AD #2619 – Comparison of Content Value, Dealer Inventory is Expensive, C-Clamp Lights Make Pickups Look Tough

This is Autoline Daily, reporting on the global automotive industry.

VALUE OF CONTENT COMPARISON

Merrill Lynch came out with an interesting study comparing the value of all the parts and components in an ICE car, a battery electric car and a Level 4 and 5 autonomous car. It says the average U.S. car with an internal combustion engine has about $14,500 worth of content, but this does not include the cost of final assembly or profits. By the same measure, a BEV has $33,600 worth of content. And a Level 4 and 5 AV has $150,000 to $200,000 worth, of which three-quarters is hardware and one-quarter software. It also includes R&D costs, which is a key reason why the cost is so high.

DEALER INVENTORY EXPENSIVE

Car dealerships in the U.S. have parking lots jam packed with new cars and trucks. Dealers love having a lot of inventory so they can sell customers the vehicle they want. But all that inventory is expensive. Car dealers have to finance and buy and insure those vehicles. That costs about $37 a day. Insurance alone runs $150-300 a month. Dealers have to sell those cars within 60 days if they want to make a profit. And in a time of shrinking margins dealers need to focus on turning their inventory over more than they ever have before.

From the company that revealed the secrets of the Tesla Model 3, Munro & Associates will host an Electric Vehicle Conference on Friday, June 21st at its headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Munro will provide a deep dive into the Motors, Batteries, and Electronics of the Tesla Model 3, BMW i3, Chevy Bolt and Jaguar I-PACE. Purchase tickets on Eventbrite or at leandesign.com. Hurry, only 100 spots are available.

NISSAN ADOPTS GT-R PRODUCTION TECHNIQUE FOR ALTIMA

A unique manufacturing technique that has mostly been reserved for sports cars, like the GT-R and Mustang GT500, is now making its way into the Nissan Altima. The cylinder walls of the Altima’s 2.5L 4-cylinder engine are undergoing a process called plasma transferred wire arc thermal spraying. High-powered electricity is used to liquefy metal wire, which is then blown into the cylinder with a gas, coating its walls up to 0.2 millimeters thick. The coating is then machined to a mirror finish with a diamond encrusted drill bit. The process helps improve engine efficiency and eliminates the need for cylinder liners.

NEW MATERIAL REVEALS WHAT’S BEHIND IT

We always like to show you the innovative technology that suppliers are developing, because what they’re showing off now will likely end up in cars in 3 to 5 years time. Check out this new material called Reveal that’s been developed by the supplier CGT. It’s a synthetic leather that lets light through to illuminate functions on the instrument panel or center console. It also allows for physical or capacitive switches to be placed under the material. The key to making it work is with the right materials and manufacturing process to prevent reflection and light scattering. CGT is working with Jaguar to develop a bicycle detector that lights up the top of the door trim and A-pillar when a bicyclist is next to the car. It also shows how this Reveal material could be used to get rid of physical switches on the door to control the seat. And there are applications that go well beyond the auto industry, such as making the screen on your smartphone look like it’s made of carbon fiber.

WHICH CARMAKERS WILL DO BEST BETWEEN NOW & 2023?

Which automakers will do the best between now and 2023? Merrill Lynch looked at the new cars and trucks that automakers have coming between now and then and came to these conclusions:

– 70% of the new vehicles coming out will be trucks, and 45% of them will be CUVs. Only 24% will be passenger cars.

– GM is below the industry replacement rate, but it has new full-size SUVs and heavy duty pickups coming that will raise profits.

– Ford has the highest replacement rate, and 96% of its new lineup will be trucks and CUVs.

– FCA’s replacement rate is below the industry average.

– Amongst the Japanese, Honda has the highest replacement rate, Toyota is strong, but Nissan is sputtering.

– Hyundai and Kia are above the industry replacement rate, but are a bit heavy on passenger cars.

– European automakers are below the industry replacement rate, but Daimler is higher than the rest while BMW and VW are at the bottom of the list.

New products in showrooms always help boost sales and profits, so this list can help forecast which car companies will do the best over the next three years.

C-CLAMP DESIGN CUE MAKES PICKUPS LOOK TOUGH

Designers like to incorporate design cues that convey what a vehicle is all about. And for full-size pickups they’ve designed the headlamps to kind of look like a c-clamp, or a vise. Ford was the first to come out with a c-clamp design, on the 2015 F-150, and now Chevrolet and Ram have picked up on it. But Chevy and Ram wouldn’t be caught dead copying Ford, so they have their own design variations on it. The whole idea is to convey that these are tough work trucks, and incorporating a vise or a c-clamp into the design does exactly that. One more point, Toyota and Nissan don’t use this on their trucks, and their sales have never gone anywhere. Who knows? Maybe people don’t think their trucks look tough enough.

But that’s it for today, thanks for watching.