In TDS, you’ll find the biggest automotive headlines of the morning gathered in one article, with short summaries that include links for a deeper dive if you wish. My colleague Joel, our usual TDS purveyor, is taking a well-deserved week off ahead of the holiday, so this roundup will be wrangled by the rest of The Drive crew in the meantime.
Grab a cup of whatever warm, caffeinated liquid you prefer, and let’s jump in.
? The Chinese owner of Nexperia, a Netherlands-based automotive semiconductor manufacturer, says that the Dutch HQ has gone radio silent following the latest development in the battle over the company last week. After the Dutch government chose to intervene and assume control of the firm, China briefly blocked exports of its chips, preventing its automaker partners—particularly German ones—from completing cars, not unlike the chip shortage caused by the pandemic. After this, the Dutch government stepped back from the conflict.
⏱️ The gas Fiat 500 is back as a hybrid with a manual transmission. Fun as that sounds, it’s only got a total of 65 horsepower and takes an astonishing 16.2 seconds to hit 60 mph from a standstill, per Stellantis’ official numbers, so temper your expectations.
? Mercedes-Benz wants to move 400,000 cars a year in the U.S. (excluding fleet sales), up from last year’s total of 325,000 (including fleet sales), Automotive News reported following a dealer meeting over the weekend. Retailers feel that Merc’s recent focus on high-end, margin-rich AMG and Maybach models surrendered the volume luxury market to BMW and Audi.
? Speaking of BMW, its CEO, Oliver Zipse, is concerned that Germany isn’t investing enough in the development of hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles, according to Auto News. BMW still believes in them, citing their value for certain applications compared to internal-combustion and battery-electric cars.
? Land Rover plans to sell the upcoming, third-generation Range Rover Evoque as an EV perhaps exclusively, Autocar reports, while retaining its spot as the entry point of the lineup.
? A Gordon Murray S1 LM just became the most expensive new car sold at auction ever last weekend in Las Vegas, ahead of the Formula 1 race. The one-of-five McLaren F1 tribute hypercar went for an eye-popping $20,630,000.
? NASCAR driver Austin Cindric is planning to take his talents to Australian Supercars this coming weekend, for the BP Adelaide Grand Final, where he’ll get behind the wheel of a Tickford Racing Ford Mustang. “It’s got more overbody downforce,” Cindric said to Daily Express, comparing the car down under to his NASCAR machine, adding, “even just by looking at the car, it’s a lighter car, grippier tyre, so all [those] things it does better.”
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Backed by a decade of covering cars and consumer tech, Adam Ismail is a Senior Editor at The Drive, focused on curating and producing the site’s slate of daily stories.