Happy Chinese New Year! Hopefully, you haven’t washed your hair or swept any of your luck out of the front door. I’m wearing my only piece of red clothing, which is a novelty t-shirt that says “I WIRD BHSET OF AWL” [Editor’s Note: what does this mean? – JT] given to me by everyone’s friend Zack Klapman. China does a pretty banging New Year, but it doesn’t make a lot of one kind of car.
It’s the old “hit ’em where they ain’t” philosophy of car production, and it comes from a not-so-surprising source if you’re a regular reader of The Morning Dump. Not everyone is so combative with China, as Canada seems to be on a path to embracing Chinese cars and Chinese production, although I don’t think it’s just going to be China that benefits.
You know who might benefit most from used EVs? The same people who weren’t all that interested in buying new EVs. That would be a weird outcome, but it makes sense. An EV-only Alpine A110 is less of a weird outcome, though it is a bit of a bummer.
Let’s Dump!
Stellantis Figures Out It Can Just… Build Diesels
Volkswagen wasn’t the only company finding creative (illegal) ways to tweak its diesel cars to be more competitive with hybrid vehicles, but it’s the one everyone thinks about when Dieselgate is mentioned.
Here’s a fun fact: In 2015, roughly half of the cars sold in Europe were diesel-powered. Last year? That number crumbled to just under 8%. Some of this is the adoption of electric cars and hybrids, but a lot of this has to do with major European automakers suddenly deciding that they were going to begin the transition to electric cars when “diesel” became a bit of a bad word.
With European regulators in the process of revising emissions standards to more closely conform to reality, there’s an opening for automakers that Stellantis seems to be ready to take advantage of in the short term, as Reuters reports:
Stellantis began in late 2025 to reintroduce diesel versions in Europe for models ranging from passenger vans to the Peugeot 308 and DS 4 hatchback, according to company statements and dealer listings reviewed by Reuters.
[…]
“We have decided to keep diesel engines in our product portfolio and — in some cases — to increase our powertrain offer,” Stellantis said. “At Stellantis we want to generate growth, that’s why we are focused on customer demand.”
To be clear, it’s not like Stellantis is going to suddenly start developing a bunch of new diesel powertrains. At this point in time, it probably doesn’t make a lot of sense. But Stellantis is great at just continuing to build old things until the market eventually tires of them.
And, crucially, your average diesel car is still a lot cheaper than your average electric car. For instance, in the UK, a Citroën Berlingo EV costs about $42,500. The diesel manual version? Closer to $33,500. That’s a big difference, and even undercuts Chinese EVs.
The plan for now is for Stellantis to extend out some models from brands like Alfa Romeo and DS, as well as start reintroducing certain diesel models back to the fold for any of its 900 other brands (Opel, Peugeot, Fiat, Matra…). It’s probably not a huge market, but it’s one where there’s almost zero chance of competition from Chinese EV automakers.
That isn’t to say Stellantis doesn’t compete there, either, as the company also owns most of the Chinese brand Leapmotor, which now makes cars in Europe. This is the EU version of the Stellantis plan to bring the Hemi V8 back to the RAM and otherwise recycle or extend existing powertrains.
What Is Canada Supposed To Do, Exactly?
This is another hot topic around here, but Canada does seem ready to decouple its industrial policy from the United States. I don’t think this is just theater. This is probably bad, long-term, for both Canada and the United States.
Why?
Both countries are like puzzle pieces that fit nicely together. We can use their cheap energy to process metals that we can cheaply acquire and recycle in the United States, which then become cars built either here or there. They send us their hockey-based TV shows (new season of Shoresy on Hulu this week!), and we send them Marvel movies.
If you’re stubborn enough, you can saw off pieces of a puzzle and make them fit, but it’s never quite the same. I don’t want to get into the back-and-forth of who started what, although it’s kinda obvious that claiming we didn’t need Canada and that maybe Canada should be the 51st state wasn’t exactly endearing.
Bloomberg has more on the conscious decoupling that’s happening:
The companies sometimes called the Detroit Three — GM, Stellantis and Ford Motor Co. — used to dominate the Canadian automotive industry. But last year, they were responsible for just 23% of the cars and light trucks made in the country, according to an Ontario research group, down from 56% a decade ago. Two Japanese giants, Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp., are now the firms that matter most.
And inside Prime Minister Mark Carney’s government, there’s a growing belief that if the big US automakers are slowly abandoning Canadian factories, there’s no longer any reason to do them favors.
[…]
The Detroit automakers “rode their history for long enough that people still kind of thought, ‘Oh yeah, they make cars here,’” said Brendan Sweeney, managing director of Canada’s Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing. “And now we’re realizing that, no, they’ve kind of taken advantage of the situation and they’ve largely served Canada from elsewhere without really investing.”
While Canada’s move to potentially allow some Chinese cars in is getting all the attention, the reality is that Canada can actually pivot harder to Japanese and European cars if it wants to right now. Is this an opportunity for an automaker like Renault to expand on the continent? That’s what I’m thinking.
Oklahoma And West Virginia Are Great Places For Used EVs
When I wrote about the huge number of off-lease EVs about to hit the market this year, I didn’t think about it regionally. Then I read this little tidbit from Cox Automotive about a discussion from the NADA conference earlier this month:
The off-lease EV surge dominated multiple sessions, with data painting a clear picture: off-lease EV volume will jump 185%, from 106,000 to 300,000 vehicles in 2026, with EVs representing 12% of all off-lease maturities compared to just 5% in 2025.
Patrick Janes, AVP of vAuto, challenged dealers to rethink their EV strategies. His team’s analysis revealed unexpected pockets of used EV opportunity in states like Virginia, Ohio, Kentucky, and Oklahoma, markets with affordable used EVs under $25,000. “Dealers are begging to find under $25,000 ICE vehicles, right?” Janes emphasized. “A used EV has lower cost of ownership…that is a great opportunity to introduce another vehicle into the fleet.”
The selling of used EVs in places like California and New York isn’t going to be much of an issue, as there’s already a market. These are also states where people have above-average incomes and can generally afford more cars. What about markets where affordability is a huge challenge?
It’ll be fascinating to watch used EVs potentially increase adoption in these places.
An EV Alpine A110 Will Reportedly Be Built On The Crazy Renault R5 Turbo 3E Platform
I’m a huge fan of the Alpine A110 and consider it to be one of the best sports cars for sale right now anywhere in the world. I don’t love that it’s becoming an EV, but there’s not much I can do about it. At least, per Autocar, it’ll be built on a cool platform:
Both the third-generation A110 and the 5 Turbo 3E will use a new aluminium chassis structure called the Alpine Performance Platform (APP), which places a 70kWh battery pack behind the occupants to give an uncompromised driving position.
The new A110 will therefore be similar in height to the present one, said Krief. As such, he expects it to have an even sportier driving position than today’s car, with the driver’s feet raised, Formula 1-style, and the seat very reclined.
Power output for the EV is expected to surpass the 345bhp of the current A110’s run-out R Ultime special.
At launch, power will be supplied by two rear-mounted electric motors, but the door is still ajar for the new A110 to be offered with in-wheel motors – the solution used by its Renault platform-mate.
I’m not hugely enamored with fast EVs, which sometimes feel like they offer all of the completion with none of the climax. If anyone can make it fun, though, maybe it’s Alpine.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
How old do I feel? Well, The Knife’s “Silent Shout” turns 20 this week. That’s how old I feel.
The Big Question
If we’re just going to pretend for a minute that environmental regulations don’t exist, which powertrain would you like to see come back?
Top photo: Stellantis
I live in KY and would buy an EV if the one I want gets cheap enough. I don’t foresee Lightnings getting cheap enough any time soon though.
As for engines, give us back the pre “AFM/DoD” LS/LTs as an option in trucks please. All you need to make one of those reliable is a DoD delete cam and lifters
I’m also in KY, but have EV already but if cheap used pop up I’d be happy.
And I fully second elimination of the DoD. Current 5.3 in my truck is going bad and it’s a 20 hour repair to replace cam and lifters.
“Two Japanese giants, Honda Motor Co. and Toyota Motor Corp., are now the firms that matter most.”
SEE! The US and Canada are more alike than some would admit.
That is true, Toyota is a very close #2 in US market share, a little over a point behind GM
The Cummins 4bt diesel engine. 15 years ago, I swapped one into a 1986 Ford F150 – it is still running strong.
I’d bring back the old 12 valve Cummins Turbo Diesel.
6BT
I want VW to resurrect the V10 and V12 TDI engines.
For diesel is the fuel of the Gods, and will deliver us all to salvation.
The unwashed masses laying on their piles of porcelain, requiring the lightning of Zeus just to ignite their inferior fuels.
Banish them all, so we may ride into Valhalla, shiny and chrome.
Any pre-DOC/SCR/DPF emission controlled diesels. 90s Ford 7.3, Cummins 5.9, VW TDI… Those were the diesels that made sense, great fuel economy, fairly easy to work on. I’m not a fan of all the emissions they spewed but they did perform well.
Can we add some sound deadening to the exhaust and engine bay so the rest of us don’t have to hear them from half a mile away? I’ve been waiting for these old engines to finally die for that reason, but they’re proving very durable.
It’s a very good point. My friend has a fleet of 7.3s and he wears ear plugs when he drives them.
Or just require that they are only used on farms and ranches and such, at least 1 mile away from any other people?
On one hand, I’d like to see the 426 Hemi make a comeback, so people got to see what a real, genuine, not half-assed Hemi looks like (compared to the current G3).
On the other hand, a Slant 6 with modern fuel injection systems and an actual crossflow head would be wicked for a base 6 cylinder in trucks. Especially in aluminum!
I’d take a modernized naturally aspirated slant six over a Hurricane any day
The headline mentions West Virginia, but the story mentions Virginia?
That specific quote, but the idea is any state with a relatively low-EV adoption, which includes West Virginia.
You’d think the home of electricity generated by coal would LOVE to drive actual coal powered vehicles. Typical hypocrites.
It’s still cleaner overall than driving an ICE vehicle. No distributed emissions like ICE and the power plant exhaust is scrubbed cleaner if I recall correctly.
Oh absolutely. I always hate the argument of “gotcha! The power plant emissions are worse than a car.” Well you know what’s easier than trying to regulate emissions of billions of cars? Just regulate the thousands of power plants.
New York sued a bunch of Midwest states a few decades ago over power plant emissions and won. Some lakes and streams had become too acidic for aquatic life thanks to unscrubbed exhaust from Midwest power plants finally coming to Earth in an ecologically sensitive area. Those states said it’s not our problem while NY said it very much was. Ultimately those states had to tighten regulations. Now a few decades later, those areas have recovered enough to support native species returning to their ancestral ranges.
John Oliver did a story on coal a while back, funny enough the Coal Miner’s museum in Kentucky is powered by solar panels.
Came to bitch about this as one that grew up in West By God but now lives in Other Virginia within an hour of NC, TN, and WV. Then I got to thinking that if these deals are good in Old Dominion they’ll likely be better over the border.
Anyway, Virginia’s is the only state flag with an exposed breast. So we have that going for us.
Used EV’s and PHEV’s are the best value for dollar if they fit your lifestyle. The bonus is, because there’s almost no maintenance in the first 5 years, you don’t have to worry about if the oil has been changed regularly or if regular maintenance has been done. It’s basically, are the tires OK.
I got a clean title 22 Bolt EUV with every option (Supercruise, heated and cooled seats, leather, video rear view mirror, etc.) with 44,000 miles for about $17,000 last year. It costs me about $7.50 to “fill up” with electricity at home if it was completely empty and will do about 230 miles on that energy. The battery was replaced under recall in 2024, so it has 6 years and 90,000 miles remaining on the battery warranty. It’s plenty roomy for 4 people (there’s more leg room in the back than most full size cars). That’s a lot of car and a lot of life left for $17,000. The DCFC rate sucks, but if you use it for commuting and not at a road trip vehicle, it’s pretty perfect. This was my 3rd used PHEV or EV and they’ve all been great deals.
Best value for dollar, no. PHEVs still have engines with oil that absolutely matter if the oil has been changed regularly. Several studies already show a good portion of knuckleheads rarely charge their PHEVs. Additionally, there are many locales where the cost of electricity negates most the “fuel” savings.
I’m very much onboard with EV, PHEV, EREV, HEV and so on. However, your statement is just plain false. A reliable and efficient used gas or HEV are still way better value for dollar. If you want to amend your statement to best value for dollar per damage to the environment, then sure.
How many places are there where residential electricity rates are so high that they make home charging close to the expense of gas? I definitely agree that DCFC negates the savings, but not home charging even in places with the most insane rates.
Also, with the current heavy depreciation (and arguably, undervaluation) of EVs means that used CR-Vs, Tiguans, and Equinoxes are priced higher than used Prologues, ID.4s, and Equinox EVs for the same model year and similar mileage, you have to go 1-2 model years older on the gas/hybrid cars to reach price parity. This means used EVs are de facto better value for money assuming you have access to home charging and DCFC availability/speed isn’t a problem.
Northern California’s PG&E rates are complex. My electric generation is through Peninsula Clean Energy. The rate is $0.127/kWh. Not bad, you say. The transmission charge from PG&E is $0.39/kWh Tier 1 and $0.49/kWh for Tier 2. I live in a 1250 sq.ft. home and pay on average a total of $0.57/kWh. Did not do the calculation for equivalent gas cost. Right now a gallon of regular is more than $4/gallon.
The “enthusiast” answer here would be rotaries, and I wouldn’t disagree.
In the US, the answer could also be small diesels. You can get crazy power and economy out of them if you don’t have to hit emissions targets. For my high-speed, 85% highway commute, it would be amazing. Even if it remained more expensive here than 87 octane, it might still be worth it when you remove the reliability issues caused by the emissions systems.
The VW Tdi. It’s a damn shame that I couldn’t buy a Great Falls Green VW Golf Alltrack SEL Manual.
That would have been modern unicorn. I wonder how hard a swap is from a donor car with the mk7 diesel
Hardest part is finding a manual transmission that’s also awd that would bolt to the engine. And the wiring.
The diesels and the awd both came in stick, but the software would definitely be the hurdle unless there was a European version that had both.
“If we’re just going to pretend for a minute that environmental regulations don’t exist, which powertrain would you like to see come back?”
SAAB two-stroke!
I admit this would help with the parts situation.
If they can keep it under 3,000 lbs, it would be the first new car that I’ve ever found compelling while simultaneously being in a position to afford one. All electric, relatively light, and overpowered? That’s exactly what I’m after. I could do without all of the features of a modern car, and fingers crossed that it’s built to be repairable like a Slate pickup.
Canada should revise CVMSS to allow global/euro spec or FVMSS vehicle to be admissible here.
Yeah, crack the market wide open, someone wants to fill a few shipping containers with Protons and set up a makeshift showroom, let them
“If we’re just going to pretend for a minute that environmental regulations don’t exist, which powertrain would you like to see come back?”
I’m not going to do Stellantis’s homework for them.
What? But this is the perfect opportunity to create some AI slop that would wreck them harder than anything Jon Lovitz did to them under his tenure!
Air Cooled Engines.
What? You don’t own any snow moving or landscaping equipment?
I’m certainly planning to buy a used EV in Oklahoma at the end of ’26/beginning of ’27, so I would tend to agree with that analysis. Likely it will be an ioniq 6, but there’s a possibility for an electric Charger, as well. I am definitely the target market for the personal luxury EV coupe.
Too bad Mazda’s diesel wasn’t more successful here. They only sold the CX5 diesel for one year in the US. I trust them over any American or Euro diesel.
Bring back those VTEC/VVTLi type engines 8000 rpm and up 😀
I would agree about a Mazda engine, but I have to say I have a 2011 VW CJAA engine, and it’s incredibly reliable. I have a couple of friends with the same engine at half a million miles. Granted, those are with a lot of the factory emmisions removed, but as an engine with no restrictions, it’s very solid. Shame about the rest of the car being fairly standard VW in terms of reliability, but it will drive forever
12v Cummins (not biased at all) but mechanical, easy to work on and gets good fuel economy for what it is. That or a Pontiac 455 also not biased there at all hah.
I’m bringing back the LS3 and the supercharged LSA. These were peak small block Chevy. All aluminum, compact, modern fuel injection and ignition, and reliable. They didn’t have any of the lifter failures from the cylinder deactivation. Just big v8 power that can fit basically anywhere. I would want to see it anywhere it fits. CT4 Blackwing, Colorado ZR2, Silverado, hell try to throw one in a Trax for shits and giggles.
I second this.
A Trax with an LS3 would be appropriately named for the rubber trail that the local police would follow into the building in which the vehicle was presently lodged.
Cotd
Cadillac Sixteen, yeah it was only a concept but it was a fully working concept with a 13.6L V16 engine. Yes please
GM and Ford still employ more people in Canada than Toyota and Honda with skilled technical centers… but hey.
The Cosworth DFV
Silent Shout has been out for 20 years already? Fuck I’m old.
Hardigree… you need to check out Fever Ray. It’s Karin Dreijer’s solo project. She’s the female vocalist of The Knife. She’s also laid down vocals on a few tracks for Röyksopp as well.
Hah, you got me! I’m a big Fever Ray fan, too.
If emissions regs don’t exist, we must bring back V10s. I think we can all agree the loss of the Viper and Lamborghini V10s is a huge detriment to society.
VW should dust off the old W12 again and put it in the next Golf R.
W8 GTI, W12 Golf R. I can get behind this
Sweet mama, I love this idea. I’d get the GTI (again) since I want to have fun without getting arrested or dying. Which I would surely do with 12 freaking cylinders at my disposal.
The Genie grants your wish, by mating it to a Jatco CVT.
I’ll just reinforce it with my vast collection of monkey paws
Shouldn’t be too hard seeing as how VW already built the thing.
Time to bring it back and get it in the showrooms then!
Are you my burner account?
Who am I to speak untruths? You just so happen to have impeccable taste in powertrains.