Listen to “AD #2873 – All-New Bronco Highlights; Cadillac Changing Naming Structure Again; Hyundai Group Sets Lofty EV Goals” on Spreaker.
Follow us on social media:
Runtime: 12:14
0:23 All-New Ford Bronco Highlights
3:12 Jeep Reveals V8 Wrangler Concept
4:23 Cadillac Changing Model Names Again
5:04 Hyundai Group Sets Lofty EV Goals
5:24 BMW Pulls Wraps Off Electric iX3
6:28 Daimler Goes After Counterfeit Parts Makers
7:25 Ford Learns New Business Model from Microsoft
9:43 Survey Says Consumers Want Anti-Microbial Coatings
10:37 Interior Disinfectant Spray Approved by EPA
11:10 Rolls-Royce Improves Its Air Filtration System
Visit our sponsors to thank them for their support of Autoline Daily: Bridgestone and Intrepid Control Systems.
This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE ALL-NEW BRONCO
If you’re just crawling out from under that rock, the all-new Ford Bronco 2-door, 4-door and Sport debuted yesterday. Let’s start out by looking at the entry into the brand, the Bronco Sport. Call it the Baby Bronco, if you will, but the Sport has similar styling to its larger siblings and comes standard with 4-wheel drive. Under the hood will be the choice of a 1.5L EcoBoost engine that will put out roughly 180 horsepower or a 2.0L turbo that is targeting 245 horsepower. Those numbers are with premium fuel. Both engines are mated to an 8-speed automatic. The interior has a rugged-look with blocky shapes around the air vents and instrument cluster and an 8-inch touchscreen sits high in the middle of the dash. While the Sport is the more road-going version of the Broncos, it will still be quite capable off-road. It features 7 terrain modes, twin-clutch rear-drive unit with a differential lock feature, unique shock tuning, off-road cruise control and up to 29-inch tires. One of the biggest differences is suspension setup. The Bronco Sport has independent suspension front and rear, while the 2- and 4-door models have Dana 44 solid rear axles and independent front suspension. Both front and rear are available with locking differentials. The larger Broncos also have 7 terrain modes and off-road cruise control, but come with two 4X4 systems as well. The base system utilizes a two-speed electronic transfer case, while the optional system features a two-speed electromechanical transfer case that can automatically switch between 2-high and 4-high. Other off-road goodies include Trail Turn Assist, one-pedal braking and accelerating control, under-body skid plates and up to 33.5-inch tires. Again two engines are available; a 2.3L turbo that is projected to produce 270 horsepower and a 2.7L EcoBoost producing about 310 horsepower. A 7-speed manual and 10-speed automatic are available to send power to the 4-wheel drive system. The boxy shapes of the interior give it a classic vibe, but modern materials, switchgear and either an 8- or 12-inch center display help blend it into the 21st century. The new Broncos arrive at dealerships later this year and potential buyers can plunk down $100 to reserve theirs today. Pricing for the Bronco Sport will start at just over $28,000, while the larger Bronco will start just below $30,000.
JEEP SLAPS V8 IN WRANGLER CONCEPT
And here’s Jeep’s attempt to steal some of the spotlight away from the Bronco. It revealed the teaser that we showed in yesterday’s show, the Wrangler Rubicon 392 Concept. Engineers needed to upgrade the engine mounts and modify the frame to shoehorn the 6.4L V8 under the hood as well as beef up the 8-speed transmission. But the result is 450 horsepower and 450 lb-ft of torque and a Wrangler that will do 0-60 in under 5-seconds. Other upgrades include Dana 44 axles, two-speed transfer case, electronic front and rear lockers, a 2-inch lift kit and 37-inch mud tires. Jeep says “enthusiasts have been clamoring for a V-8-powered production Wrangler…” and this “… is an indication they may soon get their wish.”
CADILLAC TO RENAME ITS VEHICLES AGAIN
As Cadillac transitions into an all-electric brand, it’s going to rename all its vehicles. The website GM Authority reports that Cadillac is going to drop the CT and XT letters for naming its models and will rename all of them so they end with the letters iq, pronounced ‘ick.’ The first will be the electric Cadillac SUV called the Lyriq. And it’s coming out with a hand built luxury car which will be called the Celestiq. And make sure you pronounce it right. It’s not the Celes-TEEK. It’s the Ce-LES-tick. There ya go, now you’re as fully confused about Cadilla’s naming structure again as we are.
HYUNDAI GROUP SETS LOFTY EV GOALS
The Hyundai Group has some pretty ambitious goals for the EV segment. Together with Kia and Genesis, it set a target of selling one million EVs by 2025 and take 10% of the global market for electric cars. This would include fuel cell cars as well as battery electrics.
BMW REVEALS ELECTRIC iX3
BMW pulled the wraps off its latest electric model, the iX3. It’s not a dedicated EV, just an electric version of the X3 that also offers gasoline and diesel engines. It’s made at BMW’s assembly plant in Shenyang, China and will be the first BMW to be exported from China. BMW claims it increased the power density of the electric drive system by 30% and density of the battery cells by 20%. With an 80 kilowatt hour battery the iX3 delivers 460 kilometres of range, or about 285 miles on the WLTP test. Even so, the iX3 uses 19-5 to 18.5 kilowatt hours per 100 kilometers. That works out to roughly 3 miles of range per kilowatt hour, versus nearly 4 miles for a Tesla Model 3. And that’s the disadvantage of having an electric car that does not use a dedicated EV platform.
DAIMLER GOES AFTER COUNTERFEIT PARTS MAKERS
Daimler is worried enough about people selling counterfeit parts for its vehicles that it formed the Intellectual Property Enforcement unit to hunt down and work with law enforcement to stop the sale of illegal parts. Last year, more than 1.6 million fake Daimler products were confiscated. Many of them were safety related parts, like brakes, wheels and windshields, which could affect the vehicle performance. And it’s a bigger market than you might expect. Some estimate that more than $509 billion is spent every year on counterfeit spare parts and in some cases the margins are better than selling illegal drugs.
FORD LEARNS NEW BUSINESS MODEL FROM MICROSOFT
As cars become more connected, there’s an opportunity for the auto industry to monetize all the data flowing in and out of cars. The business model in the industry is changing from transactional to relational. What’s that mean? Well Ford had one of those “Aha” moments when it paid a visit to Microsoft, as Hau Thai-Tang, the head of product development at Ford told us on Autoline After Hours.
Hau Thai-Tang, Head of Product Development, Ford
“The light bulb went off for me in the early days of Jim’s (Hackett) tenure when he took us on a trip to do some benchmarking. We went to Microsoft and we met with Satya Nadella, the CEO of Microsoft and his leadership team. And in the conversation Satya said to us, “Do you know Google makes more money on every PC than Microsoft does?’ And we kind of shook our heads and intellectually we understood. But he said, ‘No, you don’t understand the significance of that.’ He said, ‘What that really meant was the business model has changed from a transaction model. The Microsoft that Bill Gates founded, that Steve Ballmer ran, that I inherited, our premise was that we would sell the operating system on the PC, Microsoft Windows and the Microsoft Office Suite. That’s how we organized ourselves, that’s how we measured our success. But as soon as a customer buys that PC, goes home, fires up Windows and gets on the internet using Microsoft Explorer, every time they do a search, Google would monetize the ad traffic. And for the life of that device they would actually make more money than Microsoft. So the learning for you guys is the business model changes from a transactional model–you buy a truck and we hope you come back in 6 years and buy another one–to now you have a continuous relationship with that customer. You’re able to provide them with enhanced value. You can monetize that.’ So for us that’s a huge investment that’s going to be game changing in terms of what we’ll be able to do for our customers and also represents a shift in the business model for us.”
Be sure to join us this Thursday on After Hours when our guest will be Trevor Pawl, the chief mobility officer for the state of Michigan.
SURVEY SAYS CONSUMERS WANT ANTI-MICROBIAL COATINGS
In light of the COVID-19 pandemic, car buyers want vehicles that will protect them from the virus. That’s the conclusion of a new survey from IHS Markit. It asked 800 consumers in the U.S., China, Germany, Italy and Japan, whether they want anti-microbial coatings in their next vehicle. And 54% said they were “very interested” or “interested” in having that type of protection. The most common areas consumers want coated are the door handles, steering wheels, seats, touchscreen display and center console. Nearly half of the respondents said they would be willing to pay more than $100 for anti-microbial coatings. The survey also asked about ridesharing and 25% said they would not use it after the COVID-19 pandemic, and about 50% said they still would but not as frequently.
INTERIOR DISINFECTANT SPRAY APPROVED BY EPA
But here’s another solution to keep your car clean. NuVinAir Global is launching an EPA-approved disinfectant spray specifically for vehicle interiors, that kills 99.9% of germs, bacteria and viruses, including COVID-19. Called , the company says it doesn’t contain any harsh chemicals, sticky residue or volatile organic compounds. So it won’t damage any surfaces and there’s no chemical smell.
ROLLS-ROYCE IMPROVES AIR FILTRATION SYSTEM
And in related news, Rolls-Royce is coming out with a new air-filtration system that it claims will make its vehicles the cleanest interiors of any car. Sensors in the vehicle detect ambient air quality, which automatically switch fresh air intakes to a recirculation mode if high levels of contaminants are detected. This channels all cabin air through a nanofleece filter, which removes all ultra-fine particles, bacteria and viruses from the interior in less than two minutes. In the future, owners will be able to turn on this function with an app before they get in the car. The air-filtration system debuts in the new Ghost which launches this fall.
But that wraps up today’s show, thanks for watching, we’ll see you again tomorrow.
Thanks to our partner for embedding Autoline Daily on its website: WardsAuto.com
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.