AD #3399 – Tesla Struggles with New Battery; Cummins Finds Hydrogen-Diesel Customers; Solar Powered Sion Debuts in ’23

This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.

TESLA STRUGGLING WITH NEW BATTERY
Tesla’s next-gen battery could cut battery costs in half and shave over $5,000 from the cost of a Model Y. That’s according to a report from Reuters. But it also says Tesla is having problems trying to scale up production of the 4680 battery due to its new dry-coating manufacturing process. That process uses far less energy and floor space to manufacture, but production will probably be delayed until sometime next year. Even so, Tesla has already cut the cost of its batteries by $2,000 to $3,000 thanks to using 4680 cells. With its old 2170 batteries, Tesla needed 17,600 weld points to connect them together. With the bigger 4680 it needs fewer cells and only uses 1,660 weld points. And by using cell-to-vehicle packaging, Reuters reports that Tesla cut the weight of its battery pack by 55 pounds which saves over $500 a pack.

TOP 5 EV STARTUPS IN CHINA
Quick, can you name the top EV startup in China? Hozon Motor just took the top spot in sales for the first 8 months of the year, sailing past XPeng. Then comes Leapmotor, Li Auto and NIO. China literally has several hundred EV startups and most of them are unlikely to survive. But the 5 startups listed here are probably going to emerge as significant players in the EV industry.

RUSSIAN CAR SALES STILL PLUNGING
News reports out of Russia say everything is normal despite a raging war in Ukraine. But car sales tell a different story. Automakers in Russia had a dismal month in August. They only sold 41,700 vehicles, down 62% compared to a year ago. That’s the lowest monthly drop since sanctions were imposed on Russia. But as anyone in the auto industry knows, such a low volume of sales is nothing but a disaster.

SOLAR POWERED CAR DEBUTS LATE ‘23
Have you heard about this solar powered electric car, the Sono Sion? The 4-door MPV has photovoltaic cells embedded into the roof, the hood, the doors and the liftgate. Sono claims you can get 112 kilometers of range a day just from sunshine. That’s about 70 miles. Or you can plug it in and get 305 kilometers or about 190 miles. Autoforecast Solutions reports that it will be built at the old Saab plant in Trollhattan, Sweden starting in November of 2023. The Sion is priced at 30,000 euros and Sono already has 20,000 pre-orders.

CUMMINS FINDS HYDROGEN-DIESEL CUSTOMERS
Cummins, the company known for its diesel engines, is starting to see more interest in another area… hydrogen. Specifically, internal combustion engines that run on hydrogen. Transport Enterprise Leasing, a company that leases commercial trucks and trailer equipment, will start incorporating Cummins’ hydrogen ICEs, which come in 6.7L and 15L displacements, into its heavy-duty fleet. Cummins also signed a deal with a tractor manufacturer to install the same engine into its equipment. And it’s all got to do with reducing pollution. A hydrogen ICE reduces carbon emissions by 99% compared to a diesel engine when it’s run on green hydrogen fuel.

MERCEDES UPDATES THE GLC
Mercedes is launching the new version of the GLC. Styling is very similar but it will now come exclusively with electrified powertrains. Available with gas or diesel engines, every GLC will have either a 48-volt mild-hybrid or plug-in hybrid setup. All PHEVs will have at least 100 kilometers or 62 miles of range thanks to a 31.2 kWh battery pack and the most powerful version will have a combined 280 kW or 381 horsepower. New front and rear suspension setups not only improve on-road but also off-road handling, which is enhanced even further with optional transparent bonnet tech that makes the hood look invisible while off-roading. The new GLC is on sale now in Europe with a starting price of just over 57,500 euros in Germany.

WULING MINI EV CABRIO IS SIZZLING HOT
The Wuling Hongguang MINI EV is the best-selling electric car in China. And now it looks like the open-top version could be a hit too. The company received more than 100,000 pre-orders for the MINI EV Cabrio in just three days. The convertible only has two seats compared to four in the hard top because it needs the extra space to fold the roof into. And like the hard top, the Cabrio features a 26.5kWh battery but its range is only 280 kilometers or 174 miles, 20 km less than the original.

BUICK DEALERS OFFERED EV BUYOUT
First Cadillac dealers were offered a buyout. Now it’s Buick’s turn. General Motors is offering buyouts to its 2,000 Buick dealers in the U.S. that don’t want to go all-electric by 2030. Cadillac now has 40% fewer dealers than it did in 2018 because they did not want to make the $200,000 to $500,000 investment to buy new EV related equipment and train staff on EVs. Buick plans to introduce its first electric model in 2024.

KLAUS BUSSE DISHES ON FOLGORE EV
One of our favorite designers is dishing on his latest creation. Klaus Busse, head of design, and Maria Conti, head of communications, for Maserati take one of the first members of the public for a ride in the all-new, all-electric GranTurismo Folgore. Here’s some of the more interesting details they reveal.

(Clips from Maserati GranTurismo Folgore video can only be viewed in the video version of today’s show.)

Look for the GranTurismo Folgore to make its global debut sometime in 2023.

But that brings us to the end of today’s show. We hope to see you again tomorrow.