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Runtime: 9:00
0:07 Detroit Auto Show Cancelled Again
0:53 More EV Startups Consider a Reverse Merger
1:40 Lordstown Claims 100K Pre-Orders for Endurance Pickup
2:11 FCA Collaborating on VTOLs
4:02 Ford Stops Manufacturing in Brazil
5:00 North American Car, Truck & Utility of the Year Revealed
6:34 Sony Tests EV Prototype on Public Roads
7:21 Mobileye Eyes to Reduce AV Costs
8:04 Aptiv Announces Next-Gen ADAS Platform
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This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
DETROIT AUTO SHOW CANCELLED AGAIN
The Detroit auto show has been cancelled again this year but a different event will be held in its place. The pandemic caused concerns over holding a large gathering indoors, so organizers developed a new outdoor event called Motor Bella, which will be held at the M1 Concourse in Pontiac, Michigan from September 21st through the 26th. It will feature dynamic vehicle and technology displays including areas for showcasing off-road capabilities. The concourse also features a 1.5-mile track for technology and vehicle demonstrations. Last year’s Detroit show was supposed to happen in June but was cancelled due to the pandemic. The last show was in January of 2019.
MORE EV STARTUPS CONSIDER A REVERSE MERGER
We saw a number of EV startups go public through a special purpose acquisition company or a SPAC merger last year. And now two more startups are in talks to go public through the same process, which is also referred to as a reverse merger. Bloomberg reports Lucid Motors is in discussions with a former Citigroup executive, who has two SPACs looking for a deal. The transaction could be worth as much as $15 billion. Lucid plans to start delivering its Air sedan in the U.S. in the second quarter. And Faraday Future is in talks with Property Solutions Acquisition Corp to go public through a merger. Its value is estimated to be around $3 billion. Both Lucid’s and Faraday’s deals aren’t final yet.
LORDSTOWN CLAIMS 100,000 PRE-ORDERS FOR ENDURANCE PICKUP
In other EV startup news, Lordstown Motors says it now has over 100,000 pre-orders of its Endurance electric pickup. Unlike most startups, Lordstown is targeting fleet customers instead of private buyers. The Endurance starts at $52,500, has a range of over 250 miles and has the option for four in-wheel hub motors. Lordstown plans to kick off production at its plant in Ohio in September.
FCA COLLABORATING ON VTOLs
We’ve seen a number of automakers jump into the passenger drone market and now FCA is the latest. It is partnering with passenger drone company Archer, to give it access to the automaker’s supply chain, advanced composite materials and engineering and design experience. Archer is creating an electric, vertical takeoff and landing aircraft or VTOL for short, which will be capable of travelling 60 miles at 150 MPH. FCA already collaborated with Archer to create the cockpit for its first aircraft, which will be unveiled later this year. This new collaboration will allow Archer to manufacture its aircraft in high-volume at a lower cost.
FORD STOPS MANUFACTURING IN BRAZIL
In a stunning announcement Ford says it will immediately stop manufacturing in Brazil, where it has built cars and trucks for over a century. It’s all part of the company’s cost cutting plan to deliver an 8% EBIT profit margin on a consistent basis. It will keep an assembly plant in Argentina that makes the Ranger pickup and a plant in Uruguay that makes Transit vans. And it will continue to sell vehicles throughout South America, including the Mach E and Bronco Sport, which are made in Mexico. Ford lost money in South America for years despite repeated cost cutting efforts and it recently pulled out of a joint venture with Mahindra in India. But it affirmed that this latest announcement does not signal it will pull out of Europe where its restructuring efforts are much further along. Ford will take a $4.1 billion write-down charge for closing three assembly plants in Brazil.
CAR, TRUCK & UTILITY OF THE YEAR WINNERS ANNOUNCED
The votes have been tabulated and the results are in for the North American Car, Truck and Utility of the Year. There are a total of 500 points up for grabs in each category and let’s start with the most competitive one; Car of the Year. And the winner is… the Hyundai Elantra. It only bettered the Genesis G80 by a mere 3 points. On the other hand, the top choices for Truck and Utility dominated the competition in their categories. The Ford Mustang Mach-E easily outscored the Genesis GV80 and Land Rover Defender, while the new F-150 absolutely crushed the Ram TRX and Jeep Gladiator Mojave. So, what do you think? Do the winners deserve their titles?
| 2021 North American Car of the Year | |
|---|---|
| Hyundai Elantra | 176 |
| Genesis G80 | 173 |
| Nissan Sentra | 151 |
| 2021 North American Utility of the Year | |
|---|---|
| Ford Mustang Mach-E | 265 |
| Genesis GV80 | 136 |
| Land Rover Defender | 99 |
| 2021 North American Truck of the Year | |
|---|---|
| Ford F-150 | 340 |
| RAM TRX | 130 |
| Jeep Gladiator Mojave | 30 |
Magna is showcasing its latest technology at CES and we are covering it. Check out our interviews in the Autoline On The Road section of our website, and on our YouTube channel to learn the latest about its developments in electric vehicles, and with advanced driver assistance systems.
And then on Thursday, we have Sandy Munro back on Autoline After Hours. He has a lot to say about what’s going on in the industry and if you have a question you’d like to ask Sandy, send us an email or reach us through Twitter and Facebook.
SONY TESTS EV PROTOTYPE ON PUBLIC ROADS
It was a bit of a shock when Sony unveiled its all-electric Vision S prototype at last year’s CES. At the time it said the vehicle was a way to showcase its technology to the auto industry. It followed that up in July with a promise to test it on public roads and now it’s doing that. Some of that technology is on display in this video Sony put out, including big infotainment screens, autonomous driving, gesture control and digital side-view mirrors. But could Sony ever make its own car? Who knows. But we will say the Vision S looks more put together than other vehicles we’ve seen that are only meant to showcase technology and you almost never see them go through dynamic testing on a track.
MOBILEYE EYES TO REDUCE AV COSTS
Speaking of CES, Mobileye is showing off new technology that it says will bring down the cost of self-driving systems significantly. It will use cameras as the primary sensor, but also radar and lidar to offer a full self-driving sensor suite. Mobileye says its new software-defined imaging radar will allow for a big leap in performance while it’s also showing how it can put active and passive laser elements on a silicon chip. By using the laser technology, Mobileye gets additional data coming back to the vehicle, like the speed of an object and how far away it is. The company says its lidar system-on-chip will start being used in 2025.
APTIV ANNOUNCES NEXT-GEN ADAS PLATFORM
In other AV news, Aptiv announced its next-gen ADAS platform. Like Mobileye, Aptiv uses a combination of cameras, radar and lidar and will be able to provide everything from entry-level safety to advanced highway pilot and parking assist. It’s new system includes its first 4D imaging radar, which it says provides twice the detection range, as well as over-the-air update capabilities and driver monitoring. No word yet as to when we might see Aptiv’s new system.
But that brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for watching and we hope to see you right back here again tomorrow.
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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.
