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Runtime: 11:41
0:00 Italy Could Confiscate Brands from Stellantis
1:08 Tesla Robotaxi Delayed Two Months
1:53 More VW Software Delays
2:45 Rivian Can’t Get IRA Money Thanks to UAW
3:52 Goodwood’s Best Eye Candy
5:42 Jaguar Drops Everything But F-Pace
6:17 Nissan Axes All U.S. Sedans Except Sentra
7:02 Gazoo Tweaks The 86
7:56 New EPA Rules Favor OEMs With PHEVs, Hybrids
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This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
ITALY COULD CONFISCATE BRANDS FROM STELLANTIS
In what we think is a stunning development, the Italian government is threatening to take a couple of car brand names from Stellantis and give them to Chinese car companies if they build cars in Italy. The brands the government wants to take, Autobianchi and Innocenti, have not been in use since the 1990s. But they’re still remembered fondly, and that could help Chinese automakers to get instant name recognition. An Italian law that came into effect last December allows the government to take over brands that have not been used for 5 years. The government pressured Stellantis to increase production in Italy to 1 million units a year, which the company said it would do, but not without outside help. And last year it fell well short of that million, making 752,000 cars in Italy. So, it sure looks like the government is making this threat to put more pressure on Stellantis.
TESLA ROBOTAXI DELAYED TWO MONTHS
Tesla is delaying its robotaxi event by two months. Several months ago, Elon Musk said Tesla would unveil the model on August 8th but Bloomberg reports that the event has been delayed until October so Tesla can build more prototypes. According to people familiar with the decision, the design team working on the project was told to change certain elements of the vehicle. Optimism over the event helped fuel an 11-day surge of Tesla’s stock which added $257 billion to its market cap. But Tesla’s stock fell 8.4% yesterday due to the delay, which is its largest drop since January.
MORE VW SOFTWARE DELAYS
It looks like VW’s Cariad unit still can’t get its future software system figured out. According to Germany’s Manager Magazin, the Volkswagen board made the decision last week to delay a couple of vehicles that are supposed to be built on its new SSP platform. It says there’s several reasons for the delay, but it still includes software issues. The EV version of the Golf has been pushed back 15 months and won’t launch until 2029 and a large SUV called the T-Sport was pushed back three years to 2031. SSP was supposed to replace all of its other platforms, but it looks like VW might have to stick with what it’s got for a while longer. And it also likely helps explain why it’s investing up to $5 billion in Rivian to get access to its software tech.
RIVIAN CAN’T GET IRA MONEY THANKS TO UAW
But Rivian also needed to make that deal. It not only helps ensure the startup has the cash to launch its R2 models as well as resume construction of its plant in Georgia. But The automaker is having a hard time securing funding provided by the Inflation Reduction Act because of its relationship with the UAW. Bloomberg reports that U.S. Department of Energy officials told Rivian it would need to take a friendlier position with the union if it expects to receive federal funds. As you can probably guess, Rivian’s workforce is currently not unionized. But Bloomberg says it’s not exactly clear what the DOE means by “friendlier.” It could include some public statement or action that would indicate Rivian is open to a union.
GOODWOOD’S BEST EYE CANDY
We’re really enjoying the diversity at this year’s Goodwood festival, which kicked off yesterday in England. Several Chinese companies, including BYD’s ultra-luxury brand YangWang are there. Gasgoo reports attendees were treated to a dance show from the U9 thanks to its DiSus technology, which is an active suspension system that allows it to do wild stuff like even jump slightly off the ground. And while many of the vehicles that compete in the Festival of Speed are supercars like the U9, Ford took the opportunity to reveal the Raptor T1+, a totally tricked out Dakar racer that’s powered by a modified 5.0L Coyote V8. It’s not going to be sitting around for long. Its first official race is in less than a month at a baja event in Hungary. But our personal favorite comes from Audi. It built the recreation of a car from the 1930’s whose development never got much past a piece of paper. The Auto Union Type 52 was to be marketed as the Schnellsportwagen and was meant to be like a street legal version of the famous Auto Union Silver Arrow grand prix cars that could still be used for endurance races like Le Mans or the Mille Miglia. The new version is over 5 meters or more than 17 and a half feet long, weighs 1,450 kilograms or about 3,200 pounds and like the original was supposed to have, it features a supercharged 16-cylinder engine. But this one has 6.0L of displacement and produces about 520 horsepower. It’s a bit of a shame it took over 90 years to build, but I’m happy someone took the time to do it.
JAGUAR DROPS EVERYTHING BUT F-PACE
Jaguar is blowing up its lineup. Automotive News reports it’s cutting five models; the XE and XF sedans, the F-Type, and the E-Pace and I-Pace. Only the F-Pace crossover will remain. Jaguar is transitioning to an all-electric brand and plans to introduce three EVs in the next three years, the first of which is supposed to be introduced next year. Jaguar CEO Adrian Mardell told investors that it’s cutting the models because none of them made money, which will help boost its margins.
NISSAN AXES ALL U.S. SEDANS EXCEPT SENTRA
But Jaguar isn’t the only automaker chopping vehicles from its lineup. Nissan is dropping most of its sedans in the U.S. Production of the Maxima ended last year. Production of the Versa is scheduled to end in April of 2025 and there’s no plan for a next-gen version. Production of the Altima will end in 2026 and Nissan is undecided if it will have a next-gen version. That means the Sentra will be the only sedan in Nissan’s U.S. lineup until it introduces an electric sedan early next decade. However, it’s not surprising Nissan is hanging on to the Sentra. It was the second best-selling vehicle in its lineup in the first half of the year with nearly 90,000 sold.
GAZOO TWEAKS THE 86
Toyota’s GR86 has a lot of street cred amongst enthusiasts, and Gazoo Racing just sweetened the package. It used feedback from professional race drivers to make the car better planted, have better steering response and better linearity. Specifically, it changed the shock absorber damping characteristics, gave the electric power steering crisper response, modified throttle response for manual transmissions, allowed higher revs during downshifts with automatic transmissions and engine torque was changed for better blipping. But now for the bad news. These upgrades are only available in Japan for now. Gazoo is also coming out with a limited edition 86 with green and bronze accents that look sensational. Just 200 will be built and there’s a lottery in Japan to see who gets them.
NEW EPA RULES FAVOR OEMs WITH PHEVs, HYBRIDS
On Autoline After Hours yesterday, Rick Wainschel from a company called Cloud Theory, pointed out that the EPA rule change a couple of months ago on how much market share electric vehicles had to reach, now really benefits automakers who have a line-up of PHEVs and hybrids and hurts those who do not.
“We found that with the regulatory change in March, now, instead of a 67% target of EV production in 2032 that was relaxed to 35%, and PHEVs were a bigger portion of where the industry needed to go. Now, all of a sudden, the competitive dynamic shifted greatly, so all the traditional OEMs that have very well developed hybrid line-ups–Toyota, Hyundai, Ford, Honda, Stellantis–they were in a better position because they have a secondary path to meet these regulatory requirements. And now all of a sudden, Tesla and Rivian have one path to follow.”
Wainschel had a lot of good intel to share with us and you can catch that entire show on our website or YouTube channel.
But that brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for making Autoline a part of your day and I hope that you have a great weekend.
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Kit Gerhart says
That’s sad that Tata are, essentially, shutting down Jaguar. There is so much history, with the E-Type, and a number of fantastic looking sedans over the years. Some of the earlier sedans had almost Rolls-Royce-like interiors.
To me, they should have left the SUV/CUV part to Land Rover, and gotten serious about making Jaguar cars to compete with Benz and BMW, with some old school charm in the cabin, as with the older XJ.
DanaPointJohn says
Nissan? Who?
Scott Donat says
If Hybrids and Phevs are going to be the norm, will the States still charge extra for registering them? Ohio, for instance, charges $100 above the standard fee for registration of Hybrids, $150 for PHEVS and $200 for EVs every year.
Lambo2015 says
As the rules and regulations change each year the management at Toyota is starting to look like the smartest leaders in the room. It wasn’t much more than a year ago critics were saying Toyota was falling way behind by not offering much in EV’s. Well, here we are, and the market is showing that EV’s still may be the big picture, but we are much further away than expected. Toyotas hybrid line-up is going to position them just fine and without all the Billions wasted on partnering up and buying other EV or battery manufacturers.
On the other hand, manufacturers like Tesla and Rivian will live by the sword and die by the sword. They offer nothing but EVs and if the market shifts enough to favor hybrids and PHEVs, they could find themselves in a tight spot. If Tesla was to consider a hybrid it would be interesting to see how well it would be accepted. Would the Tesla fan-boys feel like Tesla turned on its core value of going electric? Not sure Tesla could develop an engine at this point it would better to just purchase and or partner with another manufacturer.
Kit Gerhart says
I’ll be very surprised if Tesla or Rivian ever do hybrids. If they did, I suppose they would build their own engines, because they have a very strong NIH mentality. The engines would probably be far from the best, unless they just copied as existing engine.
Most of what I hear about Slingshot trikes is that they should have found another engine to buy after they ran out of GM 2.4s, rather than making their own engine.
Drew says
Kit, you nailed it. Land Rover = SUV/CUVs. Jaguar = gorgeous luxury cars and sporty cars.
wmb says
Lambo2015/Kit,
IMHO, it wouldn’t be the right move for either Rivian or Tesla to build a hybrid. For one they own their section of the market they operate in. They would have to retro fit their clean sheet BEV platform(s), for duty as an ICE vehicle. While doable, as we have seen on YouTube, but how would such a change impact their current certification for crashworthiness? Then they have the hurdle of emissions from the vehicle(s), both keeping it out of the vehicle and what comes out of the tailpipe. We haven’t even mentioned the transmission? Regular or CVT? How many gears speeds? And it all has to come together in a package that competes with other OEMs that many have 100 years of engine and transmission engineering experience!
If the original Model S was an ICE vehicle at the price they were asking for it, it would have flopped faster then a soccer player. That is when you compare the interior materials, assembly/fit and finish/perceived quality and other creature comforts, to other ICE vehicles. What made it a success was the the BEV power train, demonstrated that EVs were possible, at arguably a reasonable price, and it’s power trains greatness allowed buyers to look past its other faults. There is no way an ICE Model 3 and Y, hybrid or regular ICE, would ever sell better then Corolla or Camry!
It would be better, if the market were to shift, that they, like other OEMs, sold fewer models for more money. That way they would at least, perhaps, break even. What they really need is to accelerate their lower cost models, which is where they are most vulnerable. A $25-to-$35K EV before the tax credit, with at least 300+ miles of range, that would seat four as a sedan or five as an crossover (compact vehicle class), would, IMHO, be the sweet spot. As great as the R1 series and the Model S, 3, X and Y are, legacy OEMs would run circles around ICE versions of them! I’m not saying they would be amazing vehicles, but the legacy of the world would have them in their arena and could beat them on price, options, availability, after sell experiences and the like.
Buyers put up with and like the, I think, the boutique-like relationship they have with EVs. I don’t think many would put up with driving to another state to make a purchase or to get service, when there is a Volvo, Mercedes, BMW, Audi, Lexus, etc., dealer a few miles away that could get it done without some much hassle. Again, Rivian and Tesla own their markets and should stick to and improve upon what they know best, get less expensive models out quicker, focus on the higher price versions of that model and ride out the ups and downs of the market. Where they are, is where the market will eventually be! For Rivian at least, it’s not like they have hundreds of other EV makers in their home market that they have to compete with, and the legacy automakers are pivoting, which is leaving the market for what Rivian sales all to them self! If they stay the course, whether the storm and use the money from VW wisely, they may come out the other side with better footing then most OEMs make the switch to BEVs!
Kevin A says
Sean, Why are OEMs so reluctant to trade models with each other? For a short term solution, wouldn’t that be an easy way out? Nissan could sell lower cost cars produced by Dacia, which is an almost related company. Rivian could produce electric pickups to be sold Hondas and receive Honda Hybrids (maybe a pickup version of the CRV) in return. Both companies could benefit in the short run and it would make the path to the long run easier for both as well. Jaguar especially could benefit from being able to offer more models at low cost.
On the Italian ‘brand stealing’ story, why wouldn’t Stellantis just use the names on special edition models to keep them in use. It doesn’t sound like much of a threat. (Note: Exxon kept one station open in Canada for years just to protect their right to own the name in Canada)
Kit Gerhart says
As far as hybrid transmissions, there is little indication that anything other than an “ecvt” makes sense, at least for hybrids intended for efficiency, not performance. Toyota hybrids with “nothing but gears” and no clutches or gear change match or beat Hyundai hybrids with 6 speed DCTs in acceleration and mpg. The Hyundai hybrids are the ultimate example of complexity for complexity’s sake.
wmb says
While I agree that Jaguar should still offer sedans and sports cars, but I think there is also a space for stylish wagons, crossovers and SUVs, that would not compete directly with any of the models at Land Rover. When you look at the differences between the F-Pace and the Valor, in many respects, they share very little, if any resemblance, to each other, though they both use the same platform. The two each reflect the design motif of the brands the represent, but they potentially could have some major differences under the sheet metal. I don’t know if this is the case with models that are on sell today, but the F-Pace doesn’t need to meet the same off road dynamics as the Valor. Meaning, that the go anywhere hardware that adds weight and complexity to Land Rovers, need not be used on the Jaguar. Which translates, one would think, with the Jaguar being both lighter, faster and more agile than its Land Rover counterpart, even if they were to continue to share the same vehicle architectures.
As Jaguar moves into an all EV future, they have another chances to reinvent themselves into a truly competitive luxury brand, if they have used this long gestation to develop beautiful vehicles, with efficiency that is at the head of the class! While BMW and Mercedes have boned up their EV game, its each of their newest platforms that they will introduce in the next several years, where they are suggesting to be on much more equal footing with Tesla and Lucid. Jaguar could beat them to that punch, IF they have done they’re homework, fully developed their product and not rushed it to market, like it seemed that they did with the I-Pace. Time will tell and in about a year or so we will see!
wmb says
That said, what I don’t agree with is Jaguar’s decision to go upmarket, the XJ space and higher. While they have enjoyed success there in the past, with the XJ, XJL, Portfolio and Daimler models, so I understand. Then there being less competition there, with only the 7 Series, A8, S-Class, Maybach and lower rungs of the Flying Spur to contend with, while selling in lower volumes, for more money. Yet, giving up on the compact and midsize space just seems like a loss and a missed opportunity, when they were so close!
Kit Gerhart says
A modern XJ, if properly done, with an attractive exterior and nice, probably “retro” interior, might sell in numbers similar to 7-series at similar prices. Cars like that do better in other markets than in the truck-centric US.
Range Rover Valor and F-Pace sell in similar, ~5-6K/year in the US in recent years. The similar size, less expensive, more reliable competition from BMW sells 10 times that.
MERKUR DRIVER says
I guess I missed the part in the IRA where you had to pay fealty to the UAW to get IRA funds. If Rivian or others meet the exact letter of the law, they should get the funds that they seek. Now that the chevron defense is struck down, Rivian needs to sue and take this administration to task. If it does not explicitly state that everyone pays fealty to the UAW in the law, then it is not a part of the approval process. No such language could exist or else the law would be struck down in the courts immediately. This is some administrator making rules as they go along to favor a particular group of people. If it can’t pass muster to make it into a law, it can’t be a “rule” created by a bureaucrat either.
Lambo2015 says
wmb- I dont think Tesla or Rivian would modify their clean sheet approach. However a clean sheet Hybrid mid size or compact Hybrid could be designed into their line up and provide sales to bridge the gap between now and full EV adoption. I agree they will likely stay the course and not venture from their target. I just think the HEV and PHEV’s are going to find a much bigger and longer demand in the US than anticipated. They (Tesla and Rivian) will likely garner enough sales worldwide to avoid catering to the US demand for hybrids.
Just thought it would be interesting to see Tesla take their news eyes approach and ability to do things differently into the ICE market and what they could come up with in the Hybrid arena. If nothing else they could have the first 48V vehicle with a gas engine in it.