AD #2441 – Porsche Drops Diesels from Lineup, Tesla Making Progress with Semi Truck, GMC Sierra eAssist Details

On today’s show…in another blow to diesels, Porsche announces it will no longer offer any…Peugeot introduces plug-in hybrid versions of its 508 and 3008 vehicles…and Bob Lutz shares details about a mid-engine Cadillac the company was developing but was ultimately axed. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.

This is Autoline Daily the voice of the automotive industry.

PEUGEOT INTRODUCES NEW PLUG-IN HYBRIDS
Peugeot introduced plug-in hybrid versions of its 508 and 3008 vehicles. The system includes a 1.6L gasoline engine that’s mated to an 8-speed automatic transmission along with a 300-volt lithium-ion battery. Front-wheel drive versions crank out 180 horsepower while 4-wheel drive models come with 225 horses. The 3008 has a pure electric range of 50 kilometers or about 31 miles and the 508 can travel 40 kilometers or 25 miles in EV mode. The plug-in hybrid models go on sale in Europe in the second quarter of 2019.

TESLA MAKING PROGRESS WITH SEMI TRUCK
Tesla is making progress with its electric semi-trucks. YouTube user Sergey MoldovanAmerican spotted a pair of Tesla semi’s cruising on the highway in California. It appeared that they were travelling in what Elon Musk calls “Convoy Mode,” which allows the trucks to travel close together semi-autonomously to help reduce wind resistance. The truck is powered by four electric motors, which gives it a range of 300 miles. But it’s no slouch either. The truck can move from 0 to 60 MPH in just 5 seconds without any cargo and with a full 80,000-pound load, it takes 20 seconds.

VOLVO TRUCKS SUSPENDS OPERATIONS IN IRAN
And in other big truck news, Volvo Trucks has stopped assembling vehicles in Iran due to U.S. sanctions. Reuters reports the company halted production because it can no longer get paid for the parts it shipped. Volvo Trucks is just the latest company to be affected by the sanctions. Swedish truck maker Scania, which is owned by the Volkswagen Group, cancelled all orders it couldn’t deliver in August and Peugeot suspended its operations in the country in June.

Still to come…a look at the mild-hybrid system in GM’s full-size pickup trucks.

GMC SIERRA eASSIST DETAILS
Ram has hogged the headlines with the 48-volt mild-hybrid system in its new 1500 pickup, so it may surprise you to know GM currently offers a similar system in its pickups as well. In fact, it beat Ram to the market. In 2016 GMC came out with the option for a 48-volt system with a belt alternator/starter in the Sierra in California. The electric motor, along with a small battery pack mounted under the center console, provides stop/start capability, regenerative braking and assist to the engine under high load. The idea, at first, was to produce 200 Sierra eAssist models and then see how things went from there. It went well enough. The option is now offered outside California and sales estimates for the year are a little over 3,000 units. But that’s about as far as it’s going to go. A GMC spokesperson confirmed with Autoline that the all-new Sierra will have 5 gas engines, one turbocharged, one diesel engine, but no eAssist. With all the changes going on in the pickup segment, it’s been really interesting to watch how each automaker has adopted a different strategy when it comes to boosting fuel economy.

PORSCHE DROPS DIESELS FROM LINEUP
Porsche announced over the weekend that it will no longer offer diesel engines and will instead focus on hybrid and electric vehicles. Last year, diesels made up 12% of the automaker’s worldwide sales, but CEO Oliver Blume gave some interesting responses when talking about the transition. Not only did he say that diesels have always played a secondary role at Porsche, but also, “We have never developed and produced diesel engines ourselves. Still, Porsche’s image has suffered. The diesel crisis has caused us a lot of trouble.” It sounds to us, there’s more to the decision than just the rise of electrification.

Coming up next, GM’s former Vice Chairman, Bob Lutz talks about the mid-engine Cadillac that never was.

THE MID-ENGINE CADILLAC THAT NEVER WAS
One of the biggest open secrets in the auto industry is that GM is developing a mid-engine Corvette. But did you know Cadillac was supposed to get a version at one time? On last week’s Autoline After Hours, we were joined by Bob Lutz, the former Vice Chairman of General Motors. And he talked about the mid-engine Cadillac that never was.

(The AAH preview is only available in the video version of today’s show.)

You can watch that entire interview with Bob Lutz right now on our website, Autoline.tv or you can find it on our YouTube channel.

But that’s it for today, thanks for watching and please join us again tomorrow.