+++ Fake vents. Fake engine sounds. Fake tailpipes. Fake gearshifts. What’s next? FAKE SHIFTERS , of course. Cars have always been about the vibes, and digitization has opened a huge door of possibilities for automakers. Shift-by-wire systems aren’t new in the industry, but a patent filing from Hyundai puts a big twist on the technology that looks to provide buyers with the best of both gearboxes. The automaker’s filing is for a new shift-by-wire mechanism that can operate like a gated manual or a traditional automatic. It would pair perfectly with the automaker’s simulated gearshifts, which the electric Ioniq 5 N has popularized. The patent depicts a shifter with multiple gates that has no mechanical connection to a transmission. Under automatic operation, there are Drive, Reverse and Neutral. What makes the mechanism unique is the addition of a clutch that enables manual mode when pressed, including a “neutral” position when the shifter is between gears. Hyundai is not the first to think of combining transmissions and shift mechanisms. Koenigsegg’s Light Speed Transmission and Engage Shift System are very similar, offering both a 9-speed automatic and a 6-speed manual within the same gearbox. Porsche also filed its own patent for a transmission gear selector that can operate in manual or automatic mode. +++
+++ Historic Italian luxury car brand ITALA has been revived after 92 years, with its engineering overseen by ex-Ferrari technical director Roberto Fedeli. This is part of an expansion by Italian company DR Automobiles, which has been rebadging Chinese cars for the past 20 years and is now a significant emerging force in western Europe. With its 6 current brands, DR last year sold some 34.000 cars across Italy and a few other nations, and it now plans to enter the larger markets of France and Germany. Itala is planned to share showrooms with another revived brand, Osca, which was founded by the Maserati brothers for racing and existed from 1947 to 1967. The first modern Itala, unveiled this week at the Turin motor show, is a 4.4 meter long, petrol-engined crossover called the ’35’, based on GAC’s Trumpchi GS3. It will cost from around €35,000. Italian media reports that Fedeli has overseen refinement of the suspension; other Italian firms have redesigned the interior, notably upholstering it in red leather and Alcantara; and Italdesign tweaked the external appearance. No plans for Osca have yet been announced, but Italian media reported late last year that a ‘proper sports car’ with a ‘Lotus-sourced 2.0-litre engine’ was planned, possibly referring to the Emira’s current Mercedes-AMG 4-pot. Under its ‘Historic Italian Brands’ plan, DR intends to open 2 new ‘production facilities’ at its plant in Macchia d’Isernia, where it assembles Chinese cars from knocked-down kits, later this year. This €50 million investment is expected to create some 500 local jobs. DR plans to open 50 Itala-Osca dealerships, the first of which is in Itala’s original home city of Turin. +++
+++ LAND ROVER has long been associated with reliability concerns, and those issues appear to be weighing on Jaguar Land Rover’s finances. For the fiscal year ending March 31, 2026, JLR reported higher warranty costs, which, along with U.S. tariffs on imported vehicles and last year’s cyberattack, pushed the company to target £1.7 billion, in spending cuts over the next 2 years. Warranty costs alone were £105 million higher in the fourth quarter than in the same period a year earlier. JLR did not specify which models generated the highest warranty costs. +++
+++ NISSAN ’s latest survival strategy might just be one of its most radical yet. Faced with bleeding market share and persistent losses in Europe, Nissan is actively considering using Chinese-developed platforms to underpin its future European electric vehicles. The revelation comes directly from Nissan’s newly minted CEO, Ivan Espinosa, who took the helm a year ago to pilot the struggling Japanese automaker through a sweeping corporate restructuring dubbed “Re:Nissan”. Speaking at an industry summit in London, Espinosa made it clear that nothing is off the table as the company fights to slash development costs and drag its European division back into the black. This pivot highlights a staggering shift in the geopolitical landscape of car building. Historically, Japanese and European engineering set the global standard. Today, automakers are increasingly forced to look to China’s ultra-efficient, lightning-fast tech ecosystem to stay cost-competitive. Nissan’s recent financial earnings highlight why such drastic measures are on the table. The company closed its latest fiscal year a whopping $3.4 billion in the red. While Nissan’s North American retail operations have shown promising resilience, Europe has remained a distinct sore spot plagued by weak demand and poorly timed model cycles. Just last week, Nissan announced 900 European job cuts and consolidated production lines at its massive Sunderland plant in the UK due to faltering volumes. By leveraging Chinese platforms (likely stemming from its long-standing domestic joint-venture partner, Dongfeng), Nissan expects to bypass years of engineering overhead. Espinosa previously revealed that adapting development processes learned from the Chinese market has already allowed Nissan to shave vehicle development timelines down from 54 months to just 37 months. What does this mean for the American market? While strict domestic tariff structures mean we won’t see Chinese-built Nissans arriving at local U.S. dealerships anytime soon, the corporate philosophy will inevitably cross the Atlantic. As Nissan repositions itself for growth, the Western world is about to find out just how much Chinese DNA it takes to save a legacy Japanese brand. +++
+++ The SKODA OCTAVIA will gain hybrid power as the Czech brand looks to offer buyers of the family hatchback and estate a full gamut of powertrain options. “What you can expect for the Octavia is that you will get pure-hybrid and plug-in hybrid solutions in future”, technical chief Johannes Neft told. The full-hybrid powertrian is expected to be that which will make its debut in the technically related Volkswagen Golf and T-Roc later this year. This matches the Volkswagen Group’s familiar 1.5-litre turbo petrol-4 and 7-speed dual-clutch automatic gearbox with an electric motor and a 1.6 kWh battery. The motor is used to drive the wheels at slower speeds, with the engine kicking in under higher loads. In the Golf and T-Roc, the system will offer a combined output of either 136 hp or 170 hp. Both configurations are expected to be available in the Octavia. A new plug-in hybrid Octavia, meanwhile, is expected to use the same powertrain as the current Golf eHybrid. This uses the same 1.5-litre engine but a 6-speed dual-clutch ‘box, while its battery is upsized to 19.7 kWh to offer an electric-only range of 140 km. An electric Octavia was previewed by the Vision O concept at last year’s Munich motor show, but this isn’t due to manifest as a production car until the turn of the decade. Skoda CEO Klaus Zellmer previously told that the firm “wanted to keep all avenues open in terms of what is feasible” in offering an ICE Octavia in the long term. +++
+++ Some design elements are made out of necessity and are taken up by the cultural zeitgeist after years and years of consistency. Think about BMW’s Kidney Grille, or Porsche’s bug-eyed, low-hood, rear-engined layout, or whatever’s tickling the fancy of the current designers of (insert-Chinese-brand here). Speaking of, Geely may own VOLVO , but being almost a century old, it has a lot of history to draw on. That, and nobody else seems to be giving a nod to Norse Mythology in the industry. While it may be low-hanging fruit for Volvo, I don’t think any other brand could have done it without being an ill fit. You could say that Volvo’s Daytime Running Light (DRL) design hits the nail on the head for the Swedish automaker. Thor’s hammer is a distinct feature that’s found on modern Volvo vehicles. The sideways T-shaped DRLs have become a defining characteristic of Volvo vehicles in recent years, including the new XC90 and XC40. Whether it’s an ICE or an EV, all new Volvo cars come with this design feature, and with the unveiling of new Volvo EVs, we’re noticing that it’s getting bigger, much like BMW’s now-massive Kidney Grille. Volvo’s rendition of Mjolnir used to look like a thin, elegant T-shape, but it appears the brand is now using a thicker, “digital” version of the prior iteration. Beyond its now-iconic shape, the digital design also underscores Volvo’s push for technologically advanced EVs. The hammer is also different depending on which Volvo you’re looking at. On some models, it’s more boxy and flat, akin to the Volvo’s classic design language. Think back to the brand’s boxy design era. Now, we still get a largely boxy appearance, albeit complemented by modern curves and some swooping lines. On some cars, the hammer is skewed a certain way, giving it a “fast” look. The DRLs have also made an impression on older Volvo fans. On some forums, people have actually managed to purchase aftermarket headlight kits that retrofit the hammer onto older models. On other sites like AliExpress, you can find several kits for older Volvos like the V40 and more if you’re willing to look hard enough and perhaps roll the dice on a Chinese part. The design has resonated so well since the brand first showcased it in 2015 on the XC90 that Volvo sought to secure IP protection for the headlight design, allowing it to combat counterfeits and reproductions and prevent competitors from copying it. According to the European Union’s IPO’s General Court, it decided to affirm that Volvo’s shape mark applications are eligible for trademark protection. This was granted in 2017, right after Volvo filed it. In 2022, Volvo sought to expand its trademark protections; however, it went into appeal mode for a couple of years afterward. By 2024, after a bit of back-and-forth with the European Union’s IPO office, Volvo had successfully appealed its case to the General Court, which handed down a largely favorable decision. You can expect Volvo to have total enforcement over the headlights IP in Sweden, and limited protection depending on the region. +++
+++ Ever since the Ford Explorer crawled out of the Jurassic Park-era ooze (circa 1991), the US car-buying market has been obsessed with the SUV. There were others before it, but it’s safe to say SUVs like the Explorer pushed things to a new level. That consumer shift has led to the slow death march of all things: the WAGON . It’s a real shame, because a wagon is the car buyers actually should want. Even if their minds remain locked in on a perceived desire for a sport utility vehicle, wagons drives better while offering the same level of useful utility. Volvo understands that better than anyone; the Swedish automaker is responsible for some of the most memorable wagons on the planet. Now, there’s reason to believe the lovely longroof could be ready for a comeback. Volvo CEO Håkan Samuelsson says: “Probably the US consumers know better, but I think we believe that the market may have gone a bit too far into a single SUV market. I don’t think 10 years from now, we will only have SUVs from Volvo”. His reasoning makes sense beyond my own personal desire to simply see more wagons on offer in our market. He continues: “So I think for various reasons, we need the lower cars. So air resistance is one, because we talked about range, and, of course, if you have a lower front area, it’s easier. Everything is easier”. Samuelsson goes on to say that he believes a generational change lies ahead. As more buyers buck against their parents’ SUVs, the market could potentially “shift back” to wagons, he says. Samuelsson notes that the company is currently “looking into” more wagons. He says: “‘I think it’s not revealing too much that I think we will not only have SUVs 5 years from now”. +++