Four Things to Know About the Deadly Counterfeit Air-Bag Parts in U.S. Cars
Since 2023, at least 10 deaths in the U.S. have been linked to air-bag parts with markings of a Chinese manufacturer called Jilin Province Detiannuo Safety Technology, also known as DTN Airbag. The air bags — sometimes labeled with the counterfeit logos of various carmakers — contain components called inflaters that are defective. In the event of a crash, those inflaters might send large metallic shards flying into the cabin, potentially wounding or killing someone inside, reports The Wall Street Journal. The components in question aren’t equipped on new vehicles as original equipment. Carfax offers a free tool where drivers can input their VIN and see if their car has been involved in a crash that might have deployed air bags. That car could be at risk of having a dangerous replacement air bag instead of an authentic part. Carfax says that if a car has had its air bags replaced, any maintenance records will be able to show who did the work and what parts they used. But many cars lack such records, so the only way to know if the air bag is an authentic one is to have a mechanic check the part. Click here for the full story.
Why The QX65 Is Infiniti’s Most Important Model of 2026
The new QX65 is poised to be Infiniti’s growth story of 2026 and the opening salvo in the Japanese brand’s U.S. revival. “In January, we had two cars in the showroom. By the end of the decade, we’ll have seven,” Infiniti Americas chief Eric Ledieu said in an interview with Automotive News. “We brought a product back into a very popular segment.”In June, the QX65’s first full month on the market, the midsize crossover beat internal forecasts by about 25 percent. Sales topped 1,000, surpassing the combined volume of the QX50 and QX55 crossovers a year earlier.Infiniti expects 1,500 to 1,800 monthly retail sales for the QX65 by fall.“The volume that QX65 brings, and the gross profit that it brings for the network, is [Infiniti’s growth] path for the second half of 2026,” Ledieu said. Infiniti expects the QX65 to drive the majority of its incremental growth as the brand targets 20 to 25 percent higher U.S. retail sales for the fiscal year ending March 2027. Meanwhile, volume for the three-row QX60 — Infiniti’s top seller — rose a modest 3.5 percent year over year in the quarter to 7,581. Click here for the full story.
VW Group to Slash Model Lineups, Capacity Amid Pressure from China, Tariffs and Falling Profits
Volkswagen Group plans to drastically cut its model lineup and further pare back capacity, as Europe’s largest automaker considers a far-reaching overhaul that sources say could cost around 100,000 jobs. The company said on July 9 after a closely watched supervisory board meeting that its lineup would be gradually cut by up to half, as it concentrates on the most attractive market segments. Production capacity will be reduced to nine million vehicles per year, down from 10 million currently, reports Automotive News.VW offers roughly 150 model lines across its brands, which include Audi, Bentley, Cupra, Lamborghini, Porsche, Seat, Skoda and commercial vehicles. The plan didn’t outline firm targets by when the reduction might be achieved, or which brands were in focus. Volkswagen is under unprecedented pressure to restructure the business model that underpinned its success for decades, as it grapples with high costs and excess capacity at home. Those factors, along with rising Chinese competition, regulation, and U.S. import tariffs, sliced its profit margins in half between 2021 and 2025. Click here for the full story.
No Color: More Than 80% of Vehicles on Market Now Grayscale
Whether it’s dealers or consumers playing it safe, the color choices for vehicles are now lacking vibrant hues, with an iSeeCars study showing that more than 80 percent of cars being sold are white, black, gray, or silver. According to CDG, Over the past thirty years, the percentage of grayscale vehicles (white, black, gray, or silver) has nearly doubled from 47.3 percent in 1996 to 80.4 percent in 2025. More specifically, white vehicles make up a quarter of vehicles in the market.Black, meanwhile, is the second choice at 23.4 percent, and gray at 22.9 percent.“With a lot of drivers, the grayscale is a way to play it safe, and dealers buy a lot because they know they will be able to sell them,” said iSeeCars Executive Analyst Karl Brauer. “They feel the three or four colors are easily transactional.” Think back to 1996, as even grunge was taking over the airwaves, there were more colorful vehicles on the roadway. At the time, 20.1 percent of vehicles were red, a figure that has now dropped to just 7 percent. Green also had a double-digit plunge over the past 30 years from 13.4 percent to just 2.2 percent. Click here for the full story.
2027 BMW X5 Debuts with New Design, More Powertrains, and the First-Ever Electric Ix5
The BMW X5 has been one of the benchmark luxury midsize SUVs since it debuted in 1999, helping define the premium utility vehicle segment. For 2027, BMW is introducing an all-new fifth-generation X5, bringing significant updates inside and out while expanding the lineup with more electrification than ever before. During the launch event, CBT News spoke with John Kelly, Head of Product and Technology Communications for BMW of North America, about the company’s latest redesign and what buyers can expect from one of BMW’s most important vehicles. Unlike the mid-cycle refreshes buyers have seen in recent years, the 2027 X5 is a complete redesign. It adopts BMW’s Neue Klasse design language with a cleaner appearance while remaining unmistakably an X5. Up front, the SUV features a smaller illuminated kidney grille paired with new X-shaped LED headlights. Flusher body surfaces improve aerodynamics, while hidden door handles and available 21- to 23-inch wheels give the vehicle a more contemporary look. One of the biggest changes for consumers is the expanded choice of powertrains. BMW continues to offer traditional gasoline engines while strengthening its plug-in hybrid offering and introducing the first fully electric X5. Click here for the full interview.
Carfax: Vehicles with Unfixed Takata Airbags Drop by 20% Since 2024
In 2024, when the Takata airbag inflator recall — the largest recall in U.S. history — turned 10 years old, Carfax data showed that more than 6 million vehicles still had unfixed recalls to replace those inflators. Now, two years later, that figure is down to roughly 4.8 million vehicles, a drop of about 20 percent. Why the drop over the past two years? Some of that is undoubtedly driven by media coverage and automaker efforts to bring that large number down. In addition, according to S&P Global Mobility (now known as Mobility Global, and the parent company of Carfax), the percentage of the U.S. fleet scrapped each year is about 4.5 percent. That means some Takata-affected vehicles are going out of service. The recall affects models starting in the 2001 model year and continuing through at least the 2015 model year. Many of those vehicles are far older than the average age of U.S. vehicles, which is roughly 13 years old. Still, despite the drop, nearly 5 million vehicles still need those Takata airbags replaced. And some of those vehicles even have “Do Not Drive” orders. Click here to learn more.
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