Range is a constant concern when driving an electric car, although various onboard and offboard features and apps allow you to calculate just how far you can go before running out of power.

But what if you own an electric motorcycle? It’s not as if you have a free hand to fiddle with a screen or an app while balancing on two wheels.

That’s why electric motorcycle maker Brammo is offering a range calculation app for its Empulse model that can be displayed on a smartphone and mounted on the bike's handlebars for easy access. While the app allows Empulse riders to see their EV range at a glance, it also takes into consideration traffic conditions and performance data. Plus, it can even learn individual driving habits to further fine-tune range calculations.

 

For better or worse, we know what the 2014 Jeep Cherokee looks like. Now, we know how much it will cost as well: $23,990. That's the base price of $22,995 plus a $995 destination charge.

In base Sport trim, the Cherokee will retail for a few hundred bucks cheaper than the outgoing $24,320 Jeep Liberty it replaces. Plus, it comes with looks that are sure to spark conversations -- or at least get people whispering things behind your back.

Four trim levels will be available: Sport, Latitude and Limited come in two-wheel and four-wheel drive configurations; Trailhawks are four-wheel only.

Here's how the trim level pricing will break down, according to Chrysler (all prices include a $995 destination charge):

 

The U.S. government is investigating two car models for airbags that can inadvertently deploy and brake lights that can fail to switch on while stopping, according to filings with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

NHTSA received six complaints from owners of 2003-2004 Honda Odyssey models alleging that their front airbags deployed without warning or a crash. The agency said it received 41 additional complaints regarding illuminating air bag warning lights, although the two issues are not necessarily linked. Honda sourced its airbags from supplier TRW, which also supplied airbags for nearly 920,000 Jeep models that were recalled in November for inadvertent airbag deployment. The Odyssey's airbags contain the same electrical circuit that was prone to "overstress" in the Jeep models, the filings said. As many as 320,000 vehicles may be affected.

In December, Honda recalled 870,000 vehicles for faulty ignition interlocks that can let the autos roll away unexpectedly when parked, including the 2003-2004 Odyssey.  

For as long as new cars have been for sale, buyers have had to decide on options before they sealed the deal. Of course, they could add things later, such as new wheels, radios or other accessories, usually through the aftermarket. But making changes and additions to existing infotainment systems -- especially as cars have become more sophisticated and components have become more integrated -- is difficult, if not impossible.

Ford’s Sync system, which set a new standard in many respects when it was introduced in 2007, was the first to shift this paradigm via software updates. By downloading an update from an owner website to a USB drive and then uploading it to a Sync-equipped vehicle through its USB port, an owner who bought a car in, say, 2008, could add Sync features that were introduced in 2009 or later.

When Ford introduced the MyFord Touch system in the 2011 model year, an owner could add navigation capability later via an SD card, and earlier this year Chrysler announced that dealers could enable navigation on existing vehicles with the Uconnect Access system after the sale. But both of these involve a visit to a dealer.

The next evolutionary step in this process is over-the-air software updates that are easier and automatic. Systems like the Mercedes-Benz mbrace2 and Ram’s Uconnect Access use an embedded cellular modem to download and install software updates, and to potentially add new features in the future.

 

Take a look at any of your favorite automotive websites – including this one – and you could swear that Porsche doesn’t make a base model car anymore. All you'll see are “S” versions. It seems as though we journalists never get a chance to drive Porsche’s base model cars, and with a week in Los Angeles, I was determined to try.

Two things are immediately apparent when you approach the 2013 Porsche Boxster. The first is that it is gorgeous. Even in Los Angeles, the Racing Yellow exterior stands out, with its matching yellow seatbelts adding just the right amount of levity as an accent. The interior as a whole is great, too, like all new Porsche interiors. The newest version of the Boxster sees a design finally coming of age, with a cohesive mix of aggression and elegance lacking in previous models.

The second thing you notice is how expensive the Boxster is. The spec sheet showed that the base model I was testing was just over $63,000 with destination. Included in the handling department for that price are 19-inch wheels, Porsche Torque Vectoring and Porsche Active Suspension Management. This makes the 2013 Boxster one seriously sticky car on the mountain roads just north of L.A. But the easy handling has caused me to develop a gripe.

 

According to a 2008 study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety, lane-departure warning and lane-departure prevention systems could prevent or mitigate up to 87,000 nonfatal crashes and 10,345 fatal crashes per year.

The nonprofit IIHS also found that if all passenger vehicles were equipped with four driver-assist technologies – lane-departure warning, blind-spot monitoring, forward collision warning and active headlights – approximately one in three fatal crashes and one in five crashes that result in injuries could be prevented or reduced.

A 2013 Infiniti JX I recently tested has all four of these. But after awhile, a driver can become numb to the systems' constant beeps, blips and “crying wolf” over false readings and start to ignore the warnings.

This can lead to a phenomenon known as “alarm fatigue,” a serious problem in hospitals and one that automotive supplier Continental hopes to address with a concept called Driver Focus, which draws a driver's attention to the road only when a risk is imminent.

 

Ford's 3-cylinder EcoBoost took top honors for the second time running at this year's International Engine of the Year awards among a field of nominees crowded with turbochargers.

The awards, similar to the annual 10 Best Engines list from WardsAuto, ranks the industry's 12 top engines by size as chosen by dozens of international journalists. It's not a science by any means, but seeing as we've revved many of these engines ourselves, we're apt to agree.

The Ford 1.0-liter turbocharged 3-cylinder, which makes an impressive 123 horsepower, has been on sale in Europe since last year, and it's arriving on the Fiesta this summer alongside a larger, 1.5-liter 4-cylinder turbo coming for the 2014 Fusion. A 1.6-liter version is already available and will stay on for the manual transmission model. 

Driving with a 5-inch, 3-pointed star smack in the center of your grille should tell everyone in the parking lot, including the blind, that you're pulling up in a Mercedes. Yet at night, that reflecting chrome may not shine brightly enough. Hey, is that a Hyundai Genesis?

Car and Driver leafed through the German brand's latest accessories catalog and found the solution: an illuminated badge with LED and fiber-optic backlighting. When the car is locked or unlocked or when a door is opened, the Mercedes logo beams to life. For now, the logo glows only when the engine is off, but the company wants to offer a version that will pair with the LED daytime running lights so that it's always on.

We'd advise against that, as it'd be compelling reason for big pickups to brake-check a tailing Benz driver and her fancy light into their steel bumpers.