Ford Joins The Fight For Its Biggest Military Contract Since The Cold War – Jalopnik

Good morning! It’s Tuesday, July 28, 2026, and that is The Morning Shift, your each day roundup of the highest automotive headlines from world wide, in a single place. This is the place you will discover an important tales which are shaping the best way Americans drive and get round.

In this morning’s version, Ford is trying to construct the following U.S. Army truck, Mercedes-Benz is slicing what number of automobiles it plans to promote this yr due to China, Stellantis sells its car-sharing unit to give attention to the precise enterprise of constructing automobiles and there is a wacky new Ford recall impacting practically 80,000 crossovers.

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The Trump administration has been pushing onerous for the Big Three automakers to get in on the battle machine. We’ve already seen General Motors take up the duty, and now Ford appears to be getting in on the motion. The Blue Oval mentioned it has joined the race to construct the U.S. Army’s latest tactical truck — a pickup that might double on the battlefield as a stealthy energy financial institution of wheels, and it might be in direct competitors with GM for the challenge.

The Army is trying to construct about 600 of the vans, and earlier this week, it confirmed that it had awarded contracts to GM, Ford and a Utah-based off-road car producer known as BC Customs. They’re being tasked with delivering prototypes someday in 2027. It’ll definitely have some catching as much as do, although, as a result of it appears like GM is nicely forward of the pack. The two firms have additionally accomplished their greatest to butter up Trump in latest months. From The Wall Street Journal:

GM is years into growing its personal model of the infantry squad car, dubbed the ISV-Heavy. Military officers not too long ago bought among the GM prototypes, constructed off the heavy-duty model of the automaker’s Silverado pickup, for subject testing.

Ford’s contract with the Defense Department will see the automaker develop a trio of prototypes for the truck challenge based mostly on its F-Series super-duty pickups.

Ford, in an announcement, mentioned it was excited to work on the challenge and seemed ahead to “delivering several incredibly capable vehicle prototypes that demonstrate the value Ford can provide to the Army and soldiers.”

The Army has mentioned it wants a truck that may function as a cellular charging unit for tools similar to drones and command-and-control techniques, along with transferring troops shortly over doubtlessly tough terrain.

Officials have not mentioned how a lot the vans will value; the smaller, GM-made tactical vans value $330,000 apiece.

Military leaders have been lobbying automakers and their suppliers to assist scale up protection manufacturing and leverage the business’s manufacturing capability to satisfy essential navy shortages introduced on by wars within the Middle East and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

Ford Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley mentioned this spring that the 120-year-old automaker was in talks with the Pentagon about a number of defense-related initiatives. He mentioned he anticipated Ford would have a job in onshoring manufacturing of essential minerals and parts, similar to semiconductors.

Ford on Monday mentioned that its ready-made, commercially accessible merchandise have been able to assembly the U.S. navy’s wants.

If Ford can pull it out, it might be the most important navy contract it has secured for the reason that Cold War. During Korea and Vietnam, Ford proposed its personal tackle a Jeep to the navy, however it just about exited the protection enterprise in 1990 when it offered Ford Aerospace, which geared up navy and area packages with missiles, drones and different merchandise. I suppose you’ll be able to solely steer clear of blood cash for thus lengthy.

The vibes are a bit off-kilter at Mercedes-Benz proper now. The German automaker simply reported strong carmaking earnings that truly beat expectations, however deliveries nonetheless fell due to a seemingly unending droop in China. Adjusted return on gross sales within the automobiles unit declined to only 4% through the second quarter from a yr earlier, Mercedes mentioned, and that truly beat analysts’ expectations.

Efforts to chop prices and decrease spending on improvement have been a driver behind the returns, and powerful efficiency from its monetary companies unit definitely helped as nicely. It saved its 2026 carmaking margin outlook at 3 to five%, even because it lower its forecasts for income and car deliveries to a quantity barely under the place it was final yr. The transfer comes after a 30% cliff drop for gross sales in China. From Bloomberg:

Chief Executive Officer Ola Källenius on Tuesday pledged extra value cuts, notably in Germany, to assist underpin returns. The carmaker is going through a troublesome setting for its push to maneuver additional upmarket, making it extra depending on rich consumers simply as China’s economic system is shedding momentum. The world’s greatest automotive market is a significant purchaser of its high-end S-Class and Maybach sedans.

For the second quarter, adjusted working earnings from carmaking slumped 26% from a yr earlier to €909 million ($1 billion). The common promoting worth fell by 4.4% to €64,700 from a yr earlier, underscoring the stress from weaker pricing and product combine.

The worsening outlook in China additionally prompted Mercedes to take a €704 million write-down on investments in companies there.

Mercedes-Benz Vans offset among the broader weak point in automobiles, posting an adjusted return on gross sales of 10.2%. The enterprise is benefiting from steadier demand from industrial prospects that must renew their fleets, in addition to recurring income from upkeep and different aftersales companies.

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Mercedes additionally raised its forecast for electrified autos to account for 23% to 25% of automotive gross sales this yr, up from 21% to 23%, supported by fashions together with the electrical CLA and GLC. That’s welcome information after fashions together with the EQS, EQE and electrical G-Class undershot inner expectations, elevating considerations concerning the attraction of Mercedes’ electrical automobiles.

Because of the struggling demand, Mercedes has been searching for methods to cut back prices and streamline effectivity. The firm has been utilizing voluntary severance packages to get its headcount down, and that has helped deliver normal administrative bills down 14% within the quarter.

At the identical time, analysis and improvement spending is down 12% from final yr’s funding peak for Mercedes’ product-launch plan. That is type of in keeping with the ebbs and flows of product launches. Mercedes is on a heater of latest automotive launches in the mean time, that means improvement prices do not must be as excessive as they beforehand have been. If I needed to guess, they will spin up once more in a yr or so.

Stellantis is trimming the fats, and which means it is promoting its Free2move car-sharing unit to Mutares, a German funding firm. The deal is anticipated to shut by the top of the yr. The transfer is a part of the disciplined plan specified by May by CEO Antonio Filosa that’s meant to focus the transatlantic automaker on core automotive actions in addition to partnerships in manufacturing and know-how. From Reuters:

“By sharpening our focus on ​core automotive activities, we strengthen our capacity to deliver long-term ‌performance,” ⁠Stellantis’ head of enterprise improvement and partnerships, Virgilio Cerutti, mentioned in an announcement.

Created by Peugeot maker PSA in 2016 earlier than its merger with Fiat Chrysler, Free2move ​was half ​of former ⁠CEO Carlos Tavares’ push into mobility companies past car manufacturing.

After Stellantis was shaped ​in 2021, the enterprise continued to function ​alongside ⁠the group’s leasing and mobility actions.

Munich-based Mutares mentioned the acquisition would set up a brand new platform within the mobility ⁠sector ​and that it intends to ​proceed growing the enterprise, together with its transition to battery-electric autos.

Free2move supplied each short- and long-term free-floating car-sharing companies by its frees throughout 14 cities in Europe in addition to the United States. One may assume it hasn’t actually taken off — within the States, at the least — the best way Stellantis had initially hoped.

Ford, child, please cease this foolishness. Enough is sufficient. Your recollects are hurting me at this level.

I imply, c’mon. 79,579 2026 and 2027 Explorers and Lincoln Aviators are getting recalled as a result of the motive force’s seat may recline when the proprietor prompts the distant unlock or distant begin? What the hell is happening, large canine? That’s simply nutty. From the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration:

Unexpected motion of the motive force’s seat again could lure a second-row occupant, growing the danger of harm.

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The treatment is presently beneath improvement. The proprietor notification schedule has not been offered.

The truth you people have not discovered a repair but is not tremendous nice, both. In any case, that is Ford’s 61st recall of 2026, and to date 13,518,991 autos have been impacted. We’re nonetheless a far cry from the 153 recollects Ford issued final yr, however technically extra automobiles have been impacted, since that quantity got here out to 12,958,128 complete. Good job, guys!

History.com

My God, what an unmitigated catastrophe. At the very least, the Democratic Party realized its lesson, and we by no means needed to hear from Donald Trump or institution neolibs ever once more following this debacle — ushering in a brand new period of progressive politics in America. That’s what occurred, proper? Right? Please inform me that is what occurred. I’ve been asleep for 9 years. If you need to study extra about HillDog ’16, head over to History.com.

Good information! The common worth of a gallon of gasoline really went down in a single day. It could have one thing to do with the “good talks” President Trump simply had over the Strait of Hormuz, or it may simply be a momentary blip. Either means, we will take pleasure in it whereas it lasts. Oil can also be down, with WTI Crude Oil futures and Brent Crude costs sitting at $81 and $84, respectively, on the time of publication.

Here’s the place nationwide common costs stand proper now, based on AAA:

AAA

This all shakes out to the typical worth of a gallon of gasoline dropping a whole cent in a single day to $4.10, based on AAA. It’s a transfer in the appropriate route away from our 2026 excessive of $4.56 — that is for positive.

Folks, Charli xcx is again together with her follow-up to “Brat,” and arising with one thing to observe an album as enormous as that’s no small job. She knocked it out of the goddamn park if you happen to ask me, as a result of an existential disaster is nice for you each occasionally.