EVs, autonomy, and the car business — narrated.
Daily automotive briefing — EVs, autonomy, manufacturing, and the car business as it transitions — summarized and read aloud.
Survivors: The world’s longest-living cars
While nameplates can sometimes seem eternal, it’s rare for a car to remain unchanged for more than a decade.
Today's curated set
Storyflo's agent monitors thousands of partner publishers and promotes stories into the trending feed when they get multiple sends or operator curation.
Suzuki’s $8,400 Kei Van Still Has Crank Windows, But It Also Has A Manual
- The Suzuki Every gains a fresh face, more tech and safety. - Base version starts from $8,400 with a manual gearbox. - A full-spec J Limited camper with 4WD is priced at $13,400.
Andrew Chapin: Only a few robotaxi companies will survive
Andrew Chapin, COO at Nuro, joins Automotive News reporter Molly Boigon on the “Shift” podcast to talk about why he thinks robotaxis won’t become a commodity.
Column: How new trade rules affect the global auto industry
For more than a year, the auto industry has adapted to tariffs and new trade rules. And trade continues to transform.
Jaguar XJ220: Has this 90s supercar been badly treated?
Over 30 years ago, Jaguar unveiled a groundbreaking car: the production version of the XJ220. A machine whose sensuous looks were only exceeded by thumping twin-turbo performance.
Axel Automotive Brief — Tesla Robotaxi updates, Rivian R2 configurator live, and Fisker owners rebuild from open source
Welcome to Storyflo Daily Automotive. The story that should be a business-school case study: per Electrek, when Fisker Inc.
Axel Auto Brief — Aventon Current ADV eMTB scores a $600 cut, Tesla Robotaxi makes the podcast cycle, and parents weigh fast e-bikes for teens
Welcome to Storyflo Daily Automotive.
31 Cameras Watch Every Boulder Driver, Two Residents Want A Judge To Pull The Plug
__DEGRADED__ - Residents claim Boulder’s camera network illegally tracks drivers without probable cause. - Lawsuit seeks damages and an order stopping warrantless use of the system. - Flock Safety says similar constitutional challenges have repeatedly failed in court. Automatic license plate readers are all over the USA. Some cities have hundreds, and effectively track every single person driving in or out of the area. Boulder, Colorado, has considerably fewer, less than 50 in total, but residents say that’s far too many to begin with. Now, two are suing the police chief over what they’re calling a violation of state law. The lawsuit, filed in Boulder County District Court, accuses Boulder Police Chief Stephen Redfearn of creating a system of warrantless mass surveillance through the deployment of 31 Flock Safety cameras across the city. Plaintiffs William Freeman and Gwen Steel argue the technology continuously tracks the movements of thousands of drivers without probable cause, judicial oversight, or meaningful privacy protections. Cameras That Map Daily Life According to the complaint, first highlighted by Denver 7, the cameras collect images and location data that are stored in a searchable database accessible to law enforcement. The plaintiffs claim that it creates what they describe as a “dragnet” capable of revealing where people work, worship, seek medical care, attend school, or participate in political activities. Read: Why More Cities Are Suddenly Pulling The Plug On Flock Safety Cameras The suit also names Boulder Police Records Specialist Dawn VanAckeren as a defendant. Freeman alleges that after requesting records related to his own vehicle through Colorado’s public records process, he was denied access to the data collected about him. The plaintiffs are seeking unspecified monetary damages and a court order that would prevent Boulder from continuing to use automated license plate readers without a warrant. That’s key because we’re not talking about federal laws or constitutional standards in this case. Civil rights attorney Andy McNulty, who represents the plaintiffs, argues that Colorado’s constitution provides stronger privacy protections than those recognized in some other states. The complaint contends that no court has established probable cause to justify monitoring every vehicle traveling on Boulder’s roads around the clock. Police officials have defended the technology in the past, arguing that the cameras help reduce crime and recover stolen vehicles. During a January town hall meeting, Redfearn said the public-safety benefits outweigh the risk of misuse and noted that Boulder does not share the data with federal immigration authorities. Flock Points To Its Courtroom Record Flock Safety also pushed back against the lawsuit. The company said courts around the country have repeatedly considered and rejected similar constitutional challenges, maintaining that fixed license plate reader systems have consistently been upheld as lawful. In some cases, suits have made all the images they take public information, and police departments have turned the cameras off in response. Flock added that agencies control their own data and determine access, retention, and sharing policies. The case has been assigned to Judge Michael Kotlarczyk. For now, Boulder officials say they are reviewing the allegations and will respond through the court process.
The Fun 2026 Renault 5 EV America Will Never Get To Buy | Review
__DEGRADED__ PROS ›› Design, exceptional ride, handling, equipment CONS ›› Rear legroom, limited range on the highway Plenty of carmakers reach into their own past and come back with clumsy pastiche. Renault is one of the few that gets it right. The R5 E-Tech is among the more desirable electric subcompacts in Europe right now, so we took the keys for a week to find out whether it holds up as something you actually live with. The production version landed in 2024, three years after the concept, carrying retro-futuristic styling that reaches back to the original R5 of 1972. The French subcompact serves as a zero-emission alternative to the closely sized Clio and a successor to the aging Zoe, while sitting just above the Twingo E-Tech that has only recently joined the range. None of this is coming to America. Renault left the US decades ago, and the R5 was built around European prices, European streets, and European tastes, with no plan to cross the Atlantic. So consider this a look at the charming little electric hatch America would probably love but can’t have. More: Renault Finally Has A Proper Premium SUV, But Europe Doesn’t Get It Our press car is the flagship Iconic trim painted in the striking but optional Pop Yellow shade with a sparkle effect, arguably the best fit for the new R5. The vivid color comes paired with a Diamond Black roof, a red accent strip along the flank, and 18-inch Chrono alloys, though I would take the Techno wheels given the choice. Iconic trim is also the only way to get the stronger 148 hp electric motor and the larger 52 kWh battery pack. Looks are subjective, but everyone I interacted with had good things to say about the design of the R5, which turned more heads than most press cars I have reviewed. Besides the exotic color, my favorite details are the vertical LED taillights with a three-dimensional finish, the sculpted fenders, and the rally-style DRLs on the front bumper. More: Renault’s New Electric Van Probably Looks Better Than Your Car The result is a car with a sporty, playful character that is genuinely hard to ignore in a market drowning in interchangeable SUVs. I am also taken with the small bump on the hood, a clear callback to the cooling vents of the classic 5 that earns its keep functionally too. Walk up to the car and the 5 emblem lights up in segments, reading out the battery charge level before you have even opened the door. Premium Tech In A Small Package The interior is filled with tech, especially in the flagship Iconic trim. The rather bulky digital cockpit sits high, comprising a 10.3-inch digital instrument cluster that changes colors depending on the driving mode and a crisp 10.1-inch touchscreen that’s slightly angled towards the driver. Review: The 2026 Renault Austral Facelift Is Polished, But It Has A BMW-Sized Problem Renault’s Google-powered OpenR infotainment has intuitive menus and connects seamlessly to a smartphone. More importantly, it is joined by a row of physical climate controls on the center console. The only ergonomic foul is the volume buttons which are awkwardly positioned on top of the screen, although there is a dedicated stalk behind the steering wheel for easier operation. Another slightly irritating thing is that the ChatGPT-powered “Reno” AI assistant kept popping up at irrelevant times during my conversation with the front passenger, reminding me of the animated paperclip from the old Windows Office. The buttons on the steering wheel control most functions, including a Multi Sense button for switching drive modes (Eco, Comfort, Sport, Perso). The gear stalk only has drive and reverse, leaving park out of the equation. Equipment is quite generous with heated seats and steering wheel, wireless charging, and a full suite of ADAS including an auto parking function that works great. In terms of materials, Renault’s color a trim department did a great job in creating a youthful environment. The yellow recycled textile on the seats and front doors is a nice touch, paired with synthetic leather and yellow stitch, also found on the passenger side of the dashboard. More: Radical Espace Reboot Leads Renault’s 36-Car Plan To Fight China’s Threat As for practicality, the rear seats of the 3,922 mm (154.4 inches) long hatchback might feel cramped for tall passengers if they sit behind a tall driver. Legroom and headroom are tighter than a Fiat Grande Panda, although adequate for an urban-focused offering. The boot has a capacity of 326 lt (11.5 cubic feet) which is slightly above average for the segment. Don’t look for a frunk as the electric motor takes up all of the space under the hood. Sharp Reflexes and Highway Manners On the road, the Renault 5 E-Tech clearly punches above its weight.
The cheap small car survives: Life with a mega-mile Ford Fiesta
__DEGRADED__ Recent reports show that Britain's car fleet is getting older, whether because people are reluctant to switch to newer machines or just that their trusty motors are more reliable. But what is life really like running a car that's had a hard life? Last year I bought a Ford Fiesta with 130,000 miles on the clock, which I owned for a year until selling it recently. So what is like really like running a 17-year-old car? I like to think I’m the sort of person who doesn’t follow trends, who does things just that little bit differently from everyone else – so here’s my newly acquired Ford Fiesta. If I’d had my way, my partner would be running around in a Daihatsu Cuore Avanzato or a Talbot Matra Rancho, having passed her driving test a few months ago. Alas, her requirements for a first car were rather more centred on efficiency, reliability and practicality than esotericism, so it came down to a supermini, and this 2009 1.4-litre Titanium 5dr finally won us over by virtue of being fairly decent value, the right colour and less than five miles from home. It’s fine, really, but for the £2500 we paid I might have asked for a better-smelling interior, a working boot release and carpets that were still glued to the floor. It’s not holding up badly for a 130,000-mile supermini, though, truth be told: it still pulls well, steers tightly and stops straight. I was rather disappointed that we only managed around 30mpg over the first 100 miles, but I attributed it to my newly qualified partner’s rev-happy suburban driving style and assumed the figure would improve as her right foot lightened with time. That is until I stopped to pump up a slightly pillowy rear tyre and discovered we were shockingly low on pressure at each corner. I’m expecting a massive increase in efficiency now that they’re all properly pumped up, and the car is tangibly more responsive and better-riding, to boot. One pound well spent. Used car buying guides will always tell you to check for rust, knackered clutches, dicky electrics and all sorts of other common foibles you might find on a second-hand motor. What they don't tend to warn you about is the smell. So when the interior of my 130k-mile Fiesta started honking bad enough to make me gag, I didn't know what to do. I can't describe it: imagine a thick, cloying funk of old, moist organic matter. A pretty grim fragrance - more Vom Ford than Tom Ford. I cleaned up a smattering of mould under the damp rear carpet and invested in some silicon sacks that (brilliantly) keep the cabin dry in winter, but still the aroma persisted. After a while I realised that it was at its worst when I turned the blower up, which gave me an idea... A quick scan of the forums and I had my culprit: the cabin filter. For the princely sum of about £8 I had a replacement in my hands just 24 hours later, and set about the quick task of swapping it in. And thank goodness I did. Not only was the old filter a putrid shade of green-grey, it was also decorated with a fairly thick layer of loose, unidentifiable grime and crumbled as I removed it from its housing. These are meant to be replaced every two years - I'd be surprised if this had been in the car less than 10. A cautionary tale... When did you last do yours? Otherwise, this high-mileage hero has been serving us pretty well, so I was surprised to get a panicked phone call from my finacée while abroad the other day, alerting me to an alarming amount of white smoke coming from the car on start-up. That certainly did sound worrying, particularly as the car isn't worth enough to warrant a costly head gasket replacement, so I was keen to have a look myself when I got home. Impatient as my better half is (and warned by alarmist associates that it could blow up at any minute), she couldn't wait that long and summoned the RAC, who arrived quickly and kindly went through the motions before confirming my quietly-held suspicions: it was a bit of a cold day, and the white smoke was just steam from the condensing exhaust gases. Annoying, but no better repair than one that doesn't need doing. On we go. You never want to smell burning oil when you’re driving – much less on Easter Sunday when you’re 80 miles from your destination, running late and have a boot full of chocolate eggs that need delivering urgently. I resisted the urge to remind my partner that we could have taken a shiny new electric car for the trip to see her family in Birmingham and instead quickly ascertained that oil was leaking from the rocker cover onto the exhaust manifold – but not severely enough to make me consider an extended stay at Oxford services. Holding our breath, and with one eye on the hard shoulder, we nursed the Fiesta back down the M40.
People Keep Damaging Garbage Trucks by Throwing Car Batteries in the Trash
__DEGRADED__ Properly disposing of used car batteries is important. Whether lead-acid or newfangled lithium-ion, batteries contain toxic and potentially flammable chemicals that can leak if not handled properly. Three recent incidents around the country show that not everybody is aware of this fact. This past Friday, a City of Rio Bravo, Texas, garbage truck was damaged after a trash container full of car batteries was emptied into it, reports the Laredo Morning Times. A city official told the paper that the damage to the truck was “significant,” but did not go into the details, instead focusing on the need for a specialized mechanic to work on the truck in order to prepare residents for a potential disruption in trash pickups while the truck was out of service. Garbage trucks squeeze their cargo in large hydraulic compactors. That’s not a good thing when batteries are involved, as crushing them can release chemicals that are an ignition source away from combustion. That’s exactly what happened earlier this week in Roseville, California. On Wednesday officials in the Northern California city, near the state capital of Sacramento, released a video of lithium-ion batteries catching fire in the back of a garbage truck. They asked residents not to toss these batteries in the trash. Sacramento Fire officials told the local CBS News station that these fires can also release toxic gas, and they happen very quickly. “Once you see a lithium-ion battery rupture inside the back of a trash truck, the chain reaction happens so quickly and so violently that it causes the fire to expand very rapidly,” Justin Sylvia of Sacramento Fire said. The same day the City of Roseville released its PSA, the fire department of Troy, Michigan, reported a garbage-truck fire caused by lithium-ion batteries. The driver dumped the truck’s contents in order to prevent the fire from spreading from the bin into the truck itself, according to a Facebook post. Firefighters found a lithium-ion battery among the debris when extinguishing the blaze, which they judged to be the cause. Incidents like these are nothing new—Gothamist reported on a spate of battery fires in New York City garbage trucks in 2024—but the fact that there were three of them in the span of the week is decidedly not good. Instead of becoming the cause of one of these news stories, always dispose of car batteries at designated recycling points like parts stores and household hazardous waste drop-offs. There’s a reason batteries have that label of a tiny garbage can with a slash through it. The post People Keep Damaging Garbage Trucks by Throwing Car Batteries in the Trash appeared first on The Drive.
Unassuming 1996 Toyota 4Runner Commands $52,800 at Mecum. Is This a Sign?
__DEGRADED__ If you’re eyeing a third-generation Toyota 4Runner, you might want to pull the trigger sooner rather than later. An exceptionally clean, low-mileage N180 4Runner recently sold for $52,800 at Mecum’s 2026 Indianapolis Auction, surpassing expectations and seeming to confirm the auction house’s intuition that 1990s 4Runners might be at the crest of a new wave of collector cars. This 1996 SR5 model was highlighted by Mecum as one to watch ahead of the auction. About two weeks before it was scheduled to cross the block, the 4Runner was getting more clicks than any other lot in the catalog, which was stuffed with more typical collector-car auction fare like vintage muscle cars and rare supercars. Mecum expected the 4Runner to sell for between $35,000 and $45,000, so the actual result is a bit surprising. This is probably the nicest 1996 Toyota 4Runner you’re going to find. It has just 6,951 miles, and judging by the photos accompanying the auction listing, it’s in immaculate condition for a 30-year-old vehicle. But from its silver paint (or Desert Dune Metallic, as Toyota calls it) to its 183-horsepower, 3.4-liter V6, it’s definitely unassuming. Like most Toyota products of its day, it emphasized reliability over style. That might be why the N180 has flown under the radar, but could that be about to change? Mecum has sold eight other 1996 4Runner SR5 models in the past 10 years, with a previous high selling price of $28,075 in a 2024 auction. Bring a Trailer has hosted 598 auctions of N180 4Runners, which were sold between model years 1996 and 2002. Most sold for $20,000 or less, but in April of this year, a 2000 Limited model with approximately 20,000 miles sold for $46,555. Like the 1996 SR5 sold by Mecum, this California car looked remarkably clean. A couple of trends might tilt auction prices like this from outliers to the norm. Older SUVs have already achieved collectible status, and as they get more expensive and harder to find, it makes sense that a new generation will fill the gap at the lower end of the market. An N180 might not have the charm of an FJ Land Cruiser, but even at around $50,000, it’s still cheaper than the cleanest versions of that vintage icon. As younger generations enter the collector-car hobby, cars from the 1990s are also likely to become more popular. We’re already seeing that play out with six-figure prices for cars like the Acura Integra Type R, and Hagerty predicts that even the Chevy Cobalt SS could become a future collectible as those who remember these cars from their youth enter the market. So why shouldn’t the N180 4Runner be having a moment? The post Unassuming 1996 Toyota 4Runner Commands $52,800 at Mecum. Is This a Sign? appeared first on The Drive.
Toyota’s GR GT Hasn’t Even Shipped Yet And The Internet Is Already Tuning It
__DEGRADED__ - The GR GT supercar received a digital tuning by Khyzyl Saleem. - It includes wide fenders, carbon fiber aero, and BBS E88 alloy wheels. - The standalone Gazoo Racing flagship will likely draw real tuners. Every flagship eventually attracts someone who thinks it could go further. The GR GT is Toyota’s performance high-water mark and the spiritual heir to the Lexus LFA. Even with its ultra-long nose and low GT3-racer proportions, there are people who want it wilder still, closer to the exotics it runs with. Independent designer Khyzyl Saleem is one of them. His first digital reworking of the GR GT is, in his own words, “just a lil chonk,” which undersells what he actually did to it. More: Does Toyota’s GR GT Sound Good Enough For A Car That Looks This Wild? The Japanese supercar picks up a custom bodykit, fresh alloys, and a bespoke livery, all of it dialing the visual drama up toward Lamborghini territory. The centerpiece of the styling work is the set of wide fender extensions, blended into the existing bodywork. The fenders pair with a more aggressive carbon-fiber splitter. Down the flanks, Saleem added side gills and extra fins along the skirts. The bigger change sits at the corners of the GR GT with a set of deep-dish BBS E88 wheels, and the whole car dropped closer to the road. The rear end appears to be carried over, as the standard model already comes with a large ducktail spoiler, an aggressive diffuser and quadruple tailpipes. As a final touch, the digital artist chose a new color combining a purple shade for the main bodywork with a black roof. More: Toyota GR’s Secret Texas Garage Has Been Preparing Lexus Dealers For A $200,000 Supercar Saleem didn’t mention any performance upgrades but the hybrid setup of the GR GT is competent enough to support the sportier bodykit. The car runs a twin-turbo dry-sump 4.0-liter V8 making at least 641 hp, with an electric motor adding extra shove. Toyota still hasn’t published a combined output figure, though it has confirmed a top speed beyond 199 mph (320 km/h). Deliveries of the first standalone model from Gazoo Racing are expected to start in 2027. Whether buyers will actually bolt on aftermarket kit like Saleem’s is another question. Either way, Toyota’s flagship is the sort of car tuners tend to circle.
