Good morning and welcome to The Down Shift, or TDS for short.
The Down Shift is The Drive‘s new weekday early morning quick rundown of the latest news that’s bubbling. A quick hit that pairs well with the first sips of coffee.
Today is the second installment of TDS and we already appreciate your feedback about the format and content via the comments section and email (tips@thedrive.com).
Quick. Light. Easy to digest and glance at while grabbing that Pop-Tart, which are absolutely delicious, TDS brings a handful of headlines each summarized in a sentence with a link providing the ability to go deeper for readers that desire.
The first cup of coffee is nearly done here, so let’s get into it.
? What I’m driving: The 2025 Lexus LC 500 Convertible left yesterday and with it went one heck of a V8 bark. A luxury plug-in hybrid crossover SUV took its place in the driveway. More on that tomorrow.
? Tesla’s license to manufacture and sell vehicles in California might be suspended for at least 30 days due to a lawsuit brought against the automaker by the California DMV over potentially misleading technology claims.
? Waymo plans to launch its autonomous ride-hailing service in Dallas next year as Lyft plans to enter the autonomous ride-hailing service game in the U.S. market.
? America’s EV charging network is about to finally skyrocket as deployment hits record levels, and one European company is quietly about to best the competition in America.
? McLaren broke ground on a new 50,000 square foot hub at the Port of Baltimore for its new vehicle processing center.
? Stellantis reported bleak financials noting a $1.7 billion tariff impact in 2025 and net revenues down 13% during the first half of 2025 compared to the first half of 2024.
?️ Zenvo said the Aurora hypercar will begin testing in North America after its Goodwood debut before being presented at Monterey Car Week in August.
Have feedback on the formatting of TDS? Send us a note: tips@thedrive.com
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.
