# Daily Car News: Ford Mustang GTD squares up to Corvette, Aussie utes shuffle, Tesla margin math, BYD’s tiny tease > Daily Car News: Ford Mustang GTD squares up to Corvette, Aussie utes shuffle, Tesla margin math, BYD’s tiny tease I wrote this with gate-change announcements chiming over my head and a lukewarm flat white in hand—proper road‑tester fuel. Today’s mix... > Published 2025-10-23 by Thomas Nismenth. 8 min read (1628 words). > Blog: News at AutoWin (https://www.autowin.com). ## Details - Canonical URL: https://www.autowin.com/en/blogs/news/ford-mustang-gtd-aims-for-redemption-against-corvette-daily-car-news-2025-10-23 - Author: Thomas Nismenth - Published: 2025-10-23 - Updated: 2026-01-23 - Reading time: 8 minutes - Word count: 1628 - Topics: Australia, Automotive, BYD, Car News, Corvette, Daily, electric vehicles, Ford Mustang, Kia Tasman, Mazda, News, performance cars, Tesla, used cars - Featured image: https://www.a1win.de/cdn/shop/articles/daily-car-news-2025-10-23.png?v=1761201397&width=1200 ## Summary Daily Car News: Ford Mustang GTD squares up to Corvette, Aussie utes shuffle, Tesla margin math, BYD’s tiny teaseI wrote this with gate-change announcements chiming over my head and a lukewarm flat white in hand—proper road‑tester fuel. Today’s mix is a good one: Australia’s ute scene won’t sit still, Tesla’s revenue climbs while profits tighten, BYD gets tiny in a very Japanese way, and the Ford Mustang GTD is very much in the mood for Corvette redemption. Somewhere in there I also found myself daydreaming about a Citroën XM (don’t worry, I’ll explain). Quick vibe check: This is a big‑to‑... ## Full Article Daily Car News: Ford Mustang GTD squares up to Corvette, Aussie utes shuffle, Tesla margin math, BYD’s tiny teaseI wrote this with gate-change announcements chiming over my head and a lukewarm flat white in hand—proper road‑tester fuel. Today’s mix is a good one: Australia’s ute scene won’t sit still, Tesla’s revenue climbs while profits tighten, BYD gets tiny in a very Japanese way, and the Ford Mustang GTD is very much in the mood for Corvette redemption. Somewhere in there I also found myself daydreaming about a Citroën XM (don’t worry, I’ll explain). Quick vibe check: This is a big‑to‑small kind of day—F‑150s towing cabins at one end, kei EVs nosing into pocket‑sized parking bays at the other. And in the middle? The Ford Mustang GTD glaring across pit lane at a Z06.Australia Watch: F‑150 facelift locked in, and Kia’s Tasman plays the long gameFord F‑150 facelift confirmed for Australia (2026) CarExpert reports the refreshed Ford F‑150 is officially heading to Australia in 2026. Sensible move. Aussies hoovered up the current right‑hand‑drive conversions for towing boats, horses, and half their belongings up the Hume. I hustled one down a corrugated back road near Ballarat and it brushed off the chatter like it was nothing—big‑truck calm. Expect a mid‑cycle tidy rather than a reinvention: tweaked lighting, nicer touchpoints, and hopefully a few Aussie‑savvy towing updates. Why it matters: Keeps Ford’s full‑sizer sharp against Ram and the incoming wave of big utes. Timing: 2026 in Australia, with local calibration likely. My take: Smooth the driver‑assist tuning and give us smarter trailer tech—job done.Kia Tasman: Slow start, no panicKia told CarExpert it isn’t sweating the Tasman’s early numbers. Fair enough. New utes don’t win the Bunnings car park overnight. A couple of tradies I chatted to at a servo outside Geelong liked the cab storage solutions and the ride; trust and accessories bring the rest. If Kia leans into fleet deals and a proper catalog of trays, canopies, and towing bits, you’ll start seeing them lined up outside job sites soon enough. Why it matters: Australia is ute heartland; cracking it sets a brand’s tone for everything else. Watch for: Accessory rollout, fleet uptake, and owner chat about GCVM and towing stability. Side tip: Buying a new ute? Budget for accessories up front. You’ll save coin versus piecemeal later, and you’ll get the setup you actually want.Electrified Reality Check: Mazda trims mild‑hybrids, Tesla sells more but earns lessMazda 3 and CX‑30 mild‑hybrids unlikely to returnPer CarExpert, the 24‑volt mild‑hybrid versions of the Mazda 3 and CX‑30 won’t be back anytime soon—even with tougher emissions rules circling. Honestly, most buyers couldn’t feel enough real‑world gain to justify the premium. My last weekend stint in a 3 G25 returned low‑7s L/100km on a steady highway run. If Mazda keeps finessing naturally aspirated engines and smarter autos, they’ll get close to the same goal with fewer parts to go wrong. Takeaway: Expect Mazda to use light electrification only where it really earns its keep. Owner note: Keep your tyres properly inflated; it makes more difference to economy than many mild‑hybrid systems in mixed driving.Tesla Q3: Revenue up, income down CarExpert says Tesla’s Q3 revenue climbed while income slipped. Translation: the company sold a heap of cars, but margins felt the pinch—price cuts, product mix, and the cost of staying ahead on software and hardware. It’s a familiar Tesla play: scale today, bet on tech monetization tomorrow. Works until a price war gets too spicy. Why it matters: Keeps the pressure on legacy brands still wrestling with EV costs. Shopper tip: If you’re cross‑shopping, watch for end‑of‑quarter deals. Tesla loves a late sprint. Did you know? Even a 1% swing in average selling price can move Tesla’s quarterly profit needle by hundreds of millions. Timing your buy can be worth real money.Small is smart: BYD teases a kei‑class city car for JapanBYD is teasing a truly tiny kei EV for Japan, per CarExpert—smaller (and cheaper) than the Atto 1. If you’ve ever tried parallel parking in Tokyo or squeezing into a half‑painted slot in Osaka, it makes perfect sense. Kei rules keep size and power in check, but the packaging is witchcraft: room for two adults, groceries, and a surprising amount of cheer. Use case: School runs, convenience‑store dashes, cheap insurance. Quirk to watch: Where the charge cable lives—tiny boots get crowded fast. City‑life bonus: Many Japanese parking spots are sized for kei cars. Owning one can literally unlock more of the city.Ford Mustang GTD vs Corvette: the redemption runFord Mustang GTD: wants paybackCarscoops has the vibe right: the Ford Mustang GTD is hunting redemption after being shown up by a Corvette. If you’ve stood next to a GTD with the bodywork off, you know it’s serious—race‑team logic everywhere you look. Big wing, rear transaxle, aggressive aero, and a supercharged 5.2‑liter V8 targeting north of 800 hp (as stated at reveal). It’s the most hard‑edged road‑legal Mustang I’ve put a helmet beside, and that’s saying something.Ford Mustang GTD track setup: what mattersThe Corvette Z06 is still the track‑day bully for the money—mid‑engine balance, a screaming flat‑plane crank, and a chassis that laughs at kerbs. The GTD’s path to payback? Nail high‑speed stability over curbing, keep the brake pedal rock‑solid after five hot laps, and make the rear end traction predictable when the supercharger huffs out of slow corners. On a bumpy circuit I know well, the Z06 stays calm where lesser setups start swearing. If Ford’s honed the damping window and aero balance, the rematch could be deliciously close.Ford Mustang GTD vs rivals: quick specs snapshot Car Engine Power (approx.) Layout/Notes Ford Mustang GTD Supercharged 5.2L V8 800+ hp (target at reveal) Rear transaxle, extreme aero focus Chevrolet Corvette Z06 5.5L flat‑plane V8 670 hp Mid‑engine balance, huge grip Porsche 911 GT3 RS 4.0L NA flat‑six 518 hp Active aero mastery, absurd consistency Either way, we win. The Mustang GTD pushing the Z06 (and glancing at the GT3 RS for homework) makes track‑rat life better for everyone who brings a torque wrench to a Saturday. Track‑day tip: Don’t chase lap time on your out‑lap. Get heat into the tyres and brakes first—your third lap will thank you.4x4 Theater: the long, loud, and gloriously impractical G‑ClassCarscoops also flagged a stretched, old‑school Mercedes‑Benz G‑Class restomod: longer, louder, and pricier than reason allows—and that’s the point. I’ve valet‑parked a few wild Gs at hotel launches; nothing gathers a crowd faster than a square silhouette on big tyres with an exhaust that barks like a drill sergeant. It’s not about apex speed. It’s about presence, that bank‑vault door thunk, and a seating position that lets you spot your house from three suburbs away. Pros: Theater, torque, and timeless cartoon‑brick charm. Cons: Turning circle of a ferry. Alleyways become boss fights.Used‑Car Crush: the £5000 Citroën XM you secretly wantAutocar’s right—few £5k buys are as magnificently odd as the Citroën XM. Hydropneumatic ride, origami silhouette, and a dashboard designed during a synth solo. I borrowed one for a friend’s wedding years ago and floated down the M4 like the tarmac had turned to silk. If you’re tempted, bring a specialist and budget for spheres and electrics. You buy it for the way it breathes with the road. Nothing else feels quite like it. Buy it for: Comfort, design cred, guaranteed conversation at petrol stations. Watch for: Hydraulic leaks, electrical gremlins, unobtainium trim bits.Motorsport Corner: Quartararo, Yamaha, and the V4 pivotAutosport quotes Fabio Quartararo on Yamaha’s V4 project: after a rough patch, he wants a bike that can win now. A V4 could deliver the top‑end punch and ... ## Related Store Context - [AutoWin Blog & News](https://www.autowin.com/blogs/news): Automotive news and fitment guides - [AutoWin Store Index](https://www.autowin.com/llms.txt): Full product catalog for AI agents - [Agent Instructions](https://www.autowin.com/agents.md): Commerce protocol and Shop skill - Reviews verified on [AutiVex](https://autivex.com/business/autowin-com): AutoWin customer ratings