Lucid sometimes offers some pretty sweet lease deals, and on paper, they can look like a solid way to get behind the wheel of an Air without the long-term commitment. But as we’ve seen more than once, there’s usually a sting in the tail. If it’s not a hefty down payment, it’s what happens when the car goes back at the end of the term.

Back in August, we reported that Lucid itself acknowledged problems with its lease return program. The process, it admitted, wasn’t consistent. Damage assessments were all over the place, and some customers ended up with surprisingly high bills for barely noticeable issues.

Ongoing Frustrations

Two months on, the situation doesn’t appear to have improved. At least two owners have come forward with worrying stories, and one has even taken the matter to regulators.

Over a week ago, one owner posted a thread on Reddit titled “Just got my excess wear report and it’s ridiculous.” Plenty of folks are upset to pay extra cash after a lease ends, but this person seems to have a really good case.

Read: Lucid Lease Customers Hit With Four-Figure Bills Over Scuffs You Can’t Even See

Photos showing the underside of the Lucid Air, along with the digital invoice from the company, reveal that the $2,400 charge was issued for scratches found on the car’s underbody panel.

We’re not talking about a panel that is torn into several pieces, features a giant hole or two, or one that is somewhat missing. No, we’re referring to the kind of scratches that almost anyone with a low-to-the-ground car would have.

The owner claims that he never had an accident or drove over anything significant, but instead that these marks are from things as innocuous as speed bumps.

“Guess we’re supposed to only drive on perfectly flat roads with no speed bumps, and make sure to ‘research’ every driveway before entering,” the frustrated owner said. Interestingly, Lucid seems to have decided not to charge for the fact that the owner’s manual was missing from the car.

Different Case, Same Pattern

This isn’t the only recent example of Lucid’s lease troubles. Another customer, who was billed $585, may have an even more compelling case. According to the owner, the Lucid representative at the lease return appointment found no damage whatsoever.

Less than two weeks later, though, a third-party company carried out a “final inspection” and identified $785 worth of wear-and-tear damage. The owner says Lucid waived $200 for a wheel, but still demanded the remaining $585.

“I just filed a complaint with the California Department of Financial Protection & Innovation (DFPI) against Lucid Financial Services and their collection agency over a bogus “excess wear & tear” charge,” they wrote in a Reddit thread.

It’s pretty clear that owners are losing faith in the brand’s lease policy. “If that’s what it’s going to be like, we’re all screwed. There’s no possible way that part doesn’t get scratched or gouged – that’s what it’s there for, to protect the rest of the undercarriage,” said one. “Up next, being charged for scratches on the inside of wheels,” said another.

For now, the ball is squarely in Lucid’s court to explain how it’s handling these lease-end assessments and what steps it plans to take to rebuild customer trust. If you’ve leased a Lucid yourself, drop your experience in the comments below, we’d like to hear how it went down.

Photo: TackleTurbulent9134 / Lucid

It seems not every Tesla employee in Germany keeps their speed thrills on the autobahn. Reports from the company’s Gigafactory near Berlin suggest that some workers have been pushing their luck in the car park, with local officials now stepping in to curb the growing problem.

The employees are facing scrutiny from the local works council after repeated instances of staff driving at speeds of up to 80 km/h (50 mph) through the site’s parking lot. Conditions have apparently become so unruly that speed bumps are now being considered to rein things in.

Too Fast, Even for Tesla

According to Handelsblatt, staff were recently summoned to a meeting bluntly titled ‘Racetrack South Parking Lot,’ following claims that a few overzealous drivers have turned the area into an unofficial circuit.

Now it’s unclear if the workers are driving so quickly because they can’t wait to head home after a long shift, or because they’re that keen to clock in each morning. Given the long days Tesla is known for, it’s probably safe to assume the first.

Read: Tesla Sales Collapse In Two Of Europe’s Biggest Markets As Chinese Rival Pulls Ahead

To restore order, the works council recently installed digital speedometer signs reminding staff of the 30 km/h (18 mph) limit. Early signs suggest those reminders might not be enough, and further measures could be on the horizon.

Speaking with the German newspaper, the works council revealed that it is meeting with its design team about potentially making the driving lanes through the parking lot narrower and adding new zebra crossings. If these measures also fail to slow down drivers, then speed bumps may need to be installed.

“If we don’t get this under control, then at some point we’ll have to talk about speed bumps,” said the representative for works council. “And I don’t think any of us wants to do that.”

They also reminded the workforce that there’s a perfectly good outlet for their need for speed. “The highway is ten meters away, you can really blast through it in a fast car, that’s fun too. But please…wait this short distance before you step on the gas. Thank you!”

A Pattern of Odd Headlines

This isn’t the first unusual story to come out of Tesla’s German facility. In mid-2024, reports surfaced that around 65,000 coffee mugs ordered for the plant had mysteriously vanished. At the time, roughly 12,000 employees worked there, suggesting that, statistically speaking, each person had made off with about five Ikea mugs.

Sources: Handelsblatt

BMW is in the midst of a dramatic overhaul of its line-up, preparing to launch 40 new or heavily updated models over the next two years. Yet, even with that packed schedule, the Bavarian automaker has found time to collaborate with a Slovenian manufacturer of electric stand-up paddleboards, bringing its Neue Klasse design language to a completely different kind of mobility.

While we suspect only a tiny fraction of BMW owners have even the slightest interest in stand-up paddleboarding, the company probably saw its partnership with SipaBoards as an opportunity to extend its design influence beyond the road.

Known simply as the BMW x Sipaboards, the motorized paddleboard is fitted with a compact 300-watt electric motor and a specially developed propeller. It can reach speeds of up to 4 knots, or roughly 7.5 km/h.

Read: BMW Is About To Kill Off Three Models

This motor does more than just propel the board forward, which can be particularly useful when paddling into a headwind or against a current. It also inflates the board automatically, sparing riders the usual pre-launch workout.

The board, which measures 3.65 meters in length and 0.82 meters in width, weighs just 14.9 kg (32.8 lbs) with the motor and is capable of carrying two people.

Apparently, BMW Group Designworks used Neue Klasse influences when designing the board. However, this doesn’t mean the board has features like the newly-designed lights or signature kidney grilles. Instead, the Neue Klasse influence appears to be limited to the large X motif across the base of the board.

Each board comes with a lightweight carbon fiber paddle with a Bluetooth remote control built directly into it. This allows the rider to choose between different power levels, light effects, and haptic feedback. A smartphone application has also been developed and includes GPS tracking.

Range and Pricing

Initially, the board will be sold exclusively with a pair of 90 Wh battery modules that offer up to 3.5 hours of riding time. Next year, a version with two 180 Wh batteries will become available, allowing for rides lasting as long as seven hours.

The price for this Neue Klasse-inspired board? €3,990 (about $4,633). After all, it’s still a BMW product, so it’s priced like one, even if it trades the highway for open water.

Concerns over Tesla’s electronic door handles have intensified after several recent fatalities were linked to situations where occupants couldn’t escape following a crash or fire. The incidents have not only landed Tesla in hot water with safety authorities, but have also sparked broader conversations within the auto industry about safety design and emergency accessibility.

Many owners are now asking themselves what they can do to ensure their vehicles are ready should the unthinkable happen.

Read: Crash Victim Trapped In Burning Tesla Sues Over Door Handles

Late last week, a Reddit user sparked discussion by asking how to rescue children from the rear of a Model Y in the event of a collision and fire.

“Me and my wife have a Juniper and with a baby on the way it got me thinking,” wrote a user on Reddit.

“You get into a crash. High voltage battery catches fire, inside is filling up with smoke, 12v battery dies. You use the manual release on the driver’s door to open the door and now you can get out. But how do you get your child/baby out of the backseat/childseat on the passenger side? 3 other doors are locked. No chance you’re reaching the manual release on that door from the driver’s seat,” they added.

To Tesla’s credit, the Model Y includes an easily accessible manual release for the front doors, located just ahead of the window controls. This means front-seat occupants can exit quickly, even if the electronic system fails. The same can’t be said for those in the back seats.

Hidden Escape Points

For whatever reason, the manual release at the rear of the 2020-2024 Model Y is much more difficult to access. To pull it, occupants need to remove the rubber mat at the bottom of the door pocket, press on a red tab to remove a plastic access door, and then pull the mechanical release cable forward. For a child, particularly in a panicked situation, access will be challenging.

Tesla redesigned the rear door’s manual release for the Model Y Juniper, although a plastic release cover still needs to be removed before accessing the release cable.

DIY Safety Mods

Some Model Y owners, inspired by the Reddit thread, have taken matters into their own hands. A few have attached small straps to the rear release cable so it’s easy to spot and pull, while others suggest connecting a rope that extends toward the front of the cabin, giving the driver a way to open the rear doors quickly in an emergency.

That said, these homemade solutions don’t help everyone. Tesla’s owner’s manual for the 2020-2024 Model Y reveals that “not all Model Y vehicles are equipped with a manual release for the rear doors.”

So, if the rear doors can’t be opened from the inside, nor from the outside after a crash and/or fire, that means the only way to free passengers in the rear will be to drag them out from the front seats, or to bust out the rear windows.

Tesla is facing renewed scrutiny after another troubling incident involving its vehicles. As the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) investigates owner reports that the company’s electric door handles can become inoperative, preventing occupants from entering or exiting the vehicle, Tesla is now being sued by the parents of two teenagers who died in a Cybertruck crash last November.

The lawsuits allege that safety issues with the electric pickup’s handles prevented the teens from escaping the vehicle.

Also: Fiery Crash Kills Driver Trapped Inside Tesla Model 3

The fatal crash occurred in the early hours of November 27 in Piedmont, California. Four teenagers were in the Tesla when it smashed into a cement wall and became wedged between it and a large tree. Moments later, the vehicle burst into flames, killing three of the four occupants, all of whom were 2023 graduates of Piedmont High School.

Expanding Legal Battle

Carl and Noelle Tsukahara, parents of 18-year-old Krysta Tsukahara, recently added Tesla to an earlier lawsuit initially filed against the estate of the 19-year-old driver, Soren Dixon, and the vehicle owner’s estate. The parents of 20-year-old Jack Nelson, another victim of the crash, have also filed a separate suit against the company.

When Power Fails

As noted by the lawsuits, the door handles of the Cybertruck operate off the 12-volt battery, and if the vehicle loses power after a crash, the electronic door mechanism will fail. The EV does have manual door releases at the front and rear, but they can be hard to find. This is especially true in the second row, where a manual release cable is hidden beneath a rubber mat at the bottom of the door pocket.

Read: Feds Looking Into Fatal Tesla Cybertruck Crash That Killed Three Teens

The lawsuit from the Tsukaharas asserts that their daughter survived the impact and was fully conscious. However, she was unable to escape the Tesla’s second row and died from smoke inhalation and burns. It’s claimed that Tesla has long been aware of issues with the safety of its electric door handles.

“These are not new concepts or ideas and are things vehicle designers should be taking into account,” one of the Nelson family’s attorneys told the San Francisco Chronicle. “It’s a preventable death if you have a vehicle occupant who dies who otherwise could exit a vehicle if their doors were functional, or be rescued.”

More: Crash Victim Trapped In Burning Tesla Sues Over Door Handles

Both lawsuits seek unspecified punitive damages against Tesla. The family attorney of the Tsukaharas, believes he has a “very, very strong case,” against the electric carmaker.

“They will want to blame Mr. Dixon, anybody but themselves, but this vehicle absolutely should not have entombed these individuals and my clients’ daughter. It’s our way of holding the wrongdoer accountable, and correcting bad conduct.”

A tragic crash in North Miami Beach has reignited concerns about Tesla’s door and safety systems, after a Model 3 driver lost their life when the car caught fire and rescuers were reportedly unable to pull them out.

The incident adds to a growing list of cases where occupants were trapped following collisions, raising more questions about emergency access to the company’s vehicles.

More: Crash Victim Trapped In Burning Tesla Sues Over Door Handles

The crash unfolded just after 4 pm on Wednesday when the Model 3, heading west on Northwest 163rd Street, was said to have been cut off by an SUV. The Tesla allegedly swerved into a utility pole and almost immediately caught fire.

North Miami Beach police spokesman Corey Darden said officers arrived quickly but were unable to reach the driver before the flames spread beyond control. Paramedics also transported another person to the hospital, though their condition and role in the crash remain unclear.

Read: Trapped Children Die In Tesla Fire After Door Handles Allegedly Wouldn’t Open

Footage captured in the aftermath of the crash shows local police crews desperately trying to control the blaze using fire extinguishers.

At one stage, they could also be seen smashing one of the rear side windows, but according to an eyewitness, “it really didn’t do anything.” Police had to let fire crews take over due to the fear that the Tesla might explode, the Miami Herald reports.

What stands out in the aftermath is that the body damage to the Model 3 does not look especially severe. The front of the electric sedan is not visible in the footage, but the rear and sides show little sign of a major impact. It’s unclear what initially triggered the blaze.

A Wider Pattern Emerging?

This crash occurred just a week after a Tesla Model S driver and two children were killed in Germany when their vehicle veered off the side of a road and burst into flames. In that case, a witness desperately attempted to rescue the occupants but was unable to get the doors open before the vehicle was consumed.

Tesla has acknowledged concerns over emergency access in its vehicles and recently stated it is developing a new door handle design that merges manual and electronic releases into a single button.

Screenshot via Leandro Seguro/Local 10 News/Youtube

Faraday Future is back in the news, but not for the reasons it would prefer. Early on the morning of September 28, an early FF91 prototype caught fire in the company’s headquarters. Nobody was hurt, but we can’t say the same for the building, which is now off-limits for workers.

More: This Used Faraday Future FF 91 Sold For $235,000

The Los Angeles Fire Department received a call at 4:37 a.m. about the blaze and managed to extinguish it within 40 minutes, says TechCrunch. Sprinklers inside the building helped slow the fire, but not before an explosion blew out part of a wall. Firefighters had to force entry into the building, and once the fire was out, an inspector red-tagged the property.

Early Prototype Up in Smoke

After the fire, the company quickly moved to temper concerns with a public statement. It stressed that the battery pack wasn’t involved and pointed out that the vehicle in question was an old prototype.

Internally referred to as B40, the company said the car is about nine years old and that “its interior materials do not meet the flammability standards of production vehicles. This beta prototype is entirely different from FF 91 production vehicles, and therefore, we believe this incident will not result in any recall of production models.”

The brand will conduct a full investigation, and for now, they think the fire started due to a short circuit in the showroom wiring itself or a loose connection in the vehicle’s 12-volt system.

Not the First Fire

This isn’t the first time Faraday Future has faced a blaze involving one of its test cars. Back in 2022, another prototype reportedly went up in flames, though few details ever emerged about that event other than a set of photos. For a company already fighting for stability, each incident adds to a growing cloud of doubt.

The latest fire comes at an especially volatile time for the embattled company.

Statement on Fire Incident at Faraday Future Satellite Office Building

In the early morning of Sunday, September 28 (PST), a fire occurred at FF’s satellite office building at our U.S. headquarters. The company attaches great importance to this matter and would like to provide…

— Faraday Future (@FaradayFuture) September 30, 2025

After the FF91 turned out to be a flop, Faraday Future has been working on plans to federalize and sell a Chinese-made van with a screen on its face. In recent months, it’s come under fire for a controversial crypto-related pivot and for allegedly missing payments for the property where the fire happened. The lease ended at the end of September.

While the company says the fire poses no risk to production vehicles, it’s certainly not going to restore trust or confidence in owners, landlords, and shareholders alike. 

Source: Faraday Future, Techcrunch

When police set up a DUI checkpoint, they’ve got to be ready for just about anything. In between those who may or may not be under the influence, they’ll sometimes find people with warrants or those with illegal items in their car. What they probably never expect is a car with no driver at all. Nevertheless, that’s exactly what they stopped in California last Friday night.

More: Oakland Police Are Towing Teslas To Obtain Crime Scene Footage

According to the San Bruno PD, officers conducting a grant-funded DUI enforcement operation watched as a white Waymo Jaguar I-Pace made an illegal U-turn near the city’s Caltrain station. When it did, officers pulled the car over and, unsurprisingly, found nobody in the driver’s seat.

An Empty Front Seat

The department leaned into humor on social media, posting, “No driver, no hands, no clue. Our citation books don’t have a box for ‘robot.’” In this case, it’s the hands of law enforcement that are tied.

California law doesn’t currently allow moving violations to be issued to autonomous vehicles, so officers couldn’t write a ticket. That said, officers were able to reach out to Waymo’s operations team to report the glitch. In a perfect world, the staff will be able to update the system to never make another U-turn in that spot.

For now, Waymo escaped without a fine, but the stop highlights an issue we’ve seen before. As driverless cars become more common on public roads, law enforcement needs a way to deal with them when infractions happen.

Tickets Without Drivers

The problem isn’t confined to San Bruno. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, the city of San Francisco has already seen Waymo vehicles rack up more than $65,000 in fines. At this point, federal regulators are investigating reports just like these with autonomous cars violating traffic laws.

San Bruno officers say their mission hasn’t changed. “Whether it’s drivers, passengers, or even driverless cars,” the department said, “we’ll continue to do our part to keep San Bruno’s streets safe.”

Photos San Bruno PD

In August of 2019, a man driving his Ford Explorer Sport Trac was hit from behind by another driver in a 2019 Tesla Model 3 who was using Autopilot. The Ford’s driver lost control as the truck rolled and his 15-year-old son, who was not wearing a seatbelt, was ejected and killed. Just weeks before the case was set to go to trial, Tesla quietly settled the lawsuit that followed.

The Tesla driver, Romeo Yalung, was traveling at 69 mph (111 km/h) in lane three of Interstate 880 in California. Video from the EV shows the driver of the Ford, Benjamin Escudero, signaling and moving into the same lane ahead. Neither Yalung nor the Tesla, which had Autopilot engaged at the time, slowed down to avoid hitting the Ford.

More: Crash Victim Trapped In Burning Tesla Sues Over Door Handles

The lawsuit named multiple parties, not only Tesla and Yalung but also Yalung’s wife, who was in the passenger seat at the time. Over four years, Judge Rebekah Everson had the option to dismiss the case but allowed it to move forward. Now, with trial just a month away, Tesla has reached a settlement for an undisclosed amount.

That might seem like a shock considering some of the surrounding factors. Tesla has a largely victorious record in court when lawsuits about Autopilot or Full Self-Driving (Supervised) come up. Juries and judges have agreed in almost all cases that the person behind the wheel is responsible for driving and not Tesla. In addition, video of the tragic crash certainly calls into question Mr. Yalung’s attentiveness.

That said, this all comes after a Florida jury decided that Tesla was 33 percent liable for another fatal crash involving Autopilot. In that case, the driver of the Tesla hit two people on the side of the road, admitted fault to the police, and said that he wasn’t paying attention when the crash happened. Despite that, the jury awarded the plaintiffs $242 million.

Tesla is now appealing that verdict, but another loss in court could have been damaging. Settling this California case may have been a calculated move to avoid the risk of a repeat outcome.

Sources: Freightwaves, Carcomplaints

On July 1, Tesla launched its long-awaited robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, joining rival firms such as Waymo and Zoox. It was declared a triumph for Elon Musk by many, serving as the first step in a robotaxi rollout that’s expected to cover large parts of the United States. However, new information has revealed that the FSD-equipped Model Ys roaming the streets of Austin have already been involved in several accidents.

Recent data uncovered by Forbes lists no fewer than three accidents dated July 1. Although it was first assumed they all took place that day, it now appears the incidents happened at various points throughout the same month. Many of the specifics have been redacted by Tesla on the grounds of protecting proprietary information, though some basic details have been disclosed.

Early Crashes Logged

The first accident is listed as having occurred at 3:45 a.m. on an unspecified date in July. Tesla’s description says the Model Y “was stopped (while going straight) and damaged on the rear-right by an SUV front right. Police were called.” The second crash is listed at 12:20 p.m. and says “Tesla hit a stationary object with front-right at 8mph. Minor injuries, no hospital. Police called. Tesla was towed away.”

Read: Tesla’s California Robotaxis Are More Taxi Than Robot

In the third accident, which occurred at 3:15 p.m., “Tesla rear-right contacted front-right of an SUV while Tesla was making right turn, going 2 mph. No police.”

Robotaxi Hurdles

At least one other accident is believed to have occurred in July, but was not reported. Forbes notes that video footage showed one of the robotaxis tires hit the front side of a parked car in a parking lot. It’s unclear why this crash wasn’t listed, but it may have been because it occurred on private property or because the damage was limited to tire marks.

It’s unclear how many miles the cars being used in Tesla’s Austin robotaxi service have racked up, but at the end of July, Elon Musk said they had logged roughly 7,000 miles of testing. To put that into perspective, Waymo’s autonomous vehicles have covered more than 96 million miles since they were introduced several years ago.

Safety figures underline the gap as well. ArsTechnica reports that in Waymo’s first 50 million miles, the company recorded 60 serious accidents that either deployed airbags or caused injuries. Tesla’s record in Austin, while still in its infancy, shows just how steep the learning curve may prove to be.

It’s not just in the United States where Tesla is facing scrutiny over its electric door handles. Shortly after it was revealed that safety regulators in the US were probing the door handles of the Model Y following several disturbing incidents of parents not being able to access their kids inside the cars, police in Germany connected the same design to a crash that left a driver and two children dead earlier this month.

Read: Electric Door Handles Face Global Scrutiny After Deadly EV Crashes

On September 7, the Tesla veered off the side of a road and quickly burst into flames. Images shared online indicate that it was a Model S, meaning it features the completely electric, pop-out door handles. A man who witnessed the crash, Roman Jedrzejewski, ran over to the scene of the crash and attempted to save the occupants, but couldn’t find any way to open the doors.

Trapped Inside

“I just took the fire extinguisher and ran over. But … It didn’t help,” he told German media, reports the New York Post. “I wanted to save people. I tried to open the car, but that didn’t work either. It was already so hot from the fire, but the right side of the car was still relatively undamaged. Damn it, I didn’t help. It didn’t work. The car was half hanging in a tree at head height and was burning at the front. But you just couldn’t get it open, I wanted to pull the children out.”

One of the passengers, a 9-year-old child, managed to escape. The driver, a 43-year-old man, and two other 9-year-olds could not get out and lost their lives in the blaze.

Local outlet Ruhr Nachrichten reported that firefighters struggled to bring the fire under control as it kept reigniting, most likely because the battery pack had entered thermal runaway. The flames only subsided once the vehicle was completely destroyed.

Recurring Concerns

This is not the first time that the pop-out door handles of the Model S have been linked to a death. In early 2019, a man was killed after crashing his Model S into a palm tree. Police were reportedly unable to open the car’s door handles before the flames took hold and burned the vehicle.

Also: Tesla Is Rethinking The Design Of Its Door Handles

Facing mounting criticism and pressure, Tesla says it is now working on a new design for its door handles. Engineers are developing a single-button system that combines manual and electronic releases, designed to make exits easier not only for drivers but for rescuers trying to reach them.

In addition to building some of China’s most advanced electric cars, Xpeng has been quietly pursuing something far more ambitious: an electric vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. The project has been in development for over a decade, and the company is even constructing a purpose-built factory to produce them.

That long-term vision, however, hit turbulence this week when two of its aircraft reportedly collided and crashed at the Changchun Air Show.

The two aircraft involved in the incident are understood to be the same models designed to fold up and slot into the rear of the six-wheeled Land Aircraft Carrier. Each uses a six-rotor layout with propellers and arms that can fold away, and they are built to operate either under manual control or in autonomous flight mode.

Folding Wings and Six Rotors

It remains unclear whether the test flight was being conducted under manual control or via the autonomous system. What is known is that the accident happened during a rehearsal ahead of the public show’s opening on Friday. One passenger is reported to have been injured, though not seriously, according to Guancha.

Read: Xpeng’s $280,000 AeroHT Mothership Launches 2-Seater Drone From Its Boot

In a statement issued to CNEVPost, Xpeng said that the two aircraft were participating in a formation drill but collided after flying too close to each other. Fortunately, one of the aircraft landed safely, but the other sustained more significant damage and caught fire after it fell from the sky.

Ambitious Production Goals

Despite the setback, Xpeng wants to start production of the six-wheeled AeroHT ‘mothership’ and the eVTOL for paying customers by 2026. Prices will start at approximately 2 million yuan or about $281,000 at current exchange rates, and it’s said that the company has already received thousands of orders for the pricey recreational vehicles. The eVTOL can reportedly operate at up to 500 meters.

Both vehicles will be built at a 180,000-square-meter site in Guangzhou’s Development Zone. The new factory is designed to handle up to 10,000 units per year, underscoring the scale of Xpeng’s ambitions in taking mobility from the road to the sky.

Tesla has fought, and consistently won, court battles over its semi-autonomous Autopilot and Full Self-Driving (Supervised). That record changed recently when a Florida jury decided that the EV maker was partially to blame for a crash that ended in a fatality. Now, Elon Musk’s company is pushing for a new trial, arguing the verdict could stifle development of safety technologies.

A Fatal Florida Crash

The case stems from the death of 22-year-old Naibel Benavides Leon, who was killed in 2019 when a 2019 Model S slammed into a parked Chevrolet Tahoe in Miami-Dade county. Her boyfriend, Dillon Angulo, suffered serious injuries.

More: Over 10,000 Owners Sue Tesla Over This Widespread Complaint

The driver, George McGee, admitted he dropped his phone, took his eyes off the road, and believed the car would brake on its own. At the same time, he conceded that he was negligent and placed too much trust in the car.

Jury Finds Tesla Partly Liable

Despite that, a jury found Tesla 33 percent liable, awarding $42.5 million in compensatory damages and a staggering $200 million in punitive damages. Jurors were reportedly swayed by the plaintiffs’ argument that Tesla overstated the capabilities of Autopilot, even as the company repeatedly warned drivers to stay alert and keep their hands on the wheel. According to CarComplaints, Tesla admits that the whole thing was a tragedy but says it was entirely the fault of McGee’s “extraordinary recklessness.”

Tesla Pushes Back

In its filing, the company said “No other car in existence would have stopped when the driver was telling it to ‘go.’” Tesla argued that McGee was “reckless in the extreme by ignoring or overriding every safety feature in his car,” including by pressing the accelerator pedal, which overrides the system’s cruise control and braking functions. There’s no question that this is a sticky situation, but Tesla makes a few interesting points.

“For as long as there have been cars, there have been reckless, self-absorbed drivers like McGee,” Tesla said. “Those drivers should face every legal consequence for their wrongful conduct. Holding Tesla liable for providing drivers with advanced safety features just because a reckless driver overrode them cannot be reconciled with Florida law. That rule would impede the development of safety features, deter progress, and cost lives both now and in the long run.”

The Bigger Question

Ultimately, all of this seems to stem from the nomenclature and advertising of Autopilot. Were it called something else and marketed differently, it would seem more difficult to blame Tesla at all. The automaker is asking the judge to either order a new trial or reduce the damages, a move that will weigh driver responsibility against driver-assistance technology. The outcome could make a huge impact in the future of automakers and their relationship with autonomy.

The Jeep Wrangler hangs its reputation on its ability to go just about anywhere. Of course, that reputation is also why it’s a popular choice for those buying Power Wheels electric cars for kids. Put an adult in the Barbie Jammin’ Jeep Wrangler from Power Wheels and it turns out that there are plenty of places the vehicle can’t go. In the case of this story, rush hour traffic, to be specific.

More: This Not-So-Serious Fake G-Class Sold For Seriously Real Money

On September 5, Royal Canadian Mounted Police officers found a man piloting a Barbie Jeep down Fifteenth Ave near Nicholson Street. They stopped him, and he revealed that he wanted a Slurpee but “got lazy,” so he borrowed his roommate’s kid’s Barbie Jeep to make the trip.

As pointed out by Road&Track that brought the story to our attention, the man, 40-year-old Kasper Lincoln, reportedly showed signs of impairment and had a suspended driver’s license.

Over the Limit at 5 MPH

According to CBC News, officers administered two breath tests and confirmed that he was over the legal limit at the time. Let me remind you, it was morning, specifically, 9 a.m. The string of excellent decisions here is uncanny. For example, the Barbie Jeep in question is capable of no more than 5 mph (8 km/h). Only kids aged 3 to 7 are supposed to pilot it, and at most, it should carry no more than 130 pounds.

@cbcbritishcolumbia A Prince George, B.C., man was pulled over by police after driving a child-size pink toy Barbie Jeep along one of the city's main roads. CBC's Andrew Kurjata has more on the joy ride that made the rounds online. #princegeorge #barbiejeep #dui #britishcolumbia #cbcnews ♬ original sound – CBC British Columbia

Lincoln, who was wearing a shirt that reportedly read “Let’s Do It The Dumbest Way Possible.” Likely exceeded the weight limit and likely reduced both the intended speed and range of the toy. As such, it’s questionable whether or not he would’ve even made it to his destination and back without having to drag the toy along at some point.

He told the news station that he had no idea what he was doing was illegal and that he used the sidewalk for most of the trip before getting stopped. At this point, his driver’s license is now suspended for a further 90 days beyond the initial suspension he was already under. He’s also got a court date for December, where he’ll face a charge of prohibited driving. 

H/T to Road&Track

When firefighter Max Walsh saw smoke rising in the distance, he figured he was sprinting toward yet another car fire. As a firefighter, he’d seen plenty of them, but this time, he was actually headed into a nightmare. The Tesla Model Y engulfed in flames after a crash didn’t have damage to its door latch, but it wouldn’t open anyway. The dead electrical system meant that even the conscious passenger in the front seat couldn’t unlock the doors.

The quirks of Tesla’s flush handles, and the risks when they fail, have been examined in detail by Bloomberg journalist Dana Hull, who reported extensively on how the design can turn dangerous when the car loses power.

Tesla didn’t pioneer flush, power-operated door handles, but it certainly helped them push into the mainstream. EV automakers often tout that they look better and reduce drag and the design has spread across the market from the Ford Mustang Mach-E to the new Nissan Leaf and the Kia EV6. The tricky bit is that when the low-voltage battery dies, whether it’s because of a crash, a fire, or something else, the electric door poppers die too.

Read: How To Get Out Of A Tesla If It Loses Power And You Become Trapped Inside

Carscoops has brought you countless examples of this issue across several different brands. Something kills the power to the car in question, and it leaves occupants, owners, and sometimes rescue workers scrambling to get the doors open. In multiple crashes, from a deadly Cybertruck fire in California to a Model S blaze in Wisconsin, victims have allegedly been unable to escape. Again, the real kicker is that Tesla isn’t alone in this issue.

Not Just A Tesla Problem

Ford recently recalled the Mustang Mach-E for handle-related defects, and we’ve reported several cases of owners getting locked out, or in some cases locked in, because of dead batteries. Fisker faced a similar issue with the Ocean before going belly up. A woman in a Rivian R1S called 911 and was ‘stuck’ in her SUV for 45 minutes when it bricked on the side of the road while smoke wafted into the cabin. In fact, the issue dates back over a decade.

In 2015, 72-year-old James Rogers and his pup, Leia, both passed away while in a Chevrolet Corvette. According to reports from the time, it was Rogers’ dream car. Once again, the battery died. Those who found Rogers and Leia tried to get in but couldn’t. When they finally did, both had succumbed to the heat inside the car. Making things even more tragic is the fact that the man evidently didn’t realize that the manual release for the door handle was inches away…

Manual Releases Are A Perfect Solution

In most of these cases with coherent occupants, the reality is that, just like in the case of Mr. Rogers, safety is usually one very close manual door handle pull away. There are still big issues to overcome, though. First, so many individuals have no idea where the manual door release is or how to access it. But knowledge isn’t the only concern. What happens when the occupant is incapacitated, say after a crash, as was the case when Walsh arrived at the burning Model Y?

Also: New Lawsuit Might Force Ford To Change Mustang Mach-E Door Handles

The front passenger, Susmita Maddi, was pinned by the airbags that had gone off. “It’s the most horrible thing, to see a human burning,” Walsh told Bloomberg. “If I was able to open the doors, I could have gotten them both out before the fire department even got there.” Maddi made it out alive but not without first suffering life-changing injuries. She inhaled fumes that did permanent damage to her lungs, but worse yet, she received third-degree burns to her face.

“Sometimes it is very depressing to see my face,” she says. “Who is this? I wouldn’t recognize myself. Is this what I am now? It took many months and many nights of crying to come to this stage.” She’s suing Tesla and claiming that the doors pose an unreasonable safety risk. “Buying a Tesla was the worst decision of our life,” Maddi says.

A Push For Change

Right now, China is reportedly considering a ban on flush door handles. The nation says that they’re unsafe and could soon require automakers to have at least partially exposed exterior handles and manual releases inside the car. Again, it’s not a perfect solution, but it could influence cars everywhere since several automakers consider China to be one of their biggest available markets.

QOTD: Should Governments Mandate Turn Signal Stalks And Intuitive Manual Door Handles?

Design can be deadly, as is clearly the case here. No doubt, even mechanical door latches can fail, but electric ones can add a layer of complexity when every second counts. Whether or not China‘s potential intervention ends up happening is yet to be seen. For now, anyone with electric door poppers should make themselves well aware of the manual release and how to use it in an emergency. It could very well make the difference between life and death.

The Trump administration urged global automakers to “build it in America”. The Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solutions did exactly that, pouring billions into US battery factories to power the EV transition.

More: ICE Storms Hyundai’s Georgia Plant Detaining Hundreds In Massive Immigration Raid

Then, last week, immigration officials raided a Georgia plant where the Korean group was working to ramp up production. The sweep led to the arrest of nearly 300 Korean nationals, triggered a diplomatic clash, and put projects across the country on hold.

Visa Trouble At The Factory

The raid saw the arrests of almost 500 individuals allegedly in the States illegally. Now that the dust has settled, it turns out that around 300 were Koreans in the country under ESTA or B-1 visas. These programs allow short-term business activity such as equipment installation and training. In other words, the workers were helping to get these plants up and running.

While some may have exceeded their visa limitations, others were lawfully present to help launch the facilities that the administration clamored for. According to Bloomberg, the move hasn’t just shaken things up at the Georgia factory, it’s also caused several plants to shut down. That’s because Korea is sending a plane to the US on Wednesday to bring home all detained workers. The CEO of the company is personally joining the trip.

“To see their employees treated like this, to the point of being banned from visiting the U.S. again, companies would feel humiliated and ashamed,” Chang Sang-sik, head of the Korea International Trade Association’s International Trade and Commerce Research Center, told the news outlet.

Engineers On Edge

According to Chang, top engineers are usually the first ones shipped over to get factories humming, but he warned that after this mess, convincing them to go stateside will be a hard sell, no matter how much pay or prestige is dangled.

“Unless there are clear guarantees that workers won’t face such a situation, it will be even more difficult for companies to invest in the U.S. going forward,” he said.

A worker who’s navigated the short-term visa process called it “completely unrealistic” to replace South Korea’s seasoned battery experts with fresh U.S. hires. He told Bloomberg that these projects depend on homegrown specialists to launch plants before American crews can keep them running. After the raids, he added, there’s no way he’d return without airtight paperwork.

Billions At Risk

The Georgia facility is just one piece of a much bigger LG Energy buildout. Other plants in Arizona, Michigan, and Ohio are supposed to start operations next year to supply Hyundai, GM, and Honda. At this point, those plants are reportedly stalled. LG has evidently told all workers and contractors in the US under the ESTA or B-1 visa program to return to Korea.

When and if they’ll come back is the big question now. Without them to be the vanguards of plant production ramp-up, billions could disappear into thin air. Since this goes against the Trump administration’s stated goals, we can’t help but wonder whether the raid was a wise idea…

A Chinese company whose business involves making things that literally suck has teased its first car, which definitely doesn’t. But we see legal trouble brewing because vacuum maker Dreame’s maiden EV is a dead ringer for a Bugatti Chiron, only reimagined with four doors.

The exterior renders, which seem to have been created entirely or at least partially with AI (telltale signs include the grille pattern) were shared on social media by Dream Technology founder Yu Hao. They show a swoopy four-door coupe that could easily pass for a stretched Bugatti Chiron variant that never made production.

CES Debut?

Chinese media reports the new automotive division of the company plans to display a physical prototype of the car at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) in Las Vegas next January.

Related: Chinese Vacuum Giant Aims To Beat Bugatti With The World’s Fastest Hypercar

Though not an exact clone, the design is similar enough to make you do a double take. The headlights are different but the other core Chiron design elements like the horseshoe grille, central spine and C-shaped rear quarter motif are shamelessly carried across.

The interior at least looks more original, and doesn’t feature the vertical bank of dials fitted to the Chiron, whose steering wheel was milled from a single chunk of aluminium billet, but which didn’t feature any kind of touchscreen. That of course would be absurd for a Chinese car in 2027, so Dream Technology’s Chiron-a-like has a large widescreen tablet mounted above the console, plus a secondary display on the console itself.

Last month Dreame, which was founded in 2017 and styles itself as China’s answer to Apple, confirmed plans to enter the automotive space in 2027 with an electric hypercar capable of outrunning machines from Bugatti and Koenigsegg.

Shopping for Space in Tesla’s Backyard

The company is currently scouting potential production locations for a new plant to build the EV in Berlin, Germany, which include a site next door to Tesla’s Gigafactory, Car News China reports. Yu Hao previously posted images of the Tesla plant, along with text that said “factories in Europe are being selected for several businesses.” And Chinese media outlet Jieman claims Dreame is getting cosy with French bank BNP Paribas to bring its automotive plans to fruition.

While the Chiron was equipped with a quad-turbo W16 making 1,479 hp (1,500 PS / 1,103 kW) in stock form and its Tourbillon successor has a naturally-aspirated hybrid V12 that cranks out 1,775 hp (1,800 PS / 1,324 kW), Dreame’s car will be a pure EV.

Will Bugatti’s lawyers suck up this egregious theft of its IP, or will they fight back? We’ve reached out to the company for comment. Check out the images below of the pretend Chiron and the real thing.

Dreame Technology/Bugatti

Electric vehicles are often celebrated as a glimpse of the future, but real-world ownership can sometimes deliver a harsher reality. While the Rivian R1T has earned plenty of praise since its release, there have been recurring stories about reliability issues and inconsistent service experiences.

A recent account from one Rivian owner in the United States highlights the kind of breakdown that could make potential buyers pause before signing on the dotted line.

Read: Bricked Screens, Greasy Fingerprints – A Rivian Driver’s Frustrating Service Journey

According to this driver, his nine-month old R1T abruptly locked up while he was cruising through his neighborhood, leaving him no choice but to call for a tow. He shared the experience on Reddit, where he expressed doubts about the truck’s reliability and Rivian’s response in situations like this.

A Sudden Breakdown

The owner says that while he was slowing to a stop in the green R1T, the vehicle seized up, the wheels skidded, and the entire EV shuddered. Moments later, it randomly shifted into neutral, and every warning light was illuminated on the instrument cluster. The issues didn’t stop there as a “terrible smelling smoke” then started to enter the cabin from under the center console.

To make matters worse, he says he had to stay inside the pickup as smoke filled the cabin because if he dared to lift his foot off the brake pedal, he says the Rivian would roll have backward.

Understandably, the incident has left the owner rather shaken. In the past, he questioned what could have happened had the alleged catastrophic failure occurred while he was driving on the highway, or if there were other cars nearby. “I could have slammed into someone! I can’t trust this vehicle ever again. I wouldn’t let my family be in it,” he wrote in the post.

The Towing Headache

The process of towing the vehicle also proved to be quite a headache for the owner. He says he decided to use his roadside insurance to get the R1T towed to a local Rivian service center, but was then given a “five-minute lecture” from a Rivian representative for not calling the carmaker directly.

“When I called Rivian support to confirm that my tow truck could just take it straight to the service center I had to listen to the rep lecture me on how I should have called Rivian first and not have used my roadside insurance,” he said.

“Seriously a five minute lecture while my foot was on the brake, my hand was propping the door slightly ajar so I could air out the cabin, all the while trying to signal to traffic to go around (people were nicely stopping and asking if I was alright),” the owner added.

Also: Rivian Owner’s Quality And Service Nightmares Expose The Pain Of Being A ‘Beta Tester’

At the time of writing, the owner hadn’t provided any updates about their electric pickup, and didn’t mention if Rivian had looked at the EV to determine what the problem was. If the incident unfolded as the owner claims, then it seems likely the R1T suffered either a serious mechanical or electrical malfunction, which left it stranded.

Rough R1T Experience – Will never go Rivian again
byu/lekun inRivian

Lead image Reddit u/lekun

Technology advances at such a rapid pace that sometimes it creates more problems than it solves. China’s regulators are preparing to crack down on what they see as a great example of that: fully retractable door handles. A new set of standards could explicitly prohibit hidden handles on new vehicles. If these become law, it could have ripples across the globe.

The proposed regulation, reported by Mingjing Pro, comes from the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology. It would ban fully retractable handles while still allowing semi-retractable versions. A key requirement is that all vehicles must include a mechanical backup system so doors can be opened during emergencies.

More: New Lawsuit Might Force Ford To Change Mustang Mach-E Door Handles

According to Car News China, the final rules could come out by the end of September. Enforcement wouldn’t start until 2027, so manufacturers would have a little time to get their production in order. Evidently, many automakers already know about this potential change, so they might already be working on a solution.

The Problem With Flush Handles

Flush door handles have been a hallmark of modern EVs, touted not just for their futuristic look but also their aerodynamic gains. Real-world data appears to throw a wrench in that latter point, though.

Engineers say that drag reduction due to flush handles amounts to just 0.005-0.01 Cd, saving about 0.6 kWh per 100 km. That’s a very small amount and even more negligible for those who charge at home. At the same time, adding the motors and mechanisms that make these doors work can add 7-8 kg of weight.

On top of that, we’ve reported on countless examples of door handles like this failing. Frozen motors can leave motorists stranded with no quick way into their car. Crash data indicates that handles can fail more than 30 percent of the time after side impacts. When it comes time for replacement, they’re far more expensive, too.

What Happens If China Bans Them?

If China does move forward with this ban, it could actually affect handles everywhere. Many automakers see the world’s biggest car market as a huge part of their own business plan. Changing their design to conform to such rules would likely mean keeping that same non-flush design in other markets as well.

Again, that wouldn’t stop automakers from using semi-flush handles, but it could stop fully flush ones from popping up in the future. 

Credit: Magna International / GAC / Infiniti

Tesla might have just dropped its strongest hint yet that a Cybertruck-inspired SUV could very well be on the table. In its new “Sustainable Abundance – Master Plan IV” video, clay models of the upcoming Cybercab were featured in the foreground of some frames. The real surprise, though, was in the background, where scale models sat on a shelf. They appear to be three-row Cybertruck-inspired Tesla SUVs.

More: Tesla’s New Model Y Performance Gets A Feature Once Reserved For Supercars

Elon Musk’s company is typically very secretive about its design process. While we show you leaks from automakers all over the world, it’s rare for Tesla to let something big slip. For example, the Cybertruck and the second-generation Roadster never leaked before their debuts. It’s curious then that it would publish the video below with these models in the background.

From Pickup to Family SUV

A ‘CyberSUV’ has been a point of speculation since the Cybertruck first debuted in 2019. The idea is simple but potentially game-changing. Take the rugged-looking stainless steel wedge aesthetic of the pickup and shape it into a three-row SUV.

It would essentially trade the bed for a more family-friendly interior while keeping the major bones of the Cybertruck itself. The 48-volt system, the steer-by-wire, and adaptive suspension could just carry over.

Such a model would give Tesla something that it has always lacked, a true full-size SUV to rival cars like the Cadillac Escalade IQ, Rivian R1S, and Kia EV9. The Model X is a bit too small and dainty to cover that territory, and the Model Y L is really a different proposition altogether, not to mention it might not end up in America at all. On top of that, rugged off-road vehicles are very popular, but short of the Cybertruck, Tesla doesn’t sell such a car.

That all said, there’s good reason to think the CyberSUV might end up being just a fanciful design study. Teslarati points out the company’s Q4 2024 Shareholder Deck, which explicitly stated that no future vehicles would use a stainless steel exoskeleton like the Cybertruck does.

Of course, if Tesla could find a way to repurpose the vast majority of Cybertruck chassis and structural design, it could allow the brand to better use the production capacity it thought it would need for the truck.

For now, the CyberSUV remains speculative. But if Tesla is truly considering it, the SUV could become the brand’s next breakout hit. It could even signal future design language for the entire lineup.

https://t.co/ZA7KCwX7N9

— Tesla (@Tesla) September 1, 2025

Credit: Tesla