Good morning and welcome to our daily digest of automotive news from around the globe, starting with…

GM Slapped With A $102.6 Million Verdict In California Over Engine Defect Leading To Excessive Oil Consumption

GM is in hot water over a defect that caused excessive oil consumption and resulted in premature breakdowns in the Generation IV Vortec 5300 LC9 engine. The company has been ordered to pay $102.6 million to owners of the affected trucks and SUVs after a class-action lawsuit in California.

2023 Mercedes-Benz A-Class, AMG A35 And A45 Get The Most Subtle Of Updates And 2023 Mercedes-Benz B-Class Compact Minivan Has New Face And Tweaked Powertrains

Both the 2023 Mercedes-Benz A-Class and the 2023 Mercedes-Benz B-Class have received the mildest of updates. The A-Class features a refreshed grille with a star pattern, new headlights that can be optioned with LEDs, four new wheel designs, standard LED taillights, and a new rear diffuser. The B-Class gets a new front grille, new LED headlights, and two-part LED taillights. Both models feature updated interiors and more equipment as standard.

Ford Ending GT Supercar Production With Race-Inspired LM Edition

The Ford GT is ending production with this limited-edition LM Edition, paying tribute to the victory achieved by Chip Ganassi Racing in 2016 at the 24 hours of Le Mans. The car, limited to just 22 examples, features an instrument panel badge made from the powdered remains of one of the podium-finishing LeMans race cars.

Driven: The New Audi Q4 E-Tron Provides Plenty Of Value, But Not Much Fun

Audi’s push to make electric cars more affordable has resulted in the 2023 Q4 e-tron, which starts from $48,800. With a range of 236-265 miles, handsome styling, and good build quality, the Q4 may just be a winner. However, while not unpleasant, there was very little to write home about when it came to the driving experience, as we found out when we got behind the wheel.

Peugeot 3008 And 5008 Gain Hybrid Option For 2023, Electric E-408 Officially Confirmed

Peugeot has confirmed that a fully-electric e-408 will be arriving shortly, but in the meantime, they also announced a range of new electrified versions of the 3008 and 5008 SUVs. While details were kept to a minimum, we suspect the new self-charging hybrids on offer will feature a derivative of the turbocharged 1.2-liter three-cylinder unit. These will be coupled to a 48V battery for a 15 percent reduction in fuel consumption.

DS 4 Gains Revised Trim Structure Including Opera Flagship, Plus Increased EV Range For The PHEV

DS Automobiles announced a series of updates for the DS 4 just one year after the model’s market launch in Europe. These include an updated trim structure including the new Opera flagship, plus an increased EV range of up to 62 km (39 miles) for the plug-in hybrid DS 4 E-Tense 225.

What Else Is Making The News

Former Google Ad Boss Builds Tracker Free Search Engine

Sridhar Ramaswamy, who worked at Google for 16 years, has created Neeva — an advert and tracker-free no-cost search engine, with the option to subscribe to other features such as a password manager and VPN, reports BBC News.

Google Pixel Event Scheduled For Today 

Google’s latest pixel event will be taking place later today, with the upcoming Pixel 7 and 7 Pro phones expected to make an appearance. Another one to keep an eye on for connected android fans will be a new Pixel Watch, while other rumors have pointed to tablets, nest devices, and even a foldable phone on the horizon.