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Car Launches in a Nutshell Car launches are as straightforward as it gets. The usual program flow starts with speeches from executives, a breakdown of highlights, and eventually, the reveal. From time to time, there are a few gimmicks, but it's really nothing out of the ordinary. We've covered loads of these over the years, and we already know what to expect. But for those who attended the Volkswagen ID. Polo's launch in Germany recently, we can say that those who were there witnessed something

Fire Alert Volkswagen is recalling certain ID.4 units due to a fire risk linked to irregularities in the high-voltage battery cells. The issue is serious enough that the automaker is advising owners to park their EVs outside after charging and not to leave them inside the garage overnight, as a potential fire could cause severe property damage. According to the recall report from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the affected units may contain individual battery cells w

Volkswagen is recalling 75,323 examples of the 2025 Jetta and 2025 Taos in the United States after confirming that a software error can cause the digital instrument cluster to go completely black while driving. Another 8,040 vehicles are affected in Canada, pushing the North American total past 83,000. The NHTSA recall filing, published March 25, 2026, under campaign number 26V185000, classifies the defect as a violation of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 101. That is the federal rule that

Battery Trouble Goes Global Volkswagen is recalling nearly 100,000 electric vehicles due to potential issues with their high-voltage battery modules. According to Automotive News, citing Germany’s motor vehicle authority (KBA), the defect can lead to reduced driving range and may pose a fire risk. While recalls in the U.S. are typically handled by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), this particular safety campaign covers nearly 75,000 Volkswagen ID. vehicles worldwide – i

Volkswagen Rethinks Strategy as Tariffs Upend the Playbook For decades, Volkswagen Group’s North American strategy was built on a clear cost advantage: manufacturing vehicles in Mexico and exporting them to the United States. That model is now under serious pressure. According to a report from Automotive News Europe, with U.S. tariffs on Mexican-built vehicles reaching as high as 27.5%, the economics that once justified cross-border production are rapidly eroding. Volkswagen exports roughly 70%

A lawsuit involving the seat heater in a 2023 Volkswagen Tiguan is proceeding to trial, with the judge dismissing only part of the full complaint. The plaintiff, Emily LaPrade, claims to have suffered second-degree burns due to the heated seat’s defective design. The incident occurred in September 2023, but the case has dragged on after VW denied the seat was defective. As the plaintiff was left paralyzed from the waist down after an unrelated 2014 car crash, she couldn’t detect the seat heaters

A Familiar Name, a Very Different Future The Volkswagen Touareg has always been a bit of an outlier in the brand’s lineup. It never tried to be flashy or chase a premium badge, but it quietly shared a lot with the Audi Q7. Same bones, less attention. Over time, the Touareg earned a reputation for doing things its own way. It came with some of Volkswagen’s most unusual engines – V10 TDI and W12 – yet it could handle rough roads and long highway drives without fuss. It towed well, cruised comforta

We’re starting to lose track of the many China-specific Volkswagen models as the automaker vies to regain market share in the world’s largest car market. It is attempting to do so by launching new vehicles developed with its joint venture partners specifically for Chinese consumers. Today we’re bringing you two fresh Volkswagen EVs that have been unveiled for the first time at the Volkswagen Group Media Night event held yesterday ahead of the Auto China 2026 show that starts on Friday in Beijing

The people have spoken, Scout CEO says According to a new report published by Bloomberg on November 26, Scout Motors, Volkswagen's recently established adventure-focused electric vehicle brand, stated that the brand will be making a hard pivot from purely battery-electric, off-road-oriented SUVs and pickup trucks to those incorporating a gasoline-powered engine. Namely, the brand will be giving its Harvester models extended-range electric versions (EREVs) that were revealed last year with the br

Widening Portfolios Volkswagen Group was once considered the world's largest automotive group, housing some of the most important car brands ever made. As time progressed, the once-pragmatic auto giant took risks and gambles by separating and launching smaller brands to serve specific markets. Cupra is one of the brands. What used to be just a variant or model is now a standalone maker and seller, think of it like the Century for Toyota, or the upcoming Freelander for JLR. However small Cupra is

Buttons Make a Comeback Volkswagen owners and car reviewers have been vocal about one thing: too many touch controls, not enough real buttons. Simple tasks like changing the temperature meant digging through menus or fiddling with sliders, and those haptic steering wheel controls never really caught on. Volkswagen listened, and now it's showing off what’s next for its interiors. The big news? Physical buttons are making a return. The first car to get this new interior is the Volkswagen ID. Polo,

Volkswagen is preparing to launch a new "performance-focused" version of the Amarok, a midsize pickup that shares its underpinnings with the Ford Ranger. Instead of chasing petrol power or leaning fully into extreme off-road theatrics, Volkswagen is taking a different route with the Amarok W600. Developed in partnership with Walkinshaw Performance, the W600 – also called the Amarok Walkinshaw – focuses on diesel power, chassis refinement, and real-world usability. Since Volkswagen has faced a sh

New-Age EV Batteries Near Production Volkswagen’s Chinese battery partner Gotion High Tech has taken another step towards mass production of its Gemstone solid-state batteries with the commencement of real-world vehicle testing. These batteries are designed to deliver an energy density of approximately 350 Wh/kg with a single-cell capacity of 70 Ah, which could translate to a range of about 620 miles when integrated into a production EV. Once they reach commercial production, these batteries wil

The storm is now actively hitting the Cascades. The heaviest snow fell overnight Tuesday and continues into Wednesday morning as forecast, and additional accumulations of 3 to 7 inches are expected across the North Oregon Cascades through Wednesday evening. NWS Portland reports snow levels dropped lower than initially forecast, reaching 1,500 feet in Clackamas County, with up to an inch possible above 1,000 feet elsewhere. A freeze watch has been added for the foothills of the Blue Mountains fr

I’ve told folks for years that if you pull a small block out of a car, and immediately replace it with another small block, you’ll spend $1000. Hell, it’s 2025 and that number might be $1,500. I mean you aren’t going to put the old belts and hoses back on are you? And what about the old water pump and engine driven fuel pump? You gonna reuse the header gaskets? How about those old transmission cooler lines? You get the point, that even the most simple things take time and money. So when I saw t

A Good-Looking Z, With a Catch When the latest Nissan Z first arrived, its design carried much of the weight. The facelift sharpens things even more, cleaning up the front end and replacing the busier rectangular elements with a softer, more cohesive look. The real issue for US buyers, however, isn’t the styling – it’s supply. Nissan is moving toward a build-to-order model for the 2027 Z, with some reports suggesting fewer than three cars per dealer for the whole year. That’s not per quarter or

Why the Used EV Market Is Rising The used EV surge isn’t accidental; it’s the direct consequence of a massive leasing boom that started around 2022. A classification loophole in the Inflation Reduction Act allowed leased EVs to qualify for commercial tax credits, which allowed manufacturers to put their cost savings directly into very low lease rates. EV leasing soared between 2022 and mid 2025, and now those 24- to 36-month leases are maturing. Around 215,000 EVs are projected to come off lease

Icy winter mornings can be hard on both drivers and their cars. That’s why many people still rely on a familiar routine: start the engine, step away for a few minutes, and let the car warm up while the windshield defrosts and the cabin heats up. Harmless enough, right? In Texas, that habit can land you on the wrong side of the law, with penalties that make sitting in a cold car suddenly seem far more appealing. Texas Law Treats Unattended Idling As An Offense

Chinese EVs Are Raising the Bar Chinese EVs still get mixed reactions, with many questioning their long-term reliability and whether the brands can be trusted. Others, meanwhile, are starting to notice how these cars are doing things no one saw coming. That second group is getting bigger fast, with BYD’s Yangwang U9 electric hypercar leading the pack. Another Chinese brand also made headlines – the Xiaomi SU7 Ultra. Yes, that Xiaomi – the one known for phones and gadgets. It’s easy to look at th

The fastest that Christmas has ever moved 196 miles per hour. Apparently, it's about as fast as Christmas trees get. It's unlikely the Grinch was able to hit that on his way down Mount Crumpit, but Texas-based Hennessey continues to up the game (not that anyone else is even competing). The new record took a 5-and-a-half-foot Christmas tree strapped to the roof of a Chevrolet Corvette ZR1 to a whopping 196 MPH at Chase Field in Beeville, Texas. Why, you may ask? Well, when you have the fastest Co

The used passenger jet market is more active than you might think. The big airlines buy new jets and after they are done with them they are sold, often to smaller airlines and freight companies. They pull all the seats out of them, and outfit them for cargo holding, and freight transport. Not a big deal, because modern airplanes are modular and customizable, but a FedEx plane doesn’t look like a United Airlines plane, and that means there is a really, really, big paint job to worry about. Watch

NHRA announced that the 2026 season of NHRA Pro Mod was being brought to you by JBS Equipment, and presented by Elite Motorsports, as the season opening Gatornationals were underway. It was a heck of a way to start the season, as the action was hot and heavy in Florida. With former champs, fan favorites, and hired guns all wheeling these insane machines, it is no wonder they put on a heck of a show. Below you’ll find the entire Pro Mod show, which includes interviews, racing, and more, so check

Getting Down and Dirty Formula 1 driver Liam Lawson made an unusual detour recently when he jumped behind the wheel of a Honda Civic Type R Rally XP. As the name implies, this Civic Type R isn’t built for circuits but for rally stages, a world far from Lawson’s usual playground. Even so, he seemed to adapt instantly. Developed by Honda Racing Corporation (HRC) and based on the FL5-generation Type R, the Rally XP is designed specifically for the American Rally Association (ARA) 2WD class. And yes

The Chevrolet Corvette ZR1X may have lost its crown as the fastest American car at the Nürburgring to the Mustang GTD Competition, but it's far from done proving its abilities on track. In two YouTube clips embedded in this article, we see the 1,250-horsepower ZR1X claim two new lap records at American circuits, first at National Corvette Museum Motorsport Park, where it beat the time posted by the McLaren Senna, and then at Sonoma Raceway. It's not the first time the ZR1X has beaten the McLaren

There are many bad things that can trigger anxiety behind the wheel, such as bad traffic, dangerous weather, the fear of other cars crashing into you, the fear of losing control, and much more. However, to many drivers, these things are nothing compared to falling into a sinkhole. Getting swallowed up by a sinkhole is the stuff of nightmares and among the scariest things that can happen while you're driving, and two drivers from Omaha, Nebraska experienced that first-hand on Tuesday afternoon. O