Good morning, and welcome to The Downshift, which is a lap of today’s top stories from around the auto industry and car culture, curated by The Drive‘s editorial team. Each story gets summarized into a sentence or two accompanied by a link to the source for those seeking more information. Senior Editor Adam Ismail is still out on assignment and I’ll be your driver today.

Here’s what firing on Thursday, October 1, 2026 as fall gets underway:

The latest episode of The Drivecast, The Drive’s weekly podcast, went live yesterday on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Stellantis opened orders for the 2027 Ram Rumble Bee with the 5.7-liter Hemi V8 and all 2026 models were spoken for in 90 minutes while production through March 2027 was sold within 24 hours. “The speed at which the Rumble Bee sold out speaks volumes about the passion our customers have for performance trucks,” said Matt VanDyke, CEO of Ram. Notably, Ram hasn’t released production volumes and it’s unclear how many Rumble Bees are being made instead of Big Horns or Long Horns, though the margins on a Rumble Bee are likely far greater than those of a Big Horn. Kind of makes you wonder what the heck Ford and Chevy are doing leaving the entire segment to Ram. [Stellantis]

  Speaking of muscle cars, we drove the 2026 Ford Mustang RTR and the old-school handbrake is the star of the show. Don’t sneer at its turbo-four powertrain because this Mustang is far more fun than you think. [The Drive]

As BMW trims its lineup to save costs the automaker’s considering a new SUV that would be larger, and presumably more expensive, than the X7 as a range topper to take on the upcoming Audi Q9. [Motor1]

General Motors, Ford, and Stellantis expect to lose marketshare to the Asian competition as third-quarter sales results filter out, according to analysts, thanks to the Iran war, fuel prices, and buyers seeking fuel-efficient models. [Reuters]

Stellantis CEO Antonio Filosa said the automaker’s tackling its quality woes and has established nearly 50 war rooms staffed by engineers focused on quality. “We are fixing them very, very, very quickly. We have a target to get, in 2028, first quartile in quality with all the segments and markets where we compete, and we will get there,” Filosa said. [Automotive News]

The 2027 Honda Passport is now arriving at dealers and costs $42,790 including a $1,595 destination charge. [Motor1]

Longtime BMW tuner AC Schnitzer was set to close after 39 years, but a Dutch company, AM Group, has stepped in and saved the legendary German tuner. [BMWblog]

The Aston Martin DBX GT debuted with a focus on long-distance luxury as a grand tourer. The plusher version of the automaker’s SUV features a twin-turbo V8 under its hood and is said to be “aimed at customers who prefer assured elegance over sporting aggression and demand a higher degree of luxury.” [Autocar]

A Porsche 944 has been transformed into a shooting brake and dubbed the GT-K44. Each one will cost over $132,000 at current exchange rates. [Top Gear]

Got a tip or feedback for The Downshift? Reach out to tips@thedrive.com

The post The V8 Muscle Truck Isn’t Dead—Ram 5.7 Hemi Rumble Bee Sold Out Through March 2027 in 24 Hours: TDS appeared first on The Drive.

Good morning, and welcome to The Downshift, which is a lap of today’s top stories from around the auto industry and car culture, curated by The Drive‘s editorial team. Each story gets summarized into a sentence or two accompanied by a link to the source for those seeking more information. Senior Editor Adam Ismail is still out on assignment and I’ll be your driver today.

Here’s what firing on Wednesday, September 30, 2026:

A new episode of The Drivecast, The Drive’s weekly podcast, will go live later today on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, and wherever you get your podcasts.

Ford CEO Jim Farley said the U.S. must “be extremely careful around how the Chinese OEMs come to our country,” and noted that Chinese imports quickly gobbled up European marketshare once entering the market. “It’s too late” for European countries, the CEO said. [Reuters]

3⃣ The 2027 BMW 3-Series debuted with Neue Klasse design inside and out and a starting price of $51,250. While it looks like the electric i3, it’s an entirely different car with its own proportions and details. [Motor Trend]

Meanwhile, the electric i3 gained a M60 model, which will serve as a M Performance version of the electric sedan that debuted earlier in the year. Specs haven’t been released, but M Performance Parts have been grabbed from the bin and tacked on for a more eye-catching look. [Motor1]

Mazda refuses to give up on the rotary engine. Moritz Oswald, project manager for product planning and co-creation at Mazda Motor Europe, noted that people love the rotary because of how it revs, and the easiest way to bring that to customers is to let them experience it. You can only experience something if it exists, though, if Mazda does bring back the rotary you can bet it’ll likely be attached to a hybrid powertrain of some sort. [CAR]

The U.S. Department Transportation Department said General Motors will see its technology costs go down by $20.4 billion through 2031 due to the new lower vehicle fuel economy rules. GM did not confirm the number, but said it is in favor of the rules and the “intention ​to better align fuel economy standards with market realities.” [Reuters]

BMW’s comeback plan includes growing margins by simplifying its business, lineup, cutting costs, and selling more expensive cars. [Bloomberg]

Porsche unveiled a retrofit infotainment system for 2009 to 2016 models including the 911, Cayman, and Boxster. The touchscreen-based system adds wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto and will arrive at Porsche dealers in early 2027. [Road & Track]

The Range Rover Sport Electric Debuted and looks … like a Range Rover Sport. Aside from the lack of tailpipes it would be hard to know this is powered by a big battery pack. The electric SUV will have 543 horsepower and 627 lb-ft of torque and go 0-60 mph in 4.3 seconds. Final U.S.-specs haven’t been released yet, but expect about 300 miles of range. [Motor1]

Lucid overhauled the Air’s infotainment system and aligned its interface with the newer tile-based design found in the Gravity SUV. The 2024 and older Air models will need a $950 hardware upgrade for the new software to work. [InsideEVs]

General Motors announced its lithium-manganese-rich batteries will be made in Spring Hill, Tennessee. The next-gen batteries will power EVs set to arrive in 2028. [InsideEVs]

Got a tip or feedback for The Downshift? Reach out to tips@thedrive.com

The post Ford CEO Nervous About Chinese Automakers Entering US, Says ‘It’s Too Late’ for Europe: TDS appeared first on The Drive.