This rare 1942 Mercury Woody Station Wagon will be offered at the Mecum Auctions Glendale sale. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ Stellantis reported an annual loss of $26.3 billion, the first in the company’s history, after booking substantial write-downs amid a major strategic shift on electric vehicles. More at CNBC.
+ UAW-represented employees at Stellantis will not receive profit-sharing checks for 2025 after the automaker’s North American results failed to meet the minimum contract thresholds. More at CBT News.
+ Despite Elon Musk’s claims that Tesla was close to launching a robotaxi service in California, the company made no moves in 2025 to secure required state approvals. More at MSN News.
+ Chris Gabehart, former competition director at the Joe Gibbs Racing, says the team’s lawsuit against him is simply an attempt to punish him for “daring to leave the team.” More at ESPN.
+ Hyundai plans to unveil a multi-billion-dollar investment in South Korea’s West coast as the auto group expands into artificial intelligence for autonomous driving and robotics. More at World Auto Forum.
+ Once standard on the Mustang Mach-E electric crossover, the frunk (front cargo compartment) is now a $495 extra-cost option for 2026 on top of the $48,940 base price. More at Car and Driver.
+ Ford is recalling nearly 4.4 million trucks and SUVs from the 2022-26 model years to correct a software defect that may prevent the trailer lamps from operating when towing. More at Ars Technica.
+ Two vehicles fell into a sinkhole caused by a broken water main on a busy Omaha, Nebraska street as the incident was captured on a security camera, but there were no injuries. More at Autoblog
+ Classic and vintage American cars from the John Lemmons collection will be the featured attractions at the Mecum Auctions Glendale, Arizona sale on March 17-20. More at Old Cars.
+ Mario Isola, head of Pirelli’s motorsport business for the past 10 years supplying tires to Formula 1, will leave the company in July, to be replaced by Dario Marrafuschi. More at Racer.
Photo courtesy of Mecum Auctions.
Review the previous MCG Executive Briefing from February 23 here.
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I’m done paying attention to the Mecum and Barrett Jackson game shows. Too many misrepresented vehicles, TV personalities adding “glitz” to every car or truck, not to mention the inflated prices. Let the big ego’s play their game.
Cybersecurity of Firmware Updates, Report# DOT HS 812 807, Contract# DTNH22-15-R-00104 Vehicle Electronics Systems Safety IDIQ, by the Transportation Research Institute University of Michigan (UMTRI) and Volkswagen Group of America sponsored by National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:
“Over-the-Air (OTA) software and firmware updates are widely considered essential for networked devices. In the automotive industry, OTA firmware updates are anticipated to increase the efficiency and decrease the time in updating the critical firmware in vehicles’ electronic control units (ECUs). This project had these objectives: understand the scope and relevant attributes of firmware updates, understand their vulnerabilities and update solutions, understand mitigation methods for those vulnerabilities, and learn from adjacent industries. The report first presents a literature and technology review of the state-of-the-art of software updates in industries related to automotive, including the commercial aviation, medical, and consumer electronics industries. Next it identifies and assesses software update functionality risks in current and near-term future automobiles. Finally, it reviews mitigation methods to address those risks. In addition, this report describes the SAE AS5553A voluntary standard for the detection of and protection against counterfeit electronic parts in the aerospace industry and how it relates to the automotive industry… In identifying risks at both the vehicle-level and the technological design and implementation level, the researchers have identified the biggest risk with software update mechanisms as malware installation… However, software update functionality creates a new attack surface for attackers to potentially exploit. The installation of malware is one of the biggest risks for software updates. There is no singular, perfect reference model for securing software updates.”
SAE AS5553A “voluntary” standard…
The above are quotes copypasta’d from the Executive Summary of the 106 page report. This frightening document is available to the public through the National Technical Information Service, http://www.ntis.gov...