AD #1564 – Porsche Shows Cayman GT4, Ford Increases Development Time, Nissan Discontinues Xterra
February 25th, 2015 at 11:32am
Runtime: 5:54
- Digging to the Root of Takata’s Airbag Issue
- Ford Increases Development Time Due to Recalls
- Porsche Shows High-Performance Cayman
- VW Sketches 4-Door Coupe Concept
- Toyota Refreshes the Auris
- Toyota to Test i-Road 3-Wheeler in Japan
- Nissan Puts U.S. Xterra Out to Pasture
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On today’s show… automakers band together to find the root problem with Takata’s airbags, how recalls have changed Ford’s product development process, and Toyota will test out its 3-wheeler on the streets of Tokyo. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily for February 25th, 2015.
DIGGING DOWN TO THE ROOTS
To try and find the root problem of what’s causing Takata’s defective airbags, a group of 10 automakers are hiring a firm to help with the investigation. The Detroit News reports that the yet to be named company has experience in aerospace and with rocket propellants. The automakers are also expected to hire former interim NHTSA administrator, David Kelly to oversee the industry’s effort to find a solution. The 10 automakers have so far recalled 14.6 million vehicles because of the defective bags.
FORD INCREASES DEVELOPMENT TIME
And speaking of recalls, there were something like 64 million vehicles recalled last year, an all time record. Not only is that hugely embarrassing for automakers, it’s hurting their bottom line. That’s why Ford is adding more time to it’s product development process. On Autoline This Week, Joe Hinrichs, the president of Ford Americas said, “In my career that is unprecedented. That’s never happened before.” He won’t say how much time they’re adding because they don’t want the competition to know. But, Ford looked back 5 years at past launches to identify all the reasons that led to a recall, then looked at the time needed to do it right and added that to its process.
Still to come… Porsche shows a new high-performance model, Volkswagen sketches a concept with no name and Toyota refreshes the Auris.
PORSCHE SHOWS HIGH-PERFORMANCE CAYMAN
When I think of Porsche I think of performance. And the automaker just showed off a new model for me to drool over, the Cayman GT4. Power comes from a 385 horsepower 3.8L engine plucked from a 911 Carrera S. Ride height has been lowered as well as the front spoiler and it also gets a new rear wing and a larger braking system. On top of this car Porsche said it will have another high-performance model to show off at the Geneva Motor Show.
VW SKETCHES 4-DOOR COUPE CONCEPT
But not to be outdone, parent company Volkswagen will have a new concept to unveil at the show. While it doesn’t have a name yet, it’s a 4-door coupe powered by an all-wheel-drive powertrain. A gasoline engine paired with two electric motors. To me the lower intakes on the front grille have an Audi feel to them and I have to say I really like the way the slats in the grille flow into the LEDs on the headlamps. This is a far cry from the bland styling I’m used to from Volkswagen.
TOYOTA REFRESHES THE AURIS
And how ‘bout one more vehicle headed to Geneva? Toyota announced it will have a refreshed version of the Auris to show next month. If the hatchback looks familiar to you, that’s because the Scion iM, which just debuted at the LA Auto Show is a rebadged version of Auris. In addition to the hatch model, a wagon variant is also offered. It comes with new gasoline and diesel engines. A hybrid powertrain is still offered, which accounted for half of Auris sales last year. The Auris is built at Toyota’s manufacturing plant in the U.K.
And speaking of Toyota, coming up next, the automaker gives Tokyo residents a chance to drive its i-Road three-wheeler and Nissan puts its off-road SUV to pasture.
TOYOTA TO TEST i-ROAD 3-WHEELER
At the Geneva Show two years ago, Toyota showed off a personal mobility concept called the i-Road. It’s a three-wheeler with motorcycle-like handling, that seats up to two people and is powered by a lithium-ion battery. To see how the public responds to the vehicle, Toyota is partnering with a ride-sharing service in Japan to do a trial run with 5 i-Roads in its fleet. Starting in April and running to the end of September, Park24 customers in Tokyo will be able to rent the vehicle for up to 2.5-hours. Riders will be charged $3.50 for every 15 minutes of use.
NISSAN PUTS U.S. XTERRA OUT TO PASTURE
If you live in the U.S. and have been planning on buying a Nissan Xterra you better do it soon. Edmunds reports the company will no longer offer it in the American market after the 2015 model year. Sales weren’t great last year, hitting 16,500, a drop of 7%, but that’s not the reason it’s being discontinued. The Xterra needs safety and emission upgrades and Nissan doesn’t want to spend money on a product with limited sales.
And be sure to join us for Autoline After Hours this Thursday. Joining John and Gary will be Jamie Allison, the director of Ford Racing. If you’ve got any questions about the company’s racing efforts, make sure you send them our way. Then tune in this Thursday at 6PM at Autoline.tv for some of the best insider discussion in the industry.
But that brings us to the end of today’s show, thanks for watching.
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Comments (20)
February 25th, 2015 at 12:15 pm
Is the Toyota Auris the same as what used to be sold as the Matrix in the US?
February 25th, 2015 at 12:17 pm
Just answered my own question (or rather Wikipedia did!)
“In Europe, Toyota positioned the Auris as the replacement of Corolla hatchback, while the notchback sedan continued with the Corolla nameplate. It was not sold in North America, as the larger Toyota Matrix had taken its place in the lineup prior to its discontinuation in 2014.”
February 25th, 2015 at 12:51 pm
The Matrix was taller than the Auris, probably for the SUV loving American market. It seems like some car sold in the US., maybe the Lexus CT, is based on the Auris.
February 25th, 2015 at 1:31 pm
I’m surprised they sold that many Xterras last year. I thought it had already been discontinued.
February 25th, 2015 at 1:46 pm
I was always under the impression that the exterra and the frontier was on the same platform and shared the underpinnings.The Frontier will be a totally new vehicle,with a diesel option for the USA I think for the 2016my.If they used a better interior,the updated driveline from the Frontier,(diesel/8spd auto)that would be the first diesel off road capable suv in the country,and would very likely sell like hotcakes.Oh well….
February 25th, 2015 at 1:59 pm
The Xterra is a good off-road vehicle, but is “rough around the edges,” and it didn’t sell very well. Apparently “image” is everything is this market. As crude as it is, the Xterra is much more refined than Jeep Wrangler, but Wrangler outsells Xterra about 10 to 1.
February 25th, 2015 at 2:53 pm
#5 Wouldn’t the Jeep Grand Cherokee and Liberty Diesels come before the Diesel Xterra? Or would the Diesel Chevy Blazer in the late 70′s early 80′s be the 1st Diesel off-road capable 4×4?
February 25th, 2015 at 2:58 pm
Is VW teasing a new CC?
February 25th, 2015 at 3:22 pm
Knowing how exhaustive the new part testing process is, you have to wonder if Takata (and perhaps numerous others) didn’t choose to ignore unpleasant data. When job 1 is approaching,when the pressure is really “on”, it must be tempting to argue away as “special causes” failures that really are design issues.
February 25th, 2015 at 3:27 pm
8 That’s what I thought. I think the current CC still looks good, but it has been around quite a while.
February 25th, 2015 at 3:36 pm
Local So fla Toyota dealers sell out 4Runners as fast as they come in off the trucks to So American buyers, seems there is quite a demand for sturdy, reliable “Jeepies” as they’re referred to over there.
February 25th, 2015 at 4:47 pm
11 4Runners are durable and capable machines, but the last time I saw one at a dealer, I was shocked at the price, around 40K. Maybe it was really loaded, but still.
February 25th, 2015 at 5:06 pm
Yep. but they’re going for full price down here, I have a co-worker who bought one and had to drive up 2 counties to find the one she wanted, the local dealers told her that So Americans were buying them for export, lot of oil money in Venezuela.
February 25th, 2015 at 6:28 pm
In 2010 Toyota also announced that they would be adding time to their development process to improve quality. For Ford and all the automakers it becomes finding the right balance between fast to market and developing the vehicle to meet the market with high quality, reliability, and durability.
February 25th, 2015 at 6:59 pm
13 I’ve heard that Venezuela is kind of hurting with oil prices so low.
There are a couple 4Runners at my condo, that have probably been driven off-road less than my Prius. Some people just like vehicles like that for the “image.” I suspect the capability is put to good use with some of those going to South America, though.
February 25th, 2015 at 7:03 pm
The roads there are bad and service is not as attainable as here, so they need something tough, durable and reliable, that is why Toyota is king over here.
February 25th, 2015 at 7:04 pm
14 It seemed that Ford got in too big of rush with their MFT. Time will tell about the turbo GDI engines and aluminum truck bodies.
February 25th, 2015 at 7:10 pm
And now for something completely different:http://www.aeromobil.com/
February 25th, 2015 at 7:19 pm
Beautiful, GA. What a smile
February 25th, 2015 at 7:28 pm
18 Here’s an earlier version.
http://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aerocar