AD #1619 – Viper ACR Pricing Announced, Audi to F1?, Nissan Posts Strong 2014 Results
May 13th, 2015 at 11:47am
Runtime: 6:38
- Nissan Posts Strong 2014 Results
- Japanese Carmakers Expand Takata Recall
- Mitsubishi on the Mend
- Audi to F1?
- Dodge Announces ACR Pricing
- Volvo Trucks 1st to Offer Auto AWD
- BMW Pays Homage to 70’s Classic
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On today’s show… Nissan posts strong sales results for 2014, the Takata airbag recall goes from bad to worse and will Daimler be getting some competition in Formula 1 from one of its German rivals? All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily for May 13th, 2015.
NISSAN POSTS STRONG 2014 RESULTS
Thanks to strong sales in North America and Western Europe, Nissan posted solid results for its 2014 full year earnings. The company sold 5.3 million vehicles, a 2.5% gain compared to the year before. Its revenue jumped 8.5% to $104 billion. The company’s operating profit hit $5.4 billion, up 18% and Nissan’s net profit was $4.2 billion, a gain of over 17%. In addition to the boost in sales, the increase in revenue and profits was also helped by the weak yen. And Nissan expects the momentum to continue this year, it forecasts that sales will hit 5.5 million, thanks to the introduction of several key models.
JAPANESE CARMAKERS EXPAND TAKATA RECALL
And speaking of Nissan, it just expanded its recall involving Takata airbags along with Toyota. Bloomberg reports that Nissan is recalling over 1.5 million vehicles globally and Toyota is adding 5 million more to the list. And this isn’t the end, Honda is also planning to expand its recall beyond the 14.4 million vehicles it’s already called back. As we told you last month, investigators from ten different automakers still have not found the root cause of the issue. And it’s likely they never will.
Have you seen our Auto Tune reports? If you’re truly into music we’ve got some great write-ups of songs related to cars, but none of the Top 40 stuff. You can check it out on the Autoline website.
And we’ll be back with more right after this.
MITSUBISHI ON THE MEND
Mitsubishi has seen more volatility in the American market than any other major automaker. In 2002 Mitsubishi sold an impressive 345,000 cars in the US. But by 2009 that plummeted to only 54,000. We’ve never seen an automaker implode so quickly. But now things look like they might be on the mend. Last year sales rose 25% to 77,000 vehicles. And sales are up 21% so far this year, thanks to increases with the Mirage, the Lancer, the Outlander and Outlander Sport.
AUDI TO F1?
Last year Mercedes dominated Formula 1 and it’s doing so again this year. But could it be facing some competition from one of its German luxury rivals sometime soon? Now that longtime Volkswagen chairman Ferdinand Piech has stepped down, Audi could be joining the F1 ranks. Reuters reports that Piech was against the luxury maker joining F1 but Audi’s CEO Rupert Stadler says it remains an option. It’s speculated that the carmaker could team up with Red Bull whose rocky engine partnership with Renault ends next year.
DODGE ANNOUNCES ACR PRICING
For all of you drooling over the 2016 Dodge Viper ACR that was introduced the other day, we now know how much it’s going to lighten your pocketbook by. The street-legal race car will carry a price tag of about $118,000 not including destination charges, which is over $30,000 more than a base Viper. Look for the ACR to hit dealer showrooms later this year.
Coming up next, Volvo comes out with a new feature for its construction trucks and BMW pays homage to one of its classics from the 1970’s.
VOLVO TRUCKS 1ST TO OFFER AUTO AWD
Last week Daimler made a big announcement about testing autonomous semi-trucks in Nevada. And now Volvo Trucks is coming out with its own unique feature, although it’s not quite as revolutionary. It’s the first manufacturer to offer all-wheel drive with automatic traction control for construction trucks. The front axle is used only when needed. When sensors in the rear wheels detect that it’s losing traction, AWD is instantly engaged, a dog clutch transfers power to the front axle without losing torque or speed. Not only does it make driving easier it also helps reduce fuel consumption and wear and tear compared with front-wheel drive trucks. The system is currently used on Volvo construction equipment and now is standard on its FMX truck.
BMW PAYS HOMAGE TO 70’S CLASSIC
On May 22nd BMW is going to pull the wraps off a wild-looking concept called the 3.0 CSL Hommage. It’s the automaker’s tribute to the 3.0 CSL from the 70’s. As you can see from the teaser shot, this thing is going to have some bold features and even though you can’t see them, BMW says the front fenders and roof will be equally as distinctive. And with extensive use of carbon fiber, I think I even see a little nod at the i8 around the rear taillight. This is not just some beauty queen. The interior has been stripped down to only elements that are structural or driving-related. It’s going to be interesting to see this car in its full monte.
And make sure you tune in for this week’s Autoline After Hours. Our special guest is Travis Hester, the Executive Chief Engineer of the Cadillac CT6. So if you’ve got any questions about Cadillac’s new flagship, send your questions to viewermail@autoline.tv. That’s this Thursday at 3PM eastern time on our website Autoline.tv.
Thanks for watching and we’ll be back tomorrow with the latest automotive news.
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Comments (17)
May 13th, 2015 at 11:55 am
So, is there proof, really, that something is genuinely wrong with the Takata airbags? Is this another “unintended acceleration” type issue where a Japanese company (ala Firestone) is victimized of $Billions of dollars?
May 13th, 2015 at 12:13 pm
The airbag recall is kinda weird.Unless they can discover exactly what is wrong,how can they affect a fix/redesign? And so far,it doesn’t seem that they can pinpoint the problem.
May 13th, 2015 at 12:52 pm
This January the Nissan dealer said our car was not part of the airbag recall. We’ll see.
May 13th, 2015 at 12:59 pm
The Takata airbag recall seems reminiscent of the GM side saddle gas tanks. The vehicles were tested and passed the required testing. If they cannot reproduce the failure, how do they even begin to fix it? Oh that’s right GM could not reproduce the fireball shown on TV because it was manufactured by sensational journalism.
May 13th, 2015 at 1:01 pm
I don’t get RedBull’s logic for publicly pushing Audi to join F1, saying they’ll bolt the series if the manufacturer doesn’t come. If I’m Audi, why not wait for RB to go, and then snap up the team at a discount? Plus there’s the possibility of F1 changing the engine format yet again, maybe making F1 attractive again. Plus encore, Michelin is now making noises about returning if the tire regs are changed to make more sense for racing. (They really said this)
May 13th, 2015 at 1:16 pm
The first picture got me interested in the 3.0 CSL, but then I realized it was the 70s version.
Cars…so bloated and boring today. I am thirsty for anything that is small and stylish.
May 13th, 2015 at 1:32 pm
The Takata airbag problem is real and dangerous. In Orlando a woman was killed behind the wheel of her 10 year old Honda Accord when the driver’s airbag exploded and the metal chunks stabbed her in the chest and neck. The Police initially thought it was a robbery-murder gone bad. The problem is trying to reconstruct an explosion, and determine what inside of the airbag goes wrong?
May 13th, 2015 at 1:34 pm
Takata’s airbags are consistent in their failure (shards of metal enter the area of airbag deployment sometimes injuring or killing occupants), just not reproducible or universal in failure. The reported percentage is very very small, but if it occurs, the outcome can be catastrophic. The cause is allusive for sure, however at some point will probably be found. My guess is that there are inconsistencies in manufacture of the canister that contains the propellant and depending on metallurgy or orientation to the charge the explosion propelling the airbag is just slightly off the intended direction and includes part of the canister that was designed to remain intact and stay with the assembly.
May 13th, 2015 at 1:41 pm
8. Interesting. In Jason Vines’s recent book, he said that the bad Firestone tires were coming out of a single factory with manufacturing issues.
May 13th, 2015 at 1:50 pm
According to Tacata, the failure rate is only 1 in 167,000 deployments. If that is true, no wonder it is difficult to pinpoint the problem. http://m.wardsauto.com/blog/lessons-takata-airbag-disaster
May 13th, 2015 at 2:09 pm
8 Agreed seems to only happen in warm humid climates and on older cars. Like the tanks are rusting out. Hope they wernt Hurricane Katrina slavages.
May 13th, 2015 at 2:10 pm
salvages.
May 13th, 2015 at 4:11 pm
I wonder if those Takata canister were made in China, could explain why the metal failed, their metallurgy is not exactly up to Western standards.
May 13th, 2015 at 4:51 pm
Mitsubishi on the mend? I just saw a major rental car company take delivery of a boatload of Mirages to replace the outgoing Galants and Sparks. Remove the fleet sales and we will see how well Mitsu. is doing.
May 13th, 2015 at 4:58 pm
My local Mitsu dealer has very few Mirages on the lot, don’t know if they’re sold or they just don’t order many. Off topic, crawling north yesterday around 430pm on I-95 from Miami to Ft Lauderdale at 5 to 10 mph, big billboard for an exotic car rental place, proclaiming that Miami is the fast car capital of the world, I started laughing like an idiot.
May 13th, 2015 at 11:15 pm
Forget autonomous cars. We need autonomous trains, which would be easy, not having to steer. The train that wrecked in Philadelphia was going 107 mph where it should have been going 50. Make the trains autonomous, with a backup “engineer” in the front. It should be possible to easily automate a train, to where it wouldn’t much matter if the person was asleep or texting.
May 14th, 2015 at 12:36 am
@ #16 I agree.
John, we gotta get you a better spot for Autoline at WDSC Daytona-Orlando. You come on at 3am and your show is better than that time slot!