In today's issue:

BYD's headline "growth" is a one-month technicality. Home-market demand is down nearly a quarter year-over-year, and the only thing holding the company flat is shipping cars out of China. The story isn't the recovery; it's that the domestic market is shrinking fast enough to need one.

The FIA Says Red Bull Has the Best Engine in F1. Now Ferrari and Mercedes Get to Catch Up.: The FIA's first ADUO assessment ranked Red Bull Ford Powertrains the top combustion engine in the 2026 field, per The Race, entitling Ferrari and Mercedes to development tokens to close the gap. Lewis Hamilton confirmed the order himself: Red Bull "have the most powerful engine, Mercedes second, and then we're behind," he told Sky Sports F1 per Autosport, though he cautioned the catch-up is "like an eight-to-10-month project." Red Bull built the better engine but cannot currently put it on the grid without it stalling, the rankings reward what's on the dyno, not what finishes races. #analyst

Ford's Secret $30,000 Electric Pickup Begins Public Road Testing: Ford's skunkworks EV team is weeks away from putting a cost-focused midsize electric truck on public roads, per Carscoops. The new architecture is designed to undercut both gas competitors and existing EVs, targeting a sub-$30,000 base price and intended to underpin multiple models after the F-150 Lightning's three-year run ended in losses. #analyst

Dealership Buy-Sells Jumped 32% in Q1, With Chevy Stores Changing Hands the Fastest: Ninety-five dealership transactions closed in Q1 2026, up 32% year-over-year, with California leading all states and Chevrolet as the most-traded brand, per Automotive News. Publicly held retailers sold more stores than they acquired for the period, suggesting large groups are trimming exposure rather than building it. #market

Unifor Enters Detroit Three Talks Demanding Gains, Not Giving Concessions: Canada's Unifor union flatly rejected any concession-based bargaining ahead of its upcoming contract negotiations with Ford, GM, and Stellantis, per CBT News. With tariffs and plant idlings already live bargaining issues, the union is pushing for job security commitments and new investment pledges, setting up a harder negotiation than either side had publicly acknowledged. #analyst

Toyota Let Gazoo Racing Build a 700-HP, Seven-Cylinder, RWD Camry. Yes, Really.: At the Super Taikyu Fuji 24-Hour Race, Toyota and Gazoo Racing unveiled two heavily modified Camrys: the GR Camry, a 700-hp seven-cylinder all-wheel-drive sedan, and a bosozoku-inspired TR Camry switched to rear-wheel drive with a lengthwise-mounted 2.0-liter engine, per Autoblog and Car and Driver. The cars have no production intent whatsoever, which somehow makes them better.

The Toyota Starlet Hiding a Custom 10,000-RPM V8 Is a Hill Climb Car for People Who Hate Attention: Finnish outfit VHTRacing Engineering stuffed a custom high-revving V8 into a second-generation P60 Starlet for hill climb competition, per The Drive. The car looks like something your grandfather parked behind the barn; it sounds like nothing of the sort.

Ford Issued a Recall for Edge Brake Hoses in August 2025. There's Still No Fix. One Owner Just Paid $1,854.: Ford recalled certain Edge models for rear brake hoses prone to rupturing and leaking fluid, but has not provided dealers with a remedy nearly a year later, per Carscoops and Autoblog. One Boston owner paid $1,854 out-of-pocket for the repair while the recall remedy remained undeveloped. Ford's public posture on quality improvement does not square with a recalled brake component that customers are still being billed to fix. #news

Ram ProMaster Lawsuit: The "9-Speed" Is Actually a 7-Speed: A class action alleges 2022-2023 Ram ProMaster vans were sold as nine-speeds but never actually use eighth or ninth gear, per CarComplaints. The suit claims Chrysler programmed the transmission software to skip those two gears because the vans are too heavy to hold them, leaving what is effectively a seven-speed in real-world driving. #news

GM Asks Court to Dismiss L87 Engine Class Action, Says the Recall Already Covers It: GM filed a motion to dismiss a class action covering the L87 engine in 2019-2024 Silverado 1500s, 2021-2024 Tahoes and Suburbans, and equivalent GMC models, arguing the vehicles were already recalled so plaintiffs have no separate claim, per CarComplaints. Plaintiffs have not yet responded. #news

BMW's iX3 Won a 24-Car Norway Range Test and Outran Its Own Rated Figure: Norway's consumer group ran 24 EVs to empty in mild summer conditions, and the BMW iX3 came out on top while exceeding its rated range, per Autoblog; Carscoops noted two Chinese models landed at opposite ends of the honesty scale.

The 2027 Dodge Durango Is Going V8-Only and Starts Under $46,000: Stellantis priced the 2027 Durango as a pure V8 lineup starting under $46,000, per Car and Driver, leaning into what the Charger EV pivot abandoned.

New York Secured Statewide Refunds for Nissan Lease Buyout Overcharges: Nissan Motor Acceptance Company agreed to audit New York dealers statewide and refund customers overcharged on lease buyouts, following a settlement announced by the state attorney general, per CBT News. Earlier enforcement against 15 Nissan dealerships had already returned more than $4.5 million in restitution.

Yesterday's picks

Subaru Confirmed Three New Manual Cars for 2027, the Same Weekend VW Dropped Its Last One: Subaru commits to manual gearboxes through 2027, defying industry trend as VW exits.

The US Wants 50% American Content in a Renegotiated USMCA. That Number Is Impossible for Most Vehicles.: New USMCA threshold would reshape auto supply chains; most vehicles can't meet it.

Honda Odyssey Class Action Argues Airbag Recall Doesn't Go Far Enough: Lawsuit challenges NHTSA-accepted recall, claiming side airbag defect remains unfixed.

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