A new exhibit at the Petersen Museum in Los Angeles celebrates the great off-road racers in history. .Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ In a consolidated class action lawsuit against Honda, owners claim that the automaker knew about steering defects in some vehicles years before a 2024 recall. More at Autoblog.
+ Volkswagen AG’s Cupra unit has conducted media preview drives of the Raval, its compact urban EV based on the VW MEB+ platform, in advance of its 2026 launch. More at Automotive World.
+ Gaetano Thorel, head of Fiat Europe, says the carmaker may revive the gasoline-powered Abarth models because customers prefer them for modifications and tinkering. More at The Drive.
+ Allan Pagan, one of the original Indy Racing League entrants whose Pagan Racing team finished second in the 1999 Indianapolis 500, died last week at the age of 70. More at Racer.
+ A Japanese labor union group representing workers at the major manufacturers says it will seek an increase of at least $77 in monthly base pay next year, the same target as 2025. More at World Auto Forum.
+ Since entering the market in July, Tesla has sold only around 100 cars in India, the world’s most populous country, attributed in part to the lack of an EV infrastructure. More at Electrek.
+ A recent study by Europe’s Transport and Environment (T&E) found that plug-in hybrid vehicles, produce nearly as much exhaust emissions as straight ICE vehicles. More at CBT News.
+ The Canadian Automobile Dealers Association (CADA) has called on the Ottawa government to suspend and rework the country’s Zero-Emission Vehicle (ZEV) sales mandate. More at Motor Illustrated.
+ A new exhibit called “Legends of the Dirt” at the Petersen Museum in Los Angeles, celebrating the great off-road, rally, and hill-climb racers in history, will open on Dec. 7. More at Car and Driver.
+ A strategy error by Team McLaren allowed Max Verstappen to score a crucial victory at the Qatar Grand Prix, tightening the Formula 1 championship battle to just 12 points. More at Motorsport.com.
Photo courtesy of the Petersen Automotive Museum.
Review the previous MCG Executive Briefing from November 28 here.
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Telekinesis is the supposed ability to move objects with one’s mind, but there is no scientific evidence that it is real.
The discovery on the Honda/Hitachi steering rack class action will make for great bathroom reading- East meets West culture clash, 2nd and 7th floor palace intrigue, multiple secret recalls saving face, no writing on business cards from Tokyo to D.C. to East Liberty, blah-blah, yadda-yadda. How many improperly anealed pinion gears installed in how many steering racks assembled with insufficient lube film thickness and too much gear tooth pressure ? All of ’em of course!
Heat and moisture does what? Just “needs more Hondalube in the Hondahole.” No worries Mr. NHTSA Associate Administrator of Enforcement, every dealer has a “Hondroid” tech with the telekinesis required…