Happy Monday! It’s October 20, 2025, and this is The Morning Shift — your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. This is where you’ll find the most important stories that are shaping the way Americans drive and get around.
In this morning’s edition, we’re looking at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s new investigation into Waymo robotaxi behavior near school buses, as well as the latest shortages to hit American auto factories. We’ll also look at the effects of the continued government shutdown on air travel, and yet another Ford recall.
1st Gear: NHTSA investigates Waymo robotaxis over reports of unsafe driving near school buses
As automakers beat their heads against the wall of autonomous driving, Waymo has built one of the more fleshed-out offerings in the robotaxi space. But it seems the software still has some very basic driving skills to learn, as it’s now under investigation from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for driving around a stopped school bus and its flashing red stop sign. From Reuters:
The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) said on Monday it has opened a preliminary probe into about 2,000 Waymo self-driving vehicles after reports that the company’s robotaxis may have failed to follow traffic safety laws around stopped school buses.
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NHTSA said the Office of Defects Investigation opened the review after flagging a media report describing an incident in which a Waymo autonomous vehicle did not remain stationary when approaching a school bus with its red lights flashing, stop arm deployed and crossing control arm extended.
The report said the Waymo vehicle initially stopped beside the bus then maneuvered around its front, passing the extended stop arm and crossing control arm while students were disembarking.
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NHTSA said the vehicle involved was equipped with Waymo’s fifth-generation Automated Driving System (ADS) and was operating without a human safety driver at the time of the incident.
I have to say, I’ve never had a rideshare or yellow cab scoot its way around a school bus as it unloaded children–another point for human drivers.
2nd gear: American automakers are running out of parts and materials
Remember when a semiconductor shortage in 2020 sent the entire automotive world plummeting into years of poor sales and dealer markups? Well, don’t look now, but we may be primed for another hit — only this time, on multiple fronts. From the Wall Street Journal:
Assembly lines inside a Michigan factory that churns out high-end Jeep SUVs ground to a halt last week and won’t resume production until early next month.The cause, according to an official for the United Auto Workers, is a shortage of aluminum.
Ford has paused production at three plants for the same reason. Between the two automakers, thousands of workers in Michigan and Kentucky are now collecting unemployment.
The automotive supply chain—a sprawling web of companies across the world—is in focus in a way it hasn’t been since the early 2020s, when a severe shortfall of semiconductor chips hobbled the industry. Auto executives routinely tout a lesson from that moment: Don’t rely too heavily on any one supplier. Now, supplies of multiple items are gummed up at the same time.
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In September, a three-alarm fire hit a New York aluminum plant, knocking production offline until early next year. The stoppage has disrupted manufacturing schedules of profitable Ford models and, now, pricey Jeep sport-utility vehicles. A spokesman for Jeep-maker Stellantis said it was a parts shortage that caused the shutdown of its Michigan factory but wouldn’t specify the particular part.
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At the same time, a strange, and ongoing, geopolitical dispute is causing more concern that car production around the world could be upended in a matter of weeks. Nexperia, a Netherlands-based chip maker, stopped shipments this month after the Dutch government took control of the company from its Chinese owner.
The United States instituted tariffs on aluminum, so bringing in metals from abroad can be prohibitively expensive for companies looking to turn a profit. Without this American plant, we could be out of aluminum for quite a while. Add in Chinese export controls on magnets, issues sourcing chips, and the general stagflation of our trade war world, and maybe you should just plan to keep your current car for a while.
3rd Gear: The U.S. is running out of air traffic controllers as government shutdown drags on
Air traffic controllers and TSA workers are federal employees, but the federal government is shut down over a number of stupid fights right now. As such, those workers aren’t being paid — and their agencies are facing staffing shortages. From Reuters:
The Federal Aviation Administration said late Sunday that air traffic control staffing issues were delaying travel at airports in Dallas, Chicago, Atlanta and Newark as a U.S. government shutdown hit its 19th day.
The FAA said numerous staffing triggers had been received for the evening shift and flights could also be delayed in Las Vegas and Phoenix becauseof air traffic control absences.
FlightAware said more than 5,800 flights had been delayed on Sunday. Weather issues and a Formula 1 race in Austin were also impacting flights.
More than 20% of American Airlines and Southwest Airlines flights were delayed Sunday, according to FlightAware.
Some 13,000 air traffic controllers and about 50,000 Transportation Security Administration officers must work during the government shutdown, but are not being paid.
Air traffic controllers are using their sick and vacation days during the shutdown, since they’re not being paid anyway. I can’t honestly say I blame them.
4th Gear: It’s Ford recall time again
What the hell is happening over at Ford? The company issued another two recalls, covering 624,679 Mustangs and Super Duty pickups. If you’re playing the Ford Recall Drinking Game, take a drink, but maybe make sure you’ve got someone sober checking up on you. This is getting to be an unsustainable amount of liquor. From Automotive News:
Ford Motor Co. issued two recalls in the U.S. covering 624,679 vehicles combined, according to NHTSA reports.
One recall covers 332,778 vehicles because of a seat belt issue, the Sept. 12 report said. The other covers 291,901 vehicles for an issue with the rearview camera display, according to an Oct. 10 report.
The seat belt recall affects certain 2015-17 Ford Mustangs, with 11 percent of the recall population expected to have the defect, NHTSA said.
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The rearview camera image display recall covers the 2020-22 Ford F-250 Super Duty, Ford F-350 Super Duty and Ford F-450 Super Duty trucks, NHTSA said. The entire recall population is expected to have the defect.
What percentage of Ford vehicles from the last decade have been recalled at this point, I wonder? Has Ford recalled more cars this year in the U.S. than it’s sold in 2025?
Reverse: 1962 must’ve been really boring, huh?
Was there nothing better going on in early October, before the Cuban Missile Crisis?
On The Radio: Courtney Barnett – ‘Stay In Your Lane’
New Courtney Barnett! Did anyone have that on their 2025 bingo card?
