https://techxplore.com/rss-feed/automotive-news/ en-us Tech Xplore covers the latest in car tech Adaptive cruise control (ACC) systems in many of the most popular cars in Queensland might not adhere to the State Government's safe following distance recommendations, according to new research from the University of the Sunshine Coast. ACC is a feature in modern cars that adjusts a driver's selected cruising speed to maintain a designated gap with the car ahead. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-cruise-cars-queensland-safety-gap.html Automotive Mon, 20 Apr 2026 21:20:02 EDT news695900391 Australia is in the middle of a fuel crisis, but the way the state and federal governments have chosen to respond signals a firm commitment to fossil fuels. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-fuel-crisis-approach.html Energy & Green Tech Mon, 20 Apr 2026 18:20:07 EDT news695911569 The war in the Middle East has driven wildly fluctuating oil prices, leading to uncertain costs at the gas pump. One easy way to avoid high gas prices impacting your weekly budget is to swap in cycling for driving for modest commutes or other daily travel activities, says transportation expert Ralph Buehler. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-gas-prices-fluctuate-commuting-alternative.html Automotive Mon, 20 Apr 2026 11:00:09 EDT news695900281 When the Strait of Hormuz first closed in March and oil hit US$120 a barrel, a very old question came back: is this finally the moment electric vehicles take off for good—or just another false start? https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-electric-vehicles-link-oil-prices.html Automotive Sat, 18 Apr 2026 17:00:05 EDT news695565422 A transparent radiative cooling film technology that dissipates heat directly to the outside without consuming electricity has been developed to reduce vehicle overheating during summer. The technology was validated through real-vehicle experiments conducted under diverse conditions—including different countries, seasons, and both parking and driving scenarios—and demonstrated the ability to lower cabin temperatures by up to 6.1°C and reduce cooling energy consumption by more than 20%. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-transparent-cooling-car-cabin-temperature.html Energy & Green Tech Fri, 17 Apr 2026 12:40:04 EDT news695647989 An Australian study has found that electric vehicles (EVs) equipped with vehicle-to-home (V2H) technology can significantly reduce household electricity costs and lessen the need for large, costly home battery systems. Researchers from Flinders University, Adelaide University and Murdoch University investigated how using an EV as a mobile energy storage unit influences the optimal sizing of rooftop solar (PV) and home battery storage in grid-connected residential homes. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-electric-vehicles-key-efficient-home.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 16 Apr 2026 14:40:05 EDT news695568062 Sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) will play a critical role in decarbonizing the aviation industry. Among SAF production pathways, alcohol-to-jet (ATJ) stands out for its scalability, supported by abundant feedstock availability and a well-established bioethanol industry. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-reveals-potential-cellulosic-feedstocks-sustainable.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 16 Apr 2026 07:20:01 EDT news695536142 Achieving aerospace industry net-zero emissions by 2050 requires rapid scaling of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production. Leveraging existing infrastructure, proven technologies like Alcohol-to-Jet (ATJ), and low-carbon intensity feedstocks such as switchgrass and miscanthus can support this transition and help achieve near-term emissions reduction targets. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-sustainability-outcomes-scale-aviation-fuel.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 16 Apr 2026 07:00:02 EDT news695535602 Electric vehicle sales have jumped in Southeast Asia as cost-conscious buyers have poured into dealerships looking to dodge the fuel price spikes driven by the Middle East war. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-asia-gas-price-crunch-turbocharging.html Automotive Tue, 14 Apr 2026 04:50:01 EDT news695359199 In a first for Europe, the Netherlands is poised to allow Tesla owners to use their car's self-driving feature—as long as they are in the vehicle and keeping a watchful eye over it. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-europe-netherlands-teslas.html Automotive Sun, 12 Apr 2026 04:50:02 EDT news695186438 Travelers will soon face restrictions on how many portable chargers they can carry on a flight as airlines continue to try to reduce the risk of another lithium battery fire aboard their jets. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-limits-chargers-airlines.html Consumer & Gadgets Wed, 08 Apr 2026 04:14:07 EDT news694840364 In tropical cities, afternoon thunderstorms can plunge entire neighborhoods into brief moments of darkness. When civil engineer Markus Schläpfer moved to Singapore a decade ago, he recognized these thunderstorms as an emerging engineering challenge. For cities that hope to run on solar energy, these short periods without strong sunlight could destabilize urban power grids and undermine reliability. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-electric-cars-tropical-cities-solar.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 07 Apr 2026 05:00:05 EDT news694686121 A new study finds that the global shift to electric vehicles (EVs) could significantly reduce energy use and carbon emissions, but only if governments act aggressively to lower costs and align policies across regions. Published in Resources, Environment and Sustainability, the paper, "Future Changes in CO2 Emissions in the Shift to Electric Mobility in Countries With Varied Levels of Zero-Emission Vehicle Policies," examines how the pace and scale of EV adoption vary widely worldwide, shaped by policy strength, economic conditions and infrastructure readiness within each country. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-global-ev-transition-hinges-policy.html Business Mon, 06 Apr 2026 12:30:01 EDT news694697161 A research team has developed a next-generation platinum-based catalyst that improves both activity and durability in hydrogen fuel cells. The study is published in Advanced Materials. The team was led by Professor Sang Uck Lee of the School of Chemical Engineering at Sungkyunkwan University, with Ph.D. candidate Jun Ho Seok as a co-first author and Dr. Sung Chan Cho, in collaboration with Professor Kwangyeol Lee's team at Korea University and Dr. Sung Jong Yoo's team at the Korea Institute of Science and Technology (KIST). https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-fuel-cell-barriers-platinum-catalyst.html Energy & Green Tech Fri, 03 Apr 2026 10:40:01 EDT news694431421 In a study focused on New York City, MIT researchers have shown that existing sensors and mobile data can be used to generate a near real-time, high-resolution picture of auto emissions, which could be used to develop local transportation and decarbonization policies. The paper, "Ubiquitous Data-driven Framework for Traffic Emission Estimation and Policy Evaluation," is published in Nature Sustainability. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-traffic-emissions-block-real.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 02 Apr 2026 12:00:03 EDT news694348321 Electric vehicles (EVs) could do more for our environment than simply replace gasoline. Published in Joule, a new assessment of EV charging strategies suggests that EVs could serve as a vast network of mobile batteries, storing excess energy and feeding it back into the grid when demand surges. This approach could ease grid strain, cut emissions, and create revenue—but only if gradually paired with timely grid upgrades. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-electric-vehicles-power.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 02 Apr 2026 11:00:01 EDT news694252984 New research from the Monash University Accident Research Centre (MUARC) has found that lowering speed limits to 40 km/h on certain Victorian roads can significantly improve road safety, particularly for pedestrians. The findings provide evidence to guide potential further expansion of 40 km/h zones across the state. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-kmh-zones-pedestrian.html Automotive Thu, 02 Apr 2026 09:50:01 EDT news694342192 Every day, more than 44,000 flights overseen by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) take off and land nationwide, coordinated by people working out of airport traffic control towers (ATCTs). https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-analysis-air-traffic-towers-grid.html Energy & Green Tech Wed, 01 Apr 2026 16:40:03 EDT news694258468 Some robotaxi passengers were left stranded in the middle of fast-moving traffic in a major Chinese city after their driverless vehicles stopped running, according to police and media reports on Wednesday. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-04-chinese-robotaxis-stall-apparent-malfunction.html Automotive Wed, 01 Apr 2026 05:00:02 EDT news694236033 A new way of making sustainable aviation fuel that could cut the reliance on used cooking oil as a feedstock has been developed by a team of engineers led by the University of Sheffield. The new technique captures CO2 from the air, combines it with hydrogen, and then heats it using concentrated solar energy to produce the fuel. For their study published in the journal Nature Communications, the researchers used comprehensive computer modeling and simulation to understand how and where this first-of-a-kind technology could function at an industrial scale. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-solar-energy-key-sustainable-aviation.html Energy & Green Tech Tue, 31 Mar 2026 12:20:03 EDT news694177852 A new study on how runners may choose to interact with self-driving cars is challenging assumptions on how automated vehicles will navigate safely on the roads of the future. Researchers at the University of Glasgow and KAIST in South Korea led the study, which used augmented reality tech to explore for the first time how runners' behavior differs from walkers when they are crossing roads and junctions. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-cars-roads-safely-runners-reveals.html Automotive Tue, 31 Mar 2026 10:00:07 EDT news694169207 Whether it's a fire or a flood, a ship's crew can only rely on itself and its training in emergencies at sea. The same is true for crews facing digital threats on oil tankers, cargo ships, and other commercial vessels. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-gaps-impacting-maritime-cybersecurity-readiness.html Security Mon, 30 Mar 2026 07:10:01 EDT news694071925 A new battery design that could significantly extend the range of electric vehicles and the lifespan of portable electronics has been developed by researchers at the University of Surrey's Advanced Technology Institute (ATI). In a study published in ACS Applied Energy Materials, researchers introduce a novel lithium-ion battery anode that delivers some of the highest energy storage capacities reported for silicon–carbon nanotube systems, while maintaining stability over hundreds of charge cycles. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-lithium-ion-battery-power-longer.html Energy & Green Tech Sun, 29 Mar 2026 10:00:20 EDT news693754399 Researchers from the FAMU-FSU College of Engineering and the Florida Center for Advanced Aero-Propulsion, or FCAAP, are helping to solve a safety challenge in military aviation: the extreme noise generated by supersonic jets during takeoff and landing. The research, published in the Journal of Fluid Mechanics, demonstrates a new model for understanding how supersonic jets of air collide with the ground or other structures to create a resonant feedback loop that produces extreme noise that can reach dangerous volume levels. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-mach-reveal-noise-feedback-loops.html Engineering Wed, 25 Mar 2026 16:00:01 EDT news693673081 Driven by AI, the advent of autonomous mobility has accelerated in recent years. It has advantages that go beyond the asphalt. One of the first test drives of an autonomous vehicle in a public area took place on an EPFL campus in the early 2010s. That's when a self-driving shuttle bus—with a student onboard just in case—traveled a few hundred meters on a course set up around the Rolex Learning Center at a speed capped at a few kilometers per hour. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-cars-socially-intelligent.html Automotive Wed, 25 Mar 2026 12:30:01 EDT news693660481 Putting more electric cars on the road doesn't just benefit those with enough money to buy the often-pricey vehicles, it also pushes down prices at the gas pump while strengthening U.S. energy security, according to new research from Georgia Tech's Jimmy and Rosalynn Carter School of Public Policy. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-evs-generate-widespread-economic-benefits.html Energy & Green Tech Wed, 25 Mar 2026 10:40:03 EDT news693652937 Autonomous vehicles (AVs), which already operate on the roads of several major U.S. cities and in countries worldwide, are expected to play a large role in shaping the future of cities. In a new study, researchers have investigated how AVs may change travel patterns during morning commutes and affect parking in business districts. By providing insights into the changes associated with parking and traffic congestion as the use of AVs rises, the study, published in Management Science, can inform urban planning efforts. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-autonomous-vehicles-morning-commutes.html Automotive Tue, 24 Mar 2026 14:30:01 EDT news693580952 Scientists at the University of Sharjah have developed a new machine learning model capable of predicting whether a driver is likely to be involved in an accident before getting behind the wheel. Road accidents are frequently linked to human error, yet traditional driver screening methods, particularly in the taxi and commercial transport sectors, tend to rely heavily on experience and background checks. According to the researchers, these criteria often fall short of predicting who may pose a higher risk on the road. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-ai-flag-high-motorists-road.html Automotive Mon, 23 Mar 2026 11:40:01 EDT news693484458 Electric vehicles (EVs) can effectively serve as mobile batteries that provide energy to the power grid when not being driven, improving the reliability of the grid, serving as a source of backup power and potentially reducing energy and EV ownership costs. So why have so few places adopted the vehicle-to-grid (V2G) model? A new study details the barriers to V2G adoption and outlines possible paths forward for this technology. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-electric-cars-power-grids-reliable.html Energy & Green Tech Sat, 21 Mar 2026 10:30:01 EDT news693133307 A recent breakthrough in electrode technology addresses one of the key limitations of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries—namely, their relatively short driving distance. Researchers from UNIST, in collaboration with Sookmyung Women's University and Gwangju Institute of Science and Technology (GIST), have developed an advanced cathode with significantly increased active material loading, paving the way for longer-lasting electric vehicles. https://techxplore.com/news/2026-03-high-lfp-cathodes-potential-electric.html Energy & Green Tech Thu, 19 Mar 2026 15:00:04 EDT news693150661