Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
The Downshift is our morning summary of all the auto industry headlines you need to know. News is recapped with a few sentences, including links to dig deeper if you wish. It goes great with a warm caffeinated beverage of your choosing, or maybe an iced one—here in the Northeast, the cold has finally, miraculously lifted.
🔊 Episode 7 of The Drivecast, The Drive’s new weekly podcast, will go live later today. Be sure to stay tuned, whether you listen on The Drive, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
📉 Porsche plans to cut jobs and introduce more ultra-high-end models above the 911 and Cayenne to stir up profits after another tough year, Bloomberg reported after the brand’s press conference on Wednesday. The German automaker has had to fend off tariffs in the U.S. and slumping sales in China, where it expects to move just a third as many vehicles as it did five years earlier by the end of 2026.
🛠️ Ram will bring back the ProMaster City van as a 2027 model after five years away, citing a lack of options in the category following its competitors’ exit from the U.S. market, per Automotive News.
⛽ Kia’s refreshed Niro small crossover will not include a pure-EV model, The Korea Herald reported after an unveiling event in Seoul.
💺 Toyota has recalled more than 550,000 Highlander and Highlander Hybrid SUVs, model years 2021-2024, for back seats that may not properly latch into place, per Reuters.
🚕 Uber has partnered with Zoox to deliver robotaxis starting in Las Vegas this summer and Los Angeles by the middle of next year, according to Reuters.
🪪 Car dealers in Texas are concerned about the sales impact of new state legislation requiring buyers to use a REAL ID, birth certificate, or other citizenship verification documents to register cars, according to Automotive News.
Got a tip? Reach out to tips@thedrive.com