AD #3182 – New Car Prices Soaring; BMW Ready for ICE Bans; Lexus Reveals All-New Boldly Styled LX
October 14th, 2021 at 11:49am
Listen to “AD #3182 – New Car Prices Soaring; BMW Ready for ICE Bans; Lexus Reveals All-New Boldly Styled LX” on Spreaker.
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Runtime: 10:10
0:07 New Car Prices Soaring
0:48 BMW Ready for ICE Bans
1:14 Renault Moving Out of Its Headquarters
1:34 Skoda Developing MQB-Based Entry-Level Vehicles
2:46 Lexus Reveals the All-New LX
4:51 Honda Electrifying China
5:59 Honda Improves Its Driver Assistance System
7:09 Good Headlights Reduce Night Time Accidents
7:46 Safety Systems Should Be Tested in Real-World Scenarios
8:28 Ford No Longer on Rivian’s Board
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This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
ATP SOARS IN THE U.S.
We’ve never seen anything like this before. New car prices are going up faster than ever. Kelley Blue Book says the average transaction price in the U.S. in September was just over $45,000. And no surprise, that’s a record. That’s up 12% from a year ago and up nearly 4% from August. Besides tight inventory due to the chip shortage, KBB says prices spiked because consumers shifted away from entry level vehicles to more expensive pickups and SUVs. KBB says as long as inventory remains tight, prices will remain high.
BMW READY FOR ICE BANS
If the EU wants to ban ICE cars by 2030, BMW’s CEO says ‘Bring it on.’ Oliver Zipse says if any city, region or country bans ICE cars, BMW will have an EV to offer. Reuters quotes him as saying, “The BMW Group is not worried about this. Whether it’s a good idea is another question… but we will have an offering.”
RENAULT MOVING OUT OF ITS HEADQUARTERS TO SAVE MONEY
We never thought we’d see this. Renault is moving out of its headquarters in Paris and will rent space in another location. It’s all about cutting cut costs. Renault didn’t say where it’s moving or provide any other details, but it sure is a shock to see that it’s leaving the City of Lights.
SKODA DEVELOPING ENTRY-LEVEL CARS FOR DEVELOPING MARKETS
While automakers are racing to launch BEVs as fast as they can, analysts say that sales of ICE vehicles could actually grow by 58% over the next 10 years in developing countries, like Latin America, Africa, Russia and India. So Skoda, which is part of the VW Group, is taking over responsibility for developing new entry-level ICE vehicles off the MQB platform. Specifically, the MQB-A0 platform, which underpins current vehicles like the Skoda Kushaq and Volkswagen Polo Vivo.
LEXUS TAKES BOLD GRILLE TO NEW LEVELS ON ALL-NEW LX
Lexus is taking big, bold grilles to a new level on its all-new full size SUV, the LX. That giant spindle grille just about covers the entire front end.
Lexus also went all out to convince its customers that the LX has hard core, off-road capabilities. Let’s start with the basics. The LX sits on what Lexus calls its GF-A platform. It’s still body-on-frame, but the frame is 20% more rigid and has a lower center of gravity. Impressively, the LX is 441 pounds lighter than before. Lexus also went all out to make the ride even smoother. Front suspension travel increased by 0.6 inches, and 0.8 inches in the rear. The ride height automatically adjusts to driving conditions. The spring rates also adjust automatically, to smooth out the ride on the optional 22 inch wheels. Just in case an owner actually takes it off road, four cameras show what’s around the wheels and under the vehicle. Under the hood, the V8 is gone and replaced with a twin-turbo V6 with 409 horsepower and 479 lb.-ft. of torque. All that power goes through a 10-speed automatic. Inside, the instrument panel is surprisingly subdued with everything concentrated around the center console. A 12.3-inch upper screen sits right above a 7-inch one.
Customers who feel the need to upgrade can go with a trim level called Ultra Luxury. One feature includes VIP seating, which, at the touch of a button, folds the front passenger seat forward, creating 42 inches of legroom, supported by a foot rest, for the rear seat passenger. There’s a lot more about the LX which you can find in the link that we’ve included in the transcript and description box.
HONDA ELECTRIFYING CHINA
Honda is going all electric. At least, in China it is. Starting in 2030 Honda will only introduce electrified models, including hybrids and EVs. It will launch 10 new EV models, most of which will be branded e:N. The first, the e:NS1 and e:NP1, go on sale next year and look like they’re based on the HR-V concept and the e:Prototype concept. Three other EVs in the e:N family will probably go on sale within the next 5 years. Note how they have very angular body panels, kind of like the Tesla Cybertruck, which could cut way down on manufacturing costs. Speaking of manufacturing, Honda is going to build new, dedicated EV production sites in China that it hopes to have up and running by 2024. Honda also announced that it’s tapping CATL to supply it with batteries for all of these EVs. And to maximize its investment, it says it plans to export e:N Series models around the world.
HONDA IMPROVING ITS DRIVER ASSISTANCE SYSTEM
And staying with Honda for a moment, it’s improving its suite of driver assistance features, now called Honda SENSING 360. The system was upgraded with 5 radars at the front and each corner of the vehicle, along with one camera. This greatly improves its detection area and removes blind spots around the vehicle. Customers should find that the system works better at detecting potential accidents with other cars or pedestrians at intersections as well as intervene if they’re going to change lanes into another vehicle, provide steering assist when changing lanes and reduce speed when coming up on a turn too fast. Honda says it wants zero fatalities involving any of its vehicles, including motorcycles, by 2050.
GOOD HEADLIGHTS REDUCE NIGHT TIME ACCIDENTS
A few years ago, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety started factoring in headlights as part of its safety ratings. And it just released a study that found vehicles with headlights that earn a Good rating in its evaluation, are nearly 20% less likely to be involved in an accident driving at night, compared to vehicles with headlights that earn a Poor rating. Driver injury is also reduced by nearly 30%. Since it started evaluating headlights in 2016, the percent of vehicles with a Good headlight rating has risen from 4 to 29%.
AAA SAYS SAFETY TECH STRUGGLES IN BAD WEATHER
And speaking of safety studies, AAA just released a report that found safety systems struggle to “see” in bad weather. A vehicle equipped with automatic emergency braking travelling at 35 MPH collided with a stopped vehicle one third of the time, during tests that simulated rainfall. And vehicles with Lane Keeping Assist veered outside the lane 69% of the time. The safety systems are normally evaluated in ideal conditions but AAA says testing needs to incorporate real-world scenarios that drivers encounter in day-to-day driving.
FORD NO LONGER ON RIVIAN’S BOARD
Something weird is going on between Rivian and Ford. Very quietly, with no public announcement, Ford no longer has anyone on Rivian’s board of directors, even though Ford invested $820 million in the startup and is one of Rivian’s largest investors. Last year Ford made a big deal of appointing Bill Ford’s daughter, Alexandra English, to the Rivian board. But it never said a thing when she stepped down this May and was replaced by another Ford executive, Doug Power, who runs the company’s strategic investments. But then he left the Rivian board last month—with no public announcement. Here’s our Autoline Insight. Rivian is about to become a publicly traded company and maybe these moves are related to that. Rivian expects to have a market cap of $80 billion, while Ford is only worth $60 billion. Could it be possible that Ford will sell its Rivian stock to invest in other things, like maybe paying off that investment for the giant Blue Oval City EV manufacturing complex? If so, Ford would essentially get Blue Oval City for free.
But that’s the end of today’s show. Thanks for joining us.
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Comments (30)
October 14th, 2021 at 11:59 am
That Lexus bold styling, it belongs to the 1800slooks like a Steam Locomotive s Cow Catcher grill.Bold indeed.
October 14th, 2021 at 12:24 pm
1. That grille looked better on the 51 Chevrolet pickup. https://bringatrailer.com/listing/1951-chevrolet-pickup-11/
October 14th, 2021 at 12:30 pm
Europe has the most advanced headlight systems, with Hella and Bosch being @ the forefront The Tesla modY will have adaptive headlights as an option it was revealed in Gia Berlin Fest, but will not be available in the USA due to regulations set by the US Reg Board.like I’ve said , when it comes to safety the US is usually behind the curve, just like in Airbags and ABS brakes, those were available in Europe way before being adapted in the US of A. I recall arguments way back then ,If a car with ABS brakes was able to stop better than one without,the person behind might sue because that Persons car was better than his and caused his car to have the accident, and the Airbag? Argument vs it was , it was not proven yet and what if it deployed and the driver could not see what is in front or around the car , most arguments were quite ridiculous.
October 14th, 2021 at 12:33 pm
Beautiful classic
October 14th, 2021 at 12:43 pm
” Testing in real world scenario”, and that is why Tesla is collecting data with its cars and all in shadow mode , training its AI and coming DOJO Computer, Tesla has currently billions of miles of data of real world scenarios, and its FSD v10+ can navigate roundabouts now, take curves without a problem.
October 14th, 2021 at 12:46 pm
… in the ‘Tesla vs dealers’ discussion yesterday, a significant point in Tesla’s favour was missed. GM can’t open its own dealerships and neither can Tesla, but Elon Musk can. As long as he owns it personally, he could open one ‘GIGA- dealer’ in each state and offer sales and service there.
October 14th, 2021 at 12:48 pm
If Honda wants to expand into jets, maybe they should buy Bombardier. They could probably get it pretty cheap.
October 14th, 2021 at 1:04 pm
Land and labour costs are too high in Paris to keep a major hq there, but Renault needs to have an hq somewhere in France to still be seen as French. Maybe the move is the chance to peel off admin functions to cheaper countries and only keep execs and design in France. My bet is on Romania for the rest; somewhere near the Dacia factory.
October 14th, 2021 at 1:20 pm
#6 &7 Kev, Dealers were GMs choice way back then and Tesla does not want dealers models as they are mostly vs BEVs ,even today legacy auto dealers steer customers towards ICE cars when visited,and not interested in selling BEVs , Tesla wants to keep the purchase aspect simple, without all the dance moves necessary to make the purchase , #7, Bombardier the Aerospace and aircraft div was sold to Airbus, at least the C Series jets were, im sure the private jet part of Bombardier is bigger than Hondas market cap, or that BZNZ is probably doing fine , no need for Honda money, it takes huge amount of money and R&D to get jet programs done, that is what got Bombardier in financial trouble, Airbus got Bombardier for a song, all the development was done when they bought the program and the C Series jets are in a class all to themselves with Delta having options to buy a 100 more.Boeing had no comparable plane to sell and was trying to stop Bombadier from taking the market.,now most of the plane is made in Alabama, with final finishing /outfitting done in Quebec.
October 14th, 2021 at 2:05 pm
Congratulations to Lexus , you now have the ugliest damn grille on the market.
October 14th, 2021 at 2:18 pm
Aren’t they dropping the better looking version of the Lexus LX, the Toyota Land Cruiser, from the US market?
October 14th, 2021 at 2:18 pm
“New car consumers shifted away from lower cost cars” Sean you forgot to say that there are almost no entry level cars being produced as the manufacturers use scarce chips in higher priced cars where they make more profit. Please give a realistic picture of the market when you start with these bold shocking headlines. $45,000 moves many more potential consumers out of the market.
October 14th, 2021 at 2:30 pm
@3 – You seem to know a lot, but not. NHTSA-based airbags are different than any ECE-based airbags. NHTSA required (and still requires) the bags to protect unbelted occupants. A lot more development was required to quickly engage an occupant who could be “out of position”. More sensors were needed to determine the occupants position, the bags needed to be bigger, and the deployment needed to be faster. Still, NHTSA rushed the bags to market, after which we learned the risks to smaller stature occupants.
“Behind the curve”? Not really. The curve was not fully developed when it came to air bags. With respect to ABS, you forget one of the trail-blazers in ABS was Ford’s Sure Track in the Lincolns and Thunderbird of the early/mid 70s… a technology ahead of it’s time.
Yes, lawyers have an influence on the rate of technology deployment in the US. They will sue for “failure to equip” and they will sue for “faulty equipment”. So, an OEM can only develop robust technologies (designs, sourcing, assembly, HMI, etc.).
October 14th, 2021 at 3:50 pm
3 – Not to toot their horn, but GM offered airbags in some 1974 model Cadillacs and Oldsmobiles. I am not aware of any in European or Asian makes anywhere near that early.
October 14th, 2021 at 4:18 pm
Thanks for showing us a picture of an Australian model Lexus LX with the kangaroo catching grill. Can you please show us an USA model front grill !!
October 14th, 2021 at 4:18 pm
Thanks for showing us a picture of an Australian model Lexus LX with the kangaroo catching grill. Can you please show us an USA model front grill !!
October 14th, 2021 at 4:19 pm
Thanks for showing us a picture of an Australian model Lexus LX with the kangaroo catching grill. Can you please show us an USA model front grill.
October 14th, 2021 at 4:22 pm
The ’71 Imperial was thefirst car with electronic 4 wheel ABS. The first car I had with ABS was probably a ’91 Chevy Beretta.
October 14th, 2021 at 4:34 pm
#18 a quick search in Google shows Mercedes was the first in mass production cars w/ 4 channel ABS, you better correct Google then.
October 14th, 2021 at 4:48 pm
19 You’d better correct your M-B bragging. About a quarter of the way down here.
“Anti-lock Brakes: Who Was Really First? | Hagerty Media” https://www.hagerty.com/media/archived/antilock-brakes/
October 14th, 2021 at 4:52 pm
18,19,20
Imperial, 1971, M-B, 1978
October 14th, 2021 at 5:06 pm
Yeah, the Chrysler/Bendix system was three channel, but the fronts were separate, which is what matters for steering control.
October 14th, 2021 at 5:19 pm
2…I can’t help but say I prefer the grille on the ‘51 Chev pickup or as they said then 1/2 ton. I recently commented how Lincoln has really impressed everyone with their new grille. Uniformity has everyone believing they are really selling a boat load in the market place. That’s what’s bring people to their dealers not the free coffee and cookie like some of their dealers offer now. As for Lexus they undoubtedly have the market cornered on ugly.
October 14th, 2021 at 6:26 pm
I don’t understand what Lexus is thinking with their front ends. Some Lexi are decidedly bad buys compared to their Toyota counterparts, but some are not. In both cases, they’d sell more if they didn’t deliberately make them ugly.
October 15th, 2021 at 12:16 am
I cant decide if the Lexus grille is something that will grow on me in time or not. Its a dramatic bold design that does make their SUV stand out from the all very similar designed SUVs. For now it seems too much and not attractive but I wonder in 2 years if I’ll still feel that way.
New car prices: Well that’s only seemed to state the obvious. With this chip shortage and manufacturers funneling their limited availability to their high end vehicles and not much else being left on lots making some vehicles sell over their sticker, what did you expect? This shouldn’t have been a shock to anyone.
The only thing move obvious was the article on safety systems needing to be tested in real world environments. How many times on this site alone has it been mentioned in the comments that Av is great in sunny Cali. When it works in February in Michigan then let me know.
October 15th, 2021 at 5:57 am
20 Kit – A good read! I was also under the erroneous impression Mercedes-Benz had pioneered the use of ABS in cars.
23 – Earl. Interesting observation regarding the uniformity of grills and their consequences.
Try as they might, Toyota and Lexus can’t scare away their customers. The latest incarnation again goes for more size, but at least it’s fairly straightforward.
Fins progressed in the exact same manner, and one day were just gone.
There’s a slew of new Chinese EVs being introduced, and some will find their way overseas. Check out the Leapmotor C11.
October 15th, 2021 at 6:08 am
While I’m on Chinese-made EVs:
Leapmotor C11 – upscale SUV at an amazing price
en.leapmotor.com/c11.html
Ford Equator – Very stylish Buick ripoff.
carnewschina.com/2021/10/12/ford-equator-sport-is-a-stylish-new-crossover-suv-for-china/
Farnova Othello – more than a fever-dream
carnewschina.com/2021/09/27/farnova-othello-is-a-new-chinese-electric-super-car/
October 15th, 2021 at 7:23 am
They should call that Lexus the Cylon. All it’s missing is the red tracer light .
October 15th, 2021 at 8:42 am
26 I don’t find any Toyota or Lexus actually attractive, but I buy Toyotas anyway, because I like the way their hybrid system works.
I’m contributing to the increase in new car prices, because as I get older, and less concerned about running out of money, I’m buying buying Corvettes instead of Cavaliers. I bought the Cayman slightly used, but my buying it probably resulted in another fairly expensive new car being sold.
October 15th, 2021 at 10:14 am
3) On safety technology. Lets see…the 1950 NASH was the first with seatbelts(lap only). Volvo was the first with a 3 point belt in 1954. Oldsmobile was the first with Air bags in 1973. Chevrolet was the first with a collapsible steering column in 1967. Tucker was the first with shatterproof windshield and padded dash in 1948. Mercedes was the first with “Electronic ABS” in 1978, but the first ABS equipped car was the 1966 British Jensen FF as a mechanical system. From there Mechanical ABS was equipped on the 1971 Chrysler imperial, and Ford had mechanical ABS on the Continental/Thunderbird in 1969. Mercedes was the first with crumple zones in 1958.
When it comes to safety tech, I don’t think you can say any continent was really ahead of another.