Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
Short, snappy, and lacking snark, TDS gathers the latest automotive news from around the globe and puts it in one place. Stories are summarized in a single sentence accompanied by a link for those seeking more information.
The first cup of coffee is underway, so let’s get into it.
🚘 What I’m driving: Spending the week with the 2026 Hyundai Palisade Hybrid, and the model being tested is a loaded Hybrid Calligraphy trim, which costs $60,625. It’s a new era for Hyundai, but I have to say this thing is shockingly nice and feels like it’s competing with more premium vehicles.
💨 The EU dropped its gas-powered new-car sales ban that was set for 2035 and replaced it with a target reduction of 90% of car-emitted C02 by the same year; the EU’s EV policy shift is being seen as possibly benefiting Chinese automakers in the future, but the move still needs approval by EU governments and the European Parliament.
🧑⚖️ A group of 16 states, along with the District of Columbia, is suing the U.S. Government because the Trump Administration suspended two grant programs for EV charging infrastructure, both of which were part of the $1 trillion infrastructure programs enacted in 2022 by Congress.
🪛 California put the screws to Tesla and gave the automaker 90 days to change its misleading Autopilot marketing or confirm its cars can operate without an active human monitoring the vehicle.
🧾 Colorado gave Scout Motors a license to sell its vehicles directly to consumers, a move that is sure to irritate the dealer contingent.
🔑 Hyundai and Kia have agreed to retrofit 4 million U.S. vehicles to address theft concerns and install prevention equipment on all new vehicles in order to resolve an investigation by a group of 35 attorneys general.
🐆 Jaguar confirmed its new EV, which will relaunch the brand in 2026, is a tri-motor 1,000-horsepower four-door hatchback with rear-wheel steering and huge wheelbase; the automaker also confirmed this new car will cost about £120,000, which with today’s exchange rate would make the car about $160,000.
Have feedback on the formatting of TDS? Send us a note: tips@thedrive.com