The 2026 Toyota GR Corolla will feature simulated electronic engine sound to complement the ICE. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ Porsche is dialing back its EV plans due to weak demand, pressures in China, and higher U.S. tariffs, causing Porsche and parent Volkswagen to slash their 2025 profit outlooks. More at World Auto Forum.
+ A hacker has revealed new details of Tesla’s stripped-down Model Y now said to be due in 2026, which is likely going to be the automaker’s most affordable vehicle yet. More at Electrek.
+ Ford has issued yet another recall affecting 102,000 Taurus sedans manufactured between 2016 and 2019 to repair B-pillar door trim pieces that may detach while driving. More at Autoblog.
+ Formula 1 officials have confirmed that the Azerbaijan Grand Prix will remain on the calendar until 2030 with an extension of the current agreement for another four years. More at Grand Prix 24/7.
+ General Motors closed down its Cole Engineering Center in Warren, Michigan, through September 22 after two employees tested positive for Legionnaires’ disease. More at CBT News.
+ Stellantis unveiled an electric vehicle prototype claiming a faster-charging, lighter, and more affordable battery that eliminates the need for a separate inverter and charger. More at The Globe and Mail.
+ A truck driver was tragically killed unloading the f1979 Andy Warhol BMW M1 art car at the Washington, D.C. National Mall for the Hagerty Foundation’s Cars at the Capitol show. More at The Drive.
+ The US National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) is delaying long-planned changes to its five-star New Car Assessment Program (NCAP) until 2027. More at Autoweek.
+ Toyota has updated the GR Corolla for Japan with features that are expected to appear in the USA version, including simulated engine sound from the audio system. More at Car and Driver.
+ NASCAR Cup teams Rick Ware Racing and Legacy Motor Club announced they have reached a resolution in their charter sale dispute, with Legacy acquiring a charter. More at NBC Sports.
Image courtesy of Toyota.
Review the previous MCG Executive Briefing from September 19 here.
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I can’t see that Tesla releasing a simplified Model Y rather than an all new car will help their declining market share. He needs more than a refresh to convince people that it’s not all smoke and mirrors. Hopefully they’ve been working so hard on the robots and FSD that they had no cycles left to create a new car.
Another Ford recall. I’m glad that I sold my shares at the 52 week high in July although they haven’t taken much of a hit since then.
I’m not in favor of piped-in engine sounds. But some are happy because they think the loud noises will only be heard inside the car instead of in their living room. That won’t happen. A) a performance benefit is possible with an aftermarket exhaust. B) It’s loud because they want you to look at them. With today’s towering trucks, it doesn’t hurt for a small car to make itself known; the ‘loud pipes save lives’ effect.
Back in the stone age, NHTSA’s “Crashworthiness” NCAP new car assessment program was conducted across the hall from my ODI contractor group at VRTC and in the crash building on the hallowed grounds of the “Three Ring Circus” near East Liberty, Ohio. NCAP results in those days seemed to depend more on the moods of the contractors involved as much as anything. Test data & “ratings” were typically parsed at symposiums (junkets) worldwide like Yokohama, San Francisco, Stuttgart, Las Vegas, Ann Arbor or D.C.
The latest Ford recall is due to faulty robotic gluing of plastic b-pillar covers, bringing Ford’s total number of current recalls to 90…
RIP to the person killed at the National Mall Hargarty show. A quote from the article, “From TV news coverage, we can see that the M1 was being delivered down a ramp from an enclosed Reliable Carriers auto transport truck. That’s considered one of the best car-moving companies working, making an incident of this severity particularly surprising. Some reports are circulating that suggest equipment failure as the cause, but no definitive information has been shared”
Be safe everybody, because that’s what you have to be…