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Welcome to The Downshift, or TDS for short, The Drive’s morning news roundup bringing you the biggest automotive headlines from around the world.
The Downshift quickly recaps the news, with links to full stories for those seeking more info. Hope you had a great weekend—here’s your bulletin for Monday, June 1, 2026.
💰 BYD has announced it will assume all financial responsibility for any crash that happens during proper use of its City Navigation autonomous driving system within one year of a vehicle’s delivery, or update to its latest “God’s Eye” software. The year-long limitation means this doesn’t solve one of the burning issues around autonomous driving, though it is a noteworthy development from China’s biggest automaker. [CleanTechnica]
🚫 There is concern that new legislation developing in the House prohibiting automakers from selling cars in the U.S. if they have “any direct or indirect equity interest by a foreign-adversary government” could ban Mercedes-Benz from the market. Chinese firms BAIC and Geely own a combined 19.67% of the company, and, as understood, the bill sets the threshold for “control” by a “foreign adversary” at 15% ownership. [CNBC]
7️⃣ The next-generation BMW X7 will have a more wagon-like profile, differentiating it from BMW’s typical SUVs as well as its competitors, according to retailers briefed on the new model. [Automotive News]
🫰 There could be as few as 800 examples of the manual BMW M3 CS Handschalter earmarked for the U.S. market, with BMW M Certified dealers receiving two cars and non-M dealers only one, according to a BMWBlog report. Additionally, markups supposedly range from a few grand to $25,000. [BMWBlog]
⚖️ There’s a class-action lawsuit brewing for owners of 2023-2025 Kia Tellurides in New York and Pennsylvania alleging that Kia was aware that the SUV’s 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster could fail. [Car Complaints]
🟠 Genesis’ Le Mans Hypercars will wear new orange liveries for their 24 Hours of Le Mans debut later this month. [Racer]
🏁 Weekend Race Results:
- WRC Rally Japan: Elfyn Evans won for Toyota
- NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series at Nashville: Layne Riggs won for Front Row Motorsports
- NASCAR O’Reilly Auto Parts Series at Nashville: Justin Allgaier won for JR Motorsports
- MotoGP Italian Grand Prix: Marco Bezzecchi won for Aprilia
- IndyCar Detroit Grand Prix: Alex Palou won for Chip Ganassi Racing
- IMSA Detroit Grand Prix: Jack Aitken and Earl Bamber won for Cadillac
- NASCAR Cup Series at Nashville: Denny Hamlin won for Joe Gibbs Racing
Got a tip or feedback for TDS? Reach out to tips@thedrive.com
Backed by a decade of covering cars and consumer tech, Adam Ismail is a Senior Editor at The Drive, focused on curating and producing the site’s slate of daily stories.
