AD #1696 – EU on the Mend, Hurdles for Autonomous Cars, Luxurious MRAPs
September 8th, 2015 at 11:43am
Runtime: 7:10
- EU Out of Intensive Care
- Mahindra’s Shopping Cart
- Land Rover & Audi Introduce Armored Vehicles
- Toyota Tacoma up Strong in 2015
- Obstacles for Self-Driving Cars
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On today’s show…the European auto industry is starting to recover, GM’s new mid-size pick-ups fail to put a dent in the Toyota Tacoma, and who knew luxury armored vehicles are in such big demand? All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily for September 8th, 2015.
EU OUT OF INTENSIVE CARE
It’s been a long time coming, but the European auto industry is starting to stage a comeback. Last month sales in western Europe grew a strong 10%, with Spain and Italy growing even stronger than that. Those markets were especially hard hit since the start of the Great Recession. Even so, the European market has a long way to achieve a full recovery. Last year sales hit 18.3 million including medium and heavy duty trucks, and busses. This year they could top 19 million. But that’s still more than 3 million fewer vehicles than were sold in 2007, when total sales topped 22.4 million vehicles.
MAHINDRA’S SHOPPING CART
Mahindra is not a well known name in the American market. The Indian manufacturer is best known for its farm tractors. But you’re going to want to keep an eye on this company. Over the past few years the company started to expand its global reach. In 2011 it bought South Korean SUV maker Ssangyong. Last year it acquired a controlling stake in the scooter unit of Peugeot. And now Mahindra is closing in on a deal to purchase Italian car designer Pininfarina. The two companies started talks back in March but negotiations stalled because Pininfarina’s creditor banks didn’t accept the deal. Now a deal could be completed in the next few days.
We’ll be back to talk about armor plating right after this.
LUXURIOUS MRAPS
When I think of armored vehicles, my mind goes to some specialty shop upfitting Cadillacs and Suburbans, but for the first time Land Rover is producing them in-house. Engineered by its Special Vehicle Operations division, the automaker is turning out an armored vehicle based on the Range Rover Autobiography, called the Sentinel. At its core is a 6-piece armored passenger cell with thick multi-laminated glass. The end result is a vehicle that can withstand shots from armor-piercing bullets, TNT blasts and grenade explosions from under the floor or above the roof. If you’re in the need of some protection, get ready to shell out just under $450,000 for the Sentinel.
LUXURIOUS MRAPS
And speaking of armored vehicles, Audi has once again made its security sedan, the A8 L Security even more robust. It integrates more resistant materials that not only offer more protection but also lowers the overall weight of the vehicle. The Security is now certified to the requirements of resistance class VR 9, which is currently the most stringent requirements for civilian high-security sedans. It looks like there maybe a growing need for armored vehicles and the people that need them seem to want to drive around in style.
TACO RINGS THE BELL
General Motors surprised the rest of the industry when it came out with smaller pickup trucks, the Chevrolet Colorado and GMC Canyon. And those trucks are selling well. They’re on track to hit 114,000 units this year in the American market. And they have not cannibalized sales of their big brothers, the Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra. Those big trucks are gaining sales and market share against all their competitors. But neither have the Colorado and Canyon put a dent in the sales of their main competitor, the Toyota Tacoma. It’s sales are up 18.8% this year. Even though there’s a new Tacoma coming out, it’s not included in these numbers. So that means Toyota is getting a double digit sales increase out of a 10-year old truck which has the highest resale of any vehicle in the American market. But Nissan is feelling the heat in the segment. Sales of the Frontier are down 12% so far this year.
TAKE IT ALL OFF
And speaking of Toyota, if you’d like to see the all-new Prius get unveiled later today, just follow the link in today’s transcript. The new hybrid will be shown off in Las Vegas starting at 9 PM Pacific Time.
Coming up next, a look at the biggest hurdles that could trip up fully autonomous cars..
OBSTACLES FOR SELF-DRIVING CARS
On last week’s Autoline After Hours we were joined by Peter Sweatman, the director of the University of Michigan’s autonomous test site called MCity. And during the discussion he shared what the biggest obstacles self-driving cars face.
(The AAH preview is only available in the video version of today’s show.)
You can watch that entire show right now on our website or our YouTube channel.
But that wraps up today’s show, thanks for watching and please join us again tomorrow.
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Comments (33)
September 8th, 2015 at 12:02 pm
The quote from Peter Sweatman about how driverless cars won’t ‘cheat’ like humans do is reassuring. However, there are times when you will ‘want’ it to cheat.
I can see it now. Every autonomous car coming to a full and complete, dead stop at each and every single stop sign, irrespective of the fact that there may not be a single vehicle (or pedestrian for that matter) coming from any direction within a two block radius. No thanks. That kind of anally-retentive driving would infuriate me to no end.
September 8th, 2015 at 12:11 pm
#1
IMO: Cars will be required to have Vehicle to Vehicle communication in the not to distant future.
The intent of each vehicle will be known by those vehicles approaching an intersection. Established and well known algorithms will then weave traffic, removing the need to actually stop.
Of course, they’ll need to stop for pedestrians etc.
September 8th, 2015 at 12:13 pm
How do they protect the cooling systems on these armored cars ? Take out the rad and the car is not going to far without coolant
September 8th, 2015 at 12:17 pm
1. Last week NYT had a piece on how Google’s cars were having to deal with how humans don’t follow the rules. For example, hey had to train their cars not to get stuck at four-way-stops by drivers inching along and negotiating. Some weeks ago, when Google argued poor accident statistics weren’t able to explain why their cars kept getting whacked I offered that the robots were not properly accommodating the way real humans drive. Maybe Google should try driving around Boston rather than rectilinear nerd center around their Mountain View HQ; if they dare. (Just sayin’ Boston, but you guys are scary. Not much better DC, don’t you eyeball me)
September 8th, 2015 at 12:19 pm
4 Hey, how about that proof reading up there? Sorry
September 8th, 2015 at 12:26 pm
#3 Clem
You’re correct long-term (about shooting out the radiator) but the first concern is to survive the initial attack and then get to a safer place. Given that the engine can run for a while till it ceases to function, the radiator is a secondary concern.
September 8th, 2015 at 12:41 pm
So, is the question “How do we develop autonomous vehicles that can cope with semi-attentive scofflaw human drivers?” or is it “Will human drivers adapt to attentive, law-abiding autonomous vehicles?”
I think the question is the latter and an a strawman argument. If you can deal with the semi-attentive loons out there now, you can can adjust to cars that are driven in a careful, lawful, and utterly consistent fashion. It will seem strange at first, but I’m sure we can adapt.
September 8th, 2015 at 1:09 pm
I’ll have to wait until midnight, my time, if I want to see the reveal of the new Prius. How inconsiderate of them.
September 8th, 2015 at 1:17 pm
9pm EST is 10am in Tokyo.
Coincidence? I think not, my friend!
September 8th, 2015 at 1:31 pm
Toyota is where GM was many years ago selling vehicles that mediocre, but still selling like hotcakes.
September 8th, 2015 at 1:45 pm
10.
Are you referring to mediocre design? Because in terms of reliability and overall build quality, GM has never been where Toyota is.
Well, Buick has come close in recent years, but still…
September 8th, 2015 at 2:52 pm
I dont think people who want armored vehicles prefer to ride in style as much as if your shelling out $400K for an armored vehicle it should be a really nice vehicle to start with that includes armor plating.
Wouldnt see much of a market for $400k Prius’s.
September 8th, 2015 at 3:05 pm
Google is already programming its cars to avoid driving in the blind spots of other cars, to nose out into an intersection at a four-way stop, and to drift towards where it wants to change change lanes rather than make an abrupt move.
September 8th, 2015 at 3:16 pm
An armored Prius would cost only $300K
Actually, if I were a Russian mafia boss, or whoever it is that needs an armored vehicle, I want it to be as inconspicuous as it could be, like a Camry in the U.S.
September 8th, 2015 at 3:26 pm
Peter, how will autonomous vehicles detect the huge potholes that blanket S.E. Michigan? You know . . . the ones that blow out your tires or re-direct you into oncoming traffic our off the road? I would rather see better driver training and vehicle warning systems when driver distraction is detected.
September 8th, 2015 at 3:34 pm
MJB, you can say what you like, but all the reviews I’ve read about the Tacoma versus the Colorado, rates the Colorado as a far better vehicle.
http://www.autotrader.com/car-reviews/2015-chevrolet-colorado-vs-2015-toyota-tacoma-which-is-better-232681
Many like yourself can not seem to accept facts when it comes to GM vehicles. The same happened when the Cruze first came out. The reviews raved about the Cruze, now outdated but not for long, compared to the Corolla.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gYKsJQ5oGis
Hey, we Americans can build first class vehicles. I know we slept for decades, but now we are wide awake.
Now, it’s time for you to wake-up!
September 8th, 2015 at 3:35 pm
13 in DC people don’t come close to stopping at the sign. They just kinda know who’s going to fold first. Usually it was me. They’d see me stopping and just blow through the intersection. My sister there thinks it’s normal: think ‘holy terror’ when in she’s in NY.
Maybe when Google figures out People they’ll go back and look at the collisions they had in early days and see that it was their car’s behavior that led to some incidents. Like giving visual cues of intentions rather just following the legal rules.
September 8th, 2015 at 4:01 pm
3,6
If the attackers are smart, they’ll have one guy blow out the tires, while the other torpedoes the engine bay. Then after it’s been disabled, they can go about compromising that VR-9 envelope.
Either way, armor protection is best when your assailants don’t know you have it. That way, they can’t prepare a way to get around it.
September 8th, 2015 at 5:27 pm
11
Last year both Buick and Cadillac rated higher than Toyota…
http://www.jdpower.com/press-releases/2014-vehicle-dependability-study
September 8th, 2015 at 5:40 pm
17 Interesting. The most shocking thing, is that MINI received an award for, presumably, the base Cooper. I guess mine isn’t the only one that has been reliable.
September 8th, 2015 at 5:41 pm
In Miami, a YIELD traffic sign must mean “RAM THRU” to foreigners, cause that is exactly what they do when they come across one.
September 8th, 2015 at 5:56 pm
So long story short, two weeks ago I’m in the middle lane and notice the car to my left is tailgating the car in front of him. Hmmmm, maybe he wants to get by that guy methinks, so I lifted the throttle to make a space for this guy, who slips in front of me and FLIPS ME THE BIRD. I still haven’t figured out what all happened there.*
Maybe Google can analyze that scenario and write an algorithm. (hint; never be courteous to aggressive people)
*yes there was a wee bit of road rage next, but that’s all cleared up. Interesting how Flipper wasn’t keen on tailgating me a moment later. That’s right, stay back there.
September 8th, 2015 at 6:07 pm
Did Flipper want you to get in the left lane, so he/she/it could pass on the right?
September 8th, 2015 at 6:12 pm
Nope. I worked through traffic and wound up in front of him in the left lane. Then I might have lifted the throttle a bit again. He did keep back, perhaps not wishing to pass any longer. Intimidation is dangerous fun.
September 8th, 2015 at 6:16 pm
But Google et al have an issue because people drive differently in different regions. For example, one time I deservedly got cursed out, “A$$#@%e”, was in Wilkes-Barre PA, passing a line of cars that got out of the right lane because there was a sign saying, ‘Lane Closed Ahead.’ I didn’t know the rule in this part of PA was clear the lane a quarter mile before it ends. My bad.
So let’s see the computers figure out regional wierdities.
September 8th, 2015 at 6:26 pm
The reason I could hear what they were calling me is that I had the top down in the Miata. Yep, I really got some townies hot that morning.
September 8th, 2015 at 6:44 pm
Oops
September 8th, 2015 at 8:15 pm
I believe where Colo./Canyon sales are coming from are people who owned Ford Rangers, and S-10′s in addition to Frontiers.
September 8th, 2015 at 9:27 pm
I would say at least 95% of all the tacos I see on the road,old and new,are driven by kids,under 30.
September 8th, 2015 at 10:06 pm
The Rangers I see are mostly driven by 60+ year old handymen, who use then as, you know, pickup trucks. Most of the people I see in Colorado/Canyons should probably be driving a VW Golf. People buy vehicles not for need, but for “image.” I suspect all of this varies by region.
September 9th, 2015 at 8:18 am
20. 22.
Back when I still had my first car (’86 Renault Alliance) I discovered very quickly that the tranny takes FOREVER to engage the reverse gear. So, even on the highway at 75mph, I would routinely deal with tailgaters by throwing the car in and out of reverse to get the reverse lights to flash. Just the very threat of what might have happened next was enough to cleared my bumper every single time.
In fact, I’ve been meaning to get my LS wired so that I can just press a button to achieve the same effect. Still haven’t gotten around to it…
September 9th, 2015 at 10:13 am
I think the export rules may have changed in 2014, but the high resell price for Tacoma a few years ago was partially driven by high demand for migrant workers buying them in the US, driving them back to Mexico, and reselling them south of the border. The trucks had to be 8 years old to circumvent having to paying an import tariff. My brother-in-law had two older Tacomas and sold both sight-unseen for a lot more than they were worth to immigrant workers heading home in the fall. The buyers said they’d be able to resell them once home for even more money due to demand in Mexico.
September 10th, 2015 at 8:57 am
MJB, I intentionally wired my street-legal dunebuggy that way, with a switch for the reverse lights instead of to the transmission. I thought it may come in handy for such cases or illuminating behind while camping, etc. I haven’t had the opportunity to test it on tailgaters yet though -I guess I need to drive slower!