Porsche Sells Bugatti, US Bans Chinese Cars, Trouble At Stellantis And More! THIS CAR POD EP109!

TL;DR

Episode 109 covers Porsche offloading Bugatti to private equity, US lawmakers pushing to ban Chinese cars, and Stellantis narrowing investment to four brands.

Key Points

• 1.Porsche divested its Bugatti and Rimac stake to private equity amid financial trouble. Porsche's operating profits fell ~90% between 2024 and 2025, leaving only $479M; HOF Capital now holds 45% and the Rimac Group holds 55% of Bugatti, ending all Volkswagen involvement.
• 2.Volkswagen's exit from Bugatti is seen as a significant brand loss. VW had bankrolled Bugatti's revival, funding the Veyron with unlimited resources — something private equity is unlikely to replicate.
• 3.US lawmakers from both parties introduced a bill to ban Chinese cars entirely from entering the US. The bill, backed by Jamie Raskin and Bernie Moreno among others, would bar even tourists from crossing the border in Chinese-brand vehicles.
• 4.Chinese-made cars already exist in the US market unnoticed. The Buick Envision, Volvo S90, and certain Polestar 2s were built in China and already on US roads, undermining the premise of the proposed ban.
• 5.Great Wall Motors revealed a 4.0L turbocharged mid-engine V8 and carbon fiber monocoque chassis to challenge Ferrari. Announced at the Beijing Auto Show, the platform is also destined for the Tank SUV, signaling GWM's international ambitions despite US tariff barriers.
• 6.Ford dropped the Shelby name from its Mustang lineup to save roughly $30M+ in licensing fees. Ford paid Shelby approximately $800 per vehicle — totaling around $11M for the GT500 and over $20M for the GT350 — and replaced those trims with the new Dark Horse nameplate.
• 7.Stellantis is concentrating major investment in four brands: Jeep, Ram, Peugeot, and Fiat. The other 10 brands will still exist but will share platforms rather than receive dedicated development budgets; notably, Dodge was not listed as a priority brand.
• 8.A class action lawsuit alleges Stellantis intentionally programmed the Ram ProMaster's nine-speed transmission to never use eighth or ninth gear. The lawsuit claims this was deliberate programming, potentially affecting fuel economy claims made to regulators and consumers.
• 9.The podcast announced a new partnership with Mothers, the family-owned detailing brand. Mothers is headquartered in Southern California, still run by its founder 'Mother' and her two sons, and is giving away five co-branded prize packs including the gold ceramic line and a $100 gift card.
• 10.Host Doug announced he has 'peaked' with two-seater cars and is pivoting to collect four-seaters. His target list includes a Mark IV Supra Turbo, E30 M3 Sport Evo, Ferrari 612, Lancia Delta Integrale Evo 2, Mitsubishi Lancer Evo 6, and the Jaguar XE Project 8 — which does 200 mph.
• 11.The team attended the La Jolla Concours d'Elegance with the Carrera GT despite heavy rain the night before. Host Ken spent six hours detailing the car on Friday, only for it to rain on Saturday night and again Sunday morning, requiring repeated cleaning with Mothers products on-site.