On today’s show…we report about the youngest kid in history to ever win a Formula One Grand Prix… all the executive poaching going on in the industry….and we comfortably predict that prices for the new Ford GT are going to skyrocket. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily for May 16th, 2016.
HYUNDAI TAPS BENTLEY… AGAIN
What do you do in the auto industry when you need new executives and you don’t have anyone inside to fit the bill? Why you go out and steal them from your competitors, that’s what. First up, Hyundai. Last year it hired former Bentley designer Luc Donckerwolke to head up design for its new Genesis luxury brand. You’ll remember Luc. He’s the guy who excoriated the design of the new Lincoln Continental concept as a blatant rip-off of the Bentley Flying Spur. Well, now he just poached another designer from Bentley. SangYup Lee, will become Vice President of Styling at Hyundai Design Center. He just got done designing the Bentley Bentaga, and previously worked at GM Design.
TESLA SNAGS AUDI MANUFACTURING GURU
Bentley wasn’t the only brand in the VW Group to lose an executive. Tesla just hired one of Audi’s manufacturing gurus, Peter Hochholdinger, to become its new VP of Vehicle Production. Tesla has had a slew of quality problems with its manufacturing operations and is missing its production targets.
CADILLAC NAMES NEW VP OF CHINA
And finally, Cadillac moved its head of Europe, Andreas Schaaf, to the newly created position of vice president of Cadillac China. Schaaf will be in charge of Cadillac’s business in China and report to Cadillac President, Johan de Nysschen, who stole him away from BMW.
MAD MAX: ROAD WARRIOR
History was made at the Formula One Grand Prix in Spain yesterday. The race was won by Max Verstappen, who at 18 years old, is the youngest driver to ever win a Grand Prix. The Dutchman drives for the Red Bull team, which is powered by engines supplied by Renault. Verstappen did a masterful job of holding off a hard charging Kimi Raikkonen in his Ferrari, so his win was not a fluke. Remember his name. Max Verstappen has all the makings of becoming one of the great champions in the sport.
Still to come, we’re pretty confident that prices of the Ford GT are going to skyrocket.
SUPPLIERS RATE THE OEMs
Suppliers make anywhere from 70% to 80% of all the parts and components that go into a car, so they are critically important to automakers. So you’d think the car companies would treat them really well, right? Well some do and some don’t. An annual survey from Planning Perspectives has suppliers rate how well the car companies in North America are to work with. But the survey is for purchasing buyers, not the supplier executives, because the buyer level is where all the action takes place. Survey says: Toyota and Honda are the best companies to work with, but they’re not as good as they used to be. Then it drops down to Ford and General Motors. But Ford has made no improvement in the last 6 years, while GM is up significantly. And the worst automakers to work with? According to the study Nissan and FCA are at the bottom of the list. And maybe this helps explain why FCA just had a major shakeup of its purchasing operations last week.
FORD GT PRICES COULD SKYROCKET
Ford is only going to make 500 of its new GT supercar in its first year, but over 6,500 people from around the world want to buy one. Part of the sales agreement says that buyers agree to not just turn around and sell the car. Well, good luck with that. According to Hagerty Insurance, a first-gen GT, which carried a sticker price of $150,000, is now worth an average of $258,000 – $331,000. So, that’s about double the original price. And remember they made over 4,000 of them. So with 6,500 buyers chasing 500 cars, we could see the new GT going for a million bucks. It’s not supposed to happen that way, but it will.
Coming up next, John takes you on a two-minute styling tour of the new Honda Ridgeline.
HONDA RIDGELINE DESIGN WALKAROUND
The styling of the new Honda Ridgeline is not as macho as its competitors. And it has some important styling cues that set it apart from the others. On last week’s Autoline After Hours, John did a styling walk-around to point them out.
(The Ridgeline design walkaround is only available in the video version of today’s show.)
There’s a lot of unique features and details on the Ridgeline, and you can learn a lot more about them on that show. Check it out on our website, or subscribe to our content on our YouTube channel.
But that wraps up today’s show, thanks for watching and please join us again tomorrow.
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Comments (21)
May 16th, 2016 at 12:09 pm
While the Ridgeline in not for me, I predict that it will be somewhat of a hit (but I don’t know which sales it is going to hijack from; perhaps some crossover buyers and of course some softer truck-type buyers). Just my two cents.
May 16th, 2016 at 12:33 pm
Now Honda can produce and sell a downsized pickup off the CR-V called the “Shoreline”.
Might make me buy a Honda.
May 16th, 2016 at 12:53 pm
Foolish people with the “gotta have it” attitude continue to ruin the joy of ownership from a true collector standpoint. The thought of someone paying a million dollars for a car that lists for less than half that will end up being a very bad investment. I can only think back to the last ’76 Eldorado Convertibles, the 1978 Corvette pace cars, 1990 ZR-1s, Hellcats and even PT Cruisers that sold for outrageous sums over sticker when new. Unless you’re Ferrari, and you are willing to sell one car fewer than the market demands, supply will catch up with demand and you’ll have over a half million in water to deal with.
On a side note to the Ford GT, I feel with no pedigree, the $400,000 is a bit steep but the “gotta have its” will want one.
For a little while.
May 16th, 2016 at 1:00 pm
I do like the swing feature of the Ridgeline tailgate. The few times where I have had items loaded in my bed using a forklift and the drivers like to smack the mast into the top of the down gate. Or lifting heavy items that you don’t want to set on the gate and slide in would be a nice feature.
May 16th, 2016 at 1:11 pm
Frankly the Ford GT is an overpriced, under-performing piece of crud. But if people are foolish enough to want one then go build as many as the demand calls for.
May 16th, 2016 at 1:16 pm
Max Verstappen (18) Youngest F1 Winner; Guess that proves that a legal driving age of 16 should be just fine, its a matter of training.
May 16th, 2016 at 1:25 pm
The bed on the new Ridgeline seems quite shallow. Is that just the pictures I’m seeing?
May 16th, 2016 at 1:27 pm
The Ridgeline being able to open that way looks handy but I wonder how strong it is with out support cables or arms? If I have to hall my motorcycle with my Avalanche the back tire sits on the tailgate, no problem but with the Honda’s design ???
May 16th, 2016 at 1:51 pm
Rob says–”it’s a matter of training”
Just imagine how many lives could be saved by requiring professional level training for a street license.
May 16th, 2016 at 1:58 pm
What Honda has done to make their “truck” more desirable is not enough to improve sales much at all.
May 16th, 2016 at 2:14 pm
I can see a lot of ‘Mary Marshmallows’ buying the ridge line so they don’t spill potting soil in the back of their subaru outbacks,or foresters.
May 16th, 2016 at 2:20 pm
Hi John,
I watched your styling walkaround on the new Ridgleine on daily and afterhours but I was wondering about the “joint” line between the bed and the box. On the previous generation you could see it was all one unit. I’m assuming the new version is also a one piece cab and box but they have added a visual separation which seems to be there only to make us knuckle dragging pickem up buyers think they are separate units. Was this added due to customer feedback that all pickups must have separate boxes?
Thanks,
Phil
May 16th, 2016 at 2:31 pm
John,
It’s still a Honda. Honda’s pickup is in name only. You did not speak to what PUs do, I.e. tow. How about some PU speak? Torque, horsepower, gear ratio, engine specs? Or is this one of those millennium mobiles? There’s more to a PU than a double swing tail gate.
May 16th, 2016 at 2:55 pm
I’m guessing embargo is on for the Honda so John isn’t allowed to say
May 16th, 2016 at 3:31 pm
#12. Phil, i’m so glad you raised that issue. I should have pointed it out in my walk-around and am kicking myself that I didn’t. The original Ridgeline used a one-piece body side for strength. It actually posed a huge manufacturing challenge for Honda because the piece was so big the stamping dies didn’t fit in the press, they stuck outside like an oversize load on a semi trailer. Sure would have loved to see that in action!
But customers hated the look of the flying buttress and the one-piece look. So on the new truck Honda created a separate bed and cab. The two are welded together, but Honda wanted to keep the bed looking like it’s completely separate from the cab. So to your point, they added that rubber gasket to create a strong visual line of separation. It’s only there for appearance.
May 16th, 2016 at 3:33 pm
#13. We didn’t dwell on the powertrain because, as we mentioned on the After Hours show, the Ridgeline uses the exact same engine, transmission and 2WD and AWD system from the Honda Pilot and Acura MDX.
But we did talk about towing (5000 lbs) and hauling (1500 lbs).
May 16th, 2016 at 4:23 pm
The new Ridgeline will sell better than the old one, because it looks better. It would serve the vast majority of pickup buyers very well. As we all know, only a small percentage of pickup buyers actually tow anything, or haul anything heavier than a couple sacks of groceries. The likely good ride and handling should be appealing to these people.
The Ridgeline will not be on the shopping list of those who actually need a pickup for serious hauling or towing, but those people have several good choices.
May 16th, 2016 at 4:28 pm
I hope Ford keeps making the GT a long time, after the demand is filled, so the people who pay 4X sticker price can contemplate their stupidity in a few years.
May 16th, 2016 at 10:05 pm
#8 – I too question the tailgate design with only one support cable. Looks like a disaster for anyone that actually uses the pickup as a pickup, although I suspect Honda is hoping most buyers will not treat theirs like a pickup. I see lots of pickups with bowed tailgates from putting too much weight on them, and I don’t see how the alignment with the dual-open function can survive. Perhaps a great feature, but durability remains to be seen.
May 17th, 2016 at 7:34 am
#18 Yep, it won’t be so good for carrying a 900 pound bike with one wheel on the tailgate.
May 17th, 2016 at 11:50 am
Max Verstappen Go!