What it means to be an American is, to a great extent, an ongoing and never answered question. I’d argue that the constant effort to find an answer is sort of the point, and if there ever is a truly definitive solution, then we’ve lost something of what truly makes this country so chaotically beautiful. That being said, there’s probably some common ground in that Americans believe in having choices.
This is both an outgrowth of the advanced free market that has developed over the years and an initial impulse that drove the Mayflower across the ocean, then filled the minds and documents that formed American society. While the political choices can sometimes run binary (or worse), commercial choices usually abound. If you don’t believe me, count the number of probiotic sodas available at fancy grocery stores.
The Morning Dump is getting philosophical today, and let’s start with a choice of sedans. If you’re a consumer in America, the options are dwindling when it comes to passenger cars that aren’t some form of SUV. A new report says that GM might fix that, tantalizing us with the option for at least one more sedan. I have ideas of what I want it to be.
Nissan still makes sedans, but the making of sedans isn’t making it rich. It’s still losing money and closing plants. Rivian is also losing money, but it’s less money, and it has achieved a gross profit. Lucid lost a little more than expected, but maybe it’s not entirely terrible?
GM Reportedly Needs To Build Two Passenger Cars… So What’s The Second One?
It’s no secret that GM will be creating a next-generation Cadillac CT5 on what’s expected to be the Alpha 2+2 platform, which is supposedly an evolution of the existing Alpha 2 platform that’s already under the CT5, and once held up the (sadly) lost Camaro. This is supposed to be built in GM’s Lansing Grand River Assembly.
Here’s what CEO Mary Barra said about it in her latest letter to shareholders:
It’s clear that ICE volumes will remain higher for longer. We lead the industry today, and we are increasingly well positioned to meet strong, sustained demand.
For example, we are onshoring production of the Chevrolet Blazer, developing a next-generation Cadillac CT5 and redesigning and extending the Cadillac XT5. When Orion Assembly comes back online in early 2027, it will produce the Cadillac Escalade and then add our next-generation full-size, light duty pickup trucks.
Grand River ain’t a small place, and GM Authority’s, assumption, based on sources, is that one CT5 isn’t enough for the available capacity and that GM is developing “multiple variants” of Alpha 2+2. In order to maximize Lansing, there needs to be another car. And I mean car, not another crossover. And not an EV, a gas-powered car (or at least a hybrid). And a RWD-based one, at that!
So what does this mean? No one knows. That’s what’s fun about it. We can all use our imaginations and think of something completely out of the box, like a 2027 Chevy Malibu SS (I’m showing the Code 130R concept up top and the Malibu XTC Concept above for inspiration). Given that the emissions regulations (at least of the global warming variety) barely exist at the federal level, there’s also less of a penalty for the return of a Camaro and maybe a Camaro sedan.
A slightly more boring answer is a coupe version of the CT5, although that still sounds fun to me. I miss coupes.
Nissan Lost $1.4 Billion In First Half Of (Fiscal) Year, Pulls Guidance
The Autopian’s favorite car exec/drummer, Ivan Espinosa, has been trying to get Nissan back on the beat as the automaker struggles with its departure from the Renault partnership, the imprisonment of its CEO, tariffs, the inconsistent rise of electric cars, and all sorts of other issues.
It’s been tough, and Nissan has pulled its guidance for the year as it closes plants, sells its Japanese HQ, and does what it can to raise cash to get to whatever is next. The company’s first half of the fiscal year (April-September) showed massive losses due to reorganization and tariffs.
Without tariffs, the company says it would be close to breaking even, and Espinosa sees a path forward. Per Nikkei Asia:
“Our first half results reflect the challenges we face,” Ivan Espinosa, Nissan’s President and CEO, said on Thursday. “But they also confirm that Nissan is firmly on the path to recovery.”
Espinosa, who took the helm in April, formulated the company’s restructuring plan, which called for the elimination of 20,000 jobs and reducing the number of car assembly plants from 17 to 10 globally by March 2028. The plan was developed after the company posted a net loss of 670 billion yen in the fiscal year ended March 2025.
“The plan is ongoing, and we are tracking according [to] our expectations in terms of speed and size of adjustment of the workforce,” Espinosa said. He has yet to reveal the exact number of staff cuts involved.
If Espinosa makes this work, the rejection of a deal with Honda will look remarkably wise. If not, then there’s gonna be a lot of pain that maybe could have been avoided (although Honda wouldn’t have solved Nissan’s overcapacity problems, so much of this is inevitable).
[Ed Note: A reminder that Nissan is absolutely worth saving. It’s a brand with an incredible history. -DT]
Rivian Makes A Gross Profit, Thanks In Part To VW
Electric truckmaker Rivian has had a long, difficult road to profitability. Just building enough cars has been hard, let alone timing them out to market demand. While the company was not exactly profitable in the third quarter, it did make a little more in revenue and lost less money than expected. It also posted its second quarter of gross profitability, which is important, as CNBC explains:
Regarding its gross profit, which is closely watched by investors, the company reported $24 million during the third quarter, beating FactSet consensus estimates of a $38.6 million loss. Both the company’s automotive and software and services performed better than expected.
“While we face near-term uncertainty from trade, tariffs, and regulatory policy, we remain focused on long-term growth and value creation,” Rivian CEO and founder RJ Scaringe said Tuesday in the company’s shareholder letter.
Rivian’s gross profit included a $130 million loss in its automotive operations — which was a $249 million improvement from the same period a year earlier — that was offset by $154 million from its VW joint venture and software and services.
Ah yes, VW. While Rivian’s products might have carried it without help, VW’s offering over $5 billion certainly didn’t hurt. With some exciting cars coming, it doesn’t seem like a crazy bet to me.
Lucid Loses Less Money, Still Struggling To Ramp Production
Photo credit: Thomas Hundal
I haven’t driven one yet, but David and Thomas had great things to say about the Lucid Gravity, even though David thinks the styling was a misstep and that maybe the company is too nerdy for its own good. I have driven the Lucid Air a few times, and it’s an incredibly impressive machine. How’s the company doing?
Sales are up, losses are down, but the acceleration of production isn’t quite where it needs to be yet, according to Electrek:
Although supply chain issues hampered production in the first half of the year, Lucid’s CEO Marc Winterhoff said the company made “significant progress ramping production of the Lucid Gravity through Q3,” including adding a second manufacturing shift at its Casa Grande, Arizona, plant.
Lucid produced 3,891 vehicles in Q3, missing estimates of around 5,600. With 9,966 EVs produced through the third quarter, Lucid will need to build over 8,000 more to meet its full-year production goal of 18,000 to 20,000.
While Lucid doesn’t have a VW deal, there’s always the Saudi Public Investment Fund to fall back on.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
The idea of “selling out” is kinda a quaint concept in 2025. If you want to know what it felt like in the ’90s, “Sell Out” by Reel Big Fish is a decent primer.
The Big Question
What’s GM going to build and what do you think GM should build?
Top photo: GM
Bring back Oldsmobile as a one-platform brand. Cutlass Supreme Sedan, Wagon, Coupe, and Convertible.
Personally, I’ll take a 442 Wagon.
That Code 130R concept has aged quite well. It still looks good.
GM should build a quiet, easy-riding sedan with comfortable seats and a large greenhouse. Front seat is a bench with room for three in a pinch or your girlfriend/boyfriend can slide over to keep you company. The automatic transmission is controlled by a mysterious stalk protruding from the right side of the steering column. The car is powered by a hybrid engine/transmission built by GM under license from Toyota OR a small block V8, your choice. It has two sun visors for each front seat passenger, one blocks side sun, one blocks front sun. Speaking of sun, a sunroof will be offered, but only as a stand alone option. In fact, all options are stand alone. You can buy this goddamn thing with rollup windows, no a/c, and a rearview mirror that blinds you at night if you so desire. Standard interior consists of plaid cloth in a marketing tie-in with Pendleton, and you will have six colorful choices. There will of course be a vinyl option for people who don’t understand. There will be a screen for the rear view camera and navigation, but it will disappear into the dash at the push of a button if you don’t want to look at it. All controls with the exception of navigation are physical knobs, buttons, or switches. Tires are 205/70/15 with dog dish steelies, but you can downgrade to 19 inch alloys with rubber band tires if you want.
205/70/15 dog dish steelies and a Pendleton interior? I’ve never owned a new car but that would be at the top of the list.
Simplify the screen, just have a few sockets in dash that it plugs into, pop it out and keep under seat or in basement/garage.
I know in NASCAR Chevrolet is coming out with a new body 2026. Some rumors are a revamped Camaro nose, others will make the cup car a concept like vehicle. They have not mentioned any car tied with it. It would be a surprise if they have a model come out with the new NASCAR Chevrolet Cup Car.
New Buick Grand National.
No, a future CT5 does not need to share an assembly line with a RWD sedan.
It is entirely possible to build flexible assembly lines that can build build sedans, convertibles, coupes, wagons, and crossovers all on the same line in any order or combination. I’ve worked in factories that do just that.
They need to amortize the cost for this platform over a large number of vehicles. But each vehicle doesn’t need to be a massive seller, as long as together they sell in decent numbers to pay for the tooling and keep a plant busy.
Cadillac CT5, Chevy Camaro and Malibu and finally give Buick that halo car they have deserved for years now. A next-gen Riviera would fit their current market segment well. They probably could also use it for next generation gas-hybrid crossovers.
They sold about 15,000 CT5 last year. Lower volume, but higher margin vehicle. The Mustang’s sales have been down, but it still sold about 45,000 units last year. In 2023, the Camaro sold about 30,000 units, so maybe a next-gen Camaro based on this new platform could do 40,000 units. In 2023, Chevy sold 130,000 Malibus, so it was a strong seller even in its last year. A new RWD Malibu would probably be a little more expensive, so maybe it could move 100,000 units per year. Lastly a next-gen Riviera would definitely be a lower volume car, but should be still higher margin since it would be more expensive than a Chevy. Maybe they could sell 10,000 units.
All in, that means this platform could be used in over 150,000 units per year, and potentially a lot more if they also use it for a crossover. That’s more than decent volume and could justify the cost to develop it.
Some others have said it, but whatever GM does here they will absolutely bungle it. No chance they’ll get it right.
Oh, they’ll get it right… after 2 – 3 years spent ironing out problems that proper development would have caught, then
value engineeringpinching dollars to save pennies, then pulling it off the market shortly after they get it right because sales and whatever remained of the brand equity went into the dumpster. Again.Whatever gm does it probably won’t be what they should have done. It will be a Chevy because Buick is just for imports now. Maybe they bring back the Impala even Impala SS name plate. It will probably be Malibu though. Bringing back the el camino would be great but I doubt it would sell at what they would want for them. Camero could be good but they would mess it up and people would be unhappy and wouldn’t buy it. No doubt it would be like the mach e only no real Camero to fall back on.
ahh yes, everyone’s favorite, the Camero