AD #2640 – Good & Bad News for Tesla, Cruise Delays Ride-Hailing Service, Fuel Economy for Chevy’s Baby Duramax

This is Autoline Daily reporting on the global automotive industry.

GOOD & BAD NEWS FOR TESLA
Tesla’s stock took a hit after its second quarter earnings were lower than analysts expected. Despite setting record deliveries in the quarter, the company posted an operating loss of nearly $170 million and a net loss of over $400 million. Because of that, its shares fell about 12% in after hours trading. But it’s not all doom and gloom for Tesla. Even though it lost money, it was less than before and it’s generating more cash. This means the EV maker could be on its way to breaking even in the next quarter. So while it’s disappointing to lose money, all is not lost for Tesla.

FORD’S EARNINGS LESS THAN EXPECTED
Ford also reported earnings that were lower than analysts expected. The company sold 1.4 million vehicles in the second quarter, which is a 9% drop compared to a year ago. Its revenue of $38.9 billion is about the same as last year. However, its net profit plunged 86% compared to a year ago due to restructuring charges in Europe and South America. Pretty much all of Ford’s profit came from North America.

NISSAN TO SLASH WORKFORCE & LINEUP
Yesterday we reported that things were not looking so good at Nissan, but they’re actually worse than what we were expecting. In its first quarter for the year, Nissan’s sales were down 6%, revenue was off by nearly 13%, it’s operating profit plunged 98.5% and net income fell 94.5%. As a result the automaker will be making a number of cuts. Roughly 12,500 employees will lose their jobs and it will slash its production capacity and size of its lineup by 10%. And we’re already seeing the first casualty. Nissan confirmed with Autoblog that it will not offer the Rogue Hybrid in 2020. According to WardsIntelligence data Nissan has sold about 140,600 Rogue’s so far this year in the U.S., but only 2,100 of those were hybrids.

BMW DOUBLES BATTERY PRODUCTION CAPACITY
BMW made 15,000 batteries at its plant in South Carolina last year, but it’s going to be able to more than double that output. The automaker is investing $10 million to add a second assembly line, which will make batteries for the plug-in hybrid versions of the X3 and X5 that are due out before the end of the year. BMW is also investing another $10 million to aid the production of those vehicles.

CRUISE DELAYS AV RIDE-HAILING SERVICE
GM’s self-driving unit, Cruise has raised $7.25 billion and had planned to launch its ride-hailing service in San Francisco by the end of the year, but that’s not going to happen. The company said it’s going to delay the service because it needs to test the vehicles more. There’s currently no timetable for when it will launch. But CEO Dan Ammann said Cruise would expand its testing and is working with Honda in Michigan to develop “the self-driving car of tomorrow.”

TOYOTA CONTRACTS MORE WIND & SOLAR POWER
Toyota says it will substantially reduce emissions at its North American operations by entering into Virtual Power Purchase Agreements or VPPAs, that will fund production of solar and wind energy. Starting this year, Toyota will contract with renewable energy providers to generate wind and solar power that will be provided directly to regional electrical grids. The renewable energy will help reduce the use of fossil fuels while improving the sustainability of the electric grid. By doing this, the company expects to cut emissions from its North American operations by up to 40% over the next three years.

FUEL ECONOMY FOR CHEVY’S BABY DURAMAX
Chevy revealed fuel economy numbers for the Silverado 1500 with the 3.0L Duramax diesel. The 4×2 models get 23 MPG in the city and 33 MPG on the highway, while 4×4 models get the same number in the city and 29 MPG on the highway. Chevy brags its highway fuel economy number is 10% better than the Ford F-150 diesel and 22% higher than the 2018 Ram 1500 diesel. Chevy will start delivering the Silverado diesel to customers in September.

CONTINENTAL IMPROVES AUTO WINDOW TINTING
A few years back we showed automatic window tinting technology from the supplier Continental and it’s continuing to make improvements to the system. The thin film sandwiched between the glass now consists of liquid crystals that are mixed with tiny paint particles. When low AC voltage is applied, the crystals and paint clump together or spread apart to change the opacity of the window. The change happens much faster than before and different colors can be used now as well. Also with this technology, windows can be used as displays and heated without the use of wires. When connected with the locking system, the windows could be defrosted as soon as the driver approaches the car. Continental even says it could be used on cameras for autonomous systems, so sun glare won’t impact their performance.

And be sure to tune into Autoline After Hours this afternoon. Our special guest is Dave Rand, a former GM designer, who will provide insights and observations about the Concours d’ Elegance that will be held this weekend in Plymouth, Michigan. Joining us will be Christie Schweinsberg of WardsAuto and Joe DeMatio of Hagerty. That’s today at 3PM eastern time on our website, Autoline.tv.

But that wraps up today’s report, thanks for watching and we’ll see you again tomorrow.