Listen to “AD #2891 – Why Is GM Showing Off the Lyriq Now?; Kia Sonet Revealed; Electrified Vehicle Sales Up in July” on Spreaker.
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Runtime: 13:10
0:23 Cadillac Lyriq Unveiled
2:50 Why Is GM Showing Off the Lyriq Now?
4:23 Electrified Vehicle Sales Up in July
5:26 Why Reverse Mergers Are Becoming Popular
7:20 Kia Sonet Revealed
9:13 Vibracoustic Engine Mount Reduces Noise
10:19 Nissan Introduces New Stock Based Compensation Plan
10:54 Raised White Letter Tire Feedback
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CADILLAC LYRIQ UNVEILED
General Motors unveiled the Cadillac Lyriq, an electric CUV that will begin the transformation of Cadillac into an all-electric brand. It’s a good-looking vehicle that avoids the all-too-common silhouette of crossovers. That’s thanks to the rear sail-panel treatment that incorporates the taillamps and a fast backlite, it has the look of a fastback. In fact, it almost looks like a shooting brake. The front end is distinctive because the blacked-out part lights up with a sequential display of LED zebra stripes as the driver approaches the vehicle. Same goes for the Cadillac logo, which no longer uses the traditional red, yellow and blue in the Cadillac crest but illuminates with a white light instead.
Inside, a massive 33-inch diagonal screen spreads across the instrument panel. GM says it has the highest pixel density in the industry today, with over one billion colors. There’s also what GM calls a dual-plane augmented reality head-up display. The near plane displays speed, direction and other functions, while the far plane shows transparent Nav signals and important alerts. Judging from this video the graphics look fantastic.
The Lyriq should be super quiet inside. It features new noise cancellation technology that uses more microphones and accelerometers and is especially targeted at eliminating tire cavity noise. Since EVs are quieter than ICEs, tire noise becomes more pronounced.
The Lyriq is fitted with 100 kilowatt-hour batteries with NCMA chemistry, or nickel-cobalt-manganese-aluminum. They use aluminum in the cathode to reduce the amount of rare-earth materials and gets rid of 70% of the cobalt–one of the most expensive materials in a battery. And the electronics are incorporated directly into the modules, which gets rid of nearly 90 percent of the battery pack wiring compared to GM’s current EVs. It offers DC fast charging rates over 150 kilowatts and Level 2 charging rates up to 19 kW. Put it all together and this will give the Lyriq more than 300 miles of range.
WHY IS GM SHOWING OFF THE LYRIQ NOW?
So here’s our Autoline Insight. The Lyriq is a good-looking vehicle that’s jam packed with top level technology. But our question is, why is GM showing it off now? The Lyriq doesn’t go on sale for another two years. And right now, GM is launching its all new full size SUVs, the Tahoe, Suburban, Yukon and Escalade. Shouldn’t the company’s marketing and communication efforts have a laser-like focus on getting the word out about those vehicles? It seems to us that the official unveiling of the Lyriq was aimed more at Wall Street than at potential Cadillac customers. With the stock market going crazy over EV startups, GM would love to have the investment community see it as a leader in electric cars instead of seeing it as a traditional old-line manufacturer. But we’re going to have to sit on our hands for another two years before we see the Lyriq out on the road, and that is going to frustrate a lot of people.
ELECTRIFIED VEHICLE SALES UP IN JULY
As we reported earlier in the week, new car sales in the U.S. were down 15.5% in July. But sales of electrified vehicles, were up over 6% last month compared to a year ago, according to Wards Intelligence. That was thanks to a nearly 20% gain in hybrid sales, more specifically Toyota’s hybrids. The Camry, Highlander and RAV4 hybrids all posted gains. Plus, the new hybrid versions of the Ford Escape and Honda CR-V, which weren’t in the market last year, also pumped up sales. Sales of pure electric vehicles were down 4.5%, but still outperformed the overall market. The all-electric segment is now at 1.8% market share, which is still small but better than in the recent past. And consumers don’t seem to be interested in plug-in hybrids, with just over 5,000 sold last month, which is a drop of 25%.
U.S. Electrified Vehicle Sales, July 2020 | ||
---|---|---|
Hybrid | 43,434 | +19.5% |
BEV | 22,488 | -4.5% |
Plug-In | 5,371 | -25.4% |
TOTAL | 71,293 | +6.3% |
Source: Wards Intelligence |
WHY REVERSE MERGERS ARE BECOMING POPULAR
As we’ve reported, a number of EV startups are using reverse mergers as a way to raise money real fast. Nikola was the leader in this trend and since then Fisker, Velodyne, Proterra and Lordstown Motors have used reverse mergers. So why all of a sudden are they the rage of the auto industry? On Autoline This Week, we’re joined by Steve Girsky, the Managing Director of VectoIQ, which helped Nikola with its reverse merger. And here’s what he had to say about why reverse mergers are becoming so popular.
Steve Girsky, Managing Director, VectoIQ
“We tried to solve a complicated problem and we were able to do that successfully. And a lot has to do with the company and a lot has to do with the team we brought. But that’s how we did it. I think what, John, from 20 years ago, the structure of these SPACs (Special Acquisition Merger Companies) has changed. It used to be, 20 years ago, the investor gets to vote on your deal yes or no, and give me my money back kind of thing. So not only did you have a challenge with the company but you had a challenge with the investors at the end, they couldn’t hold you up at the end also. What happened in recent years is they split the two votes at the end. Do you let me do the deal, yes/no. And there’s no downside voting no because there’s no economic consequence of that. Do you want your money back is a different question. If they want their money back at $10 bucks or whatever they bought it, then I just need to find a way to replace that money, through what they call a ‘pipe’ or whatever. So certainly, the dynamic has changed, which may be for the better. But it’s not just here by the way, there’s some enormous SPACs being done. Bill Ackman just raised $4 billion in a ‘trust me I’m going to do a good deal.’ So there’s been some enormous deals done in this space.”
To learn more about reverse mergers, you can watch that show on our website or YouTube channel.
KIA SONET REVEALED
Kia is dipping its toe into the compact crossover segment with the newly introduced Sonet. It goes on sale in India soon with global markets to follow and it comes with a number of powertrain choices, depending on the market. Three engines are available; a 1.2L 4-cylinder, a 1.0L turbo and a 1.5L diesel. Those can be mated to 5 transmission options; 5- and 6-speed manuals, 6-speed automatic, 7-speed DCT or Kia’s new 6-speed intelligent manual that operates the clutch electronically. You may remember we’ve highlighted the exterior styling of the Sonet, saying the rear pillar looks a bit like the Chrysler Pacifica. But this is our first look at the interior, which is dominated by a ten and a quarter inch display screen that merges with the instrument cluster. I’m not a big fan of the center air vent design or how they’re mounted so closely to the HVAC controls, but overall, it’s a decent-looking interior. Kia hopes the Sonet will bring new customers to the brand, especially millennials and Gen Z’ers.
If you haven’t done so, be sure to check out our coverage of the Management Briefing Seminars which are put on by the Center for Automotive Research in Ann Arbor, Michigan. This year MBS was all virtual and we provided condensed wrap ups that hit the highlights of the conference. You can find those videos on our website, just look for the section titled “Autoline On The Road.” Or you can watch it on our YouTube channel.
VIBRACOUSTIC ENGINE MOUNT REDUCES NOISE
When the new Ram 1500 came out it featured these roughly softball sized units that are bolted to the frame around where the driver and passenger sit. They take in information about driveline vibrations and then spin an offset weight to create a vibration exactly the opposite of the one it took in, so the two cancel each other out. A similar idea is being applied directly to an engine mount to get the same effect. A company called Vibracoustic created an active hydraulic engine mount that uses an actuator to change the pressure of the fluid inside the unit. An acceleration sensor first measures vibrations in the chassis, then a computer determines what needs to be done to offset that vibration and then sends that information to the mount. Vibracoustic says it’s the perfect application for cases of engine downsizing because it creates a more pleasant experience for the passengers and can reduce noise up to 20 dB.
NISSAN INTRODUCES NEW STOCK BASED COMPENSATION PLAN
Nissan is introducing a new stock based compensation plan for its executives and corporate officers. It’s introducing restricted stock units to replace share appreciation rights as stock based compensation. The company hopes that the new plan will lead to a long-term commitment from its executives and create a more transparent business process. This new plan seems to be in response to former CEO Carlos Ghosn, who allegedly hid millions of dollars in compensation while at the company.
RAISED WHITE LETTER TIRE FEEDBACK
Wow, was I surprised at how many comments we got about raised white letter tires. And it seems they do generate more comments from strangers. Dana Ford says, “My S10 has been wearing Raised White Letters for over 20 years now. It’s completely stock, yet I get compliments almost every time I take it out in public.” Dale Leonard has a similar story, but with whitewall tires, “… both of my 1994 Ford Rangers have white sidewall tires and I get compliments constantly with people saying that they should make a return.” Trucks do seem like a popular application for raised white letters and Mike Pulte says, “… For Truck tires, raised white letters have outlasted passenger whitewall tires because the sidewalls are taller and the truck design cycle is generally slower…” But many of you also noted that muscle cars wear the look well too. Tim Seawright reports that his “my buddy just bought a used 2017 Camaro with aftermarket equipment on it and it came with raised white letters on the tires and he has received several compliments on it.” However, it’s not for everyone and Vic points out a common complaint when talking about any whitewall tire, he says “Raised white letters? A matter of personal preference, I’m not a fan. Plus, they take added maintenance to keep them looking good.” And he’s right, of course. They can be a pain to keep clean and you also have to worry about clipping curbs and getting curb rash.
But that’s it for today’s show, 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.