According to BMW, the era of the manual transmission in the M Series is almost over. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ Workers at the Volkswagen plant in Tennessee voted 96 percent to approve a contract negotiated by the United Auto Workers, a major victory for organized labor in the South. More at Yahoo! Finance.
+ A federal judge rejected Tesla’s request to overturn a $243 million jury verdict in the 2019 crash of an Autopilot-equipped Model S in which a 22 year-old woman was killed. More at HuffPost.
+ Toyota of Canada has signed a robots-as-a-service agreement with Agility Robotics to deploy seven humanoid robots at its vehicle assembly plant in Woodstock, Ontario. More at Motor Illustrated.
+ Canadian privateer IndyCar driver Cliff Hucul, who started the Indianapolis 500 three consecutive times in 1977-79, has passed away at his farm in British Columbia at 79. More at Racer.
+ Tariffs imposed by the Trump administration cost Harley-Davidson roughly $67 million in 2025, with around $31 million due to the 50 percent tariff on steel and aluminum. More at The Detroit News.
+ Broad Arrow Auctions predicts that a 1996 Nissan Skyline Nismo 400R could bring up to $1.1 million as the market for vintage Japanese performance cars continues to rise. More at The Drive.
+ Audi has confirmed that the RS5 Avant will not be offered in the United States, but a petition campaign is underway to reverse that decision by demonstrating sufficient demand. More at Autoblog.
+ Poland has barred vehicles made in China from entering its military facilities due to concerns that their onboard sensor systems could be used to capture sensitive data. More at World Auto Forum.
+ Frank Van Meel, CEO of BMW’s M division, says the business case for manual transmissions is getting worse and that their days in performance models are numbered. More at Car and Driver.
+ Spire Motorsports confirmed that it has appointed former Joe Gibbs Racing competition director Chris Gabehart to serve as the operation’s chief motorsports officer. More at Motorsport.com.
Photo courtesy of BMW.
Review the previous MCG Executive Briefing from February 20 here.
Join Mac’s Motor City Garage on Facebook and X to receive notices when every new story is published.
The Toyota humanoid robots are perfectly creepy.
R.I.P. Cliff Hucul, a true inspirational hero who had a very heavy right foot like the great Tom Sneva, and could really hustle a flat-bottom Indy car at the limit on Bump Day. A quadriplegic from a non-racing accident after retiring from racing, Mr. Hucul is one of a handful of drivers to finish last in both a NASCAR Cup Series race and the Indianapolis 500 like Tony Stewart, Chet Fillip, Larry Foyt, and Juan Pablo Montoya all have…
I do miss the privateers at Indy each May. There were always great human interest stories there. It’s long been said that the guys in the back have the most difficult job. The fast guys are cruising while the backmarkers are driving their hearts out to stay off the walls. mcg