Automotive News, Car Reviews, and Podcast
Rats chewing car wires cost thousands to repair. The viral cures (Irish Spring, peppermint, ultrasonic repellers) mostly fail. Here is what actually works.
Read moreSomewhere between the $400,000 resto-mod builds and the rusty barn finds that need everything, there’s a sweet spot. A restored 1963 GMC K1000 4×4, a matching 1960 Shasta Compact camper trailer, and a bespoke aluminum camper shell are selling as a three-piece set on Hemmings. The package looks like it rolled off a curated Instagram feed, except someone actually built these to use. The truck underwent a nut-and-bolt restoration with a specific philosophy: look factory, drive modern. The rebuilt 283 cubic-inch V8 pairs with a Novak SM420 four-speed transmission and NP205 transfer case. Four-wheel disc brakes with hydroboost replaced the original drums. PSC power steering replaced the arm workout. The paint references GMC’s original Pearl Grey code, and unless you
Read moreThe Weekly Driver has launched a free engine-specific reliability database covering 4,553 engines across 50 brands, built entirely from 1,508,163 federal safety complaints filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. It is live now and open to anyone shopping for a used car. No subscription, no manufacturer sponsorship, no paywall. What separates this tool from existing reliability resources is specificity. Consumer Reports and J.D. Power rate vehicles by model; this rates them by engine. That distinction matters more than most buyers realize. Take the Ford F-150 from 2009 to 2014. The generation accumulated 26,884 NHTSA complaints. Sounds terrible. But the 5.0L V8 in that same truck? Sixty-six complaints total. Rated “Recommended.” The EcoBoost variants drove the overwhelming majority of
Read moreThe invoice read $387. Two hundred of that was labor. The repair itself took the dealership technician roughly 40 minutes: swap out the cabin air filter and the engine air filter. Both filters cost $34 total on Amazon. The rest was pure markup and a labor rate that had climbed to $175 an hour. This is the reality of car ownership in 2026. AAA estimates the average driver spends $1,400 to $1,500 annually on maintenance and repairs. Dealership labor rates now average $125 to $175 per hour nationally. Independent shops charge less, typically $80 to $125, but even those numbers have jumped 15 to 20 percent in recent years. The good news: a surprising number of routine maintenance tasks require
Read moreThe sinking feeling arrives a few days after you drive home. Something about the paperwork doesn’t add up. The monthly payment is higher than you agreed to. There’s a $1,200 “protection package” you never discussed. The financing terms shifted somewhere between the handshake and the signature. You’re not alone. Auto-related complaints have topped the Consumer Federation of America’s annual survey for nine consecutive years. The Federal Trade Commission received 21,400 auto fraud complaints in just the first quarter of 2025, a 43% increase over the same period in 2024. At that pace, consumers will file nearly 90,000 formal fraud complaints this year, shattering previous records. The regulatory landscape has shifted against consumers. On January 27, 2025, the Fifth Circuit Court
Read moreUpdated May 2026. Refreshed with EIA February 2026 electricity rates, AFDC May 2026 charging infrastructure data, and Alliance for Automotive Innovation Q3-Q4 2025 EV registration data. Several state incentive programs have contracted since this article was first published in January 2026, including Washington (sales tax exemption expired July 2025), Vermont (Replace Your Ride defunded), Minnesota (rebate program closed), Oregon (rebates suspended), and Maryland (FY2026 funding exhausted). Per-state writeups reflect program status as of the refresh date. One in three new vehicles sold in Colorado last quarter was electric. In Wyoming, fewer than 800 EVs exist statewide. Same country, same year, radically different realities. The American EV market fractured in 2025. The federal tax credit died on September 30. Ford announced
Read moreThe 2026 Subaru Forester Wilderness stands as a capable refuge for those seeking to car camp off the beaten path. Its interior design and robust roof rails transform it into a mobile basecamp, ready to deliver you to remote forests and mountain valleys. With the rear seats folded flat, the cargo area opens to 69.1 cubic feet of usable space. That’s enough room for an under-6-foot adult to stretch fully while the rigid frame and reinforced structure keep you secure. The roof rails, designed to support rooftop tents with an 800-pound static load capacity, add another dimension to adventure. While I utilized the spacious cargo bay on my trips, other Forester owners in the community have successfully mounted lightweight rooftop
Read moreLG Electronics will showcase AI-powered in-vehicle technology at CES 2026 in January, featuring transparent OLED windshields displaying contextual information, cameras tracking eye movements and gestures, and systems designed to anticipate passenger needs before explicit requests. The suite won CES 2026’s Best of Innovation Award in In-Vehicle Entertainment, marking the first time LG Vehicle Solution Company has claimed the category’s top prize. The technology demonstrations deliver immediate impact: windshields displaying cherry blossoms floating past during autonomous driving, cameras detecting when passengers glance at building advertisements to instantly surface product information, AI systems retrieving old photos when the vehicle passes locations tied to stored memories. Here’s the part that matters: LG doesn’t build cars. They build components that automakers might integrate years
Read moreTechnology | Updated: May 14, 2026 Almost six years after BMW shipped the first vehicle with Apple Car Key, the technology now ships across 23 automotive brands, with ten more on Apple’s announced list. Three of those brands moved from announced to shipping in the past six months: Rivian in December, Toyota in February, and Porsche this week. The Toyota launch matters most. The world’s largest automaker spent years charging for its proprietary digital key system before quietly rolling out Apple Car Key on the 2026 RAV4 in February without a press release. Owners discovered it on Reddit. Toyota’s implementation still requires an active Remote Connect subscription at $15 per month after the one-year trial. Apple Car Key is free
Read moreFord built the F-150 Lightning for three years, delivering approximately 63,000 trucks across three model years despite planning production capacity for 150,000 units annually. Originally promised at $40,000, the vehicles ultimately sold for $70,000, creating a pricing gap that fundamentally undermined the business case. Production ended December 2025 after Ford‘s Model e division accumulated $3.6 billion in losses through September. CEO Jim Farley addressed the reality directly: “These really expensive $70,000 electric trucks, as much as I love the product, they didn’t make sense.” The replacement arrives as an EREV, Extended-Range Electric Vehicle, Ford‘s terminology for a plug-in hybrid combining larger battery capacity with a gas generator to extend total range beyond 700 miles. The all-electric F-150 experiment concludes. What
Read moreOn December 16, 2025, a four-seat electric aircraft lifted off autonomously at Wisk Aero’s test facility in Hollister, California. The Generation 6 aircraft hovered, maneuvered through stabilized flight sequences, and returned to the ground. No pilot aboard. No remote control from the ground beyond supervisory monitoring. This marks Wisk’s first flight of the aircraft they plan to certify for commercial passenger service by 2030. The company, wholly owned by Boeing, positions the Generation 6 as the first-ever candidate for FAA-certified autonomous commercial passenger flight in the United States. First flights represent critical early milestones in aircraft development while simultaneously representing the easiest phase of a process stretching years and costing hundreds of millions of dollars. Wisk completed the straightforward portion. The challenging
Read moreA flooring contractor with 30 years in the trade calls the ProMaster “by far the best vehicle I’ve had for work.” A mobile mechanic who has run every type of van over four decades says nothing matches it for cargo access. A plumber at 6’3″ walks the center aisle without ducking. These aren’t marketing claims. They come from owners who load these vans heavy, six days a week. The ProMaster’s advantage is structural: front-wheel drive eliminates the driveshaft tunnel, so the cargo floor is flat from wall to wall. The 21-inch load floor sits seven inches lower than the Ford Transit’s. The 75-inch interior width fits standard pallet racking. These dimensions shape every upfit decision, from shelf depth to partition
Read moreThree vans dominate the North American full-size cargo market, and each one reflects a different engineering philosophy. The RAM ProMaster prioritizes cargo width and low loading height. The Ford Transit has the broadest powertrain range. The Mercedes-Benz Sprinter bets on diesel efficiency and longevity. I spent a week with the 2025 RAM ProMaster 2500 High Roof, loading paddle boards and a steel workbench. The cargo versatility and parking-lot agility impressed me. But the Transit and Sprinter answer questions the ProMaster can’t, and whether that matters depends on your routes, your cargo, and your budget. This comparison covers 2025 models, all in High Roof configurations. Prices and specifications reflect base models before options and destination. Key Takeaways At a Glance: Three
Read moreThe ProMaster 2500 is the middle child in RAM’s commercial lineup, between the lighter-duty 1500 and the heavy-hauling 3500. The one I’m reviewing: High Roof, 159-inch wheelbase. That’s the configuration most buyers choose for its balance of standing room and cargo length without the extended-wheelbase overhang. Base price is $50,860. This one hit $63,225. The SLT Plus Package ($6,995) adds LED headlamps, a 10.1-inch Uconnect touchscreen with navigation, adaptive cruise control with stop-and-go, power-folding heated mirrors, remote start, and a 220-amp alternator. The Advanced Safety Group ($1,795) brought surround-view cameras, automated parking, lane centering, and a leather-wrapped steering wheel. RAM also fitted the optional wood cargo floor ($495), upper and lower side-wall paneling ($590), and a Class IV receiver hitch
Read moreWinter driving changes how your vehicle performs. Whether you drive a gas car, hybrid, electric, or hydrogen vehicle, cold weather brings new challenges. This guide covers specific winter tips for each powertrain type, plus universal safety advice every driver needs to know, relevant for vehicles up to 2026. Electric Vehicles (BEVs): Battery-Only Electric Cars Electric vehicles rely entirely on battery power. Cold temperatures drain that battery faster than warm weather. Understanding how this works helps you plan better winter trips. How Cold Affects Your Battery Your EV’s battery contains chemical reactions that create and release energy. When it gets cold, these reactions slow down significantly. Your battery becomes less efficient at the same time your car needs extra power to
Read moreThe 2025 Los Angeles Auto Show returns to the Los Angeles Convention Center from November 21-30, delivering ten full days of automotive innovation, immersive experiences, and exclusive debuts that solidify its reputation as one of the most influential auto shows in the world. With more than 118 years of history, this year’s show promises record-breaking automaker participation, hands-on driving experiences, and showcases that blend cutting-edge technology with Southern California’s legendary car culture. The Weekly Driver will be on the ground for AutoMobility LA on November 20, the exclusive media and industry day, delivering firsthand coverage of the vehicle debuts, press conferences, and industry insights that set the stage for the public show. Show Dates, Hours and Ticket Information The 2025
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