In today's issue:

Ford hit its number on a technicality, three times over. The headline price leaves out destination, the trim that stickers under $30K isn't the one with real range, and the driver-assist hardware is standard while turning it on is not. The affordability math works right up until a buyer wants to use any of it.

Honda's Japanese plants stay dark until Aug 19. Everyone else is already back.: Toyota and Nissan restarted Aug 6 and Mitsubishi Aug 5 after the July 28 Kyushu earthquake, but Honda's Yorii and Suzuka assembly plants stay idle through Aug 19 because supplier Astemo has not recovered, per Automotive News. CFO Masao Kawaguchi says there is still no firm restart date, per CBT News. Across the industry the stoppages erase close to 20,000 vehicles, though most Hondas sold in the US are built in North America, so American inventory should barely move. #news

Lucid targets $1.4B in cash savings as CEO launches turnaround plan: New CEO Silvio Napoli is pushing an "operational reset" after Q2 net loss widened to $1.03 billion despite higher revenue, per Just Auto and CBT News. "Potential is not performance," Napoli said. The mass-market Cosmos crossover slides to 2027, per Automotive News. #analyst

GM renews China joint venture through 2047, starts exporting Buicks: GM and SAIC extended their passenger-vehicle partnership 20 years, and in October the Buick Electra E7, a plug-in hybrid crossover, becomes the first electrified model SAIC-GM ships abroad, per Automotive News and Electrek. GM has named the Middle East, Africa, South America, Mexico and Asia-Pacific as target markets without saying where the E7 lands, per Automotive News. None of it comes to the US, tariffs make sure of that. #analyst

BMW fast-tracks i3 production as demand outruns plan: BMW's Munich plant launched i3 series production with a steeper ramp-up curve than scheduled after early order demand beat expectations, per Electrek and BMW Group. Manufacturing costs there are down 10% further, per BMW Group. #analyst

Used-vehicle prices keep climbing despite affordability push: The six largest public dealer groups spent Q2 fighting rising used prices, heavy demand, and uneven supply, per Automotive News. CDK separately found car-buying "ease" stalled at 81% as dealers push back on pricing, per CBT News. #market

Subaru spent $9,650 an EV and sold 1,574 of them in July: Operating profit fell 44% to ¥42.6 billion ($263.2 million) last quarter, and incentives alone cut ¥24.9 billion ($153.8 million) from global earnings, per Automotive News. Subaru averaged $9,650 per Solterra, $9,155 per Uncharted and $8,982 per Trailseeker, against $3,036 on an Outback, per Motor Intelligence data cited by Carscoops. Its overall incentive spend still runs below the industry's $3,479, so the discipline broke in exactly one place. #market

Bugatti's one-off Destrier strips a Bolide race car for the street: The Programme Solitaire's third one-off keeps the quad-turbo 8.0-liter W16 at 1,578 hp, per Carscoops, and is now Bugatti's lowest car ever built, per Driving.ca. It debuts publicly August 16 at Pebble Beach.

Lamborghini's Revuelto SV laps Hockenheim 5.7 seconds faster than the Aventador SVJ, before its own reveal: Factory driver Marco Mapelli ran 1:41.6, per Carscoops, eight days ahead of the car's official debut at The Quail. Lamborghini's own promo hedges the claim as "best-in-class," not outright record.

Mercedes-AMG's entry GT 4-Door packs 536 hp and a fake straight-six soundtrack: The GT 53 hits 60 mph in 3.4 seconds on a 106kWh battery, per Automotive News and Autocar India, sitting below the GT 55 and GT 63 revealed in May.

GM recalls electric Silverado and Sierra over cracking spare wheels: The Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV may ship with defective spare wheels that can crack, per Autoblog. → If you own one: Avoid using the spare until your dealer confirms it's not part of the affected batch.

Uber and Wayve win London robotaxi licenses: The pair got permits to run supervised autonomous rides in London ahead of Waymo and Baidu's planned rollouts, per Automotive News.

Tesla takes Manitoba's EV rebate ban to court: Tesla is challenging the province's exclusion from EV rebate eligibility, per CBT News.

Dealer group calls for a full ban on Chinese-made vehicles: The American International Automobile Dealers Association is pushing Congress to tighten existing prohibitions, per Automotive News.

Honda adds $3.21B in EV-related write-downs: Honda now expects $3.21 billion (¥520 billion) in additional restructuring charges this fiscal year as EV demand misses forecasts, per Automotive News.

Last time

Hyundai and Kia Set July Records. Hybrids Did All the Work.: Both brands hit July volume records on hybrid strength, while Hyundai's core EVs fell 35% or more.

1.5 Million Ram Trucks Recalled Over Rear Seat Belt Anchors: Stellantis recalled 1.5 million Ram 1500s worldwide over rear buckle anchors that could fail, the positions where most child seats go.

Nearly 1.2 Million Teslas Face a Federal Suspension Investigation: NHTSA opened a probe covering roughly 1.2 million Teslas over reported suspension failures, with no recall issued yet.

Suspension is the daily email that makes you the most informed car person in the room.