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Runtime: 6:41
0:45 UAW Strike Forces Supplier Layoffs
1:17 Rivian Gets Big Order from Amazon
1:55 BMW May Cut Thousands of Jobs
2:19 FCA And Nissan Test Smart Charging
3:17 Lexus Introduces First Ever Yacht
3:59 1990 VW Cabriolet Converted to an EV
5:04 Ford Falcon “Barn Find”
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What if your car could go from sounding like this… to sounding like this? And just that fast too. We’ll have a video posted to our YouTube channel later today explaining what that’s all about.
UAW STRIKE FORCES SUPPLIER LAYOFFS
Yesterday, GM temporarily laid off workers at its Oshawa plant in Canada due to a parts shortage caused by the UAW strike. And now the Detroit Free Press reports, several suppliers are following suit. Nexteer Automotive, Lear Seating and Universal Delivery have been forced to temporarily lay off workers because of the GM production shutdown. The UAW and GM are still negotiating a new contract and say some progress has been made but a deal is still a ways off.
RIVIAN GETS BIG ORDER FROM AMAZON
Just a week after getting a $350 million investment from Cox Automotive, electric vehicle startup Rivian is getting another big boost. Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced that its ordering 100,000 electric delivery vans from Rivian. As you may remember, Amazon is an investor in the EV company. Deliveries of the vans will begin in 2021 and Amazon hopes to deploy the full fleet by 2024. The vans will be built at Rivian’s plant in Normal, Illinois, a former a Mitsubishi factory, where it will also make its electric pickup and SUV.
BMW MAY CUT THOUSANDS OF JOBS
There may be some concern with BMW employees. Reuters reports that the company’s Chief Financial Officer wants to cut between 5,000 to 6,000 jobs by 2022, mostly at its German headquarters. We’ve seen a number of automakers restructuring their operations as a way to cut costs and it looks like BMW will be the next.
FCA AND NISSAN TEST SMART CHARGING
Smart charging solutions for electric cars is sometimes called vehicle-to-grid or V2G and it refers to technologies that optimize the charging or discharging of an EV battery. And now two major automakers are running V2G trials. FCA has teamed with a company called Terna to run V2G tests in Italy and Nissan is joining forces with the EDF Group to build V2G compatible vehicles and technology in the United Kingdom, France, Belgium and Italy. The companies believe that smart charging will help speed up the adoption of electric cars because it can help reduce the cost of ownership by paying owners to supply energy to the grid during peak demand.
LEXUS INTRODUCES FIRST EVER YACHT
Lexus is taking its luxury knowhow to the seas. The company introduced its first ever yacht, called the LY 650. It’s based on a concept the company showed in 2017 and was built in collaboration with Marquis Yachts, which is headquartered in Wisconsin. But despite being part of the Toyota MOTOR Corporation, Lexus’s yacht is powered by two Volvo engines, which are available in three outputs. While it’s a bit strange to see Lexus jump into the yacht market, Toyota President Akio Toyoda says he wants the company to venture beyond automobiles and become a true luxury lifestyle brand.
1990 VW CABRIOLET CONVERTED TO AN EV
Automakers and suppliers are having a hard time attracting young people to the auto industry but one shop teacher in New Jersey has come up with a great solution. About a decade ago, Ron Grosinger approached school administrators with a plan to revive his struggling shop program by teaching students how to convert an old gas powered car intro an electric vehicle. The school agreed and he chose a 1990 Volkswagen Cabriolet to convert. Students learned how to make mechanical parts in cardboard, then wood and then steel. They also learned wiring and how to weld. Within a year, the class was attracting advanced math, science, physics and engineering students and even more women. The program has been so successful the department has expanded to four teachers and added an after school automotive program. It’s also led to more grant money being awarded to the school which has helped pay for new equipment. And we need more ideas like this to attract more students to the auto industry.
FORD FALCON “BARN FIND”
One of our friends in Argentina sent us this video of two guys talking about a completely original Ford Falcon they found.
1st guy: Look how nice this car is, so original.
2nd guy: The guy I got it from never used it, he never drove it.
1st guy: Very original.
2nd guy: The old man who owned it never used it.
1st guy: Can I open the door?
2nd guy: I was lucky to get it. The old guy died years ago and the family never used it.
1st guy: Too bad it’s too small for me.
Well they sure had us fooled!
But that’s it for today, thanks for watching and have a great weekend.
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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.
