(Corrects day of the week in first paragraph)

Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp will offer software upgrades to 8.3 million U.S. vehicles to help curb increasing car thefts using a method popularized on TikTok and other social media channels, the Korean automakers said on Tuesday.

TikTok videos showing how to steal cars made from 2015 to 2019 without push-button ignitions and immobilizing anti-theft devices has spread nationwide. This had led to at least 14 reported crashes and eight fatalities," the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said.

The free upgrade will be offered for 3.8 million Hyundai and 4.5 million Kia vehicles in the United States, the automakers and NHTSA said.

The software "updates the theft alarm software logic to extend the length of the alarm sound from 30 seconds to one minute and requires the key to be in the ignition switch to turn the vehicle on," NHTSA said.

TikTok did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

USA Today reported last month that two major insurance companies had stopped offering new policies for Hyundai and Kia vehicles at high risk of theft.

Many 2015-19 model year Hyundai and affiliate Kia vehicles have no electronic immobilizers, which prevent break-ins and bypassing the ignition. The feature is standard on nearly all vehicles made by other manufacturers during that period.

U.S. theft claims in 2022 were nearly twice as common for Hyundai and Kia vehicles compared with all other manufacturers among 2015-2019 vehicles,

Insurance Institute for Highway Safety

The group said after the Korean-car thefts, which began in 2021, got significant social media attention in Wisconsin and then spread, overall claims on Hyundai and Kia thefts per insured vehicle year soared to more than 30 times the 2019 level.

Hyundai will also provide customers with a window sticker alerting would-be thieves that the vehicle is equipped with anti-theft protection.

The initial Hyundai upgrade will cover more than 1 million 2017-2020 Elantra, 2015-2019 Sonata and 2020-2021 Venue model year vehicles. The software upgrade is scheduled to be available by June for vehicles that remain eligible.

Kia said started notifying owners about the upgrade and anticipates making it available to most owners over the next few months.

The automakers have provided more than 26,000 steering wheel locks since November 2022 to 77 law enforcement agencies in 12 states.

Kia said it also continues "to make steering wheel locks available at no cost through interested local law enforcement agencies," subject to supply.

All Hyundai vehicles produced since November 2021 are equipped with an engine immobilizer as standard equipment. (Reporting by David Shepardson; Editing by Chizu Nomiyama and Richard Chang)

Whether your should prioritize paying off existing debt or investing for growth depends on the type of debt you are in, your interest rates, current stock market conditions, and how much time you have to devote to intelligent investing.

Hyundai Motor and Kia Corp will offer software upgrades to 8.3 million U.S. vehicles to help curb increasing car thefts using a method popularized on TikTok and other social media channels, the Korean automakers said on Tuesday. TikTok videos showing how to steal cars made from 2015 to 2019 without push-button ignitions and immobilizing anti-theft devices has spread nationwide. The free upgrade will be offered for 3.8 million Hyundai and 4.5 million Kia vehicles in the United States, the automakers and NHTSA said.

Customers will be able to lock their Elantra and Sonata cars and Venue SUV doors with a key fob, set a factory alarm and an ignition kill feature.

BENGALURU/PARIS (Reuters) -Air India's record aircraft deal has put the Tata Group-owned airline in the league of aspiring global carriers. On Tuesday, it provisionally agreed to acquire almost 500 jets from Airbus and Boeing to take on domestic and international rivals. Striking the largest ever deal by one airline took months of secret talks carried out a stone's throw from Britain's Buckingham palace and culminating in a celebration over coastal Indian curries, according to people involved in the talks.

Hyundai and Kia may finally have a solution to a theft problem that has dragged on for more than two years, led to class action lawsuits and plagued law enforcement and car owners throughout the United States. The National Highway Traffic and Safety Administration said Tuesday the automakers have developed theft deterrent software for more than 8 million of its vehicles that lack an immobilizer system, which has made them a target of thieves across the country. The software will be provided free of charge to vehicle owners.

The Detroit-area factory where the Lightning is built has been idle since the start of last week, a company spokeswoman said. The auto maker said it would delay shipping trucks to dealers while it examines the problem.

Boeing got itself a nice Valentine's Day gift when Air India, Asia's largest commercial carrier, ordered nearly 300 jets in a move that President Joe Biden called an "historic agreement." The sale, valued at $34 billion, is set to be Boeing's third-largest sale of all time. Air India is also set to order 250 passenger planes from Boeing's rival Airbus, which will in total greatly increase its supply of mid-priced flights.

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EV stocks have multiplied in Tesla’s wake and as electric cars look to go mainstream. Here are the top-rated electric-vehicle makers.

It was a mixed picture for the autos market as prices overall ticked up slightly month over month in the U.S. in January. The BLS reported in its January CPI report that new vehicle prices rose 0.2% (up 5.8% y-o-y), and used vehicle prices fell 1.9%, (down 11.6% y-o-y). While used prices have fallen for seven straight months, new car prices have steadily risen every month since March 2021 (using revised CPI).

Ford has paused building its popular all-electric F-150 pickup truck. How long the stoppage could last is difficult to say.

Zoox, a self-driving vehicle company owned by Amazon, says it has successfully carried passengers on public roads — a development that helps the California company inch closer to bringing the vehicle to the general public.

Ford paused the F-150 Lightning's production and shipments due to a potential battery issue, the company said today. The stoppage started at the beginning of last week, and Ford has yet to estimate when it will restart production. According to a statement provided by Ford, the stoppage occurred after a vehicle failed a post-production quality control test.

Air India is buying up to 290 additional jets from Boeing in coming years. That made President Biden proud.

Details have emerged concerning a United Airlines flight from December, in which the plane dropped 800 feet above the Pacific Ocean. According to newly reported data, 71 seconds after United Airlines Flight 1722 took off from Kahului Airport in Maui, the flight dropped from 2,200 feet to 775 feet, while en route to San Francisco. While the plane was dipping at nearly 8,600 feet per minute, the flight was able to recover and return to an altitude of 2,350 feet in less than a minute.

Tesla increased the price of its Model Y performance crossover by $1,000 to $58,990, its website showed. Tesla rolled out sweeping price cuts in January across its line-up and in all of its major markets. The company has been adjusting prices online since with a cadence that is unusual in an industry where the benchmark is still described as a "sticker prices" on the window of a vehicle in inventory.

Wichita’s commercial aerospace industry got a boost Tuesday from one of the largest orders in aviation history. Air India has announced details of an expected megadeal that revealed plans to buy 250 passenger jets from Airbus and 220 from the Boeing Co. as part of the carrier’s plan for revitalization under new owner Tata Group.

The European Parliament formally approved a law to ban the sale of new gas and diesel cars in the European Union starting in 2035 in a move designed to speed up the transition to electric vehicles. The new legislation, which is part of a broader effort by the EU to combat climate change, says that by 2035, carmakers must achieve a 100% cut in carbon-dioxide emissions from new cars sold, which means no new fossil fuel–powered vehicles could be sold in the 27-country bloc. With 340 votes in favor, 279 against and 21 abstentions, the new rules also set a path for more immediate emissions reductions targets.

European lawmakers approved a law that will effectively ban the sale of new gasoline-powered cars in the region from 2035.

The Biden Administration called Boeing's sell of over 200 airplanes to Air India an ‘historic agreement’.