AD #3333 – GM Customer Accounts Hacked; Laid Off Coal Workers to Make Batteries; OEMs Going Vegan
May 26th, 2022 at 11:47am
Listen to “AD #3333 – GM Customer Accounts Hacked; Laid Off Coal Workers to Make Batteries; OEMs Going Vegan” on Spreaker.
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Runtime: 10:26
0:07 GM Customer Accounts Hacked
0:59 Laid Off Coal Workers to Make Batteries
1:48 OEMs Going Vegan
4:12 Maserati MC20 Cielo Revealed
5:21 Land Rover Shows Defender 130
5:52 Durango Gets HEMI Orange Package
7:13 Stellantis Fined for Diesel Cheating
7:43 Ford & Tesla Lead the Recall Parade
8:34 Ford Pairs Co-Bot with Disabled Worker
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This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
GM GOT HACKED
General Motors got hacked. Hackers broke into its list of customer accounts. GM filed a disclosure with the California Attorney General’s Office about the data breach. It said it noticed malicious activity between April 11 and April 29 with a number of its online account users. The hackers stole customer reward points which they used to redeem gift cards and the hackers also got personal information from those people. GM says it suspended gift card redemptions and notified customers of the breach. It’s not known exactly how many customers were affected but California requires companies to disclose hacks when it involves 500 or more residents.
WEST VIRGINIA COAL WORKERS TO MAKE BATTERIES
Going green is great, but it shouldn’t cost people their jobs. So an EV battery startup named SPARKZ is partnering with the United Mine Workers of America to recruit and train laid off coal miners to work at a new battery plant that it will open in West Virginia. The factory will employ 350 people, who will produce cobalt-free batteries for forklifts, agricultural equipment and energy storage. And that has got us thinking. The senior senator from West Virginia, Democrat Joe Manchin, has opposed providing extra incentives for EVs and batteries that are made with union labor. But now that union-made batteries will be made in his state, will the senator have a change of heart?
AUTOMAKERS GOING VEGAN
Automakers are telling their interior suppliers they want to go vegan. They’re going to start offering leather-delete options for customers who don’t want animals slaughtered just to trim out their car. So automakers are looking for alternative materials that can replace leather wrapped seats, arm rests, shift knobs and steering wheels. In fact, they don’t even want substitute materials that use graining that mimic an animal’s hide. Instead, they want cloth and high tech vinyls that look and feel good. So Continental refitted an old Volkswagen bus to show how its polyurethane and PVC materials can be used throughout the interior. It even has a fake wood that looks and feels like real oak. These materials are more durable and easier to clean than leather, and they even breathe without any perforations. Conti says designers can go with white seats and steering wheels and not worry about them looking dirty. And it’s also working on a way to repair these materials with a heat gun if they get scratched, scraped or cut. You just heat it up and it seals itself. There’s another factor at work here. High tech vinyls are lower cost than leather. Tesla was the first automaker to go full vegan with its cars, and it sure sounds like the rest of the industry is going to go that way, too.
MASERATI RIPS THE ROOF OFF THE MC20
There’s a bit of news for our piston-powered friends today. And we start off with the convertible version of Maserati’s supercar, which is called the MC20 Cielo. Officially, Maserati calls this a spyder with a “y” and it features a smart glass retractable roof that can change its opacity from light to dark at the push of a button. But when ready for that open air feeling, it folds into the body in just 12 seconds. Like many retractable top cars, the MC20 Cielo weighs more than its coupe counterpart. It’s 65 kilograms or 143 pounds more. But with over 620 horsepower on tap from its twin-turbo V6, I don’t think performance is going to be affected too much. The coupe will do 0-60 in under 2.9 seconds. The coupe also starts at $212,000, so we’d expect the Cielo to go for more. An electric version of the MC20 will be revealed at some point in the future as well.
FIRST PEEK AT THAT 8-PASSENGER LAND ROVER
But back to the piston power again. Land Rover showed this picture of the new long wheelbase version of the Defender. To go along with the 90 and 110, the Defender 130 features 3-rows of seating for up to 8 passengers in a 2-3-3 configuration. Land Rover also says it will come with the latest digital and chassis technologies. More information to come during the full reveal on May 31st.
DODGE DURANGO HEMI ORANGE
Now we jump over to Dodge, who is offering a new appearance package for the Durango, called HEMI Orange. It was actually first offered on the Charger and Challenger, but it proved popular enough that it’s making its way to the Durango. Inspired by the original orange color of the HEMI engine, the package comes with unique orange and Gunmetal hood stripes, grey and orange exterior badging, satin black taillamps, 20-inch wheels and orange stitching throughout the interior. And special-edition packages like these are all about extra profit. Available in three options, the HEMI Orange package retails from about $2,000 up to $5,000.
STELLANTIS FINED FOR FCA’S DIESEL CHEATING
The Justice Department is hammering FCA, now part of Stellantis, with a huge fine for installing defeat devices for diesel engines. Stellantis agreed to plead guilty to criminal conduct and will pay a $300 million fine for cheating on the diesel emission regulations. The investigation involved more than 100,000 Jeeps and Ram pickups built between 2014 and 2016.
FORD, TESLA LEAD THE RECALL PARADE
Lucid has to recall all its cars. There’s a problem with the wiring of its big center screen. But it’s not alone. The entire auto industry has a big problem with recalls. The Wall Street Journal reports that Ford has recalled the most vehicles this year. Tesla is in second place, which is surprising, because it has built so many fewer cars. Even so, Tesla can fix most of its problems with over the air updates. Other automakers that have had big recalls this year include General Motors, Hyundai and Kia, BMW, Nissan and Toyota. Recalls are very disruptive for automakers, and when they come in the middle of a chip shortage and soaring prices for raw materials, it’s even worse.
FORD PAIRS CO-BOT WITH DISABLED WORKER
Working in a factory can be hard on your body. There’s lots of repetitive motions and twisting and turning and over time that can take a toll. So Ford of Europe installed a co-bot to work with one of its long-time employees who developed shoulder and wrist issues, to see if that could help. That employee, Dietmar Brauner, who works at Ford’s engine plant in Cologne, Germany, had to press two camshaft caps into the cylinder head and bolt them into place. But pressing the caps into the head caused him pain. So now the co-bot presses the caps in place and Dietmar only has to use a nut runner to tighten them up. Co-bots are robots that are designed to work with humans and will instantly stop if the worker gets in the robot’s path. Ford declared the 18-month trial a success and says this shows that people with disabilities or reduced mobility can take manufacturing jobs without the need for protective devices.
A programming note before we go. There will not be an Autoline After Hours show this afternoon, and Autoline Daily will also be off the air on Monday as we all celebrate Memorial Day.
But that the end of today’s show. Thanks for joining us.
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Comments (31)
May 26th, 2022 at 12:28 pm
Since Tesla likes to use its owners as final product development drivers, I am not the least bit surprised that they came in 2nd on the list of brand issuing recalls. The only surprising thing is that they didn’t come in at #1.
May 26th, 2022 at 12:30 pm
On the vegan issue, Sean, where does the leather come from in the vehicles I buy? I always assumed that it came from cattle being slaughtered for meat, so at least the hide was not going to waste, but maybe that is not correct. Any Autoline Insights would be welcome!
May 26th, 2022 at 12:33 pm
Are animals being killed for leather? I figured enough were being killed for steaks and hamburgers that there would be a plentiful supply of hides for car seats, without killing cattle for their hides.
Still, today’s vinyl seats, whatever the trade name, seem to be pretty good, and not get brittle and crack in a couple years like the vinyl of the ’60s and ’70s. The vinyl seats in my 9 year old Mini were in perfect condition when I sold it. Also, as the show mentioned, vinyl is much better than leather for or other light colored seats or other items, because it can be easily cleaned.
May 26th, 2022 at 12:38 pm
2) That is where it comes from. Everything from a cow is used. There is very little waste when a cow is slaughtered for food. The vegan option will increase waste. At least it is biodegradable waste.
Not utilizing the hide will increase the cost of food as there would no longer be the subsidy from the sale of the hide. The law of unintended consequences is always at play. Especially with feel good policy set by people that don’t understand where things come from.
May 26th, 2022 at 12:41 pm
Land Rover must be feeling squeezed with these Cadillac Escalades pushing 6-digits.
The Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV full-size SUVs were GM’s highest-priced models at $108,316 and $110,832, respectively, Cox data showed. The Chevrolet Suburban and Chevrolet Tahoe full-sized SUVs had higher ATPs at $70,681 and $67,563, respectively. The Chevrolet Trax is the lowest price GM vehicle at $25,433.
GM’s full-size pickups saw strong pricing. The GMC Sierra average transaction price rose to $64,578 and the Chevrolet Silverado to $54,377, Cox said. Freepress
May 26th, 2022 at 12:42 pm
Hide?
Hide – the Cow’s Outside!
As long as I stay inside I’m safe from the cow, right?
Now you can have your car and eat it, too!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TKxDrlvt22Y
May 26th, 2022 at 12:48 pm
Leather for car seats are not from animals slaughtered for their hide. The cattle would die or be killed in any case; it’s good to use as much of the animal as possible.
Personally, I like the idea of moving away from leather as the only premium option. Cloth can be very comfortable and premium.
I have a bias against using the word ‘vegan’ for all material that’s not leather. Most of these alternatives are based on plastics from the petrochemical industry. So it’s bad to skin an already dead animal but ok to support the number one industry that’s destroying everything on the planet, including cattle? That’ll be my rant for this week.
May 26th, 2022 at 12:52 pm
I am looking forward learning the name of the token Stellantis executive who will spend time in a U.S. jail for the diesel scandal.
May 26th, 2022 at 12:54 pm
4 I agree with you, but the vegan answer to your point is that there shouldn’t be any animals slaughtered at all, especially not for food.
Personally, I am concerned about the longevity of these new materials in the ecosystem. We’re just now starting to understand what all of the plastics we use are doing to the planet and our bodies, and increasing their use is starting to look like a bad move in the long run.
May 26th, 2022 at 1:23 pm
#8.But, I don’t like barbecued tofu!
May 26th, 2022 at 1:31 pm
2,3,4,6,8 Yeah, the vegan’s argument is mostly moot; but on the darker side would be extra plastic being produced to nullify the leather that was originally slated for production.
May 26th, 2022 at 1:43 pm
So customers what the return of rich Corinthian leather? Otherwise known as Pleathera. Todays vinyl’s are pretty nice and can be as soft and almost mistaken for leather. Do I care if its textured like leather? Nope. However I do like the idea of expanding the texture designs beyond the traditional mocking of leather.
I remember my parents 1972 Impala station wagon with black vinyl seats and even after 7 years with 4 boys crawling around the seats looked like new. I don’t think they were as soft to the touch as stuff today but the durability was there.
May 26th, 2022 at 1:50 pm
Sean it would interesting to see who leads the recall list in terms safety related issues. A recall to fix a window switch vs the one you covered yesterday like exploding seatbelt retractors are hugely different. Just as a software repair that can be done via OTA vs having to bring the vehicle in are in my opinion vastly different when it comes to customer satisfaction.
May 26th, 2022 at 2:05 pm
This vegan interior thing is interesting , because I’m pretty sure animals aren’t being slaughtered soley for providing leather for interiors . pretty sure that it using what is leftover from food processing , but hey if throwing it away makes someone feel better about themselves great. because as long as we still eat beef there will always be leather hides . If a animal is sacrificed for food at least do the right thing and use every part of it.
May 26th, 2022 at 2:12 pm
Also another note on the non use of leather , What is vinyl made from ? Petrochemicals, then what the eco-warriors come roaring in about the use of oil. If we worry about all these fringe -unhinged groups I hope everyone will happy in the ultra luxury vehicle sporting burlap bags for seat covers. It gets ridiculous.
May 26th, 2022 at 2:19 pm
When I think about vinyl seats it takes me back to when I was a kid in shorts in the summer. First you have the pain of getting into the hot car and sitting on the seat, followed by the pain of trying to unstick your legs and move them. I don’t miss this.
May 26th, 2022 at 2:23 pm
7 I like cloth seats, and have them in my Highlander LE, the lowest trim level hybrid.
12 It sounds like they used much better vinyl in 1972 Impala wagons than in 1981 Citations. The blue vinyl driver’s seat in a friend’s Citation was badly cracked withing a couple years, and less than 30K miles. The black cloth in my Citation did much better.
May 26th, 2022 at 2:29 pm
16 Yep, another way that cloth is better than either vinyl or leather. Also, cloth is less cold in the winter.
As far as the environmental aspects, is leather using “byproduct” hides any better than pleather from petroleum, given the many processes and chemicals used to process leather? I don’t know.
https://www.loveyourleather.ca/leather-blog/how-leather-is-made-in-23-steps/
May 26th, 2022 at 2:42 pm
18 I like cloth too but a nice vinyl could be good for the truck which we use to pull the boat. So thoughts of people getting in with wet swim suits or even wet towels the vinyl would fair better than leather and dry quicker than cloth. Not a super high priority though.
May 26th, 2022 at 3:09 pm
13.NHTSA recalls are only related to safety issues: “A recall is issued when a manufacturer or NHTSA determines that a vehicle, equipment, car seat, or tire creates an unreasonable safety risk or fails to meet minimum safety standards.”
Not to be confused with customer satisfaction campaigns, etc.
May 26th, 2022 at 3:40 pm
@20. I didn’t read the Wall Street Journal article, but I don’t see any info to suggest the recall count was only NHTSA. The EPA and CARB can also mandate recalls. And in most cases, I see the customer satisfaction recalls lumped in a well. Most media reports cover any big recall, safety or otherwise.
May 26th, 2022 at 3:44 pm
I prefer cloth too, and was pleased when OEMs finally realized that seat heaters are nice with cloth as well. I have installed aftermarket heaters in several cars because the OEMs wouldn’t allow that combination.
And although I still prefer cloth, I did ride in a Mercedes taxi in Germany with some really nice fake leather. Way better than the vinyl of the old days.
May 26th, 2022 at 4:05 pm
very interesting show today,and great having Michigan onboard
May 26th, 2022 at 4:14 pm
I like cloth best in black, in case I might get oil or similar on it that would be hard to remove completely, and would show on a lighter color.
May 26th, 2022 at 5:14 pm
19. I had a Toyota FJ Cruiser with very comfortable & rugged cloth seats that were waterproof. I imagine they had a plastic layer above the foam. Lots of wet grandchildren and no problems. so it’s possible.
May 26th, 2022 at 5:41 pm
Just a reminder. PVC and all other plastics use lighter hydrocarbons as plasticizers, to get a more rubbery fell. PVC is quite brittle without the plasticizer. Because the plasticizer is lighter, it slowly evaporates over time, at higher temps or if in direct sunlight. In the old days, this led to vinyl on dashboards cracking on almost every older car. New plasticizers have delayed the onset of the problem. Personally, I like cloth, but I would take leather over PVC, just so I would not have to inhale the plasticizers!
May 26th, 2022 at 6:25 pm
26 The thing that comes to mind when I hear PVC is hard plastic, mainly water and sewer pipe. If used for car seats, there must be a lot of plasticizer. Whatever the “leatherette” seats in my 2010 Mini were, they stayed soft for 9 years, I wonder they were PVC with plasticizer that “stayed around” really well, or something else.
May 27th, 2022 at 8:02 am
27 I haven’t experienced any that I know of but I keep hearing how hemp is an amazing material for things like seats so I wonder if they are using that and just keeping quiet due to the negativity around it or its just not being used much.
May 27th, 2022 at 9:01 am
28 Hemp should be good for making very durable cloth seats.
May 27th, 2022 at 10:51 am
I never understood leather anyway. It stick to your skin when you wear shorts. A beautiful fabric interior has always been a preference of mine for that reason.
May 27th, 2022 at 2:30 pm
Just to be different – I’m a leather interior fan. I find it not as hot or cold as vinyl & easy to keep clean.
To each their own – All have a good holiday weekend.