Elon Musk Once Again Teases A Roadster That'll Never Come, But It Doesn't Matter Since Profits Are Up

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Good morning! It's Thursday, April 23, 2026, and this is The Morning Shift, your regular roundup of nan apical automotive headlines from astir nan world, successful 1 place. This is wherever you'll find nan astir important stories that are shaping nan measurement Americans thrust and get around.

In this morning's edition, Elon Musk is talking Roadster malarky again and touting a $25 cardinal stake connected AI arsenic Tesla thumps Wall Street expectation, Jeep is skipping nan 2026 exemplary twelvemonth for nan Wagoneer S (but it'll beryllium backmost for 2027) and person don't worry, GM executives are keeping their bonuses contempt monolithic tariff expenses.

Tesla

Tesla's profits roseate successful nan first 4th of 2026, acknowledgment mostly to a beardown rebound from car income aft a immense dip successful 2025. It seems nan mean user has a representation astir arsenic agelong arsenic a goldfish, and because of that, astir of CEO Elon Musk's transgressions complete nan past year-and-a-half person been each but forgiven forgotten. His alignment pinch far-right politicians astir nan world? What are you talking about? His constant attacks against our trans loved ones? Did that happen? His allowing Twitter to go a cesspool of dislike and garbage? Irrelevant. All that matters is that nan banal goes up, and nan cars "can thrust themselves."

All that is to say, Tesla says it earned $477 cardinal successful nan first 4th — up 17% from a twelvemonth ago, and gross roseate to $22.39 billion. That was led by a 16% summation successful automotive revenues. Still, profits and gross are good beneath their highest arsenic bequest automakers and Chinese companies gobble up marketplace share. So, to juice nan numbers a bit, Musk turned to his aged friend: nan second-generation Roadster. As I'm judge you remember, it was initially made disposable for preservation backmost successful 2017. Oh, what a clip that was. From Business Insider:

[T]he CEO said nan institution mightiness unveil its next-generation Roadster "in a period aliases so."

"It requires a batch of testing and validation earlier we tin really person a demo and not person thing spell incorrect pinch nan demo," Musk said. "But I deliberation it will beryllium 1 of nan astir breathtaking merchandise unveils ever."

Musk said yet nan Roadster would beryllium nan only human-driven car successful Tesla's lineup, adding that while he doesn't expect it to person a immense effect connected nan company's revenue, "it is very cool."

[...]

Musk said successful October nan car could beryllium unveiled earlier nan extremity of nan year, only to opportunity a period later that nan demo time was tentatively planned for April 1, 2026. In mid-March, Musk said it would "probably" travel successful precocious April, only to hold it erstwhile again.

The Roadster wasn't nan only goofy point Musk mentioned, of course. He reiterated that nan company's early lies little pinch cars and much pinch getting group to return a thrust successful Tesla's self-driving taxis. The Associated Press reports that Tesla claims robotaxi miles doubled successful nan first 4th compared to nan 4th fourth of past year, and they're presently moving successful San Francisco and 3 Texas cities. We're not truthful sure.

Robert Way/Shutterstock

Musk being Musk and Tesla being Tesla, neither could conscionable instrumentality to cars. The CEO is asking his investors to return a leap of religion connected his admittedly costly bets connected self-driving tech and humanoid robots that person yet to make any, you know, money. I don't wanna get each capitalist connected your asses, but generally, publically traded companies request money to warrant building things.

The "automaker" lifted its 2026 superior expenditure scheme to much than $25 cardinal — astir triple past year's $8.53 billion, and a bully chunk higher than nan $20 cardinal it forecast earlier this year. It comes arsenic Musk decides to walk large connected artificial intelligence, robotaxis and robotics. It has immoderate manufacture experts worried that Tesla is being pulled successful excessively galore directions astatine once.

Now, nan institution is expecting antagonistic free rate travel for nan remainder of nan twelvemonth aft getting that astonishment $1.44 cardinal surplus successful Q1. From Reuters:

"If you deliberation that Elon Musk's position that Optimus will beryllium yet their astir ​worthy, astir value-creating platform, and you deliberation you're skeptical, past nan capex doesn't make ⁠sense, and it's astir apt not a bully investment," said Seth Goldstein, a Morningstar analyst, connected Tesla's humanoid robot, ​a still-in-development strategy Musk has said could beryllium mass-produced.

"But if you deliberation that Elon Musk has proven himself that ​he tin make seemingly intolerable things a reality, past you're consenting to return nan leap of religion here."

[...]

Musk has based on Tesla is not alone, pointing to dense spending crossed nan exertion sector.

Alphabet, Microsoft and Amazon are each committing tens to hundreds of billions of dollars toward AI infrastructure. But these companies person established unreality and package businesses generating important and recurring rate flow.

Amazon is expected to station antagonistic ​free rate travel successful 2026, ​reflecting nan standard of ⁠its finance cycle. Yet analysts opportunity that differs from Tesla's position, arsenic Amazon's spending is underpinned by high-margin businesses specified arsenic Amazon Web Services and advertizing that person ​a way grounds of yet translating finance into returns.

On nan flip broadside of nan coin, Tesla is betting connected businesses still early successful nan improvement process. Hell, moreover he admits its robotaxi business won't lend immoderate meaningful gross earlier 2027. In Musk terms, that intends 2090.

Erman Gunes/Shutterstock

Skipping exemplary years is truthful basking correct now. Volkswagen did it pinch nan ID Buzz. Now, Jeep is doing it pinch nan slow-selling Wagoneer S. Don't interest excessively much, though. The confusingly named electrical crossover will beryllium backmost for 2027, but there's nary clear reply arsenic to erstwhile output successful Toluca, Mexico, will resume. Adding different wrinkle to each of this is nan truth that it gets deed pinch import tariffs. Ah, Stellatnis. From Automotive News:

The Stellantis marque said it's "pacing accumulation of nan all‑electric Jeep Wagoneer S to support early improvements successful artillery performance, package and capability."

[...]

The Wagoneer S, nan brand's first afloat electrical conveyance successful North America, began shipping to dealers successful January 2025 arsenic a speedy 600-hp inferior conveyance pinch a well-appointed interior.

"The Jeep marque will forgo a 2026 model‑year nickname successful North America arsenic we hole to debut nan 2027 exemplary twelvemonth Jeep Wagoneer S, which will present afloat compatibility pinch nan North American Charging Standard charging larboard to grow customer entree to increasing fast‑charging networks," a Stellantis spokesperson said successful a connection to Automotive News.

The 2025 exemplary "remains disposable for acquisition and lease astatine Jeep dealerships without interruption," nan spokesperson said.

January done September of past year, Jeep sold 10,426 Wagoneer S crossovers successful nan U.S. That's not great, but not terrible. However, erstwhile nan $7,500 national EV taxation in installments was yanked, income fell disconnected a cliff. In nan six months since then, conscionable 613 Wagonner S EVs person recovered caller homes, and income fell to conscionable 175 units successful nan first 4th arsenic dealerships worked to waste down their remaining 2025 inventory.

See you adjacent year, Wagoneer S.

Anna Moneymaker/Getty Images

Sure, General Motors was hit pinch $3 cardinal successful tariffs from nan Trump management successful 2025, but you tin remainder assured that CEO Mary Barra and different apical executives astatine nan institution will not miss retired connected their multi-million dollar yearly capacity bonuses. It's each because members of GM's committee of board decided to exclude losses tied to tariffs erstwhile evaluating nan company's profitability arsenic portion of executive bonuses. How benignant of them.

At nan aforesaid time, profit sharing among labor went down this year. Unlike executive pay, hourly worker profit-sharing bonuses are fixed retired based connected a look agreed upon pinch nan United Auto Workers union. For each $1 cardinal GM makes successful North America, its hourly workers get $1,000. Because GM made little money successful 2025, profit-sharing payments went down from $14,500 to $10,500.

At slightest Barra gets to support her money. From The Detroit News:

As a result, Barra and different leaders received bigger bonuses than they different would person if they were held accountable for losses attributable to Trump's import taxes. The board's compensation committee, a sheet of respective board responsible for executive pay, cited Barra's activity successful reducing nan deed from tariffs done onshoring efforts.

"We can't alteration nan policy," GM spokesperson Jim Cain said, "but we tin actively activity to offset nan impact."

Barra received a astir $5 cardinal yearly capacity prize and full compensation of adjacent to $30 cardinal successful 2025. President Mark Reuss was awarded a $2 cardinal prize and full compensation of astir $19 million. For 2024, Barra's capacity prize was person to $6.7 million, and Reuss' was $2.7 million.

In a missive to shareholders, compensation committee Chairperson Devin N. Wenig said nan sheet astatine nan commencement of 2025 pre-approved a scope of imaginable adjustments to profit goals to relationship for uncertainty because of tariffs and different imaginable argumentation changes nether Trump.

"Importantly, this attack established an outlook for nan scope of imaginable argumentation alteration impacts connected nan business (both affirmative and negative) and encouraged our activity squad to prosecute progressive and deliberate actions to respond to these impacts wherever imaginable to service nan champion interests of nan Company and our shareholders," Wenig said.

GM's compensation committee has nan expertise to set capacity goals tied to executive salary annually, and it has accounted for anomalies successful nan past.

History.com

Remember erstwhile Jalopnik was greenish for a small while? That was truthful weird, right? I consciousness for illustration we should person talked much astir really bizarre that was. In immoderate case, you tin blasted our past owners, who are very overmuch defunct astatine this point. With really poorly that was recieved, I cannot moreover ideate what it was for illustration astatine Coca-Cola office erstwhile they rolled retired New Coke. It must person been a humor bath. If you want to study more, caput complete to History.com.

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Uh oh. I've sewage immoderate concerning news, friends. We've sewage our first regular state value summation since April 9 arsenic Schrödinger's Strait of Hormuz dancing betwixt unfastened and closed. Oil prices are besides ticking up, pinch WTI Crude Oil futures hovering astir $93 and Brent Crude cracking nan $100 obstruction erstwhile again.

All of this is to opportunity that nan mean value of a gallon of state accrued by an full cent overnight to $4.03, according to AAA. While we're still down considerably from our April 9 highest of $4.17, immoderate activity successful nan incorrect guidance should beryllium looked astatine pinch a batch of concern.

Still, nan mean value of a gallon of state is now up $1.05 — aliases astir 30% —since nan U.S. and Israel's warfare pinch Iran first collapsed retired connected February 28.

Here's wherever nationalist mean prices guidelines correct now, according to AAA:

AAA

This morning, I was reminded really goddamn bully nan 2000 "Charlie's Angels" reboot was, and it sewage maine reasoning astir nan iconic soundtrack — particularly this song, which was really made for nan movie. I cognize I'm not unsocial successful this, but this movie was formative for maine erstwhile I was increasing up. I cognize you've astir apt gotta spell to activity correct now, truthful you can't watch nan movie. But, you tin perceive to this opus to clasp you complete until you get location tonight.

Good morning, angels.