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Waymo bids its self-driving bubble cars farewell

Say goodbye to Waymo's quirky bubble-shaped autonomous cars. Google's former self-driving car division is retiring its fleet of "Fireflies" - also known as "koalas" and "gumdrops," among many other nicknames - to focus on integrating its technology into more traditional vehicles. It particularly aims to give more people access to its self-driving technology through a fleet of 600 Chrysler Pacifica minivans, which the team has equipped with its latest custom-built radar, lidar and vision systems. The minivans also come with Waymo's newest AI platform that can see farther and more clearly. Plus, they run like normal vehicles do, unlike the Fireflies, which are limited to 25mph. This move doesn't exactly come as a surprise. A report from late 2016 said Alphabet's Larry Page scrapped Waymo's plans to manufacture bubble-shaped driverless vehicles to make the company's strategy more feasible. It said Page's new plan involves collaborating with automakers to design and make cars with no pedals and steering wheels that use Google's self-driving tech. Shortly after that report came out, Waymo introduced its heavily modified Chrysler Pacificas with altered electrical, powertrain, chassis and structural system to accommodate the extra weight of the company's equipment. While Waymo will no longer use its Fireflies for future tests, you can still catch a glimpse of the cute bubble cars in various locations. This August, they'll be on display at the Arizona Science Center in Phoenix before making their way to the The Thinkery in Austin, Texas, this October. You'll also find a Firefly at the Computer History Museum in Mountain View, California and another at the Design Museum in London.Written by Mariella Moon for Engadget. Waymo Related Video:

Ferrari families have 'agreement' to prevent takeover

With its initial public offering already a massive success, Ferrari is now officially a publicly traded company on the New York Stock Exchange. While anyone can buy those shares, don't expect investors to take control away from some of the top owners of the Prancing Horse anytime soon. To maintain their power, Enzo Ferrari's son, Piero, and Exor chairman John Elkann will sign a deal guaranteeing themselves nearly half of the automaker's voting rights, Bloomberg reports. As part of this arrangement, shareholders that agree to hang onto Ferrari stock for at least three years would receive additional voting rights in the company, and that would give Piero and Elkann a combined 48.7 percent of the automaker by banding together. While not quite complete control, the move should be enough to prevent a takeover of the business. "We have an agreement among the families to protect our interests in Ferrari," Piero said to Bloomberg. This agreement won't really become a concern until next year because only 10 percent of Ferrari will be traded for now. FCA will distribute another 80 percent to its shareholders in early 2016, and Elkann's Exor will be getting the largest portion of the Prancing Horse in the spin-off. Meanwhile, Piero holds the remaining 10 percent but has absolutely no intention to sell his stake in his father's business. The newly public Ferrari will push to grow volume with a goal of moving 9,000 vehicles annually by 2019. To reach that 30-percent boost, expect to see a new model every year, and some of them might use a new, modular platform that's reportedly under development. Related Video:

1963 Chrysler Turbine Car is for sale, and it's the coolest car you can buy

If you have a lot of money, there are a lot of really wild and exciting cars to choose from. But I feel confident in saying that none of them, none of them, can come close to being as brilliantly badass as this 1963 Chrysler Turbine Car, first spotted by Barn Finds, which, yes, is actually something you can buy and own. And even drive! Here's a quick recap of the Turbine Car in case you're unfamiliar. Back in the 1960s, Chrysler was researching turbine engines for vehicle propulsion, and to get an idea for how well they would work in the real world, they built 5 prototype cars followed by 50 production models. Those latter models did a tour to just over 200 families, each of which spent 90 days driving the cars. According to Motor Trend, the engine produced 130 horsepower and 425 pound-feet of torque, and it was paired with a three-speed automatic. Afterward, the cars were returned to Chrysler, which eventually decided that turbine engines weren't the way of the future. According to Hyman Ltd., the company selling this example, only nine Turbine Cars were spared the crusher, and six were sent to museums. This was one of the cars Chrysler held onto, and it was occasionally loaned to executives and such. It was then sold to William Harrah for his collection and museum near Reno. It later was sold to the founder of Domino's Pizza, and then to the latest owner, Frank Kleptz. Kleptz then worked with GE Engine Services to rebuild the engine and make the car run again. As it sits, the car features its original paint, trim and interior. It comes with spare parts and various documents. And of course it oozes cool, from the whistling engine under the hood to the jet-inspired, Ghia-built body and sleek interior. Plus, you can be sure you won't see another one on the road, unless you happen to be cruising by Jay Leno's garage in Burbank, Calif. It really doesn't get cooler than this. Hyman hasn't listed a price for it, but we're sure it will sell for a massive amount, and it would probably be money well spent. Correction: A previous version of this story incorrectly stated that Bill Harrah's car collection was in Las Vegas, it was actually near Reno. The text has been updated to reflect this. Related video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings.