The Drivecast

General Motors just laid out its future and it's wrapped around bets on AI, new EV battery chemistry, new EVs, and autonomous vehicles. But the automaker's in the midst of launching new clean-sheet V8s, what gives?

The automotive Goliath is still committed to and sees EVs as the end game with an electric future, but the road to get there seems to be filled with curves. But regardless of what's powering a vehicle the race to have the best technology and most impressive features is on. From how vehicles are being designed and manufactured to the features, capabilities, and services offered, GM says it wants to be the leader.

The Drive's Director of Content and Product Joel Feder is joined by Jaclyn McQuaid, who is the senior vice president of vehicle products at General Motors, to discuss the automaker's future including vehicles, technology, services, and how it aims to compete in an ever evolving, and competitive, marketplace.

Stories referenced in today's episode:

GM Just Laid Out Its Entire Future. It Runs on AI, Eyes-Off Driving, and One Central Computer

GM Is Rebooting OnStar as Your Personal AI Assistant—and Killing Off Its Brand Apps

GM Wants Your Truck to Run Errands Without You

GM’s Next-Gen EVs: The Two-Pronged Strategy to Unlock Maximum Efficiency and Space

GM’s New 8.3L Duramax Diesel: Here’s the Full Spec Download

New GM Truck V8s Beat Ford and Ram on Horsepower: Here’s the Full Spec Download

2027 GMC Sierra Gets Even Fancier With Articulating Screen and Headrest Speakers

2027 Chevy Silverado Enters the Fight With New Small-Block V8s, Fresh Looks

00:00 - Intro

05:51 - New V8s, but the future is electric

07:17 - Using AI to half development time

12:55 - Next-gen EVs

20:00 - Rebooting OnStar

27:21 - Software-defined vehicles and central compute

34:47 - Autonomy

41:40 - Electric trucks

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Arguably the Corvette is General Motors' most iconic and important vehicle even if it's not a sales leader. As the possible finale of the C8 Corvette lineup arrives in the form of the Grand Sport a new leader is taking over the team and all of GM Performance. It's a critical moment, and Tony Roma has big shoes to fill.

As the next-generation Corvette takes shape, the next-generation Blackwings start development, and the Camaro nameplate sits in the corner on hiatus, again, for now, Roma must make tough decisions that include V8 engines, maybe manual transmissions, and much more. Enthusiasts are watching, anxiously with anticipation. But cars require business cases and Roma knows what has to meet the mark to get approved in a board room.

The Drive's Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder are joined by Tony Roma who now serves as Executive Chief Engineer for the Chevy Corvette and Performance Cars at General Motors to discuss the automaker's most prized sports cars now and into the future. And yes, there's Camaro talk.

Stories referenced in today's episode:

We Drove the New LS6-Powered 2027 Chevy Corvette Lineup. Here’s the One to Get

Corvette ZR1’s Chief Engineer Will Be Immortalized Forever on the Car

Corvette Team Loses Another Key Member in GM Performance Shakeup

The Corvette CX Concept Is the North Star for the Future of America’s Sports Car

This New Six-Speed Manual Could Fit in the C8 Corvette and Ford Mustang GTD

‘It’s Not Real’: Corvette Engineers Squash Manual C8 Rumor

Tremec Politely Disagrees With Team Corvette That Its 6-Speed Manual Transaxle ‘Isn’t Real’

GM’s Rumored Car Comeback to Bring Camaro Revival, New Cadillac CT5, and Buick Sedan: TDS

It Looks Like GM Design Teased a New Chevy Camaro—and It’s Not an SUV

00:00 - Intro

03:45 - What the biggest difference with today's Corvette team from the previous team?

06:45 - The C8 finale and current lineup

17:01 - The electric Corvette

18:17 - The Nurburgring

22:24 - Why does the Camaro keep dying?

29:33 - The C9 Corvette

31:11 - Manual transmission in the Corvette

35:52 - The C9 Corvette

43:59 - Corvette as a subbrand

45:30 - The Blackwings

48:28 - Cadillac in Formula 1, tech trickle down

51:23 - Where's the Raptor competitor?

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Cars are more complicated, connected, and software driven than ever. The tuning industry is growing, but awash in shady characters promising big power gains if you yank out your car's brain and send it to them to modify. AutoTuner aims to show you can run a legitimate business in this space, but this is at odds with what automakers want.

AutoTuner is building its business by primarily offering the tools and services to jailbreak ECUs, not the actual codes. But this all crosses into the battle over right-to-repair, not to mention automakers themselves wanting to sell you more performance via upgraded software for a cost.

The Drive's Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder are joined by AutoTuner USA CEO Arin Ahnell for a frank discussion about the state of and future of software tuning, the right-to-repair movement, and modification culture in a timeline of complex powertrains and EVs.

Stories referenced in today's episode:

⁠Why Drivers and Mechanics Are United Against Automakers: ‘Right To Repair’ Explained⁠

Ford’s CEO Doesn’t Want You Fixing Your New Bronco. He Says It’s About Safety

The Feds Are Coming for Diesel Truck Owners. They’re Starting With Your Phone

DOJ Orders Apple, Google to Hand Over OBDII App User Data in Emissions Probe

John Deere to Pay $99 Million in Monumental Right-to-Repair Settlement

Ford CEO Jim Farley’s Right To Repair Comment Should Make Every Car Owner Uncomfortable

Rivian’s RAD Tuner Is Like An Equalizer For Your EV’s Powertrain

00:00 - Intro

05:13 - What is the state of chip tuning in 2026?

07:14 - What does it take to unlock ECUs at scale?

08:09 - Automakers getting into the tuning game

09:30 - Warranties and tuning

11:18 - OEM collaboration

12:48 - Right-to-repair

15:51 - How do you know when an ECU's unlocked

16:50 - Getting around security protocols

19:37 - Difference between different types of cars from different countries

20:45 - Subscription model

22:05 - AutoTuner One app

24:05 - Legal issues

31:28 - Stories of people sending in their ECUs

32:33 - EVs and tuning

36:22 - Vertical stack integrations

38:53 - Tractors, agricultural market

42:32 - Accessibility and business growth

43:37 - The next cracking goal
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America's EV charging situation is a mess. So much so that eight automakers banded together to create a joint venture, dubbed Ionna, and try to fix the situation. It's an unprecedented move on multiple levels that shows the gravity of the situation, how seriously automakers take the future of electric vehicles, and an entirely new business venture that diversifies these companies beyond just building and selling vehicles: now they are selling the fuel too.

Ionna has a big goal: build a reliable, high-powered electric vehicle fast-charging network across North America with at least 30,000 chargers and 2,000 stations in the U.S. by 2030 followed by Canada.

The Drive's Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder are joined by Ionna CEO Seth Cutler to discuss the where the landscape sites today, why chargers are placed where they are and look like they look, and future of EV charging in America.

Stories referenced in today's episode:

New Automaker Super-Alliance Plans to Nearly Double EV Chargers Across America

Rivian’s Charging Network Is 4% of Tesla’s. Here’s RJ Scaringe’s Plan to Change That

Unreliable Charging Networks Plagued 1 in 5 EV Owners Last Year: Study

00:00 - Intro

04:48 - Why is America's charging situation a hot mess?

05:41 - What's taking so long to get EV charging stations up and running?

09:14 - How many Ionna stations exist today? Status report

10:42 - The business model

19:44 - How are charging station sites chosen?

23:46 - Partnerships

27:25 - Software, reliability, broken chargers

34:20 - Eight automakers own Ionna

37:31 - Charging speeds, how fast is fast enough?

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A new law in California relaxing emissions tests for classic cars is being hailed as a “landmark” victory for the car community and common sense. But it’s not what it seems.

California has the toughest emissions standards in the country, requiring any car made after 1975 to pass a biennial smog test in order to be registered. By design, the system forces thousands of old cars off the road every year as the cost of compliance rises—even if the vehicle runs just fine, a stubborn check engine light will cause it to fail.

Now, a group backed by industry lobbyists and Jay Leno has succeeded in changing the law to make it easier for owners to keep their classics. It’s being celebrated as an unprecedented win—but in reality, it's not going to do much at all to fix the state’s broken approach to emissions tests, or help the people who are affected the most.

This week The Drive's Editor-in-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder separate fact from fiction and break down why Leno's Law isn't the solution everyone is claiming.

Stories mentioned in today's episode:

‘Leno’s Law’ Finally Passes: Here’s What That Really Means for Classic Car Owners

Video: The Problem with US Emissions testing (YouTube)

00:00 Intro

04:34 The fight over smog testing

8:54 How the system works

12:25 Devil's in the details

14:51 Long walk to Leno's Law

17:14 Missed opportunity

20:30 Where do we go from here?
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