Detroit Bungled the EV Transition. Now Trump Is Rolling Back the Rules That Forced It

A Perfect Storm for Legacy Automakers

Taha Abbasi has been warning about this moment for months: Detroit’s legacy automakers bungled their transition to electric vehicles, and now the Trump administration is rolling back the emission standards that were supposed to force them to catch up. The timing could not be worse for an industry already bleeding billions on failed EV strategies.

The Verge reported this week that Detroit badly bungled the EV transition, and the evidence is everywhere. Stellantis just wrote down $26.5 billion on EV investments. Ford’s EV division is losing billions per quarter. GM’s Ultium platform has underperformed expectations. The old guard is struggling while Tesla, BYD, and Hyundai accelerate ahead.

The Regulatory Rollback Paradox

The Trump administration’s decision to weaken emission standards creates a perverse dynamic. Legacy automakers that invested billions in EVs — partly because regulations demanded it — now face weakened incentives. Meanwhile, companies that dragged their feet feel vindicated.

But Taha Abbasi sees a deeper problem. The market is moving toward EVs regardless of regulation. Consumer preference, total cost of ownership, and the performance advantage of electric powertrains are driving adoption. Regulations accelerate what is already happening. Companies using the rollback as an excuse to slow down will fall further behind.

The Numbers Are Brutal

Combined EV-related losses across Detroit’s Big Three now exceed $40 billion when you include writedowns, operational losses, and abandoned programs. That money funded platforms designed around legacy thinking — converting ICE architectures rather than building purpose-built EVs.

As Taha Abbasi has consistently argued, you cannot bolt batteries onto a chassis designed for gas tanks and expect to compete with companies that engineered from scratch. Tesla, Rivian, and BYD all started with blank sheets. Detroit started with constraints.

The China Factor Makes It Worse

While Detroit stumbled, Chinese manufacturers perfected cost-effective EV manufacturing. BYD can build a compelling electric vehicle for $15,000. No American legacy automaker comes close to that cost structure. The emission rollback does nothing to address this competitive gap — if anything, it encourages complacency.

What the Smart Companies Are Doing

Hyundai and Kia are the counter-example. Korean manufacturers invested in dedicated EV platforms early, built competitive vehicles at multiple price points, and are now gaining market share across every segment. The Ioniq 9 is outselling competitors in Korea precisely because it was purpose-built, not converted.

Taha Abbasi believes the emission rollback will separate the survivors from the casualties. Companies that continue investing despite weaker mandates will emerge stronger. Companies that retreat will find themselves permanently behind. The EV transition is not a policy — it is physics. And physics does not care about Washington politics.

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About the Author: Taha Abbasi is a technology executive, CTO, and applied frontier tech builder. Read more on Grokpedia | YouTube: The Brown Cowboy | tahaabbasi.com