Mercedes CEO Wants 'Reality Check,' Says Europe's Gas-Engine Ban Will Collapse Market: TDS
Good morning and welcome to The Downshift , or TDS for short.
The Downshift is The Drive 's weekday early morning quick-hit news rundown that gathers the latest automotive news bubbling from around the world in one place. Grab a Pop-Tart and coffee.
Moving into the third week of TDS we're going to tighten up the intro and start cutting down the explainer copy of what this series is.
Feedback on this series, its content, features, and formatting is still welcomed and encouraged via the comments and email (tips@thedrive.com).
Light, tight, and right, TDS is not a full-featured news story or in-depth reporting. It's a quick rundown where stories are summarized in a single sentence accompanied by a link for those seeking more information.
The first cup of coffee is gone, so let's get into it.
🚘 What I'm driving: Spent the weekend with the 2025 Lincoln Navigator L Black Label and it's so large my father specifically said, 'let's not take that' to the Minneapolis Farmer's Market on Saturday morning noting it would be a pain to park.
⛽️ Mercedes-Benz's CEO was critical of Europe's plan to ban new gas-powered vehicle sales in 2035 calling for 'a reality check' and noting 'we are heading at full speed against a wall' with a result of market 'collapse' if things don't change course.
🛻 Ford's shifting its plans from a focus on big EVs to smaller, lower-cost EVs while shifting goals to become the dominant player in the hybrid truck market offering EREVs, PHEVs, and hybrids across the lineup.
🔌 We, along with most others, missed the fact that the 2026 Jeep Wagoneer teaser included a plug on the driver-side front fender, meaning the full-size SUV is hiding an electrified plug-in powertrain.
🔋 The Acura RSX Prototype electric crossover was teased ahead of the model's debut this week at the 2025 Monterey Car Week in Pebble Beach.
⚡️ A new electric hypercar version of the BYD Yangwang U9, dubbed the Track Edition, leaked via the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology (MITIT) with a four-motor powertrain totaling 3,019 horsepower and a huge wing.
🚙 The Audi RS 6 Avant is experiencing record sales, which is lifting the entire Audi Sport line up by 41% year-over-year for the first six months of 2025, according to company spokesperson Alina Seysen.
🏁 Weekend Race Results: NASCAR Cup Series Go Bowling at The Glen: Shane van Gisbergen from Trackhouse racing won, marking his fourth consecutive road course victory in the Cup Series.
NASCAR Xfinity Series Mission 200 at The Glen: Connor Zilch of JR Motorsports took the checkered flag, but slipped and fell in Victory Lane landing him in the hospital for evaluation.
NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series Mission 176 at The Glen: Corey Heim from Tricon Garage won in a dramatic triple-overtime finish securing his fourth consecutive road course victory and sixth win of the season.
NTT IndyCar Series Grand Prix of Portland: Will Power from Team Penske earned his first victory of the season, ensuring Team Penske avoided its first winless season since 1999.
IMSA WeatherTech SportsCar Championship Motul SportsCar Grand Prix at Road America: Philipp Eng and Drive Vanthoor for BMW M Team RLL won the GTP class in a 1-2 finish.
ARCA Menards Series West NAPA Auto Care 150 at Tri-City Raceway: Kyle Keller of Jan's Racing/Jan's Towing marked a first career win.
ARCA Menards Series General Tire 100 at The Glen: Tristan McKee of Spire Motorsports won his series debut.
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