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Today’s Issue MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 7, 2026
The optional Cummins inline-six makes 430 horsepower and 1075 lb-ft, raising maximum towing to nearly 19,600 pounds. Fitting it cost the factory winch and an inch of ground clearance. Car and Driver recorded 60 mph in 6.4 seconds and says the engineers who resisted the diesel had it right.
Edmunds pits an Acura Integra Type S against a Lexus IS 350 F Sport, both about $56K. The Acura runs nearly a second quicker to 60 mph and pulls 1.05 g on the skidpad against 0.91 g. Edmunds calls the Lexus interior better in every way and picks the Acura.
Volkswagen's supervisory board unanimously approved the plan, targeting 9 million annual sales and a 9% operating margin by 2030. The company says European capacity exceeds demand by over 500,000 units. Four German plants building the ID.3, ID.4, ID.Buzz, and Audi A5 are unlikely to run regularly past 2034.
The Cybercab has no master cylinder and no hydraulic lines, using an electronically controlled actuator at each corner. The Drive names Brembo's Sensify as the likely supplier and notes the Chery Exeed EX7 reached production with fluidless brakes first. NHTSA has opened an investigation into how Tesla certified the car.
The 1950 winner was the Edwards R-26 Special, a postwar one-off not on the program. Sterling Edwards hired Indianapolis 500 constructors to build its tube-steel chassis and aluminum body, which weighed about 2,380 pounds stripped. The original body sold for about $144,000 in 2024, and the chassis is still missing.
A pair of 2004 Phaeton W12s are listed at $5,000 and $6,000, hand-built in Volkswagen's Dresden glass factory. Ferdinand Piëch specified that the 444-horsepower sedan sustain 186 mph in 120-degree heat. The Autopian's Mercedes Streeter has owned two and calls both disasters.
The 2001 Crown Athlete V pairs a turbocharged 1JZ-GTE inline-six with rear-wheel drive and a wood-paneled casket bay. It shows about 82,000 miles and became legal to import under the 25-year rule this year. The Washington State listing asks CA$19,995 (about $15K).
The Alliance for Automotive Innovation, which counts GM, Ford, and Toyota as members, asked Congress to permanently ban Chinese connected vehicles and software. The pending Connected Vehicle Security Act would bar automakers more than 15% Chinese-owned, catching Mercedes-Benz. The Autopian's Jason Torchinsky asks whether that is security policy or protectionism.
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