The Drivecast

Years ago EZ Lynk was in the news for its products, how they were being used, and what they were enabling consumers to do with their vehicles. Now, five years later, the book has been opened, again, and the department of justice is looking at how EZ Lynk enabled customers in modifying their vehicles in a way that violated laws. This time? The DOJ is targeting consumers and their data, which is a whole new set of issues.

So today, it’s The Drive's Director Of Content And Product Joel Feder and Senior Editor Caleb Jacobs discussing EZ Lynk, the DOJ, diesel defeat devices, and the Pandora's box that is being opened.

Stories mentioned in today's episode:

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

US Government Sues Diesel Truck Tuner EZ Lynk Over Emissions Defeat Devices

Fast Times and Million-Dollar Fines: Inside the EPA’s Messy War on Dirty Diesel Trucks

Trump Administration Guts Framework Behind U.S. Auto Emissions Regulations

Emissions Defeat Devices No Longer a Top Priority for EPA

Feds Won’t Pursue Criminal Charges Against Tuners for OBDII Tampering Anymore

Previously Imprisoned Diesel Tuner Receives Federal Pardon

00:00 Intro

01:33 About last week

05:25 History and how we got here today

08:20 EZ Lynk

09:38 Consumer privacy

13:02 The scale of the situation

14:13 From President Joe Biden to President Donald Trump

17:43 What comes next?
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Believe it or not but one automaker is about to copy another’s idea—and neither are who you’d expect. Porsche is an unquestioned leader in the world of performance cars, and its careful treatment of the 911, Cayman, and Boxster is often imitated, never duplicated. But now? It’s about to steal a controversial move from an unlikely source— Hyundai—as it tries to figure out the magic formula for a fun-to-drive electric car.

What a world.

So today, it’s The Drive's Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director Of Content And Product Joel Feder discussing fun versus electric cars: how a company like Porsche ends up copying Hyundai, what the various tricks automakers are trying means for the next generation of EVs, and why this all matters more than you’d think.

Stories mentioned in today's episode:

Porsche Is Adding Fake Gear Shifts to Its EVs, 2027 Taycan Will Be First: Exclusive

Future Porsche EVs in frame for Hyundai-like simulated gearboxes

Porsche Says It ‘Learned a Lot’ From the Hyundai Ioniq 5 N: TDS

2025 Hyundai Ioniq 5 N Review: A Racing Sim You Can Drive on the Road

2026 Hyundai Ioniq 6 N Preview Drive: More Fun Than Most Sports Cars

Fake Gears, Real Fun: A Pro Driver Makes the Case for EV Gimmicks

2026 Cadillac Lyriq-V First Drive Review: Succeeding Where Mercedes Failed

2026 Rivian R1T Quad First Drive Review: When Too Much Is Just Enough

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

00:00 Intro

06:49 Porsche is about to copy Hyundai's fake gear shifts in EVs

08:47 What is a virtual transmission for an EV?

17:06 The Dodge Charger Daytona

22:28 Cadillac and Mercedes-Benz

24:12 A limit to the efficacy of these systems

25:02 Hyundai Ioniq 6 n

27:23 Maserati

30:54 Rivian

32:32 Lucid

35:26 Legacy vs. startup automakers
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It's time to check in on the state of electric vehicles both in America and abroad—and how much money automakers have lit on fire in the last few years rushing to cash in on electrification, which… hasn’t really paid off. Now, it feels like a big correction is underway.

Car companies spent most of 2025 in a wait-and-see position, but now they’ve waited and seen enough, and started to make big moves. Ford killed its once-revolutionary F-150 Lightning pickup, Honda killed its next-gen EVs that were supposed to be built and sold in America and lost over $15 billion in the process, GM has paused development of its next-gen electric trucks, Nissan’s walked things back and shifted directions, Volvo’s killed an entire model line, and more. It’s a wild and wildly expensive time to be an automaker, and the decisions being made now will have long-lasting effects on the shape of the global auto industry for years.

This week it's The Drive's Editor-In-Chief Kyle Cheromcha and Director Of Content And Product Joel Feder discussing the state of the EV union—how automakers are reacting to the uncertainty, whether they’re over-correcting, and what comes next.

Stories mentioned in today's episode:

Stellantis’ EV Retreat Cost the Automaker $26.5 Billion: TDS

Ford’s EV Gamble and Bust Will Cost the Automaker $19.5 Billion: TDS

GM CFO Says Automaker Can Absorb EV Losses: TDS

Honda Kills Three US-Built EVs Before They Ever Launch, Taking up to $15 Billion Loss

Ford’s Never-Seen, Canceled Moonshot EV Has Been Hiding in Plain Sight Online for a Year

00:00 Intro

08:13 Who burned how much?

08:34 Stellantis

13:38 Ford

18:42 Honda

24:04 GM

31:05 VW Group

34:38 Nissan

36:36 Toyota

38:04 Mercedes-Benz

39:02 BMW

39:12 Volvo

40: 18 Tesla

41:35 Rivian
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Nissan's in trouble, but the automaker's not going down without a fight. After laying out a massive turnaround plan it's clear Nissan's not just on the ropes, but about to swing for the fences and really try and cater to both the masses and enthusiasts, again, as it refocuses.

This week, The Drive's Director of Content and Product, Joel Feder, is joined by Senior Vice President and Chief Planning Officer for Nissan North America, Ponz Pandikuthira, in an exclusive one-on-one chat taking place in Japan discussing what's coming from both Nissan and Infiniti. From a family of U.S.-made body-on-frame vehicles to special edition Zs, the timeline for the next GT-R, backdate kits, restomod and classic parts, to a 600-plus-horsepower QX80, Pandikuthira spills the goods about how Nissan and Infiniti intends to win back the hearts, and wallets, of buyers ranging from millionaires to enthusiasts on a budget and everyone in-between.

So, today, it’s behind-the-scenes on Nissan’s turnaround plan and what comes next.

Stories mentioned in today's episode:

Nissan Announces Huge Turnaround Plan To Cut Models and Keep the Good Stuff

Nissan’s Next GT-R Will Be a Hybrid, Keep the VR38 Block, and Arrive by 2030

The Nissan Z Is Thriving Thanks to an Unlikely Hero: Your Parents

The Next-Gen Nissan Xterra Is Real, and Here’s Your First Look

Nissan Confirms New Xterra Will Offer Hybrid and Non-Hybrid V6 Options

Nissan Is Looking at Doing a Sports Car Lineup Again, Exec Says

00:00 Intro

03:27 Next-gen GT-R

07:46 What's next for the Z?

09:44 Summarization of the upcoming products

10:39 Infiniti's "high-horsepower" sedan (the Skyline)

11:26 The future of Infiniti

15:37 A performance version of the Infiniti QX80

16:43 A Skyline JDM kit for Q50?

19:17 Bringing back and providing heritage parts

22:44 Hotter QX80s and what could come next

25:20 Special projects?

26:44 Xterra is coming

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In a shocking turn of events: Both Hyundai and Kia are preparing body-on-frame pickup trucks. Sounds far-fetched, but it’s true, and it’s quite the development as these two juggernauts continue to blaze a trail forward challenging the rest of the industry on multiple fronts.

It doesn’t sound like we’ll have long to wait. Now Hyundai announced it will kick off a family of body-on-frame vehicles in the U.S. before 2030 and teased them with an SUV that looked like a Bronco competitor. A week later, Kia confirmed it too will be bringing a body-on-frame truck to the U.S. by 2030, and it even talked powertrains.

Senior Editor Caleb Jacobs and Director of Content and Product Joel Feder dive behind-the-scenes on Hyundai and Kia preparing to sell you a pickup truck, and what comes next. 

Stories mentioned in today's episode:

Hyundai Targets Bronco, Wrangler with Body-on-Frame Boulder SUV Concept

Hyundai Learned the Hard Way What Truck Buyers Do and Don’t Want

Midsize Trucks Have All the Same Problems. Hyundai Thinks It Can Fix Them

Kia’s Launching a Body-on-Frame Truck by 2030: TDS

00:00 Intro

06:55 Hyundai and Kia have body-on-frame trucks coming

13:26 What Hyundai has told The Drive its truck needs to be

16:55 Which powertrains will these trucks have?

21:21 Kia and Hyundai dealers are a risk

25:45 What do these trucks need to be to win?

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