Author: Maria Byrd

Maria Byrd blends automotive journalism with a lifestyle lens, focusing on the intersection of design, comfort, and culture in today’s vehicles. At Dax Street, she covers luxury interiors, cutting-edge features, and the evolving role of cars in daily life. With a background in design and consumer trends, Maria’s work highlights the finer details—from the stitching on a leather seat to the UX of a next-gen infotainment system.

Panasonic Prioritizes Productivity Enhancement Over Establishing New EV Plant in the US.

TOKYO — Panasonic’s battery business must focus on boosting productivity, Group CEO Yuki Kusumi told Reuters, signaling the Tesla supplier may hold off building a third battery plant in North America as demand for electric vehicles cools. The battery unit, Panasonic Energy, had previously said it aimed to decide on building the factory by the

Official Sketches of Upcoming Porsche Macan EV Released Just Days Before Unveiling

The second-generation Porsche Macan will make its debut for the 2025 model year with electric power. We’ve seen camouflaged test mules, we’ve driven pre-production prototypes, and now the brand has published design sketches to give us the best look yet at the upcoming SUV. Porsche started the project on a blank slate, in terms of

Why Ford CEO Jim Farley is optimistic about 2024 — and how racing plays a crucial role in selling ‘passion’ cars

  By Pras Subramanian, Yahoo Finance I recently flew down to Charlotte, N.C. — the home of NASCAR in the US, among other things — to preview all of Ford Performance’s new race cars and meet its CEO/race car driver-in-chief, Jim Farley.  Farley was in good spirits; for one thing, he enjoyed showing off the

Review of the 2024 Ford Bronco Sport: Affectionate Off-Roading Crossover at a Premium Price

Pros: Very capable off-road, especially Badlands; large and versatile cargo space; variety of trims and packages Cons: Expensive for its size segment; tight back seat; not as refined on-road as competition First, the bad news: The 2024 Ford Bronco Sport is pricier than you might think given its small dimensions. It costs a lot more

Legacy Automakers Gain Electric Vehicle Insights from Formula E

LONDON — Legacy automakers playing catch-up with EV leaders like Tesla are leaning on their Formula E electric racing teams for innovations to build better mass-production EVs with greater range and efficiency, or a lower price tag. Formula E has struggled to win over many motorsports enthusiasts, with Formula One still attracting significantly bigger audiences

Pininfarina Introduces Classiche Certification Program for Classic Cars

Pininfarina is focused on its future as a carmaker, but it’s not forgetting about its past as a design house and contract manufacturer. The brand launched a certification program called Pininfarina Classiche that aims to give enthusiasts valuable details about their vintage car. Only two cars will initially be certifiable by Pininfarina: the four evolutions

Decoding Racing Excellence: Behind the Wheel of the Porsche 911 GT3 Cup & GT3 R

► Porsche racing cars driven at Estoril► Behind the wheel of the 911 GT3 Cup and 911 GT3 R► What makes a great racing car? Driving the spectacularly good Porsche 911 GT3 RS, it’s hard to imagine how any 911 could ever deliver anything beyond its astounding levels of pace, telepathic feel and laugh-out-loud fun.

Land Rover’s Lineup Now Includes a Defender Convertible to Fill the Gap

The original Defender came in multiple flavors, but its modern-day equivalent is limited to the 90, 110, and the larger 110. The lineup not only lacks a pickup truck, but Land Rover has also refrained from producing another convertible. For those seeking open-top thrills, there’s good news – Dutch coachbuilder Heritage Customs has done away