DETROIT — An independent monitor will watch the United Auto Workers’ finances and operations, and members will decide how they pick future leaders under a reform agreement with the U.S. Attorney’s office.

The U.S. is making General Motors recall and repair nearly 6 million big pickup trucks and SUVs equipped with potentially dangerous Takata air bag inflators.

General Motors says a pending breakthrough in battery chemistry will cut the price of its electric vehicles so they equal those powered by gasoline within five years. The technology also will increase the range per charge to as much as 450 miles.

On his first day in Ford’s top job, CEO Jim Farley is replacing the company’s chief financial officer and announcing other structural and management changes.

Allegations by General Motors that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles bribed union officials are “preposterous” and read like a script from a “third-rate spy movie,” FCA lawyers wrote in court documents filed Aug. 10.

Two tests by AAA during the past two years show that partially automated driving systems don’t always function properly, so the auto club is recommending that car companies limit their use.

Ford is recalling about 2.5 million vehicles in the U.S., Canada and elsewhere because of a nagging door latch problem and a brake fluid leak.

A new study says that while autonomous vehicle technology has great promise to reduce crashes, it may not be able to prevent all mishaps caused by human error.

Defying a wave of layoffs that has sent the U.S. job market into its worst catastrophe on record, at least one major industry is making a comeback: Tens of thousands of autoworkers are returning to factories that have been shuttered since mid-March due to fears of spreading the coronavirus.

The U.S. government’s highway safety agency will not force automakers to recall millions of newer Takata air bag inflators, citing industry research that shows the devices are safe.