AD #2957 – Nikola Served Grand Jury Subpoenas; Details of BMW’s All-Electric iX; Tesla Confirms Larger Battery Pack

This is Veterans Day in the United States and Autoline salutes the men and women who have and who are serving in uniform. Thank you for your dedication. We know we have a lot of viewers outside the US, and we respect the service of your veterans as well.

OK, let’s get into the latest developments in the automotive industry.

NIKOLA SERVED GRAND JURY SUBPOENAS
Nikola is in a heap of legal trouble. Both the Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission launched investigations into the startup in September, after Hindenburg Research accused Nikola of misleading investors about its fuel cell technology. Now, according to a filing with the SEC, Nikola and its founder Trevor Milton, we served grand jury subpoenas. And this latest revelation makes us wonder if Nikola’s partnership with General Motors will happen. The two companies haven’t signed a deal yet. And as these negotiations go on, the less it looks like it will happen.

HONDA PUTTING LEVEL 3 VEHICLE ON THE ROAD
Honda is taking a route to autonomy that few other automakers want to follow. The Japanese government just gave Honda permission to put a Level 3 car on the road in Japan. Level 3 refers to a car that can drive autonomously on different types of roads, but hands everything back to the driver when it encounters something it can’t handle. Many AV experts worry that drivers may not be ready to take immediate control in an emergency. But Honda’s description of what it called Traffic Jam Pilot actually sounds more like a Level 2 system such as Cadillac’s Super Cruise. It has a camera which monitors the driver, meaning the driver has to be paying attention. Traffic Jam Pilot will be available on Honda Legends in the Japanese market in just a couple of months.

DETAILS OF BMW’S ALL-ELECTRIC iX
BMW announced a lot of details about its new electric flagship, the iX. It’s built on a dedicated EV platform that will be used for other models. It’s powered by two electric motors with a combined 500 horsepower that will deliver a 0-60 time of 5 seconds. And it will have a 300 mile driving range based on the EPA test procedure. If you use a 200 kilowatt DC charger, it can fill the battery to 80% capacity in 40 minutes, and in 10 minutes you can get an extra 75 miles of range. Interestingly the motors do not use any rare earth materials. With China dominating the market for rare earths, many non-Chinese automakers are designing motors that do not need those materials. The BMW iX will go on sale in early 2022. There’s a ton of information about this car that you can find in the press release, which we’ll link to.

WHY FLEETS WON’T WANT ELECTRIC PICKUPS
Electric pickups are in the headlines. And there will be at least nine models in the U.S. market by 2023. But a study from automotive consultant Warren Browne, says those trucks will only generate sales of 40,000 units in 2023. That’s because they’ll have an average transaction price $20,000 more than a comparable piston powered truck. Plus, they’ll be configured in a way that only appeals to a small portion of the market. Warren Browne was our guest on Autoline This Week, and he says fleet buyers will not be interested..

“Fleet buyers aren’t going to buy $70,000 pickup trucks. There’s no purchasing manager in the world that I’m aware of, in the business I’ve been in for 40 years that’s going to say ‘well you know, I know it’s $20,000 higher but let’s just go after them and do this.’ Now, that doesn’t mean they won’t get some fleet sales but I don’t see this as a fleet customer product. One, because of the price but in the long run the maintenance costs are going to be less and the operating cost in terms of fuel economy are going to be less, but that’s down the road. So I don’t see this and you know what a hundred units, a thousand units, it’s going to break these companies if that’s the volume. There’s no overriding United States infrastructure, in terms of incentives, a national distribution on charging stations, that says this is what we’re going to do. And maybe Biden will do it, maybe he won’t. But at the moment they’re fighting an uphill battle that is enormous, so they’ll be a niche player and they’ll be much more of a niche player in the fleet market.”

Warren did go on to say that electric trucks might have a chance in the fleet market, if companies do a buyback, meaning they’ll buy them back after at the end of a lease. For more of Warren’s insight, you can watch that full interview on our website or YouTube channel.

FORD BOOSTS ELECTRIC F-150 PRODUCTION DUE TO STRONG INTEREST
Of course, Tesla and Ford are reporting strong orders for their electric pickups. Some forecasters estimate that Tesla’s Cybertruck has over 700,000 orders so far. Ford says interest in its electric F-150 is so strong that it’s increasing production plans by 50% and adding 200 more jobs at the Rouge Plant where it invested $700 million to make the new truck.

FORD MAKES BIG INVESTMENT IN ELECTRIFICATION
Speaking of Ford EV production, the electric version of the Transit, called the E-Transit, which debuts tomorrow, will be built in its Kansas City Assembly Plant. Ford is investing $100 million and adding roughly 150 new jobs to make the all-electric van. The E-Transit arrives late next year, while the electric F-150 comes in the middle of 2022. But wait, there’s more. Ford is also investing about $150 million to make e-motors at its Van Dyke Transmission Plant and will make an EV that shares a platform with the Mustang Mach-E at the same plant in Mexico. We don’t have any more details on that, but if you do, let us know!.

TESLA CONFIRMS LARGER MODEL 3 BATTERY PACK
A month ago, Tesla launched the refreshed Model 3, which included, among other things, a boost in range. That suggested the car is being equipped with larger battery packs. And now Electrek reports that Tesla confirmed the Model 3 comes with a new 82-kWh battery pack. Previously, 75-kWh was the largest pack you could get. The new batteries, which are produced by Panasonic at the Nevada Gigafactory, are 5% more energy dense. They are still 2170 battery cells and not the 4680 cells Tesla unveiled at its Battery Day in September. A Model 3 Long Range Dual Motors model with all-wheel-drive, now gets an EPA estimated 353 miles of range on a single charge.

SHOES MADE FROM RECYCLED AIRBAG MATERIAL
Cars are one of the most recycled consumer products but there are always ways to recycle them even more. Here’s an interesting use of used airbag material. Reebok has teamed up with South Korean label Kanghyuk to introduce a shoe that’s made from strips of repurposed airbags. Just 50 pairs will be made, they cost 250 pounds or $330 and will only be sold at Dover Street Market London. The shoes have an interesting look and if you’re a fan of the style, Kanghyuk actually makes a whole line of clothing from old airbag material.

WALMART TEAMS WITH CRUISE FOR AV DELIVERIES
Retail giant Walmart seems serious about delivering goods to customers without human drivers. It’s already using drones as well as autonomous vehicles from Nuro and Ford. And now it’s teaming up with GM’s Cruise. Walmart is launching a pilot program in Phoenix, Arizona to deliver goods using Cruise vehicles. Although, it did not say how many will be used in the test. Not only will this be better for the environment because the vehicles are all electric and you don’t have someone wasting gas to go to the store, but it should also be cheaper because a driver is not required to be in the vehicle as well.

MEYERS MANX COMPANY SOLD TO INVESTMENT FIRM
Bruce Meyers, who designed the iconic Meyers Manx dune buggy in 1964, has sold the Meyers Manx company. If you didn’t know, it is still making buggy kits to this day. The company was purchased by an investment firm, called Trousdale Ventures. But no need to worry, it seems Meyers Manx is in good hands. Trousdale Ventures wants to carry on the legacy of the company and will do that with CEO Freeman Thomas, who’s a former designer from the VW Group as well as Daimler Chrysler and Ford.

We invite you to join us tomorrow for Autoline After Hours when our guest will be Brian Goldstine, the vice president of mobility at Bridgestone. How can a tire company play a role in mobility? You might be surprised at the opportunities it sees. Peter Bigelow from Automotive News will also be on the show so join John and Gary for some of the best insights into what’s going on in the automotive industry.

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