At $17.99 million, this 1959 Ferrari 250 GT LWB California Spider Competizione was the top seller at the RM Sotheby’s New York City 2017 auction in Manhattan. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing. 

Today’s headlines: 

+   General Motors is developing carbon fiber pickup beds for its premium truck lines and could have the ultra-lightweight components ready for production in two years. More at The Drive. 

+   CEO Stefan Sommer, who led ZF Friedrichshafen’s $12.4 billion buyout of TRW Automotive, has stepped down and will be replaced by his deputy Konstantin Sauer. More at Automotive News Europe. 

+   Anheuser-Busch, maker of Budweiser and other beers, has reserved 40 Tesla all-electric Semi trucks as it seeks to reduce fuel costs and emissions, the brewer announced. More at Reuters.

+   Richard Petty Motorsports and driver Bubba Wallace Jr. will switch from Ford to Chevrolet in 2018, consolidating its NASCAR operation with Richard Childress Racing. More at NBC Sports. 

+   Phil Ting, a California assembly member and chair of the state’s finance committee, plans to introduce a bill that would ban the sale of gasoline-engine vehicles after 2040. More at Motor Trend. 

+   Ford will move production of an upcoming battery-powered crossover from Flat Rock, Michigan to Cuautitlán, Mexico to free up the stateside production capacity for autonomous vehicles. More at Autoblog.

+   The Larry Porter Alphabet Ford collection of rare Ford production cars from 1903 through 1908 will soon be on long-term display at the historic Ford Piquette Plant in Detroit. More at Hemmings Daily. 

+   The RM Sotheby’s New York City 2017 auction on at Sotheby’s headquarters in Manhattan generated $45.5 million in total sales and an 84 percent sell-through rate. More at Sports Car Digest. 

+   Former Volkswagen executive Oliver Schmidt was sentenced to 7 years in prison by a federal court in Detroit for his role in the Dieselgate emissions fraud scandal. More at The Detroit News. 

+  In an effort to improve air quality, the TX eCity taxi, a range-extended battery-powered version of London’s classic black cab, was introduced to the city’s fleet this past week. More at USA Today. 

+   The SpeedSource Race Engineering road racing operation will place its cars and equipment up for auction following owner Sylvain Tremblay’s decision to shut down the team. More at Motorsport.com. 

Review the previous Executive Briefing from December 4 here. 

Photo courtesy of RM Sotheby’s. 

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