Photo: JLR
In today's issue:
Range Rover will stop building the Evoque and Velar in mid-2027, which lifts its cheapest U.S. model from $49,900 to $83,700
BMW and VW say gas-car resale values are slipping in Europe as used-car buyers move to EVs
Mercedes has reportedly pushed U.S. production of the GLC back to 2030, leaving its best-selling import exposed to tariffs
Filtered from 5,934 items published across 356 sources in the last two days.
THE PRICE OF ADMISSION
Range Rover boss Martin Limpert told Autocar that no replacement is being developed for the Evoque or the Velar. JLR then confirmed to Road & Track that production of both ends in mid-2027, and that they stay on sale through 2027 "in selected global markets where demand remains strong." Car and Driver asked whether that includes the U.S. and had no answer.
Range Rover's U.S. site lists the Evoque from $49,900, the Velar from $61,600, the Sport from $83,700 and the full-size Range Rover from $113,300. Without the bottom two, the cheapest Range Rover costs $33,800 more, by our arithmetic.
The coming Range Rover GT will not fill that gap. Car and Driver and Electrek expect about $90,000 in the U.S. Car and Driver calls the GT their replacement, but Limpert told Autocar that treating it as the Velar's successor is a misconception.
The cheaper end moves to JLR's other brands. Autocar reports the price points the two SUVs cover today will fall to Defender and Discovery models, and JLR says the Halewood plant will build the GT and "a new model from the Defender family."
U.S. demand was already thin. Land Rover sold 368 Velars and 302 Evoques in September, about 9% of its sales, and dealers hold more than 150 days of inventory of each, more than double their usual target, per Kelley Blue Book.
Kelley Blue Book says dealers may be more open to negotiating as they clear the last of that stock. Read Autocar's full story.
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Also worth knowing
BMW and VW Say Gas-Car Resale Values Are Slipping as Europe's Used Buyers Go Electric: Used-car buyers switching to EVs amid high fuel prices are eroding lease profits, per Automotive News. BMW's CFO reported "a slight deterioration" in combustion residual values, VW cut its finance unit's profit outlook to €3.5 billion without disclosing the old figure, and Audi partly blamed the same trend for a 26% drop in nine-month operating profit. Gas cars still hold more value: in Germany, three-year-old gas cars kept 59.4% in August against 51.5% for EVs, but gas values fell every month this year while EV values rose for four straight months. New-car buyers are moving too, with EVs at a record 37% of Germany's October market, per Electrek. #analyst
Toyota's Profit Rose 34%, but North America Roughly Broke Even and RAV4 Sales Are Down 26%: Operating income reached ¥1.13 trillion in the July-September quarter, its first gain in six quarters, and Toyota raised its annual forecast 15% to ¥3.9 trillion ($24.6 billion) while trimming its sales target, per Automotive News. The stock jumped 17%, per the FT, which the WSJ called its biggest gain in 39 years. North America lost ¥19.2 billion ($121.3 million) in the quarter, per Automotive News, which blames tariffs and the changeover to the all-hybrid RAV4, whose U.S. sales are down 26% through October. Excluding interest-rate swap valuations, Toyota's own figures show about ¥6.7 billion of profit there, by our arithmetic from its first-half and first-quarter releases. #market
Mercedes Has Reportedly Pushed U.S. GLC Production Back to 2030, Keeping Its Best-Selling Import Under Tariffs: Alabama assembly moves from November 2027 to May 2030, according to two people familiar with the plans, per Automotive News. Mercedes declined to comment. The GLC pays a 15% tariff coming from Germany, and its nearly 54,000 U.S. sales through September are close to a quarter of Mercedes' volume there, excluding vans. AutoForecast's Sam Fiorani says retooling for half a life cycle "doesn't make a lot of sense financially," so the plant would wait for the next generation. #market
Photo: Mercedes-Benz
Ford Says Even the Top Fathom Will Stay Under $40,000: The electric pickup starts at $29,945, and Ford's Andrew Frick said the range goes "to the high $30,000 range," with a couple of offerings inside it, per Kelley Blue Book. Pre-orders are slated for the first quarter of 2027, with sales toward the end of that year, per Car and Driver. Ford gave no trim details yet. #market
An EU Parliament Committee Voted to Soften the 2035 Combustion Ban: The Nov. 4 vote backs an 87.5% tailpipe cut in place of 100%, with another 7.5% offset through low-carbon European steel, per Automotive News. Transport & Environment says about 30% of cars sold after 2035 could still have combustion engines. Germany's auto lobby says it does not go far enough. The full Parliament is expected to vote in December, and the final version still has to be negotiated with EU governments and the Commission. #news
Reveals & culture
First Drives Love the 2027 Silverado's New V8s, but They Cost More and Get No Better MPG: The 5.7-liter makes 402 hp and the 6.6-liter 481 hp, up from 355 and 420 in the V8s they replace, per Motor1. The Drive called the 5.7 a "no notes" engine, while Car and Driver called both "slick but dear": the 5.7 is a $2,690 option on its Trail Boss, which came to $76,795 as tested. Combined ratings are 17 mpg for the 5.7 with 2WD, unchanged, 16 with 4WD, down one, and 15 for the 6.6 with 4WD, down two, per Pickup Truck Talk. GM says testing now better reflects popular equipment such as larger tires. The reviewers split on the new screens: Motor1 says the truck struggles with its interface and ergonomics, while MotorTrend says "GM has a winner here."
Photo: Chevrolet
First Drives of the 1,153-HP Electric Mercedes-AMG GT Say the Fake V8 Works: Road & Track calls its simulated engine sound and gearshifts the most convincing in an EV yet, though it is unsure how many people will care about the car. We covered the GT 4-Door's pretend V8 at its reveal, and the AMG GT SUV simulates one too. Mercedes says the GT 63 charges from 10% to 80% in 11 minutes at up to 600 kilowatts, per Car and Driver, which estimates 2.0 seconds to 60 mph. Edmunds puts the price between $170,000 and $200,000.
Photo: Mercedes-AMG
Car and Driver Picked the Rivian R2 Over the Tesla Model Y Performance: It called the fight "incredibly close" and chose the R2 for its ride, cabin space and ergonomics, while giving the Tesla the edge on back roads and in driver assistance, per Car and Driver. The R2 cost $61,485 as tested, and the Tesla $63,194 with three years of Full Self-Driving. The Tesla reached 60 mph two-tenths quicker, in 3.3 seconds, and went 270 miles at 75 mph to the R2's 260 despite a lower EPA rating. Rivian has passed every EV brand but Tesla in U.S. sales this year, though Cox's estimates put the R2 third in Rivian's own lineup last quarter.
Photo: Rivian
A Texas Shop Has Put a Manual in the C8 Corvette, for $74,529: Peitz Performance showed a running C8 at SEMA with Tremec's TR9060 manual transaxle, per Road & Track. The shop lists the swap at $74,528.99 and suggests the package will be available in July 2027. Last month, Corvette chief engineer Tony Roma said a C8 manual would need an all-new gearbox, with cost the obstacle.
Photo: Peitz Performance
BMW's First Alpina-Brand Production Car Is a V8 7 Series Tested Past 186 MPH: BMW released footage of the camouflaged sedan, which keeps Alpina's 20-spoke wheels and adds foam-lined tires for a smoother ride, per Car and Driver. It is expected next year. The V8 is the only powertrain detail confirmed.
Photo: BMW
Toyota Confirmed the GR Celica, but Only the Rally Car So Far: A new Toyota Racing team will run it in the 2027 World Rally Championship, per Car and Driver. New rules mean a rally car no longer needs a road-going counterpart. Car and Driver still expects a production Celica, but says it is years away and will share little with the race car.
Photo: Toyota
Ferrari Says Next Year's Luce Production Is Allocated: CEO Benedetto Vigna told analysts that anyone ordering now waits about a year for the $560,800 Luce, despite the backlash over its design, per InsideEVs. Ferrari did not say how many it plans to sell.
Photo: Ferrari
Quick links
Analysts Say Democrats' Midterm Win Puts a Check on Trump's Auto Agenda, but Not Much More: Analysts told Automotive News that major legislation still faces a veto. On a return of the $7,500 EV tax credit, one economist said, "I wouldn't bet on it happening."
Recalls & legal action
GM Recalled 67,380 EVs Over a Brief Loss of Braking: The list covers the Blazer EV SS and police versions, all-wheel-drive Lyriqs, Vistiqs and Celestiqs. It happens under light braking at low speed, mid-turn, over a bump such as a driveway lip, per Motor1. The fix is a software update, over the air for owners who have opted in. Owner letters go out Dec. 14.
Tuesday's picks
Ford Promises Drivers Control of Their Data, but Its New Site Has No Single Off Switch: Ford announced a Privacy Promise and a new website on how to change data settings in the vehicle or the Ford app, per Ford. The site does not give owners one place to turn everything on or off with a click, so they should "be prepared to do plenty of reading," The Drive reported.
Worth a listen
One episode from Car Curious, our sister car-podcast platform, picked out of everything the shows published in the last two days.
The Great Reliability Crash of 2016: Why Finding a Reliable Used Car Has Become So Damn Complicated (The Straight Shift with The Car Chick, also at YouTube): LeeAnn Shattuck ties what she calls "the great reliability crash of 2016" to fuel-economy pressure, turbo downsizing and direct injection, then walks through what to check before buying a used car from those years.
The Straight Shift with The Car Chick
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