AD #3521 – Ford Slashes Mach-E Price in China; VW Puts EU Battery Plants on Hold; Shyft Group Introduces EV Dump Truck

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

VW PUTS EU BATTERY PLANTS ON HOLD
A lot of automakers have announced plans to build new EV and battery plants in the U.S. in order to qualify for subsidies that are part of the Inflation Reduction Act or IRA that was passed last year. And now Volkswagen says it’s putting plans to open new battery plants in Europe on hold as it waits to see if the EU introduces its own IRA. Two years ago, VW announced plans to open 6 battery plants in Europe by 2030 but so far it has only three locations. If Europe doesn’t introduce its own IRA, VW will prioritize building a battery factory in the U.S. where it could receive $10 billion in subsidies.

EU HELPS AUTOMAKERS SECURE EV BATTERY RAW MATERIALS
And while Europe is dragging its feet on incentives, it is helping automakers secure the raw materials needed to produce EVs and batteries. The EU is setting up a central buying agency that will purchase critical minerals like lithium, cobalt and manganese. The proposal also speeds up permits for new mines and processing plants in the region. By 2030, the EU is aiming to produce at least 10% and process at least 40% of the materials each year. The goal is to become less dependent on China, which supplies 95% of the EU’s rare earth minerals.

 

PRICE OF COBALT TO DROP SIGNIFICANTLY
The price of cobalt, which is used in EV batteries, is expected to drop significantly over the next several years. That’s because supplies from the Democratic Republic of Congo are going to swamp the market creating a surplus and drive prices down. Global cobalt supplies are expected to reach 210,000 metric tons this year, up 24% from a year ago. But at the same time demand is only expected to rise 8% to 205,000 tons. Last year, the average ton of cobalt cost under $64,000. This year, it’s expected to fall to about $55,000 and next year, it will drop further to $50,000 a ton on average. While demand is growing, it’s not going to be as much as expected since many battery producers, especially in China, are switching away from nickel, cobalt and manganese or NCM batteries to cheaper LFP or lithium iron phosphate batteries. LFP batteries now account for over a third of the global battery market, and it’s expected to rise to nearly 40% next year. And with the prices of lithium forecast to plummet it’s looking like EV prices should come back down to earth.

SHYFT GROUP INTRODUCES ELECTRIC DUMP TRUCK
There’s a commercial EV startup we like, called the Shyft Group. If you haven’t heard of it, it’s going into production with Class 3, 4 and 5 electric vans under a brand called Blue Arc. What we like so much is that it’s starting small. Rather than go big, it first got orders and then scaled to that volume. So, for the 2,000 orders it got, it’s only investing $16 million into a plant that can make 3,000 vans a year. It means Shyft isn’t burning through cash trying to keep a massive facility churning and it should be able to turn a profit fast. And it may need some of that money to expand as it just introduced a new Class 5 Crew Cab dump truck. It rides on Blue Arc’s proprietary Class 5 EV chassis, which can carry up to 6 passengers and a 6,000 – 10,000-pound payload. It’s powered by an eAxle it calls “commercial grade,” it features an 800-volt architecture and can accommodate battery packs from 158 to 316 kWh. That setup provides a top speed of 75 MPH and a range of 200 miles. Although, it doesn’t say if that’s with a load in the back. As this video shows, the Blue Arc vans were just the beginning. It hopes to build a whole range of electric commercial vehicles off its chassis.

VW OFFERS FREE EMERGENCY CONNECTED SERVICES
Volkswagen is going to offer free emergency services in the U.S. for vehicles equipped with Car-Net. Most 2020-2023 models that have the connected car technology can get Automatic Crash Notifications, Emergency Assistance, Stolen Vehicle Locator, and Anti-Theft Alerts. Starting on June 1st after owners create a myVW account and agree to the terms of service they’ll have access to the feature for 5 years at no charge. VW made the move after law enforcement in Chicago was slowed down by a request for subscription payment before being able to get access to vehicle locator information for an incident involving a child in a stolen Volkswagen Atlas. Thankfully the family was safely reunited.

BMW TEASES NEW iDRIVE SYSTEM
It’s been a bumpy road for BMW’s iDrive system, but it really helped pave the way for expanding how drivers and passengers interact with a vehicle. And the newest version of its iDrive system will be launching on various models throughout the year. We’re not getting many details, but it shows the design of the new home screen, which it says will become a permanently viewable part of the interface and have other functions laid over top of it. Of course, it also says the system is faster, has more functions and is easier to use and we can’t wait to judge for ourselves.

FORD GIVES THE PUMA ST MORE POWER
Ford of Europe is offering a new powertrain for the Puma ST. It’s still available with a nearly 200 horsepower 1.5L 3-cylinder, but it’s twisting up the power of its 1.0L turbo 3-cylinder and calling it the Puma ST Powershift. In the standard Puma, the setup combines the engine and a 48-volt starter/generator, which produces up to roughly 155 horsepower. But thanks to tweaks to the energy recovery system and software tuning it now makes nearly 170 horsepower in the Powershift. The engine is also paired to a new 7-speed dual clutch transmission. From here it gets pretty much the same sporty, go-fast goodies as the regular ST. 

FORD SLASHES MUSTANG MACH-E PRICE IN CHINA
And in other Ford news, it’s struggling to sell the Mustang Mach-E in China. Last year, it only sold 7,782 units, compared to nearly 40,000 in the U.S. So to help kick start sales, Ford slashed the price of the Mach-E by $5,700 in China, which now has a starting price just over $30,000. Ford made a similar move back in January in the U.S. when it cut the price of the Mach-E by $5,900 in response to price cuts to the Model Y Tesla made.

 

NEV SALES SOAR IN CHINA
And speaking of car sales in China, the China Passenger Car Association reports that sales are down 20% in the first two months of the year in the country. But New Energy Vehicles or NEVs, which include electric, plug-in and fuel cell vehicles, saw sales surge more than 60% in February. NEVs now account for 30% of the new car sales in China. And because of that, BYD was the number one passenger car brand in February, outselling Volkswagen, which used to dominate the market, and BYD did this for the second time in four months.

MUSK SAYS NEXT-GEN TESLA WILL BE ALMOST ENTIRELY AUTONOMOUS
During its Investor Day last week, Tesla revealed it’s coming out with a new vehicle platform that will be significantly cheaper to manufacture. But it didn’t share any details about the models that will use that architecture. Now we have some more info but not much. Earlier today, Elon Musk said that the vehicles built on the new platform will operate “almost entirely in autonomous mode.” That’s all he shared but last year the company did announce plans to introduce a purpose-built robotaxi, so perhaps that is what he is referring to. But it’s hard to trust any timeline that Elon gives on vehicle autonomy.

And that brings us to the end of today’s show. Please like, comment or subscribe.