AD #2728 – Japanese OEMs Dominate Chinese Hybrid Market, Mahindra Under Fire Over Roxor, FCA & UAW Reach Deal

This is Autoline Daily reporting on all aspects of the global automotive industry.

MAHINDRA UNDER FIRE OVER JEEP LOOKALIKE
Bad news for Mahindra. A federal judge ruled that the company should stop selling and building its Roxor off-road vehicle in the U.S. because of its resemblance to the Jeep Wrangler. Mahindra has appealed the decision and the case will now be looked at by the International Trade Commission, which will decide whether to ban the Roxor. If it upholds the decision, Mahindra will not only have to stop selling and building the Roxor in the U.S., it will likely be fined or have to pay damages to FCA.

DAIMLER TO CUT THOUSANDS OF JOBS 
Daimler is the latest automaker to announce job cuts due to slowing sales and the need to invest in electric vehicles. It’s going to slash at least 10,000 jobs worldwide over the next three years. Daimler will also offer employees the chance to lower work time during the week and extend contracts to temporary workers. Its goal is to reduce staff costs by 1.4 billion euros by 2022 and cut management positions by 10%. Daimler follows German companies Audi, BMW and Continental who have all recently announced cuts. And as we said last week, these jobs are almost all white-collar jobs. In the coming decade, we expect a lot of blue collar jobs to be on the chopping block.

FCA REACHES UAW CONTRACT AGREEMENT 
FCA and the UAW reached a tentative labor contract over the weekend. Now it will go to the rank and file to vote on whether they accept it or not. FCA agreed to a $9,000 signing bonus, it will invest another $4.5 billion in plants and equipment in the U.S., and add 7,900 jobs.  

JUSTICE DEPARTMENT CONTINUES UAW INVESTIGATION 
Could the U.S. Department of Justice take over the UAW? That’s a distinct possibility according to the federal prosecutor who is now leading the investigation into corruption at the union. The Detroit News reports that the Justice Department is not impressed with reforms the UAW announced it will take, and it does not feel the union is fully cooperating with investigators. But if there is any kind of federal oversight of the union, it won’t happen anytime soon. The Justice Department says it is only halfway through the investigation, which means more people will probably be indicted. Labor experts say the Justice Department probably went public with threats to take over the union to get the UAW to make real reforms.  

JAPANESE BRANDS DOMINATE CHINESE HYBRID MARKET
Car sales in China have been declining for well over a year now. And while most companies are struggling, Japanese automakers are boosting sales thanks to their hybrids. Car buyers in China are buying more hybrids because of the government’s push to new-energy vehicles but they aren’t ready for pure electric vehicles yet. And that’s great news for Toyota, Honda and Nissan, who have a solid offering of hybrids in their lineups. Sales of Japanese brand vehicles are up 4.3% through October in China and sales of their hybrids are up 30%. And because of that growth, the Japanese automakers now control 99% of the hybrid market in China, excluding plug-in hybrids

BMW TO BUILD MINI EV IN CHINA 
Last year BMW announced it would make all-electric MINIs in China with Great Wall Motors and now we have more details on the deal. The new joint venture will be called Spotlight Automotive or likely Spotlight for short. Together the companies will invest 650 million euros to build a new manufacturing plant in China, which will have the capacity to make 160,000 vehicles a year and employ 3,000 people. Not only will electric MINIs be made there, but the plan is also to make vehicles that fall under the Great Wall umbrella. The new plant should be completed by 2022. And on top of manufacturing, the two companies will jointly develop EVs as well.

VW STOPS ICE DEVELOPMENT FOR RACING
Hot hatches are going electric! Volkswagen’s Motorsports division said it will stop developing piston-engine race cars in favor of electric powered ones and end involvement in factory-backed racing that uses gasoline as its power source. 

BMW SHOWS ITS “BIG BOXER” ENGINE 
Classic BMW boxer engines have inspired its newest motorcycle engine, what it calls the “Big Boxer.” The matte finish on the metal and ribbed cylinder and cylinder heads are what really tie it to classic boxers. It’s an 1,800cc engine that makes 91 horsepower at 4750 RPM, which makes this the most powerful boxer engine BMW has ever made. The “Big Boxer” will be used in the production version of the Concept R 18, which first debuted back in May of this year.

FISKER OCEAN DETAILS RELEASED
We’ve got some new details on the electric Fisker Ocean SUV which arrives in 2022. Pre-order reservations can now be placed on Fisker’s new mobile app or online for $250. Fisker not only created the app for pre-orders, but for a better buying experience for customers. You can schedule test drives, buy car insurance, determine leasing options and request maintenance. The electric SUV gets optional four-wheel drive and has a range of 250 to 300 miles. Some extra features include a solar roof which adds roughly 1,000 miles of range over a year, recycled fishnet carpet, and “Eco-suede” fabric made from recycled polyester. The Ocean will be unveiled in January. 

HYUNDAI’S DIGITAL KEY APP
Speaking of mobile apps, Hyundai shed some light on its Digital Key smartphone app for the new Sonata. The app allows owners to lock and unlock their car, turn it on or off with remote start, turn the alarm on and even open the trunk. Owners can also share a Digital key with friends or family to give others access to the car for up to a year. Owners must have an Android device to download the app, and it’s only available in properly equipped Sonata models. 

CAN YOU NAME THIS CAR?
While going through some old pictures of his father’s, Autoline viewer Michael B ran across this picture and would like our help identifying the car. Michael says this would have been around 1965 when his father was discharged after serving a tour as a Marine Sergeant in Vietnam. The car has a few distinguishing features, like the rear-hinged front doors that open towards the rear, large fenders and sweeping roofline. Michael, we appreciate your father’s service and you for sending in this picture. I’m sure we’ll get this one figured out.

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