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Tesla Faces Regulatory Tension Over Self-Driving Builds. Market Doesn’t Care.

By Betty C. Morrow 2 weeks ago

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U.S. automotive-safety regulators want some answers from Tesla over its software and recall practices.


Odd Andersen/AFP via Getty Images

U.S. automotive-safety regulators want some answers from




Tesla

over its recall practices. It’s another example of the tension building between Tesla and the traditional auto industry as cars become smarter and start to drive themselves. It feels like a big issue, but for now, the stock market just doesn’t care.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, or NHTSA, has reminded Tesla (ticker: TSLA) that even software updates that correct a defect must result in recall paperwork, even if cars don’t have to come into a shop for physical repair. The administration also wants Tesla to disclose performance regarding new versions of its autonomous-driving software, even if it has non-disclosure agreements with drivers using the software.

“Through these actions, NHTSA continues to demonstrate its commitment to safety and its

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Tesla builds 1st store on tribal land to dodge New Mexico car law

By Betty C. Morrow 1 month ago

NAMBÉ, N.M. – Carmaker Tesla has opened a store and repair shop on Native American land for the first time, marking a new approach to its yearslong fight to sell cars directly to consumers and cut car dealerships out of the process.

The white-walled, silver-lettered Tesla store, which opened last week, sits in Nambé Pueblo, north of Santa Fe, on tribal land that’s not subject to state laws.

The electric car company can only sell and service its vehicles freely in about a dozen states, while it faces restrictions in others. Some, like New Mexico, ban Tesla from offering sales or repairs without going through a dealership. In January, the company struck a deal with Michigan to resolve a 2016 lawsuit, a symbolic victory that allowed it to sell in the backyard of the nation’s largest carmakers.

Supporters of Tesla say the shop in New Mexico marks the first time

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Lexus builds a one-off IS 350 with a record player in the glove box

By Betty C. Morrow 7 months ago

The latest Lexus to undergo modification for the company’s marketing efforts is called the Lexus IS Wax. That’s because it’s for vinyl lovers, and contains an actual car-mounted record player that, Lexus claims, does not skip.

Earlier this month we saw a sneaker homage to the Lexus IS. It, and now the IS Wax, are part of Lexus’s “All In” campaign that lets influencers in creative fields loose on a luxury sedan. The goal is to put the Lexus brand in front of others in that field, even if they are largely unrelated to anything automotive. Just last month, the company presented a gaming-themed IS built with input from the Twitch streaming community. 

As such, the press release for the Lexus IS Wax does not once mention that the car was based on a Lexus IS 350 F Sport. We can only deduce that because it wears

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