AD #3467 – Cheap EVs Are the Kei Cars of China; NIO Opens Battery Swapping Tech to All; EPA Report is Misleading

This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.

EPA REPORT IS MISLEADING
The U.S. EPA came out with its annual Automotive Trends Report that rates automakers by fuel economy and CO2 emissions. Overall, the industry got better. But it varies by automaker. Hyundai, Mazda, Volkswagen, General Motors and Stellantis got worse, while everyone else improved. Unfortunately, the EPA lumps all automakers together as if they have the same kind of vehicle line-up. But Subaru, which did the best, doesn’t sell full size pickups or medium duty trucks, while Stellantis, which did the worst, sells a lot of them. So of course Subaru is going to look better than Stellantis. Here’s our Autoline Insight. The EPA would serve the public much better if it used the footprint, weight and power output of different vehicles to make comparisons. That would give the public a much clearer view of which companies are doing the best job of boosting efficiency and cutting emissions.

SWITZERLAND COULD CURB EV USE
Europe is suffering through an energy crisis and some countries are considering drastic measures to ration gas and power. Switzerland is proposing to curb the use of electric vehicles, in a worst-case scenario, in order to conserve energy. Owners would only be allowed to use their EV for work, shopping, doctors’ appointments and religious services. But that’s not sitting well with the Swiss car importers lobby which blasted the proposal, saying it will discourage consumers from buying EVs and make them more likely to purchase an ICE vehicle.

NIO OPENS BATTERY SWAPPING TECH TO ALL
If battery swapping ever caught on it would solve two of the issues holding back EV adoption: range and charging time. But for it to catch on, automakers would have to agree on common battery sizes and connection points. And none of them are willing to do that. NIO, the EV startup, is building swapping stations all across China and even started building them in Europe. But to make those stations economically viable they’re going to have to service more than just NIO’s cars. And that’s why NIO’s CEO William Li, announced that they’re opening their swapping technology to anyone who wants to use it. Let’s see if anyone bites. After all, in 2014 Elon Musk said anyone could use Tesla’s patents and no major player has taken him up on that yet.

    

KIA DEALERS LAST IN CUSTOMER SATISFACTION
Does Kia have a dealership problem? The brand topped J.D. Power’s Dependability study and scores well with customers in vehicle satisfaction, but it recently ranked last in a Sales Satisfaction Index. Steve Center, the COO of Kia America, says of its 780 U.S. dealers, “There is no choice but for them to improve.” He says owners expect a high level of customer experiences and technology at its dealers, so they’ll need to invest in more modern and capable facilities, which includes selling and servicing EVs. For its part, Kia is adding more features into its vehicles, like the updated Seltos and Telluride, and along with the building upgrades it hopes to boost sales per dealer, which currently sits at about 1,000 per year.

FORD TO AXE FIESTA, FOCUS
We recently reported on Ford’s decision to axe the Fiesta, but that’s not the only passenger car it’s getting rid of. It’s also going to discontinue the Focus. The Fiesta leaves the European market next year and the Focus will follow in 2025. The move will clear up space for more crossovers, SUVs and electric vehicles. Fiesta production in Germany will be replaced by a mid-size electric crossover based on Volkswagen’s MEB architecture sometime next year. And Ford has plans to roll out 9 new EVs in Europe by 2024.

HYUNDAI DEVELOPS DELIVERY ROBOTS
Hyundai is expanding its autonomous driving technology beyond passenger vehicles. It’s launching two pilot programs with an autonomous delivery robot. One is at a hotel in Seoul, South Korea that’s being used to deliver food, drinks and other amenities to guest rooms. And the other is for a food delivery service. The small pod-like robot is built on a modular platform that combines the steering, braking, in-wheel electric drive and suspension hardware. It uses lidar and cameras to move autonomously and it features deep-learning technology to recognize its environment. Hyundai says it’s going to use these tests to expand its autonomous robots to more businesses in the future.

IIHS TIGHTENS UP CRASH TEST
The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety is changing its moderate overlap front crash test to include rear seat passengers. In the original test, a vehicle hits a barrier at 40 MPH with a male dummy in the front seat. Forty percent of the total width of the vehicle hits the barrier on the driver’s side. The new test adds a second dummy representing a small woman or 12 year old child in the second-row seat behind the driver. And that really makes a difference. The IIHS crash tested 15 small crossovers and all of them earned good ratings in the original test. But only two, the Ford Escape and Volvo XC40, earned a good rating with the new one. The IIHS says the vehicles that fell short don’t provide enough protection for the rear passengers’ head and neck area.

HONDA PILOT TRAILSPORT TACKLES OFF-ROAD TERRAIN
More rugged vehicles appeal to customers’ increasing sense for outdoor adventure as well as generate more revenue for the company, which is why I think we’re seeing Honda, which is not known for its off-road prowess, coming out with vehicles that are meant to go off the beaten path. It’s showing how the all-new Pilot TrailSport, which offers an off-road tuned suspension, an additional inch of ground clearance and all-terrain tires, tackling trails in Moab, Utah and Sedona, Arizona. That package also includes skid plates under the front and fuel tank of the vehicle as well as an expanded AWD system that adds a Trail Mode. This mode turns on the surround view cameras as well as the ability to send more torque to the wheels with traction, which is useful for washed out sections of trail. This is early days of Honda’s TrailSport trim, which is supposed to get more capable as time goes on.

CHEAP EVs ARE THE KEI CARS OF CHINA
Mini EVs are all the rage in China and that could pose a problem for automakers who only sell full-size cars. The best selling car in China is Wuling’s Hongguang Mini EV, which sells for under $5,000. Now comes the Wuling Air, which starts at $9,700, and the Geely Panda which only costs $5,700. And there are plenty of other cheap EVs in the market. It kind of reminds us of the popularity of kei cars in Japan: small, cheap and cheerful. Kei cars account for about 40% of all the cars sold in Japan. Could the same thing happen with mini EVs in China? We think it could. And here’s the problem. As the old saying in the auto industry goes, “small cars, small profits.” That means a big chunk of the Chinese market could go to car companies that barely make any money. (PICTURED: Geely Panda)

And that brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for tuning in.