This is Autoline Daily reporting on the global automotive industry.
AAA CALLS FOR ADAPTIVE DRIVING BEAM HEADLIGHTS
To help improve safety while driving at night, the AAA says it’s time to allow vehicles equipped with Adaptive Driving Beam Headlights on U.S. roads, as they are in Europe and Canada. If you’re not familiar with the technology, the high beams are always on and when the car detects another vehicle, that area is shaded to prevent glare. The AAA says they improve lighting by as much as 86% compared to low-beam lights. While there is similar technology in the U.S. that automatically switches between high and low beams, which helps, however the low beams stay on when other cars are present, and that mitigates its effectiveness. We’ve had experience with adaptive driving beam headlights and they work really well, so we think it makes sense to adopt the technology too.
CHINA EV BUBBLE ABOUT TO BURST?
China wants to significantly boost the number of electric vehicles on its roads but some analysts are worried that the EV bubble is about to burst. According to Bloomberg, there are 486 EV manufacturers registered in the country, which is triple the amount from just two years ago. That’s because it’s not just automakers investing in electrics. Internet, electronic and even real-estate moguls are pouring money into EV startups. EV sales are expected to hit 1.6 million vehicles this year in China but that’s just 4% of all passenger car sales, and that isn’t enough demand to support all those brands. The Chinese government also slashed subsidies for EVs to encourage manufacturers to innovate instead of relying on subsidies. That’s why analysts are saying we’re likely to see a number of EV companies go under or get gobbled up by larger automakers.
Still to come…a look at some of the latest reveals in New York.
NISSAN UPGRADES GT-R NISMO
Godzilla just got a little bigger and badder. Nissan made a number of race inspired upgrades to the GT-R NISMO. There’s a ton of carbon fiber on this car, including the front and rear bumpers, front fenders, hood, roof, side sill covers, trunk and rear spoiler, which contributes to a weight loss of nearly 70-pounds. Scalloped vents on top of the fenders were modeled after the GT3 GT-R and help improve downforce and smooth out aerodynamics. New turbochargers, also from the GT3 car, is said to “enhance the acceleration response by 20%.” Other highlights include a revised titanium exhaust system, updated suspension tuning and carbon ceramic Brembo brakes.
NISSAN CELEBRATES 50 YEARS OF GT-R & Z CAR
Nissan also celebrated the 50th anniversaries of the GT-R and the Z car with a couple of special edition models. Both feature a number of unique 50th anniversary touches inside and out.
TOYOTA REFRESHES THE HIGHLANDER
Toyota took the wraps off the new Highlander, which is built on a new platform and features updated styling. Two powertrains are available, a 3.5L V6 that’s mated to an 8-speed automatic, which is expected to deliver 22 MPGs combined. It’s also offered with a hybrid, which consists of a 2.5L four-cylinder engine and two electric motors. It’s estimated to deliver 34 MPGs combined, which is a 17% improvement over the current Highlander Hybrid. The new SUV is also now available with Toyota’s safety suite of driver assistance technologies. The regular Highlander hits dealer showrooms in the U.S. in December while the Hybrid will be available in February of 2020.
NEW GENESIS CONCEPT IS MINTY FRESH
Genesis revealed a sleek, compact car called the Mint. The electric concept has a range of 200 miles and was created by the company’s design studios in Europe, Asia and the U.S. One of its wildest features is how you gain access to the rear. it doesn’t have a traditional trunk, instead, you can access it through two scissor-style doors on either side of the vehicle. While this won’t make it to production, the Mint concept is meant to show off the company’s vision of a future city car.
JAGUAR UPDATES THE XE
Jaguar refreshed the XE sedan for 2020 and this is a bit more than your standard refresh. At the front, the bumper has been reworked, the headlamps are slimmer and the grille and lower vents are wider. The rear bumper has also been updated as has the rear taillights and valance. The interior has been redesigned with greater use of soft-touch materials. Customers can also choose an optional 10-inch upper touchscreen. Other technology highlights include more driver assistance features and a new digital rear view mirror, similar to what GM has been using. The 2020 XE will start arriving this summer with a starting price of nearly $41,000, including destination charges.
There was one more, big reveal in New York yesterday, the new Lincoln Corsair. John talked with the chief engineer of the new SUV, and that’s coming up next.
LINCOLN CORSAIR WALKAROUND
(The Lincoln Corsair walkaround is only available in the video version of today’s show.)
Thanks for that report John. And for even more New York Auto Show coverage, be sure to tune into Autoline After Hours tomorrow afternoon. John and Gary will be talking about the latest reveals, so tune in to see what vehicles they think stole the show.
But that wraps up today’s report, thanks for watching and we’ll see you tomorrow.
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Comments (27)
April 17th, 2019 at 12:19 pm
Around here Lincoln is a dead brand , I see about as many Lincoln’s as smart cars really
April 17th, 2019 at 12:26 pm
A. The “XE” may be the poorest named Jag ever. Is this its “3 series rival”? Even I have no clue, and I spend hours every day on car news etc.
It is a terrible name not only because it is a stupid alphanumeric, but especially because it is a very misleading one, since “X” is reserved for Off Road vehicles and SUVs by many automakers.
B. The Corsair (=Pirate in many languages), which is only one letter off from the ill-fated Corvair (BTW WTH is a “Corvair”?) looks good. At first I assumed it was an Escape Clone, and if it was, I was very impressed by its 4 large hard luggage carrying capapcity with the rear seats UP! IF it is not, WTH is the Lincoln which IS the Escape Clone? (probably some accursed and meaningless alphanumeric again). Of course, all depends on the price. The new Highlander looks OK too, except for the usual confused Toyota grille.
April 17th, 2019 at 12:30 pm
China will be the world’s biggest EV market for many years to come. For their Huge cities, and there are dozens with 10 or 20 million people each, the pollution is unbearable, and they just cannot tolerate gas and diesels, which will have to move to the countryside. We mentioned many times how prohibitive are the license fees etc for dirty cars in the big cities. AND it has the infrastructure, the same no of EV charging stations as gas stations (about 100k) while the US has half the above EV chargers.
I would lose no sleep about CHina having 500 EV companies, in 10-20 years, half or more will be broke, and many others will be absorbed by the successful ones, just as it happened in the US with car cos in the 1910s and all the way until now.
April 17th, 2019 at 12:36 pm
The Corsair is a nice size and has some appealing design cues. Did that horizontal sweep of vents across the dash remind anyone else of the mid-60s Continental?
If I had two nickels to rub together I’d consider it.
April 17th, 2019 at 12:40 pm
3, 4 I just read the Ward’s article on the Corsair and indeed it shares parts etc with the Escape. Ford succeeded in making it look anything but the Escape, which should help. The Corsair looks far more substantial. On the other hand, there are many Escapes and RAV4s in the driveways in my condo complex, and even I have confused one with the other, when viewed from certain angles, as from the side/rear.
April 17th, 2019 at 1:00 pm
My favorite color is blue, but I would not be one to order that blue package on the corsair. Didn’t like that color 40 years ago, don’t like it now. Makes their new interior look dated by decades. If it was just some accent trim it would have been somewhat OK, but they went overboard with it and it looks cheap and tacky.
April 17th, 2019 at 1:19 pm
It seems to me that Lincoln’s new products and refreshes appear to have much more personality, uniqueness and competitiveness than Cadillac’s new and updated models. The new CT5 looks like the same boring Cadillac design rather than “the cure for the boring sedan”. For a short time, it seemed that GM management was on track to leapfrog the competition with each new vehicle. Apparently that ambition has expired. Their latest “new” products don’t seem to measure up.
April 17th, 2019 at 1:25 pm
7 a few years ago, RWD Caddillac cars looked far better, and, more importantly, drove far better than any dinosaur FWD Lincolns. However, they did not sell as well, primarily because of the pressure for quarterly profits, which made GM price them too high. When Lexus entered the luxury car market, it priced the LS 400 ridiculously low, $35k, far lower than the much smaller E class. No wonder it succeeded.
April 17th, 2019 at 1:37 pm
2. A Corvair was like a Corvette, only air cooled.
April 17th, 2019 at 1:58 pm
9 I know what the Corvair looked like, I was asking about the origin of its name. The COrvette is a small navy ship, the Corsair is a pirate, but what is a Corvair? Or is it a made up word like..”Prius” and “Lexus” instead of the correct “Primus” and “Luxus”?
Speaking of Lexus I keep seeing a whole fleet of top of the line flagship LS 600hL big heavy sedans with some ridiculous gear on top of their roofs (looks like a small revolving radar or something, hopefully the production version will never look like that), they got “Toyota Reserch or something” decals all over them, plus a fancy paint job (this one was deep maroon with gold lines on the sides like if it was a computer chip). I was driving on a parkway with a really slow 40 MPH speed limit despite the fact it is a divided highway with 2 lanes on each side, and the Lexus did even less than 40, maybe 38 MPH. Fortunately I was just about to turn left to my home entrance.
April 17th, 2019 at 2:09 pm
The Corvair was just a play on words Corvette and Air cooled as Kit said. Much like the Chevette or Chevelle. Hell even Camaro is a made up word. Chevy tried to say it’s a small animal that gets eaten by Mustangs LOL
April 17th, 2019 at 2:23 pm
that new Lincoln is very nice,did that corsair name not appear on an Edsel years ago?
April 17th, 2019 at 2:24 pm
Your program has been a wealth of information on the Chinese EV market with a lot of chatter on the overwhelming number of manufacturers. How about a slide show with a tech/spec commentary of ALL THE OFFERED CARS in this market to showcase what designs they are offering?? Are they econo-boxes, “golf carts, Tesla “wantabes”, real cars ??
April 17th, 2019 at 2:26 pm
11 Ah I get it now, Corv-Air. BTW that Nader guy made a reputation by maligning the Corvair, while in later, serious tests, it actually came out favorably compared to other cars of its time, safety-wise.
This new compact Lincoln looks substantial from the outside, but maybe if one sees it next to an Explorer or an Expedition it will look more like an Escape-sized crossover.
April 17th, 2019 at 3:49 pm
14 Second generation Corvairs, properly equipped, were very “sporty” driving cars, kind of a poor man’s Porsche 912-911. The best year was probably 1966.
April 17th, 2019 at 3:52 pm
Ranger, Corsair, and Pacer were the Edsel model names.
April 17th, 2019 at 3:55 pm
While Ford may have wanted to borrow the ‘pirate’ theme in their new offering, the Corsair, it also may have been going with the connection to the Vought F4U Corsair of WWII fame; that was one pretty slick fighter plane.
April 17th, 2019 at 5:07 pm
The airplane is certainly what older people think of when they hear “Corsair.” When 30 year olds hear Corsair, they probably think “WTF is that”?
April 17th, 2019 at 5:26 pm
@10 The sensors on top of the Lexus LS research vehicles are LIDAR sensors for autonomous driving. The sensors spin and are quite unsightly. Occasionally, we see reports of next-gen LIDAR sensors that use solid state technology (no physical spinners) and will be easier to package with better aesthetics. (Insert the sound of crickets here).
April 17th, 2019 at 5:32 pm
I have had Ford’s all my life and found interest in the Lincoln brand as I became more secure. I was able to look at a new Corsair while visiting a friend. I must say, Lincoln is finally getting it! The interior in the Corsair is much more plush than my Lincoln. Soft touches are everywhere. Like all Lincolns, they are very quiet. I only wish I could have driven it on the road. For sure it is not a clone Escape.
From yesterday: After reading the comments, I still do not see value in the attention given to U.S auto sales in China. Despite the higher sales, manufacture profits are half and China cars are not aligned to our markets. we do not benefit from what happens in China… only the manufacturer does. I try to have an open mind but China is not our friend!
April 17th, 2019 at 5:32 pm
Hope they get adaptive headlights, to many people drive with high beams on and don’t know they have them on, I suspect they don’t look at dashboard often
April 17th, 2019 at 5:46 pm
About 25 years ago I rented a Ford Escort in Germany, and it had a manual adjustment for headlight height aiming on the dash. It was very useful, where people sometimes heavily load cars like that. Adaptive headlights would be great, if done right.
April 17th, 2019 at 8:12 pm
12 Yes, so did Citation and Pacer. The only brand not to use the name Pacer was GM. AMC used it famously or infamously depending on your viewpoint and Chrysler used the name in Australia.
April 17th, 2019 at 8:36 pm
Someone should revive the Pacer name. It would be at least as good as, say, XF.
April 17th, 2019 at 9:36 pm
The Corsair is based on the Escape, but yeah, your extra $10K or so will get you a nicer interior. I read that it will also have a more potent top engine, a version of the 2.3 turbo used in Mustang and elsewhere.
April 18th, 2019 at 8:04 am
19 Thanks, that’s it, LIDAR. It looked bad, but I also noticed they did not just bolt it on the roof, they either replaced the roof or added/welded/glued a shiny black plate on it, it looked integrated with the rest of the car, looked like they went to too much trouble for a demo/experimental car.
20 Just one of many examples, BUICK would be more dead than Generalissimo Francisco Franco if not for China. It is a long term thing, at first the profits of the big 3 in China were not as high as in the US (but neither are they in any other foreign markets, they do much worse therem OPEL lost $20 bill before Barra sold it, and Ford finally left the Russian car market),
So again, moral, China is the future and you ignore it at your own risk. And for 30 years now, this is not Mao’s poor as a church mouse China.
25 They finally realized that they had differentiate the engine too vs the Escape, just a better interior can be had for much less than $10k
April 18th, 2019 at 11:35 am
@18 +++