Nutson's Weekly Auto News Wrapup June 29-July 5, 2025
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Here are Larry's top story picks from this past week's important to you, relevant, semi-secret, or snappy automotive news, opinions, and insider back stories presented as expertly crafted, easy-to-understand automotive news nuggets.
Nutson's Weekly Auto News Wrapup June 29-July 5, 2025
* EV tax credit going away. President Trump has signed the massive tax and spending cut bill that Congress passed. One item in the bill ends federal tax incentives for electric vehicles. Buyers have until Sept. 30 to qualify for the federal tax credits on EVs before they are terminated. Before the bill passed, new electric vehicles came with a $7,500 federal tax credit, and used EVs included up to $4,000. Those incentives were originally designed to help make the vehicles more affordable.
* Auto loan interest tax credit. Trump’s new law offers an annual tax credit of up to a $10,000 on the interest of loans for new vehicles as long as they're less than 14,000 pounds and assembled in the United States. It covers purchases made in 2025 through 2028. The deduction’s value would start to fall for individuals whose annual income exceeds $100,000; the threshold is $200,000 for married couples filing a joint tax return. “The math basically says you’re talking about [financial] benefit of $500 or less in year one,” based on the average new loan, Jonathan Smoke, chief economist at Cox Automotive, an auto market research firm, recently told CNBC.
* First Half auto sales. The U.S. auto industry had been riding a steady, post-Covid recovery, with sales ticking up even as cars and trucks became ever pricier. Last year’s auto sales neared prepandemic levels, as the industry finally shook off a yearslong inventory shortage. However, shoppers are no longer rushing to get ahead of tariff-related price increases. Sales for the first half of 2025 are generally up mostly due to the Trump-bump. But sales have cooled in June. According to analysts, June seasonally adjusted sales (SAAR) are around 15.3 million, down from 17.6 million in April. Analysts say the slower pace could continue through the year. Cox Automotive currently forecasts 2025 total sales at 15.7 million. MORE HERE
* Tesla sales boycott. The Associated Press reports a 13% sales plunge of Tesla EVs in the last three months over a year earlier suggests Musk’s embrace of President Donald Trump and far-right politicians in Europe has had a deep and enduring impact on Tesla’s brand appeal. Boycotts over Elon Musk’s political views continue to keep buyers away, a significant development given expectations that anger with the company’s billionaire CEO would have faded by now. Rival electric vehicle makers have wasted no time pouncing on the company’s weakness to steal market share and suggest Tesla’s quarterly earnings report later this month could also disappoint. Sales fell to 384,122 in April through June, down from 443,956 in the same three months last year.
* Monthly payment record. According to second-quarter data crunched by Edmunds.com, the share of new-vehicle buyers to commit to monthly payments of $1,000 or more hit an all-time high of 19.3%, or nearly 1 in 5 consumers. That's up from 17.8% in the year-ago quarter. The average monthly payment was $756, up $16 from a year earlier. Edmunds reported that car buyers are taking out longer-term loans to achieve palatable payments. In the quarter, 22.4% of new-vehicle financing were of loans 84 months or longer, a new record. In the second quarter last year, 84-month loans accounted for 17.6% of new-car financing. Read more here from the Detroit Free Press. HERE
* Basic, Less-Extravagant Features are “In” A new AutoPacific Insights report has been issued for July 2025. As the automotive industry continues to be caught in the middle of chaos, AutoPacific investigates what lower-priced vehicle shoppers really want in their vehicles compared to those intending to acquire a higher priced vehicle, in an effort to help automakers find ways to keep affordability in check. Average new vehicle transaction prices have climbed close to that $50,000 ceiling. Automakers need to ensure there’s product available for consumers equipped with what consumers want and not with more cost-adding features. Get the scoop HERE
* Easy with your right foot. New research from Geotab, a global leader in connected vehicle solutions and asset management, has shown that driving speed has a greater impact on EV range than summer heat, especially for larger vehicles on longer trips. The data shows that even modest increases in speed lead to steep range losses. For example, an electric van experiences a 39% drop in range between 50 and 80 mph. Full story HERE
* Seeing less and less. A Transportation Department study using a comparison technique developed by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found that the forward blind zones expanded in several top-selling vehicles from 1997 to 2023, especially in SUVs. Three top-selling SUV models had a 58% decrease in forward visibility within a 10-meter radius over that time frame, the study found. "We need to investigate whether this is a broader trend that may have contributed to the recent spike in pedestrian and bicyclist fatalities," said IIHS President David Harkey. Read. MORE HERE
* Gas prices. The US national average price of gasoline fell this week to $3.17/gal, now 6.4c/gal lower than a week ago according to GasBuddy and is 33.3c lower than last year. Americans will spend ~$500 million less on gasoline this July 4 weekend (Thu-Sun) vs last year. Lowest gas price in the U.S. today, according to GasBuddy data: $2.26/gal at the 7-Eleven in Midwest City, OK. However, California, Hawaii and Washington are averaging over $4.00.
* Driverless new car delivery. Tesla completed their first fully autonomous delivery with no one in the car. Tesla Model Y drove itself from their Austin Gigafactory to their customer’s driveway using nothing but Robotaxi technology—with zero human intervention needed. Watch the world’s first driverless delivery. MORE HERE
* SRT is back. Stellantis has brought back its Street and Racing Technology brand -- better known as SRT -- which was dissolved in 2021. Tim Kuniskis leads SRT, which unites top powertrain and vehicle dynamics engineers from across Stellantis' North American brands to focus on high-performance development for Dodge, Chrysler, Jeep and Ram. In addition to vehicle engineering, SRT will oversee the Direct Connection performance catalog and motorsports initiatives.
* BMW recall. BMW is recalling 70,852 electric vehicles in the U.S. after identifying a software issue that can cause the vehicle’s high-voltage system to shut down, leading to a temporary loss of drive power. The recall impacts 2022–2025 i4s, 2022–2024 iX models, 2023–2024 i7s and 4,674 i5s from the 2024 model year.
* Ford recall. Ford Motor Co. is recalling 200,061 vehicles because a software defect can cause the rearview camera to fail, increasing the risk of a crash and injury. The camera can either display a blank image or that the image may remain on the display after the driver finishes backing up, causing a distraction, according to Ford. The recall affects certain 2018-2022 Transit Connect; 2019-2020 MKZ, Edge, Continental, F-150, Nautilus, and Fusion; 2019-2023 Ranger and Mustang; 2020-2021 EcoSport, Expedition and Navigator; 2020-2022 Escape, F-250 SD and Corsair; 2020-2023 Aviator and Transit; 2020-2024 Explorer; 2021-2024 Bronco Sport; and 2022-2024 Maverick vehicles.
* Nissan/Infiniti recall. Nissan is recalling more than 480,000 of its vehicles across the U.S. and Canada due to potential manufacturing defects that could cause engine failure. The recall covers certain 2021-24 Nissan Rogues, 2019-20 Altimas, 2019-22 Infiniti QX50s and 2022 Infiniti QX55s vehicles according to documents published by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration. The vehicles impacted are equipped with “VC-Turbo” engines.
* Detroit Car Show. A community-centered festival of autos, ride-and-drives, food and libations will hit the campus of Detroit's Michigan Central for the second year as organizers of "Cars at the Station" announced a return of the event in September. The free event will feature over 200 cars and motorcycles, food trucks, music, and family-friendly entertainment. MORE HERE
* Cadillac F1 documentary. Keanu Reeves will host a new multi-part documentary series following the Cadillac Formula 1 team’s journey to the grid in 2026. In partnership with North One, the unscripted series will explore behind-the-scenes of Cadillac’s journey as the team is built from scratch as a new constructor. The producers say the series will air prior to Cadillac’s first race in F1, with the 2026 season kicking off on March 8 in Melbourne, Australia. Story from Racer.com MORE HERE
* 24 Hours of Spa. Lamborghini has written a new chapter in its illustrious history by winning the 24 Hours of Spa. After three consecutive class wins in the 24 Hours of Daytona in 2018, 2019 and 2020, a double success in the 12 Hours of Sebring in 2018 and 2019 and victory in the Petit Le Mans last season, the Sant’Agata Bolognese firm triumphed for the first time in the classic Belgian endurance event. The victory marks Lamborghini’s 191st in the GT3 era and serves as the perfect precursor to the launch of the Huracán successor, the Temerario GT3 which will be launched at the Goodwood Fesitval of Speed on 11th July.
* NHRA race win taken back. We read in Autoweek, last week Kalitta Motorsports Top Fuel racer Shawn Langdon was stripped of an apparent race win in the final round at the American Rebel Light NHRA Nationals after his car failed post-race inspection. It was the first time in the 74-year history of the sanctioning body that the NHRA has taken back a Wally trophy for a technical infraction. The car was found in non-compliance of NHRA Rulebook SFI Spec 6.2. That rule says that the cover of the bellhousing inspection box must be secured by a minimum of 12 bolts. While none of the bolts were missing, at least a few of those bolts were found to have come off and were unattached inside the belly pan. The part in question is a mandatory safety device designed to keep certain parts from flying off the car in the event of a catastrophic failure or crash.
* RIP. Donald Eugene "Don" Grotheer, age 86, of Tryon, Oklahoma died Saturday, June 28, 2025, at home surrounded by his loving family. Don Grotheer was a prominent drag racer, particularly known for his success in Super Stock and early Pro Stock classes during the 1960s and 70s. He raced Plymouth's and was recognized as a factory-sponsored racer. He worked as a performance advisor in the Plymouth Performance Clinics.
* We hope you have a safe and enjoyable Independence Day weekend!
Stay safe. Be Well.
Kind regards,
Larry Nutson, the Chicago Car Guy