Each week I bring you the top stories in the auto industry along with my commentary or sometimes amusing thoughts about the craziness that goes on in the world of cars.
Stories you’ll find today:
Subaru’s Latest Safety Feature: Swerving From Pop-Up Ads. Subaru owners are discovering a new feature they definitely didn’t ask for: pop-up ads on their infotainment screens pushing SiriusXM. According to The Drive, the pop-ups have been appearing while the cars are actually moving, which is what you want when you’re doing 55 mph and suddenly your navigation disappears so you can be reminded that 80s on 8 still exists. One driver said the whole screen changed mid-trip, causing them to swerve and nearly land in a ditch, because nothing says “premium ownership experience” like a promotional message that tries to reenact a jump scare. Some owners report the ads even override Apple CarPlay, meaning Subaru managed to temporarily interrupt Apple, which is usually a job reserved for bad Wi-Fi and your battery hitting 3 percent. Several irritated owners have now filed complaints with NHTSA alleging the pop-ups pose a safety hazard, and honestly, it’s hard to argue with them. Subaru claims these notices are only supposed to appear twice a year as reminders of SiriusXM’s free listening weekends, and that the company hadn’t heard of any broader issue until now. Perfect—because nothing puts drivers at ease like the phrase “supposed to.” In the meantime, Subaru owners are left hoping their next “Love” experience doesn’t involve the car pitching an ad at highway speeds.
California to EV Drivers: Back of the Line, Folks. California just slammed the door on one of the biggest EV perks on the books, ending the decades-old Clean Air Vehicle Decal program and yanking solo-driver access to the HOV lanes. Translation: if you slip into that carpool lane alone in your shiny electric chariot, you’re now eligible for a $490 love note from the CHP. For years the state practically begged people to buy EVs by letting them fly past traffic while everyone else stewed at 12 mph, and now it’s “thanks for going green, please rejoin the parking lot.” Drivers who spent real money under the assumption that the carpool sticker was forever are learning the hard way that nothing in California lasts except traffic and taxes. The state says it’s about reducing congestion and being “equitable,” which is government-speak for “we changed our mind.” So if you’re used to rolling solo in the fast lane, enjoy the memories — because from here on out your EV goes where everyone else goes: straight back into the crawl.
Jeep’s New EV Gets an Unwanted Strip-Show. The Jeep Recon had its big moment at the LA Auto Show, and by “big moment” I mean a couple of influencers treated the pre-production prototype like a rental apartment at move-out, peeling off interior panels on camera and proudly displaying the loose trim like they’d discovered a hidden treasure map. Stellantis was not amused, issuing a statement that essentially said: “It’s a hand-built show model, not a crash-test dummy, please stop ripping the thing apart.” The influencers, naturally, defended themselves by claiming everything came off “too easily,” which is the kind of customer feedback no automaker has ever requested. Show cars, of course, are often held together by optimism, magnets, and the promise that production versions will be much tighter, but social media isn’t exactly known for context or patience. If Jeep wanted buzz, congratulations—they just got a crash course in what happens when 2025 meets the attention economy: nothing is sacred, everything is content, and even your future off-roader can get stripped down before it leaves the stage.
Auction Trash, YouTube Cash. A YouTuber best known for wrenching on diesel rigs just turned a routine auction visit into a master class on how to make the rest of us feel financially inadequate. HeavyDSparks showed up with roughly thirty-nine grand and rolled the dice on two rough-looking used trucks and a dump trailer that most buyers would have assumed were one fuse away from spontaneous combustion. Instead, a quick round of basic fixes brought everything back to life, and when he listed the trio for resale, he walked away with a profit that ballooned toward eight times what he originally spent. It’s the kind of flip that makes ordinary shoppers wonder why their own “great deal” usually ends in a tow bill and an existential crisis. But that’s the magic of auction culture these days: if you have mechanical skills, a little luck, and a camera pointed at you, even a pair of beat-up work trucks can turn into a small miracle. For everyone else, it’s a reminder that hidden gems do exist — they’re just a lot easier to find when you’re the one holding the flashlight and not the one calling roadside assistance.
Ram Cologne: For Men Who Think Goats Are a Love Language. Ram has decided the world needs a “Ram for Men” cologne, and judging by the commercial, this fragrance must contain equal parts unleaded, bravado, and whatever was left on the bottom shelf in the prop closet. The ad opens on a man retrieving the bottle from a Ram’s center console—because of course that’s where every tough guy stores his grooming products—before abruptly cutting to two goats smashing their heads together in what appears to be the world’s most confused metaphor for masculinity. A breathy female voice then murmurs lines such as “I smell torque” and “This won’t take long,” which is either an attempt at seduction or the most unintentionally honest slogan Ram has ever used. By the time the screen flashes “Not a scent. A mating call,” the viewer is left wondering if Ram is marketing cologne, self-parody, or cry-for-help performance art. It aims for rugged and irresistible but lands closer to a truck-stop novelty gift, the kind sold near the register between the beef jerky and the keychains shaped like carburetors. If there’s a silver lining, it’s that the ad is unforgettable—just maybe not in the way the brand intended.
Photo Credit: 2025 Los Angeles Auto Show.