AD #2432 – Benefits of Thermoplastic Liftgates, AV Communication Standard Needed, New App for Distracted Driving

On today’s show… Chevy hopes peer pressure from friends and family will prevent distracted driving… Volvo calls for a global communication standard for autonomous cars… and Magna’s thermoplastic liftgates offer automakers a number of advantages. All that and more coming right up on Autoline Daily.

This is Autoline Daily the voice of the automotive industry.

FORD SHOOTS DOWN TRUMP IDEA
As we know, Ford is going to scrap most of its passenger car lineup in the U.S., but one of the vehicles that was supposed to remain could now be in trouble. Last month Ford announced it’s not going to import the Focus Active from China to the U.S. due to the 25% tariff the Trump Administration slapped on China. Trump then went after the automaker on Twitter saying, “This car can now be BUILT IN THE U.S.A. and Ford will pay no tariffs!” But Ford shot down the idea with a statement that reads, in part, “It would not be profitable to build the Focus Active in the U.S. given an expected annual sales volume of fewer than 50,000 units and its competitive segment…” The Focus Active was previously scheduled to go on sale in the second half of 2019. It’s unclear if it will still hit that target.

WHO IS VINFAST?
In August GM sold its Vietnamese operations to VinFast and now we’re learning more about the Vietnamese startup automaker. Its first vehicles will be a sedan and SUV, the first of which is scheduled to launch late next year. And the design was left up to customers. 20 submissions were made and the nearly 62,000 participants voted the most for concepts from Pininfarina. The vehicles will be based on the outgoing BMW 5-series and X5, to which VinFast has acquired intellectual property rights from BMW for production and supplier Magna will do the technical development. VinFast hopes to make 100,000 to 200,000 vehicles a year in its first phase and ramp up to half a million by 2025.

EARNHARDT JR. OPENS UP ABOUT CONCUSSIONS
Any head injury is scary and former NASCAR driver Dale Earnhardt Jr. just opened up about his battle with concussions on sports talk show “In Depth with Graham Bensinger.” Jr. estimates he suffered 20 to 25 concussions during his racing career with symptoms ranging from difficulty buckling a belt and tying shoes to struggling with otherwise simple words, like “match.” He also says he hid his condition from everyone around him, including his wife. He was scared of what was happening to him and scared he would lose time in the driver’s seat. While there’s now a concussion protocol in NASCAR that drivers follow, Earnhardt Jr. thinks more needs to be done to make it harder for drivers to keep symptoms secret. And he says he will donate his brain for research after his death to see how racing impacts the brain.

Thermoplastic liftgates for crossovers offer automakers a number of advantages. And we’ll tell you about those benefits, right after this.

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ADVANTAGES OF THERMOPLASTIC LIFTGATES
We make a point on Autoline Daily of keeping up with the latest developments from suppliers, like these thermoplastic liftgates for crossovers that Magna makes. Thermoplastic liftgates are nothing new, but they offer automakers a number of advantages. They require 25-45% fewer parts than liftgates made out of metal. They’re 20-30% lighter. And the tooling cost is 25-30% cheaper. All the interior trim can be integrated so that it all ships as one module. Because they’re molded you can make more complex surfaces, and it’s easier to change that design for mid-cycle refreshments. They can also be shipped to the assembly plant in the sequence in which they’ll be needed. So why do automakers even make liftgates out of steel? Because if you make them in super-high volume, the economics switch over in favor of steel. But these days not so many crossovers sell in that kind of volume.

AV COMMUNICATION STANDARD NEEDED
Last week, we showed you a futuristic autonomous concept from Volvo called the 360c. One feature that stood out to us is how it communicates with other road users. Since, autonomous cars will be gradually introduced, it means they’ll be on the road with regular cars and will need to let its intentions known to non-connected drivers or pedestrians. So Volvo created a system that uses external sounds, colors, visuals and movements to communicate what the vehicle is about to do. For example, a certain color pattern could mean the car is accelerating or braking. Volvo says a global universal standard for this sort of communication is needed, so all road users are familiar with it.

Coming up next, Chevy creates a new app to help prevent distracted driving.

NEW DRIVING APP CALLS YOU OUT
Chevy is using peer pressure to help curb distracted driving. It just created a new smartphone app called Call Me Out, that will automatically play a recorded audio message from a friend or family member, urging you to not use the phone while driving, if you try to do so. The app uses the phone’s accelerometer and GPS to detect when the its being picked up at speeds over 5 MPH and then plays the message. There’s also a gaming element to the app, that gives you points the less you use the phone while driving and keeps track of your ranking. Call Me Out is free and is currently only available for Android phones.

AUDI’S AUTOMATIC TOLL PAYING MIRROR
The Audi e-tron is a week away from making its global debut, but we’re learning about some of the electric SUVs features. It will be the first vehicle in the company’s lineup available with integrated toll payment technology. A toll transponder is built into the rearview mirror, and is compatible with all tolling agencies in the U.S. and Canada. It was developed by the Gentex Corporation, which supplies Audi with all of its automatic dimming mirrors. The Audi e-tron will hit dealerships in the first part of 2019.

But that’s it for today, thanks for watching and please join us again tomorrow.