Peter Valdes-Dapena - Senior Writer, CNN Business
Peter Valdes-Dapena
Senior Writer, CNN Business
Peter Valdes-Dapena is a senior writer for CNN Business where he covers automobiles, the industry that produces them and the changing ways in which people buy, own and use them.
Latest
Tesla’s Cybertruck hits the market with a higher price tag and plenty of challenges
Dec 01, 2023
Tesla CEO Elon Musk presided over the delivery of the company’s long-awaited Cybertruck, four years after it was first unveiled. But while there wasn’t much new information since the original presentation, a new price went live on Tesla’s website shortly after.
GM cuts spending on Cruise self-driving cars
Nov 29, 2023
General Motors announced Wednesday that it’s cutting spending at its self driving unit, Cruise.
Solid state batteries promise to radically change EVs. But they may not be the only answer
Nov 23, 2023
Electric cars are supposed to be the future, but they still have issues that are keeping away many car buyers. The range is too short. The batteries are too heavy and expensive. They take too long to charge. But a number of companies say they have the technology to solve many — maybe even all — of these problems.
Ford battery plant is back on track but scaled down
Nov 21, 2023
Ford has restarted work on an electric vehicle battery plant in Michigan, but the plant will be smaller than was originally planned.
Honda’s new scooter is also the box it comes in
Nov 20, 2023
There are lots of electric scooters available today in a huge range of styles and prices. But none of them look like the new Honda Motocompacto.
Soon you’ll be able to buy a Hyundai on Amazon
Nov 16, 2023
Amazon is about to add cars and SUVs to the huge roster of things it sells online. People will be able to shop for Hyundai vehicles on Amazon through an agreement with the South Korean automaker.
The Vatican is going all-electric with Volkswagen supplying the cars
Nov 16, 2023
The Vatican has announced that, as part of a move to reduce its carbon emissions, it will electrify its fleet of vehicles. And Volkswagen will be supplying the cars.
America’s top-selling car will soon come only as a hybrid
Nov 16, 2023
The Toyota Camry, the best-selling car in America is going hybrid-only. Toyota already sells a lot of hybrids but t
The hybrid Ramcharger pickup is good for anyone scared of going EV
Nov 15, 2023
Stellantis’ new Ramcharger pickup, expected to go on sale late next year, will be an “electric” truck, the company says. But really, it’ll be a hybrid, with a gasoline engine under the hood, the company announced Tuesday.
Drivers of boxy SUVs and pickup trucks are more likely to kill pedestrians, study finds
Nov 14, 2023
Big trucks and SUVs, especially those with flat front ends, aren’t just more intimidating to look at, they are genuinely deadlier for pedestrians, according to new research from the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety.
Cruise recalls all of its self driving cars to fix their programming
Nov 08, 2023
Cruise, General Motors’ self-driving vehicle subsidiary, has recalled all 950 of its autonomous vehicles for a software update. Late last month, Cruise paused all its public testing operations while it investigated the incident that led to the recall.
With big new EV motor investment, GM aims to cut reliance on China
Nov 08, 2023
General Motors has entered into a partnership with a small Wisconsin start-up, Niron Magnetics, to develop electric motor magnets that can be made without rare elements that are mostly sourced from China today.
Stop putting rhinestones on your steering wheel, federal government warns
Nov 06, 2023
While personalizing one’s vehicle is a long-cherished American tradition, the federal government is warning that one particular customization option can result in serious injuries in a crash. The little rhinestone bedazzled ring you’ve slapped over the manufacturer’s logo on the steering wheel has got to go.
Why EV charging is still such a pain
Nov 04, 2023
Powering your car should always be easy whatever you fill it with whether its electrons or gasoline. You should be able to swipe a credit card, plug in the cable and your vehicle will just charge. And it actually does work that way a decent amount of the time.
About
Peter Valdes-Dapena is a senior writer for CNN Business where he covers automobiles, the industry that produces them and the changing ways in which people buy, own and use them.
Valdes-Dapena has written about the industry for CNN since 2001 and, in that time, covered the American auto industry’s collapse during the 2008 financial crisis and its resurgence. Now he’s covering the industry’s shift toward new technology such as electric propulsion, autonomous vehicles and ride-sharing services.
Valdes-Dapena was born near Philadelphia but grew up in South Florida where he earned an undergraduate degree in communication and a master’s degree in journalism at the University of Miami. He worked as a business journalist and as a science writer for Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center before being able to indulge his own passion for automobiles as a car writer for CNN.