Auto Industry News: Tariffs on Mexico Suspended, FCA-Renault Deal May Be Over Before It Starts, An Affordable Tesla Pickup Truck, and 2019 Diesel Power Challenge Has A Winner!

It’s been a busy week. The tariffs on Mexico are suspended, while the rumored FCA-Renault deal appears to have fallen apart. Elon Musk teases an affordable, fully electric Tesla pickup truck. And on the enthusiast’s circuit, we have a 2019 Diesel Power Challenge winner and race results from F1, NASCAR, and NHRA. Let’s get started.

Tariffs on Mexico Suspended

With Monday’s deadline looming large over both the U.S. and Mexican economies, it looks like a deal has been reached to avoid imposing new tariffs on Mexico.

On Friday, the President tweeted that the two nations had come to an agreement, avoiding the threat of a 5 percent tariff on all Mexican goods that could have grown incrementally to as much as 25 percent by October. Trump says he has “full confidence” that Mexico will crack down on illegal immigration across its northern border as a part of the deal.

This suspension is great news for the auto industry. If the tariffs were imposed as planned, Autoblog estimated that duties on some $99 billion in annual automotive imports would have been passed onto consumers. “The vast majority of cars on the road contain parts from Mexico,” explains Autoblog. “Parts that would get dinged by the tax man every time they crisscross the border in the auto industry’s complex manufacturing chain.”

Indeed, much more than just auto parts would have been affected. CNBC reports that “Mexico was the second-largest importer of goods into the U.S. in 2018,” with tariffs on Mexico costing consumers upwards of $18.6 billion and escalating to $93 billion if the tariffs had reached their full 25% potential.

While the White House is happy to report the deal with Mexico, the administration has made it clear that if America’s Southern ally doesn’t hold up its end of the bargain to stem the flow of Central American migrants, tariffs can and will be imposed.

“There is now going to be great cooperation between Mexico & the USA,” President Trump tweeted on Sunday. “Something that didn’t exist for decades. However, if for some unknown reason there is not, we can always go back to our previous, very profitable, position of Tariffs.”

FCA-Renault Deal Collapses… Or Does It?

Some things just aren’t meant to be, huh? It looks like the FCA-Renault deal to become the world’s third largest automaker has fallen apart faster than Pete Davidson and Ariana Grande’s engagement plans. And now comes the blame game…

Every party, including the Italian and French governments, Nissan, and FCA itself has been quick to point fingers about the collapse of the deal. Many cited French politics as being a wedge, indicating that French finance minister Bruno Le Maire’s request to bring Nissan on board was a deal-breaker.

Nissan, on the other hand, expressed offense at being alerted of the talks so late in the game, and chose to abstain from a vote on the merger proposal. Jean-Dominique Senard, who replaced the ousted Ghosn waited until just hours before the potential merger was made public to email Nissan’s CEO with information about an FCA-Renault deal. The French automaker owns 43.4 percent of Nissan, with Nissan controlling 15 percent of Renault.

“The idea you would negotiate a merger without speaking with your 20-year partner is absolutely extraordinary,” a person close to Nissan said. “It’s about trust, and that’s the problem here.”

However, just like any rocky celebrity engagement, there seems to be some more upcoming twists and turns to this story.

And, in fact, an FCA-Renault deal may not be dead just yet.

Reports have indicated that the automakers are in talks with Nissan to reduce the 43.4 percent stake in the company, if Nissan gets on board with the merger. The window of opportunity is shrinking though, and insiders told Reuters, “If there’s going to be a deal it will probably be in weeks rather than months.”

Why fight so hard for this deal? Because as the push for EVs grows louder, FCA is ill-prepared to respond. With companies like Tesla breathing down their necks and consumers coming around on EVs as a whole, it’s smart to partner with a company like Renault, who already has proven, working EV tech.

And speaking of Tesla…

Tesla Pickup Truck to Cost Less Than $50K?!

As part of the growing wave of EV support in the American consumer market, automotive giants like Toyota and Volkswagen have recently announced plans to double down on their EV offerings.

As part of that EV push, Tesla is releasing its very own pickup truck, one that CEO Elon Musk has hyped as making RAM look “puny” and being “a better truck than Ford F-150.”

Musk has indicated the fully-electric Tesla pickup truck will have a range between 400 and 500 miles, will feature all-wheel drive with a motor on each axle, and sport a suspension capable of automatically adjusting to payload. He’s even told consumers on Twitter that the truck would be capable of towing as much as 300,000 pounds, making it a force to be reckoned with if true.

The kicker, however, is the price tag. Musk has said the truck would be available for customers for under $50,000.

While we have yet to see a definite release date on the rumored Tesla pickup truck, if it turns out to be everything it’s already been promised to be, it’ll sure shake up the pickup market.

Richard Coker and ‘06 Silverado 2500HD Named Winners of 2019 Diesel Power Challenge

For the ninth year running, Diesel Power Magazine and Xtreme Diesel Performance put on the 2019 Diesel Power Challenge, putting some of the most powerful trucks through the ringer over several days of competition.

The five RAMS, two Fords, and three GM trucks battling it out this year were chosen by readers, as always. Each tested its limits on the dyno and the track with drag racing and sled pulling events, as well as an obstacle course and fuel consumption test.

This year Richard Coker and his 2006 Chevy Silverado 2500HD with a 6.6-liter Duramax V8 took the crown. Coker dominated the trailer tow and quarter mile drag-racing segment, sailing to victory on the latter event with a time of 10.82 seconds at 135.55 mph. The Carnage Award went to Cody Lambert, whose ’06 Dodge Ram 3500 engine was destroyed during the drag race qualifying session, ruining five pistons and his compound turbochargers. (Ouch.)

For a full recap of the event, including videos of each event, click here.

Around the Circuit

Formula 1: Canadian Grand Prix

Drama was a fixture for the Canada Grand Prix this year. Lewis Hamilton made a rare mistake during Friday’s practice run, clipping the wall and damaging his car so severely that his pit crew worked until race time to find a tricky hydraulics leak.

The wreck led to Sebastian Vettel locking in pole position. And despite Hamilton finishing behind Vettel, he still won via a five-second penalty imposed on the Ferrari driver. Hamilton beating out Vettel puts him a massive 60 points ahead at the top of the standing, continuing his historic dominance over the sport.

After the race, however, Hamilton admitted he didn’t like winning the way he did. “It’s not a great feeling and ultimately that’s not how I want to win races,” he said. “But I drove my heart out today to make my team proud and I feel like I did that.”

The next race of the F1 season will be the French Grand Prix on Sunday, June 23.

NASCAR Xfinity Series: LTI Printing 250

NASCAR Xfinity Series leader Tyler Reddick won his third race of season this weekend at the LTI Printing 250 at Michigan International Speedway, finishing ahead of Noah Gragson and Michael Annett.

This is Reddick’s sixth win of his career and his first at Michigan, his third win in the last five races.

After the race, Reddick was complimentary of his team. “A great team effort. I didn’t do the thing I needed to do on the race track but, man, that was a great car and we put ourselves in position to win.”

The next race on the docket for Xfinity Series drivers is the American Ethanol 250 at Iowa Speedway on June 16.

NASCAR FireKeepers Casino 400, called off for rain, was rescheduled for today, Monday June 10 at 5pm.

NHRA Menards Heartland Nationals

It was a thrilling weekend of NHRA action from Topeka, Kansas as Top Fuel racer Steve Torrence defeated his father, Billy, to earn his fifth-straight title. If he wins again next weekend in Bristol, Torrence will duplicate his own 2018 record of winning six straight races.

Speaking of racing against his father, Torrence said, “Aside from my first final ever and first race win, this is right at the top—if not above it.”

He shared the podium at this weekend’s Menard Heartland Nats with Funny Car dominator, Robert Hight. Hight took his 49th career win in Topeka, tying him with NHRA legend Don “the Snake” Prudhomme. Torrence’s win marked the 36th of his career.

The next event of the season will be the Thunder Valley Nationals at Bristol Dragway, June 14-16.