In an effort to boost sales, Jeep may restore V8 power to the Grand Cherokee. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ The U.S. International Trade Commission has launched an investigation into rules-of-origin regulations for automobiles under the Canada-U.S.-Mexico trade agreement. More at Yahoo! Finance.
+ Amid rising trade tensions, General Motors will invest $46 million in its Oshawa, Ontario assembly plant to support production of its next-generation full-size pickups. More at CBT News.
+ Tesla robotaxis have been involved in 14 crashes in Austin, Texas since the service began eight months ago, according to reports the carmaker must supply to regulators. More at The Detroit News.
+ Renault Group revised its profit forecast downward for 2026 after it reported a 15 percent decline in operating profit last year, causing the share price to drop 6 percent. More at World Automotive Forum.
+ Joe Gibbs Racing filed suit against former competition director Chris Gabehart for allegedly offering sensitive information to a rival NASCAR Cup team, Spire Motorsports. More at AP News.
+ According to Ptolemus Consulting, advertising in in-car infotainment systems could become a $625 billion business, incentivizing automakers to drop Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. More at Autoweek.
+ Bowing to growing public criticism and legal challenges from the state of California, Tesla is renaming its Autopilot driver-assist system to “Traffic Aware Cruise Control.” More at Car and Driver.
+ A majority of Canadians say that an EV manufactured in China would have no bearing on their decision to buy it, according to a new Nanos Research Group poll, More at Automotive World.
+ Jeep engineer Joe Aljajawi teased that the brand may soon restore Hemi V8 power to the Grand Cherokee in an effort to boost sales, but as yet there is no confirmation. More at The Drive.
+ The technical alliance between the Team Penske and A.J. Foyt Racing, with Penske sharing data, chassis setups, and a Penske race engineer, is set to continue through 2027. More at Racer.
Photo courtesy of Stellantis.
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Tesla is said to now have over 500 self-drivers currently testing on public roads, while Waymo is suspected of testing 2,500 vehicles in various locations now. Ohio is testing at least 20 self-driving big rigs in public using “platooning” where an actual human-driven truck leads an autonomous one, alongside 1,200 other experimental connected vehicles, & who knows what else ODOT is testing at TRC, you can bet your sweet bippy it’s extremely expensive!
The Society of Automotive Engineers & the International Standards Organization are suppose to be the smartest people in the room concerning testing autonomous vehicles on public roads safely while using the public for lab mice without consent. SAE J3018 focuses exclusively on human test driver qualifications & test protocols, rather than placing technical constraints on automation technology itself. Some call it the “Safety Hamstrings Information Technology” standard since it does not cover the functional safety of a self-driver’s internal systems, which are instead addressed by other standards like ISO 26262, a standard Google says was originally intended for hardware & deterministic software. According to Google: Modern A.I. & Machine Learning (used in self-drivers) are non-deterministic, making this stuff incredibly difficult to cram into the ISO 26262 framework. This most certainly creates a “square peg, round hole” frustration hence knick-name “Public Iniquity of Spurious Safety” standard that breaches the “do no harm” principle duty of the honest and ethical professional engineer.
If a system fails or a safety observer falls asleep, just mention a voluntary SAE standard or an ISO certification as “conclusive proof” of due diligence, let the NTSB & NHTSA do the rest…
The practice of testing “immature” automated features on public roads inherently involves a risk of harm to other road users. Current regulations require only “self-certification,” where testers claim they will test safely without providing proof to the public. Yes, SAE International is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit focusing on mobility standards, while ISO is an independent, Geneva-based international federation of national standards bodies. Both were conquered long ago by special interests and in reality are little more than paywall subscription services with an online bookstore.
I can never remember whether it is Renault and Peugeot that’s part of Stellantis. It’s Peugeot, and I think that Renault has the better cars. Neither Fiat nor Opel/Vauxhall has any knockout platforms that would be a great addition to the Dodge/Chrysler line-up.
Regarding advertising within in-car infotainment systems… manufacturers better think long and hard about this and also options by subscription. Consumers are already restless and they would quickly flee to anywhere that doesn’t subject them to these annoyances. Slate for example could become the new Tesla if they swore they wouldn’t do this. The Chinese are also looking for a good opening gimmick.
We’re getting autonomous cars. Tesla could wipe out an entire elementary school at recess and it won’t stop everyone being separated from the driver seat. The only thing that remains is how the insurance companies can punish the owner instead of the manufacturer when the car misbehaves.
The stunning reversal in Canadian acceptance of Chinese cars is attributable to the actions of one man, Donald Trump.
Trump has murdered what used to be called American Exceptionalism. Canadians aren’t buying it anymore.