AD #3362 – NIO Accused of Fraud; Hyundai IONIQ 6 is SUV-Sized; Trumpchi Goes Grille Crazy
July 14th, 2022 at 11:49am
Listen to “AD #3362 – NIO Accused of Fraud; Hyundai IONIQ 6 is SUV-Sized; Trumpchi Goes Grille Crazy” on Spreaker.
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Runtime: 10:49
0:11 NIO Accused of Fraud
0:48 Americans Warming Up to EVs
1:27 Walmart Could Buy 20% of Canoo
2:57 Tesla Loses Top AI Executive
3:29 Lordstown Promotes Hightower to CEO
4:06 Trumpchi Goes Grille Crazy
4:41 Hennessey EV Boasts 400 HP at Each Wheel
5:22 Cadillac Celestiq Design Details
7:05 Meet the Honda ZR-V
7:55 Hyundai IONIQ 6 Bigger Than You Think
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NIO ACCUSED OF FRAUD
A couple of American law firms are investigating NIO because they say the EV startup exaggerated its revenue and profits. And not by a little. They say NIO falsified its net income by up to 95%. NIO vehemently denies the charges, but it launched its own independent investigation. The Schall Law Firm and Bragar Eagel & Squire are reaching out to investors who have lost over $100,000 and it sure sounds like this could be a class action lawsuit in the making. NIO stock is down 63% from its peak last year.
AMERICANS WARMING UP TO EVs
China and Europe are leading the way in sales of electric cars, with the U.S. far behind. But Americans are warming up to the idea of owning an EV. In 2019 the AAA, or the American Automobile Association, surveyed households and found that only 16% of Americans were interested in electrics. Now, the AAA says that’s jumped up to 25%. And amongst millennials it’s 30%. The AAA says the main reason why more people are interested in EVs is the high cost of gasoline. But it’s also because more EV models are becoming available.
WALMART COULD BUY 20% OF CANOO
That deal between Walmart and Canoo is a little more interesting than we realized. The retail giant agreed to buy at least 4,500 electric delivery vans from Canoo with the option to buy up to 10,000. That order probably saved the company and its shares shot up 50% on the news. But part of that agreement means Canoo cannot sell vehicles to Amazon, one of Walmart’s main competitors. In fact, Canoo cannot do any business with Amazon or any of its subsidiaries. It also gives Walmart the option to buy up to a 20% stake in the EV startup at a price of $2.15 a share. Canoo’s stock currently sits around $3.50 a share. And that makes us wonder if Walmart might actually end up buying the whole company.
TESLA LOSES TOP AI EXECUTIVE
We’ve got some personnel changes to report here. Tesla is losing its top autonomous and AI executive, Andrej Karpathy. He gave no reason why he’s leaving the company. One Wall Street analyst says this may reflect problems that Tesla is having trying to bring full autonomy and robotaxis to the market. Reuters reports that Tesla will probably find his replacement within the company because it will be hard to find someone with his skill set on the outside.
LORDSTOWN PROMOTES HIGHTOWER TO CEO
Lordstown Motors is promoting its president, Edward Hightower, to CEO of the company. He’s replacing Daniel Ninivaggi, who will become executive chairman. Hightower is a former Ford and GM exec with an engineering background. Lordstown is planning to start production of its Endurance pickup in the third quarter with Foxconn. Edward Hightower was our guest on Autoline This Week and we’ll provide a link to that show in the transcript or description box below if you’d like to catch up on what he had to say about leading the company forward.
TRUMPCHI GOES BLING CRAZY
If you think Lexus and BMW have gone crazy with their front end grille design, check out this monstrosity from Chinese automaker Trumpchi, which is owned by GAC. Say hello to the M8, a 7-passenger MPV, with a gargantuan cascading grille with 10 vertical slats. And if that’s not nuts enough, there’s another version that’s equally as huge, but features horizontal bars, instead of vertical. Prices for the M8 range from about $26,000 to $38,000.
HENNESSY EV BOASTS 400 HP AT EACH WHEEL
Speaking of wild vehicles, Hennessey, the company known for taking sporty cars and making them even sportier, let us peek under the covers of its first EV. Codenamed Project Deep Space, it’s a 6-wheeled, 4-seater, teardrop-shaped EV that will have a 400 horsepower motor at each wheel, for a total of 2,400 horsepower. It’s aiming for the fastest 0-200 MPH time as well as a range of 620 miles or 1,000 kilometers. Production is supposed to kick off in 2026 and each one will cost 3 million bucks.
CADILLAC CELESTIQ DESIGN DETAILS
We’re getting a better look at the Cadillac Celestiq, the hand-built flagship EV that will cost over $350,000. If you look at the upper corners of this picture shot from the trunk, we can see it’s a hatchback and also note the unique material choices for the seats. Looks like the seat backs might even use real wood. Now take a peek at this view looking at the rear seats. There’s lighting on the door panel in an interesting pixelated pattern, the seat belt latches look like they’re incorporated into the hip bolster and we think those lines in the rear windows indicate they’re smart glass, which can change opacity at the push of a button. This will also be featured on the roof of the Celestiq. And don’t worry. There probably won’t be too many more teasers since it makes its public debut on the 22nd.
MEET THE HONDA ZR-V
Honda sure is making its naming structure more confusing. It has the CR-V and HR-V, but now it’s launching the all-new ZR-V in Japan. Zulu, Roger, Victor. Eagle-eyed viewers will recognize this almost exactly the same as the HR-V, but with a few minor differences. We notice a few tweaks to the front and rear bumpers and it features a push-button gear selector. The biggest change is under the hood. The HR-V comes exclusively with a 2.0L 4-cylinder engine. The ZR-V has either a 1.5L turbo mated to a CVT or a 2.0L engine that’s paired with 2 electric motors. Those are the same engine options as the new CR-V that we reported on yesterday. The new ZR-V goes on sale in Japan this fall.
HYUNDAI IONIQ 6 IS BIGGER THAN YOU THINK
Hyundai released a lot of the specs on the Ioniq 6, which goes on sale in South Korea and some European markets late this year and in North America in Q1 of 2022. Here are the basics. There are two battery packs available, 53 kWh and 77.4 kWh. The smaller pack with 18-inch wheels delivers 610 kilometers of WLTP range. That’s 379 miles. We expect the EPA range to be about 340 miles. Hyundai says it only uses 14 kWh of electricity for every 100 kilometers of travel. That translates into 4.4 miles of range per kilowatt hour, which would make the Ioniq 6 the most efficient EV available. While Lucid claims a version of its car is that efficient, those numbers are not backed up by its official EPA rating. The dual-motor AWD version of the Ioniq 6 comes with the larger battery pack, and while Hyundai did not divulge its driving range, it did publish its power output: 320 horsepower and 446 pound feet of torque. Don’t let the swoopy design trick your eye. The Ioniq 6 is quite a large vehicle. It has a 116-inch wheelbase. That’s more than the Hyundai Palisade. It’s 191 inches long, only about 5 inches shorter than a Palisade. And it’s 74 inches wide, which is a bit more than a Sonata. Thanks to its 800 v architecture, the Ioniq can be charged from 10% to 80% in 10 minutes using a 350 kilowatt charger. In South Korea it starts at $42,000 for the base model and $49,000 for the AWD version. There’s a lot more to this car and we’ll provide you with additional information in the days to come.
PETER BROCK ON AAH
Peter Brock is one of the most creative and influential automotive designers of the last half century. And he’s our guest on Autoline After Hours later today. My colleagues Gary Witzenburg and Lindsey Brooke will also be joining me for the show, so I invite you to join us for a fascinating journey with one of the legends of the industry.
And that wraps up today’s report, thanks for watching.
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Comments (36)
July 14th, 2022 at 12:36 pm
John, on the Ioniq 6 story I think you meant to say 2023 on when it will be available in North America.
July 14th, 2022 at 12:39 pm
As for Americans warming up to EV’s. Another way of looking at the numbers is to say that even with high gas prices, 75% of Americans are not interested in owning an EV.
July 14th, 2022 at 12:43 pm
@2 yes, good point. It reminds me of the 2000′s, when most Americans were not interested in buying fuel-efficient vehicles. And GM and the Chrysler Group went belly-up, and Ford almost.
July 14th, 2022 at 12:49 pm
A $300,000 hatchback? I remember when the word hatchback was mostly used derisively and many analysts predicted the demise of this bodystyle altogether because consumers associated it with cheap cars.
The success of the bodystyle really depends on how you define it. You could make the case that all crossovers with liftgates are really hatchbacks.
July 14th, 2022 at 12:51 pm
2 High gas prices can make more people interested in EVs, but is it enough to really make them pull the trigger? Cause I would say as talk increased of $6 a gallon gas I became more interested too, but not enough to go buy anything. Most people are hopeful the prices are a temporary thing and will come back down.
I think as more models keep coming out consumers will be able to find something that fits their budget and needs more easily. That will impact EV sales in the US more than gas prices. Unless gas prices continue to climb and prove to be a long term change.
July 14th, 2022 at 12:52 pm
I also read that even with the “no Amazon business” stipulation, the van order from WalMart is non-binding. The whole company could still collapse in on itself. Or, you may soon be able to buy Canoo vans and pickups at your local WalMart Auto Center!
July 14th, 2022 at 12:54 pm
#1. Yep, you’re right! 2023 it is.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:03 pm
Playing devils advocate: I wonder what will happen to Ford and GM if Americans never really embrace EVs. Government can stop ICE production in 2035 but that doesn’t mean consumers have to buy an EV. For many years there will be good used ICE cars and trucks out there. The prices may jump to the point where a new EV is cheaper than a used ICE, and maybe they’re counting on that. In the meantime sales will certainly suffer. Can they survive those lean years on exporting?
July 14th, 2022 at 1:03 pm
Gas prices, while still high, have leveled and in some cases going down. Just saw in my local area, Charleston, SC and vicinity, prices for regular at $3.89. Still abominable from two years ago, but trending down, so I’m wondering; what next.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:13 pm
@8 yes, maybe exporting is a solution. It seems like Chinese OEMs and European OEMs are phasing out of ICEs. Since EVs are not and I am expecting will not be the solution for all transportation needs, there should be a niche in many countries for ICE-powered vehicles.
Part of the solution has to be morphing of the gasoline stations into hybrid fossil fuel/EV charging stations to avoid the collapse of either of the two options.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:14 pm
John, any comment on the Cadillac Celestiq being a hatchback? Hatchbacks are not all that popular in the US but are very useful. Not a feature you normally see in really expensive cars.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:20 pm
@9 yes, on their way down right now. But in the long run going up: we have 2% of the proven oil reserves (so what is under our land and sea) and our production is 20% of global production. That will not end well for us if we do not change course, since the largest oil reserves are with Venezuela, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Iran and Iraq.
Everybody I know believes we should increase our oil production. Based on the aforementioned (and the fact that we have not found more oil for years) I am the lonely one who believes we should either lower production and mend relationships with the ones who have the largest oil reserves, or reduce our demand.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:23 pm
@12 just to clarify what proven oil reserves means: it is oil that exists and we are drilling for or already producing, plus oil we know probably exists based on exploration by the Department of Energy but are not yet drilling for.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:38 pm
4,11 One of the smartest things Tesla did early on was to make the Model S a hatchback. Hatchbacks are an almost no-compromise way to make any care more utilitarian. The only compromise is, possibly, a little more weight, and less body stiffness. Car companies can handle it pretty well, though.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:40 pm
@14 could you please explain why there is less body stiffness, Kit?
July 14th, 2022 at 1:44 pm
12 I’d like to see us both mend relationships, and reduce demand. We should be able to do better at dealing with Venezuela. We were doing better with Iran, for a while. In the end, the “energy independence” fetish is not a winning game, long term, when most of the reserves of stuff we use so much of are in other countries.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:47 pm
15 I don’t know how true it is, but I’ve heard for years that the structure between the window and the trunk lid adds stiffness, compared to having the big open area with a hatch. I doubt that it is very significant, though.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:51 pm
@16 yes, it should be possible to improve the relationship with especially Venezuela. They have the world’s largest proven petroleum reserves.
July 14th, 2022 at 1:51 pm
@17, I see, I understand it now. Thanks.
July 14th, 2022 at 2:10 pm
I said it before and I’ll repeat it again , anyone who buys a EV mainly to save money on fuel costs is not looking at the big picture. Funny is I just saw a poll this morning where 63% of those that responded said they would never own a EV. So warming up maybe a a bit ambitious at this point
July 14th, 2022 at 2:32 pm
20 The big picture that’s still kind of an unknown, is what happens when the EVs are 12-15 years old, and the $15K batteries start failing.
July 14th, 2022 at 3:40 pm
20 Absolutely correct, and sadly the electric car was originally promoted as a opportunity to save money. The gas savings and maintenance costs were pushed as the main selling point. Sadly; lets be honest, Most Americans are for a clean environment but not willing to pay a lot more money for it. So being green wasn’t a good enough reason.
Even today the level of “green” is under a lot of scrutiny depending on where you live and how these batteries are created and recycled. The cost is much like anything and will end up being a wash at best. Right now the extra purchase cost for the EV takes a long time to recover and electricity isn’t free especially if your not charging at home. So why are consumers not super excited to own an EV and beating down the door to get one? Maybe because they only advantage they have now is acceleration.
July 14th, 2022 at 3:44 pm
I picked up an aidi etron for my better half a year and a half ago. Ev s rock. Instant torque massive power and just charge it with a 220 outlet in the garage. Limited range has never been an issue and believe it or not once you get an ev i downloaded charging station locations amd there are tons of them. Some are even free at malls etc but its never needed. I just charge her up in the garage.
July 14th, 2022 at 4:08 pm
For an administration that is all about human rights, ironic how that we now have to beg (err mend relations) with countries that have the worse track records for this.
July 14th, 2022 at 4:08 pm
For an administration that is all about human rights, ironic how that we now have to beg (err mend relations) with countries that have the worse track records for this.
July 14th, 2022 at 4:16 pm
I think these surveys are deeply flawed. You have vested interested on each side selling their f. u. d. and providing reasons why their side is better without any idea what people want. Then you slant the question in one way or another.
But the biggest flaw is that most people have absolutely none, zero, zilch experience even test driving an EV, let alone living with it.
Until you only ask people personally familiar with the choices a straight forward question and then report by saying the question and then the %, all surveys are as useful as teats on a bull.
July 14th, 2022 at 6:35 pm
25 I’ve driven EVs and like the way they drive, but without home charging, not available at my condo, I wouldn’t buy one. As you say, surveys of people who know nothing about the tradeoffs are not very meaningful.
July 14th, 2022 at 8:14 pm
awesome autoline after hours with peter brock. cant thank you enough.
July 14th, 2022 at 8:46 pm
We have a 2019 Tesla Model 3 and 2014 BMW i3-REx and neither is for sale. We had a 2017 Prius Prime but it gave us less than the BMW so we traded it in for the Tesla.
Today, Tesla is expanding production to handle extreme product demand. It is a very nice problem to have. If others prefer a non-EV, works for me too as EV owners have different and more interesting challenges.
July 14th, 2022 at 8:49 pm
As incredibly as the Hennessey BEV will be, what kind of sense does it make to have a vehicle with 2400hp?! Based on the report in the story, for all that hp, it’s still not going to do any better than 300 miles of range! It will be just as good, if not better, with half the power but twice the range.
Regarding the Celestiq, IMHO, it’s is much easier to except as a $200K+ sedan, or a $300K SUV/CUV, then $300K five door hatchback! I said it before and I’ll say it again, if lucid conceal the air dream addition for $175K, I can see Cadillac selling a hand built, high craftsmanship, BEV for $200K. I must admit that the interior looks impressive, but, from what has been revealed so far, it does not hold a candle to the interiors of the Royals Royce Phantom, Ghost, Cullinan, Bentley Flying Spur, or even the Jaguar XJ and Land Rover Ranger Rover.
July 14th, 2022 at 10:05 pm
28 The i3 REx is an EV with a ICE-generator as an afterthought. The Prius Prime is a hybrid with a bigger battery as an afterthought. They appeal to different people. You, obviously, like EVs, so the REx and Model 3 appeal to you. Not having home charging, I like hybrids as most-of-the-time vehicles.
July 14th, 2022 at 10:10 pm
29 It turns out that more power is almost “free” with EVs as far as range with the same battery. Giving up half the power to double the range would be a great trade off with the Hennessy, but it would probably increase the range by only 10-20% to reduce power to 1200 hp.
July 14th, 2022 at 10:16 pm
29 To me, making the Celestiq a hatchback rather than a sedan makes sense, as with the Tesla Model S. Still, the idea of Cadillac making a $300K extremely low volume car makes little sense to me. Leave that market to Rolls-Royce, and try to compete more effectively with Lexus, and Tesla.
July 15th, 2022 at 8:39 am
Essentially, the Celestiq is a marketing ploy, to show the market that Cadillac has an unattainably high priced hand-built halo car, in order to raise it’s perceived quality. If they happen to sell a few, that helps recoup the cost of that marketing, but they won’t expect to sell many. As Cadillac’s status and snob factor increase, it raises their whole line as far as prestige, sales, possibly price, and overall bottom line. John had a great article explaining this: https://www.wardsauto.com/industry-news/why-cadillac-needs-350000-halo-car
July 15th, 2022 at 8:52 am
25 I think your on to something. Maybe what EV manufacturers should be doing is offering super cheap rentals or extended test drives to get consumers in the seats. It could be good but may also be bad. As a recent survey proved that 35% of Tesla owners in Cali went back to an ICE after EV ownership. What it proves is pretty much what everyone has been saying all along. EVs work great for certain people that have a specific use. They are not and should not be considered a 100% replacement for ICE’s. They appeal to select group and work great for that group. Getting consumers behind the wheel of an EV will help them make a more informed decision. Making a 40k purchase lends you to continue to buy what your familiar with and you know what works. Its tuff to get people to spend that kind of money and not really know what they are getting themselves into. Getting the opportunity to experience an EV for a week could really help ease some of that uncertainty.
July 15th, 2022 at 8:52 am
33 Interesting article.