This is The Morning Shift, our one-stop daily roundup of all the auto news that's actually important — all in one place at 9:30 AM. Or, you could spend all day waiting for other sites to parse it out to you one story at a time. Isn't your time more important?
1st Gear: About That "No Recall" Thing
While Elon Musk insists that they won't recall the Model S for any reason, the feds are at least going to take a look to see what's going on after three fires in about five weeks.
Per David Shepardson:
The government typically takes up to six months before deciding whether to upgrade a preliminary evaluation to an engineering analysis — to determine whether the issue poses an unreasonable risk to safety. At that point, it can formally ask an automaker to repair the vehicles.
Musk has already said he's going to have Tesla cover any fire-related damage that isn't related to someone actively trying to destroy the car.
2nd Gear: The LA Auto Show Will Be Huge This Year
What once was a minor show on the calendar, the LA Auto Show is now the biggest in the U.S. behind Detroit, which makes it one of the biggest in the world.
We already know this year we'll see the Nissan GT-R NISMO, 2015 Mini Cooper and 2015 Subaru WRX.
There will be 56 new models and 22 world debuts this year, reports Alison Priddle, which is up from 49 previews last year.
We're en route as you read this, so get ready for the full Jalopnik experience.
3rd Gear: America's Honda Chief Admits Acura Is A "Challenge"
WIth the Tokyo and LA Auto Shows opening this week, American Honda Motor CEO Tetsuo Iwamura told Automotive News that Acura has nice SUVs and crossovers but the brand is a "big challenge" because the sedans "we need to improve a lot."
This includes the TL and ILX, though he says the new Acura TLX (formerly TSX) will be better and that the Acura RLX Sport Hybrid will also not suck. Unlike Infiniti and Lexus, they aren't going to try and make Acura a global brand and will instead focus on the U.S. and China and that means better sedans.
4th Gear: Oh, And Honda Hired Michael Bolton
Ok, Honda, that's pretty funny. This is not intended to be serious.
Intentional or not, Michael Bolton is kind of the perfect spokesman for Honda.
5th Gear: Truck Drivers Are Tired Of Sleeping So Much
Federal regulations designed to curb major truck crashes are hitting long-haul truck drivers hard, reports The Wall Street Journal.
The rules require drivers to rest for ten consecutive hours and limit driving to 11 hours per day, including a 34-hour break between workweeks that has to span two nights. The agency behind it says it'll prevent 1,400 crashes and save 19 lives every year, but the trucking lobby says it'll put more trucks on the streets during rush hour.
It's a tough life out there for truckers, and this piece is definitely worth a read.
Reverse: Hard To Believe They Don't Love American Cars
On this day in 1993, Toyota and General Motors sign an historic agreement: Beginning in 1996, GM will offer its bestselling Chevy Cavalier, refitted with right-hand drive, for sale in Japan. The Cavalier was one of the first American automobiles to hit the Japanese market.
[HISTORY]
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