AD #2378 – Angry Employee Sabotages Tesla, Really Old FCA Platform Extended, Mercedes Tests First Electric SUV
June 19th, 2018 at 11:49am
Runtime: 6:55
0:29 Musk Says Employee Sabotaged Tesla
1:05 China Retaliates to U.S. Tariffs
1:43 Red Bull Switches to Honda Power
2:28 Old Daimler-Chrysler Platform Extended
2:58 Volvo to Increase Recycled Material Content
3:41 BMW Reveals All-New 8 Series Coupe
5:21 Lincoln MKC to Be Renamed Corsair
5:46 Mercedes Tests 1st All-Electric SUV
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On today’s show… Elon Musk says someone has been sabotaging the company… the muscle cars at Dodge will not get a new platform… and Volvo makes a major commitment to using recycled plastic. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily the show for enthusiasts of the automotive industry.
AN ENEMY IN THE MIDST OF TESLA
Elon Musk claims that an employee has been sabotaging Tesla. Musk warned employees in an email that someone made unauthorized changes to the Tesla Manufacturing Operations System and exported sensitive data to third parties. The employee did this, according to Musk, because he was upset about not being promoted. Musk said the company will investigate to see if the rogue employee was working with an outside conspiracy, noting, “there are a long list of organizations that want Tesla to die.” Finally, Musk asked employees to report anything suspicious.
CHINA RETALIATES TO U.S. TARIFF
The trade war between the U.S. and China is heating up and the auto industry is caught in the crossfire. Last Friday, the Trump Administration announced its imposing a 25% import tariff on Chinese auto exports. And the next day, China retaliated by slapping a 25% tariff on a wide range of U.S. built vehicles as well as transmissions. The U.S. says it’s trying to protect American intellectual property, while China says the U.S. is violating World Trade Organization rules. But the end result of the tariffs will likely mean fewer car sales.
RED BULL SWITCHES TO HONDA POWER
Big news in Formula One. Red Bull confirmed it is dumping Renault and switching to Honda engines next year. Honda’s return to Formula One has been a rocky one. McLaren dropped it as an engine supplier last year. But Red Bull obviously believes that Honda is making enough progress that it wants its engines to power its cars.
BMW just gave us a bunch of details about the new 8 Series Coupe and that’s coming up next.
OLD DAIMLER-CHRYSLER PLATFORM EXTENDED
The Dodge Charger and Challenger were supposed to get redesigned using FCA’s Giorgio platform but that’s not going to happen. Instead, engineers will significantly rework the existing LX platform, which actually started out as a Mercedes-Benz platform and is a leftover from the DaimlerChrysler days. FCA’s CEO Sergio Marchionne says, “Certainly by the time we finish with that architecture, you will not recognize its origins.”
VOLVO UPS RECYCLED MATERIAL CONTENT
Volvo has an initiative to remove all single use plastics in its offices, cafeterias and events by the end of 2019. It will replace plastic cups, food containers and cutlery with biodegradable ones. And we just learned that starting in 2025, 25% of the plastic Volvo uses in new vehicles will be made from recycled material. This center console in a demonstration XC60 is made with fiber and plastic from used fishing nets and maritime ropes. The carpeting contains fibers from plastic bottles and recycled cotton. And used car seats were used to create the sound deadening material under the hood.
ALL-NEW BMW 8 SERIES COUPE
BMW just finished its first 24 Hours of Le Mans with the all-new M8 GTE race car, but now we’re getting our first look at the production version. It’s a good looking coupe that’s powered by a reworked 4.4L twin-turbo V8 engine, which produces over 520-horsepower and 550 lb-ft of torque. That power goes through an 8-speed automatic transmission and BMW’s xDrive all-wheel drive system. The transmission controller has been linked to the navigation system, so it can downshift early to use engine braking when approaching an intersection or avoid unnecessary gear shifts between two corners that are close together. The stop/start system is also linked to navigation and the cameras and radar to determine the ideal moment for stopping and starting the engine. And the new 8 Series Coupe also comes with 4-wheel steering for better performance and maneuverability. But as good looking as the exterior is, I think the interior is a bit bland for a vehicle of this caliber. We’ll get pricing for the new 8 Series Coupe closer to when it goes on sale this fall.
Coming up next, Mercedes is using some interesting camouflage to hide its next electric car..
IT’S AN EDSEL, IT’S A PLANE! NO, IT’S A LINCOLN
Lincoln’s upcoming MKC replacement, which will be an SUV based on the Ford Escape, now has a name: The Corsair. It could be a throwback to the Edsel Corsair that Ford made in 1958. Or maybe it’s a reference to the World War II fighter plane of the same name. Or it could refer to a pirate ship. Either way, it’s a great name. The Corsair is set to replace the MKC in 2020.
MERCEDES TESTS ALL-ELECTRIC SUV
And speaking of new vehicles, Mercedes is testing a camouflaged version of its first all-electric SUV, the EQC. The silhouette of the vehicle looks very similar to other Mercedes SUVs. The real interesting part will be to see the front end of the EV. But based on these images it doesn’t look like it will be as radical as some of the EQ concepts Mercedes has shown. I think it’s also interesting how they’ve used a large red strip in the camo to hide the taillight design as well. It will still be awhile before we see the EQC. Mercedes says overall development time is around four years.
Be sure to join us for Autoline After Hours on Thursday as we dive into one of the first applications of graphene in the automotive industry.
And that wraps up today’s report, thanks for watching.
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Comments (37)
June 19th, 2018 at 12:06 pm
Maybe Lincoln could revive some other Edsel names, like Citation and Pacer.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:13 pm
Ford>Edsel>Lincoln>Corsair…a lot of something there for a model to build on….right??? Lets hope any Edsel fibers have not crept into anything in the 2020 Lincoln MKC/Corsair. I hope we don’t see any commercials with a reference to the beautiful Vought F4U Corsair
June 19th, 2018 at 12:15 pm
Andrew Grove, CEO of Intel, wrote a book, “Only The Paranoid Survive” (see link). I look forward to more evidence and legal actions as follow-up.
Potentially the are both civil and criminal penalties. Civil for theft of trade secrets and criminal for damaging a computer system.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:24 pm
Kit GM ,AMC and Chrysler Australia all beat Lincoln to the re-use of those names.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:26 pm
I’m a bit confused. What intellectual properties could the Chinese be taking that weren’t already given to them for price to build anything in China already?? Pretty sure it was reported here that for Foreign businesses to set up shop they had to take a Chinese company under their wing and “give” them their intellectual properties.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:29 pm
Whatever names that future Lincolns decide to use, it is refreshing that they are going back to names. The F4U Corsair was a favorite of mine (growing up) but the P-51 was my top choice. Let’s see, then there’s the P-39 Air Cobra (already used), the P-40 Warhawk (up for grabs) and P-38 Lightning to mention just a few. And also the mention of boat/ships; the most famous, of course, the Corvette.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:37 pm
Names are better but never again the Dodge La Femme. Or the Mazda Carol Me Lady. Maybe the Daihatsu Scat?
June 19th, 2018 at 12:40 pm
I know it was a busy news day, but surprised Autoline did not mention that the CEO of Audi, Rupert Stadler, was arrested in Germany as part of an investigation into the VW emissions cheating scandal. The article said as many of 20 other employees are under investigation… See link for article.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:47 pm
Also related to the VW emissions scandal, a co-worker reported that he was at a local car auction over the weekend and there were ~60 VW TDI models, from model years 2011 to 2014, in line to be auctioned. All the cars had stickers on the windshields proclaiming “Appropriate emissions systems modifications have been completed and certified to comply with EPA order number XXXXXXXXX.” Does anyone know the specific fixes made to these cars to make them legal and if VW has to warrant the emissions for so many miles? I wonder what this will do to the used car prices to have 500,000 extra cars dumped into the market?
June 19th, 2018 at 12:47 pm
The 8-series coupe looks rather Aston Martin-ish from the B pillars aft.
Why limit oneself to WWII? How about the Gypsy Moth and Tiger Moth? I can imagine an Asian mfg jumping all over one of those! Maybe Lincoln could use it in China.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:47 pm
I remember back in the day because of the shape of the grill Edsels were called Ethyl’s.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:49 pm
So, the retaliation from China was to re-establish the 25% import tariff on U.S. built vehicles that they have had for many years? The transmission tariff may be new, but this does not seem like a big handicap. Just back to situation normal for U.S. automakers.
June 19th, 2018 at 12:56 pm
I recall John interviewing the manager in charge of Lincoln and he said that their vehicle names would all have a nautical theme to them. Navigator and Nautilus certainly fit, so I think the Corsair is referencing the type of sailing ship and not the WWII fighter.
June 19th, 2018 at 1:09 pm
Corsair has many nautical meanings. From being used to refer to pirate ships to single masted sailing boats. It would make sense that they will use the nautical theme with the Corsair as #13 said in his post.
June 19th, 2018 at 1:19 pm
4 I’m wondering if all “dormant” names, like Pacer and Citation, and more recently, Encore, are up for grabs, by anyone who wants to use them. Ranger was also an Edsel name, but Ford would own that one, if such things matter.
June 19th, 2018 at 1:21 pm
For the nautical theme how about “ Titanic” for Lincoln. And the front logo could sport a blue heart of the sea jewel…
June 19th, 2018 at 1:25 pm
16 Ed..thats right on the money!
June 19th, 2018 at 1:25 pm
13 How about salamander? That is nautical, and also an airplane name, Sopwith Salamander.
June 19th, 2018 at 1:28 pm
How about the sea slug. They are colorful.
June 19th, 2018 at 1:29 pm
Dreadnought would be a good name for what they now call Navigator L.
June 19th, 2018 at 1:34 pm
18
And who wouldn’t brim with confidence, soaring towards an aerial fight to the death in the cockpit of a doughty Sopwith Salamander??
June 19th, 2018 at 2:19 pm
Boy that BMW 8 sure looks like a lot of the current Mustang GT in side profile along with Aston Martin.
June 19th, 2018 at 2:22 pm
Disagree with you on the names Lincoln is choosing. Corsair [from the 1950's] and Nautilus [Captain Nemo's sub] are awful names for passenger vehicles.
June 19th, 2018 at 2:44 pm
The idea of the Corsair name must be to try to sell generic CUV’s to people who like Corsair airplanes. It won’t work with me.
June 19th, 2018 at 3:38 pm
Will the Chrysler 300 continue, or just the Challenger and Charger?
June 19th, 2018 at 3:47 pm
I just remembered something. A more recently retired airplane than the F4U, the A-7, is also called Corsair, or maybe Corsair II.
June 19th, 2018 at 3:57 pm
There was also the Vought O2U Corsair biplane from the 1920′s. The A7 was called the Corsair II. A name with a lot of great history.When I was a kid I built several F4U models..it was a favorite WW2 plane the “Whistling Death” is what the Japanese called it because in a slight dive is would create a whistle that you could hear ahead of the plane.
June 19th, 2018 at 4:01 pm
The F4U showing its teeth.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IBUKiKvl29Q
June 19th, 2018 at 4:37 pm
The F4U is about my favorite airplane to see at air shows. I’ve never heard the whistle; maybe they haven’t flown fast enough in a dive to get the sound, but I love the sound of the big radial engine, and the looks of the airplane.
June 19th, 2018 at 4:59 pm
There is nothing that sounds like those radial engines from that time period. The design of the radial engine is a thing of beauty. Without the radials the planes of WW2 wouldn’t have had the power/range and durability that they had. The Rolls Royce engines in the Spits and Mustangs were great but couldn’t take the abuse a radial could endure.
June 19th, 2018 at 5:59 pm
Here is a page on what caused the whistle…
https://fightersweep.com/5378/whistling-death-corsair-nickname/
June 19th, 2018 at 6:40 pm
30. Yep, the lack of a cooling system was a huge advantage of the radials when they got shot up.
June 19th, 2018 at 6:47 pm
As if Tesla didn’t have enough problems with their “autopilot”,
http://www.foxnews.com/auto/2018/06/19/feds-banning-sale-autopilot-buddy-device-that-enables-hands-free-tesla-operation.html
June 19th, 2018 at 8:35 pm
Fred, thanks for the Corsair link; that is way-cool.
June 19th, 2018 at 9:21 pm
Chuck you are welcome! I love cars but my real passion is flying and any prop engine plane. I read books on WW2 planes and their pilots. Many years ago I used to fly and couldn’t get enough of it.
June 20th, 2018 at 8:33 am
I believe there is a brand of hair dryers that also use the Corsair name. Bet they hope people don’t draw that comparison as they blow.
June 21st, 2018 at 9:14 am
If Lincoln is going nautical, maybe GM will sell them the rights to Cutlass.