Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
Dense, quick, and all encompassing, TDS gathers all the latest automotive headlines from around the globe in one place. Stories are summarized in a single sentence accompanied by a link for those seeking more information.
I’m on the first cup of coffee, the sun isn’t up yet, and will need to catch a flight this morning. Let’s get into it.
🚘 What I’m driving: Spending some time in the Toyota 4Runner TRD Off-Road Premium and dig the Heritage Blue paint and the turbo-four is punchy, but the rear-seat packaging is not ideal and there’s so much cheap, hard plastic inside this SUV.
🚙 Lincoln is reportedly working on a body-on-frame Mercedes-Benz G-Class rival in the form of a reskinned Bronco set to arrive around 2029 or 2030.
⛽️ Mazda execs have acknowledged that the powertrain for the next-generation MX-5 Miata has not been locked in yet, but that some form of electrification will likely be baked in; execs noted that synthetic fuels could be the path forward to avoid the added weight and complexity of a hybrid system.
✂ Aston Martin is cutting 20% of its 3,000-person workforce noting U.S. tariffs and weak demand in China as the cause for weaker than expected profits.
🔋 Lucid is expecting slower production in 2026 attributed to continuing supply chain issues, which will result in production of 25,000-27,000 vehicles in 2026 vs 17,840 in 2025; production of the midsize EV is expected to begin this year in Saudi Arabia, according to the automaker’s latest CEO.
🚨 BMW recalled 58,713 vehicles in the U.S. due to a wiring harness for the air conditioning system that could be damanged and cause a short circuit in the M5 wagon, M5, and 750e xDrive.
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