as a result, produce fewer emissions than out on the road. According to court documents filed by German prosecutors, Audi engineers originally designed the software that Volkswagen would later deploy in its vehicles. Since Dieselgate came to light, the German automaker has agreed to pay more than $20 billion in fines and legal settlements.

Ford is restarting sales of the Mustang Mach E for this year, and your patience has paid off if you missed your chance the first time around. The crossover SUV's starting price has dropped $3,000 to $42,995 (before a $3,750 federal tax credit) for an RWD Standard Range trim, with a matching price cut for its $45,995 AWD counterpart. They're also more capable vehicles — all Standard Range variants use lithium iron phosphate batteries that extend their range to 250 miles (RWD) or 226 miles (AWD) while adding 45HP. They now take a more reasonable 33 minutes to charge from 10 percent to 80 percent on a DC fast charger, and they're more likely to reach maximum capacity through AC charging at home.

The hardware for BlueCruise hands-free highway driving is now standard. You'll still have to pay to unlock it, but you now get a 90-day trial that lets you activate if and when you're ready. You can still pay for three years (now $2,100 instead of $1,900) if you're already sold on the concept. BlueCruise 1.2 adds turn signal-activated lane changes and repositioning that keeps you away from semis and other vehicles that might intrude into your lane.

Higher-end models also have their share of price cuts. The Premium Standard Range models are dropping by $4,000 to reach $46,995 for an RWD configuration and $49,995 for AWD. Buy a California Route 1 AWD Extended Range and you'll pay $56,995, or $1,000 less. And if you insist on the most powerful model, the GT is down $4,000 to $59,995.

Crucially, there's a better chance you'll get a vehicle in the first place. Ford is scaling up Mustang Mach-E production for the second half of the year to help meet demand. The automaker doesn't say when you can expect to receive a new order, but you may not have to rush to purchase like you did before.

The price cuts come just months after Ford slashed Mustang Mach-E prices up to $5,900, and reflect "lower costs" on Ford's end. The brand previously said the switch to lithium iron phosphate batteries would help it make 600,000 EVs per year by the end of 2023 by expanding capacity, lowering production costs and reducing the need for shortage-prone resources like nickel.

Ford is also under pressure to drop prices, mind you. Tesla has cut prices multiple times in 2023, and the Model 3 now starts at $40,240. A cheaper, upgraded Mustang Mach-E could keep customers interested, even if it doesn't get the full $7,500 tax credit that applies to Tesla's sedan.

E-scooter company Unagi, founded by former Beats Music CEO David Hyman, has inserted itself into a corner of pop culture. Its stylish scooters are often found in the hands of celebrities and musicians, setting themselves apart from the generic rental models found on street corners. Now, the company has unveiled the Model One Voyager, a second-generation version of its existing Model One, which the company will either sell to you outright, or rent to you for $55 a month. Given the plaudits afforded to that device, it should come as no surprise that the Voyager opts not to fix what wasn’t broken, but focuses on addressing its predecessor’s (relatively few) flaws.

Long-time Unagi followers may recall the company had been working on the Model Eleven, a wildly ultra-premium scooter to top off its lineup. Priced at $2,440, the Eleven would have offered GPS tracking, turn-by-turn directions and an ADAS collision sensor. Unagi killed the product, saying that the market was turning away from pricey, one-off purchases toward a service model. The majority of its customers presently pay $55 a month to rent a Model One, with the company taking care of the maintenance and insurance. And that switch in focus is likely to produce more models that look to evolve the existing concept, rather than offering something more dramatic.

To avoid all of the cliches, let’s get them all out of the way in a single paragraph and be done with it. The Voyager is a polish, an evolution, a refinement on the existing Model One template, and you’ll struggle to tell them apart looking at them from a distance. It uses the same industrial design, and the same high-end materials, although the neck and fork angles have been tweaked for better stability. It remains one of the best-looking e-scooters on the market today, with a clean, elegant design and color choices which straddle the line between transport and fashion statement.

Instead, the big changes are all on the inside, with a specific focus on addressing issues around range and power that existing Model One renters have grappled with. For instance, while the Model One’s quoted range tops out at a less-than-ideal 12 miles, the Voyager stretches to 25, which should be enough to get you where you need to go and back without anxiety. Now, real-world mileage will be wildly different based on your use (and your weight), but the hope is that the Voyager will eliminate range anxiety for most people.

Daniel Cooper / Engadget

The second new feature, Distance To Empty, is a system that calculates your remaining range. It’s not hugely sophisticated, since it uses a dynamic look-up table checking your weight, speed profile and hill profile against the existing battery level. But a better-educated guess about how much further you can go is likely to be a better deal than just letting you see the percentage of battery that’s still there and letting you hope for the best.

As well as the attention paid to make sure you’ve got enough power in your Voyager, there’s a lot of focus on getting it back out again. The Model One could produce 26 newton meters of torque, but the Voyager will knock out 32, with both motors offering a combined peak power of 1,000W. Unagi said that you can expect to see a 25 percent improvement in acceleration and deceleration out of the motors, and that you’ll see charging times fall in half compared to the Model One. That’s before we get to the promised improvements in hill climbing, where Unagi said that riders should “prepare to magically clobber hills that seem insurmountable.”

Disclaimer: I’m based in the UK, and it is presently illegal to ride an e-scooter on public roads and pavements. There is a generous exception for a series of government-approved e-scooter trials currently in place, but private scooters are all but banned. For this review, I primarily used private roads and other private spaces, where the laws do not apply, rather than in public. While the target audience for this review is primarily American, our lawyers have reminded us to say that Engadget does not condone breaking the law, and would-be UK users risk having their scooters seized, or facing criminal penalties including points on your driving license and a fine. That said, Unagi does sell the Model One to UK customers for £899, if you’re prepared to bear the risk for yourself.

You won’t need to spend a lot of time inside Voyager’s companion app, which connects to the scooter over Bluetooth. You’ll see your Odometer and Distance to Empty figures, and can toggle between single- and dual-motor modes. (You’ll really mostly stick in dual-motor mode which offers better range and performance unless you’re on a flat surface and don’t need to speed up or slow down too often.) You can also activate the front light and, crucially, lock the scooter’s wheels to make it harder for a nefarious type to steal it.

Daniel Cooper / Engadget

If there’s one thing Unagi should have, but didn’t, improve upon from the original, it was the ride quality. Specifically, making an effort to help the Voyager smooth out the sometimes less than pristine asphalt on our streets. Voyager comes with the same small, hard rubber tyres as the Model One, without much in the way of suspension or shock absorption. When I can feel every bump and crack in the road, it dents my confidence as to how far I want to ride this thing.

Admittedly, this is a common problem with a lot of e-scooters, but it’s one worth examining if you’re charging two or three times the cost of a run-of-the-mill Xiaomi. Sure, the monthly rent cost covers maintenance, insurance and everything else, but it’s still a premium product. It all depends if you’re living somewhere with flat, well-maintained roads, because none of this will concern you. But if your streets have more than a few cracks in them, be prepared to feel all of them in your knees.

I will say, Unagi shared with me both a confidence in its puncture-proof tyres and a belief that more can be done. A representative said that improvements to both the tyres and deckpad are in the pipeline, although neither will be ready for some time. It’s not yet clear if these tweaks will be available on a future version of the Voyager, or if they’ll be held back for the next new model, the Model Two, pegged to arrive at some point in 2024.

This is perhaps the one demerit I can offer, however, as everything else has seen the details sweated, and for a good cause. There’s the same set of electronic throttle and brake as found on the previous model, the latter of which I found very easy to trust. It’s a personal preference I know, but I’ve often preferred the comfort of a mechanical brake on cheaper e-scooters to give me a sense of security when it comes to stopping. Oh, I can also gripe about the milquetoast horn, which I’m sure wouldn’t send a group of slow-moving pedestrians scattering out of your way, but that really is it.

Daniel Cooper / Engadget

If you’re unfamiliar with the Model One, and you’ve been using an e-scooter with a smartphone mount, then the Voyager’s display may feel a bit minimal. There’s an old-school feel to the data on show, with a brightly-backlit speedometer that’s easily visible in strong light. That’s key, since you’ll have to take your eyes off the road to check your speed – although I will admit that I find my gut tells me how much speed I can handle based on the surrounding areas rather than trying to stick to a solid figure.

Below that figure, you’ll find either the odometer or trip computer, based on your preference, and below that, the battery display. At the bottom, you’ll also be able to see which speed profile the scooter is set in, and icons telling you if you’re in single or dual-motor mode. To be honest, I don’t know how much extra data you might need on a scooter display, and I like the neat and tidy way that all of this information has been laid out.

On flat, straight roads and gentle inclines, I found the Voyager to offer rather excellent balance. With some practice, I was able to get my turning circle down to the bare minimum, and it’s easy to ride at slow speeds. It’s even pretty easy to ride when you open up the throttle and try to get close to that top speed, even if I was too chicken to get it to max out. Similarly, the headlights are bright enough, although if I was riding this on roads at night, I’d be tempted to get a head or shirt-worn rear light since the deck-height brake light is a bit low.

The Voyager weighs the better part of 30 pounds, and it’s a significant lump to haul around in your hands. 30 pounds may not sound like a lot, but with the scooter folded down it’s quite an unwieldy thing to carry in your hand. I pulled my back one night and, the following day, tried to carry this to a private road for testing before bailing out and throwing it in the car instead. That solidity may make it prohibitive for you to carry up every flight of stairs in your building, but it also gives you confidence that it won’t fall apart after a few weeks of use.

Daniel Cooper / Engadget

If you’re already sold on the idea of toting one of these around with you, you’ll now need to look at the figures. The Unagi Model One Voyager costs $1,190 to buy, but the company doesn’t expect many people to buy it outright. Instead, it hopes they will opt to rent their scooter via the Unagi All-Access program which includes service and, for an extra fee, theft insurance.

The basic payment is $69 a month for a no-commitment rental, with theft insurance an extra $5 per month. You can also request a “guaranteed brand new scooter” for an additional $10 monthly premium. As the name implies, this will guarantee that you will get brand-new hardware both when you sign up, and also if you need a replacement. Plus, of course, you’ll need to pony up a one-time sign-up fee of $50. Adding that all up and dividing by twelve means that to have one of these in your life, your monthly outgoing will be $89 a month.

Now, you’ll have to decide if you’ll get that paid back compared to, say, using the local Lime or Bird scooters in your area. The obvious benefit is that you’ll be able to ride your own scooter and you’ll never have to scrub around looking for a working model when you’re out and about. The downside is that it’s a fairly significant outlay each month so you’d better be sure that you will get your money’s worth by using the scooter as your primary mode of transportation.

Meanwhile, if you’re already living inside Unagi’s scooter rental ecosystem and paying for a Model One, then you can upgrade to Voyager by switching your plan to the more expensive option and paying the one-off charge of $50.

If you’ve been looking for a scooter that will hopefully last you a long while, get you to and from wherever you need to go, and look good while doing it, then this is probably a decent bet.