Hammered by tariffs, UK auto production in May fell to its lowest point since 1949. Get all the latest automotive news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s Headlines:
+ The share price of Chinese EV maker Xiaomi Group has climbed to another record high, making founder and CEO Lei Jun the wealthiest person in China with with $68 billion. More at CarNewsChina.com.
+ General Motors persuaded a federal appeals court to decertify a class action seeking to hold the automaker liable for selling 800,000 vehicles with faulty transmissions. More at MSN News.
+ A new study from iSeeCars found that only 11.5 percent of the three year-old used vehicles on the market are priced below $20,000, compared to 49.8 percent in 2019. More at Autoblog.
+ Mercedes Formula 1 rookie Kimi Antonelli has been given a three-place grid penalty in his next event after taking out Max Verstappen at the start of the Austrian Grand Prix. More at Racer.
+ Toyota’s global sales rose for a fifth straight month in May, climbing 6.9 percent year-over-year and 11 percent in the USA, setting a record for the month of 898,721 vehicles. More at World Auto Forum.
+ In Denham Springs, Louisiana, a semi-truck attempting a corner accidentally clipped an aerial boom truck, with the utility worker in the elevated bucket sustaining minor injuries. More at The Drive.
+ Mercedes-AMG is preparing to phase out the plug-in hybrid package using the M139 2.0-liter inline-four engine in the C63 and GLC63, replacing it with inline sixes and V8s. More at Car and Driver.
+ Lexus ranked highest in J.D. Power’s 2025 U.S. Initial Quality Study, followed by Nissan in second place and Chevrolet the highest-ranked domestric brand in fourth. More at CBT News.
+ UK vehicle production fell sharply for a fifth straight month in May, as headwinds including U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade policy hit the automotive industry hard. More at CNBC.
+ After Kyle Larson”s Hendrick Motorsports NASCAR Cup car failed pre-qualifying inspection twice at Atlanta. car chief Jesse Saunders was ejected for the weekend. More at Motorsport.com.
Photo courtesy of Mini UK.
Review the previous MCG Executive Briefing from June 27 here.
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That GM 8 speed (another ZF copy) transmission class action lawsuit is quite the rabbit hole. Another experiment foistered on the public by Powertrain, a racing transmission sold to grandma. NHTSA & GM have been playing patty cake with this for years until everybody is out of warranty (as usual).
Long ago, when I was a NHTSA/ODI contractor, the interns, ambulance chasers and arm wavers upstairs at Enforcement acted like automatic transmissions were mysterious contraptions that magically connected engine power to the tires by an unknown means, and somehow allowed drivers to back up in a reverse direction when the “R” is selected…
It’s true, affordable used cars are disappearing from the market.