Driving off the dealer lot in a longed-for new vehicle is one of life’s richest pleasures, but there’s no joy if a buyer can’t find the chariot of their dreams.

Now, imagine that your dream ride is a gray Chevrolet Malibu — a 1LT model with two common options. Doesn’t that seem like an attainable goal? Shouldn’t be too hard to find, you’d think, right? Well, one would-be buyer says otherwise. Read More >

What would your body look like if it evolved to survive a car crash?

That’s the question a group of Australians had in mind when they created Graham, a disturbingly lifelike creation designed to show how vulnerable our bodies are in a low-speed impact. Read More >

Want to feel a real connection to something? Pay cash for it.

Research shows the act of handing over real, honest-to-God paper money and coins for a product has a profound impact on the value a person places in that product. Suddenly, it turns into a possession. Read More >

A study of self-reported aggressive driving behavior finds that your neighbor, brother, wife and child are angry and violent behind the wheel. But not you.

The statistics found in the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety’s report are alarming, and, without stating it explicitly, advocate for more yoga. According to the study, almost 80 percent of U.S. drivers displayed at least one incident of “significant” aggression, anger or road rage during the past year. Read More >

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has no plans to remove the Autopilot feature from his vehicles, despite demands from safety and consumer groups.

Musk told the Wall Street Journal that lack of education is the problem, not the technology behind the semi-autonomous driving system. The executive’s comments come after the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration delivered a lengthy list of questions to Tesla as part of its investigation into the fatal May 7 crash of a Model S. Read More >

There’s a good chance that the former managing director of Audi Volkswagen Korea will soon find himself pleading for a sip of Coke during the 11th hour of a grueling interrogation process.

Park Dong-hoon, now CEO of Renault Samsung Motors, was recently identified as a suspect in South Korea’s investigation into the Volkswagen emissions-cheating scandal, according to Wards Auto. That means a date with the “VIP Suite.” Read More >

Edsel Ford II, great-grandson of Ford Motor Company founder Henry Ford, was arrested after an altercation at his Grosse Pointe Farms home last night, but no charges came out of this morning’s arraignment.

According to reports from the arraignment by the Detroit Free Press, police were called to the home by Ford’s wife, Cynthia Layne Neskow. The 67-year-old Ford, son of Henry Ford II and cousin of company chairman William Clay Ford, Jr,  spent the night in jail awaiting a misdemeanor domestic violence charge. Read More >

After Britain referendumed themselves right out of the European Union last week, there was plenty of talk about how the country’s automakers would fare in the wake of the Brexit.

But what about an Italian-American automaker? Today, investment bank Goldman Sachs removed Fiat Chrysler Automobiles from their “conviction” buy list, citing uncertainty over the fate of the EU, Bloomberg reports. Read More >

We’re told the future will bring us a blissful, autonomous driving experience that allows us to enjoy the scenery as we read our tablets and enjoy a Venti Macchiato, free of the burden of driving decisions and liability.

Now, for the less happy stuff: who should your safety-minded car kill if it’s forced to make an autonomous Sophie’s Choice-style decision — an occupant or a pedestrian?

A study published in the journal Science tackled that question, with researchers posing various scenarios to 1,900 participants via an online survey. The results show our sense of moral duty is matched by our sense of self-preservation. Read More >

Founded with the intent of finding energy solutions (and profit) in the power of the sun, SolarCity’s photovoltaic energy business has grown in leaps and bounds since 2006. Now, as the company poises itself for bigger profits, a very familiar man wants to acquire the operation.

Tesla Motors published a note on its website yesterday stating its intention to acquire SolarCity. The offer, made by Tesla, would see the electric automaker trade shares with the San Mateo, California-based company, bringing the business into its fold.

Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk is no stranger to SolarCity’s operation — he co-founded it with cousins Lyndon and Peter Rive (CEO and CTO of Solar City), and serves as the company’s chairman. Read More >

Less than two days after Star Trek actor Anton Yelchin died in a bizarre vehicle crash in his Los Angeles driveway, the maker of his 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee says it will investigate the incident.

Yelchin, 27, was found crushed between his SUV and a brick gatepost two nights ago. The vehicle, which was found in neutral with the engine still running, apparently rolled backwards down the steep driveway and hit him.

Police reports identified his Grand Cherokee as one of the models recalled due to its confusing Monostable shift lever, with Reuters now reporting that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles promises to conduct a “thorough investigation.” Read More >

“Three to five 727-horsepower Mustangs leave the lot daily,” TTAC’s associate editor, Steph Willems, wrote this past weekend.

Naturally, that got me thinking.

After Ohio’s Lebanon Ford dealer began marketing its 727-horsepower Lebanon Ford Performance Mustang GT as a $39,995 performance bargain, Chris Tonn’s story blew up on TTAC a month ago. Now, Lebanon Ford answers 1,000 Performance Mustang-related inquiries per day and says it sells three to five per day.

So let’s do some math. It’ll be fun. Read More >

Elon Musk is declaring the controversy that erupted over reports of Tesla Model S suspension failures to be over, done, finished, finito.

The Tesla founder and CEO fired off a string of tweets late Friday, saying that the National Highway Transportation Safety Administration was done looking into the matter, and added that the majority of complaints were found to be fraudulent.

Yesterday, TTAC examined the details of the case that sparked accusations of a serious Model S safety issue and a cover-up on the part of the automaker. The firestorm of controversy, ignited by a Daily Kanban blog post by ex-TTAC editor Edward Neidermeyer, centered on a Pennsylvania man whose 2013 Model S experienced an unusual upper ball joint failure. Read More >

You remember Lebanon Ford — the suburban Cincinnati Roush Performance dealer that suddenly began offering the country’s greatest performance bargain early last month?

Well, its 727-horsepower supercharged Mustang GTs are now flying off the lot (at the insanely low price of $39,995), and the once-sleepy Ohio dealer has become a nationwide performance mecca, Automotive News writes. Read More >

Reuters is reporting that Gawker Media, parent company of automotive website Jalopnik, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

A judge recently ordered the company to pay $140 million in damages after it aired a 2007 sex tape featuring former wrestler Hulk Hogan, who then sued Gawker for invasion of privacy. The company had requested a stay, but was denied based on the terms they laid out.

The New York Times reports that Gawker Media will now put itself up for sale, according to a source close to the matter. The source claims the company is starting a yet-to-be announced auction, and that digital media company ZiffDavis already submitted a starting bid of $90 million to $100 million. Read More >