Articles by Craig Trudell

Tesla Runs Afoul of Font-Size Rule in 2.2 Million Electric Cars

Tesla drivers no longer have to squint to read the warning lights in their electric vehicles, thanks to eagle-eyed auditors at the US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The regulator posted an unusual recall report on its website Friday from …

Tesla Fatal Crash With Fire Truck Draws Regulator Inquiry

The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration asked Tesla Inc. for more information about one of its vehicles colliding with a fire truck in a fatal crash in the San Francisco Bay area. The agency reached out to the manufacturer …

Fire on Car Transport Ship Felicity Ace Continues After One Week

The operator of Felicity Ace, the ship transporting thousands of Porsches, Lamborghinis and other Volkswagen AG vehicles, said Tuesday it assumes the car carrier is still on fire almost a full week after the crew abandoned ship. Two large tugboats …

Takata Bankruptcy Filing Could Happen Next Week in Japan

Takata Corp. plans to file for bankruptcy as soon as next week, paving the way for a sale of the 84-year-old Japanese air-bag maker behind the biggest safety recall in automotive history. The supplier is expected to seek protection in …

Takata Takeover Deals Scrutinized for Handling of Recall, Liability Costs

Takata Corp. and some of the world’s biggest carmakers face an extensive — and expensive — to-do list as they try to resolve the worst safety crisis in the auto industry’s history. Executives for the Tokyo-based maker of air bags …

Obama Onboard with Road Testing of Autonomous Vehicles

Automated cars have the backing of President Barack Obama, who’s signed off on what’s largely been a hands-off approach to regulating the burgeoning industry, U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said. The U.S. is allowing road trials by the likes of …

Tesla Faces Lawsuit Over Crash in China

Tesla Motors Inc. said it has no way of knowing whether its Autopilot system was involved in a crash in China that killed the driver because the car was too damaged to transmit data. A court in Beijing’s Chaoyang district …

Takata Engineers ‘Manipulated’ Results of Air-Bag Inflator Tests: Honda Audit

Takata Corp., the air-bag supplier behind the industry’s largest ever recall, routinely manipulated results of air-bag inflator tests reported to Honda Motor Co., according to an ongoing audit commissioned by the parts maker and its biggest customer. Takata engineers removed …

Mitsubishi Motors Faces Uncertain Future as Fuel Test Scandal Deepens

For the second time in about a decade, Mitsubishi Motors Corp. faces a scandal that poses an existential threat. The Japanese automaker has improperly tested the fuel economy of its cars for the past quarter century, widening the scope of …

Toyota $1B Research Labs Near Stanford, MIT to Develop Autonomous Vehicles

Toyota Motor Corp. is spending $1 billion to form a research institute focused on the artificial intelligence and robotics technology it needs to make cars that can overcome driver errors and reduce traffic fatalities. Toyota Research Institute Inc. will pitch …