Trade News

WASHINGTON -- Tesla Inc. has submitted a partial response to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's information request issued as part of the agency's formal safety probe into the automaker's Autopilot driver-assistance system.

NHTSA said in an Oct. 22 memo released Monday that Tesla's response "has been received and is being reviewed. The company has requested confidential business information treatment for the entirety of the information request."

On Aug. 31, NHTSA sent Tesla an 11-page letter with questions it was required to answer by Oct. 22 as part of its investigation.

Earlier this month, NHTSA asked Tesla why it had not issued a recall to address software updates made to Autopilot to improve the vehicles' ability to detect emergency vehicles.

The agency's probe into 765,000 U.S. vehicles came after a series of crashes involving Tesla models and emergency vehicles.

To date, NHTSA has identified 12 crashes that involved…

Detroit-area startup Our Next Energy's two-battery solution to EV range anxiety has caught the attention of high-profile investors.

How do I subscribe?

Can't wait to hear the next episode of "Daily Drive"? Subscribe through a podcast app to receive episodes days in advance. If you don't have a podcast app already, here are some options. 

iPhone / iPad

“Daily Drive” is available on the iTunes Store and through the ‘Podcast’ app pre-installed on all iOS devices. Click here to subscribe to "Daily Drive"

Android

“Daily Drive” is available on the Google Play store. Click here to subscribe to "Daily Drive"

Spotify

"Daily Drive" is available on Spotify. Click here to subscribe to "Daily Drive"

BERLIN -- German chemical giant BASF and Chinese battery manufacturer SVolt have formed a partnership to develop battery materials, the companies said on Monday in a joint statement.

The partnership is focused on development of cathode active materials as well as raw materials supply and the recycling of battery cells from SVolt, the companies said without disclosing financial details.

SVolt is the latest company in China that BASF has attached itself to in its quest to expand into the battery market. The German company recently agreed to work with battery manufacturer CATL and formed a joint venture with supplier Shanshan for battery materials.

BASF had said its battery materials business is likely to generate more than 1.5 billion euros ($1.76 billion) in sales by 2023 and more than 7 billion euros by 2030 as electric vehicle production surges.

BEIJING -- Tesla Inc. said on Monday it had built a research center and a separate data center in Shanghai, where it manufactures Model 3 sedans and Model Ycrossovers.

The auto research and development center, Tesla's first outside the United States, employs engineers for software, electronics, materials and charging, it said in a statement.

The new data center for factory production will store Tesla's operation data locally. Last month, China's industry ministry published new draft measures that require companies to store important industry-related data locally.

During a wide-reaching global semiconductor chip shortage over the past months, Tesla's research team had tweaked some software programs and made adjustments to ease the pressure brought by the chip shortage, according to the statement.

Tesla, however, did not say whether it uses fewer chips in its vehicles.

In May, Tesla said it had established a site in China to store car data in…

Ian Podkamien, vice president and head of automotive at Vayyar, discusses how 4-D imaging technology works, how it will benefit consumers and when it might become widely available.

Hertz said on Monday the car rental firm has ordered 100,000 Tesla Inc. cars for delivery by the end of 2022 as it invests to build the largest EV rental fleet in North America.

Tesla shares were up 4 percent at $946.32 before the bell. Bloomberg first reported the story earlier Monday.

Hertz had filed for bankruptcy protection last year as travel demand sank during the height of the pandemic and talks with creditors failed to provide relief.

It was rescued by a group of investors including Knighthead Capital Management, Certares Opportunities and Apollo Capital Management.

Earlier this month, Hertz named former Ford chief Mark Fields as interim CEO.

The cars will be delivered over the next 14 months, and Tesla's Model 3 sedans will be available to rent at Hertz locations in major U.S. markets and parts of Europe starting in early November, the rental company said in a statement. Customers will have access to Tesla’s network of supercharg…

DETROIT -- General Motors and Ford Motor Co. are likely to show investors both the positive and negative financial impacts of the global semiconductor chip shortage when the U.S. automakers report third-quarter results on Wednesday.

GM and Ford have had to bring some assembly lines to a halt for lack of semiconductors, and contend with rising costs for other parts and raw materials as well as shipping. Lost production and rising supply-chain costs put pressure on profit margins.

However, GM and Ford have been able to offset that pressure thanks to strong demand for their lucrative full-size trucks and SUVs, which has allowed them to cut back on discounts and maintain strong profits.

Investors will be listening carefully to what GM CEO Mary Barra and Ford CEO Jim Farley say about how long they can protect profits from the supply-chain storm.

Both GM and Ford have recently outlined strategies for generating more revenue from software-powered servi…

Greg Rogers, public policy manager at Nuro, explains how the company uses its robots to deliver fresh groceries, discusses the climate for AV laws in Washington D.C. and details how his experience as a ride-hailing driver influenced his views on transportation.

How do I subscribe?

Apple Podcasts: “Shift: A podcast about mobility” is available on the iTunes Store and through the ‘Podcast’ app pre-installed on all iOS devices. Click here to subscribe.

Spotify: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" can be streamed through Spotify on your desktop, tablet or mobile device. Click here to subscribe.

Google Play: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" is available on Android devices through the Google Play store. Click here to subscribe.

KAMINOKAWA, Japan — Japanese automakers, once hailed as electrified-vehicle pioneers but derided of late as reluctant laggards, are finally getting their heads into the global EV game.

The effort begins now, with one of the country's biggest automakers and one of its smallest lifting the curtain on secretive EV manufacturing hubs that reveal the automakers' innovative thinking about how to make EVs profitably.

Nissan Motor Co., an EV leader a decade ago that was quickly surpassed by international rivals, is firing up a completely renovated plant to churn out new EVs this winter. And low-volume Mazda Motor Corp. has designed a new line to roll out electrified vehicles.

The factory updates — costing hundreds of millions of dollars — indicate that Japan's players intend to use their world-renowned expertise in lean manufacturing and creative continuous improvement, or kaizen, to compete in EVs.

The production tricks used…

Profit is not a dirty word in EV-battery recycling. In fact, Jessica Durham, a materials scientist at Argonne National Laboratory, says it's key, just as it is in traditional vehicle and 12-volt lead-acid battery recycling.

"To be able to recycle EV batteries, there's going to have to be some type of profit," said Durham. "Or else people are not going to want to do it. And the more profit we have, the more people will be willing to adopt this technology."

Argonne's researchers say they've found an old mining process that cuts down the cost of processing used batteries and preserves their high-priced metallic compounds, unlike traditional methods that break them down into their lower-cost constituent parts. This clever new methodology has caught the interest of battery makers and the auto companies that use these recycled materials.

The recycling of lithium ion batteries has yet to scale up. Only about 5 percent are recycled. Today most find secondary li…