Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
Quick, dense, and all encompassing, TDS gathers the latest automotive headlines from around the globe and places them in one spot. Stories are summarized in a single sentence accompanied by a link for those seeking more information.
The first cup of coffee is gone, the cold has returned to Minnesota after fake spring, and it’s Monday. Let’s get into it.
🚘 What I’m driving: Spent the weekend with the 2026 Mazda CX-90 Plug-In Hybrid and it’s clear the electrified powertrain has truly been smoothed over by the Japanese automaker since launching a few years ago. Perfect it’s not, but at least it’s now acceptable and viable as an option. It feels finished, unlike before
⏸️ The Nissan Leaf S, which was to undercut the $30,000 current base model known as S+, will not arrive in 2026 as planned and is delayed indefinitely; the S model was set to arrive this year with a smaller battery pack, less range, but likely a price that undercut the revived Chevrolet Bolt to steal the title as the least expensive EV in the U.S. market.
💸 Stellantis is likely about to report its first annual operating loss since forming in 2021 thanks to its EV write-downs and electrification strategy under former CEO Carlos Tavares; a year later and Stellantis still hasn’t figured out what to do with its Bramptom Assembly Plant in Toronto.
🔋 Ford disclosed why its upcoming $30,000 electric truck will use LFP batteries, and it’s not just because they are less expensive; LFP batteries were chosen, according to director of advanced EV development at Ford, Alan Clarke, because they are the least energy-dense chemistry that could be put into the platform, meaning they’ll take up the most amount of space and be the heaviest, which translates to them being the hardest thing that will ever be designed to be put into the vehicle.
💸 Aston Martin Chairman Lawrence Stroll is now making deals within his own companies to shift money around and keep the lights on and wheels turning in a bid to turnaround the iconic automaker.
🔋 Polestar CEO Michael Loscheller said the automaker will deliver performance with its future models more consistently with a stronger focus on that angle both on track and in terms of acceleration.
🔨 The McMurtry Spéirling entered production with deliveries set to being this summer.
👨💼 In a management shake-up Audi replaced its head of technical development by naming Rouven Mohr as Geoffrey Bouquot’s successor; Bouquot was appointed to the board less than a year ago and joined Audi from Valeo in 2024.
🏁 Weekend Race Results:
- NASCAR Cup Series Autotrader 400: Chase Elliott took the win for Hendrick Motorsports.
- NASCAR Xfinity Series Bennett Transportation & Logistics 250: Austin Hill won for Richard Childress Racing.
- NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Fr8 208: Corey Heim won for TRICON Garage.
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