Matt Posky

The industry seems to be in a bit of a tizzy. Many households are struggling to budget their finances at a time when automakers are asking them to consider making sizable expenditures on new models.

Earlier this month, special waivers allowing the sale of fuel blends containing higher levels of ethanol came into effect. While the measure was supposed to be temporary, U.S. legislators have since moved to make changes permanent. The government rationale is that the decision will help safeguard gasoline supplies while also reducing the amount of money drivers have to pay at the pump. However, the latter claim may not be true.

General Motors is gearing up for several hundred layoffs, with the brunt of the culled positions pertaining to information technology (IT). This is interesting because the cuts come shortly after CEO Mary Barra touted the company’s pivot to allowing artificial intelligence to handle software development. However, we also know that the automaker is still hiring in the same fields that are seeing layoffs, often bringing in foreign workers from outside the country. News of the layoffs…

Several regions of the United States have taken it upon themselves to try and implement inductive roadway charging for all-electric vehicles. The theory is that EVs would be able to recharge while driving down the road, rather than needing to make extended stops to plug in during their journey. While testing has proven that it’s certainly possible, widespread implementation still seems wildly unrealistic.

With new vehicle volumes poised to decline through 2026, dealerships are understandably concerned about the future. Sales are estimated to retract by 2.5 percent (year-over-year) in the United States while leases could drop by as much as 3 percent. Canada is poised to have it even worse, with sales declining by as much as 4.7 percent. However, retailers still have an ace up their sleeve by way of their service departments.

Stellantis recently previewed a slew of new models following its latest shareholder meeting. While we’ve already covered the updated Ram lineup, Dodge also has a few interesting projects in the works — including GLH models and an all-new sports coupe that may take over for the absent Viper as Dodge’s next halo vehicle. Several outlets received an exclusive sneak peak at some of these vehicles, including the Copperhead concept that seems to be poised to pick up where the Viper left…

While the United States continues to endure elevated fuel prices, California recently signaled that it may be just weeks away from a legitimate energy crisis. But how exactly does a net oil exporter, like the U.S., even run into a situation where there’s not enough gasoline for domestic residents? Earlier this month, California Energy Commission Vice Chair Siva Gunda told an oversight assembly pertaining to energy and utilities that the state had a sufficient fuel supply to last an…

Volkswagen will be completely abandoning the manual transmission at the end of this year. VW presently offers just one model with a clutch, the Jetta GLI. But the plan is to scrub the manual option on the sport sedan and run exclusively with the DSG.

Despite consistent reports that basically every automaker in existence is moving further away from manual transmissions, Nissan has offered a nugget of hope. The brand has suggested that demand for the formerly standard transmission type was slowly coming back. News comes by way of Australia’s Car Expert, which spoke to the head of Nissan’s performance division during an announcement that the company would be building a new facility in Melbourne that’s slated to open by the end of…

New vehicle sales have been steadily declining since 2025 and the industry sentiment appears to be that this is fine. Despite there formerly being a push to return to the production volumes considered normal prior to 2020, automakers haven’t seemed terribly concerned that they’re still about a million customers shy of what was formerly considered normal. But that could change as the industry is assumed to continue shrinking into next year.