Tesla Still Says The New Roadster Is Coming Tonight

Tesla

Happy Thursday! It's October 15, 2026, and this is The Morning Shift — your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. This is where you'll find the most important stories that are shaping the way Americans drive and get around.

In this morning's edition we're looking at the upcoming Tesla Roadster reveal, and Europe as a proving ground for Chinese automakers. We'll also look at shifting Canadian car-buying preferences, and Penske changing ownership. 

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Tesla

Remember nine years ago, when Tesla revealed its second-generation Roadster as a sort of "one more thing" add-on to a keynote about the Semi? Well, now it's happening again. The Roadster is being re-revealed, supposedly in production spec, at 9 p.m. Eastern tonight. From Reuters: 

Tesla is set to unveil its redesigned Roadster on Thursday, nearly nine years after it first showed a next-generation version of its electric sports car.

Tesla revealed ​a prototype of the $200,000 car in 2017 and said deliveries would begin in ‌2020. The price has not been updated but reservations are still $50,000 each.

Chief Executive Elon Musk has played down the car's importance to Tesla's finances, describing it in 2023 as a "small potato situation" that would not "move the ​needle in a major way financially."

Back in 2017, we still believed at least some of the things that Musk said. Now, that ship has long since sailed. Still, I'll be watching the presentation live, and writing it up for all of you beautiful people. I'm working at 9 p.m. for this, so you all better click. 

Marioguti/Getty Images

Chinese automakers are moving into Europe, we've talked about this to death. The carrot of European sales is appealing to all of them, but there's a stick too: The Chinese market is so crowded with automakers that it's likely these brands won't survive without a European foothold. From Reuters:

PARIS, Oct 15 (Reuters) – The record 20 Chinese brands vying for attention at this week's Paris car show reflect a stark reality: as a slowdown at home pushes China's overcrowded auto industry to consolidate, success in Europe could help determine which carmakers survive.

With the US market ​largely closed to Chinese automakers, Europe is by far the most profitable market still open to them, but also one of the toughest to crack.

...

"If they drop exports in Europe, they die," said Francois Roudier, secretary general of the International Organization of Motor Vehicle Manufacturers (OICA).

It's a race for market share and brand recognition, with the domestic market unlikely to miss any competitors that can't hack it overseas. Even Chinese automakers can't survive on the Chinese market alone any more, which isn't a great sign for the import brands that have tried the same tactic like Buick, which survived the 2008 bloodbath purely on its appeal in China. 

Bill Tompkins/Getty Images

Europeans have long been eschewing internal combustion for the cheaper operating costs of electric cars, and now Canada is following suit. Canada is buying fewer and fewer big trucks, and more and more EVs. From Automotive News: 

Electric vehicles put a charge into Canada's new-vehicle market during the third quarter, helping stabilize overall sales despite an ongoing U.S. trade war and affordability concerns.

EVs managed to grab nearly seven per cent market share in the quarter. When plug-in hybrids are included, that jumps to 10 per cent, according to JD Power Canada.

"The uptick in EVs was a little bit surprising," said Robert Karwel, director of OEM solutions for JD Power Canada.

Hey Rob, you're surprised? Gas prices are skyrocketing, internal combustion has firmly hitched its wagon to the horse of the global right wing and its increasingly overt white supremacism, and you're surprised that people are buying electric cars? Whatever JD Power is paying you, I'll do your job for half. Maybe two thirds. 

Jay L Clendenin/Getty Images

Penske is one of the biggest dealer networks in the United States, but it's not actually entirely owned by Roger himself — Penske Auto Group, the company that owns all those dealers, is owned by its shareholders. That's all about to change, though, as Penske Corp (a different company) is taking the Auto Group private with help from Japanese trading company Mitsui & Co. From Bloomberg:

Penske Automotive Group Inc., one of the largest car dealership groups in the US, reached a deal with its two biggest shareholders to go private at a $16.3 billion enterprise value.

Motown Acquisition Corp., an entity jointly owned by Penske Corp. and Mitsui & Co., will acquire the dealer group for $212 a share, an 8.8% premium over the stock's prior closing price, according to a statement Thursday. The cash deal, which is expected to close in the first quarter of 2027, is not subject to a financing condition.

Penske Corp., the closely held transportation-services company founded by Roger Penske — the former race-car driver who also leads Penske Automotive — and Mitsui proposed the take-private deal to the dealer group's board in July. Penske Corp. and Mitsui collectively own about 72% of Penske Automotive's outstanding common stock, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

So Penske Corp worked with Mitsui & Co to create a company called Motown Acquisition Corp, which will do nothing but purchase Penske Auto Group with Penske Corp and Mitsui's money. Does that all make sense? I hate having a degree in business. 

Sure, breaking the point record is impressive and all, but does he allow for transit between the United States and Canada?

AAA