Autoline Daily May 27, 2026

AD #4305 - Big Downside to China Speed; Ram Getting Compact Pickup and 1st SUV; U.S. Faces Prolonged Engine Oil Shortage

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Term

synthetic oil

Synthetic oil is a higher-tech engine oil that stays slippery and protective better than regular oil, especially in very hot or very cold weather. It’s meant to help the engine last longer and run more smoothly.

Term

base oils

Base oils are the raw ingredients that oil companies start with before they mix in additives to make the final engine oil you buy. If base oils are hard to get, there may not be enough finished oil on store shelves.

Company

Toyota

Toyota is making an internal organizational change—moving some engineering and production work into a new group. The goal is to improve how the company designs and builds cars going forward.

Term

powertrains

A powertrain is basically everything that makes the car move and sends that power to the wheels. It can include the engine or electric motors and the gearbox and related parts.

Brand

Tesla

Tesla is referenced as having a strong month in European sales. The mention is tied to broader market context (electric vehicle growth and regional fuel prices), rather than a technical discussion of the vehicles themselves.

Brand

BYD

BYD is a Chinese automaker. The episode says it’s one of the brands helping Chinese car sales grow in Europe, even though those cars can lose value faster when resold.

Concept

depreciating far faster

Depreciation is how fast a car loses value over time. The host says Chinese brands are seeing faster value drops in Germany, partly because people worry about parts availability and partly because new models come out quickly.

Brand

Scout Motors

Scout Motors is moving its offices and teams to a new headquarters in North Carolina. The host is sharing it as a business update about where the company is based.

Company

Stilantis

Stilantis is the podcast’s way of saying Stellantis, a big car company that owns multiple brands. They’re reorganizing how their brands plan new vehicles for the U.S. market.

Car

Dodge Ram

Ram is the name of a truck brand that makes pickup trucks. These trucks are used for both work and regular driving. The podcast mentions Ram because the company is changing and adding models in the US.

Car

Jeep Gladiator

The Jeep Gladiator is a mid-size pickup. Here, the host says the Dakota pickup is based on it, which usually means they share major parts of the design and engineering.

Car

Dodge Dakota

The Dodge Dakota is a midsize pickup truck. It’s meant for people who want a truck that’s easier to handle than a full-size one. The podcast brings it up because it’s part of a lineup update in the US.

Car

Ram Rampage

The Ram Rampage is a small pickup truck meant to take on the Ford Maverick. It uses a unibody design, which usually makes it drive more like a car than a traditional truck.

Car

Ford Maverick

The Ford Maverick is a small pickup truck. It’s meant for people who want the usefulness of a truck but don’t need a big one. The podcast mentions it because it’s a well-known model in the compact pickup category.

Term

unibody truck

A unibody truck builds the frame and body as one main structure. That often makes the truck ride and handle more like a car rather than feeling like a heavy, separate-frame truck.

Term

Hurricane four gas engine

“Hurricane” is the name Stellantis uses for a family of four-cylinder engines. Here they’re talking about a 2.0-liter gas version used in the Ram Rampage.

Term

nine speed automatic transmission

A nine-speed automatic transmission is an automatic gearbox with nine forward gear ratios. More gears can help keep the engine in a more efficient or responsive part of its power band, especially during city driving and highway passing.

Term

all wheel drive

All-wheel drive means the truck can send power to multiple wheels for better grip. The host says it’s standard on this pickup.

Car

RAM Charger

The Ram Charger is Ram’s first SUV. It’s meant to compete with the GMC Yukon and will use the same basic platform as the Grand Wagoneer family.

Car

GMC Yukon

The GMC Yukon is a large SUV. It’s designed to carry more people and handle bigger tasks like towing. The podcast mentions it because there may be performance versions planned for the lineup.

Car

Dodge Charger

The Dodge Charger is a car that’s built for a sportier driving experience. It’s known for having stronger engines than a typical family sedan. The podcast brings it up because the “Charger” name is being used in new ways.

Term

SRT variants

SRT usually means a more performance-focused version of a vehicle. In this context, it suggests the trucks and SUV will have sportier, higher-output trims.

Car

Promaster City

The ProMaster City is a small van for business use. It’s designed to help with deliveries and carrying cargo in everyday city driving. The podcast mentions it because the brand is adding this type of vehicle to its lineup.

Car

Ram ProMaster

The Ram ProMaster City is a small van aimed at commercial customers. The host says Ram is adding a new version to its lineup for businesses.

Brand

Rumblebee

Rumblebee is the name Ram is using for a new sport-truck lineup. Think of it like a special trim/package meant to make the truck feel more performance-oriented.

Topic

mobile repair service

They’re talking about a service where repairs can come to you instead of you driving to a shop. Hyundai is working with certain dealers and giving them guidance and tools.

Term

dealer management system

A dealer management system is the software dealerships use to manage things like appointments and service records. The host says Hyundai wants dealers to connect that system so mobile repairs can run smoothly.

Car

Ford Transit

The Ford Transit Custom is a van made for work. It’s used to move cargo or tools and is built for everyday business use. The podcast mentions it when talking about which vans are being offered and compared.

LIVE

Speaker 1: This is underlying daily the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. As we reported last week, the

US faces a shortage of synthetic oil for car engines, and it could last for a while. According to the

Independent Lubricant Manufacturers Association, the synthetic oil shortage will last until at least the middle of next year. That's because

the Middle East supplies forty four percent of the base oils used to make synthetic oil in the US, and with the war and Iran disrupting those shipments, the US is expected to run out of base oils next month.

While other base oil producers outside of the Middle East normally boost production during a shortage, they're also having trouble getting oil from the region. Plus, with jet and diesel

fuels at forty year highs, it's more profitable for producers to make those instead of base oils, and even if the war ends today, according to analysts, it would still take months for the supply to get restocked. We've seen

a lot of reorganization recently. Forward, Honda, Nissance, Delantis, and

Moore have all made moves that they hope will make their companies stronger. Now we can add Toyota to that list.

It's going to shut down manufacturing engineering functions across several organizations and will create a new division called Production Engineering Group that will be responsible for engineering production, including powertrains and manufacturing engineering. Toyota says bringing this expertise together will

strengthen its manufacturing capabilities for the future. The company's current

chief production officer will be in charge of the new division, which officially starts operations on July first. We've got the

sales results for April, and the European car market is looking better. Automakers sold over one point one one million vehicles,

up a solid seven percent. Sales of electric cars hit

two hundred and fifty five thousand units, up a whopping thirty eight percent, p has were up twenty percent and hybrids up almost thirteen percent. Tesla also had a strong month,

up sixty seven percent to just over nine thousand cars, and it's no wonder gasoline or petrol prices in Europe are close to two euros a leader or eight dollars a galon. The biggest gainers were clearly the Chinese automakers

g Le, saic BYD and Leap Motor as a group.

Their sales shot up fifty five percent to more than ninety one thousand units, and they captured nine point three percent of the EU market, up three percentage points from a year ago. But Chinese automakers face a problem in Germany.

Their cars are depreciating far faster than anyone else's in Automotive News reports that it's a threefold problem. Used car

buyers are wary that some Chinese brands will go out of business, meaning they won't be able to get spare parts.

On top of that, Chinese automakers have relied heavily on fleet sales, and when those cars get resold, which happens fast, it drags down new car prices. And here's what we

think is the most interesting reason, and it's one of the downsides to China speed. As Chinese automakers come out

with new models more quickly, it obsoletes what's already been sold, which also drags down their value.

Speaker 2: Performance that shines even in the rain. That's what really matters.

Rich don't pretends to tires, improved grip and wet conditions.

Speaker 1: Scout Motors is moving employees from its innovation center outside of Detroit its new headquarters in North Carolina. Scout says

other employees will gradually follow, but it says the majority of its engineering and design work will remain in Metro Detroit. However,

there's still concern about the startup's long term presence in Michigan.

In late twenty twenty three, Scout announced plans to invest eleven million dollars and create two hundred jobs for its innovation center, and the state of Michigan provided a ten million dollar grant towards that. And while Scout has met

its job creation commitment, the incentives agreement expires at the end of April of twenty twenty seven, at which point it's no longer obligated to keep the jobs. Scout plans

to start building vehicles at its new plant in South Carolina in twenty twenty eight, and along with its new headquarters, it may explain why it wants to relocate employees closer to those facilities. Nissan has come up with a clever

solution to reuse waste created during the painting process. The

automaker developed a technique to recover calcium carbonate, which is used to filter airborne paint particles. The calcium carbonate is

then supplied to the Takiyama Group, which will use it to manufacture sound insulation for buildings. Compared to regular insulation.

It's expected to reduce CO two emissions by more than thirty percent, and Nissan says the new process will reduce its annual waste by twelve hundred tons. The automaker is

also exploring other applications for recovered calcium carbonate, including an auto component starting in twenty thirty. Yesterday, we reported on

the new cars that Chrysler is adding to its lineup as part of Stilantis's giant reorganization. Today, let's look at

what Ram will add in the US market. There's the

mid sized Dakota pickup, which we've reported on before and is based on the Jeep Gladiator and going into the same assembly plant in Toledo, Ohio. But Ram is also

getting the Rampage, a compact pickup that's aimed right at the Ford Maverick. The model is already sold throughout South

America and is built in Brazil. It's a unibody truck

with a one thousand kilogram cargo capacity or about twenty two hundred pounds. It's currently sold with Stalantis's new two

liter Hurricane four gas engine that makes two hundred and seventy two horse power and two hundred and ninety five pound feet of torque, or there's an optional two point two liter diesel that makes two hundred horses and three hundred and thirty two pound feet. Those are paired with

a nine speed automatic transmission and standard all wheel drive.

Stillantis says the only thing it will change are the headlamps and bumpers to meet US regulations, although we doubt the diesel will be part of the package and we think the US version will be made in Mexico. RAM

also gets its first SUV, the RAM Charger, which will be built off the Grand Wagon ear platform and targeted right at the GMC Yukon. This model and the Dakota

will have SRT variants as well. Don't forget about Rumblebee,

its new sport truck lineup, and the brand will also add a new ProMaster city to its commercial vehicles. When

you put it all together, RAM expects to become the number two truck brand in the American market by the end of the decade, ahead of General Motors. Like many

automakers that operate in the US, Hyundai is working with select dealers to launch a mobile repair service. The company

will provide dealers one on one coaching, offering guidance on integrating a dealer management system, as well as how to upfit vehicles with equipment and software. While it looks like

it's using competitor vehicles like the Ford Transit for now, Hyundai and Kia have their own vans coming to the US market in twenty twenty eight. With the service, customers

will be able to book an appointment through the dealer's website.

A trained technician will then come to their homer work to perform things like oil changes, break jobs, tire rotations, and software updates. That kind of convenience can improve customer retention,

which Hyndi says was reflected in a trial program and what gave it the confidence to expand the service. Its

goal is to have one hundred and fifty mobile units by the end of the year. But that brings us

to the end of today's show. Thanks for making autoline

a part of your day.

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0:00

11:03

AD #4305 - Big Downside to China Speed; Ram Getting Compact Pickup and 1st SUV; U.S. Faces Prolonged Engine Oil Shortage

synthetic oil

base oils

Toyota

powertrains

Tesla

BYD

depreciating far faster

Scout Motors

Stilantis

Dodge Ram

Jeep Gladiator

Dodge Dakota

Ram Rampage

Ford Maverick

unibody truck

Hurricane four gas engine

nine speed automatic transmission

all wheel drive

RAM Charger

GMC Yukon

Dodge Charger

SRT variants

Promaster City

Ram ProMaster

Rumblebee

mobile repair service

dealer management system

Ford Transit

About this episode

Original notes