Both Hyundai and Genesis made waves at the 2025 New York Auto Show at a time when the industry has been rocked by tariff and regulatory challenges. Marquez sat down with Detroit News Auto Critic Henry Payne in Manhattan to talk about future models, EVs, tariffs and the Genesis brand carrying a Korean flag into the international motorsports wars for the first time.

This interview has been edited for brevity and clarity.

Question: I am at the New York Auto Show speaking with Claudia Marquez, who’s COO of Hyundai. Hyundai has been very aggressive, not only at auto shows, but in the U.S. market. Claudia, talk about Hyundai at auto shows: You have a lot of product here in New York as well as Los Angeles last fall.

Answer: We do. First of all, of course, auto shows have always been very important. New York and L.A. are where we wanted to be very present. We have amazing product to show. And of course, we want to be able to reach out to as many eyes and customers as we can. We are typically very proud to introduce new models. And today, for example, we’re going to introduce the second generation of our Palisade. We’re extremely excited about the product, amazing design, amazing technology, way more safety. The highlight is that we’re going to introduce, for the first time, hybrids on our 2026 Palisade.

Q: You’ve also been aggressive in EVs. You see a parallel market in EVs and gas? Seeing which way the market goes?

A: We do. Of course, EVs are very important, and we believe very strongly that it’s going to be where the market is going to grow in the long term. I was happy to be part ― two weeks ago ― of the inauguration of our factory in Savannah (Georgia). Our Metaplant is something you really have to see. This factory investment was confirmed in 2019 and is one of the biggest ― if not the biggest ― investments in Georgia. We produce two models there at the moment ― the Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9.

Q: You’ve been in this market for 30 years. You’ve seen market share steadily grow. Hyundai Motor Group’s total is above 10%, which is really impressive in a foreign market. There also appear to be headwinds coming with tariffs. But if you go back 40 years, Japanese manufacturers like Honda and Toyota faced similar protectionist headwinds. They came into the United States, built plants, became part of communities and continued to grow market share. Do you feel you’re well-positioned for a tariff economy?

A: We definitely are. We have strong communities, not only in Savannah, but also in Alabama. Last year, we sold 836,000 units, and about 40% of those were vehicles produced in the U.S. So, of course, we not only think we’re acting and investing importantly in the U.S., the U.S. is a very important market. We want it to be a very important part of growth in the future. Last year was our fourth consecutive year of record sales, and we expect 2025 is going to be the same.

When it comes to tariffs, it’s our reality. It’s a reality that we feel we’re prepared for. We are committed not only to the locations I already mentioned, but to continued investments in the U.S.

Two weeks ago, our executive chair confirmed a new investment of $21 billion from 2025 ― 2028, including a steel factory. (We’re) very cautious at the moment, looking into what is happening now with consumers, with competitors, and acting accordingly. We confirm our Hyundai Assurance Program, which is maintaining and committing to not increase MSRP (prices) in April and May. We have always in mind the confidence of our customers.

Q: In addition to growing U.S. market share, you’ve taken big steps in terms of visibility. Genesis is going to the top rung of auto racing. You introduced here in New York the prototype for your IMSA and WEC hypercar. That’s rare air — you’re competing against brands like Cadillac, Ford, Porsche, Ferrari. An important brand step for Genesis?

A: It is without a doubt. We’re extremely proud of Genesis taking this step ― it’s a big investment in the brand. We say that Genesis is a jewel of the Hyundai Motor Group, and we’re extremely proud and happy to be a part of that.

Q: We think of these Asian luxury brands as American-specific. But is this a global move by Genesis as well?

A: Definitely, it’s a global move. Genesis is a new brand when it comes to luxury. This year is the 10th anniversary. There is not only a global perspective of progress, it’s so important in the U.S. ― and the U.S. is the most important marketplace.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Payne: 2025 New York Auto Show highlights

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 21, 2025

New York — The New York International Auto Show celebrates its 125^th birthday this year and the auto-palooza has it all with a display of classics, concepts, supercars, race cars, electric vehicle test tracks, and outdoor off-road tracks.

Well, almost all.

Missing are manufacturers like BMW, Mazda, Cadillac, Jaguar, Volvo, Land Rover, Tesla and Rivian that decided to sit out the birthday party. Showgoers will still enjoy plenty of eye candy including the epic Hudson Yards development across 11^th Avenue. With multiple skyscrapers (I swear a new one goes up every month) 9 million-square feet of office space, a mall, and more restaurants than Metro Detroit, the development has transformed Manhattan’s west side skyline.

No longer an isolated convention center, Javits-on-the-Hudson is part of a triangle of activity with Times Square to its northeast and Hudson Yards on its south flank. Inside are three floors of automotive toys.

Here are the highlights.

A (noisy) EV test track. VROOOOOOM! Sitting shotgun in a Dodge Charger Daytona, I was pinned to my setback as the brand’s first EV hit 40 mph after launch control before Graham Hooper — a Hollywood stunt driver — slammed on the brakes and rotated it through a series of turns. SCREEEEEE! “This is by far the most fun I have had in an EV! Ever!” yelled Hooper over the roar and screaming tires.

There are 18 EVs for showgoers to choose from on the test track. But only the Dodge EV has an external, so-called Fratzonic Exhaust Chamber that simulates the sound of an engine. A V-8 engine. The other EVs are silent. VROOOOM!

Bronco/Wrangler unbridled. If you want real V-8 sound, head outside to the Camp Jeep test track where you can jump into an insane Wrangler 392 and ride around the rollercoaster-like structure. Ford offers a similar Bronco Build Wild so you can experience its Bronc dirt-kicker. The rides pause at the top of the coaster hill so you can ogle the taller scrapers nearby.

Porsche 911 hot rod. Between the outdoor and indoor test tracks is a sprawling R2XPO display of modified cars. Front and center is a Porsche 911 (sixth, 997 generation) ready to be transformed on April 23-24 during public week by Japanese mod legend Akira Nakai using a wide-body kit and enormous, 13-inch-wide rear tires. Not only will the 911 get the Dodge Hellcat-like widebody, it’s been stuffed with a 650-horse, Chevrolet LS3 V-8 engine in back. Its a Porsche with a Motown accent.

125^th birthday party. To celebrate, show organizers have brought 13 models representing 13 decades of automotive innovation. The lineup stretches from a 40-horsepower 1909 Cadillac Model 30 to a 502-horse 2022 Porsche 911 GT3. In the middle are a pair of silver, split-window, 1963 Corvettes. Yum. Other brands represented? Ford, Dodge, Mercury, Pierce Arrow, Mercedes, Pontiac, Chevrolet (a Volt in addition to the ‘Vettes), DeLorean, Acura and Bugatti.

The first Chrysler. Want more history? The first Chrysler made was the 2024 Six which, legend has it, Walter P. Chrysler himself drove to the New York Show in January 1924. It’s in the Stellantis display right next to the only Chrysler model built today, the Pacifica minivan.

Big Mack. The venerable truck company is also celebrating its 125^th birthday. Mack was founded in 1900 by the Mack bothers in Brooklyn (now headquartered in Greensboro, North Carolina). The show celebrates with a restored 1925 AB model complete with 34 horsepower and solid rubber tires. The original customer? Ely and Walker Dry Goods Company in St. Louis.

Rolls and Bentley. Only in New York. Rolls and Bentley have their own stand between Honda and Toyota. The assembled $400k sedan, SUV and convertible chariots are waiting for the gazillionaires who occupy the Hudson Yards sky suites across the street.

Sports cars. Speaking of Toyota, the brand’s big disply has a football theme. The Japanese brand is the official car of the NFL, and flag football will debut as an official sport of the 2028 Summer Olympics in Los Angeles. It’s the league’s nose under the Olympic tent as it intends to expand American football globally. Toyota isn’t the only pro sports league sponsor on the floor. Kia sponsors the NBA, Honda the NHL, and Chevrolet Major League Baseball.

Chevy Equinox. No, you’re not seeing double. There are two Equinox RS utes on the floor — one EV, the other internal combustion powered. They are distinguished by design — EV sleek vs. ICE chunky truck chic. Also different? The prices: The EV model costs about $13k more.

Super-ru. Japan’s wee auto company has the show’s most epic stage. Walk through the forest of trees and chirping (fake) birds and you’ll find a new EV (Trailseeker), updated EV (Solterra) and the big draw, the redesigned Outback station wagon. The latter was the talk of media week with its blocky design that screams off-road SUV. The all-terrain-tired Wilderness model looks like it could climb Mt. Everest.

Ford’s power pony. The Mustang GTD is a $300,000-plus, 815-horsepower rocket ship and the first U.S. stallion to record a sub-7 minute lap around the world’s most fearsome track, Germany’s 13-mile, 170-turn Nürburgring. Ford celebrates the accomplishment with a special display, and the ‘Stang looks like no other with its huge rear wing, front splitter and aero wardrobe.

King Corvette. Gotham is renowned for its exotic European car stable. This year you can feast on everything from a $3 million Koenigsegg to a $600k Lamborghini Reveuelto and $350k Ferrari 296. But stroll over to GM’s display and you’ll find a Chevy that will smoke any of them.

The $174,995, mid-engine ZR1 hypercar is the King of Corvettes with an insane 1,064 ponies and 233-mph top speed. Don’t expect that Mustang American Nürburgring record to last long.

K4 hatched. If the Chevy’s still too rich for your blood, check out Kia. The hatchback is sibling to the $23,165 K4 sedan that has been the Korean brand’s best seller this year. The hatch gives the compact a double threat in the market like the Mazda 3 sedan/hatchback or Honda Civic sedan/hatch. It shares K4’s Cadillac CT5-like styling, hoodless dash screens and engines — but adds 7 cubic feet of cargo space. Hey, Kia, how about a hot-hatch version to rival the new 2026 VW Golf GTI on display?

Italian stallion. The Stellantis-owned Italian supercar brand oozes sex appeal with a lineup of hotties including a purple GT2 Stradale. Translation: Road-going version of Maserati’s mid-engine GT2-class race car. This beast makes 631 horsepower with enhanced aerodynamics and scissor doors. New York cops ticket it just standing still.

Genesis Hypercar. Hyundai will enter the endurance racing wars in 2027 with the GMR-001 hypercar, South Korea’s first effort to conquer the high bankings of the 24-Hour Le Mans and Daytona endurance races. Look under its sleek orange skin and you’ll find Formula One-like keel wing aero tweaks and a twin-turbo hybrid V-8 to take on front-runners from Porsche Penske and Cadillac.

Hyundai family. Hyundai shows off its all-new, three-row, Palisade ICE SUV for the first time — alongside the (Big Apple) debut of its three-row, electric Ioniq 9, which was first seen in L.A. last fall. Like Chevy, Hyundai and Kia are committed to producing parallel ICE and EV lines to gauge customer preference. For now, the Palisade — available as a 600-mile-range hybrid for the first time — has the upper hand as one of the best-selling three-rows in the United States. “The only thing that matters to customers,” said Hyundai North America product chief Olabisi Boyle, “is how far they can go, and how easily they can get there.”

If it’s easy to get there, check out the New York Auto Show, which runs through April 27.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Subaru shoulders it all at New York Auto Show: New product, EV rules, tariffs

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 18, 2025

New York — At Subaru Corp.’s 2025 New York International Auto Show stand it’s everything everywhere all at once.

The all-wheel-drive adventure brand is juggling a display-full of challenges that reflect an auto market whipsawed by consumer tastes, government electric vehicle regulations and import tariffs. Subaru debuted an all-new, sixth-generation model of its iconic Outback station wagon this week boasting its most significant design changes in years as buyers flee cars and flock to SUVs. At the same time, Subaru unveiled two electric SUVs key to satisfy looming, 2026 electric vehicle mandates — vehicles that Subaru produces in Japan and that may be subject to import tariffs.

Still bullish on auto shows that many industry brands have fled, Subaru’s lush stand evokes a national park and is at the center of the New York show floor. Live plants, bird sounds, trees, the works.

Walk through the forest and the 2026 Outback anchors the main stage. It’s been the buzz of media week, and everyone has an opinion about the crossover’s chunky, bold new look.

Introduced as a station wagon in 1995 to complement the Japanese company’s midsize Legacy sedan, Outback became the face of the brand’s appeal as a rugged, nature-loving, get-away-from-it-all vehicle.

Its importance to Subaru can’t be understated. The wagon has sold 3 million copies in the United States over 30 years, becoming as synonymous with Subaru as the Miata sportscar is with Mazda.

As the U.S. market’s tastes swung to SUVs and station wagons and sedans died off (the Legacy exits U.S. showrooms after this year), Outback evolved with the market to a more off-road focused vehicle that was lifted over eight inches off the ground — as high as a Jeep Wrangler. It even gained a dirt-kicking Wilderness model armed with another inch of ride height, skid plates, and all-terrain tires.

The ‘26 model goes all in as an SUV.

“The Outback is moving on from the Legacy, which is going away,” said Aaron Cole, Subaru communications manager, standing next to the boxier model. “Form follows function and people are asking, for example, how they can fit a dog crate under the rear hatchback.”

He noted that the Outback’s wagon-like proportions are largely unchanged with the same wheelbase and two more inches of height. Its greenhouse-to-body ratio looks familiar, but its SUV aspirations are undeniable.

“The Outback has evolved with the customer,” said Cole. “Without Legacy we are attracting a different customer, and the blockier look appeals to that trend.”

If Subaru has confidently evolved into as SUV-focused lineup including the Crosstrek, Forester and Ascent, the brand has not been as sure-footed about introducing electric cars. Buyers may “Love the Earth” — to quote the brand’s green-focused advertising — but they have been resistant to EVs and their unpredictable range and charging options.

Subaru took a tentative step in 2023 with the Solterra, a SUV roughly the same size as the Outback built on a battery platform developed by Toyota.

Its sold just 12,447 units in the United States last year — a long way from the popular Outback’s 168,771. Given its green-friendly buyer demographic, Subaru believes customers will warm to EVs as charging infrastructure and range improves.

But like other manufacturers, Subaru can’t afford to wait as it must meet the more immediate EV wishes of government regulators.

Subaru rolled out a second EV — the Trailseeker — at the U.S. auto show as Subaru faces looming EV sales mandates from New York and 11 other so-called Zero Emission Vehicle states. For the 2026 model year, ZEV states require that 35% of brand sales be electric or face fines that could soar into the billions as ZEV states phase out all gas-powered vehicle sales by 2035.

Toyota or Subaru? If the interior of the Subaru Trailseeker looks a lot like a Toyota bZ4X, that’s because the two models share a platform. Henry Payne, The Detroit News

“No manufacturer is going to meet the mandates,” said Erin Keating, executive analyst for Cox Automotive. “Subaru will be challenged to meet the mandate, but their dealers will be impacted if they don’t provide the vehicles customers want.”

To sweeten the deal, Subaru’s new Trailseeker is a more rugged-looking version of the Solterra EV in keeping with the brand’s overlanding image. It gets more grunt from its twin electric motors (375 horsepower), an off-roady X mode and 3,500-pound tow rating.

“It looks a lot like a Subaru so that you can get away on the weekend and go anywhere,” said Senior Vice President for Sales Troy Poston.

But that capability comes at a price and the Trailseeker will get just 260 miles of range — before buyers stress it with towing and 4.4-second 0-60 launches. Still, that’s a jump from the initial 2023 Solterra’s 228 miles of range; Solterra has leapt to 280 miles of range for the 2026 model year.

That progress, however, faces increased speed bumps. While states turn the mandate screws, federal $7,500 EV sales subsidies are poised to go away under new EPA management. Worse, EV sales credits generated by EV makers like Tesla Inc., Rivian Automotive Inc. and Lucid Motors are no longer enough to satisfy the growing demands of the 35% sales mandates.

“The legacy manufacturers have had three choices,” said Keating. “1) buy tax credits from EV makers; 2) pay the fines: or 3) build EVs. Now none of those options look good.”

And for Subaru, the costs will go even higher if the Trump administration’s 25% tariff on Japanese imports holds. Both the Trailseeker and Solterra are built in Japan and Solterra is already priced $10,000 north of its gas-fired Outback sibling.

The Cox analyst said the tariff game is still in the early stages and that manufacturers expect that better rates will be negotiated.

“It’s a real delicate balance,” she said of the situation manufacturers like Subaru face. “For all the attention tariffs get, they appear negotiable. The ZEV state mandates, however, don’t have many walkarounds.”

She said there is hope states will pull back as the regulations bite and the Trump administration and a Republican Congress apply pressure. ZEV-state Maryland, for example, paused its mandates on April 8 after Washington threatened to freeze federal monies for electric charging stations.

On the New York show floor, meanwhile, Subaru hopes that the public will embrace its redesigned Outback when doors open to the public Friday. One caveat? The 2026 Outback will be manufactured in Japan and subject to tariffs.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Payne: Taking on all seasons in the Ford Bronco Sport

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 17, 2025

Anza-Borrego Desert, California — With all-terrain tires, all-wheel drive, seven driving modes and wireless navigation, the Ford Bronco Sport is a packhorse built for all seasons.

In southern California, those seasons can happen in one day.

The Bronco Sport — aka, Son of Bronco, Bronco Jr., Bronco Lite — is the entry-level sibling in Ford’s tough Bronco sub-brand. Built on a smooth unibody chassis rather than Bronco’s truck-like ladder frame, Bronco Sport is nevertheless a tough little cookie, at home in dense city traffic or on endless desert sand.

I departed my Gaslamp Quarter hotel in San Diego at the crack of dawn and pointed my 2025 Bronco Sport Badlands Sasquatch tester in the direction of the Anza-Borrego Desert about 95 miles away. Over the next 11 hours, I would travel through crisp fall, snowy winter, bright spring and sandy summer conditions.

Fall

The crisp air in SoCal was decidedly fall-like in early April, and I headed east from San Diego in 42-degree temps. The Bronco Sport is one of two compact SUVs that Ford makes on its C2 unibody platform (the others is the Escape), and Bronco Sport is the wild child of the pair.

With their Bronco-like headlights and optional Black Diamond and Sasquatch off-road packages, the Bronc’s Big Bend, Outer Banks and Badlands models are ready to tread beyond where the asphalt ends.

But Bronco Sport is also well equipped for morning commutes in the urban jungle.

I put my Borrego Springs destination in my phone, which instantly translated to the 13.2-inch digital display high in the dash via standard, wireless Android Auto — and in the instrument display in front of me. I spun the rotary GOAT mode dial (Ford-speak for drive modes) from NORMAL to ECO and followed the instructions though San Diego’s gridded streets and on to the highway choked with morning traffic.

Also standard is a moat of safety systems. Merging onto California Highway 94, I checked my six. The blind-spot assist icon flickered in my rearview mirror and I waited for a line of cars to pass before merging left. Whether married to the base 1.5-liter turbo 3-cylinder engine or the 2.0-liter turbo-4 exclusive to my Badlands tester, the standard eight-speed transmission is smooth as silk — even under my lead Size 15 foot.

Up to speed, I set standard adaptive cruise control at 70 mph and cruised effortlessly through the ebbs and flows of traffic. Without taking my eyes off the road, I toggled the raised switch on the steering spoke to adjust speed and following distance.

As the route narrowed to two-lane California 79, I rotated the GOAT to SPORT and punched the MANUAL button in the middle of the selector. Paddle time.

I reached for the shift paddles behind the wheel and manually shifted through the blizzard of Cuyamaca Mountain S-turns. The Bronc Sport is hardly a hot hatch, but my Sasquatch package-equipped Badlands model rotated nicely with planted steering and torque-vectoring clutches once found on the Ford Focus RS.

Winter

Speaking of blizzards, the dry roads didn’t last long.

I had climbed from sea level to 4,000 feet (did you hear my ears pop?) in an hour and the temperature had plummeted 15 degrees. Suddenly, my windscreen was full of sleet and snow and the road was an ice rink. Thank goodness for all-terrain tires.

I spun the GOAT wheel to SLIPPERY mode, which chose a lower gear to reduce torque slip. The tires did the rest as I clawed my way through the twisties. I passed a pair of cars that has slid into the ditch assisted by emergency vehicles. My sure-footed Bronco Sport soldiered on.

For such sudden changes of weather, the Ford has clever, rear-seat sub-space where you can store hats, gloves, long underwear. With the seats up, four six-footers can fit comfortably in the cabin. Fold the rear seats down, and you can fit two upright bikes with their front tires removed.

Spring

Descending the east side of the Cuyamacas, winter gave way to spring as temps warmed to 60 degrees and the sun bathed lush green valleys.

All-terrain tires that had carried me through ice and snow were surprisingly quiet on dry asphalt. As was the cabin. One of the most uncomfortable rides I’ve experienced was in a cloth-seated Ford Mustang last decade, but Bronco Sport seats — whether cloth in the Big Bend model or leather in Badlands — were easy on the backside for my 260-mile round trip.

Clever interior bits abound: phone storage behind the dash screen includes twin USB-C charging ports; crisp instrument display graphics right out of a video game; and an “oh, crap” passenger handle on the center console for when things get dicey off-road.

Summer

Oh, yes, I encourage you to go off-road with the Sasquatch package.

I descended into the Anza-Borrego Desert and temperatures rose to over 70 degrees. Ford uses Anza-Borrego for extreme testing where temps can soar over 120 degrees while sand blows horizontally at 50 mph.

New for the 2025 model year, my Badlands was fully armored with Sasquatch — a step up from the Black Diamond package available since the 2023 model year. Inspired by big brother Bronco (natch), the package offers protective skid plates underneath, a one-inch suspension lift, more GOAT drive modes and a front bull bar.

I didn’t hit any bulls, but my grille came face to face with plenty of rocks. WHUMP! I dragged the fortified underbelly over a boulder, then stood on my nose on a rock suspending my right rear in the air while the rear clutch pack threw 100% torque to the other wheel for grip.

Rock quickly gave way to deep sand — dial up RALLY mode! — and I churned through miles of the stuff as the twin clutch packs did their magic, automatically managing traction across the rear wheels while the fronts pulled like mad.

At the edge of a dune, the sand dropped away and I engaged TRAIL CONTROL — a sort of low-speed adaptive cruise for off-roading. Set at 2 mph, the system took over throttle and brake so I could concentrate on steering between steep rock ruts. You won’t use TRAIL CONTROL much on daily commutes, but the all-terrain tires will help with Detroit potholes.

On the way back to my hotel over the mountains in the evening, I stopped at the famed Julian Pie Company. Its tasty apple pie reminded me of the Grand Traverse Pie Company in Traverse City.

With Traverse City’s variable climate, sand dunes and steep elevation changes, Bronco Sport would be right at home there too.

Next week: 2025 Lincoln Navigator

2025 Ford Bronco Sport

Vehicle type: All-wheel-drive, four-door, five-passenger SUV

Price: $31,590, including $1,595 destination charge ($44,925 Badlands Sasquatch as tested)

Powerplant: 1.5-liter turbocharged three-cylinder; 2.0-liter turbo-4

Power: 180 horsepower, 200 pound-feet of torque (1.5-liter); 250 horsepower, 280 pound-feet of torque (2.0-liter)

Transmission: Eight-speed automatic

Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.8 seconds (Car and Driver est., 2.0-liter); towing, 2,700 pounds

Weight: 3,849 pounds (as tested)

Fuel economy: EPA 23 mpg city/26 highway/24 combined (1.5-liter); 21 mpg city/27 highway/23 combined (2.0-liter)

Report card

Highs: All-season dexterity; excellent standard features

Lows: Tight rear seat space compared to competition; turbo-4 only available on Badlands

Overall: 4 stars

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Hyundai Motor Group dominates New York Auto Show with reveals, investments, race car

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 17, 2025

New York — South Korea’s automotive juggernaut continues to roll in the United States with record sales in 2024 for Hyundai Motor Group. The family of Hyundai, Kia and Genesis brands sold 1.7 million vehicles for a combined 11% market share. With three U.S. manufacturing plants and a starring role in the New York and Los Angeles auto shows, the Asian brands have a decidedly American accent.

In the Big Apple this week, they made major moves for an even bigger bite of the U.S. market.

Hyundai, Kia and Genesis dominated media week at the New York International Auto Show, introducing three all-new production vehicles while Genesis unveiled an off-road concept and stunning prototype race car to take on the world’s premier endurance brands, including Porsche, Ford, Cadillac, Toyota and BMW, in North America’s red-hot IMSA Weathertech Sportscar Series.

With massive, billion-dollar investments in right-to-work states Georgia and Alabama, HMG could be poised to benefit from U.S. tariffs in the same way that Japanese rivals Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp. became woven into America’s manufacturing fabric after the Reagan era’s import quotas 40 years ago.

“Auto shows have always been very important. New York and Los Angeles are where we want to be very present,” said Hyundai COO Claudia Marquez in an interview here. “We have amazing product to show and want to reach out to as many customers as we can.”

The Korean brands have used auto shows over the last two decades to debut significant product advances, and 2025 in Gotham is no different.

Hyundai dropped a bold, stunning redesign of its three-row Palisade. In just one generation, the SUV and its Kia Telluride sibling, which was also introduced in 2020, have become serious players in the three-row family ute segment long dominated by the Ford Explorer, Honda Pilot and Chevy Traverse. They both sold in six figures last year for a combined total of over 215,000 units — more than segment pioneer Explorer.

Auto analyst Rebecca Lindland, managing director of Allison Worldwide, said the posh Korean twins have been key to transforming their brands’ dollar store image: “The perception of Hyundai and Kia was that they were cheap. Palisade and Telluride have done a lot to overcome that stigma.”

“Welcome to New York!” exclaimed Hyundai CEO Joe Muñoz to a packed media gallery on the brand’s Javits Convention Center stage. “We are investing more because we have resolved to be a market leader.”

Palisade is made at the automaker’s assembly complex in Alabama, the flagship of U.S. operations that employ 57,00 people across the United States. Hyundai also recently announced the expansion of its Savannah, Georgia, operations, part of $21 billion in U.S. investments including a $5.8 billion steel mill in Louisiana to produce auto parts for its southern facilities.

“We are gratified to be helping so many to realize the American Dream,” Muñoz said. By 2030, he continued, Hyundai plans another $90 billion in investment worldwide while introducing 21 new electric vehicles and 14 new hybrids.

HMG’s ambitious plans have positioned it for growth in the United States just as the nation’s political needle has swung protectionist again.

“We are really proud to stand with you and proud to build the future together,” said Hyundai Chairman Euisun Chung as he announced the U.S. investments in late March from the White House alongside President Donald Trump and Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry.

Hyundai’s positioning echoes that of Honda and Toyota, which began U.S. production in, respectively, Ohio and Kentucky the 1980s as the Reagan administration and a Democratic Congress imposed protectionist measures. Four decades later, foreign transplant automakers account for about half of U.S. auto employment, most of it nonunion.

Not by accident, Hyundai’s investments are also in nonunion, so-called right-to-work states.

“The transplants like Hyundai have stayed competitive with Detroit Three UAW plants in pay scale, but as nonunion plants they have the flexibility to control production,” said auto analyst Lindland. “In times of uncertain market demand, it is one of the biggest benefits of being nonunion. You don’t have union rules constraining you.”

COO Marquez said tariffs are a fact of international trade: “It is a reality (for which) we feel we are very well prepared,” she said. “We are committed to continue investing in the U.S. Last year, we sold 836,000 units and 40% of those were produced in the U.S. The U.S. is a very important market and we want to be a very important part of it in the future.”

Hyundai Motor Group has also positioned itself for government electric vehicle mandates. New York, for example, is a so-called zero-emission-state that requires automaker sales to be 35% EV for the 2026 model year or face massive fines.

No manufacturers save electric makers like Tesla Inc. and Rivian Automotive Inc. are close, but the Koreans have created parallel EV and internal combustion engine lines.

Kia for example, introduced the EV4 compact EV alongside its gas-powered K4 hatchback Wednesday. The $23k K4 sedan — its upscale looks echoing a Cadillac CT5 — has been wildly popular since its introduction this year.

Made in South Korea (along with the EV4), the K4s could face affordability challenges because of tariffs, but so far this year the sedan model has outsold everything in the Korean brand’s lineup — even its popular Sportage SUV.

Hyundai, too, produces parallel ICE and EV lines (the Palisade’s EV counterpart is the three-row Ioniq 9, for example).

“EVs are very important and we believe they are where the market is going to grow in the long term,” said Marquez. “The investment in our (EV/hybrid) factory is one of the biggest investments in the Georgia state. We produce two models there at the moment — Ioniq 5 and Ioniq 9.”

Perhaps the biggest sign of HMG’s arrival in the big leagues was the unveiling here of its Genesis GTP race car. Genesis will be the first Korean brand to compete for overall wins at the 24 Hours of Le Mans and IMSA’s Rolex 24 Hours of Daytona when the GTP race car debuts in 2027.

Brazil’s Pipo Derani, one of the world’s premier sports car racers — and a former IMSA champion with Cadillac — introduced the hypercar as its new lead driver.

“It’s a race car, but it’s definitely a Genesis with its two stripes,” Derani said of the twin headlights and taillights that are a brand signature. “It’s a way for clients and fans to become more integrated with our brand.”

Marquez, formerly COO of Genesis, beamed at the brand’s ambition to compete alongside motorsports icons Porsche, Ferrari, Toyota, McLaren, Cadillac, BMW, Acura and Aston Marin.

“We are extremely proud of Genesis taking this step,” she said, noting the announcement came during its 10^th anniversary year. “Of course, this is a big investment in the confidence of the brand. Racing is very important in the U.S., and the U.S. is the most important market for us right now.”

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

New York Auto Show marks 125 years with Asian debuts, Detroit nostalgia, EV test tracks

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 16, 2025

New York — America’s oldest auto exhibition, the New York International Auto Show, celebrates its 125^th anniversary through April 27 at Javits Convention Center with a look back at significant concepts of the past along with the debuts of modern machinery for the 21^st century.

While auto dealers who organize the show gauge consumer interest in the latest wares, they will also be watching the effects of government-imposed electric vehicle mandates and import tariffs on the market’s future.

Like the Detroit Auto Show at Huntington Place, the Big Apple’s auto-palooza has morphed over the decades into more than just an opportunity to shop for your next ride. Once isolated on the Hudson River on Manhattan’s’ west side next to a train depot, Javits’ neighborhood has been transformed by the Hudson Yards development that has sprouted skyscrapers over top of the rail yard. With 9 million square feet of office space as well as residential quarters, Hudson Yards is among the most expensive real estate in Manhattan.

Residents and other attendees who walk across 11^th Avenue to Javits will find four test tracks — two of them outdoor — where they can jump into cars from numerous brands for a ride. Inside, there will be an array of attractions from anniversary exhibits to new car debuts to brand displays and special collections of Detroit classics and racing Subarus.

“There’s been a huge change over the years. We characterize these events as auto shows, but it’s also a place for (attendees) to enjoy themselves, as they are spending three four hours at the show,” said Mark Schienberg, president of the New York Auto Show and of the Greater New York Auto Dealers Association, in an interview. He said exit surveys show consumers “want to see the new product and help them understand it. But right under that was they really loved the entertainment.”

That entertainment will include special exhibits during public days April 18-27, like tuner whiz Nakai San, who will construct a Porsche over two days, April 23-24 — and Overland Weekend, an exhibit of extreme campers and off-road vehicles. Detroit’s show in January also amped up the entertainment when it invited ticket-holders to take a ride with IndyCar stars like Josef Newgarden and Nolan Allaer on the show’s indoor track.

New York combines car-gazing and entertainment on the show’s 110,000-square-foot indoor test track. Like Detroit, the experience track is a New York centerpiece.

ZOT! Riding shotgun, attendees can accelerate up to 40 mph around the “EVTest Track.” Some 18 models will be available to ticket-holders. Cadillac leads the way with four EVs to ride in with Chevrolet, Dodge, Ford, Jeep, Kia, Nissan, Toyota and Volkswagen also represented.

“You really need to speak to the consumers that are in your area and tracks are a great way to do that,” said Stephanie Brinley, associate director of Research and Analysis for S&P Global. “There are still a lot of people who still haven’t been in an electric vehicle, so to have that experience is helpful.”

Unlike Detroit’s indoor tracks that showcased a mix of gas and electric powertrains, Javitz’s track is all-electric. That’s because the Empire State is one of 12 so-called Zero Emission Vehicles states that require all new vehicles sales to be zero-emission by 2035. That includes a mandate that 35% of 2026 model-year vehicles (which hit dealers later this year) be fully battery-powered.

The market is a long way from that today with less than 10% of New York sales (most of them Tesla, which is not at the New York Show) powered by electricity. Sales may also be impacted by the expected withdrawal of the federal $7,500 EV tax credit.

“We saw an uptick in sales in January and February as headlines warned that subsidies were going away, and there is also more availability of EV models,” said Brinley. “But I don’t think there’s going to be a 35% share for electric vehicles in New York.”

For the majority of customers who still want gas-fired cars — particularly of the off-road variety — Detroit brands Jeep and Ford offer outdoor tracks on Javits’ 11^th Avenue doorstep. The rollercoaster-like tracks are traditionally among the most popular show features.

“Jeep keeps on making the mountain bigger and with a bigger pitch. So it should be interesting to see what they’ve put together this year,” Schienberg said.

The dealers who organize the show also face a mountain of tariffs coming from the Trump administration — aimed in particular at entry-level and electric vehicles made in Mexico like the Kia K4 hatchback that the Korean brand is expected to introduce here.

“It’s hard for consumers to see the effect of tariffs on vehicles,” said Brinley, who said New York show products haven’t been pulled back due to tariffs. “Vehicle inventory for 50-60 days that is on sale now is unaffected by the tariffs. And manufacturers that sell here aren’t leaving the market — they just have to figure out where to build.”

Unique for 2025 is the anniversary celebration.

“We’re really pulling out all the stops with amazing exhibits,” said Schienberg of the show that started at Madison Square Garden in 1900. “We’re showing concepts — one from each decade of the auto show. So we have 13 examples of amazing vehicles that have been introduced over the decades.”

Inside the show’s entrance, the anniversary exhibit illustrates how the industry has evolved in design and tech. Exhibits includes Detroit notables like the Ford Model T and 1909 Cadillac Model 30.

“Its interesting to harken back to the history of autos after so many years of talking about EVs and autonomous vehicles,” Brinley said. “It makes the auto show engaging on multiple levels. I like that there is an emphasis on the things that emotionally move you as well as what you might buy.”

Also celebrating its 125^th year? Mack Truck, which will have a display including a 1925 Mack AB model.

New vehicles are still the heartbeat of the New York show, and 28 brands will be on display at Javits.

“When we looked at our numbers last year, 66% of (attendees) said that the show influenced their purchase, and that they were in the in the market for buying a car . . . within the next 12 months,” Schienberg said. “So you really have consumers that are in that funnel, coming in and helping them make their decision on what to do.”

If Detroit Three brands dominate the Huntington Place stage, Korean brands Kia, Hyundai and Genesis have become the headliners in New York and Los Angeles with high-profile model debuts. Subaru and VW will also showcase new models.

“Hyundai, Kia and Genesis have been great as a lot of other manufacturers have gone away. Subaru has always been a believer in shows,” Schienberg said. “They share with us their data, and it’s really impressive what coverage they get.”

Three new Kia models are expected with speculation centering on a hatchback version of the compact, gas-powered K4 sedan; the North American introduction of the K4’s electric E4 sibling; and a new, three-row Telluride SUV.

Expect Hyundai’s Telluride competitor, the Palisade, to take off the wraps in New York with a boxier look. Subaru will debut an all-new EV, the Trailseeker, but the Big Apple’s showstopper may be an all-new Subaru Outback — the brand’s halo moving away from its traditional, station-wagon proportions to a chunkier, more SUV-like look. As for VW, the midsize, gas-driven Tiguan SUV may get a close cousin, the Tayron. Toyota and Maserati have also scheduled news conferences.

In addition to its sprawling display, Hyundai has its own indoor test track for attendees.

“Seventy six percent of the (New York attendees) said that the auto show was the only automotive event that they attended,” Schienberg said. “They’re seeing car commercials, and they are on the websites getting information about product. But when they really want to experience cars, the consumer is still using auto shows as their tool to help them make decisions.”

With many of the world’s biggest media operations — TV networks, New York newspapers and more — in town, the New York show has been an irresistible showcase for the flood of startup automakers in recent years. Qiantu, INDI EV, Vinfast and others have used Gotham as a stage for new vehicles.

Not this year. Consistent with the struggles of startups like Rivian, Lucid, Fisker and Bollinger, the 2025 show will be devoid of startups.

“Startups are going through their challenges to some degree,” Scheinberg said. “I wish Vinfast was in this year. They’re not, but that’s more because they’re not selling vehicles in the New York area.”

Though Metro New York contains some of the country’s most affluent zip codes, many luxury automakers continue to sit out the the show just as they do Detroit, Chicago and Los Angeles. BMW, Porsche and Cadillac (which was once headquartered in New York) will not present this year. But Mercedes, Maserati, Genesis, Acura and Lincoln will bring their toys.

And then there are the exotics.

A signature of the New York show has long been its display of uber-lux models from hypercars to lush land yachts. Detroit took inspiration from New York and put on its own exotic 2025 display.

Between the Chevy and Subaru exhibits will be eye candy like the Bentley Continental GTC hybrid convertible, Rolls Royce Cullinan, 1,500-horsepower Koenigsegg Regera hybrid, Lamborghini Revuelo, Lotus Eletre SUV and Emira sports car, and 1,900-horsepower Rimac Nevera electric hypercar that can hit 60 mph in just 1.85 seconds.

Performance fans will also thrill at restomods from Tedson Motors (Porsche 911), Sacrilege (converted electric Porsche 911), and GTO Engineering (Ferrari 250).

Media attendance has dropped off in recent years during the press week leading up to New York public days as fewer manufacturers have debuted vehicles.

But the New York Show still generates media interest with its World Car of the Year awards scheduled for Wednesday, April 16 — much as the North American Car, Truck & Utility of the Year awards kicks off the Detroit Auto Show.

Javits also hosted the Automotive Forum sponsored by JD Power on Tuesday, April 15.

“It’s a who’s who of the auto industry — everybody from manufacturers to suppliers, dealers, the media,” Schienberg said. “Between issues on the economy, electrification, and now tariffs, things have been taken to a whole new level, which is why registrations have really turned up. “

Other attractions include a display dedicated to the “Golden Era,” spotlighting 1950s automobiles including the 1957 Cadillac Eldorado, 1958 Buick Limited and 1955 Packard Caribbean. Complementing Subaru’s main floor display is a collection of all-wheel-drive Subaru hellions from the James Buzzetta collection.

“These are the STI (racers), and the first Subaru that was ever brought into the United States, the Subaru 360,” Schienberg said.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Team Penske revs the White House, Team Trump roils the Dow

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 10, 2025

We interrupt this Trade War to bring you … Team Penske.

It was life in the fast lane at the White House Wednesday as Detroit racing icon Roger Penske arrived to celebrate wins by his NASCAR, IndyCar, and Porsche Penske superstar drivers with President Donald Trump.

The ceremony was complimented by a signature, impromptu Trump press conference in which the president held forth on the news of the day including his tariff pause that had revved the Dow Jones Industrial Average back over 40,000 points. Trump and Penske are old pals (Trump awarded Penske one of the nation’s highest honors in his first term), and the president frequently referenced The Captain’s business acumen during the presser.

President Donald Trump speaks during an event with auto racing champions at the South Portico of the White House Wednesday, April 9, 2025, in Washington, (Pool via AP) AP

“Roger Penske is a great friend of mine,” said Trump. “I’ve known him a long time. He received a few years ago the Presidential Medal of Freedom, the highest award in the country outside of the Congressional Medal of Honor.”

Trump touted recent renovations to the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, which Penske owns. “I might have to get there this year,” mused Trump.

“You have an open invitation,” replied Penske.

Three of Team Penske’s race cars were on the lawn including 2024 NASCAR champion Joey Logano’s #22 Ford Mustang Dark Horse; the #7 Porsche 963 IMSA Sportscar prototype driven by Englishman Nick Tandy, Brazilian Felipe Nasr, and Laurens Vanthoor from Belgium; and Nashville native Josef Newgarden’s #2 Chevrolet-powered IndyCar.

The latter, 240-mph chariot was squared up in front of the White House’s South Portico steps.

“These are the greatest champions in racing, and we’re honored to have you all. Josef Newgarden, two-time winner of the Indianapolis 500 — consecutively, right?” Trump said, introducing Newgarden. “So what are you doing? What are you eating?”

“I drink a lot of milk,” laughed Newgarden, a reference to the Indy 500 tradition of drinking milk in the winner’s circle.

In addition to the White House lawn ceremony, Trump hosted the team in the Oval Office along with Penske. The event came amid a busy news day in which the president ordered a 90-day pause on his global tariff plans — with the exception of China.

After the Team Penske ceremony, most of the media questions were focused on Trump and his tariff plan.

In addition to to Penske, who has won 20 Indy 500s, five NASCAR championships, and numerous sports car championships, the ceremony included Porsche Penske managing director Jonathan Diuguid, Penske NASCAR driver Ryan Blaney (2023 NASCAR champion), and other notables including NASCAR commissioner Steve Phelps, Team Penske IndyCar president Tim Cindric, and IMSA CEO Ed Bennett.

The champions event came ahead of this weekend’s Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach in California, where Newgarden will be competing. The Long Beach GP, like the Detroit Grand Prix May 30-June 1, also features the WeatherTech Sportscar series where the Porsche Penske team hopes to continue its undefeated record this season. The NASCAR circus will be at Bristol Motor Speedway in Tennessee.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.

How Michigan Tesla shoppers are dealing with violent protests

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 10, 2025

Troy — Tesla showrooms and owners have become targets across the United States as political activists protest Chairman Elon Musk’s work for the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency.

Metro Detroit is not immune.

Showrooms here have been spared violent attacks like the firebombing of a Las Vegas showroom that destroyed three vehicles, but they have been the focus of organized protests and owners have been harassed. Politics and the auto industry have long intersected — including controversial taxpayer bailouts for General Motors Corp. and Chrysler Corp. in 2009 and recent $7,500 taxpayer subsidies for well-to-do EV buyers.

Protests and boycotts have followed, but violence against dealers and owners is a new wrinkle. The Detroit News visited showrooms in the metro area over the last week where foot traffic was brisk. Interest in Tesla products appeared healthy, but customers were aware of the threats and harassment that have become an unfortunate part of the shopping experience.

“F— Elon! “You are f—— pigs!” yelled a passenger in a pickup truck as it drove past a line of Tesla test vehicles in Somerset Mall’s parking garage.

Christina Bentley, 44, of Macomb Township took a test ride with her family in a Model 3 and was undeterred by the anti-Tesla campaign. “Not a problem for us — 100%,” she said. “I feel all this is transitory. It’s the Democrats’ cause du jour and they’ll be mad about something else in a few months.”

Like the Bentleys, many customers brought their children who seemed as intent on jumping in the driver’s seat as their licensed parents. At Tesla’s West Bloomfield dealership, a small child led her mother by the hand from Model 3 to Cybertruck pointing out the vehicles’ different features from cupholders to big screens.

“My son loves Teslas,” said Bentley at Somerset. “We’re totally sold on the features and the safety is great. This will be his car when he turns 16.”

Tesla’s showroom inside Somerset is on private property and therefore spared protests on its doorstep. But protesters have regularly gathered outside the mall located on Big Beaver Road in Troy — as they have at Tesla’s larger, stand-alone West Bloomfield and Ann Arbor service centers.

Tesla declined comment to The News, but the protests appear organized and occur regularly each week. International protests reached a crescendo on March 30 with a “Global Day of Action” targeting more than 500 Tesla locations worldwide.

While there have been no reports of violence against Michigan showrooms, there have been individual incidents targeting owners.

In Kentwood outside Grand Rapids last month, police reported five Tesla Cybertrucks were vandalized in the Woodland Mall parking lot with spray painted messages like “Nazis always lose.”

The Michigan Tesla Owner’s Group Facebook page is busy with chatter about how to deal with vandals — from capturing footage on Tesla’s Sentry Mode camera system to removing Tesla badges from their cars.

“It seems Tesla vehicles have always been targets, but not to this extent,” said Scott Pokriefka, president of the Tesla Owners Club of Michigan. “I haven’t experienced any negativity during my driving, including a recent trip to Chattanooga. It’s unfortunate that these issues unfolded in Kentwood. I will still drive my Tesla.”

The intimidation campaign is undeniably having an effect. Most customers The News approached outside showrooms declined to give their names for fear of reprisal.

While it’s difficult to determine cause-and-effect, violent incidents have coincided with a decline in Tesla sales. Tesla’s Q1 deliveries have dropped 13% compared to a year ago and its stock price has dropped 42%.

Other factors could include political resistance to Musk’s alliance with Trump as well as a production changeover to the new Model Y SUV — Tesla’s most popular vehicle and the third best-selling non-pickup in the United States. High-profile figures like 2024 Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate Tim Walz and comedian Jimmy Kimmel have cheered the company’s market decline.

CJ of Detroit (name withheld for fear of retaliation) and his wife have enjoyed their Tesla Model 3 for three years, but are trading it in for a Rivian electric vehicle. They don’t want to live with the threat of getting their car keyed or having to run the gauntlet of protesters at their service center — or worse.

In Vancouver last week a pregnant woman was injured after a large rock smashed through the window of the Tesla she was riding in. Police are investigating.

In the United States this year there have been over 50 attacks against service centers and Tesla charging stations, including the Las Vegas incident; four Tesla Cybertrucks set ablaze in a Seattle Tesla lot; and eight Molotov cocktails launched at a Tesla showroom in Oregon damaging several vehicles.

Attorney General Pam Bondi said the Justice Department is treating such events as “domestic terrorism,” and Musk has also denounced the attacks as “wide-scale domestic terrorism.”

Outside the Somerset showroom, shopper Gage Stebien, 23, of Royal Oak said the attacks did not deter him from considering a Tesla.

“It’s amazing the flashpoint Tesla has become,” he said. “You used to be a hippie for buying one, and now you’re a member of the establishment. It’s weird.”

For years, Tesla was prohibited from selling cars in Michigan.

In 2014, Republican Gov. Rick Snyder signed into law a bill prohibiting auto manufacturers like Tesla from selling directly to consumers as a violation of state franchise laws that only allow vehicles to be sold through third-party dealerships. Tesla customers had to go to Illinois or Ohio service centers to purchase a Tesla, and the company sued the state of Michigan in 2016.

In 2020, Democratic Gov.Gretchen Whitmer’s administration settled with Tesla, greenlighting showrooms in Michigan. Whitmer, who wants 100% of Michigan auto sales to be electric by 2040, cheered Tesla’s “stated mission of accelerating the world’s transition to electric vehicles for the good of the environment.”

The first Michigan Tesla service center opened in May 2020, and Tesla’s footprint has grown to five showrooms/service centers across the state. The company must still operate under certain restrictions.

Models sold here must be titled in another state and then transferred to Michigan. And to shop a used Tesla from a company service center, buyers must still leave for another state.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.

Payne: Burnin’ rubber in the loco Ford Maverick Lobo

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 10, 2025

San Diego, California — Rounding the 180-degree, left-hand bend at the east end of Pechanga Arena’s autocross course, I stabbed the throttle pedal of my 2025 Ford Maverick Lobo and twin clutch packs accelerated the pickup’s outside rear wheel. SQUAAAWWWWWWWW! The tires squealed in protest as I drifted sideways through the next gate of pylons before flinging the wheel left to navigate the next right-hander. SQUAAAWWWWWWWW!

Wait, what?!!! Payne, you’re autocrossing a pickup truck? Have you lost your mind?!

Sometimes a vehicle comes along that you covet even though it makes no rational sense. The wee Mazda Miata. Carbon-fiber Alfa Romeo 4C. Stainless-steel Tesla Cybertruck.

Lobo is one of those vehicles. It’s irresistible. Torque-vectoring. Lowered suspension. Turbofan wheels. Lobo loco.

I imagine bringing it home and parking it in the garage.

Mrs. Payne: You bought a pickup truck?

Me: Not just any pickup, a Maverick Lobo! It has the Ford Focus R clutch packs and a lowered suspension. I put it in Lobo Mode and it’s a riot around an autocross course.

Mrs. Payne: You’re going to autocross a pickup?

Me: Yeah, isn’t that cool! And we can use the bed to pick up the Christmas tree every December.

Mrs. Payne: Have you lost your mind?!

Ford has been making gotta-have-‘em hellions for as long as I can remember. The winged, cannon-exhaust, fenders-out-to-here Focus RS looked so evil that cops would ticket it when parked at the curb. My friend John got a 2007 Mustang GT500 with 500-horsepower and a manual gearbox even though he didn’t know how to drive a stick. And the Fiesta ST made an affordable, sippy entry-level hatchback into a ferocious Rottweiler that dragged you on its leash to local autocrosses so you could chase Miatas up a tree.

The Maverick Lobo is cut from the same cloth.

Maverick debuted in 2022 as an insanely practical $21K hybrid pickup that drove like a Ford Escape while doing the daily chores of a Ranger and sipping 42 mpg around town. Dude. Maverick was so practical that it won back-to-back Detroit News Vehicle of the Year awards for its hybrid and Tremor off-road models.

The Lobo, by contrast, is pure indulgence. It’s a nod to hot rod street culture and the irresistible tuner urge to take a small truck, slam it to the ground with short springs, paint it neon and bolt on wheels that would burn a Hollywood designer’s eyeballs.

DJ Smith of Crestview, Florida, bought his ’22 and had to wait a year for delivery Mav was so hot. When it finally arrived, he lowered it for more menace. He wasn’t alone. Ford noticed the groundswell for an urban truck and went to work.

“I like the facelift. I like the turbo-4. I loooove the turbine wheels,” smiled Smith after taking a spin ‘round the autocross course.

In this age of commoditized products, Nanny State finger-wagging and electric fashion, I must admit I wondered if Ford still had it in ‘em. Facing electric mandates and SUV fashion, Ford had long ago sent its Focus and Fiesta ST performance stallions out to pasture. Lobo is welcome evidence that Mr. Hyde still resides in Dr. Ford.

I mean, just look at my black tester. Lobo means wolf and this is one stealthy predator. Merging onto I-8 East heading out of San Diego, I toggled SPORT mode and the exhaust note lowered to a GRRRRRRR.

Yes, master. What are we hunting?

A Mustang GT ambled around the 180-degree freeway ramp. Black Mamba circled the ramp, then struck. WHOOOM! I exploded onto the freeway, blowing the doors off the unsuspecting GT. What was that?! The GT pursued, pulling up next to me in traffic and noticing the big 19-inch Turbofan saucers spinning like circular saws. A grin, a thumbs up. He knew.

I first saw Maverick Lobo at its Detroit Auto Show introduction in January. The Frankenstein’s monster was adorable. Those Focus RS twin clutch packs. Lowered springs and Bilstein shocks from the Bronco Sport Badlands. Rear sway-bar like, well, any performance sportscar.

I couldn’t wait to drive it.

It lives up to expectations. In addition to its autocross antics, Dr. Frankenstein — er, chief technical officer — Eddie Khan and his minions have created a wildly diverse product lineup for 2025 that would make Papa F-150 proud.

I jumped into the base, hybrid, AWD model — 40 mpg highway! — and headed to the San Diego hills. Upgraded with new front and rear fascias for 2025, Maverick is true to Ford’s performance DNA with firm steering that feels rooted to the pavement. The unibody 3,800-pound pickup is no Focus RS, but it weighs a whopping 1,000 pounds less than a Ranger with no bed flutter. The result is a pickup that’s fun to drive hard.

It gets more fun as you climb the model ladder with the off-road focused Tremor and on-track Lobo bringing the twin-clutch pack handling magic. The fact that clutch packs used to be the exclusive domain of vehicles like Audis is a reminder of the shrinking gap between luxe and mainstream.

Indeed, Maverick has so much personality that I would buy it over numerous luxury brands — and not just because of the bed utility. Interior instrument graphics are stunning — just scroll from ECO to NORMAL to SPORT modes.

And the door design is inspired with a floating armrest so you can fit tall thermoses in the cupholders.

The only thing missing is affordability. Three years ago, Maverick debuted at a Chevy Trax-like $21,490. No more. That price has risen by a whopping 33% to $28,590. Oof.

What’s more, you don’t get essentials like adaptive cruise control until you shell out $36,850 for upper trims like Lobo. Sporty compact SUV Mazda CX-30 gets standard ACC and blind-spot assist at, ahem, 10 grand less.

Desire has a way of justifying price. Once you’ve settled on Lobo you’ll want to add toys like Pro Trailer Backup Assist that autonomously steers Lobo to your hitch. A trailer full of racing go-karts, for example.

Or maybe I’ll leave the karts in the trailer and race the Lobo instead. I’ve lost my mind.

Next week: 2025 Ford Bronco Sport

2025 Ford Maverick

Vehicle type: Front engine, front- and all-wheel-drive, five-passenger compact pickup

Price: $28,590, including $1,595 destination fee ($36,505 AWD XLT Hybrid and $42,345 AWD Lobo as tested)

Powerplant: Hybrid 2.5-liter 4-cylinder mated to electric motor (XLT); 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder (Lobo)

Power: 191 horsepower, 155 pound-feet torque (hybrid); 250 horsepower, 277 pound-feet torque (2.0L)

Transmission: Continuously variable (hybrid); seven-speed automatic (2.0L)

Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.9 seconds (Car and Driver est.); towing capacity, 2,000-4,000 pounds

Weight: 3,814 pounds (Lobo)

Fuel economy: EPA est. 40 mpg city/34 highway/37 combined (AWD hybrid); EPA est. 21 mpg city/30 highway/24 combined (Lobo)

Report card

Highs: Lobo fun, pickup utility; clever interior

Lows: Desirable features like adaptive cruise unavailable on lower trims; gets pricey

Overall: 4 stars

Forty Years After Reagan, Trump Updates Protectionist Playbook for US Auto Industry

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 9, 2025

Detroit – Autoworkers for Trump founder and retired Michigan autoworker Brian Pannebecker introduced President Donald Trump for tariff “Liberation Day” at the White House April 2nd.

“The president invited me personally and said bring 20 of my guys,” said Pannebecker, who introduced Trump at three 2024 Michigan campaign rallies, in an interview about his Rose Garden appearance. “He is keeping his promises to us.”

Forty years ago, US import restrictions brought by the Reagan Administration and a protectionist Democratic Congress dramatically changed the US automotive manufacturing landscape. Now Trump has re-assembled Reagan’s bipartisan tariff coalition as US industry faces another historic shift.

The Trump Administration’s tariffs echo proposed restrictions by Michigan Democratic Rep. John Dingell in the early 1980s. Like Reagan, Trump won the crucial state of Michigan in 2024 by appealing to a broad swath of working-class voters with a pro-American, pro-deregulation message.

The same dynamic is playing out here four decades later – on steroids. Trump not only won Detroit’s automotive working class – but rural timber and farm voters. Mainstream media stories largely ignore these voters, framing tariffs as a threat to Wall Street stock values.

But Main Street workers like Pennebacker were front of mind – and front of stage – at Trump’s Liberation Day.

“Thank you, Mr. President,” Pannebecker said. “I grew up just north of Detroit, Michigan, in Macomb County, known as the home of the Reagan Democrats. My first vote for president was for Ronald Reagan. I thought that was gonna be the best president I ever saw in my lifetime until Donald J. Trump came along.”

Significantly, Trump’s polices are echoed by United Autoworkers Union President Shawn Fain and by Dingell’s wife, Debbie, who inherited her husband’s seat in 2015. In a divided country, tariffs are an issue with broad bipartisan support.

Blimey, a Corvette! New GM design studio reimagines iconic Chevrolet

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 8, 2025

Baseball, hot dogs, apple pie, and Chevrolet. Make that Cricket, bangers and mash and Corvette.

General Motors Co. celebrated the opening of its new international design studio in the United Kingdom Monday with the introduction of a Chevrolet Corvette hypercar concept designed by its British design team. In keeping with GM’s aggressive move into European markets with Corvette and electric Cadillac sales, the ‘Vette design concept is battery-powered though GM says there are no production plans as yet.

The striking UK prototype is the first in a series of Corvette designs that will roll out of multiple studios in 2025 as the brand reimagines its halo car for a ninth generation and beyond. Hypercar generally refers to a sportscar featuring in excess of 1,000 horsepower ― a feat the 1,064 horsepower, 2025 Corvette ZR1 has achieved for the first time.

The futuristic, British concept bears mid-engine proportions like the current, eight-generation, V-8-powered, C8 sportscar, but GM says that the battery is integrated into the chassis. The low-slung design is lower and about a foot wider than C8.

GM’s design teams regularly work on futuristic concepts intended to drive innovation, and collaboration across the company. The concept also bears signature, throwback design elements like a split window first seen on the rear of the 1963 Corvette. The twist? The concept’s front windshield is split.

“As part of the Corvette creative study, we asked multiple studios to develop hypercar concepts, which we’ll see more of later this year,” said GM Senior Vice President of Global Design Michael Simcoe. “It was important that they all pay homage to Corvette’s historic DNA, but each studio brought their own unique creative interpretation to the project. That is exactly what our advanced design studio network is intended to do ― push the envelope, challenge convention and imagine what could be.”

The new studio is located in Royal Leamington Spa in the West Midlands region of England about 20 miles south of Birmingham and 100 miles north of London. It’s also about 35 miles west of Silverstone Park where Cadillac F1 has located its Formula One race team and chassis design operations.

Cadillac is the tip of the spear in the General’s plans to go all-electric, and the luxury brand has its eyes on international markets like Europe backed by the marketing power of its F1 team that will debut for the 2026 season. But Corvette already has significant international exposure through racing, having competed at the 24 Hours of Le Mans in France — as well as other international racing venues ― since 2000 with nine wins at the classic French race to its credit.

Cadillac has opened its flagship showroom in the middle of Paris, and Chevrolet is preparing to launch Corvette sales across the UK and into mainland Europe.

The 24,584-square-foot studio is intended to further connect GM to European customer and cultural trends by employing fresh talent. The office expands a global design footprint that includes studios in Detroit, Los Angeles, Shanghai, China and Seoul, South Korea.

“Our advanced design team’s mandate extends well beyond creating production vehicles,” said Simcoe. “While they collaborate within our global design network on production and concept vehicle programs, these teams are primarily tasked with imagining what mobility could look like five, 10, and even 20 years into the future and driving innovation for GM.”

The UK studio employs 30 team members and is outfitted for both digital and clay model development. The team is led by veteran designer Julian Thomson who has penned noteworthy designs like the Lotus Elise, Land Rover LRX (Evoque) concept, and until 2021 oversaw Jaguar’s advanced design department.

The ‘Vette concept is particularly focused on structural innovation. The design is split in two halves with the upper body focused on Corvette-inspired form and the lower half focused on function and how to integrate the battery into the chassis both structurally and aerodynamically. Even the split window featurre is functional.

“One of the most unusual and significant aspects of our concept’s design is a feature known as Apex Vision,” said designer Thomson. “A nod to Corvette’s centerline focus and inspired by the iconic ‘split window’ 1963 Chevrolet Corvette Sting Ray, this feature emphasizes a singular vertical central spine that is also a structural element, also providing a panoramic view of the road and surroundings.”

The concept itself is a product of 3D-printed, additive manufacturing. Inspired by aviation principles, the body is essentially an inverted aircraft wing that ― without tacked on spoilers and wings ― uses surfacing, dorsal fins, and venting to create downforce, sucking the car to the road.

Gull-wing doors open to a sparse, two-seat interior.

Corvette has a history of daring design dating back to the 1964 Duntov Mule, 1961 Mako Shark , 1964 CERV II and 1990 CERV III ― the latter pair foreshadowing the first mid-engined Corvette in 2020.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.

Detroit Grand Prix poster winner crowned

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 8, 2025

For years the Detroit Grand Prix has created lasting images of late race charges, wheel-to-wheel passes, and champagne-drenched victors.

It also has inspired a vault full of classic posters.

College for Creative Studies student Eli Archer won the 13^th annual Detroit Grand Prix Student Poster Competition this week with a creative image featuring a young woman waving checkered flags while roller-skating through downtown Detroit streets — the skates taking the form of IndyCar and IMSA Weathertech SportsCar Championship racers. The 20-year-old sophomore from Indiana won by a nose over fellow CCS student Robin Contreras.

“I just thought roller skating was a different way to incorporate the cars into the design,” said Archer, a native of Zionsville, Indiana, near Indianapolis Motor Speedway. “I wanted this poster to personify Detroit and reflect Detroit in the cars and the cars into the race.”

Five finalists from CCS — all students from the 18-member Digital Illustration class led by instructor Brian Kotulis — submitted their work to a distinguished panel of judges at the college’s A. Alfred Taubman Center for Design Education in downtown Detroit. The design competition has been synonymous with the Detroit GP since its inception as a Formula One race in 1982. For the past 13 years, it has featured a collaboration between the Grand Prix and CCS.

“We are so excited to celebrate the 13th year of our unique collaboration with CCS and we are honored to build on the tradition of the Official Grand Prix commemorative poster and provide opportunities for young talented artists to shine,” said Detroit GP Chairman Bud Denker, one of the contest judges. “Eli’s poster design captures the personality of Detroit, along with the fun and the excitement of the Grand Prix.”

In addition to Denker, judges included Raphael Zammit, chair of the Graduate Transportation Design program at CCS; Ryan Root, performance, motorsports and accessories designer for General Motors Co.; Erika Cryderman, senior marketing specialist for Lear Corporation; Bobby Keyes, vice president of the Detroit Sports Media Association; Neal Rubin, columnist for the Detroit Free Press, Genna Barner, page designer for The Detroit News; and Fox 2 Detroit news anchor and reporter Amy Lange.

Detroit GP fans also were heard as the final five designs were posted on social media, with their favorites factored into the judging process. Rounding out the podium after Archer and Contreras was third-place finisher Luca Olgren. Jacob Nguyen and David Klink earned honorable mention recognition for their designs.

Though an Indy native, Archer admitted he wasn’t a big racing race fan as a youth but said his grandfather’s passion was always present. His winning entry was the result of the sophomore’s own journey in learning more about motorsport.

“I’m so shocked to win this competition, especially seeing how strong the designs were from the other competitors,” he said. “This was such a fun process, and I really liked learning about the history of the Grand Prix and what it means to the city.”

Archer’s winning design will be refined over the next few weeks before the official poster is revealed Tuesday, May 6. This hands-on experience allows students to hone their business skills working with a “client” to produce a final product. In addition to the competitive experience, all five finalists will receive a small scholarship from the Chevrolet Detroit Grand Prix presented by Lear and the Detroit Sports Media Association.

The 2025 commemorative poster will be available for purchase online at DetroitGP.com as the GP’s May 30-June 1 dates approach.

The 35th Grand Prix event in the City’s history returns for the third year in a row on the 1.7-mile, nine-turn downtown circuit that circles the Renaissance Center. Tickets are available at DetroitGP.com/Tickets or through the event’s Ticket Hotline at 888-811-PRIX (7749).

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or Twitter @HenryEPayne.

Payne: All-wheelin’ Honda’s Passport to adventure

Posted by Talbot Payne on April 3, 2025

San Juan, Puerto Rico — Honda is more than an appliance maker. It has thrilled enthusiasts with racy motorbikes, Civic Type Rs, S2000 sports cars on road — dirt bikes, FourTrax ATVs, Talon side-by-sides off-road.

Now it has an armored, dirt-kicking SUV to tow them. Say hello to the rugged all-wheel-drive Passport SUV with standard orange tow hooks, hood rack, big back seat, 285-horse six-banger — even C-clamp headlights and PASSPORT logo stamping that would make a Ford F-series proud.

‘Bama made. Bam-bam looks.

Style matters. Sure, you say, Honda enthusiasts have towed bikes to the BMX track with Pilots and Ridgelines but they’ve looked soft compared to bruisers in the paddock next door. Jeep Grand Cherokees, Toyota 4Runners, Detroit pickups.

My 2026 Passport TrailSport tester looks like it just emerged from the ring after 12 rounds with a Grand Cherokee. Square haw, flared hood nostril, all-terrain tires, orange tow hooks, steel bash plates underneath. Built on the same platform as the terrific three-row Pilot TrailSport I scaled red rocks with in Sedona in ‘23, Passport duplicated its sibling’s off-road dexterity in the sun-kissed jungles of Puerta Rico near Humacao.

WHUMP! The reinforced rocker panels absorbed a hit from a mogul and I dangled in midair like a turtle on a tall rock, my wheels spinning. No worries; a fellow Honda traveler threw me a rope lifeline, wrapped it around the tow hooks and dragged me to safety. Note to adventure seekers: bring ropes and pals.

WHUMP! WHUMP! More hits followed along rutted trails. GRONCH! Hill descent control managed the brakes down steep, muddy descents. ROAR! The V-6 charged across a slope, the all-terrain, 31-inch General Grabber tires as sure-footed as Billy goats.

Passport takes the Pilot’s confidence, then turns up the dial on personality. And price.

Sensing white space in the midsize SUV segment as Americans have embraced off-road motoring and other brands — Hyundai, Kia, Chevy — have poured money into EVs (or just left the segment altogether like the Ford Edge), Honda has drawn a bead on segment icons Jeep and Toyota.

Puerta Rico (not unlike the Midwest) was crawling with Grand Cherokees and Toyota 4Runners with their usual blizzard of model trims. Grand Cherokee Summit, Grand Cherokee Altitude, 4Runner Pro, 4Runner Pro Sport, 4Runner Limited. Jeep Grand 4Runner Altitude Hellraiser Pro Donkey Kong!

Honda takes on this army with three similar, nicely equipped trims: RXL, TrailSport, TrailSport Elite. My TrailSport Elite tester braced for the challenge with familiar Honda tools: tech, room, reliability.

Beginning with its entry-level Civic, Honda has been aggressive about new technology. My Passport is loaded with standard features (including aforementioned items) like Google Built-in, blind-spot assist, adaptive cruise control with lane centering, wireless phone apps, 10-speed transmission, leather power-and-heated seats, and rooftop jacuzzi (kidding about that last part).

Complementing the tech is Honda’s upgraded interior ergonomics and materials. Gone are the days of hard plastics on the steering wheel and console. With the Passport’s elevated price comes elevated materials and frame-reinforced seats that were easy on the bones for my looooong island journeys.

The Honda lacks the interior personality of the sleek Jeep and chunky Toyota, but shows attention to detail to match its “Born Wild” mission. Antennas and tailpipes are hidden to avoid off-road scrapes. Doors are configured for deep thermoses. The tablet touchscreen makes satisfying, Audi-like clicking sounds. Interior controls allow you to keep your eyes on the road with beefy climate knobs and raised toggles on the steering wheel.

These features are wrapped in acres of space.

Passport leapfrogs its rivals with best-in-class rear-seat room: There’s a basketball player-friendly 41 inches of legroom. Compare that to 38 inches for the Grand Cherokee and a tight 35 inches for the pickup-based 4Runner.

Where 4Runner excels, of course is its 48 cubic feet of cargo space out back where sister Tacoma’s pickup bed would be — a yawning advantage over Grand’s 37 cubic feet. Passport’s determined to maximize this space.

The hero of this play is Honda chief exterior designer Randall Smock and his design team. If Subaru takes design inspiration from running shoes for its rugged look, then Honda wandered over to the backpack aisle. The result? A squared-off hatchback that will swallow a rhino. Or at least two bicycles (wheels removed). There is 44 cubic feet of space in all.

The backpack complements the bull-nosed front end and its improved 23 inch-approach angle for off-roading. Or just navigating mean streets.

San Juan’s Avenue Isla Verde has the biggest speed bumps I’ve ever seen. They should have signs that read: WARNING: MOUNTAIN CROSSING. My Passport fearlessly attacked the urban hills — the independent rear suspension nicely cushioning the vertical hop — an advantage over solid-rear-axle beasts like 4Runner. When traffic backed up, I nailed the V-6 and the buttery 10-speed transmission helped me vault the congestion.

Like Jeep, Honda has heard from customers that 6-cylinders = premium, and they’ve resisted the urge to downsize to a sippier 4-banger.

I was more careful off-road. Though its underbelly is heavily armed with steel plates, Passport’s bold jaw is more exposed. But it’s not made of glass.

The short front end managed a series of steep inclines with ease. More fun is the all-wheel-drive system. True to its mission of offering a daily driver with off-road capability, the AWD Honda doesn’t offer a low-speed transfer case like Jeep/Toyota. But it does offer torque vectoring. Ooooooh.

Off-roaders and Michigan winter warriors take note.

Twin clutch packs can sling up to 100% of traction from one rear wheel to the other depending on need. This is the kind of stuff that used to be exclusive to Audis and track hellions like the (sorely missed) Ford Focus RS.

Climb your driveway and hit an icy patch? The clutches will send traction to the grippier tire so you don’t lose momentum. I watched this in real time on Puerto Rico’s trails when a TrailSport in front of me lifted his right rear tire completely off the ground — and the suspended tire stopped spinning as all torque went to the grounded tire. Acura has used twin clutch packs; now Honda is in on the premium game.

Torque vectoring is particularly useful in Puerto Rico sand — or in The Sandbox at Holly Oaks ORV Park in Oakland County.  Take the family, explore the park, climb trails … then pull out the (optional) picnic table in back and have lunch.

The table is decorated (more attention to detail) in the same topographical relief as Honda’s Barstow, California, off-road Baja racing grounds. A nice conversation piece when Honda motorbike riders drop by. Or when you take the ute to a football tailgate.

Passport is comfortable in both worlds.

2026 Honda Passport

Vehicle type: Front-engine, all-wheel-drive, five-passenger SUV

Price: $46,200, including $1,495 destination fee ($53,900 TrailSport Elite as tested)

Powerplant: 3.5-liter V-6

Power: 285 horsepower, 262 pound-feet of torque

Transmission: 10-speed automatic

Performance: 0-60 mph, 6.0 seconds (Car and Driver est.); towing, 5,000 pounds

Weight: 4,705 pounds (as tested)

Fuel economy: EPA est. mpg 19 city/25 highway/21 combined (RTL); 18 city/23 highway/20 combined (TrailSport)

Report card

Highs: Bold looks; loaded with tech ‘n’ room

Lows: No front skid plate; pricey

Overall: 4 stars

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Plugged in: GMC Sierra EV pickup expands its offerings

Posted by Talbot Payne on March 30, 2025

The electric GMC Sierra pickup lineup is picking up.

Battery-powered vehicle sales growth has slowed to a crawl in the United States, but General Motors Co. is full-speed ahead on its transition to an all-EV maker — especially in premium segments. Cadillac has completed its full EV lineup from Optiq to Escalade IQ, and now GMC is expanding its electric truck lineup beyond the $92k Denali model introduced last year to cheaper trims.

With deliveries this summer, the 2026 GMC Sierra EV will be available in entry-level $64,495 Elevation trim and as an $81,395 AT4 off-road model. The Denali sub-brand alone sold 1,788 units in 2024 and will expand its offerings for the new model year.

2026 GMC Sierra EV Elevation and Denali trims join the truck lineup.

GM, GM

The Sierra EV lineup is aimed at upscale truck buyers and its model walk parallels trims available for the internal-combustion-engine Sierra lineup. However, Sierra EV does not include entry-level work truck grades Pro and SLE, which start at $39k with ICE powertrains. Typical of electrics, the well-contented Elevation EV trim will start about $13k above the comparable Elevation ICE product.

“With these additional trims and customer options, the Sierra EV is positioned right in the heart of the premium truck market,” said GMC/Buick Global Vice President Jaclyn McQuaid. “The combination of Elevation, AT4 and Denali represent the most popular expressions of Sierra, accounting for more than two-out-of-three of all Sierra light-duty sales.”

GMC sits above Chevrolet as the General’s premium truck brand and it was first to jump on the electric pickup bandwagon with the 2022 Hummer EV.

The 2026 GMC Sierra EV Elevation trim starts at just over $64k and will be the gateway to the brand’s EV trucks.

Ryan Abernathy, GM

Chevy followed with a 2024 Silverado EV before the Sierra Denali EV was rolled out. All three trucks are based on the same Ultium battery platform. Like Sierra, the Silverado EV lineup expanded last year, building on its entry-level $57,095 Work Truck and top-line $97,896 RST.

GM’s bullish moves on EVs come as crosstown rival Ford Motor Co. has pulled back on production of its Lightning EV pickup in the face of cooling demand. Even EV pioneer Tesla Inc. — which anticipated production of 250,000 units a year of its Cybertruck pickup – has seen sales fall short at 38,965 units delivered in 2024.

Sierra ICE pickups offer multiple drivetrains, and the expanded Sierra EV lineup will feature three battery options: Standard Range, Extended Range, and Max Range battery.

The Elevation trim will be available with a Standard or Extended Range battery, while the off-road oriented AT4 offers Extended or Max Range battery. The Denali trim will offer all three battery options. GMC said range estimates would be announced closer to launch, but expect range to track that of the Silverado EV series, which boasts 408 miles for the Extended Range 170 kWh battery and up to 496 miles for the 205 kWh Max battery.

The 2026 Sierra EV Elevation starts with signature GMC features including a 16.8-inch console touchscreen, front trunk (so-called eTrunk), versatile MultiPro Tailgate and 18-inch wheels. Options include hands-free Super Cruise drive assist and a removable MultiPro MidGate, which enables hauling, say, boards up to 11 feet long.

The 2026 GMC Sierra EV gets a dirt-kickin’, off-road AT4 trim with rear-wheel-steer, two-inch suspension lift, and optional midgate.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

Like its Canyon and Sierra ICE siblings, Sierra EV adds a dirt-kicking AT4 model to its tree-hugging resume.

The big, off-road focused EV builds on Elevation trim specs with a lifted (by two inches) coil suspension and 35-inch all-terrain tires. It will also feature a trim-exclusive Terrain Mode, designed, GMC says, “to provide maximum maneuverability, torque, and precise control off-road, and integrated with one-pedal drive and automatic braking.”

Key to that maneuverability are tools seen on the Hummer like four-wheel-steer and Crab Walk mode that help the truck navigate tight spots.

AT4 will come standard with Super Cruise driving-assist capability and can tow up to 12,300 pounds. Tests by TFLTruck.com indicate the Ultium platform can tow with about a 50% range loss that is comparable to gas-powered trucks — though the Sierra EV’s charging gain of 100 miles in 10 minutes pales compared to a fuel pump.

AT4 options include a 10.2 kW onboard power system that feeds 240-volt and 120-volt bed outlets.

Outfitted with the Standard battery, the top-drawer Sierra EV Denali starts at $71,795 — significantly below the $92k 2025 model that was only available with a Max battery.

Ford’s F-150 Lightning Platinum is a GMC Sierra EV competitor. Ford has scaled back production of its electric truck as demand has failed to meet expectations. Ford Motor Co.

True to the Denali’s reputation, the interior gets the royal treatment with standard heated/ventilated seats and Super Cruise. Extras include four-wheel steer, pillow-soft air suspension and a panoramic sunroof.

Sierra EV color choices grow, too, including Summit White, Glacier White, Coastal Dune, Deep Bronze, Magnus Matte, Onyx Black, Deep Ocean, Dark Ember, and Thunderstorm Gray. You’ll know the AT4 by its illuminated red front badge.

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

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Payne: Cruising in Caddy’s blue, electric Optiq living room

Posted by Talbot Payne on March 30, 2025

San Francisco — Twenty-five years from now at the Woodward Dream Cruise, the Cadilac Optiq will get noticed. Blingstastic Caddies are back.

If the electric Tesla Model 3/Y is obsessed with Apple-like simplicity (look, Ma, no steering wheel stalks), then the Caddy is a celebration of good ol’ fashioned American glitz. If Model Y is Frank Lloyd Wright, then Optiq is Fox Theatre.  One is Rothco, the other Rubens. Simple Y vs. exotic Optiq.

Optiq wants to be noticed. It’s the cure for the common Tesla.

After all, it’s the entry-level vehicle of an electric brand whose patriarch is the ultimate blingmeister: the ginormous Escalade IQ. In an electric luxury segment defined by pioneer Tesla, America’s most iconic luxury brand wants to take it back for good ol’ American swagger. It’s great to see the automaker that invented the fin-tailed Eldorado leaning into its ol’ luxury self.ye

Shield grille, vertical LED headlights, split vertical taillights, raked windshield, graphic-etched C-pillar, 21-inch tires. Optiq is uniq.

Here in the birthplace of Tesla, the Optiq’s features shadow the Model Y’s every move. Locked in traffic on I-580 north of Berkeley, I engaged Super Cruise and crawled along hands-free in paralyzing Bay Area traffic, using the idle time to glance at email and texts. I say glance because the Cadilac still demands that you maintain attention via a camera mounted on the steering column. For good reason.

Though surrounded by a moat of radar (five front, five rear) and camera sensors, hands-free systems ain’t perfect. Aggressive commuters cut in and out of traffic. A Honda cut across my bow, then exited to the right lane. After it passed, the Cadillac sped up to close the gap in front of me. Too fast. I hit the brakes to prevent the Caddy from SLAMMING them on when it realized another wall of traffic loomed. On such subtleties are humans superior.

GM’s Super Cruise has been superior to Tesla’s Autopilot, forcing the latter to catch up with hands-free driving utilizing a similar camera monitoring system. The Caddy still lags Tesla’s navigation skills, however, and the Optiq — unlike Tesla — won’t navigate to my interstate exit across the Bay Bridge.

I surveyed the roomy cabin around me, and it is impressive. While I find the exterior a tad busy, the Optiq’s interior designers should win a Home & Garden award.

Mrs. Payne swooned when I texted her a picture of my leather & felt blue interior. Like any modern upscale living room, Otpiq has lots of space (best-in-compact-class rear legroom and cargo area) and is engorged with technology.

Jumbotron screen? Check out the 33-inch dash display. Intuitive remote and touchscreen controls? Check. Computer tablet? Check. I dragged my most-used icons around the infotainment display home screen. Alexa device? Check. Hey, Google, tell me a joke.

What is a bunny rabbit’s favorite kind of music? Hip hop.

Stereo? Check, 19 AKG speakers littered about the cabin. Dolby Atmos? Check.

Wait, what? Dolby Atmos?

Yes, Atmos, the cutting-edge sound system like you see you in big cineplexes. Like Mercedes and Lucid, Cadillac has worked with the San Francisco-based audio icon to bring a curated sound space to Optiq like a movie theater. The successor to Surround Sound, Dolby’s “object-based,” 3D audio system enables technicians to remix music tracks and separate individual instruments — vocals, drums — then place them around you as if you were in the midst of a studio recording.

On the Amazon Music app (Apple, Tidal also available. Spotify, Sirius XM coming.), I scrolled a playlist and selected Queen’s classic “Bohemian Rhapsody.” Freddie Mercury vocals up front, drums in back, chorus in middle. I found everything from the B-52s’ “Love Shack” to Ray Charles’ “Fever” available in Atmos. Remixed, fresh. Cool.

What’s that, you ask? How does the Optiq drive?

The Cadillac is better understood as a rolling living room than a corner carver. Like I said, Cadillac has rediscovered its luxury roots. Want an athlete? Buy a 4,200-pound CT5-V Series and take it to Hell (Michigan) and back. It’s a treat.

The Optiq? Not so much. With an 85-kWh hour battery under the floorboards, the entry-level EV weighs a whopping 25% more — 1,000 pounds — than CT5. The weight increase mirrors the whopping $13,000 sticker hike over the gas-powered XT4 SUV as Cadillac electrifies its prices.

I felt Optiq’s girth climbing twisty Route 1 north of San Francisco along the Pacific coast. The heavy chassis wallowed through an S-turn before I punched the throttle, accessing 354 pound-feet-of torque. ZOT! I shot downhill to a hairpin turn and — Whoa! Bessie, whoa!

The two-and-half ton ox skidded and clawed at the pavement with all-season tires. Corner survived. This is a Woodward Dream Cruiser, all right. Gobs of straight-line acceleration out of stoplights, but when the country calls … settle back into the blue couch, spin the jewel-encrusted rotary dial, select REGEN for one-pedal driving, and turn up Atmos.

And turn down arrival expectations.

With 150 miles of charge on the battery, I navigated from the lush grasslands of Inverness, California on Route 1 to Los Angeles — a 415-mile trip. Unlike, say, its retiring, 477-mile range XT4 peer, Optiq can’t make the journey on a single five-minute stop. The Caddy’s 302-mile range requires three (reminder: it’s most efficient to charge to 80% rather than the full 100% like an ICE).

Those three stops would add another 70 minutes to the seven-hour journey. Buy Optiq for its serene driving experience around the metro area, then plan road trips with charger-stop breaks for lunch, etc. Tesla’s secret sauce is its charging network, and now that GM has access to Tesla chargers, it helps assuage range anxiety with its superb software.

Wherever I drove around the Bay Area, the Caddy’s Google Built-nav system was Tesla’s equal in locating chargers (though beware less reliable networks like EVGo and Electrify America where chargers are often broken).

Arrive at a charger and the graceful Optiq is less coordinated than Tesla. Its charge port is behind the front wheel, meaning you can’t just back up to, say, a Tesla Supercharger and slip the lightweight NACS connector into the port. The Caddy requires some muscle to — not only stretch the cable to the middle of the car — but also to attach the bulky CCS charger.

GM is building more gas station-like chargers and plans to outfit future EVs with the NACS port. But in a competitive ICE vs. EV marketplace, buyers want the future to be now.

In a quarter-century, Cruisers will honor 2025 as the year Cadillac transformed to a full-line EV brand. Optiq is electriq.

Next week: 2026 Honda Passport Trailsport

2025 Cadillac Optiq

Vehicle type: Battery-powered, all-wheel-drive, five-passenger SUV

Price: $54,390, including $1,495 destination fee ($60,115 Sport 2 as tested)

Powerplant: 85 kWh lithium-ion battery with twin electric-motor drive

Power: 300 horsepower, 354 pound-feet torque

Transmission: Single-speed direct drive

Performance: 0-60 mph, 5.2 seconds (Car and Driver est.); trailering capacity, 1,500 pounds.; top speed, 112 mph

Weight: 5,192 pounds (base)

Fuel economy: EPA MPGe NA; range, 302 miles

Report card

Highs: Posh, high-tech interior; Google Built-in electric navigation

Lows: Heavy; gateway starting price over $50K

Overall: 3 stars

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

Payne: Stop! Hey, what’s that sound? It’s Dolby Atmos’ 3D audio, moving from Emagine to Cadillac

Posted by Talbot Payne on March 24, 2025

Canton Township and San Francisco — Motown has long been a source of great cars and entertainment. So it’s only fitting that Metro Detroit-based Cadillac and Emagine theaters are on the cutting edge of sound.

Premium brands in their respective industries, Warren-based Cadillac and Troy’s Emagine Entertainment have deployed Dolby Atmos, the hot thing from the San Francisco-based audio wizards. General Motors Co.’s luxury brand is introducing the object-based audio system — joining competitors Mercedes-Benz AG and Lucid Motors — into its new electric vehicle lineup, beginning with the entry-level 2025 Optiq.

The curated cabin experience will be familiar to Emagine moviegoers. The ninth-biggest movie chain in the United States, Emagine was one of the first to introduce Atmos over a decade ago.

San Francisco – In Dolby Lab’s Atmos theater at its San Francisco HQ, Dolby introduces the partnership between the audio company and Cadillac in bringing Atmos into its luxury vehicles.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

Experience Disney’s latest release, “Snow White,” in Emagine’s biggest-in-Michigan, 95-foot screen, 74-speaker, Super EMAX Canton theater and birds chirp overhead while Snow sings in the forest. Or view Warner Brothers’ new movie “Mickey 17” in another Emagine Atmos theater where characters appear to speak from theater seats, putting ticket-holders in the center of the action.

Drive an Atmos-equipped, 19-speaker Cadillac Optiq, select Queen’s rock ‘n’ roll classic “Bohemian Rhapsody,” and you’ll hear it like never before. Lead singer Freddie Mercury belts out vocals from the dashboard:

Easy come, easy go, will you let me go?

A piano plays from the rear seat, then the chorus hovers in the middle of the cabin:

No, we will not let you go!

Sopranos in back:

Let him goooooooo!

Freddie up front:

Mama Mia! Mama Mia!

It’s a fresh, immersive, 21st-century digital remix of a 1975 song inside a 2025 EV.

“A couple years ago, Dolby introduced us to Dolby Atmos music,” Optiq Chief Engineer John Cockburn said. “There were Grammy Award-winning mixing engineers there, and it became very clear to us that the whole music industry was transitioning into this recording format.”

Atmos is best understood as three-dimensional sound, where audio engineers use Dolby digital tools to separate sounds — vocals, drums, guitars, airplanes, race cars, and so on — into three-dimensional objects that can be moved individually through space. Simply put, sound is no longer limited to a specific speaker.

“I could do a cinema analogy,” said Cockburn, sitting inside an Optiq outside Dolby’s San Francisco headquarters. “It would be like a helicopter flying over your head, and you can hear that helicopter moving through space. The musicians are doing the same thing.”

Emagine has been flying helicopters over moviegoers’ heads since it installed its first Atmos system in one of its Royal Oak theaters in 2013. Like Cadillac, it was introduced to Atmos at an industry trade show.

At Emagine Entertainment’s Canton cinneplex, the 95-foot screen Super EMAX theater uses Dolby Atmos. CEO Paul Glantz reads from a cue screen in a theater ad promoting the technology.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

“I thought it was really cool, and that we had to get on board with this,” said Emagine CEO Paul Glantz, standing in the middle of Canton’s 300-seat Super IMAX theater. “We were a very early adopter and one of the first 100 installations in the world.”

Atmos is the latest in a decades-long evolution of theater technology, beginning with the introduction of stereo in the late 1940s, said Emagine Chief Entertainment Technologist Tom Ruhling. Surround Sound — which equipped theaters with front, side and rear speakers (or “channels,” to use industry jargon) — followed, debuting in 1979 with Francis Ford Coppola’s Vietnam epic, “Apocalypse Now.

“We saw society trends, and we boldly went there,” said Cadillac’s Cockburn. “We are creating a luxury experience.”

So, too, is Emagine, which has grown since its 1997 founding to become one of the biggest theater chains in the country, with 28 Midwest locations across Michigan, Indiana, Illinois, Wisconsin and Minnesota. In 2005, it was the first theater chain to adopt all-digital projection.

The 19-speaker cabin in the 2025 Cadillac Optiq uses the 7.1.4 channel Dolby Atmos standard to play music in a 3D form.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

Curating an Atmos environment requires creating a 360-degree sound field by coordinating Dolby’s processors and software with an array of speakers. Upgrading from last-generation Surround Sound, Atmos speakers pepper the auditorium on front/side/rear walls — and, inherent to Atmos — hanging like bats from the ceiling.

“An Atmos system brings the addition of height with ceiling speakers,” Ruhling said. “Audio objects can then be moved anywhere in the theater, adding effect and realism.”

Movie studios use Dolby’s digital tools to mix movie soundtracks that maximize the new hardware arrays.

In the case of the automobile, Cadillac not only worked with Dolby on speaker placement (a so-called 7.1.4 system made up of seven surround channels, subwoofer and four high channels) but coordinated with music services that support the Atmos format.

Emagine Entertainment CEO Paul Glantz has been an industry pioneer in using Dolby Atmos in his theaters.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

“(Dolby engineers) connected us to top recording engineers and mixers so we could learn exactly what the creative side is thinking,” Cockburn said. “From there, we knew … we needed to create an actual studio environment in the car. We know where people are sitting.”

Amazon Music, Apple Music and TIDAL are the first streaming services to offer Atmos music as studios mix not just new tracks but older music, too. Cadillac has embedded the Amazon app in Optiq SUVs so customers can take advantage of the fast-growing library of Atmos songs. Meanwhile, Dolby is working with other streaming services so they, too, can deliver Atmos songs.

Inside Dolby Laboratory’s 63,000-square-foot San Francisco headquarters, Grammy Award-nominated recording engineer and Universal Music Group’s Director of Audio Engineering Nick Rives demonstrated how engineers mix a song in a 7.1.4 channel Atmos studio. Dolby sells its Atmos tools to record labels, movie studios, auto companies and other professionals to perfect Atmos for different environments.

Ultimately, Dolby’s biggest audience is home theater systems from which customers can enjoy the Atmos 7.1.4 experience from their couch. In addition to music streaming services, video streaming services Netflix, Disney Plus and Apple TV Plus are compatible with Atmos.

Dolby Atmos fits the Cadillac brand’s history of tech innovation. The 2025 Cadillac Optiq also employs hands-free Super Cruise.

Henry Payne, The Detroit News

“It’s a brilliant move by Dolby to move into cars as well as theaters,” said Glantz, “because ultimately, the real value is to sell consumers in the home.”

Auto and movie theater environments scale the 7.1.4 format for their own multi-speaker environments.

“We recently took an Optiq to the National Association of Music Merchants (trade show), which is a who’s who of the recording industry,” said Cadillac’s Cockburn. “Surprise! Why is there a car here? Because most people hear music in the car. We’re getting a resounding response (from the recording industry) about what we had created.”

After the now-on-sale Optiq, Cadillac plans to expand Atmos into the rest of its EV lineup, which also comes standard with hands-free Super Cruise driver-assist tech.

“When you have Dolby Atmos playing and Super Cruise is going down the road, the traffic doesn’t matter anymore,” grinned Cockburn. “It is such a luxury experience.”

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

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Payne: Across the American safari in old school Ineos dirt-kickers

Posted by Talbot Payne on March 20, 2025

Aspen, Colorado — With snow piled three feet on either side of a mountain trail, I punched twin ceiling buttons to activate front/rear differential lockers on my 2025 Ineos Grenadier tester. GRRRRRRRR! With all four wheels churning in unison in low gear, the British beast charged across the white landscape.

Grenadier may have been born to take on the arid grasslands of Africa, but this Brit feels right at home in America.

For generations, we Yanks have fallen in love with English-made Land Rover 4x4s featured in the movie “Born Free,” National Geographic documentaries and African safari trips. The boxy, rugged, lovable Grenadier is a Rover for a new generation of adventure-seekers.

Grenadier is as familiar as a brawny Jeep Wrangler, as exotic as the BMW drivetrain under its hood, as quirky as a pith-helmeted safari guide. Indeed, it was inspired by Ineos chairman and adventure-seeker Sir Jim Ratcliffe and his safaris with veteran South African guide Charles Van Rensburg. The two friends mourned the passing of the iconic, ladder-framed, solid-axle Land Rover Defender in 2016 (which was finally succeeded by a softer, unibody, independent-suspension SUV in 2020).

The pair brainstormed a Rover replacement that could not only deflect charging elephant tusks on Botswana expeditions (Van Rensburg told me this happens a couple times a year) but also wow U.S. luxury buyers with a hip daily driver. Marshaling the capital resources of petrochemical giant Ineos Group Ltd., billionaire Ratcliffe sought to recreate the Defender to repopulate African safari fleets — and global garages.

The result is Grenadier — a Jeep with an English accent, powered by a German BMW inline-6, and loaded with Ratcliffe’s personality.

Appropriately, this gas-swiggin’, upscale Wrangler has a sibling, the Quartermaster pickup that echoes Jeep’s Gladiator.

I flogged both all over Aspen’s Rocky Mountains and they performed like they had lived there as long as imported European draft horses. Like the World War II-born Jeep and Land Rovers, Grenadier and Quartermaster take their names from English military tradition.

The twins differ only in that the Quartermaster sports a 5.1-foot box out back and reduced rear-seat legroom — in keeping with the cramped back seats of midsize competitors like the GMC Canyon AT4, Chevy Colorado ZR2 and Ford Ranger Raptor.

Step up into Grenadier’s cockpit 10.5 inches off the ground and drop into a WW2 Lancaster aircraft. A waterfall of switches, buttons and dials roll down the console controlling climate, radio, altimeter and more. Altimeter? Yes, the round gauge registered 9,532 feet in the Rockies.

Ratcliffe is also an avid sailor, so naturally the dash is bracketed by red and green hash marks designating, respectively, port and starboard in accordance with maritime colors. Aye aye, Captain.

Overhead are more buttons and switches to manage the aforementioned off-road tools as well as external add-ons like winches and lights. Screens? You get one — atop the dash like a piece of bread that just popped out of a toaster. The Ineos is simple, quirky, mechanical, cool.

I awoke the Lancaster bomber — er, SUV — with an old-fashioned turn-key and thought about running down the airplane checklist with my co-pilot.

Four-wheel drive?

Check.

Altimeter?

Check.

Center differential?

Check.

Twin 12-volt batteries under the rear seat in case one expires in the bush?

Check.

BMW monostable shifter?

Check. What the-?

A small-volume automaker, Ineos shopped for a third-party engine with performance, reliability, brand cache. Cue the 3.0-liter, 281-horsepower, 331-torque, turbocharged inline-6 cylinder ubiquitous in BMWs and paired with that eight-speed automatic monostable shifter. It stands out like a greyhound in a horse barn.

It works. WAAAUHGGHGH! The automatic flicked off buttery shifts up a Rocky Mountain four-lane. More importantly, the monostable quickly engages NEUTRAL so you can engage the big, black transfer-care shifter and shove it into LOW when:

– a blizzard blows in out of nowhere- an off-road trail calls- you need to ford 30 inches of water.

The monostable is accompanied by a rotary BMW-like iDrive dial, which comes in handy when you are heaving over off-road moguls, rendering the touchscreen useless. Bimmer details aide, the Grenadier/Quartermaster exudes testosterone.

The front bumper is made in three pieces so that if — you know, an elephant tusk tears off a corner, then the whole bumper won’t fall off. The steel hood and roof support 350 pounds in case you want to climb up the rear ladder (or pickup bed) and survey the Serengeti while your three Labrador Retrievers nap on the warm hood.

The doors feature MOLLE webbing (as does the cargo bay) so your safari guide can hang baggage off the side. The 17-inch steely wheels (18s optional) are wrapped in 32-inch all-terrain tires so you can survive Colorado creek beds — and Detroit potholes. Then there’s a recessed handle above each of the four doors so you can strap down equipment, Christmas trees, and safari trophy kills to the roof.

More clever features abound like the 30-70 rear cabinet doors, so you can just open one side when you are, say, trailering the Ineo’s 7,716-pound limit. Peek under the Ineos and it wears bright red underwear — the color of its ladder frame.

At 6’7” tall, Grenadier has no more ambition to pull corner g-loads than your kitchen toaster. And its Wrangler-like solid axles mean it has all the on-road driving verve of a tractor. With just 15 mpg fuel economy, the three-ton rhino will need to visit a watering hole every 355 miles.

As its dimensions suggest, Grenadier focuses on offering utilitarian — not performance — upgrades.

A smorgasbord of options are available for all three trims — base Station Wagon, Fieldmaster and Trailmaster. Options include twin sunroofs, snorkel, roof racks, hood pads (so your Labs don’t slip) and shovel. Its 115-foot wheelbase is competitive with Jeeps and old Defenders — not only good for breakover angles off-road, but also for urban parking.

Alas, safety goodies like blind-spot assist and adaptive cruise control are unavailable in keeping with its simplicity theme (finding a service station that can fix electronics is a bear in the African jungle) — but will be missed in the urban jungle. The good news is the same big, square windows Grenadier needs for safari visibility also aid urban visibility.

And Sir Jim has equipped the Grenadier with a secondary red TOOT button on the steering wheel so that you can politely warn a bicyclist that you’re coming without leaning into the horn.

How very British. And very welcome to the American safari.

Next week: 2025 Cadillac Optiq

2025 Ineos Grenadier and Quartermaster

Vehicle type: Front-engine, four-wheel-drive, five-passenger SUV and pickup

Price: $76,700, including $1,600 destination fee (Grenadier); $85,500, including $1,600 destination fee (Quartermaster)

Power plant: 3.0-liter, turbocharged, inline-6 cylinder

Power: 281 horsepower, 331 pound-feet of torque

Transmission: Eight-speed manual

Performance (Grenadier): 0-60 mph, 7.3 seconds (Car and Driver); towing; 7,716 pounds;. top speed: 99 mph

Performance (Quartermaster): 0-60 mph, 8.6 seconds (Car and Driver est.); towing, 7,716 pounds; payload, 1,889 pounds; top speed: 99 mph

Weight: 5,901 pounds (Grenadier as tested); 5,900-6,000 pounds (Quartermaster, est.)

Fuel economy: EPA est. 15 mpg city/15 mpg highway/15 mpg combined (Grenadier); 14 mpg city/14 mpg highway/14 mpg combined (Quartermaster)

Report card

Highs: Retro safari looks, off-road capability

Lows: Handles like a water buffalo on-road; tight Quartermaster rear legroom

Overall: 4 stars

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.

How Ineos got a gas-fired, startup automaker off the ground

Posted by Talbot Payne on March 19, 2025

Aspen, Colorado — The early 21^st century auto market has experienced a flurry of startup automakers not seen in a century. Following in the footsteps of Tesla Inc., new battery-powered vehicle makers have been inspired by a new electric market, government EV mandates, and fat taxpayer subsidies.

Startup, internal-combustion-engine-fired automaker Ineos Automotive Ltd. is an exception.

The Brit brand sees an opportunity in a different niche market as it brings its straight-6-cylinder-powered Grenadier SUV and Quartermaster pickup to the ring in the hot, premium, off-road segment competing against heavyweights like Land Rover Defender, GMC Canyon AT4, Jeep Wrangler Rubicon and Ford Bronco Raptor.

Like its fresh-faced EV peers, Ineos is jumping into the world’s most ferociously competitive consumer market with a team of risk-takers who believe their product offers a unique answer to consumer needs. The Ineos story is one of overcoming the mountain-sized hurdles of design, funding, manufacturing, marketing and regulation.

“If it were easy everyone would be doing it. We see a lot of people try and fail and I can completely see why,” said Lynn Calder, Ineos’ 45-year old, Scottish-born CEO in an interview. “It’s an extremely complex business that has probably never been as complex as it is right now.”

Unlike its EV peers, Ineos entered the market the old-fashioned way: without government assistance, without the need to build its own fueling infrastructure, and with faith in the traditional franchise dealer market to connect with customers.

“Electric is having its moment, and it’s got its place in the mix of powertrain needs for the customer, but I don’t think it’s everything,” Calder added. “We see an opportunity for a pure-blood, very mechanical, very capable off-road vehicle that (is) different than all the other cars on the road.”

Ineos’ journey stated a decade ago with petrochemical industrial billionaire and adventure seeker Sir Jim Ratcliffe talking with veteran South African guide Charles Van Rensburg about the void created by Land Rover when it discontinued its truck-based, off-road vehicle. The rugged Defender (reborn in 2020 as a unibody SUV) was the cornerstone of African safari adventures.

“We could see the gap in the market as vehicles were stepping away from that pure, go-anywhere 4×4,” said Ratcliffe’s son, George, who resides in New Jersey as Ineos’ president of the Americas. “Everyone was moving to SUVs and becoming street-only cars. That was the seed of our idea.”

The Grenadier SUV was born in its namesake — the Grenadier Pub in London — a favorite hangout of the Ratcliffes and Ineos employees. The dirt-kicker’s distinctive, macho shape was then penned in 2018 by famed yacht designer and Ratcliffe pal Toby Ecuyer. Ineos survived a lawsuit from Land Rover in 2020 claiming the company had stolen its boxy design, then bought an assembly plant from Mercedes in the eastern French city of Hambach.

The idea for the 2025 Ineos Grenadier was birthed in the Grenadier Pub in England by Ineos Chairman Sir Jim Ratcliffe, an avid safari adventurer. Henry Payne, The Detroit News

With Magna International Inc. (which also makes the Mercedes G-Class and Jaguar i-Pace in Europe) as its industrial partner, BMW AG providing engines and ZF providing gearboxes, Ineos set out to sell in 50 markets with an eye on the biggest prize: the USA.

“The heritage of our story, the entrepreneurial aspect to it” has real appeal, said CEO Calder, noting iconic auto executives in the United States like Henry Ford and Elon Musk. “Sir Jim Ratcliffe funded this, designed it, developed it. This is his car. And I think Americans really champion entrepreneurs that do really cool things and stick their neck out and succeed. I think that really resonates in the U.S.”

On paper, the business model had back story, business partners and secure funding from Ineos’s parent petrochemical company. “Ineos appeals to bus boys and billionaires. It offers a tough mage even if it never goes off-road,” said Allison Worldwide auto analyst Rebecca Lindland, herself a veteran of Fisker Automotive’s (failed) EV startup. “Magna has consistently built high-quality vehicles.”

Calder smiled: “That was the easy part.”

The Scot joined the Ineos automotive team as CEO in late 2022 as the brand struggled to organize production. A university-trained economist, Calder had extensive experience in private equity and nine years as CEO of Ineos’ composites subsidiary.

“It’s systems, it’s people, it’s relationships,” she said. “Everyone thinks it’s about getting the system to deliver the right part at the right time. But if you don’t have your supply base knowing what you are trying to achieve, and you don’t communicate with them sufficiently? You need to build relationships and spend time.”

That meant consolidating a diaspora of Ineos employees — supply team in Germany, buyers in Portugal — to join production workers at Hambach’s “coal face,” Calder’s English slang for vehicle assembly.

She also made the decision — against the industry trend — to distribute Ineos vehicles through traditional dealer networks. As other luxury startups like Tesla, Lucid Motors and Rivian Automotive Inc. pursued innovative, in-house retail outlets, industry consultants told Ineos that manufacturer-led distribution was the future.

“BMW, Mercedes, everyone was going to it,” Calder said. “Whereas we had the chance to come in from the ground up. It was a persuasive argument, it was of its time. But we just learned that it is not the right thing to do.”

Ineos has built a network of 30 franchise dealers in the United States, including in Michigan, where Feldman Automotive Group has opened a dealership in Waterford Township. Calder said U.S. demand has been strong, already accounting for 60% of global sales.

“Where we are really excelling is in the U.S. where traditional dealers know how to sell cars,” said Ineos’ chief. “They do it very well, they look after their customers really well.”

Coupled with distribution, Ineos also had to put in place a marketing plan so its voice could be heard above the cacophony of multi-million-dollar consumer ad campaigns. That was not an easy ask of a petrochemical giant, a company that had made its fortune in business-to-business sales.

“The world needs to understand just how complex (the auto) industry is compared to B2B,” said Calder, noting that Ineos’ only other consumer ventures were a small cleaning supplies company and a sportswear maker. “It’s great that we are manufacturing a car, but if nobody knows where we are, nobody is going to buy it. We are learning a new trade, a new, magic black art of marketing.”

In an industry where big players spend “a few hundred million a year” on brand advertising, Calder said Ineos has focused on targeted social media and sponsoring events like Olympic superstar Shaun White’s Snow League pro snowboard competition.

Hanging over these complex operational details is the constantly shifting climate of government regulation and trade policy.

“It’s insane. It’s important for the industry to be regulated, (but) there is something about this particular industry that has gone a bit mad,” Calder said of, in particular, European emissions regulations that are on target to ban internal-combustion engines like that used by Ineos by 2035 — with the United Kingdom threatening a 2030 ban.

“The policy is all wrong. In Europe and the UK right now they want it to be one-size-fits-all, and it’s breaking the industry and it’s not doing consumers any favors.”

The regulatory environment means Ineos — as well as its petrochemical parent that is also under pressure from regulators — has to divert resources to government lobbying. But Calder said it’s the “consumer that speaks at the end of the day. My view is the government stance in Europe . . . is not 10 years in the future, it is tomorrow, relatively speaking. And they are going to have to accept it’s just not going to happen.”

She takes solace in the transition to President Donald Trump in the United States, Ineos’ biggest market, and the move towards deregulation. But the Trump administration’s tariff policies brings other challenges.

“(Tariffs are) a huge worry particularly the levels (Trump) is talking about. We could absorb (a small) tariff giving the size of this market. But the levels that have been imposed on Mexico and Canada — which are in line with the ‘chicken tax’ — would basically mean our cars would be dis-incentivized,” she said. The chicken tax is the 25% tariff the United States already levies on imports of light-duty trucks from outside North America; Ineos is paying the tax on its Quartermaster pickups.

In the end, Calder hoped U.S. tariff threats will level the playing field and reduce tariffs between the United States and Europe. The European Union currently levels a 10% duty on U.S. auto imports, which is significantly higher than the 2.5% U.S. tariff on (non-pickup) vehicles.

“My view is Trump is a negotiator, and he’s talking about 25% because he says (trade is) unfair and you need to do something about it,” Calder said. “My hope is Europe will to come to the table; that is a better outcome. I think all (Trump) wants is parity, so . . .  everything is 2.5%.”

That’s a lot on the menu for a startup automaker. The upside, Calder said with a smile, “is the most satisfying job I’ve had. My team and I have a lot of fun.”

It’s fun that Ineos hopes translates to its unique 4×4 products. “The Grenadier and Quartermaster are a celebration of the choice that’s in the U.S. auto market today,” said analyst Lindland. “They show that customers still want individual, customized, gas-powered cars.”

Henry Payne is auto critic for The Detroit News. Find him at hpayne@detroitnews.com or @HenryEPayne.