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Runtime: 6:27
0:07 EV Sales Slow in September
0:52 Mitsubishi Teases Tokyo Concepts
1:30 Driver’s Don’t Trust Lane Keeping Systems
2:40 Lucid Motors Inches Closer to Production
3:26 Tesla to Start Production in China This Month
3:40 Home Charging Station Gets Level 2 Upgrade
4:20 Larger Wheels Are Becoming More Common
4:50 Lincoln To Make More Coach Door Continentals
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This is Autoline Daily reporting on all aspects of the global automotive industry.
EV SALES SLOW IN SEPTEMBER
Sales of battery electric cars stalled out last month in the U.S. market. While they had been growing by strong percentage gains every month, in September they were flat compared to a year ago, though Tesla did post a 4% year over year gain. Even with the addition of the Hyundai Kona, Kia Niro and Audi eTron, the segment did not grow. Audi must be especially worried. Sales got off to a good start but have been falling every month since then and are now down by half. The same pretty much goes for the Jaguar I-Pace. This does not bode well for traditional automakers. They can’t seem to make much headway selling electric cars.
| U.S. BEV SALES | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep | Aug | July | June | May | |
| Audi eTron | 434 | 593 | 678 | 726 | 856 |
| Jaguar I-Pace | 160 | 160 | 213 | 236 | 228 |
| Source: Wards Intelligence | |||||
MITSUBISHI TEASES TOKYO CONCEPTS
Mitsubishi is teasing a couple of concepts before they debut at the Tokyo auto show at the end of the month. First up is the MI-TECH, which is a plug-in hybrid SUV, that’s powered by four electric motors and uses a gas turbine range extender. It also features an augmented reality windshield, which has all kinds of information projected on it. Mitsubishi also teased this funky looking concept called the Super Height K-Wagon. As the name implies, it’s a kei-car, which are the class of tiny passenger cars sold in Japan.
DRIVER’S DON’T TRUST LANE KEEPING SYSTEMS
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety or IIHS did a study on lane-keep assistance and cruise control. Many of the test drivers participating in the study thought the systems had a few small issues, but some felt that lane keeping systems were flawed to the point that they didn’t trust them. It all boiled down to the vehicles making choices without the driver’s input. In our experience, lane keeping system make the steering feel vague and indirect. They nibble at the lines marking the lanes especially going around curves. And there’s your technical term for the day. Nibble is the term engineers use to describe how the steering is making little inputs on its own, like when you’re driving on pavement with grooves in it and the steering wheel jiggles a bit.
LUCID MOTORS INCHES CLOSER TO PRODUCTION
EV startup Lucid Motors is inching closer to production of its first electric vehicle, the Air. The company has gone through a number of issues but seems to be back on track after a $1 billion dollar investment last year from the Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund. Lucid is in the very early stages of building a $675 million manufacturing plant just outside of Phoenix, Arizona. The plant will take 6 years to build and by 2022, Lucid hopes to have more than 2,000 full-time employees. Here’s our Autoline Insight. A greenfield factory costing hundreds of millions of dollars that take 6 years to build and will employ thousands of people working for a company that has never made anything is a recipe for disaster.
TESLA TO START PRODUCTION IN CHINA THIS MONTH
By comparison, Tesla’s $2 billion China factory is nearly up and running. Reuters reports the aim is to start production this month and make at least 1,000 Model 3’s a week by the end of the year.
HOME CHARGING STATION GETS LEVEL 2 UPGRADE
Speaking of EVs, Electrify America is expanding its number of public charging stations, and now it’s coming to your home. Its Level 2 home charger is rated at a charging power of up to 7.6 kW, has a 24-foot cable and can be used indoors or out. It’s WiFi enabled so customers can get charging data on an app. In the future it will allow owners to program charging for off peak hours. The Level 2 charger is priced at $500.
LARGER WHEELS ARE BECOMING MORE COMMON
Trucks and SUVs continue to gain in popularity and according to market research company The NPD Group that shift is leading to an increase in larger diameter wheels and tires as well. Over the last three years, wheels that are 17-inches and larger have increased in market share by nearly 12%. While larger wheels and tires are typically more expensive, the increase in volume should bring prices down. Big wheels and tires sure make a vehicle look better, but that heavier unsprung weight usually detracts from their ride and handling.
LINCOLN TO MAKE MORE COACH DOOR CONTINENTALS
Lincoln is bringing back that Coach Door version of the Continental. The cars are built at Ford’s Flat Rock plant then shipped to Cabot Coach Builders in Boston to stretch the sedan’s wheelbase by 6-inches. It’s not clear how many Lincoln will make this time around, but it sold out last year’s allotment of 80 cars in just 48 hours. The cars starts at $115,000 compared to $46,000 for a regular base Continental and that alone explains why Lincoln is bringing the car back. That’s the way to make a profit!
Governments around the world are mandating that automakers build electric vehicles. And they’re doing it. The only problem is, no one knows how to make a profit on EVs. So, to learn about the issues that are hindering EV adoption, be sure to watch Autoline This Week on our website or on our YouTube channel.
But that wraps up today’s show, thanks for watching and have a great weekend.
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John McElroy is an influential thought leader in the automotive industry. He is a journalist, lecturer, commentator and entrepreneur. He created “Autoline Daily,” the first industry webcast of industry news and analysis.
