AD #2907 – Toyota Launches Yaris Cross; NHTSA Delays Quiet Car Mandate; Global Car Sales Down 25%
August 31st, 2020 at 11:50am
Listen to “AD #2907 – Toyota Launches Yaris Cross; NHTSA Delays Quiet Car Mandate; Global Car Sales Down 25%” on Spreaker.
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Runtime: 7:53
0:07 Global Car Sales Down by A Quarter
0:52 Analysts Predict Longer Product Cycles
1:43 Toyota Launches Yaris Cross
3:19 Honda & Toyota Partner on Mobile Power System
4:14 NHTSA Delays Quiet Car Mandate
5:10 Jeep Teases New Wagoneer
5:51 VW Offers Online Shopping for ID.4
6:37 Continental Faces Its Dark Past
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GLOBAL CAR SALES DOWN BY A QUARTER
And the global auto industry is hurting this year. Wards Intelligence reports that sales in the first half of the year dropped 25%. That means that automakers around the world built 13.5 million fewer vehicles. Here’s our Autoline Insight. That’s the equivalent of shutting 54 assembly plants and laying off more than 160,000 workers. It’s also the equivalent of shutting 27 engine plants and 27 transmission plants, which gets rid of another 80,000 people. And remember, this doesn’t include all the people at the supplier companies that were impacted. The second half of the year should be better, but these numbers show how hard the pandemic hit the industry.
ANALYSTS PREDICT LONGER PRODUCT CYCLES
With production down, automakers are looking for any way they can to cut costs. One quick way is to reduce different trim options. Last year, GM eliminated about 3,500 parts coming into its assembly plants simply by getting rid of trim lines. For example, it cut two trim lines on the Chevrolet Equinox, and chopped 11 different powertrain combinations down to five. Buick just eliminated two trim lines on the Encore. But even that is not enough. IHS Markit predicts that instead of redesigning their cars every 5 years or so, automakers will extend that to 8 or 10 years, with a mid-cycle refresh. And we’d like to point out that as electric vehicles adopt the so-called skateboard chassis, it’s going to be easier to do a simple refresh.
TOYOTA LAUNCHES YARIS CROSS
Earlier this year, Toyota unveiled a crossover version of the Yaris. And it’s now on sale in Japan. It’s the first compact vehicle built on Toyota’s TNGA platform. It’s powered by a 1.5L three-cylinder engine that can be mated to a CVT or six-speed manual. A hybrid version is available as well, which is powered by the same 3-cylinder engine. It’s also offered in front or four-wheel-drive and hybrid models are available with electric 4WD too. Toyota’s SafetySense suite of advanced driver assistance systems is standard on most trims. The gasoline model starts at about $17,000 while the hybrid starts at around $21,500. It will also go on sale in Europe next year.
HONDA & TOYOTA PARTNER ON MOBILE POWER SYSTEM
Disasters have the tendency to bring people and apparently automakers together. In a highly unusual move, Toyota and Honda are collaborating on a mobile power system to aid areas that lose power during natural events like typhoons or rainstorms. The system, called the Moving e, consists of a Toyota Fuel Cell bus with double the hydrogen capacity of the standard bus, which is then packed with nearly 100 portable battery packs of different sizes from Honda. The buses are able to generate up to 490 kWh of power with a maximum output of 18 kW. However, the further the bus has to drive to a disaster area the less power it will be able to generate since it runs off of that hydrogen too. But another benefit is that the Moving e can still transport people or just be used as a place to rest.
NHTSA DELAYS QUIET CAR MANDATE
Due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is giving automakers another 6 months to meet the quiet car mandate. That’s where all electric and hybrid vehicles must make some sort of sound when travelling below about 19 MPH so that anyone outside of the vehicle can hear it coming. We only have one question, what the heck is taking so long with this? Congress first asked for an acoustic alert system back in 2010 and Europe has had it in place for over a year now on all new vehicles. We wonder what the difficulty is? In April, GM, VW and Toyota all asked for the deadline to be extended by a year. Instead of September 1st like they ask for, they’ll now have to have it done by March 1st. NHTSA says the delay strikes a balance between providing relief and implementation of the technology.
JEEP TEASES NEW WAGONEER
Just in case you’ve missed it, Jeep keeps teasing the new Wagoneer. We’ve seen a shot of the grille, a silhouette of the front end, a view from the top, a look at a part of the dash and air vent and even a little bit of the badging. But at least we won’t have to wait much longer to see the whole thing. The Wagoneer debuts on Thursday the 3rd at 9AM eastern time on YouTube.
VW OFFERS ONLINE SHOPPING FOR ID.4
More and more people are interested in shopping for a vehicle online. So, Volkswagen is launching a new website for car buyers in the U.S. for the upcoming ID.4. The site allows visitors to research the vehicle, helps them decide if an EV fits their needs, schedule a test drive, make a $100 reservation and then track their vehicle from the plant to the dealership. Volkswagen hopes the website will lead to more interest in EVs as well as expand online ordering. But Volkswagen executives say it’s not an attempt to minimize dealers and they will remain a big part of the sales process. Volkswagen will unveil the ID.4 next month and it goes on sale in ZEV states in the U.S. by the end of the year.
CONTINENTAL FACES ITS DARK PAST
Continental, the giant German supplier, conducted an amazing study of how it collaborated with the Nazi regime during World War II. It commissioned a comprehensive, four-year, academic study and the conclusions are grim. It says Continental became a pillar of the Nazi war machine and benefitted greatly from its collaboration. While many German companies were able to prevent the Nazis from influencing or dominating them, Continental embraced the Nazis. It even exploited and mistreated concentration camp prisoners. It’s a terrible story, but you’ve got to admire Continental for dredging up its ugly past, and using that to start an internal debate on corporate social responsibility and integrating that into its corporate strategy. That takes guts, and we salute Continental for not trying to hide from its past.
But that’s it for today. Thanks for watching and we hope to see you back here again tomorrow.
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Comments (27)
August 31st, 2020 at 12:27 pm
Toyota is wise to sell its IDIOTIC Nth crossover the YARIS of all wimpy vehicles ONLY in Japan and Europe, and NOT in the US where it would have BOMBED just as its discontinued parent model, the pathetic Yaris, which was NEVER DESIGNED with the needs of the AMERICAN consumer in mind.
but even in Japan and Europe, it was hardly worth the effort and expense, it will not sell well. Toyota has ALREADY better crosses whose sales the stupid Yaris will CANNIBalize.
Automakers, do you hear??? You need MUCH FEWER, better models, NOT more pathetic models.
August 31st, 2020 at 12:52 pm
Old Auto Co. S are shrinking, their stocks are SINKING , Tesla? It is growing at an astounding pace, almost at the pace of the TSLA Stock.
August 31st, 2020 at 12:52 pm
Old Auto Co. S are shrinking, their stocks are SINKING , Tesla? It is growing at an astounding pace, almost at the pace of the TSLA Stock.
August 31st, 2020 at 12:54 pm
Looks like some Wall Street Analysts were right about Tesla , it is positioned to weather the Covid pandemic the best.
August 31st, 2020 at 12:58 pm
Aug 31,2020 TSLA @ $476
August 31st, 2020 at 1:02 pm
$476×5=$2380 Tsla -Elons other Rocketships.
August 31st, 2020 at 1:22 pm
One wonders what triggered Continental to finally, 80 years later, face up to its actions. If they didn’t want to uncover it for decades, the conclusion I reach is that they feel enough time has passed that the information won’t hurt the company’s business. Not noble, just business.
August 31st, 2020 at 1:41 pm
Regarding the Quiet Car regulation, never underestimate NHTSA’s ability to deviate from standards in other parts of the world and make the requirements more convoluted. The number of speakers, pitch changes, etc. have complicated a seemingly simple requirement. Think about the speakers. They need to be packaged and weather-proof.
August 31st, 2020 at 1:43 pm
On the quiet car mandate, what sounds will they produce? How about the tunes from a ice cream truck.
August 31st, 2020 at 1:58 pm
Just noticed that the Continental ‘horse’ looks a lot like the prancing horse that Ferrari uses for it’s symbol, anyone know of any conflict between the two companies using the same horse symbol? Thanks.
August 31st, 2020 at 2:20 pm
I welcome the new Wagoneer, there seems there a lot of idiots with bad taste who somehow have the $ to waste on ridiculously priced Escalades and Navigators. Maybe this segment needs some more COMPETITION to bring those lofty prices and profits DOWN.
August 31st, 2020 at 2:23 pm
11 today’s tease of the wagoneer was 100% worthless, but who cares? The real deal will be unveiled just 3 days from now.
August 31st, 2020 at 2:55 pm
Maybe the electric cars could just simply turn on the battery cooling or AC fans when the cars are below 19MPH. Fan roar is about the only noise at those speeds in my daily driver.
August 31st, 2020 at 3:36 pm
Quiet car mandate – Quite some time ago someone on this list suggested that EVs sound like the Jetsons flying car. Perfect!
August 31st, 2020 at 3:46 pm
@9 I have one of these noise generating systems on an Escape HEV. The sound seems to perfectly match the sound of gravel stuck between the brake rotor and shields (not a squeal, just a rubbing sound). It would not have been my first choice, as it sounds like something is wrong with the car. I would have thought a simulated electric motor sound (I’m thinking something like an electric golf cart noise) would have been better. Everyone always asks me what is wrong with my car, as it is quite loud, even from inside the cabin with the windows up. The forward speaker isn’t as bad, it’s mainly the reverse that is loud inside.
August 31st, 2020 at 7:17 pm
Larry, You already admitted you would never buy a new car. How could you possibly know what would sell to people who do buy new? As companies group their products around platform component sets, the cost of a new body style variant declines. Let Toyota experiment. They might develop something new and interesting.
August 31st, 2020 at 8:31 pm
DIck Lee of Value Innovation (see John’s YouTube interview web link) has done something brilliant. Instead of looking in the usual forums and surveys, he scrapes opinions about cars from the Twitter fire-hose. There is still the tricky part of defining the search lexical terms but his example about the Polestar 2 key fob is brilliant.
The interview is ~15 minutes but playing it back faster makes it worth watching. Well done John McElroy.
August 31st, 2020 at 11:26 pm
17. From what I could find, the Polestar 2 doesn’t have a key fob. It uses your phone. What is wrong with that, for most people, as long as it works reliably?
September 1st, 2020 at 3:30 am
18 – I was recounting what I saw in YouTube video and have no interest in the Polestar 2. However, my Tesla Model 3 has three options: (1) RFID card; (2) iPhone, and; (3) extra cost key fob.
The RFID card is reliable but no optional functions. The iPhone works mostly and controls and reports status of the car but limited to Bluetooth range and cell data. Because the iPhone works ‘good enough,’ I’ve not bought the optional key fob. Speculation, the Dick Lee report may be smart phone communication and app issues that I’ve seen with my Model 3 and iPhone.
What impressed me is using the Twitter stream to find information owners and users are sharing. It is not dependent on a user survey or interview. For example, recently J.D. Powers complained that Tesla would not give them access to owners in 15 states. Dick Lee’s approach would not require a survey and could give more timely feedback on the good and bad areas of Tesla ownership … at least for the Twitter users (I am not a Twitter fan.)
September 1st, 2020 at 5:41 am
19 Ten years from now, the vast majority of people will have no clue that Polestar ever existed. AS I said, the CHinese are not stupid, at some point the owners of Volvo will cut their losses, and the hell with their ego.
September 1st, 2020 at 7:02 am
@17 Thank you for the heads up re. Dick Lee! Very interesting interview.
September 1st, 2020 at 7:20 am
19 Will your car work with an android phone, or only with an iPhone?
September 1st, 2020 at 8:51 am
My Model 3 works with both iPhone and Android.
September 1st, 2020 at 8:57 am
If you dont have a key fob and only use your phone, how can others borrow your car if needed, like a relative or service department. You can’t give them your phone!
September 1st, 2020 at 9:32 am
8 I doubt finding a speaker that can be outside the car is much of a problem. Many marine and RV applications have exterior speakers and commercial trucks and busses have been using the annoying back-up beep speaker in horrible environments when placed on a commercial dump truck or garbage truck. I’m not sure what the hold up is but if they made it mandatory it would be available now. One of the selling points of an EV is how quiet they are and having to add sound even if it is only at low speed is counterproductive. I’m guessing they are trying to develop a sound that is heard from the outside but not necessarily from the inside.
September 1st, 2020 at 9:36 am
9 If I was able to pick the sound and I owned an EV I would go for something like the old Jetsons cartoon car. Or the burbling sound that came from chitty chitty bang bang.
September 1st, 2020 at 10:15 am
If I have a car with the noise, and it invades the cabin much, I’d be inclined to find some wires to clip.