Soaring Gas Prices Could Send Buyers Crawling Back To Evs And Hybrids

Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock

Good morning! It's Wednesday, March 18, 2026, and this is The Morning Shift, your regular roundup of nan apical automotive headlines from astir nan world, successful 1 place. This is wherever you'll find nan astir important stories that are shaping nan measurement Americans thrust and get around.

In this morning's edition, rising state prices are making buyers rethink their aversion to EVs and hybrids, Bentley is cutting astir 300 jobs acknowledgment to tariffs and nan EV rollback, nan state Porsche Macan is on-track for 2028 (but don't show nan CEO its conscionable a gussied-up Audi) and Ford is investigating a fatal mishap astatine a Ohio transmission plant.

Dolores M. Harvey/Shutterstock

Just erstwhile we thought we were out, they pulled america backmost in.

With gas prices reaching levels we haven't seen successful years acknowledgment to nan U.S. and Israel's warfare pinch Iran, there's a hellhole of a batch of uncertainty for automakers, dealership and owners. Now, it's starting to look for illustration customers could erstwhile again beryllium pushed toward electrical vehicles and hybrids. This is, of course, awesome timing, considering nan truth that automakers astir nan globe are drastically scaling backmost their EV operations.

Dealers each complete nan world are looking to banal up connected electrical vehicles arsenic nan value of a tube of lipid hovers correct astir $100. History has shown that lipid value hikes tin lead nan monolithic changes successful user shopping habits. During nan 1970s power crisis, U.S. buyers opted for smaller vehicles. It group successful mobility nan inclination of Japanese automakers dominating nan marketplace for years to come. 

Here's what could hap adjacent for us. From Reuters:

Analysts opportunity nan caller crisp increases successful substance prices apt will not importantly change shopping ​patterns for caller cars correct away. It often takes a sustained play of elevated prices, aliases for them to eclipse a psychological milestone earlier car buyers displacement their attraction to much fuel-efficient choices, manufacture watchers said.

"Consumers are ​highly reactive to state prices, but it tends to beryllium that it has to deed a definite information number," said Kevin Roberts, head of economical and marketplace intelligence astatine online marketplace CarGurus. "The $4 (per gallon) period whitethorn beryllium nan 1 to watch," he said, noting that was a tipping constituent for EV liking during nan past lipid shock, successful 2022, aft Russia invaded Ukraine.

Zach Xavier, a customer successful nan U.S., did not want to wait. He visited Recharged, a utilized EV dealership successful Richmond, Virginia, pinch ​his woman connected Friday to waste and acquisition successful a combustion-engine SUV for an electrical one, and besides purchased a second, smaller EV.

"I'm trying to get successful earlier everybody freaks out," he said.

So far, higher prices do not ​seem to person fazed U.S. caller car shoppers, according to activity connected immoderate vehicle-research sites.

CarGurus said precocious past week that it had not yet seen awesome shifts successful EV searches. Another site, Edmunds, said nan stock of shoppers looking astatine ‌electrified vehicles successful ⁠the first week aft nan warfare started ticked up slightly, to 22.4% from 20.7% nan erstwhile week.

Reuters asserts that its acold much apt Europe sees an EV uptick than nan U.S., acknowledgment partially to nan truth authorities taxation breaks for electrical conveyance purchases are being reintroduced. The numbers backmost up nan thought that a displacement is underway.

In Germany, EV-related postulation for online car trader MeinAuto has accrued by 40% since nan commencement of nan Iran war. "Our consultations person besides revealed that galore group are presently focusing much intently connected nan moving costs of their cars," nan institution said successful a statement.

In a study of 1,164 group conducted connected March 12 successful Germany by online marketplace Carwow, ​48% of respondents said that spiking substance prices "would power ​their determination to see an EV aliases hybrid."

Between ⁠March 2 and March 12, up to 66% of shoppers were looking astatine EVs, up from 55% astatine nan extremity of February, Carwow said.

Things will person to get beautiful damn dire successful nan U.S. for a awesome EV displacement to happen. In 2025, EV income accounted for conscionable 7.7% of caller car sales, and nan Trump management — successful each of its infinite contented — killed nan $7,500 EV taxation credit.

Cox Automotive says that for astir U.S. consumers to see switching to an EV aliases hybrid, state would person to hit $6 per gallon — thing that has ne'er happened before. The highest mean we've ever seen was $5.02 per gallon successful June of 2022 — during nan nutrient of Russia's penetration of Ukraine.

Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik

Bentley says it's cutting 275 jobs successful sales, distribution and management arsenic it braces for much turbulence successful an automotive marketplace that has recovered itself successful a overmuch different spot than it erstwhile thought it would beryllium in. All successful all, 150 labor will beryllium outright cut, and nan further reductions will travel done retirements and soul reassignments. It useful retired to astir 6% of Bentley's chiefly UK-based, 4,600-person workforce.

In 2025, Bentley's world deliveries fell 4.8% to 10,131 vehicles, acknowledgment of weakening request successful China for European luxury brands. From Automotive News:

"We are not acting successful an emergency, but successful general, nan automotive manufacture is nether unit successful each aspect," CEO Frank-Steffen Walliser said connected an net telephone March 17. "Cost guidance is decidedly a higher privilege everyplace successful nan automotive manufacture astatine nan moment."

Walliser said Bentley needed to get nan correct costs building successful spot to summation robustness to header pinch an "ever-changing environment."

[...]

Bentley is bracing for nan imaginable of slower U.S. income amid a turbulent governmental and economical situation.

"This twelvemonth will beryllium challenging for everyone that is doing business successful nan United States, because we consciousness that uncertainty is present to stay," Bentley's Chief Financial Officer Axel Dewitz said connected nan call.

Bentley said that nan nonstop and indirect costs of tariffs connected its exports to nan U.S. were €42 million. 

The brand's operating profit separator dropped to 8.3 percent successful 2025 from 14 percent successful 2024, arsenic nan institution wrote disconnected nan costs of caller models that were owed to usage nan SSP61 electrical level being developed by VW Group's Porsche. The level has been postponed to nan mediate of nan adjacent decade.

Operating profit was €216 million, down from €373 cardinal successful 2024.

Because of weakening request for hyper-luxury EVs, Bentley is scaling backmost its plans for 5 EVs to conscionable 1 by 2030. The SUV will usage nan aforesaid Premium Platform Electric architecture that underpins nan Porsche Macan and Cayenne Electric.

Instead of EVs, nan institution says it's going to focus connected plug-in hybrids. Its next-generation cars that are group to switch existing models will beryllium PHEVs based connected a caller platform.

Andy Kalmowitz / Jalopnik

Elsewhere successful Volkswagen Group Land, Porsche says its not looking to velocity up improvement of its gas-powered Macan replacement to capable a two-year lineup gap. It besides doesn't intent for nan mini crossover to simply beryllium a reskinned Audi Q5.

Last July Porsche's then-CEO, Oliver Blume, said nan automaker would motorboat a state Macan replacement by 2028. In October, CFO Jochen Breckner said nan German automaker would build nan past of the current-generation state Macan (which has been successful accumulation since early 2014) successful mid-2026, meaning nan EV Macan would beryllium the only Macan until 2028. That's a hellhole of a risk. From Automotive News:

Porsche sold 27,139 Macans successful nan U.S. successful 2025, making nan nameplate nan brand's bestseller successful a important market. Around one-third of income were electric.

Automotive News Europe has reported that Porsche is processing nan gasoline Macan replacement to beryllium based connected Audi's Premium Platform Combustion platform, which underpins nan Q5 and different models. The third-generation Q5 launched successful 2025.

An expert asked if there's a measurement for Porsche to accelerate nan replacement vehicle's presence because 3 years to create "basically a apical chapeau for this level seems for illustration a agelong time."

Leiters said it's important to utilize commonalities betwixt Porsche and Audi for nan upcoming conveyance but pushed backmost connected nan analyst's characterization of nan model.

"We person to make judge that this is simply a existent Porsche," Leiters said. "This needs immoderate content, immoderate merchandise substance, immoderate exertion ... which will beryllium caller connected these cars. And truthful a definite clip is basal to travel to industrialization and to travel to nan motorboat of this product."

Porsche is group to salary a one-off licensing costs of astir $1.15 cardinal to Audi successful 2026 for nan grant of utilizing its platform. Well, arsenic Leiters put it, nan woody is for respective models "we are doing together" connected some sides. There's nary connection yet connected what those cars whitethorn be.

Jonathan Weiss/Shutterstock

Ford is investigating a fatal mishap that happened astatine its Sharonville Transmission Plant successful Ohio connected nan greeting of March 16. A property instrumentality was undergoing regular attraction erstwhile it was accidentally turned on, pinning an worker wrong it. He was freed from nan instrumentality and medics started life-saving measures, but he later died astatine Bethesda North Hospital. From the Detroit Free Press:

"There were aggregate witnesses to this incident and it is considered an business mishap astatine this time," Sharonville constabulary told nan Cincinnati Enquirer.

The Hamilton County Coroner's Office, Occupational Safety and Health Administration, and Ford's administrative unit are investigating.

Ford spokeswoman Jessica Enoch confirmed nan mishap to nan Detroit Free Press connected March 17 and said nan automaker is successful interaction pinch nan employee's family and moving to support them.

"Our deepest condolences are pinch nan friends and family of our squad member," Enoch said successful an emailed statement. "Counseling services are disposable for our labor astatine nan plant. Safety is our highest privilege and we are investigating nan incident. We would besides for illustration to convey our organization first responders."

[...]

UAW Vice President Laura Dickerson, who directs nan Ford department, posted connected societal media that nan national is "devastated to study that a personnel was killed connected nan occupation astatine Ford's Sharonville Transmission Plant.

"No 1 should ever spell to activity and ne'er travel home," Dickerson said successful nan post. "It is our ineffable work arsenic a national to protect nan life, wellness and information of our members connected nan job. Members merit a workplace free of threat to life and body. Our prayers are pinch nan family, co-workers and loved ones of our fallen brother."

Ford's 2.4-million-square-foot Sharonville, Ohio plant builds astir 3,500 transmissions per day. It besides employs complete 2,000 people.

History.com

It was sadistic retired location for American automakers successful nan early-to-middle-20th Century. Studebaker is almost surely 1 of nan astir notible casualties, if for nan elemental logic that it put retired immoderate of nan sickest, astir forward-thinking designs of nan 1940s and '50s. At slightest it was capable to concisely retrieve from its 1933 bankruptcy. Anyway, if you want to study more, caput complete to History.com.

Heather Diehl/Getty Images

As of 8 a.m., Brent crude prices are backmost complete $100, and this jump successful prices is surely being felt astatine nan state pump astir nan state arsenic the the U.S.-Israeli warfare pinch Iran drags on. With nan warfare successful its 3rd week and nan Strait of Hormuz, wherever astir 20% of nan world's lipid is expected to travel daily, practically shut, state prices proceed to rise.

Overnight, nan mean value of a gallon of regular state roseate astir 5 cents crossed nan state to $3.84, according to AAA. The past clip state was complete $3.84 for a gallon of regular was backmost successful October of 2022, according to information from the Energy Information Administration. In immoderate case, nan mean value of a gallon of state is now up 86 cents — aliases astir 25.2% — since nan time earlier nan warfare collapsed out, erstwhile it was $2.98.

Here's wherever nationalist mean prices guidelines correct now, according to AAA:

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These 5 states person nan cheapest state successful nan country:

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These 5 states person nan astir costly state successful nan country:

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