Runtime: 6:31
0:31 Next-Gen Mustang Has 2022 Production Date
0:52 Transit Connect Moves to Flat Rock
1:14 Lincoln to Drop Continental in Just 2 Years
2:05 GM & Audi Make EV Push in China
2:38 Mazda & Subaru Hold Back on EVs
3:20 Hella Upgrades Matrix Headlamps
4:01 Apple CarPlay to Allow Google Maps & Waze
4:52 Continental Bans Certain Social Media
5:37 Vending Machines Headed to Ride-Sharing
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On today’s show… The Ford Motor Company is going to get rid of the Lincoln Continental… and the supplier company Continental is banning its employees from using certain social media… and wouldn’t you know it, ride sharing cars will come with vending machines. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily the show for enthusiasts of the automotive industry.
NEXT GEN MUSTANG DEBUTS IN 2022
We start out today with a bunch of product news about Ford. It keeps making improvements to the Mustang and spinning off variants like the GT, the Shelby GT350 and the Bullitt. But the next generation Mustang will not come out for another four years. Autoforecast Solutions reports it will go into production in March of 2022.
TRANSIT CONNECT MOVES TO FLAT ROCK
The Mustang is built at Ford’s assembly plant in Flat Rock, Michigan and that’s where the next generation of the Transit Connect will get built. But the new version will be an autonomous, hybrid minivan that will be used for ride sharing services that Ford will launch. Autoforecast Solutions says it will go into production in August of 2021.
LINCOLN CONTINENTAL GETS THE AXE
Right now the Lincoln Continental is also made at the Flat Rock plant. But as part of Ford’s retreat from passenger sedans, it’s getting the axe. It goes out of production only two years from now. Even though it hit the market less than two years ago, sales have been disappointing. Last month sales plummeted 40%. They only sold 660 of them. So far this year fewer than 4,000 customers have bought a Continental.
And we’ll be back with more right after this.
GM & AUDI MAKE EV PUSH IN CHINA
Next year China is mandating that 10% of all vehicles sold in the country have to be plug-ins or electrics. In 2020 the mandate rises to 12% and keeps on ramping up after that. Automakers are scrambling to try and meet that mandate. General Motors, along with its joint venture partners SAIC and Wulling, announced they will introduce 20 new-energy models by 2023. And Audi says it will locally produce 5 electrified vehicles by 2022.
SUBARU & MAZDA HOLD BACK ON EVs
But not all automakers are jumping head first into the EV market. Smaller automakers, like Subaru and Mazda, are holding back. While Subaru of America will introduce a plug-in version of the Crosstrek, CEO Tom Doll tells Blooomberg that they’re going to let other automakers develop the market for battery electrics before they jump in. Same with Mazda. It’s going to rely on its Spark-Controlled Compression Ignition engine, called SKYACTIV-X. But it does have EV plans in the pipeline. You may remember Mazda, Toyota and Denso all formed a new company that will focus on developing EVs.
HELLA MAKES UPGRADES TO MATRIX HEADLAMPS
We’ve reported on Audi’s Matrix LED headlamps in the past and now lighting supplier Hella is showing off the latest generation. One cool new feature is predictive dimming. If a car puts on its turn signal to change lanes, the headlamp will black out the next lane over, so the driver ahead isn’t blinded. There’s also a segmented cornering light that can spread light out an additional 90-degrees in a turn. And the Matrix headlamps now feature a laser that can send out a more intense beam much further within the LED lighting field. Hella shows how this could be used to light a curve in the road far ahead of the vehicle.
APPLE CARPLAY TO ENABLE GOOGLE MAPS AND WAZE
Apple says its new iOS 12 software will let Apple Carplay use 3rd party navigation apps. Previously, the only navigation software available with Apple Carplay was Apple’s own Apple Maps. But that’s not what people want. So Apple will allow its users to use Google Maps or Waze. And that’s really something, that Apple has to let Google into the house.
Coming up next, I suppose it was inevitable, but ride sharing cars will come with vending machines.
CONTINENTAL BANS WHATSAPP AND SNAPCHAT
Employees at Continental who use WhatsApp or Snapchat on the job better watch out. Continental is forbidding its employees from using these social media apps in its corporate computer network. It’s all about cyber security. WhatsApp and Snapchat demand access to the personal data of users, which they then sell to third parties and that could compromise company data. Continental says this is part of its “Vision Zero” for the future, where there will be no accidents on physical highways or what they call the “digital highway.” However, Continental is willing to unban these apps if they ask users for permission to opt in before collecting data.
VENDING MACHINES IN RIDE SHARING CARS
Grab is the name of a ride sharing service in Singapore, and it is going to put let passengers buy snacks and other goodies in their cars. Grab announced a partnership with the New York-based company Cargo, which will install vending machines in their cars. The drivers get a cut of all the snacks their passengers buy. There are already some big names selling through Cargo, too, like Coca-Cola and Kellogg. 1,000 drivers will be trying out Cargo’s vending machines in Singapore this week before it moves to other countries.
And that wraps up today’s report, thanks for watching and remember, we’ll be right back here 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.