Good morning and welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short.
Short, snappy, and quick, TDS gathers the latest automotive news from around the globe and puts it in one place. Stories are summarized in a single sentence accompanied by a link for those seeking more information.
The first cup of coffee is gone and I’m definitely on the second, so let’s get into it.
? What I’m driving: Been spending time in the 2025 Subaru Forester Hybrid and am finding its much quicker off the line and smoother overall to operate than the non-hybrid model.
⛽️ The average price of a gallon of gasoline in the U.S. has fallen below $3 for the first time since 2021.
? The Trump administration is set to undo Biden-era fuel efficiency standards, which it blames for raising new car prices, and relax fuel economy rules allowing for less efficient vehicles to be sold without repercussions for the automakers.
? A new boxer engine, a 2.0-liter boxer-four, has entered the universe as a range extender from China’s BYD.
‼️ Rivian will recall 34,824 electric delivery vans due to a damaged seat belt pretension cable that may not properly restrain the driver’s seat belt in the event of a crash.
?️ Hundreds of Porsches were unable to start or move in Russia due to a system failure after the cars were unable to connect to satellites for their remote tracking software.
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As Director of Content and Product, Joel draws on over 15 years of newsroom experience and inability to actually stop working to help ensure The Drive shapes the future of automotive media. He’s also a World Car Award juror.