Runtime: 7:12
0:32 MPG Freeze Will Lead to Fewer EV Sales
1:06 Car Sales Red Hot in Russia
1:40 GM Expands in Uzbekistan
2:44 Wickens Survives Wicked Crash
3:13 BMW M8 Wins 1st Race
3:38 Lucid Motors in Talks with Saudi Wealth Fund
4:41 Creating Auto Show Displays
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On today’s show…Trump’s MPG freeze will lead to fewer electrified cars…last week it was Tesla, this week the Saudis want to invest in another EV car company…and Robert Wickens survives a wicked accident in IndyCar racing. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.
This is Autoline Daily the voice of the automotive industry.
MPG FREEZE WILL LEAD TO FEWER EV SALES
What’s going to be the impact of President Trump freezing fuel economy standards? Autoforecast Solutions has done some forecasting on this and it says there will be 400,000 fewer electrified vehicles sold in the U.S. by 2025. It also predicts that foreign automakers will now start making more crossovers in their U.S. plants instead of passenger cars. And it points out that Trump’s higher import tariffs on steel and aluminum have led GM, Ford and FCA to put out warnings that their profits will be lower.
CAR SALES RED HOT IN RUSSIA
Despite economic sanctions on the country, the Russian car market is red hot. Sales in July were up 10% and through the first seven months of the year, automakers have sold just under one million light vehicles, which is a 17% gain. AutoVaz, is by far and away the largest OEM in Russia. But we were shocked to see Kia at number two, with a solid lead on the Volkswagen Group. Hyundai is right on the heels of VW and Renault rounds out the top five largest OEMs in Russia.
| RUSSIA 2018 LIGHT VEHICLE SALES | ||
|---|---|---|
| July | 143,452 | +10.6% |
| YTD | 992,673 | +17.0% |
| TOP 5 OEMs | ||
| AutoVaz | 199,273 | +19.5% |
| Kia | 129,722 | +28.0% |
| VW Group | 103,844 | +22.7% |
| Hyundai | 102,399 | +23.1% |
| Renault | 81,362 | +13.3% |
| Source: WardsAuto | ||
GM EXPANDS IN UZBEKISTAN
General Motors has sold off its operations in Europe, stopped manufacturing cars in Australia, Russia, Indonesia, Thailand and South Africa, and stopped selling cars in India. But now it’s increasing production in an unlikely area…Uzbekistan. GM currently makes 10 models in the country, which translates to sales of about 135,500 vehicles. As part of the expansion, the automaker will add a new version of the Chevrolet Tracker, as well as a new generation of the Cobalt. The move could help GM grow its awareness in expanding markets like the Middle East and Africa.
Robert Wickens is one lucky IndyCar driver and we’ll tell you more after this.
WICKENS SURVIVES WICKED CRASH
In racing news over the weekend, Alexander Rossi’s Honda-powered car dominated the IndyCar race at Pocono motor speedway in Pennsylvania. But the race was marred by a horrific accident when Robert Wicken’s car was launched into the catch fencing, spinning it violently and flinging the wreckage back on the track. Wickens is in the hospital with multiple injuries and will probably have to undergo surgery as part of his recovery.
BMW M8 WINS 1ST RACE
In IMSA racing, BMW took its first win with its M8 race car at the Virginia International Raceway in the GT Le Mans category. The twin turbo V8 survived a race that turned into something of a crash-fest. Another M8 finished third. We say, congratulations to BMW for the win and also because that is just one sweet looking car.
LUCID MOTORS IN TALKS WITH SAUDI WEALTH FUND
Electric vehicle startup Lucid Motors could soon get a large financial shot in the arm. Reuters reports the Saudi Arabian sovereign wealth fund is in talks with Lucid that could see it invest more than a billion dollars. And that could be bad news for Tesla. Elon Musk has said the Saudi fund could help with the finances needed to take Tesla private. But it seems like the Saudis want to keep investing in new areas. It already owns a stake in Tesla, is now going after Lucid and we would expect it to continue to do more of the same.
Coming up next, most people go to auto shows to look at the cars. But sometimes the displays can be just as interesting.
CREATING AUTO SHOW DISPLAYS
On last week’s Autoline After Hours, we were joined by Craig Erlich from the company George P. Johnson, which is well known for creating auto show displays. And in the following clip, he discusses that there’s a lot more people than you’d expect helping to make the displays.
(The AAH preview is only available in the video version of today’s show.)
You can watch that entire discussion right now on our website, Autoline.tv or just look for it on our YouTube channel.
But that’s it for today, thanks for watching and please join us again 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.
