Nutson's Weekly Auto News Wrapup September 14-20, 2025
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AUTO CENTRAL - Louisville, KY - September 21, 2025; Every Sunday for the past 30 years, Larry Nutson, The Chicago Car Guy and TACH Executive Producer, compiled his take on this past week's automotive news, condensed into easy-to-digest news Nuggets.
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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.
Larry's Automotive News Nuggets September 21, 2025
- NACTOY Best announced.The North American Car and Truck of the Year “Best of 2026” list includes six cars, five trucks and nineteen utility vehicles. NACTOY jurors will drive these vehicles back-to-back at a special event in late October. Three finalists will be announced in each category at the Los Angeles Auto Show, and the winners will be announced on January 14, 2026, to open the Detroit Auto Show. See the best HERE
- The NEVI program lives. After President Donald Trump killed off electric vehicle tax credits in January, many assumed the death of the $5 billion EV charging station program would soon follow. Indeed, Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy announced a month later that the program was being frozen. However, the program has been revised and stations are still being built under its purview. Read more here from Autoweek. HERE
- More EV chargers. A lawsuit has lead to the release of federal funding for EV chargers in Illinois. Illinois will release a new round of federal funding to build electric vehicle charging stations after the Trump administration initially sought to withhold it. Illinois was among 17 jurisdictions to successfully sue to receive the funding earlier this year. The state announced the release of more than $18 million.
- Time is running out to buy an EV.Cars.com released its latest findings on the state of the electric vehicle market as the federal EV tax credit sunsets Sept. 30, 2025. With savings of up to $7,500 for new EVs and $4,000 for used models set to expire, consumers are acting quickly to secure electrified vehicles before the deadline. Nearly half (47%) of EV considerers say the elimination of the credit may accelerate their purchase timeline. See the best EVs HERE
- Used EV sales rise. Used battery-powered vehicles often sell for less than comparable cars with internal combustion engines, making them a good deal even before calculating savings in maintenance costs and fuel. That is expanding the number of people who can afford to buy such models. Sales of used electric vehicles rose 40 percent in July from a year earlier, according to Cox Automotive, a research firm. Read the details HERE
- No electric Ram. Reuters reports Stellantis is killing plans for a Ram 1500 electric pickup because of weak U.S. demand for full-size EV trucks. U.S. automakers have cut back EV plans over the last year and the evaporation of federal support for fully-electric cars under Trump means that trend will accelerate. Full-size electric pickups have become a particularly difficult segment for automakers, as vehicles like the Ford F-150 Lightning, Rivian R1T and Tesla Cybertruck have not sold well. Stellantis said it will also rename its extended-range electric pickup, formerly called the Ram 1500 Ramcharger, to the Ram 1500 REV.
- Will AVs create congestion havoc? The incipient rise of self-driving cars promises to bring the most tumultuous shift in transportation since cars first rumbled their way into the scene. Should cities brace for many, many more cars on their streets? Read one opinion HERE
- Hidden price increases. There is concern in raising prices in response to the trade actions of the Washington administration. However, automakers can't afford to absorb the entire hit of tariffs. Instead new car buyers are likely to see more hidden price increases through unavoidable fees like destination charges that have gone up significantly this year on many models. Read the details HERE
- Into the crusher. Louisville, KY police hosted a livestream where they publicly destroyed a 710-hp Dodge Durango Hellcat seized during a recent sideshow in the city. City officials went live on Facebook and invited local media to a news conference, where they talked about Louisville government’s no-nonsense stance on street racing. Read more here from The Drive. HERE
- Fall driving is dangerous. Next week, tens of millions of drivers will hit the roads during what CARFAX data shows is the most dangerous season to drive: Fall. While many may assume Winter would bring the most crashes, CARFAX analysis found that in 39 states, Fall accounted for the highest percentage of accidents compared to all other season. Read the report HERE
- Ford recall. Ford is recalling 100,900 Ranger pickups from the 2024 through 2026 model years over a defect that could affect the side curtain airbags. In documents filed with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Ford says the airbags could tear in a crash by coming into contact with the interior B-pillar's "inner reinforcement flange" upon deployment. The problem affects both left- and right-side airbags in all Ranger pickups manufactured between December 9, 2022, and July 29, 2025.
- Toyota and Lexus recallToyota Motor is recalling 591,377 vehicles because the instrument panel display can fail and not show the driver critical information including vehicle speed, brake system and tire pressure warning lights, which could lead to a crash and injury. Toyota models included in the recall are the 2023-2024 Venza, RAV 4 Prime, RAV 4, GR Corolla, Crown, Tacoma, Grand Highlander, Crown Signia, Camry, RAV 4 plug-in hybrid and 4 Runner. Lexus models are 2024-2025 Lexus TX and LS and the 2025 Lexus RX.
- Hyundai recall. Hyundai is recalling 568,580 Palisade SUVs from the 2020-2025 model years because the seat belt buckles may fail to latch and not properly restrain passengers in a crash, increasing the possibility of injury.
- NHRA news. NASCAR Hall of Famer Tony Stewart will continue his drag-racing career in 2026 -- and he will compete against his wife. Stewart announced that he will drive a Top Fuel dragster for Elite Motorsports next season. The move comes a week after he announced plans to turn his NHRA seat back over to his wife, Leah Pruett, who took a little more than a year off after giving birth to their son, Dominic. Pruett will resume her role at Tony Stewart Racing in 2026, and Stewart will now race against her even though their teams have a marketing alliance. Funding is still needed to make Stewart's ride come together
Stay safe. Be Well.
Kind regards,
Larry Nutson, the Chicago Car Guy
The Auto Channel