Commentary Archives - The Weekly Driver

Car Repairs You Can Do Yourself With Zero Experience (and How Much You’ll Save)

The 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

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What to Do If a Car Dealership Scammed You: A Complete Legal Guide

The 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

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Apple Car Key Guide: All Supported Vehicles

Technology | 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

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Winter Driving Tips for All Vehicle Types: 2025-2026 Guide

Winter 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

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The Untold Challenge of Electric Vehicles: What Happens to the Batteries?

The rapid electrification of the global automotive industry has made electric vehicles (EVs) a central piece of efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. While the shift to EVs brings the promise of cleaner transportation, the supply chain and lifecycle of EV batteries introduce complex environmental challenges. The creation of a circular economy around EV batteries—a system that minimizes waste by reusing and recycling materials—is seen as a solution to these challenges. Building this system from scratch requires innovation, regulatory support, and technological advancements. Beyond merely reducing emissions, it aims to optimize resource use, limit reliance on virgin materials, and create a sustainable infrastructure for handling millions of EV batteries over the coming decades. EV Battery Boom: Critical Infrastructure The surge

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Italy’s Driving Craze: Odd Names, High Speeds

Occasionally, a Ferrari or another elite supercar that made the country’s automotive industry famous, maneuver along small roads in Naples, Italy. But they’re outliers, open-road machines glorified in movies and showcased by snooty auction houses. Little cars, some familiar but with unfamiliar names reign in the nation’s maze of constant congestion and ego-driven driving. Narrow, often cobblestoned streets are the canvas for the pedestrian-versus-driver turf conflicts. Who goes first and why is hard to determine. It’s a skill honed more by instantaneous visual assertiveness rather than emotional outbursts. For automotive enthusiasts, observing the vast array of scooters, new and old petite vehicles from Fiat and the small transport vehicles, the Ape Calessino made by Piaggio, can supersede the frustration of

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Electric Vehicle Winter Survival Guide

As winter’s chill grips the roads, electric vehicle (EV) owners face unique challenges. The impact of cold weather on EV performance and maintenance is of increasing importance for drivers. This electric vehicle winter survival guide delves into the crucial aspects of maintaining and optimizing EV performance during the colder months. From the recent surge in reports of range reduction and charging difficulties in frigid areas like Chicago and Texas, this guide is tailored to equip EV enthusiasts with essential tips and strategies for navigating the winter season. Stay ahead in the cold weather game with your EV by following expert advice and insights. The primary challenge for EVs in wintry weather is battery efficiency. In low temperatures, the movement of

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Readers Write: A love affair with Tony Bennett

As it turns out, Tony Bennett’s music influenced a lot of people. It’s an obvious statement, of course. But what is surprising is how many remembrances of the recently deceased entertainer are similar. Shortly after Bennett died, I wrote an essay and posted it to TheWeeklyDriver.com. The article also appeared on Aug. 7 in the print editions of the San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times, daily newspapers in the San Francisco Bay Area owned by Bay Area News Group. The article resonated with readers, many of who expressed their memories and compliments via email. To further celebrate Bennett’s life and what he meant to people in and around San Francisco, here’s a post that shares readers’ memories and a

Commentary, Automotive News

A family remembrance: driving with Tony Bennett

Our family left Ridgewood, N.J. for Walnut Creek, Ca., in 1961. The former had snow and woods to explore, the latter walnut tree orchards and dry rolling hills, a youngster’s paradise. We moved because my father accepted an opportunity to open a San Francisco office of a New York-based insurance company. Tony Bennett seemed like family we never met. My grandfather immigrated from Sicily and lived from my earliest memories with my grandmother, in Queens, N.Y, Bennett’s birthplace. They raised three children, including my father, Anthony, who was almost always called Tony but also Sonny by relatives. They’re all now deceased. My mother, Elinore, who died in January at age 93, and my father were the only family members who

Automotive News, Commentary

Tiger Woods driving again but he should never drive again

The fandom and television network adulation stopped for a while, but now it’s all back. Tiger Woods is playing in The Masters this week and it will be celebrated as miraculous and with additional adjectives always best used sparingly, particularly in sport. Woods apparently didn’t spend much time considering the possibility of his children being fatherless before he crashed on Feb. 23, 2021, while driving twice the speed limit on a notoriously dangerous Southern California road. The golfer was lucky. Removed from his Genesis SUV via the “Jaws of Life” after suffering substantial leg injuries, Woods was alive, but a lot was unknown. Would he have brain damage? Would he have a leg amputated? Would he walk and talk again?

Automotive News, Commentary

The Weekly Driver letters: Used trucks, Lexus, Sonata PHEV

The Weekly Driver is a companion website to the weekly Autopia column I contribute to the San Jose Mercury and East Bay Times. Some of my automotive content also appears on RVtravel.com and in Gulfshore Business in Florida. It’s also distributed by Motor Matters, a syndicate in Delaware. With that variety of outlets, sometimes I receive letters from readers. It’s great. With permission from the letter writers, I’m posting a recent batch of comments. Some editing for style, clarity and brevity has occurred. Thank you for reading my content and for taking the time to email. Stay in touch. Cheers, James Raia (The Weekly Driver.) LEXUS SUV FAN WITH REASON Stephen Comstock, Eau Claire, Michigan, writes: I have just read

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Motorcycle icon Mary McGee honored guest for pending Sacramento Mile

Mary McGee arrived on the Monterey Peninsula in 1962 ready to compete at Laguna Seca Raceway. With five friends, including another rider, the group was also abruptly asked to leave a restaurant because they were “motorcycle people.” McGee, now 82, and her dining companions complied and they ate elsewhere without issue. The Hall of Fame rider also competed and she continued to do for many decades around the country and in several disciplines — as a pioneering woman motorsports athlete. McGee, who lives in Gardnerville, Nev., was a guest in July at the World Superbike Championships at WeatherTech Raceway Laguna Seca. With her career of memories, she also carried two copies of black-and-white images of her race 57 years ago.

Automotive News, Commentary

Matt Damon, Christian Bale set for FORD v. FERRARI film

Among the epic rivalries in motorsports, Ford v. Ferrari and the 1966 contest between Carroll Shelby and Kevin Miles at Ford and Enzo Ferrari and his entourage at the 24 Hours of LeMans is unsurpassed. Actors Matt Damon and Christian Bale weren’t born yet when the respective drivers and carmakers from Ford and Ferrari matched their driving skills and risk-taking desires in the famous French race. But the accomplished actors will portray the icons in the film FORD v. FERRARI. 20th Century Fox recently released the official trailer and poster for the pending film. It’s based on the story of Shelby, the visionary American car designer, and Miles, the fearless British-born driver. They’re dispatched by Henry Ford II and the

Automotive News, Commentary

Ray Elliott Commentary: Never buy a Chrysler product

Oh My God. Never buy a Chrysler product. My reasoning? It’s a dangerous product that not only thinks for you, but also will endanger your life and damage the interior for something as simple as a flat tire. This, in my opinion, is one of the best examples of piss-poor engineering. Why? My first example was when I encountered one of these vans last winter. It was two weeks old, still with dealer plates, and it had overheated. It did start and run, but the windows were frosted over because of the cold morning. To see where I was going, I lowered the driver’s window to stick my head out. When I lifted my butt off of the driver’s seat,

Commentary, Automotive News

Commentary: Elon Musk unhinged on 60 Minutes?

During the mid-1980s, comedian Martin Short had a recurring character on Saturday Night Live named Nathan Thurm, an always-defensive defensive attorney. I couldn’t help but think of the character while watching Elon Musk being interviewed Sunday night by Lesley Stahl on 60 Minutes. Like the Short’s character, who always appeared jittery while chain-smoking and making nervous facial expressions, Musk often looked uncomfortable during the opening segment of the perennially popular news program. Musk called out the Securities and Exchange Commission, which recently charged the founder of Tesla with fraud when he used Twitter to announce the possibility of taking electric car company private. The case was settled with Musk paying a $20 million fine and leaving his role as chairman

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Danica Patrick: ‘Daytona 500, Indy 500, then I’m done’

Danica Patrick, the fiery and vastly popular race car driver, will retire in 2018 after competing in motorsports‘ two biggest races, the Daytona 500 in February and Indianapolis 500 in May. “I am done after May,” Patrick said on the eve of her last race this season. “Everyone needs to put their mind there. My plan is to be at Indy and then I’m done.” Patrick currently competes full-time in the Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 10 Ford Fusion for Stewart-Haas Racing. Patrick’s contract will end Sunday after the season-ending Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series race at Homestead-Miami. Patrick, 35, has established many firsts for female drivers and is the most successful woman driver in the history