Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
Dense, short, and well rounded, TDS gathers all the bubbling 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.
I’m back in the U.S. from Sweden, the real feel is -32 degrees Fahrenheit outside in Minneapolis, MN, and I definitely need a second cup of coffee after this. Let’s get into it.
🚘 What I’m driving: Arrived back from Sweden to a 2026 Mazda CX-50 Hybrid for the weekend. The crossover SUV is attractive, but instant impressions leave me wondering aside from design what makes this compelling? The zoom zoom and sharpness that defines a Mazda is seemingly absent. That’s before addressing the CX-50’s shortcomings in terms of packaging that have nothing to do with the hybrid powertrain.
🤫 President Trump’s new armored Cadillac Escalade went into service with little fanfare in Davos, though naturally the Secret Service has said nothing in terms of details surrounding the new SUV other than confirming it now exists in the protective fleet.
🙈 Tesla’s roller coaster of bad news continues as the numbers reveal the EV darling lost the most market share last year in California, VW beat the U.S.-based automaker to become Europe’s top EV brand in 2025, and Musk admitted his dream of mass-producing robots and Cybercabs will be “agonizingly slow.”
🚙 The chairman of the BMW National Dealer Forum said the luxury automaker needs to go big and add a true full-size SUV to its lineup to compete against the Cadillac Escalade, Lincoln Navigator, and even the Infiniti QX80.
🔥 Bugatti revealed it almost made an even more powerful Veyron back in the day with 1,341 horsepower.
🥱 The chair of the Stellantis dealer council said former CEO Carlos Tavares tried to make the auto giant’s brands into a boring transportation company and that’s not who they are.
👨⚖️ VW, Audi, and Porsche dealers filed a new lawsuit claiming Scout isn’t really an EV brand since it’s going to sell extended-range EVs with gas motors.
🪫 The return of the Chevrolet Bolt will not be for long as the automaker will kill the EV, again, after just 18 months with production ending so GM can shift Buick Envision production from China to the U.S.
📈 Mercedes-Benz said sales of the electric GLC SUV have “significantly exceeded” the company’s expectations.
😵 Tesla removed its lane centering feature for all Model 3 and Model Y trims in the U.S. market.
⧴ The next-generation Alfao Romeo Stelvio has been delayed, again, by two years as the company works to reengineer the SUV, which was supposed to be all electric.
🇺🇸 Jeep launched a new marketing campaign that shifts the messaging from “It’s a Jeep thing” to just “Jeep Things” as the automaker leans into what it is and isn’t.