Everything We Know About Faraday’s Insanely Expensive Crossover

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Faraday has been talking about making an electric vehicle for years, but it hasn’t happened yet. They’ve a series of obstacles, including some serious financial losses that made it seem like maybe they wouldn’t be able to pull it off. Now a new partnership has things looking up for Faraday. Is the Faraday FF 91 finally going to become a reality?

Faraday FF 91 | Faraday

What is Faraday?

Faraday Future is an electric car maker that many people probably haven’t heard of, even though it’s been around since 2014. On its website, they describe themselves as “ global shared intelligent mobility ecosystem.” What exactly does this mean? They go on to say that they “poised to break the boundaries between the Internet, IT, creative, and auto industries with product and service offerings that integrate new energy, AI, Internet, and sharing models.”

Faraday recently completed a merger that is making its dreams a reality. According to Reuters, they recently completed a merger with Property Solutions Acquisition Corp. This will give Faraday $1 billion with which to get the FF91 off the ground, and propel it toward becoming an actual car that people can buy and drive. 

Faraday intended to release the FF 91 in 2019, but financing led to delays. This included Faraday spending $2 billion – with nothing to show for it. That’s too bad, considering the Faraday FF 91 was supposed to be the “next Tesla.”

The Faraday FF 91 will be insanely expensive

The FF 91 Futurist Alliance Edition is set to cost $180,000 and will only be produced in small amounts. It can only be ordered with a company invitation – and a $5,000 deposit. (Well, not anymore. The FF 91 Futurist Alliance Edition is already sold out). Faraday says that this will help them to control the quality and allow them to establish their brand. Auto Blog says that this price includes membership in both the Futurist Alliance and the Spire Club.  

From there Faraday will expand their offering with a less expensive version. The FF91 is set to compete with Maybach, Bentley, and Rolls Royce. 

Faraday says that the FF 91 will be “autonomous-ready.” Further information says that the FF 91 owner will customize a profile. From this profile the FF 91 will learn how to greet you, recognize, and remember your preferences. It goes on to say that “the more you use FF 91, the smarter about you it becomes, delivering a truly bespoke experience.”

What’s in Faraday’s future?

Once Faraday has released the premium FF 91 as well as the less expensive version, they’ll turn to producing more vehicles. They’re scheduled to release an FF 81 that will cost a mere $70,000. 

Next year Faraday only plans to make 2,400 cars in 2022. By 2023 they aim to produce 38,600 cars and up to 500,000 by 2025.  

There’s no guarantee that the Faraday FF 91 will really materialize in 2022. Though things are certainly looking up for Faraday, it hasn’t exactly been a smooth road for them so far. Still, their new partnership, funding and plans for the future bode well for the company. Their plans certainly include some big things for the electric car company, and a high-end electric car will definitely be exciting. It will be interesting to see just what the FF 91 – and all of Faraday – brings in the future.

RELATED: These Are the Best Used Electric Cars

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Try These Hacks To Protect Your Car From Snow

by Gabrielle DeSantis

Summer cruising season is winding down, and before you know it, snow will start falling. If you live in an area that experiences heavy snow during the Fall and Winter months, you know firsthand how bad snowy weather can inconvenience your morning drive.

Icy windows, frozen door locks, icy driveways, and more can all make you late to your destination and cause you to stay out in the cold much longer than you want to be. Luckily, YouTuber “Chris Fix” came up with 10 easy hacks that will help you and your car prepared for snowy weather in a timely manner.

We’re going to share a few of those tips here, but you can watch the video below for the complete list.

How to prevent doors and locks from freezing

Applying silicone-based lubricant to door lock | ChrisFix YouTube channel

Usually, starting your car and letting it warm up in snowy weather can take care of more than a few issues caused by the cold weather. However, what do you do if you can’t even get into your car in the first place? It is common for car doors to become frozen to the car body and for car door locks to become so frozen that the key may not even go in.

According to Chris Fix, there is an easy way to prevent that situation from happening in the first place. All it takes is a can of silicone-based lubricant. Silicone-based lubricants are hydrophobic, which means they repel water. So, simply spray a little bit of silicone-based lubricant in the door locks, and to prevent the doors from freezing to the body, coat the rubber weather stripping on the door and the door frames. This way, condensation will not stay in the door locks or on the door seals and will not freeze.

How to prevent snow from sticking to your windshield

Trash bags applied to a windshield to protect it from snow before a storm.
Using trash bags on a windshield to protect it from snow | ChrisFix YouTube channel

Scraping ice off the windshield is nobody’s idea of a fun time. It is annoying, can take a lot of effort and a lot of time. Fortunately, there are ways to make removing ice from a windshield significantly easier than using the ol’ scraper. Furthermore, there is also a very convenient way to keep snow off your side-view mirrors as well.

It is crucial to lift the wipers to help protect the windshield from snow, so they do not get frozen. Second, you can purchase a canvas windshield cover that protects the glass. If you do not have a canvas protector handy, you can also use flattened trash bags to cover your windshield. Static cling can be enough to keep the bags on your glass but secure the bags down with painter’s tape if you are expecting windy weather.

To protect the side view mirrors, simply cover them with zip lock bags before the snow hits. Place the bags over the side view mirrors and then close the backs around them. This way, snow will stick to the bag and not the glass, so you can simply remove the bags, and you’re good to go.

More snow weather car hacks

What we mentioned are just two of ten total hacks that Chris Fix shares. We highly recommend checking out the full video above. Chris gives tips on gaining more traction on snowy roads, how to safely get out of your driveway, removing snow without touching it, and more.

When you are done, you should be ready for all the snow days that mother nature can throw at you.

RELATED: Are Studded Tires Better Than Regular Winter Tires?

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Waymo Testing Autonomous Driving In San Francisco

by Gabrielle DeSantis

One of the main benefits of electric cars is that their technology has made autonomous vehicles more common. Many people are already familiar with Tesla’s autopilot technology. Though autopilot is not technically 100% self-driving, its functions are based on autonomous vehicle technology.

The applications of autonomous vehicles go much further than merely taking over for a human driver when they want to multitask on their morning commute. Several technology firms are looking to combine autonomous vehicles with ride-sharing and ride-hailing services. One of the biggest autonomous driving firms, Waymo, just made a massive step in that direction.

What is Waymo?

Waymo Firefly autonomous vehicle | Waymo

Waymo started in 2009 and was simply known as the “self-driving car project” under the “Google X” lab. Engineers at Google equipped a Toyota Prius with a Lidar array and created algorithms to enable the car to “learn” how to drive without input from a human. Eventually, their project managed to make ten uninterrupted 100-mile trips.

The project expanded to building their own vehicle from scratch, which provided the first fully autonomous ride on public roads in 2015. The car was codenamed “Firefly” (seen above) and had no steering wheel or pedals. The complete suite of technology and software that allows Waymo’s autonomous driving is called “Waymo Driver.” In 2017 the company went independent from Google but remained a subsidiary of Alphabet, which is Google’s parent company.

A Daimler Semi-truck with a blue cab and white container equipped with Waymo Driver technology.
Waymo autonomous semi-truck | Waymo

Beyond autonomous ride-hailing in cities and other public roads, Waymo is also trying its hand at using the Waymo Driver technology for commercial applications and specifically creating autonomous semi-trucks. If they can make it work, Waymo could theoretically develop trucks that can make deliveries 24/7 without worrying about fatigue and other elements that come with human drivers. We suspect the prospect of not having to pay drivers is a motivator for the semi-truck program as well. Though, we do not expect Waymo to admit that publicly.

Waymo granted public autonomous vehicle test in San Francisco

On August 23rd, 2021, Waymo announced that they would begin a “Trusted Tester” program in San Francisco, California. The company described Trusted Tester as a “research-focused” program. Which likely means participants in the program will be using Waymo’s autonomous service for free while the company uses the rides to gather data that will improve the driving ability of their fleet.

Previously, only Waymo employees have been able to use the service in San Francisco, but this program opens things up to public residents.

The Trusted Tester program will use a fleet of Jaguar I-Pace electric SUVs that have been retrofitted with the fifth-generation of Waymo Driver Lidar technology. According to a report from The Economic Times, the test vehicles in San Francisco will have a human operator in the driver’s seat, ready to take control in case of an emergency. The outlet also reported that while anyone can sign up for rides in the Waymo app, the company is “hand-picking” who they choose to pick up.

So, if you are in desperate need of a ride, we would not recommend depending on Waymo since this is a selective test phase.

If this test is successful, it would be realistic to expect Waymo to expand to other large cities such as Los Angeles, Chicago, and New York City. However, Waymo has not officially announced future test plans at this time.

RELATED: Tesla is Building an Electric…Semi-Truck?

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Spy Video: Heavily-Camoed Mysterious Toyota SUV Might Replace the Land Cruiser For Americans

by Gabrielle DeSantis

The Toyota Land Cruiser is quickly becoming more annoying than cool for Americans. The back and forth of will they/won’t they from the Land Cruiser is worse than Ross and Rachel. After Toyota Launched the 2021 J300 Land Cruiser earlier this year and didn’t bring it to the U.S., many fans of the SUV were bummed. However, in a statement confirming the Toyota Land Cruiser would be discontinued in 2021, Toyota confirmed that it is “committed to the large SUV segment” and instructed enthusiasts to “stay tuned for future developments.” 

Toyota Land Cruiser | Toyota

Is America getting a Toyota Land Cruiser? 

This question is getting exponentially more annoying to many customers. Toyota has flipped and flopped more than a fish in the bottom of a Jon boat on the Land Cruiser issue. A sleuthy photographer landed some shots and a video of a heavily camouflaged SUV stomping around California. The tightly wrapped SUV had Manufacturer’s plates from Texas. It just so happens that Toyota calls Plano, Texas home. To add to the evidence, a Toyota Yaris was the follow vehicle. 

While some speculate that this could be some American version of the recently canceled, massive Toyota 4×4, there are also other options. 

Gear Patrol points out that this behemoth was rolling on six-lug wheels just like the J300 Toyota Land Cruiser’s wheels. It is clearly a large Toyota/Lexus platform, but it is tough to pin down exactly what it could be. 

Could there be a new Lexus LX? 

2022 Lexus GX Black Line Edition in the new Nori Green
2022 Lexus GX | Lexus

The Lexus LX is closely related to the new Toyota Land Cruiser. So, if we trust that Toyota will stick to its guns on the Land Cruiser, then a new LX would be a logical guess. These spy shots may suggest that to make up for pulling the LC from the American market, that Toyota has based the new Lexus LX on the J300 Land Cruiser. The size comparison is easy to see if you look at other Lexus 4x4s like the Lexus GX.

The two 4x4s have spent years running parallel to one another. Bringing the two models together again for Americans would actually make a lot of sense. 

More importantly than any other piece of evidence, the Lexus LX dramatically outsold the Land Cruiser. If we know anything to be true of automakers, it’s that what we say we like has far less to do with what gets made than what actually sells and the LX sold. 

For this reason alone, bringing a new Lexus LX to Americans would make a ton of sense, especially in the absence of the Land Cruiser. That being said, Gear Patrol wisely points out that the headlights and grille seen in the spy video look a bit different than the recently teased NX reveal. 

Toyota is making moves in the 4×4 department

A white 2022 Toyota Tundra on a white background with a black vignette.
2022 Toyota Tundra | Toyota Motor Sales, U.S.A., Inc

After nearly 20 years, Toyota is finally making some much-needed updates to its 4×4 truck line. The new 2022 Toyota Tundra is finally getting updates from the toe to tip. New engines, interior, suspension, and many other features are coming to the full-size pickup truck. 

With that in mind, it would be strange for Toyota to neglect the big SUV segment by not giving one of them similar updates. For instance, the Toyota Sequoia is long overdue for an update as it hasn’t been significantly updated since 2008. 

So, whether a new Lexus 4×4 or some other big Toyota SUV, the spy shots show something new that should make all folks upset about the Land Cruiser jump for joy. 

RELATED: Toyota May Have Killed Off the Land Cruiser in the U.S. But 2021 Sales Are on Fire

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