Cruise Facing Penalties For 'Misleading' Regulators After Robotaxi Dragged Woman For 20 Feet

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The ruling states that Cruise Senior Manager Jose Alvarado called the California Public Utilities Commission to report the pedestrian accident on Oct. 3, the day after it occurred. But Alvarado’s description of the incident said the Cruise vehicle immediately stopped upon impact with the pedestrian. He omitted the critical information about the pullover maneuver, which resulted in the pedestrian being dragged.

That omission, “misled the Commission regarding the extent and severity of the October 2, 2023 incident, as well as the ability of Cruise’s AV’s to operate safely after experiencing a collision,” the ruling stated.

The next generation of the Chevrolet Bolt EV will arrive in 2025, General Motors CEO Mary Barra said Monday.

GM plans to discontinue its affordable electric vehicle at the end of this year as the automaker prepares to retool the Orion Assembly plant near Detroit to make electric pickups by late 2025. The Bolt EV and EUV currently are built on GM’s older battery platform and will be redesigned and reintroduced on its Ultium EV architecture.

Denmark’s 3F labour union said on Tuesday it will support Swedish mechanics in their strike action against Tesla (TSLA.O), and will refuse to unload or transport cars made by the U.S. auto company for customers in Sweden.

“Like the companies, the trade union movement is global in the fight to protect workers,” 3F Chair Jan Villadsen said in a statement, adding that Sweden’s IF Metall union had asked 3F to help.

The strike by Danish dockworkers and lorry drivers only affects cars that are meant for the Swedish market, the union said.

Meanwhile, Ford Motor Co. sales dipped slightly as strong electric vehicle deliveries couldn’t overcome the sharp decline of popular models, like the Bronco SUV, that were impacted by the UAW strike earlier this fall. Ford said EV sales rose 43 percent compared to the same period a year ago, while hybrid sales jumped 75 percent and gas-powered vehicle sales fell 6.5 percent.

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Sales rose 17 percent at Toyota Motor last month, with volume surging 70 percent at Lexus and 10 percent at Toyota. This was Toyota Motor’s biggest sales gain since deliveries rose 28 percent in October 2022.

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Honda Motor Co.’s rebound from chronic chip and inventory shortages continued last month with volume rising 33 percent. Light trucks were up 39 percent and car volume advanced 21 percent. Sales rose 32 percent at the Honda division and 38 percent at Acura.

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Sales rose 11 percent to 70,079 vehicles last month at Hyundai, with a lift from fleet shipments, while volume advanced 3 percent to 58,338 at Kia. It was the 16th consecutive monthly increase for each brand.

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Subaru said November sales were up 6.4 percent, its 16th consecutive increase, behind big gains for two of its top sellers, the Crosstrek and Forester.

Mazda, after a dip in October volume, saw November sales bounce back and rise 3 percent to 27,715 behind strong demand for three core crossovers, the CX-90, CX-50 and CX-30.