Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
Tight, light, and right as they say in the biz, TDS combs the Internet for the latest automotive news from around the globe and gathers it in one summary. Stories are recapped in a few sentences accompanied by a link for those seeking more information. Happy Friday! Let’s go.
Toyota reported a staggering 49% fall in operating profit in its latest financial quarter, compared to the same period a year ago. It marks the fourth consecutive drop, as well as the company’s lowest quarterly profit in about three years, and Toyota attributes it to “increases in investments in human resources and future-oriented investments and the impact of U.S. tariffs.” It doesn’t expect to be out of the woods anytime soon, either, anticipating that the ongoing conflict in Iran will cost it $4.3 billion this year due to higher material costs and lower sales volume. [CNBC, Reuters]
General Motors is hoping to increase pickup truck inventory on dealer lots this year, as low stock constrained sales, and has prevented the company from seizing Ford’s relative inability to build enough F-150s in recent months due to its own supplier issues. [Automotive News]
Speaking of trucks, Ford announced a Carhartt-branded Super Duty, featuring special branding that supposedly involved design input from the workwear apparel company. [Automotive News]
GM has recalled ACDelco brake and clutch fluid after finding it contains sediment, which could negatively impact performance. [GM Authority]
Porsche is shutting down three subsidiaries—Porsche eBike Performance, Cellforce, and Cetitec—laying off some 500 people in the process, to focus on its core business. Cellforce was a battery development company, while Cetitec specialized in automotive connectivity and networking technology. [Reuters]
Mercedes-Benz is recalling 144,000 vehicles in the U.S. for instrument panels that may go blank while driving. The campaign covers 2024-2026 model-year C-Class, E-Class, SL, CLE, GLC, and AMG GT, and the control unit software must be updated by dealers to remedy the issue; no over-the-air fix for this one. [NHTSA]
Volkswagen will fully unveil the ID Polo GTI, the hot-hatch version of its new affordable electric city car that the U.S. regrettably isn’t getting, at the 24 Hours of Nürburgring next weekend. [Volkswagen]
Weekend Races to Watch (all times Eastern):
- WRC Rally Portugal: All weekend long on Rally.TV
- NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Watkins Glen: Friday at 4:30 p.m. on FS1
- WEC 6 Hours of Spa-Francorchamps: Saturday at 8 a.m. on HBO Max
- NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series at Watkins Glen: Saturday at 4 p.m. on CW
- IndyCar at Indianapolis Road Course: Saturday at 4:30 p.m. on FOX
- MotoGP French Grand Prix: Sunday at 8 a.m. on MotoGP Video Pass
- NASCAR Cup Series at Watkins Glen: Sunday at 3 p.m. on FS1
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