Sep 27, 2026 · Auto & Mobility Daily Digest
Auto and mobility headlines compiled for September 27, 2026, with summaries, links, and brief commentary.
I. Policy & the U.S. Market
1. Trump says he approved new fuel-economy standards; DOT to publish the final rule Monday (Policy / United States)
Summary:
Reuters reported on September 26 that President Donald Trump said on Saturday he had approved new Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards meant to end what he calls the Biden administration's electric-vehicle mandate, and that the change would lower new-vehicle prices. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy said a "major victory for America's auto workers" is coming Monday, September 28. Reuters said the Transportation Department will finalize sharply lower standards through model year 2031. Under the department's December proposal, the fleetwide average would be about 34.5 mpg by 2031, versus about 50.4 mpg on the Biden path. The department estimated the proposal would cut the average new-vehicle price by about $930, while adding roughly 100 billion gallons of fuel use through 2050, about $185 billion in fuel spending, and about 5% more carbon dioxide. Biden-era rules required roughly 8% annual gains for model years 2024 and 2025, 10% for 2026, and 2% a year from 2027 through 2031.
Links:
- Reuters — US to finalize sharply lower vehicle fuel economy standards
- CNBC — Trump says he approved new fuel economy standards, rolling back Biden-era rules
Commentary:
The final numbers still land Monday, but the direction is already set: U.S. fleet electrification moves from a regulatory push back to an automaker choice.
2. U.S. EV share rebounds to 7.9% in Q2 while hybrids gain nearly 5 points year over year (Market / United States)
Summary:
Automotive World on September 25 cited the Alliance for Automotive Innovation's Get Connected report for the second quarter of 2026, released September 23. Electric vehicles (battery, plug-in hybrid, and fuel cell) accounted for 328,799 U.S. light-duty sales and a 7.9% share, up 1.6 percentage points from the first quarter and the first sequential gain since the third quarter of 2025. Share was still about 1.6 points below a year earlier, with EV volume down about 15% while the overall light-duty market grew about 2%. Hybrids rose about 4.9 points year over year to 22.2% of sales; internal-combustion models fell to 69.9%. First-half EV sales were 556,477, down 26.8%. About 7.8 million EVs are on the road. Public charging ports rose to 250,158, including 73,019 fast chargers. A Center for Automotive Research section in the report credits China with about 70% of global EV output and more than 80% of battery-cell production in 2025.
Links:
- Automotive World — US EV share rises to 7.9% in Q2 but stays below 2025 level
- Alliance for Automotive Innovation — Get Connected Electric Vehicle Report Q2 2026
Commentary:
After purchase credits ended, U.S. buyers are filling the gap with hybrids, and looser mileage rules would reinforce that shift.
II. Autonomous Driving
3. Dubai opens Mobility Labs: 248 test scenarios toward 25% autonomous journeys by 2030 (Autonomy)
Summary:
The National reported on September 27 that Dubai on Sunday opened Dubai Mobility Labs at Dubai Silicon Oasis, built by the Roads and Transport Authority with the Dubai Integrated Economic Zones Authority, in support of a goal that 25% of all journeys in the emirate be autonomous by 2030. Vehicles are assessed across 248 scenarios in a controlled area and on public roads running from Dubai Silicon Oasis to Al Qudra, covering sensing, decision-making, and response to difficult traffic and weather. WeRide, Pony.ai, and Tesla have already completed trials at the site. German testing firm Dekra will operate the labs for the first three years. RTA chairman Mattar Al Tayer called it the most integrated ground-testing setup of its kind in the region, meant to verify safety, efficiency, and readiness before public-road deployment.
Links:
Commentary:
The Gulf is moving autonomous driving from pilot fleets into a certifiable test ground; commercial service still needs its own permits.
III. Supply Chain & Plants
4. Ford halts Dearborn F-150 output through September 29; Kansas City drops some shifts (Supply chain)
Summary:
Reuters reported on September 25, citing a memo it viewed, that production of Ford's F-150 is down for nearly a week at the Dearborn Truck Plant in Michigan. All production crews were canceled starting Thursday through Tuesday, September 29. A person familiar with the matter said the cause is a supply problem unrelated to the aluminum shortage that followed a supplier fire late last year. Ford's Kansas City Assembly Plant canceled some shifts this week for the same issue, while Kentucky Truck Plant increased truck output. Reuters could not identify the supplier. Ford's vehicle sales were down about 10% year over year through August, and F-Series sales were down about 11%. The shutdown window includes this Sunday, with restart still set for September 29.
Links:
- Reuters — Ford F-150 truck production down for nearly a week at Michigan plant, memo says
- BNN Bloomberg — Ford F-150 truck production down for nearly a week in Michigan: memo
Commentary:
The best-selling pickup is again stopped by an unnamed part, showing how exposed North American truck output remains to a single supply point.
5. U.S. invokes USMCA rapid-response labor review at Yokohama's Coahuila tire plant (Supply chain / Trade)
Summary:
The Office of the U.S. Trade Representative said on September 25 that it has invoked the USMCA Rapid Response Labor Mechanism and asked Mexico to review whether workers at Yokohama Tire Manufacturing Mexico in Coahuila are being denied freedom of association and collective bargaining. The United States will suspend liquidation of entries of goods from the tire plant until further notice. The action follows Yokohama's recent closure of its Salem, Virginia plant and the layoff of nearly 600 U.S. workers. USTR said the Interagency Labor Committee received a petition on August 26 from the Mexican union LSOM and the International Lawyers Assisting Workers Network, alleging retaliation for union activity, including unequal treatment, restricted plant access for union delegates, irregularities ahead of a representation vote, unlawful dismissals, and non-compliance with the rubber-industry sectoral agreement. The committee found sufficient, credible evidence. Mexico has 10 days to agree to a review and, if it agrees, 45 days from September 25 to finish it.
Links:
Commentary:
A cross-border tire footprint has met facility-level labor enforcement, and the trade measure can hold up shipments into the United States.
IV. Heavy-Truck Charging
6. Scania delivers its first megawatt-charging electric truck to a German customer (Charging / Trucks)
Summary:
electrive reported on September 26 that Scania delivered its first battery-electric truck with a Megawatt Charging System port in Germany, a Scania 40 S, to logistics firm B&H Spedition. The pack sits under the cab and stores about 623 kWh. Three of B&H's 11 trucks are now electric. The truck charges at the company's depot on weekends and prefers Milence's public network on the road. Scania said the MCS inlet has already been used in operation, drawing up to about 1,000 amps and peaking near 750 kW, enough under those conditions to go from 10% to 90% in about 45 minutes. Scania did not name the site or the charger, and it did not state a range for this truck. electrive also noted a separate September behind-cab battery layout rated at up to about 720 km on a 6x2 configuration, which is not the specification delivered to B&H.
Links:
- electrive — Scania delivers its first MCS electric truck in Germany
- Scania Deutschland — First Scania BEV with Megawatt Charging System delivered in Germany
Commentary:
Europe's electric-truck step that matters is a customer actually using megawatt charging on the road; a 750 kW peak already fits a driver rest break.
V. Ride-Hailing & Regulation
7. Lagos app drivers plan an October shutdown, seeking a 10% commission cap at Bolt and inDrive (Ride-hailing)
Summary:
Legit.ng reported on September 27 that Jaiyesimi Azeez, chairman of the Lagos State Council of the Amalgamated Union of App-based Transporters of Nigeria (AUATON), signed a statement planning October industrial action against Bolt and inDrive. The union wants fares reviewed and a platform commission ceiling of 10%. It says fuel, maintenance, insurance, mobile data, government levies, and vehicle repayments are squeezing income, and it wants fares to reflect traffic and waiting time plus consultation before fare or subscription changes. It also wants clearer trip statements, health and accident cover, and stronger passenger checks where privacy rules allow. Daily hire and loan payments may limit how many drivers can actually stop working, and the union remains open to talks. Uber ended its Nigeria operations on September 2, 2026, closing about 12 years that began in Lagos in 2014.
Links:
Commentary:
With Uber gone, the fare-and-commission fight sits on the platforms that remain, and an October stoppage depends on whether drivers can afford a day without pay.
8. South Africa's tax agency names e-hailing a priority compliance sector and will use transaction data (Mobility / Regulation)
Summary:
TopAuto reported on September 27 that Finance Minister Enoch Godongwana, answering parliamentary questions, said the South African Revenue Service has identified e-hailing as a priority sector in its drive to bring the informal economy into the tax base, including drivers on Bolt, Uber, and inDrive. Godongwana said current tools include third-party and transactional data to find potentially unregistered or non-compliant operators, plus targeted enforcement and taxpayer education to improve registration, filing, and payment. The minibus taxi industry is also a priority. The report notes that in June 2026 the Department of Transport formalized e-hailing rules requiring trackers and panic buttons, and that Transport Minister Barbara Creecy said the department is aware of safety risks in the sector.
Links:
Commentary:
Platform mobility in emerging markets is being repriced from both sides: drivers contest commissions while tax authorities pull the same trips into the formal net.
Today's Summary
- Policy: Trump says he has approved lower fuel-economy standards, with the final text due Monday; U.S. EV share rose sequentially to 7.9% in the second quarter while hybrids took more of the mix.
- Autonomy: Dubai opened Mobility Labs on Sunday, with 248 scenarios aimed at making 25% of journeys autonomous by 2030.
- Supply chain: Ford's Dearborn F-150 line stays down through September 29, and the United States opened a USMCA labor review of Yokohama's Mexico tire plant while suspending liquidation of its goods.
- Mobility and charging: Scania handed a German haulier its first megawatt-charging electric truck; Lagos drivers plan an October stoppage over commissions, and South Africa put e-hailing on the tax-compliance list.
Daily Framing:
This was a day of looser U.S. mileage rules, a new autonomous test ground, and simultaneous pressure on supply chains and platform take-rates—electrification shifted back toward market choice, Dubai added a certification site, and pickup downtime, a tire labor case, and driver-income disputes showed scale running into cost and compliance.
This digest is compiled from real-time search results and is for reference only.