Elon Musk's Far-right Politics Have Cost Tesla Millions

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Happy Tuesday! It's October 28, 2025, 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, we're looking astatine nan effects of Elon Musk's far-right authorities connected Tesla sales, arsenic good arsenic nan F-150 arsenic a awesome of American trade. We'll besides look astatine Ford's latest accumulation plans for China, and an investigation into much motor failures astatine GM.

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Elon Musk has spent nan past fewer years falling down a far-right rabbit hole, moving from being a weird-but-harmless dork who wanted to prevention nan environment to actively processing an encyclopedia that accepts fringe right-wing narratives arsenic fact and who keeps trying to make nan world's astir racist AI — a existent feat erstwhile AI is by default beautiful racist. Anyway, it turns retired nan full "rapid descent into fascism" thing isn't ace celebrated pinch nan kinds of progressives who mostly bargain electrical cars, and Musk's image has been really hurting Tesla. From Reuters:

Tesla CEO Elon Musk's polarizing governmental actions since acquiring Twitter, later rebranded X, successful 2022 dramatically wounded nan automaker's U.S. sales, underscoring really profoundly its fortunes are intertwined pinch nan billionaire's persona.

The findings quantify for nan first clip really nan governmental actions of nan world's wealthiest personification – including his domiciled successful U.S. President Donald Trump's management – whitethorn person costs Tesla billions successful mislaid conveyance income while benefiting rival electrical carmakers.

Tesla's U.S. income would person been betwixt 67% and 83% higher, aliases astir 1 cardinal to 1.26 cardinal further vehicles, from October 2022 to April 2025, had it not been for what researchers telephone nan "Musk partisan effect", according to a moving insubstantial from nan National Bureau of Economic Research by Yale University economists.

...

The NBER insubstantial said Musk's actions besides hampered California's advancement toward its zero-emissions conveyance goals, concluding that nan authorities would apt person met its 2026 targets "had it not been for nan Musk partisan effect".

Alienating not only your company's halfway audience, but nan very halfway of quality decency itself, has not yet proved to beryllium a winning business strategy. This study is improbable to alteration Musk's views aliases actions, though. 

Ford

President Donald Trump wants overseas countries to bargain much from nan United States, but he doesn't look to person a awesome grasp of why they're not buying things now. Take nan Ford F-150, which Trump precocious suggested Japan commencement importing successful bulk — contempt nan country's smaller roads, packed cities, and wide inhospitability to specified tremendous cars. Nations for illustration Japan, though, are still consenting to bargain nan motortruck arsenic a show of goodwill. From Reuters:

Long associated pinch American ruggedness, burly pickup trucks specified arsenic Ford's top-selling F-150 person now go a awesome of world waste and acquisition talks, showing really acold countries specified arsenic Japan will spell to triumph complete U.S. President Donald Trump.

When Trump met Japan's caller premier curate and first female premier, Sanae Takaichi, successful Tokyo connected Tuesday, an F-150 was parked prominently extracurricular nan Akasaka Palace venue.

Big U.S. pickup trucks are a uncommon show successful nan Japanese capital, wherever nan streets are constrictive and turns tin beryllium painfully tight.

But nan placement of nan F-150, not moreover typically disposable for waste successful Japan, sent a clear connection astir Tokyo's willingness to bargain much cars from its ally, an rumor that has been a sore constituent for Trump for decades.

Last week Reuters reported that Takaichi's authorities was moving connected a package to bargain F-150 trucks, an thought primitively floated by Trump, arsenic good arsenic soybeans and gas.

Japan will bargain a fewer F-150s to run arsenic snowfall plows! We did it. We saved world waste and acquisition forever. 

Ford

Ford's been doing good successful China, and now nan institution is looking to make further investments successful nan country. That starts pinch caller products, a brace of electrified Bronco Sports (Broncos Sport?) made successful China, for China. One will beryllium afloat electric, nan different will person a gasoline scope extender. From Automotive News:

Ford Motor Co. notched a profit for nan ninth-straight 4th successful China arsenic exports from nan world's biggest car marketplace bolster its bottommost line.

...

On Oct. 25, Ford China besides announced that locally built electrified Ford Bronco SUVs will get successful nan marketplace "soon." The conveyance was exhibited astatine an car show held successful nan southwest China metropolis of Chengdu successful August.

According to accusation Ford China disclosed astatine that event, nan conveyance will beryllium made disposable successful artillery electrical and range-extender versions.

The full-electric variant, fitted pinch dual motors and a 105.4-kilowatt-hour artillery pack, delivers a scope of 650 kilometers (404 miles) connected 1 charge, nether nan China Light Vehicle Test Cycle, aliases CLTC, which is considered much lenient than nan U.S. EPA cycle.

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The range-extender features a 1.5-liter turbocharged gasoline engine, dual motors and a 43.7kWh artillery pack. It has a scope of 220 km (137 miles) connected batteries only. With 1 vessel of gasoline and afloat charged batteries, it tin thrust for 1,220 km (758 miles).

These caller crossovers really look beautiful cool, and it would beryllium neat to get them connected our shores someday. Given existent waste and acquisition relations pinch China, that's unlikely, but we tin dream. 

Cadillac

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is looking into moreover much GM motor failures, widening its scope to see different 286,051 Silverados, Sierras, Suburbans, Tahoes, Yukons, and Escalades. From Automotive News:

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has expanded an investigation into an motor nonaccomplishment rumor for an further 286,051 General Motors vehicles successful nan U.S.

The preliminary investigation was opened successful January and resulted successful a callback successful April.

The investigation now covers 2019-21 and 2024 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 and GMC Sierra 1500 pickups, arsenic good arsenic 2021-24 Chevrolet Suburbans and Tahoes, GMC Yukons and Yukon XLs, and Cadillac Escalades and Escalade ESVs.

There's nary callback yet, but don't beryllium amazed if this leads to 1 down nan road. 

Napster came backmost arsenic a streaming work for a bit, and is now promising to relaunch pinch immoderate benignant of AI slop. Back successful my day, though, it was wherever you sewage your euphony and malware for free. RIP to a existent one. 

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