Car News

A startup in the US says it is planning an electric pick-up for the American market. Hercules says its electric ute – named the Alpha – will be based on the Nissan Titan, a full-size pick-up only available in North America. Rather than developing a vehicle from scratch, Hercules plans to re-engineer the Titan into a fully-electric vehicle, claiming the vehicle will produce around 750kW from its four electric motors.

Peugeot, through its local distributor Inchcape, is looking to grow sales in Australia by way of a two-stage rollout of plug-in hybrid and electric vehicles. The first step is to launch the all-wheel-drive, plug-in hybrid Peugeot 3008 SUV (below) halfway through 2021. This will likely be followed by an all-electric Peugeot 208 city hatch toward the end of 2022.

The automotive world could be on the brink of another global recall crisis. Takata, the same company responsible for producing potentially deadly airbags in more than 100 million cars, may have also lied about the strength and safety of its seatbelts.

Tesla is poised to introduce a new level of autonomous driving technology in the US, however authorities say they stand ready “to protect the public against safety risks”. The Reuters news agency has reported Tesla released an early test version of what it refers to as “full self driving” software to an “undisclosed number of expert, careful drivers”. Tesla owners responded by posting videos taken by them while experimenting with earlier versions of the company’s autonomous technology.

Owners of the original Mazda MX-5 (NA) will now find it easier to keep their iconic drop-tops in tip top condition with Mazda revealing it has started manufacturing new replacement parts for the 30-year-old roadster. The catch for Aussies, it’s limited to Europe and the UK for now. A total of 117 left-hand and 156 right-hand drive parts are being manufactured to original specification by Mazda, albeit using modern materials and technology.