Happy Tuesday! It's March 31, 2026, and this is The Morning Shift — your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. This is where you'll find the most important stories that are shaping the way Americans drive and get around.
In this morning's edition, we're looking at gas prices cracking the $4 mark, as well as GM idling Factory Zero. We'll also look at the Trump administration's stance on Chinese EVs, and a NHTSA investigation into Nissan.
1st Gear: Gas hits $4 across the U.S., up over a dollar from a month ago
Mario Tama/Getty Images
It's happening! We've been watching gas prices in The Fuel Up every day, expecting every morning to wake up to average prices above the four-dollar mark. Today, finally, we crossed the threshold. Crude oil is up over $102/barrel, as I write this, and it's finally dragged prices above $4. According to AAA, the average price for regular in the U.S. is now $4.018, while mid-grade will run you $4.541 and premium will come in at $4.904.
One month ago, those numbers stood at $2.982, $3.489, and $3.857 respectively. That's over a dollar jump on each one in one month, and regular managed to change that frontmost number twice — that'll have an outsized effect on consumer perception. Will Trump's repeated declarations that the war is over, or almost over, or actually Joe Biden's fault, have any effect here?
2nd Gear: GM idles Factory Zero as it pivots back to gas
Bill Pugliano/Getty Images
General Motors makes one of the best EVs for the money today in the Bolt, and some of the least-desirable in the Silverado, Sierra, and Hummer EVs. The plant that makes the latter is, accordingly, being idled while GM pivots back to high-profit gas cars. From Reuters:
General Motors is idling a Detroit electric vehicle plant until April 13, extending downtime that began on March 16, the company said on Monday.
"Factory ZERO will temporarily adjust production to align EV production with market demand," a GM spokesperson said. The temporary layoff affects 1,300 workers.
The plant, which produces vehicles including the Chevrolet Silverado EV and Hummer EV, has had choppy production over the last year as GM confronts waning demand for battery-powered models. The automaker cut output at the plant by about 50% in January.
Factory Zero also makes an actually desirable EV in the Cadillac Escalade IQ, which may be the only real loss from this idling. Imagine if GM had dedicated Factory Zero to making reasonably-sized, reasonably-priced EVs instead. Maybe the workers at the plant wouldn't be on a break.
3rd Gear: Trump's ambassador to Canada says Chinese EVs won't cross the border
Halbergman/Getty Images
The Trump administration doesn't want Chinese cars in the U.S. — unless of course they're built here by Chinese manufacturers, in which case it's fine. Now that Canada is allowing imports, though, the Trump administration has decided to harden its stance: Chinese cars are "not going to cross the border" according to Ambassador Pete Hoekstra. From Automotive News:
The U.S. won't allow Chinese electric cars from Canada to enter its market, President Donald Trump's ambassador in Ottawa said, after a January deal in which Prime Minister Mark Carney lowered tariffs on those vehicles.
"Those cars can come in from China, come into Canada, but they're not going to cross the border into the U.S.," Pete Hoekstra said in an interview with Canada's Rebel News. "That ain't gonna happen."
"We're not going to open the floodgates to Chinese cars entering the U.S. from Canada," he said, citing security concerns related to data collected and transmitted by modern vehicles.
Does that mean cars can't be imported from Canada, or that they can't be driven over the border? Does it mean either of them at all, or is the Trump administration just saying things it'll forget about 20 minutes from now?
4th Gear: NHTSA is looking into fuel leaks in 75,000 Nissan Frontiers
Bryan Mitchell/Getty Images
For once, a NHTSA investigation story that isn't about brand-new Fords! This time Nissan is in the crosshairs, but one Nissan specifically: The 20-year-old Frontier. From Reuters:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on Tuesday launched a probe into about 75,300 model-year 2006 Nissan Frontier pickup trucks due to concerns about potential fuel leaks.
The agency said the vehicles may pose an imminent fire hazard due to a strong, persistent odor of raw gasoline and sudden engine stalling during startup and operation, citing a petitioner.
Nissan previously recalled certain the 2006 Frontier pickup trucks in 2007 to replace fuel filler tube assemblies that could crack and cause fuel leaks.
If you own a 20-year-old Nissan Frontier and you're concerned about fuel leakage, I'll gladly take such a dangerous vehicle off your hands. You won't even have to pay me for it, I'll do it for free.
Reverse: Happy Trans Day of Visibility
I didn't actually know "The Matrix" came out on TDOV, but it certainly fits.
The Fuel Up
AAA
We mostly covered this up top, but hey! Gas is over four bucks a gallon! Everything's bad!
On The Radio: SOPHIE - 'Immaterial'
You thought you were going to get through Trans Day of Visibility without hearing SOPHIE? C'mon now.
