Cars

The company is walking back some of its long-term electrification plans, cutting 3 trillion yen (about $20.8 billion) from its investment in electric cars over the next six years. Instead, it’s shifting focus to hybrids, though still plans to be selling only EVs by 2040.

The update puts a focus on Formula 1 racing in promotion of both upcoming Apple movie F1 and the 2025 Monaco Grand Prix race happening later this month. The update is full of special Monaco Grand Prix-related things, including little renders of Formula 1 cars at the pits and road closure advisories.

Tesla’s Optimus robot has been plagued by fakery since it launched with a dancer in a suit followed by remote manipulation at the cybercab event. So what is this? Generative AI? A man behind the curtain in a mocap suit?

The struggling automaker, still going it alone after the failure of merger talks with Honda, has confirmed plans to cut 20,000 jobs in the next few years, including 9,000 announced in November. It will also shut seven of its 17 factories by 2027, with the aim of saving 500 billion yen (about $3.4 billion) and becoming profitable by 2026.

The paintless, affordable EV pickup truck started taking reservations just over two weeks ago and crossed the 100,000 mark this past weekend, reports TechCrunch.

“EPA approved it, and everyone hates it, so we’re fixing it,” says Lee Zeldin.

In the two days leading up to being let go, former Tesla employee Matthew LaBrot published a website calling for Tesla to “move forward without Elon as CEO,” then attended a Tesla Takedown protest, reports Business Insider.

As part of the “maxed out” trade deal agreed today between the US and UK, up to 100,000 British cars can be imported into the US every year at the 10 percent baseline tariff rate, rather than the 25 percent rate for vehicles from elsewhere.

The US Patent and Trademark Office rejected Tesla’s request to trademark the term for being “merely descriptive” and describing “similar goods and services by other companies,” reports TechCrunch:

Beginning May 2nd, prices on vehicles such as the Mustang Mach-E EV could jump as much as $2,000, which Ford says will arrive in US dealer lots by late June. The news comes after Ford declared the Trump administration’s tariffs are adding about $2.5 billion of costs for the company in 2025.

After Hyundai started making them in the USA, the popular EV became briefly eligible — but mysteriously lost eligibility weeks later, possibly over its batteries. Now, the Ioniq 5 is finally back on the list, until or unless Trump kills the credit entirely. It may not make a difference for many buyers: Hyundai was already offering its own $7,500 discount as a stopgap until the credit came back online.

Robyn Denholm, who was appointed chair of Tesla’s board of directors after the SEC forced Elon Musk to step down, just sold over $32 million worth of shares in the company. As Electrek notes, it appears that she is close to liquidating her entire position in Tesla, with only 85,000 shares left and 300,440 stock options expiring later this year. Several Tesla investors have urged the board to rein in Musk, who’s political alliance with the Trump administration has done irreparable damage to the company’s brand. But under Denholm’s leadership, the board has done essentially nothing to curb Musk’s worst tendencies.

The excellent Tim Stevens joins The Vergecast to talk all things Slate, which recently unveiled its first product, an extremely barebones, all-electric, two-seater pickup truck.

More incoming tariff flip-flopping from the White House, The Wall Street Journal reports today. Trump is expected to rollback some duties on automakers so they don’t end up paying for multiple tariffs on materials like on steel and aluminum. You know, they stuff they usually make cars out of. And here’s the kicker: Trump may end up actually reimbursing some car companies for their tariffs based on the value of the vehicle! Folks, this is what real leadership looks like. According to the Journal:

That’s how Land Rover describes the recently-released upgrade for third‑generation Range Rovers produced between 2010‑2012 that lets them access Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. However, the upgrade is only available to people in the UK and Germany, according to 9to5Mac.