Runtime: 6:17
0:30 Investment Firm Wrong About Automotive Stocks
1:01 Toyota Taking Mirai to Canada
2:13 Details on the New Volkswagen Golf
3:14 Diesel Sales Match Green Cars
4:32 Valeo Technology Can See Through Cars
5:23 1st Pure EV Maker Listed on Shanghai Stock Exchange
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On today’s show… Americans are buying as many diesels as they’re buying green cars… we’ve got the latest details on the new Volkswagen Golf… and Valeo shows technology that lets you see right through the car in front of you. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily the show for enthusiasts of the automotive industry.
INVESTMENT FIRM MISSES AUTOMOTIVE MARK
An investment firm in Europe is having to eat humble pie after it advised its clients to sell off automotive stocks. Bloomberg reports that the French investment company publicly admitted, and I quote, “There’s no denying we have been spectacularly wrong.” What caught them out were 30% jumps in the stock price of Fiat-Chrysler and supplier GKN just this month alone, and a nearly 50% jump in Volkswagen’s stock over just the last four months.
TOYOTA TAKES MIRAI TO CANADA
Fuel cell cars have a big hurdle to overcome. They need a hydrogen infrastructure built before they can ever catch on in a big way. But they keep making progress. Toyota just announced it will start selling the Mirai in Canada this year. The fuel cell car will first be available in Quebec, because of access to hydrogen fuel in the province. Hydro Quebec, is the fourth-largest producer of clean hydro-electricity in the world.
Is CES killing the Detroit auto show? That’s what a lot of industry insiders are saying and that will be one of the top topics when when Autoline After Hours returns this Thursday after a two week hiatus. Join John and Gary for some of the best insights into what’s really going on in the automotive industry.
Who’d a thunk it? Americans are buying as many diesels are they’re buying green cars and that’s coming up next.
UPDATED VW GOLF COMING IN 2019
We just got our first look at the updated Jetta and we’ll soon get our first look at the new Golf. According to Auto Express, VW is investing 1.6 billion pounds into the project and the first examples will roll off the production line in the middle of 2019. You might think with the Jetta now based on the same MQB platform as the Golf the two models would share similar styling elements, but the exclusive pictures at Auto Express show little more than a refresh in the design department for the hatchback. It sounds like the digital cockpit will now be standard across the lineup and that the car will feature more driver assist technologies. Many of the same powertrain options will continue on, but there will also be a 48-volt mild-hybrid and a plug-in GTE version as well. And because the I.D. family of electric vehicles will start rolling around the same time, Volkswagen will not offer a new version of the e-Golf.
DIESEL SALES MATCH GREEN CARS
Green cars continue to dominate the headlines, but that’s kind of overshadowing the fact that diesel engines are selling much stronger than expected in the US market. Last year car buyers bought 553,522 hybrids, plug-ins and battery electrics. But they also bought 553,789 vehicles with diesel engines, which means there’s just as much demand for diesels as there is for green cars. There are 70 different models of green cars versus 40 models that offer diesels. With Ford and Chevrolet soon going to offer diesels in their light duty pickups diesel sales are probably going to keep pace with green cars.
U.S. Diesel & Green Car Sales | |
---|---|
Green Cars | 553,522 |
Diesels | 553,789 |
Coming up next, technology that lets you see right through the car in front of you.
VALEO TAKES ADVANTAGE OF V2V
When it comes to innovation, automotive suppliers are coming out with some of the most clever ideas in the automotive industry. Valeo, the French supplier, just showed off a technology called Xtra Vue that shows how we could take advantage of V2V technology. For example, if you drove up to a traffic jam, to find out what’s blocking the road all you have to do is tap a touch screen that allows your car to patch into the video cameras of vehicles in front of you. It gives you a front row view. Or, in an overtaking situation, your car can patch into the camera of a vehicle in front of you, and then display what’s coming up on your video screen. It’s as if you’re looking right through the vehicle in front of you even if its a giant motor home. Vehicle to vehicle communication or V2V could turn out to be a giant step forward in automotive safety.
A FIRST FOR A PURE EV MAKER IN CHINA
Chinese automaker Beijing Electric Vehicle will become the first state-owned pure EV maker to be listed on the Shanghai stock exchange. Beijing Electric is now a subsidiary of BAIC. Beijing Electric is valued only at $4.5 billion, but it doubled its EV sales in China last year, with nearly 104,000 vehicles sold. And it’s viewed by investors as a pure play for those who want to invest in China’s booming EV market.
And that brings us to the end of today’s report. Thanks for watching and we’ll see you right back here again tomorrow.
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John McElroy is an influential thought leader in the automotive industry. He is a journalist, lecturer, commentator and entrepreneur. He created “Autoline Daily,” the first industry webcast of industry news and analysis.