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Payne: Manual Mazda3 is the anti-robot car
Posted by Talbot Payne on June 12, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Memphis, Michigan — Tesla wowed the automotive word in January with news it was abandoning its Model S/X models and putting the pedal to the metal on robots. Robot rideshare cars. Humanoid robots. Humanoid robots driving robot cars. Bots bots bots.
Happily, there are still manual driver’s toys out there to cope with the dystopian robot future. Like the six-speed, 2.5-liter Mazda3 S Premium hatchback in my driveway.
WAUUUUGH! I escaped the robot headlines and headed north to rural Memphis, Michigan, for a quick road trip. This is manual country. Wide open space and empty roads where you can really row the gearbox. Can a rideshare robot do that?
Like in Mazda’s halo MX-5 Miata, the Mazda3’s six-speed is a joy. No rubbery gates here (looking at you, BMW). I never missed a shift despite flogging the Mazda3 unmercifully.
Indeed, the compact Mazda3 S Premium model (the only Mazda3 trim accessorized with a stick) is best understood as an alternative to the similarly priced Miata roadster.
Payne: Off road and plugged in aboard the pioneering Rivian R2
Posted by Talbot Payne on June 12, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Park City, Utah — The view of snow-dusted, 11,750-foot Mt. Timpanogos from the trails of Wasatch National Park in the Wasatch Mountains is breathtaking. It’s a trail for hardcore, compact off-roaders — Jeep Wranglers, Ford Broncos, Chevy Colorado ZR2s. If you’re into electric vehicles, few dare venture there.
Say hello to the rugged, daring Rivian R2.
Last decade, two startup EV companies wowed us with their automotive innovation. In 2012, Tesla Inc. introduced the lightning-quick Model S and Model X SUVs oozing with tech, style and eyeball-flattening speed. In 2017, Rivian Automotive Inc. introduced off-road doppelgangers — the stylish R1T pickup and R1S SUV with room, vroom and more cargo space than a Norwegian Cruise liner.
How Corvette racer Wickens became the fastest paraplegic on Earth
Posted by Talbot Payne on June 8, 2026
Brandon Badraoui, Lumen Digital Agency
General Motors brands are on the cutting edge of hands-free driving. The General also has a feet-free success story to tell.
Using an innovative hand-control system, paraplegic Chevrolet Corvette race driver Robert Wickens is one of the fastest drivers in IMSA WeatherTech Sportscar GTD-class racing.
The so-called Bosch electronic braking system, developed in conjunction with GM and Corvette Racing team Pratt Miller in New Hudson, is an evolution of what Wickens has used since returning to motorsports in 2022 after a horrific IndyCar crash at Pocono Raceway in 2018. Wickens and his engineers — with physical assist from ex-Saginaw Valley State football standout Josh Gibbs — have developed a system that works seamlessly with teammates and offers potential for the broader consumer marketplace in an age when electronic systems make foot pedals redundant.
Payne: Affordably chic, Honda Civic vs. Hyundai Sonata
Posted by Talbot Payne on June 4, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Miami — Sleek, roomy and high-tech, today’s mainstream sedans are proof that affordability still exists in a U.S. market where average vehicle purchases have soared over $50K.
Take the terrific $30,945 Hyundai Sonata Blue Hybrid and $27,890 Honda Civic Sport I just flogged around Miami and Detroit.
Who needs a luxury badge?
Home court: Motown brands dominate Detroit GP, look to Le Mans
Posted by Talbot Payne on June 2, 2026
GM
Detroit — The motorsports world came to the Motor City for the Detroit Grand Prix last weekend for the IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Championship.
And the home teams dominated.
Cadillac swept the front row of Friday qualifying in the GTP class and then won Saturday’s race over an elite field of Porsche, BMW, Acura and Aston Martin cars. Corvette did the same in the GT class — sweeping the front row, then controlling the race over European rivals with Ford Mustang not far behind. Only Lamborghini spoiled a Detroit muscle car one-two.
Detroit automakers have invested billions to become players in international motorsports, and the Detroit GP was a proof point of the momentum they’ve built. While competitors Porsche and Honda are cutting back on their motorsports programs after disastrous corporate decisions on electrification, General Motors and Ford are well-positioned this year to make a mark across the globe — including in the premier international endurance race, the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France later this month.
“What a special day for General Motors and the Cadillac and Corvette Racing teams in Detroit,” said GM President Mark Reuss after the Saturday afternoon IMSA result. “Winning both classes of the Chevrolet Detroit Sports Car Classic on the streets of the Motor City is a tremendous achievement for our motorsports, design and engineering teams.”
Henry Payne puts pedal to the metal in IndyCar two-seater
Posted by Talbot Payne on June 2, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Detroit – What’s a lap like in an IndyCar around the Detroit Grand Prix street circuit?
It’s a rollercoaster on ‘roids.
Sandwiched between ex-IndyCar driver Spencer Pigot and a howling, twin-turbo V-6 engine in a two-seat, Arrow McLaren Dallara DW12 IndyCar, we stormed up Rivard Street, hung a left onto Jefferson in 2nd gear and then exploded down Jefferson Avenue hitting 155 mph as we passed “Speed Limit 35” signs.
No sirens. None of Detroit’s finest pulling us over. Pedal to the metal.
How the Detroit Grand Prix speeds food to Detroit’s homeless
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 31, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Detroit — Exiting Turn 2 onto the long, Jefferson Avenue straight, Detroit Grand Prix racers row their steeds through six gears, their howling, 12,000-RPM engines hitting 185 mph as they reverberate off the canyon of Detroit buildings.
The Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix Presented by Lear feeds our need for speed. It also feeds the homeless.
One of the buildings that lines the ¾-mile long straight is Detroit’s oldest church, St. Peter and Paul at 438 St. Antoine, which houses the Pope Francis Day Center for the homeless. It’s one of four charities (Belle Isle Conservancy, the Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Detroit, and the Detroit Public Safety Foundation are the others) that the Grand Prix, now in its fourth year downtown, prioritizes.
Detroit vs. Detroit: Motown brands vie for supremacy at Detroit Grand Prix
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 31, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Mark Rushbrook, Ford Racing boss, agreed. “We are racing in front of friends, family and our co-workers from across Michigan. While we continue to expand Ford’s racing footprint globally—competing in 35 series around the world—our home is here in Detroit.”
The Detroit GP, said Campbell, stands to gain from the Memorial Day weekend’s epic Indianapolis 500 — where the Honda-powered Meyer Shank IndyCar of Felix Rosenqvist beat the Chevrolet-powered Team Penske entry of David Malukas in the closest finish in Indy history.
Payne: In the Cadillac Escalade, there’s always a button for that
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 31, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Sterling Heights — With 420 horsepower and a satisfying roar, the 6.2-liter pushrod V-8 engine under the hood of my 2026 Cadillac Escalade Platinum Sport tester would usually be my obsession.
But eight is a trivial number in the Platinum Sport model.
What has my attention in the Platinum Sport are the dozens of buttons that operate a cornucopia of automatic functions on this rolling condominium: auto doors, seats, tailgate, drawers, TV screens and Super Cruise hands-free driving. At $131K, Platinum Sport is an expensive automobile — but an affordable condo.
How IndyCar/IMSA got hybrids right while F1 struggles
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 25, 2026
Indianapolis — The Indy 500 is not just the Greatest Spectacle in Racing, it is the greatest spectacle in hybrid racing.
As manufacturers rushed towards an electrified future over the last decade, motorsports became a key technological proving ground. In Europe, the Fédération Internationale de l’Automobile developed the all-electric Formula E series and introduced a 50/50 hybrid system into Formula One, the world’s premier motorsports series, for 2026. The new F1 setup has been smothered in controversy.
In North American racing, by contrast, professional motorsports took a more measured course with mild hybrids in both the IndyCar and IMSA Weathertech Sportscar series. Showcased in a gripping Indy 500 on Sunday, the Chevrolet and Honda-powered hybrids have been better received.
Roger Penske just misses record 21st Indy 500 win
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 25, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Indianapolis — Two one hundredths of a second.
That’s how close Bloomfield Hills-based, 89-year-old Roger Penske came to winning his 21st Indianapolis 500 Sunday — and to his 24-year-old Team Penske phenom David Malukas winning his first.
In the tightest finish in the 110-year history of the Indy 500, Malukas and his No. 12 Chevrolet-powered IndyCar was passed by Honda-powered Meyer Shank Racing’s Felix Rosenqvist in the final stretch before the green flag in a wild, rain-interrupted, yellow flag-marred, 200-mph-pass-fest over 500 miles. The win was popular one for 34-year-old Swede Rosenqvist, one of the most-liked drivers in the paddock, but a heartbreaker for Malukas who just joined Team Penske this year.
Racing peers mourn NASCAR superstar Kyle Busch
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 24, 2026
Indianapolis — The motorsports world lost a favorite son this week.
Two-time NASCAR champion Kyle Busch died at the premature age of 41 — not on track, but after a sudden illness in a hospital on the eve of his race at Charlotte Motor Speedway this weekend for Richard Childress Racing. USA Today reported Friday that Busch was coughing up blood the day before he died, according to a 911 call.
Nicknamed “Rowdy” for his no-holds-barred racing style — and personality — he was a larger-than-life figure who was mourned by everyone from his fans to NASCAR peers, rocks stars, auto executives, and IndyCar racers.
“Incredibly sad,” posted Team Penske driver Scott McLughlin at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway as IndyCar prepped for its Indy 500 weekend. “My thoughts are with his entire family. A true wheelman and one of the best to ever do it.”
Echoed Marco Andretti, one of three members of America’s most famous racing family (including grandfather Mario and father Michael) to have competed here at the 500: “No words. Here for the family.”
Busch, too, was part of a tight-knit, successful racing family including his father, Tom, and older brother Kurt, who himself won a NASCAR title in 2004. Kurt won his title at the age of 26, just a year after his 18-year-old brother, Kyle, entered NASCAR racing.
From Ohio EV Hub to Indy 500, how Honda plans to right the ship
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 23, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Indianapolis — It’s been a rough start to 2026 for Honda Motor Co. with its first financial loss in 70 years, an electric vehicle strategy in shambles, and its Formula One team mired at the back of the grid with engine issues.
The Indianapolis 500 is a great place to reset.
The brand is retooling its flexible Ohio factory to produce gas-electric hybrid automobiles and has debuted dramatic-looking concepts to accelerate its hybrid lineup already pregnant with hybrid versions of its best-selling CR-V, Civic and Accord products. Now comes this weekend’s Indianapolis 500, the Super Bowl of North American motorsports, in the nick of time to showcase proven Honda hybrid tech at America’s greatest race.
On pole? Honda driver and 2025 Indy 500 winner Alex Palou.
Payne: Jeep Cherokee reborn with Wagoneer S style, hybrid practicality
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 23, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
West Bloomfield — I slipped into the comfortable leather seats of the 2026 Jeep Cherokee and pressed the elegant, bejeweled starter button on the console. Just like a Jeep Wagoneer S. I gripped the rectangular steering wheel to better view the big digital instrument display. Just like a Wagoneer S. Merging onto I-75, I nailed the throttle and the gas-hybrid Cherokee leapt forward thanks to an assist from its electric motor like the all-electric S.
The $67K Wagoneer S EV has left the market for 2027, but — for 60% of the cost — its DNA lives on in the terrific, $37K Cherokee reborn for 2026.
You need a baseball scorecard to keep track of the lineup changes at Stellantis brands these days.
As the feds called off the government dogs mandating electric vehicles, automakers have shuffled models to please customers again. Ram 1500 brought back its V8-powered truck, gas-fired Dodge Charger hellions are in vogue, and Jeep has paused the compact Wagoneer S ute and resurrected the Cherokee for the market’s most-popular, compact SUV segment.
Cherokee is an S without the $.
5 Things about the 2027 Ram Rumble Bee street trucks
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 20, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Chelsea — The street truck wars are back.
In the tradition of iconic Mopar pickup hellions like the 1978-79 Li’l Red Express and 2004-06 SRT-10, Ram has introduced its Rumble Bee muscle truck lineup for 2027. Street trucks — pickups channeling their muscle-car siblings with big engines, body mods and lowered chassis — were a fascination in the late 1990s/early 2000s with unique beasts like the Ford F-150 SVT Lightning, Chevrolet 454 SS and GMC Syclone.
The SRT-10 was considered the standard with its earth-shaking, Dodge Viper-derived, 8.3-liter V-10 engine and record-breaking 154 mph top speed. The street truck trend faded during the 2008 recession and has been dormant as consumers flocked to off-road hellions like the Ram TRX, Ford F-150 Raptor and Toyota Tacoma TRD Pro.
Ford resurrected the street truck idea in 2025 with the lowered, drifting Maverick Lobo and aggressive-looking F-150 Lobo. Now Rumble Bee kicks down the door with a full-blown, full-volume, full-size-street truck revival.
Here are five key things about the 2027 Ram Rumble Bee pickup.
Porsche 911 GT2 RS breaks Corvette C8 ZR1 lap record
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 20, 2026
Porsche, Porsche
Motown muscle cars Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Corvette have sauntered into Porsche and Mercedes’ backyard in recent years to set new benchmarks for sportscar performance at the Nürburgring race track.
Now Porsche has struck back on U.S. soil.
The German brand announced this week a Porsche 911 GT2 RS has broken the Corvette C8 ZR1’s production car lap record at Road Atlanta Raceway with a time of 1.22.6 minutes. The record comes just two months after Ford shattered Porsche’s production lap record at Nürburgring (only the limited-edition Mercedes AMG One is quicker) with its Mustang GTD. Corvette’s ZR1 has posted competitive Nürburgring times as well.
Ford and Chevy are following European makes like Porsche, Mercedes and Ferrari with global GT3 racing programs. Lap records by the race cars’ production variants have become a benchmark of brand cred as they sell in foreign markets. By the same token, the United States is Porsche’s biggest global sales market and Mercedes’ second largest.
Payne: Mazda fixed the CX-5. Except for the turbo-4
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 14, 2026
Southfield — Rarely do I attack a 180-degree cloverleaf with an SUV. Exiting I-75 in the all-new 2026 Mazda CX-5, I activated SPORT mode, stabbed the brakes, then rotated the 3,856-pound ute into the looooong turn, hugging the apex until the all-season tires screamed in protest. The CX-5 stayed true.
Yep, the CX-5’s poised handling hasn’t changed.
But everything else has. After lagging the segment in touchscreen ergonomics and interior room, the third-generation CX-5 has been remade as a roomy, cutting-edge tool for the digital age. But for the curious absence of Mazda’s turbocharged engine alternative, CX-5 is a high five.
Job One: The touchscreen
As an aspirational premium brand, Mazda made a splash with the second-gen CX-5 in 2017, equipping it with a chic remote-rotary-controlled infotainment screen in the fashion of luxury brands Audi and BMW. Mazda engineers also embraced the technology because it allowed them to move the touchless screen forward on the dash where it was more in the line of the driver’s road view.
But as smartphones took over the world — and our cars — Tesla-like touchscreens were the rage. We were driving iPhones on wheels! BMW quickly fell in line with a touchscreen to complement the rotary i-Drive it had, ahem, invented. So, too, Genesis. Audi went touchscreen, and suddenly … Mazda’s system was unfashionable.
And unloved. My son looooves his Mazda3, except for the clumsy remote controller.
Read full article here.
Payne: Chinese Polestar 4, U.S.-made Tesla Model Y go wheel-to-wheel
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 7, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Washington, D.C. — Who says Chinese cars aren’t sold in the United States?
Produced by Chinese auto giant Geely, the Polestar 4 SUV debuted this year into the U.S. market’s most competitive luxury segment: electric vehicles.
Its Swedish design is wrapped around Geely’s Sustainability Experience Architecture — a platform shared with other Geely Group vehicles like the Zeekr 001 (and the Waymo Ojai autonomous vehicle currently cruising the streets of Detroit, Phoenix, and San Francisco). The 4’s assembly was recently moved to South Korea from Chinato bypass U.S. tariffs.
In design, concept and performance, it is one of the most daring EVs on the market and is aimed squarely at the best-selling U.S. model made by the company that has defined daring: the Tesla Model Y.
I flogged 4 and Y far and wide across roads from Oakland County to Washington, D.C., to Virginia’s North Neck. Tesla vs. Polestar. U.S. vs. China.
Here’s how the king and the contender compare, and which comes out on top in which areas.
F1 announces return to V-8 engines. How it impacts Cadillac F1, Ford
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 7, 2026
Henry Payne, The Detroit News
Cadillac F1 and Ford Racing’s first Formula One race together on US soil wasn’t the only big news at last weekend’s Miami Grand Prix. In a bombshell announcement, F1’s governing body announced that it wants to ditch electrification to get its thundering V-8 voice back.
That’s music to the ears of its new Motown competitors.
“It’s coming. At the end of the day, it’s a matter of time,” Mohammed Ben Sulayem, president of the International Automobile Federation (FIA), told Reuters on Sunday. “In 2031, the V-8, the FIA will have the power to do it. That’s the regulations. But we want to bring it one year earlier, which everyone now is asking for.”
Ben Sulayem’s announcement – reiterated in a media roundtable post-race — came in the wake of another 2026 Grand Prix weekend mired in controversy as drivers, teams and fans rebelled against its new 50-50 battery-gas hybrid power unit (F1-speak for powertrain).
With battery regeneration requiring a lift-and-coast driving style around high-speed circuits like the Miami International Autodrome, drivers mocked the system as an expensive version of Nintendo’s Mario Kart video game. The complex 350-kW electric unit with a small, 1.6-liter turbo-V-6 engine has also caused safety concerns.
Spotted in Detroit: Chinese-made minivan could ferry Waymo riders here
Posted by Talbot Payne on May 5, 2026
The Detroit News, The Detroit News
Waymo did not immediately respond Monday to a request for comment from The Detroit News.
The China-sourced Zeekr platforms have been imported from China as so-called “glider” chassis. Waymo pays a tariff on those imports, but it is not affected by U.S. regulations restricting the import of Chinese cars because they are not sold to retail customers.
The Zeekr sighting comes amid mounting China anxiety spawning federal legislation to bar Chinese-made vehicles from the United States, with arguments for doing so that include protecting national security and the domestic auto industry.