We’re not even a full year into the new regulations, and Formula 1 is already thinking hard about its next iteration, set to be introduced as early as the start of 2030.

This was supposed to be a big year for F1, with the introduction of a bold new technical rules package that puts far more emphasis on the electric side of the cars’ hybrid power units than before. But those rules were perhaps too ambitious for 2026, with batteries that can only power the electric motor for a tiny fraction of a lap. Such was the shock of getting it wrong that F1 may fast-track a fix for 2030 rather than 2031, when the next set of rules is currently set to start. And according to a report in Autosport, there is now some agreement on what those power units will look like.

Where are we now?

The current rules were finalized several years ago, when optimism about electrification among automakers was high. F1 wanted more of those automakers, and automakers wanted more electrification. The sport would give it to them with a near 50:50 split between a small 1.6 L V6 turbo and an electric motor, both driving the rear wheels. The idea worked. Audi, Cadillac, and Ford have all signed up since, joining Mercedes, Ferrari, and Honda, which recommitted after pulling out in 2021.

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https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/09/formula-1-looks-at-3-0-l-v8-turbos-and-smaller-hybrids-for-2030/

“So what we’ve determined, especially for—and we’ve got so much workplace charging, this is where most of our data comes from, but I think it’s relevant for other use cases as well—but on a five-day, eight-hour-a-day workplace scenario, if you’re above 30 percent utilization, you’re going to have drivers coming in that can’t find an open charger,” Wilmer said.

“And it’s fascinating to watch this happen because you’ll see a workplace make the decision to put some chargers in the parking lot because their employees are demanding it… So they put some in, and then other employees now have charging at work, so they buy EVs, and all of a sudden you’re up above 30 percent. And the employees are now more upset than they were before they even had EV charging because they can’t find a charger. So again, in a workplace, eight-hour-day workweek, 30 percent is kind of the magic number,” he said.

V2G RSN?

ChargePoint has developed a new range of cheaper and more powerful Level 2 (AC, 240 V) chargers for North America and has partnered with Eaton (for its smart breaker technology) to enable bidirectional charging. “We’re really pushing to get to a point where you can do a vehicle-to-home solution at a much, much lower price point than what’s available today to make it palatable for consumers that want basic use cases, just power my house when the power’s out,” Wilmer said. “You get into the more interesting use cases where I can sell my energy back or things like that, that’s all possible as well. But in the US, I mean, I had three power outages on Christmas Day; that was brutal.”

But Wilmer thinks a degree of standardization, both among the automotive industry and electrical utilities, is a necessary step before the widespread growth of V2G, where EVs might send spare power back to the grid, becomes commonplace. Additionally, “the first thing you need is cars that are AC bidirectional. Most of the vehicles in the market now only are DC bidirectional. And a DC bidirectional solution in the home is way expensive and physically very large. It just takes up way too much space. So we need the cars to get AC bidirectional-capable,” he said.

https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/09/ev-charging-infrastructure-is-still-lagging-adoption-report-says/

General Motors is about to launch new versions of its bestselling Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra pickup trucks for model year 2027, and among the changes are new user interfaces for the trucks’ digital displays. The automaker has gone for a more minimalist approach than we’ve seen from it in the past, and after a demo yesterday, it seems like it has been listening to constructive feedback to improve the products. And yes, unlike GM’s electric vehicles, these trucks still let you cast your Apple or Android phone to the infotainment system.

Although GM showed us video of the main instrument cluster—the gauges and info that’s presented to the driver—we don’t have any screenshots we can show you. But I was impressed with the restraint and lack of visual noise; instead, the background is always black, which should be dark even at night thanks to local dimming technology.

There are a number of different views. One with simple half-moon dials for speed and engine rpm; on the right side of the display is a user-configurable zone, where you can browse your music or audio feeds, display trip info, or turn-by-turn directions. Another is a driver assist display, with green as the highlight color to show when Super Cruise is active; this shows you a representation of what the car’s fused sensors are seeing around it. A third is for off-road driving, with your various angles and diff settings, and a fourth is for towing.

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There must be a case of upgrade fever taking hold in Gothenburg. Yesterday, we saw the revised Volvo XC40; today it’s the turn of another pair of Volvo SUVs, the bestselling XC60 and the three-row XC90. While the styling changes are more subtle, the new plug-in hybrid powertrain—which more than doubles its real-world electric range—is most welcome.

Volvo had sold more than 2.7 million XC60s worldwide by the end of last year, so it’s an important car for the brand. Visually, there are changes to the “Thor’s Hammer” headlights: these keep their distinctive daylight running light signature but now hide matrix LED projectors within their depths. There’s a new front grille as well, one that has been slimmed down a little, together with tweaks to the bumpers, wings, and some other body panels.

On the inside, there’s a new ventilated leather interior option, and like the XC40, the new 11.2-inch infotainment system sports a Gemini personal assistant to enable conversational voice control of the android automotive OS-based infotainment system. Based on some brief testing, the new Gemini voice assistant does at least perform a lot better than the previous version, which, if anything, has degraded in ability over the past few years.

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Electric vehicle batteries are lasting longer than previously feared by drivers, with most used EVs able to retain about 90 percent of their original usable battery capacity after 150,000 kilometers, a new study has shown.

Despite a surge in global EV sales on the back of rising fuel prices, long-term battery durability continues to be one of the key concerns for drivers when they consider switching from a petrol model to an electric car.

EV battery warranties typically cover eight years or 100,000 miles (160,000 km) with car manufacturers required under the warranty to provide a replacement battery if capacity falls below 70 percent.

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Jaguar Land Rover was one of the first automakers to announce a transition away from combustion engines. That transition timeline might have slipped somewhat—pesky things like pandemics, supply chains, and revanchism have all been barriers to more rapid electrification—but it’s still underway, and today is the debut of the Range Rover Electric, a new battery-electric vehicle variant that sits alongside the internal combustion and plug-in hybrid Range Rovers.

Until now, the only way to get a fully electric Range Rover was by going the restomod route. But classic Range Rovers drive like classic cars, with all their inherent faults, and the price tag can be eye-watering. No Range Rover is exactly cheap, but with a starting price of $138,000, the 2027 Range Rover Electric is about half the cost of one of those restomods and benefits from 21st century safety systems like airbags, advanced driver assistance systems, modern crash protection standards, plus the support and warranty of a major OEM. And there’s evidently demand: JLR told us that it already has 80,000 hand-raisers—half from North America—70 percent of whom are new to the brand, with 20 percent already owning an EV. (Obviously, only some fraction of those will translate to sales.)

The smooth front grille is one of the only ways to spot a Range Rover Electric. Credit: Range Rover

Because the idea was to make the Range Rover Electric a Range Rover first and an EV second, it looks virtually identical to the other versions, albeit with a slightly more aerodynamic front grille and more aero-efficient wheels that together conspire to shave off a fraction of the vehicle’s drag coefficient. The lack of tailpipes at the back is probably the biggest giveaway that you’re looking at the electric one. There’s also a flat underbody, but hopefully you’ll never need to look at that.

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https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/09/range-rover-ev-electric-propulsion-pairs-perfectly-with-this-luxury-suv/

MONTEREY, Calif.—Elsewhere on these pages, you can find our first track drive of the new Bentley Supersports. Shorn of its hybrid system and stripped back to rear-wheel drive, it’s not only the most driver-focused Bentley we can remember, but it’s also apparently the lightest car the company has made in 85 years. But you have to go back even further into the Bentley archive to find the first car to wear the Super Sports badge. And since Bentley had done just that, bringing along to Laguna Seca an example from the time, it would have been rude to refuse the offer of a ride.

Bentley built 18 Super Sports between 1925 and 1927, taking its standard 3 Litre model and shortening the wheelbase by 9.5 inches (241 mm). Like today’s Super Sports, that shaved some mass and made it a more responsive driver’s car. But a fast one, too. The radiator was more tapered and thus presented less resistance against the flow of air, although like many cars at the time, the bodywork was a matter of whichever coachbuilder the owner decided upon.

Like today with the Continental GT and the new Supersports, the 3.0 L engine Bentley in the original Super Sports was more special than one you’d find in the standard car, with new pistons, a lighter flywheel, more compression, and different carburetors. Together with its unique gearing, the factory would guarantee a Super Sports that could exceed 100 mph (160 km/h); the millions of Ford Model Ts that took the roads those same years were hard-pushed to break 40 mph (64 km/h).

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As so many career counselors and lifestyle coaches have explained, first impressions matter. A bad one can set the tone for an entire relationship, whether that’s with a person, a novel, a restaurant, or a car. And the 2026 Volkswagen Jetta Sport and I did not get off to the best of starts.

Picture the scene: You’ve been at home for a total of one night out of the previous eight, and you’ve just landed at the airport after an eight-hour flight. It’s 85˚F (30˚C) and raining. You could take the metro home. Sure, 80 minutes isn’t quick, but all you have to do is sit there, then walk home a block. But you can’t because there’s a car to be reviewed, waiting to be driven home. In rush hour.

I will confess, I did not know VW made a Jetta Sport. For one thing, it’s not the Jetta GLI. That car has plenty of power and torque and uprated suspension, and it can even be ordered with a six-speed manual, unlike the Golf GTI, although based on our most recent GLI drive, you may regret ticking that particular box.

The Jetta Sport gets these 17-inch wheels and a black grille.

Credit: Jonathan Gitlin

There’s no special engine under the hood here, just the same 1.5 L four-cylinder turbo like all the other Jettas, running on VW’s modified version of the Miller cycle, where the intake valves close earlier than most engines during the suction stroke to boost efficiency. At 11.5:1, the compression ratio is quite high, even for a more modern turbocharged engine, but it helps generate 158 hp (118 kW) and 184 lb-ft (250 Nm), all of which goes to the front wheels via an eight-speed automatic transmission.

On that first hot, rainy afternoon, the power and torque delivery left a lot to be desired. There are no sport or eco modes, just one throttle map for all situations. And below 2,500 rpm, the engine was easy to modulate on a part-throttle. But keep that part-throttle and let the revs past that threshold, and the combination of gearing and turbocharger throws a giant slug of torque at the road, making you look like a moron who shouldn’t be allowed out in public as the car lurches and accelerates faster than you planned.

https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/08/2026-volkswagen-jetta-sport-the-cheap-car-isnt-completely-extinct-yet/

As for maintenance, most cars, especially earlier halogen models, would require bulb changes. Depending on the vehicle, this was generally as simple as popping the hood, removing a cap from the back of the headlight, and changing the bulb.

Now, if an LED cluster malfunctions, the entire unit must be swapped out for another, due to much tighter tolerances in LED sources compared to halogen counterparts. As for headlight alignment, the higher intensities and contrasts of LED lights mean greater sensitivity to misalignment than halogen lights.

And there you have it: an unromantic explanation for why night driving now feels like a low-grade assault on your retinas. Modern lighting systems are undeniably better than what came before—brighter, more efficient, and far more capable—but, as ever, those gains come with trade-offs.

Headlights are still evolving; they’re now supported by cameras, sensors, and software that’s supposed to handle the tedious work of switching between low and high beams—or better yet, shaping the beam itself so you’re never blinding other drivers while still being able to see the road.

In theory, it’s elegant. In practice, it’s a computer trying to interpret a fast-moving, low-light world in real time, deciding whether that reflective flicker is a cyclist, a sign, or just the universe messing with it. And for all their confidence, computers still hesitate in slightly unnerving ways. Object recognition can be imperfect, beam adjustments aren’t truly instantaneous, and the entire system depends on a stack of assumptions about what a system thinks the road is doing at any given moment.

It usually works. Right up until it doesn’t.

It’s a bit like a Roomba, which will happily clean most of the floor, navigate around obstacles, and declare victory with robotic satisfaction. But it will also miss the awkward corners and stubborn patches that require a human to step in with a more old-fashioned approach (in this case, manually turning off the blinders).

On a good day, modern headlights can take most of the cognitive load out of night driving. But are we comfortable delegating yet another slice of real-time judgment to a system that is still learning how to see in the dark?

https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/08/how-headlights-got-brighter-whiter-and-more-blinding-after-dark/

Tesla posted its financial statement for the second quarter of the year this afternoon. Earlier in July, we learned that the American automaker had had a good quarter in terms of sales, growing 25 percent year over year. Fans hoping that sales increase would result in a plenty profitable Tesla may be disappointed, though. Revenues are up but so are expenses, and the company’s once-enviable double-digit profit margin has fallen to just 1.4 percent.

Tesla brought in $20.5 billion from its electric vehicle business, a 23 percent increase year over year, and just $146 million came from automotive regulatory credits. Credits have been a key to Tesla’s profitability in previous challenging quarters, but they were abolished in the United States with Musk’s blessing in 2025.

There was growth from its energy and storage business, which grew 13 percent year over year to revenues of $3.1 billion, but the most growth was in Tesla’s services, which doubled, bringing in $4.6 billion. Tesla’s shift from a one-time purchase to a monthly subscription for its much-criticized FSD partially automated driver assist—something tied to CEO Elon Musk’s gargantuan remuneration package—was a big help here.

Overall, total revenues were up 26 percent, to $28.2 billion.

But the cost of doing business went up more. Tesla’s operating expenses went up 47 percent to $4.4 billion, and income from those operations fell by 57 percent year over year to $398 million. The company is still profitable—it generated $1.1 billion for the quarter, but that’s 5 percent less than the same three months last year.

https://arstechnica.com/cars/2026/07/teslas-revenues-are-up-but-profits-squeezed-as-musk-spends-on-ai/