2025 EV & self-driving news

[Brovane]

People being trapped in their homes because of disability is more a reflection of how we've built an environment that traps them there, not a reflection of failing to meet their needs with self-driving vehicles.

It's not a problem that would solve itself overnight, but we don't have to continue building our environment in such a way that the only alleged (and frankly fantasy solution for the immediate future) is to build and supply self-driving vehicles to people.

The reality is that a lot of people with disability's live in areas that are mass transit deserts. Having a option of a self driving car would be extremely helpful for them. For self driving cars, fantasy is quickly becoming reality.

 

[Brainonska511]

The reality is that a lot of people with disability's live in areas that are mass transit deserts. Having a option of a self driving car would be extremely helpful for them. For self driving cars, fantasy is quickly becoming reality.

It would probably be cheaper to spin up some sort of local ride share run by the government than for disabled people to go out and buy a new car.

And having known people that have lost abilities because of disability, the solution isn't to keep them locked in suburban housing that is difficult to make handicap accessible while offering future self driving vehicles that they may not be able to afford. The solution is to give them local options to move to more accessible dwellings (eg, single floor condos) and cash in the value of their detached single family home.

The built environment we have didn't appear overnight and fixing it won't be an overnight thing either. Other countries crawled back from their completely car centric approaches, and I believe we could do it too.

 

[Brovane]

It would probably be cheaper to spin up some sort of local ride share run by the government than for disabled people to go out and buy a new car.

And having known people that have lost abilities because of disability, the solution isn't to keep them locked in suburban housing that is difficult to make handicap accessible while offering future self driving vehicles that they may not be able to afford. The solution is to give them local options to move to more accessible dwellings (eg, single floor condos) and cash in the value of their detached single family home.

The built environment we have didn't appear overnight and fixing it won't be an overnight thing either. Other countries crawled back from their completely car centric approaches, and I believe we could do it too.

Shouldn't that be up to them what they decide if they buy a new car or not? Maybe they don't want to move from their current home?

 

[Brainonska511]

Shouldn't that be up to them what they decide if they buy a new car or not? Maybe they don't want to move from their current home?

If someone is so disabled they cannot drive, they are likely going to have other issues with daily living and keeping up their house; and given the way suburban housing is built, that means expensive retrofitting.

Also, I said choice - not forced. Right now, many people don't have a choice. Prices and limited options keep them largely locked into their existing home.

 

[Brovane]

If someone is so disabled they cannot drive, they are likely going to have other issues with daily living and keeping up their house; and given the way suburban housing is built, that means expensive retrofitting.

Also, I said choice - not forced. Right now, many people don't have a choice. Prices and limited options keep them largely locked into their existing home.

My daughter is neurodivergent going to College but doesn't have a driver license. A self-driving vehicle would be perfect for her. No we didn't have to do expensive retrofitting for our house. The way her mind works she doesn't feel comfortable driving. However you give her a Math problem to solve, no problem.

 

[Brainonska511]

My daughter is neurodivergent going to College but doesn't have a driver license. A self-driving vehicle would be perfect for her. No we didn't have to do expensive retrofitting for our house. The way her mind works she doesn't feel comfortable driving. However you give her a Math problem to solve, no problem.

The way to help people that can't drive isn't to give them nonexistent self-driving cars at some unknown point in the future. It's to give them environments that they can get around without having to drive or be driven at all.

I just don't think self-driving cars are as close as the hypemen claim they are, and especially not the way Tesla has been approaching it.

 

[Brovane]

The way to help people that can't drive isn't to give them nonexistent self-driving cars at some unknown point in the future. It's to give them environments that they can get around without having to drive or be driven at all.

I just don't think self-driving cars are as close as the hypemen claim they are, and especially not the way Tesla has been approaching it.

Unfortunately to many areas of the US are mass transit deserts. A know from personal experience a lot of local governments in CA cannot seem to get out of their own way to implement those mass transit solutions and walkable development and then you add the NIMBY's into that mix you have complete paralysis of the process. Yet I drive a self driving car every day that keeps getting better. So what am I supposed to do wait for changes to infrastructure that local governments will never do?

 

[KMFJD]

BYD's low-cost Seagull EV now starts at under $8,000 in China

BYD’s cheapest EV in China just got even more affordable. After cutting prices this month, the BYD Seagull EV starts...

electrek.co

190 mile range and it's priced under $8000

gdamn that's cheap

 

[manly]

Smells like a pump & dump scheme

https://edition.cnn.com/2025/09/07/business/elon-musk-tesla-trillion

To be "fair"/real, the pump has worked brilliantly for the past decade. There is no plan B at this point.

BYD's low-cost Seagull EV now starts at under $8,000 in China

BYD’s cheapest EV in China just got even more affordable. After cutting prices this month, the BYD Seagull EV starts...

electrek.co

190 mile range and it's priced under $8000

gdamn that's cheap

So much for the CCP telling its BEV industry to stop price warring. 🤣
The Seagull equivalent (Dolphin?) sells for approx. $25k over in the UK.

 

[sdifox]

China sunk a lot of cash trying to incubate EV industry. Except most of the "companies" were setup to scam money from the government.

 

[Fenixgoon]

China sunk a lot of cash trying to incubate EV industry. Except most of the "companies" were setup to scam money from the government.

possibly. but now china absolutely has the most advanced EVs. was that worth it? i'm not going to pretend to have a clear answer on that, but if i had to pick i'd go with "yes".

now, would the US have made the same level of advancement as China had we done the same thing? i'm not so sure. but we'd absolutely be in much more competitive shape than we are now.

 

[K1052]

Firing a thousand pounds of flaming lithium ion battery out the side of your car like it's a 80s James Bond weapon seems to be a plan that could stand a little more thought.

https://bsky.app/profile/drahardja.sfba.social.ap.brid.gy%2Fpost%2F3lzkc2ogayww2

 

[KMFJD]

byd's luxury brand just went slightly under 500km/h surprassing the bugatti chirron

The Yangwang U9 Xtreme is officially the world's fastest production vehicle.

BYD's luxury brand's supercar has been able to reach almost 500 km/h, surpassing the top speed ever achieved by any production vehicle, regardless of its propulsion system.

www.highmotor.com

 

[sdifox]

I am not even sure race tracks are designed for 500km/h

 

[KMFJD]

he had some work keeping it on the road when slowing down

https://www.reddit.com/r/Damnthatsinteresting/comments/1nopln3/byd_has_broken_the_speed_record_for_a_production

 

[Brainonska511]

Firing a thousand pounds of flaming lithium ion battery out the side of your car like it's a 80s James Bond weapon seems to be a plan that could stand a little more thought.

https://bsky.app/profile/drahardja.sfba.social.ap.brid.gy%2Fpost%2F3lzkc2ogayww2

How would that even work once it starts to swell? What happens in more confined spaces, like a parking lot? This seems like a system that was designed without any concern for the context that these vehicles actually operate in.

 

[Brainonska511]

byd's luxury brand just went slightly under 500km/h surprassing the bugatti chirron

The Yangwang U9 Xtreme is officially the world's fastest production vehicle.

BYD's luxury brand's supercar has been able to reach almost 500 km/h, surpassing the top speed ever achieved by any production vehicle, regardless of its propulsion system.

www.highmotor.com

View attachment 130887

What is even the point? Bragging rights? There are practically 0 places where you could legally drive it that fast. A lot of money, energy, and resources are being wasted on "more power" (in the form of unnecessary speed and acceleration), as if the engineers and marketers are in the thrall of Tim the Toolman Taylor screaming it from the in-universe Tool Time show in Home Improvement.

 

[sdifox]

What is even the point? Bragging rights? There are practically 0 places where you could legally drive it that fast. A lot of money, energy, and resources are being wasted on "more power" (in the form of unnecessary speed and acceleration), as if the engineers and marketers are in the thrall of Tim the Toolman Taylor screaming it from the in-universe Tool Time show in Home Improvement.

Umm, that has been true since the invention of the automobile. It's just we have surpassed all expectations on how fast a car can go. With a 200k Euro car no less.

 

[Brainonska511]

Umm, that has been true since the invention of the automobile. It's just we have surpassed all expectations on how fast a car can go. With a 200k Euro car no less.

Yes, I understand that has been a thing, but it's weird that the Everyman cares so much about such things in their personal vehicle.

 

[KMFJD]

of course it's bragging rights, jfc....

 

[IronWing]

If you’ve never driven the length of Nevada, you wouldn’t understand.

 

[sdifox]

BYD may collapse any time, like Evergrande. Supply Chain financing LoL. The GMT analyst that wrote the BYD report sounded warning 5 years before Evergrande's collapse. Same problem, using suppliers as cash flow buffer.

BYD’s supply chain financing masks ballooning debt: GMT

The company’s market value in Hong Kong is about US$105 billion Read more at The Business Times.

www.businesstimes.com.sg

 

[Kaido]

I still vote LIDAR:

Senators urge investigation into Tesla’s Full Self-Driving after train crossing incidents

The senators' letter comes after NBC News reviewed dozens of driver complaints alleging Tesla’s software mishandled train crossings.

www.nbcnews.com

A Tesla owner says his car’s ‘self-driving’ technology failed to detect a moving train ahead of a crash caught on camera

A video viewed millions of times on social media shows a Tesla almost crashing into a train. Documents from Tesla show the car was in Full Self-Driving mode at the time.

www.nbcnews.com

 

[Kaido]

https://www.carscoops.com/2025/09/tesla-influencers-crash-after-60-miles-while-attempting-coast-to-coast-fsd-trip/

"An attempt to prove that Tesla’s self-driving tech could drive a car for 2,300 miles, from California to Florida, ended after just 60 miles after a collision with debris caused a reported $20,000 in damage.

Teslas infamously rely on optical data for its self-driving systems, while the competition employs a wide range of inputs, especially LIDAR, which uses lasers to create a 3D map of the surroundings."

https://imgur.com/a/yeah

 

[Kaido]

Tesla’s flush door handles have trapped at least 140 passengers since 2018, with some incidents resulting in injuries or fatalities:

Tesla’s Flush Door Handles Have Trapped 140+ Passengers – Now Regulators Are Closing In

Tesla redesigns deadly electronic door handles after 140+ passenger entrapment incidents, combining manual and electronic releases into one unified system.

www.yahoo.com