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Runtime: 10:13
0:07 Chip Shortage Could Last Until End of Q1
0:39 Mexico Wants Ford to Relocate Brazil Production
1:10 Trump Pardons Anthony Levandowski
2:55 Audi Develops 3D Virtual World for Employees
3:35 Rivian Raises Billions More in Investments
4:10 GM & Cruise Teaming with Microsoft
4:26 Hottest Automotive Stocks
4:51 Cruise Sending AVs to Japan for Honda
5:15 New Bolt EV & EUV Debuting on Valentine’s Day
5:47 New RWD Taycan Much Cheaper
7:21 Mercedes Reveals New EQA EV
8:26 New Defender Hitting in the Nick of Time
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CHIP SHORTAGE MIGHT LAST UNTIL END OF Q1
That chip shortage may be more serious than we first thought. Bloomberg reports that Volkswagen lost 50,000 cars in production in China in December. And that’s before the shortage really got going. VW was affected by chips that go into its electronic stability control and anti-lock brakes. One of our sources in the supplier industry tells Autoline that General Motors is advising its suppliers the shortage will not be solved until the end of the first quarter at the earliest.
MEXICO WANTS FORD TO RELOCATE BRAZIL PRODUCTION
When Ford announced it will no longer build vehicles in Brazil, Mexico saw an opportunity. Reuters reports that the Mexican government wants Ford to relocate some of that production to Mexico. It’s said the Mexican government will offer Ford tax breaks and other incentives. Ford makes the Mustang Mach-E and Bronco Sport in Mexico and already plans to export them to Brazil. It will also make a small pickup truck, the Maverick, in Mexico and will probably export that to Brazil as well.
TRUMP PARDONS ANTHONY LEVANDOWSKI
President Trump issued more than 140 pardons and commutations in his last day in office. We were surprised to see that includes Anthony Levandowski, who was convicted of stealing intellectual property from Google about the it’s autonomous vehicles. He took that stolen material to Uber until Uber fired him. Levandowski was sentenced in August to 18 months in prison after pleading guilty in March. The White House says that Levandowski “paid a significant price for his actions and plans to devote his talents to advance the public good.”
AUDI DEVELOPS 3D VIRTUAL WORLD FOR EMPLOYEES
Audi developed a virtual 3D world for its employees in order to communicate during the pandemic. Called Audi Spaces, workers can participate in meetings or provide training in real-time, in virtual spaces via their own avatar. The avatars are able to make gestures, interact, and talk to one another. It’s available now to all of Audi’s employees worldwide and more than 4,000 have already used it and average about 200 meetings per month. Those who have participated say the virtual world is more relaxed and less tiring than using video conferences, like Zoom or Skype.
RIVIAN SECURES BILLIONS MORE IN INVESTMENTS
EV startup Rivian has a busy year scheduled. Not only is it launching its R1T and R1S, but also those delivery vans for Amazon. In order to stay focused on those launches while scaling up for the future Rivian just closed another investment round. It raised $2.65 billion, which was led by funds and accounts that are advised by T. Rowe Price. So far, Rivian’s been able to secure investments pretty easily. It’s raised $8 billion since the start of 2019.
GM & CRUISE TEAM UP WITH MICROSOFT
GM and its self-driving subsidiary Cruise are teaming up with Microsoft to use Azure, which is Microsoft’s cloud computing platform. GM and Microsoft are also collaborating on data storage, AI and machine learning.
HOTTEST AUTOMOTIVE STOCKS
Wall Street sure loved the news. GM stock jumped 9.7% yesterday. Carmax also had a good day. It was up 9.5%. Lazy Day, a retailer of RVs, was up 6%. And Americain Axle was up 4%. But the rest of the automotive sector had a lackluster performance. It was only up 0.3%.
| Automotive Stock Prices January 19, 2021 |
||
|---|---|---|
| General Motors | $54.84 | +9.7% |
| CarMax | $116.43 | +9.5% |
| Lazy Day | $18.68 | +6.0% |
| American Axle | $9.10 | +4.1% |
CRUISE SENDING AVs TO JAPAN FOR HONDA
Speaking of Cruise, it’s also sending self-driving cars to Japan that Honda will use for future mobility services. Somewhat interesting, the initial vehicles being sent this year are modified Chevy Bolts, which will help with testing and development. But when Honda launches its services, it will use Cruise’s purpose-built mobility vehicle, the Origin.
NEW BOLT EV & EUV UNVEILING ON VALENTINE’S DAY
This Valentine’s Day, February 14th, is going to be filled with more than just flowers and love notes. Chevrolet announced it’s going to unveil the Bolt EV and EUV with the help of Disney World. Both vehicles will be available this summer.
PORSCHE INTRODUCES RWD TAYCAN
Take away its front motor and the associated electronics and it’s amazing how much less a Porsche Taycan costs. The sports car maker is launching a new entry-level, rear-drive-only version of the EV, which will just be called Taycan, that has a starting price of $81,250 in the U.S., including destination charges, but before any federal tax rebates. For comparison, a Taycan 4S starts at $105,000. The rear motor is the same as in other models and so are the two battery sizes, 79.2 kWh and 93.4 kWh. But with less mass, 200 pounds to be exact, range is up. The WLTP test figures come in at 431 kilometers and 484 kilometers, which is 24 and 21 kilometers more than the dual motor setup. The EPA has not rated the new model yet, but we expect its 192 and 201 mile range to jump by about 15 miles. But with one less motor it’s obviously not as fast. It will do 0-60 in 5.1 seconds, down from 3.8 in the Taycan 4S. The only other thing that really sets the rear-drive Taycan apart is that the wheels, brake calipers, front apron, side skirts and rear diffuser are painted black. The new Taycan is on sale right now.
MERCEDES REVEALS NEW EQA EV
Speaking of new, entry-level EVs, Mercedes introduced the EQA. Based on the same platform and built in the same plant as the gas and diesel powered versions of the GLA, the EQA will first go on sale in Europe. In Germany prices start at a little over 47,500 or more than $57,500. The EV is equipped with a 140 kW electric motor that drives the front wheels and a 66.5 kWh battery, which is said to return 486 kilometers of range on the NEDC test. Mercedes is considering bringing the EQA to the U.S., we expect it will, to get more volume, and when it does, we expect the EPA range to be around 210 miles. Mercedes says it will launch other models with all-wheel drive with outputs of 200 kW or more and models that have more than 500 kilometers of WLTP range.
NEW DEFENDER HITTING IN THE NICK OF TIME
Looks like the new Land Rover Defender is hitting showrooms just in the nick of time. Last year, Land Rover’s sales were down 16% in the U.S. market due to the pandemic. Last month every single Land Rover model saw its sales plummet, except for the Defender, which is now the best selling model in the lineup. Part of the reason for that may be the price. The Defender starts at just over $47,000, but you can easily option it up with things like a snorkel tube, safari roof rack, and external gear carrier. Keep checking the boxes and you can push the price to $84,000. We recently had one in the Autoline Garage and were impressed how it blends pampering luxury with serious off road capabilities. But our colleagues at The Fast Lane Car ran into some serious quality problems with it. So if the Defender is on your shopping list you may want to wait until Land Rover gets these issues resolved.
Gentex is an interesting supplier company. First it cornered the market on rearview mirrors, and today it’s turning into a tech company that is getting into a lot of different areas. And on Autoline After Hours tomorrow we’re going to have Neil Boehm, the chief technology officer of Gentex, as our guest. So join John and Gary as they peel back the layers of how this industry works.
But that’s a wrap for today. Thanks for watching.
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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.
