Apparently those Super Bowl ads finally did the trick. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced on Thursday that Tesla is recalling nearly 363,000 of its vehicles because the Full Self-Driving software may cause a crash. Specifically, the NHTSA cites a risk to "exceed speed limits or travel through intersections in an unlawful or unpredictable manner increases the risk of a crash."

In all, the recall impacts 362,758 vehicles. They include, according to the announcement, “certain 2016-2023 Model S, Model X, 2017-2023 Model 3, and 2020-2023 Model Y vehicles equipped with Full Self-Driving Beta (FSD Beta) software or pending installation.” Tesla will release an OTA update, free of charge to its customers to rectify the issue, Reuters reports.

The NHSTA initially launched its investigation into Tesla's much-hyped Full Self-Driving Autopilot system back in August, 2021 following years of fatal highway accidents and terrifying social media posts documenting the software's seemingly self-destructive behavior.

"We're investing a lot of resources," NHTSA acting head Ann Carlson told reporters in January. "The resources require a lot of technical expertise, actually some legal novelty and so we're moving as quickly as we can, but we also want to be careful and make sure we have all the information we need."

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The Biden administration has unveiled new initiatives in its $7.5 billion plan to install 500,000 EV chargers on US roads by 2030. As part of that, it announced that Tesla has committed to to open up 7,500 of its charging stations to non-Tesla vehicles by the end of 2024. 

In 2021 Tesla announced that its open-access Supercharger program (currently being piloted in 16 European nations) would be coming to the US. With a firm date now in hand, the White House has revealed details of the plan. Of 7,500 chargers available for all compatible EVs, 3,500 will be new and existing 250 kW Superchargers along highway corridors. The rest will be Level 2 Destination Charging stations (22 kW max) at hotels, restaurants and other urban and rural locations. Tesla will also boost its US Supercharger network by 300 percent, officials said. 

In order to tap into the $7.5 billion in funding, companies must adopt the Combined Charging System (CCS) that dominates in the US, while offering smartphone-friendly payment options. "No matter what EV you drive, we want to make sure that you will be able to plug in, know the price you're going to be paying and charge up in a predictable, user-friendly experience," Transportation Secretary Pete Buttigieg told reporters. Tesla currently uses proprietary chargers, but has committed to adding the CCS standard as well.

Tesla's commitment is part of the White House's larger plan to have at least 500,000 EV chargers on US roads by 2030. To hit that goal, the administration has received commitments from EV manufacturers like GM and Ford, along with ChargePoint and other EV charger manufacturers. Those will add more than 100,000 public chargers available to all EVs. 

For example, GM has already committed to install up to 40,000 Level 2 stations across the US and Canada as part of its Ultium Charge 360 network. It will also install a coast-to-coast network of 2,000 350 kW fast chargers along US roads in partnership with Pilot Company and EVgo. Ford, meanwhile, plans to install DC fast chargers at 1,920 dealerships by January 2024. Hertz also plans to install thousands of BP's Pulse chargers in US cities for Hertz customers and the public. 

Early last year, the White House revealed its plan to ensure that 500,000 EV chargers are publicly available in the US as part of $7.5 billion National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) Formula Program. That's motivated by an overall plan to convert half of all new US vehicle sales to zero-emissions by 2030. There are now over 130,000 public chargers serving over three million EVs now on the road — still not nearly enough, critics have said. The first tranche of NEVI funds will be delivered to states in the coming weeks.

Kia and Hyundai released a software update on Monday after a viral TikTok challenge taught users how to hack the vehicles. But for now, it’s only available to a selected one million vehicles, out of the four million cars that will eventually need the patch.

It started as the “Kia Challenge” dating back to at least May on TikTok, demonstrating how “Kia Boys” use USB cords to hot-wire cars. Owners soon caught on to the widespread theft and began suing the car manufacturers for a lack of response. The class action lawsuit said that certain models of Kia and Hyundai cars lacked engine immobilizers, a common device that prevents car theft, making it easy to gain access, TechCrunch reported last September.

Car owners of affected models like the 2017-2020 Elantra, 2015-2019 Sonata and 2020-2021 Venue can visit a local dealership to install the anti-theft update, Hyundai said in a release. The updates include an anti-theft sticker to deter attack, a longer alarm, and the need for a physical key, rather than just a push start, to turn the vehicle on. Updates for other affected vehicles will be available by June, and you can find the whole list on Hyundai’s website.

In the meantime, Kia and Hyundai have provided about 26,000 steering wheel locks to vehicle owners to prevent theft, according to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. NHTSA got involved in the saga after thefts sparked by the Kia Challenge resulted in at least 14 reported crashes and eight fatalities, the agency said, turning it into a matter of public safety.

The European Union is one step closer to banning sales of new gas-powered cars. The European Parliament has voted in favor of a Council agreement requiring that all new passenger cars and vans produce zero emissions by 2035. The move also revises some 2030 targets. Officials will now require that at least 25 percent of car sales (and 17 percent of vans) are zero-emissions models if a company wants to qualify for incentives between 2025 and 2029. The incentive will go away in 2030.

The new rules task the European Commission with keeping an eye on real-world achievements. It will have until 2025 to develop a way to report data on the emissions of the "full life-cycle" of cars sold in the EU, and will track the gap between emission limits and real consumption data starting in 2026. From the end of 2025, the Commission will publish updates every two years to gauge progress toward zero-emissions transportation.

The Council still has to endorse the text before it can be published in the EU Official Journal and take effect. The measure loosens the pre-2035 transition rules for niche automakers that produce fewer than 10,000 new cars or 22,000 new vans per year, and those making fewer than 1,000 cars per year will still be exempt.

That final approval is largely a formality, however, and the EU's years-long move toward a gas car sales ban has already had its intended effect. Manufacturers like GM, Stellantis, Volvo and VW already plan to stop all combustion engine car sales in the region (and sometimes worldwide) by 2035 or earlier, while marques like Renault have committed to electrifying most of their lineup as soon as 2025. The shift is well underway — it's just a question of which companies finish first.

Amazon-owned Zoox has started offering driverless robotaxi rides in California after receiving a testing permit from the DMV (Department of Motor Vehicles), the company announced. Unlike the autonomous vehicles from Cruise and Waymo, Zoox's vehicles are purpose built for driverless taxi rides, so they have no steering wheel or pedals.

On February 11th, shortly after receiving the permit, Zoox conducted the "first run of its employee shuttle service in Foster City, California, marking the first time in history a purpose-built autonomous robotaxi without traditional driving controls carried passengers on open public roads," it wrote in a press release.

To get to that point, the company completed what it called "rigorous" testing with the vehicles on private roads. It also ran its L3 test fleet (hybrid Toyota Highlanders with safety drivers) over a million autonomous miles on data-gathering missions in San Francisco, Las Vegas and Seattle. 

Zoox has been developing its unique vehicles since it launched nine years ago, and was acquired by Amazon in a $1.2 billion merger in the summer of 2020. Its robotaxis, introduced later that year, are relatively tiny at 3.63 meters (11.9 feet) long, have passenger bench seats that face each other, four-wheel steering and can drive in either direction. That makes them highly maneuverable, but they can also travel at speeds up to 75 MPH and run 16 hours on a charge thanks to the immense 133kWh battery packs. 

Zoox will now offer full-time employees robotaxi rides between its Foster City offices during business hours. "As the company continues to advance its progress and secure additional government clearances, it will expand its service to the general public," the company wrote. 

Toyota has revealed its plans for the future under a new CEO, and it looks like the company is finally prioritizing electrification. In his announcement, new President and CEO Koji Sato said the automaker is going to create new electric vehicles unique to Toyota and Lexus, its luxury division. He also said that the company is developing its "next-generation" battery electric vehicles, which will launch under the Lexus brand in 2026. It's not quite clear what "next-generation" means, but Sato said Toyota is working on "everything from the battery and platform to how a car is built optimized for BEVs" while also expanding its current EV lineup.

As Reuters notes, Toyota is getting flak for dragging its feet when it comes to embracing electric vehicle technology and for its reluctance to move beyond its hybrid models, such as the Prius. Sato explained during the press conference that the automaker's slow EV adoption was mostly caused by communication issues. He also announced that the automaker will continue its "multi-pathway" and "omni-directional" approach, which means it's not going to drop its hybrid vehicles anytime soon. However, Toyota intends to accelerate its EV plans under its new management and to take on "a BEV-first mindset"

So far, the automaker has only released one vehicle, the bZ4X, based on its e-TNGA BEV platform. The company previously vowed that it was going to be the first among the seven "Beyond Zero" electric vehicles it plans to release by 2025. Meanwhile, Lexus has yet to start selling the RZ, the brand's first model that was built from the ground up as an EV.

One of the Bay Area’s most popular ferry routes is going electric. The Angel Island Ferry is partnering with Pacific Gas and Electric Company to retrofit one of its watercraft, The Angel Island, as an EV. As part of the partnership, PG&E will help install charging infrastructure at the Angel Island ferry terminal and boost electrical transmission to the facility, so that the 59-foot-long Angel Island can carry residents and tourists without polluting the San Francisco Bay. Another company called Green Yachts will carry out the work of retrofitting the ship with an electric propulsion system.

According to PG&E, the electrified Angel Island will be California’s first zero-emissions, short-run ferry once it starts carrying passengers sometime in 2024. California is one of a few places where electric ferries are about to become a more common sight. In Canada, British Columbia’s BCFerries service recently began rolling out battery-hybrid ferries that can carry 47 vehicles between the mainland and outlying islands. Outside of North America, Stockholm, starting this year, plans to trial one of the world’s fastest electric passenger vehicles. The Candela P-12 will carry passengers between the city center and the suburban island of Ekerö.

Tesla's Autopilot was not at fault in a 2021 crash in which two people died, according to the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB). In a final report spotted by Ars Technica, the agency determined that the 2019 Model S accelerated just before hitting a tree in Spring, Texas, just north of Houston. Neither occupant was in the driver's seat when they were found, leading to questions about the use of Autopilot.

Based on information provided by Tesla, the NTSB found (PDF) that the car's rapid acceleration from 39MPH to 67MPH two seconds before the crash and a loss of control of the EV was likely due to "impairment from alcohol intoxication in combination with the effects of two sedating antihistamines, resulting in a roadway departure, tree impact and post-crash fire." The NTSB says data indicated that Autopilot had not been employed "at any time during this ownership period of the vehicle." Investigators did not find any "evidence of mechanical deficiencies" that could have contributed to or caused the crash.

One of the occupants was found in the front passenger seat, while the other was in the rear. It's presumed that the driver was in the back seat because he was trying to escape. Security footage showed that the men were in the front seats as they set off, while data showed that both front seatbelts were buckled at the time of the crash — the car left the road around 550 feet from the driver's home. The men died as a result of the collision and post-crash battery fire.

Tesla has quietly raised the price of its best-selling Model Y crossover. As of Saturday, the automaker’s US website lists the Long Range and Performance models at $54,990 and $57,990, respectively. For the former, that represents a $2,000 increase from the all-time low it hit when Tesla dramatically cut prices in the middle of January. As for the Performance variant, it’s currently $1,000 more than it was after last month’s price adjustment.

As The Wall Street Journal notes, the price hikes come after the Biden administration this past Friday modified eligibility criteria related to the $7,500 federal tax credit to treat more vehicles as SUVs rather than sedans. Before the change, it was possible to get the full $7,500 Inflation Reduction Act incentive on the five-seat Model Y, but you had to configure the vehicle in a way so that it fell under the $55,000 sedan threshold. Now, all Model Y variants, including the Performance model, fall under the $80,000 SUV ceiling.

The automaker did not say if it increased Model Y pricing in response to Friday’s announcement. Following the January price cut, Tesla CFO Zach Kirkhorn said the move was partly an effort to ensure more of the company's cars fell under the $55,000 threshold. With the Model Y now comfortably under the $80,000 limit, Tesla has more freedom to price the vehicle as it sees fit.

Don't worry if the lack of a federal tax credit put you off from buying certain Tesla Model Y variants or other EVs — they might now qualify. The Treasury Department has revised its classification standard to treat more vehicles as SUVs rather than sedans, raising the price threshold from $55,000 to $80,000 and making more EVs eligible for the Internal Revenue Service's (IRS) full $7,500 credit under the Inflation Reduction Act. As Autoblogexplains, that should cover five-seat versions of the Model Y (only seven-seaters qualified before) as well as the Cadillac Lyriq, Ford Mustang Mach-E, Ford Escape Plug-in Hybrid and VW ID.4.

The Treasury expanded the classification by using the Environmental Protection Agency's public-oriented Fuel Economy Labeling standard rather than the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE). This will help treat crossovers "consistently," the department says. This also helps the credit classifications line up with what you see both on the car label and the US government's FuelEconomy.gov website.

You can claim the full amount for any qualifying EV bought and put into service in 2023, including those that weren't eligible under the CAFE standard. Any vehicle that could receive the credit before will still pass muster, the Treasury says.

The change of heart comes after the IRS invited public comments on a proposed change. Tesla chief Elon Musk encouraged input from his Twitter followers soon afterward. It's unclear how much of a role Tesla's fanbase played, but the decision isn't surprising. Under the old criteria, some of the best-known EVs didn't qualify. The credits were meant to spur EV adoption and further the Biden administration's climate goals — that was going to be harder if customers couldn't get deals on the most popular models.