Good morning and welcome to our daily digest of automotive news from around the globe, starting with…
Lawsuit Over Ford Mustang Shelby GT350 Overheating Issues Going To Trial In September
A lawsuit that claims the transmission and differential of some Shelby GT350 models aren’t quite as “track-ready” as they were marketed will go to trial in September. The lawsuit claims that because diff and tranny coolers weren’t offered on the Base and Technology packages, Ford’s claims that the GT350 could survive a track day were misleading.
Stellantis CEO Says Chip Shortage Will Easily Drag Into 2022
Carlos Tavares, chief executive of Stellantis, says that the semi-conductor crisis that has afflicted many automakers will continue into the next year. He cites how he doesn’t see chip production increasing despite the climate. Stellantis, and others, will continue to focus on their highest-profit models with their limited supply of chips.
Mercedes Vision EQXX Teased, Might Debut On July 22nd
A teaser of the upcoming EQXX has been revealed, leaving us with slightly more questions than answers. What we do know, though, other than the sculpted and curvaceous bodywork featured in the teaser, is that The EQXX is developed with the assistance of Mercedes’ Formula One powertrain department. More details could be revealed during today’s strategy update.
QOTD: What ‘Bad’ Cars Do You Actually Kind Of Like?
Some cars are universally panned by reviewers and the community alike. But that doesn’t mean we can’t have a soft spot for a few of them, right? We open the floor to find out just how many “bad” cars you secretly, kind of, like. Call it a bad car amnesty.
Ferrari SF90 Stradale Sets New Lap Record At Indianapolis Motor Speedway
Hot on the heels of it setting Car & Driver’s quickest production car to 60 mph record, the SF90 Stradale has gone and beaten another record. This time, it’s the new fastest production car lap record holder at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, with a time of 1:29.625.
McLaren’s F1 Drivers Take On Their Boss In The Brand’s Road Cars
McLaren really seems like a fun place to be right now — a stark contrast to what the F1 team used to look like under different management. As if to underscore that, their dynamic driver pairing took on the boss-man, Zak Brown, to see who could be fastest around a rain-soaked Silverstone.
Adrian Newey And Red Bull Might Follow Valkyrie With Another Car
Adrian Newey has confirmed that Red Bull is open to creating another road car. The Aston Martin Valkyrie prototype was piloted by the Red Bull designer at the Goodwood Festival of Speed and confirmed that Red Bull Advanced Technology has grown since the Aston commission, with “a lot of commercial projects on the books now.”
Clarkson, May, And Hammond Practice Their Scottish Before The Grand Tour: Lochdown
The Covid pandemic had the potential to scupper all chances of the Grand Tour trio getting an outing in 2020. However, it’s good news, as restrictions did allow for filming to take place in Scotland. In this humorous promo clip, the boys get to test out their knowledge of Scottish phrases ahead of the new episode.
What Else Is Making The News
Bitcoin Up On The Back Of Musk Announcement
Popular cryptocurrency Bitcoin has seen its value rise again as Elon Musk said Tesla would “most likely” start accepting the digital currency again. Tesla had earlier stopped accepting Bitcoin payments over fears of the environmental impact that Bitcoin mining had.
Saudi Aramco Faces $50M Cyber Extortion
The Saudi state oil giant has been the victim of a cyber-extortion attempt with a $50 million demand. AP News reports that the extortionist holds 1 terabyte of Aramco’s data, likely taken from third-party contractors.