The Car Curious Weekly for March 15, 2026

The Car Curious Weekly is a look at what the automotive podcast world is talking about, who's saying it, and what patterns emerge when you listen to all of them at once.

March 08 - March 14, 2026 · 184 episodes across 119 podcasts.

This week's automotive podcast recaps focused on major strategic shifts in the EV market. Honda canceled three North American electric vehicles and took a $16 billion loss as it refocuses on hybrids, while BYD demonstrated 1.5-megawatt flash charging that fills a battery to 97% in nine minutes. The Australian Grand Prix delivered chaotic wheel-to-wheel racing under controversial new F1 regulations, Rivian launched a dedicated performance division, and the Kia Soul reached the end of its 17-year production run.

Here are the five biggest storylines and where they showed up across the feed.

Honda Cancels Three EV Models and Takes $16 Billion Hit as Company Shifts Focus to Hybrids

Honda canceled three North American EVs mid-development — the Zero Series SUV, Zero Series saloon, and Acura RSX — booking nearly $16 billion in losses rather than risk even bigger losses bringing them to market.

Honda's CEO and executive VP took voluntary three-month pay cuts as the company admitted US tariffs and resource drain from EV development killed profitability in Asia.

From Autoline Daily:

"Honda says if it started producing and selling the vehicles, it would lead to even more losses in the long term. On top of that, its profitability has declined because of US tariffs and not remaining competitive in Asia because it had to allocate more resources for EV development, so the company needs to save cash and order to offset losses in its automotive business."

Honda joins Ford and Stellantis in writing off billions in EV investments this quarter, a pattern that suggests the industry's pivot to electrification is hitting a broader wall of consumer hesitancy and tariff exposure.

Daily coverage: Thursday · Saturday

Australian Grand Prix 2026: Mercedes and Ferrari Battle as New F1 Regulations Divide Opinion

Charles Leclerc and George Russell swapped the lead seven times in the first nine laps at Melbourne before Russell won from Kimi Antonelli and Leclerc, with Ferrari's aggressive starts seeing both drivers gain multiple positions on the formation lap.

Oscar Piastri crashed out before the race even started after hitting the exit curb in sector one during the formation lap — he later said the car had 100 kilowatts more power than he anticipated, compounded by cold tires and battery issues.

From P1 with Matt and Tommy:

"I don't take anything back about the regulations. There are still very visible, obvious problems with these cars. What we've seen today is the start of new regulations meaning that the drivers and the teams are not ready. That's why we've seen such unpredictability, which is great to watch. But qualifying was a farce — seeing them decelerating, downshifting on straights. Of course we're going to be like that."

F1 podcasts debated whether the chaotic racing vindicated or condemned the controversial 2026 regulations, with most agreeing the unpredictable battery deployment made for thrilling starts but exposed fundamental problems with the cars.

From The Fast and the Curious:

"Charles Leclerc and George Russell were swapping places — I think they swapped places seven times in the first nine laps. We don't get that often in Formula One. We don't often get a proper wheel-to-wheel battle where there are multiple overtakes for the lead. People have been screaming for this. And that is what we delivered."

BYD Flash Charger Hits 1.5 Megawatts, 10-97% in Nine Minutes

BYD's flash charger delivered 1.5 megawatts through a single connector, achieving 10-97% charge in just 9 minutes even at minus 30 degrees Celsius — speeds that would typically crater in cold weather.

The Blade Battery 2.0 gained 5% energy density over the original, pushing ranges beyond 1,000 km while BYD planned to expand from 4,239 flash charging stations in China to 20,000 by year-end.

From Nevo EV News Podcast:

"Featuring a unique T-shaped overhead design that helps remove many of the less appealing aspects of recharging procedures, the 10 to 70 refill takes as little as five minutes, with 10 to 97 requiring only 9 minutes, even with temperatures at minus 30 degrees celsius, conditions that would normally result in a significant reduction in charging speeds."

EV-focused podcasts highlighted BYD's cold-weather performance and ambitious infrastructure rollout, with the Denza Z9 GT set to be the first model delivering the technology to European customers.

Daily coverage: Saturday

Rivian Launches Performance Division to Enhance Electric Vehicle Driving Experience

Rivian launched a dedicated performance division to develop high-performance versions of its electric vehicles, marking the first major EV startup to create an in-house skunkworks-style performance arm.

The division's initial focus targets enhanced driving dynamics and track capability for the R1T and R1S platforms.

From SlipAngle (episode link unavailable):

"This is interesting because every legacy manufacturer with a performance division — AMG, M, RS, F — they all earned that through decades of racing and engineering credibility. Rivian's basically saying 'we're going to skip that part and just declare we have a performance division.' Can you do that? I don't know."

Rivian says the division will focus on track-tuned suspension, powertrain calibration, and thermal management — but several hosts questioned whether a startup can shortcut the decades of racing heritage that earned AMG, M, and RS their reputations.

From Everyday Driver Car Debate:

"Here's my question: when your base model already has 800 horsepower and does 0-60 in three seconds, what exactly is the performance division going to do? Make it do it in 2.8 seconds? At some point you're just splitting hairs, and I'm not sure the market is asking for this."

Kia Soul Production Ends After 17 Years and 1.5 Million US Sales

Kia sold over 1.5 million Souls in the US across 17 years of production before ending the model in 2025.

The Soul debuted in 2009 as a budget-friendly boxy alternative to crossovers and became Kia's entry point for younger buyers.

From Another Pointless Automotive Podcast:

"The Soul was Kia's last truly weird car before they went full boring crossover factory. Like, you could get that thing in like alien green with the subwoofers and the hamster commercials. Now it's just another beige brand making beige SUVs. RIP to the hamsters."

Enthusiast podcasts mourned the Soul's passing as the death of Kia's quirky side, while mainstream shows treated it as an expected casualty of the brand's upmarket push.

From In Wheel Time Podcast:

"1.5 million Souls sold in the US alone. That's a hell of a run for what was basically a tall Scion xB competitor. Shows you how many people just wanted something cheap, practical, and a little bit different."

Recommendations

If You Only Listen To One

Bikers and goths — Smith and Sniff

The hosts stumble into Matlock Bath, visit the Great British Car Journey museum, and geek out over the original Aston Martin Lagonda's cathode ray dashboard before pivoting to debate whether special edition cars are worth it, ancient monkey puzzle trees, and wing walking. It's car content wrapped in the loose energy of two friends on a road trip, and the conversational tone makes even a deep dive into Mark III Escorts feel like eavesdropping on a good pub chat.

More Episodes Worth Hearing

• Why I Sold My GT3 RS for a "Lesser" 911 (9WERKS Radio : The Porsche and Car Podcast) — Guy's honest account of why he traded down from a GT3 RS to a GTS offers a refreshing counterpoint to the typical horsepower arms race. The discussion about usability on real roads, plus the cringe-worthy story of accidentally scratching his car with improper clay bar technique, adds genuine relatability. Garage Therapy's Maz and Roger join to discuss detailing, making this more than just a 'which 911 is best' episode.
• March 9, 2026 | Mercedes settles UAW union case; Lidar goes mainstream (Automotive News Daily Drive) — The deep dive into how LiDAR went from $75,000 experimental tech to standard equipment in 25% of Chinese EVs shows how quickly the industry is moving. The contrast between China's rapid adoption and American hesitancy about paying for autonomy features offers useful context for understanding where driver assistance tech is headed, with concrete examples from Rivian and GM's strategies.
• Bringing back Car of the week! (Car Torque with Matty J) — Edward's unexpected purchase of a 1992 Saab 900i hatchback — complete with one owner, full service history, and real carbon fiber trim — becomes the centerpiece of a conversation about finding interesting cars under $10,000. The crew's enthusiasm for affordable, quirky vehicles and their honest discussion about the challenges of sourcing manual Saab parts makes this a practical listen for anyone hunting bargains.

Next Week

Watch for fallout from Honda's massive EV retreat and whether other automakers follow suit, plus early reactions to Lucid's new $50,000 Cosmos SUV reveal.

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184 episodes. 2129 car mentions. 3416 terms explained. Browse every episode with searchable annotations and plain-language term definitions in the Car Curious app.