AD #3583 – Tesla M3 Cheaper Than Camry In CA; Volvo EX30 EV Priced Under $35K; China Startup Has Cold Weather Battery

  

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

TESLA M3 CHEAPER THAN CAMRY IN CALIFORNIA
The Tesla Model 3 is now cheaper than a Toyota Camry in California. Earlier this week, Tesla announced that the cheapest version of the 3 now qualifies for the full $7,500 federal tax credit, which dropped its price to just over $32,000. But California offers its own $7,500 credit for purchasing an EV, depending on income and other requirements. And for many customers, that drops the cost to just over $25,000, which compares to a Toyota Camry that starts at just over $26,000. What’s more, residents living in Southern California can get another $2,100 incentive to buy a Model 3 from Tesla, which means qualifying buyers can get the EV for under $23,000.

CHINA STARTUP HAS COLD WEATHER BATTERY
EV battery technology keeps getting better. Now a startup in China called Greater Bay Technology says it has a battery that is not affected by cold weather. By using superconducting materials and a new battery management system, it can heat up a battery from 4 degrees below zero Fahrenheit to 77 degrees in five minutes. That allows the battery to charge quickly in cold weather, and it prevents an EV from losing range in cold weather. Greater Bay claims that its battery can charge in 5 minutes with the proper fast charger, but that’s as much detail as it has released so far. Hopefully we can see it perform in the real world soon.

EV PRICE WAR IN CHINA IMPACTING SUPPLIERS
That EV price war in China is rippling down through the supply chain. Reports in the country say Chinese automaker Changan, which also makes cars for Ford and Mazda, is forcing its suppliers to accept up to a 10% price cut. But Changan issued a statement denying those allegations and also said it never received a letter from suppliers complaining about the cuts. But if it’s true, Changan probably won’t be the only one to do that. Reuters reports that 40 car brands have cut their prices since Tesla kicked off the price war in January. Suppliers complain the price cuts will hurt them financially and could force some into bankruptcy. 

EXECUTIVE CHANGES AT STELLANTIS & FORD
Ford and Stellantis are making some significant executive changes. At Stellantis, Ned Curic, the chief technology officer, now gets all engineering operations added to his duties as Harald Wester retires. Tim Kuniskis, who runs Dodge, also gets Ram added to his duties, as Mike Koval, who had been running Ram, now takes over Mopar for North America. And Ford is getting a new head of purchasing. Liz Door, who had been the head of sourcing at Whirlpool, will become Ford’s chief supply chain officer. In the latest Plante & Moran supplier survey, Ford was rated very poorly by automotive suppliers, and no doubt Ford hired Liz Door to turn that around.

NEW RAM RAMPAGE IN BRAZIL 
Ram unveiled a new uni-body-based pickup for the Brazilian market, called the Rampage. Most of you will wonder if it’s coming to North America, and the answer is, we don’t know yet. The U.S. flag in the taillights could be a foreshadow to that one day happening, but it was also developed with help from its North American design team. Which makes sense because it basically looks like a baby 1500 pickup. We don’t know the exact size of the Rampage either, but reports say it’s based on the same platform as the Jeep Compass and Alfa Romeo Tonale. If that’s the case, the ‘Turbo’ hood graphic likely indicates there’s a 4-cylinder engine that powers the truck. There’s only a couple of shots of the interior of the Rampage, which show the dual digital display screens, but we should learn more about the truck soon.                 

VOLVO EX30 EV PRICED UNDER $35,000
Meet the all-electric EX30, the smallest SUV that Volvo has ever made. In the U.S., it will be priced at $34,950 not including destination charges, which Volvo says makes it priced competitive with similar sized vehicles with an internal combustion engine. In Europe, it’s priced at €36,000. We have some specs on the vehicle, but they’re a bit confusing because Volvo cherry-picked the data that it wanted to release at this time. The price we quoted is for a base model with LFP batteries, and Volvo did not release the size of the battery or the range. With a single motor and NMC batteries—again—no battery size was announced, the range will be 275 miles. A performance version with two motors, and an NMC battery, will have 440 horsepower and go 0-60 mph in 3.4 seconds. Charging the pack at 153 kW will go from 10% to 80% in 26.5 minutes. Apparently, Volvo felt it very important to include that half a minute. A Cross Country version with more ground clearance will come out at a later date. In the UK Volvo is going to a direct sales model, while in the US it will allow customers to reserve models online. The EX30 is part of Volvo’s goal to have half of its sales be BEVs by the middle of the decade, and earn an 8% to 10% operating profit. By 2030 Volvo will only sell electrics.     

DS REVEALS WILD, FUTURE INTERIOR CONCEPT
Peugeot is not the only Stellantis brand showing off its wild future interior. DS Automobiles revealed an interior concept, called M.i. 21. However, unlike Peugeot, this is much more futuristic and we may not see interiors inspired by it until 2027. With that in mind we’re only going to highlight a few key aspects. First is space. It pushed the dashboard forward, removed the center console, added hidden storage and combined the loud speakers into one unit, which kind of looks like a beehive hanging from the dash. The other highlight is the screen. But really the two ends by the A-pillars are the only front screens. The rest is a strip that can be made opaque to display information or become transparent to reveal the pattern or material that could be behind it. DS thinks this could make a vehicle interior seem less visually intrusive.

BORGWARNER PIVOTS TO EVs
BorgWarner, which traces its roots back to 1901, is a legacy supplier that’s pivoting quickly to electric vehicles. It’s spinning off chunks of its ICE business and has bought 5 companies involved in battery packs, e-motors, power electronics, and DC fast charging. Borg expects to book about $2.5 billion in sales related to BEVs and hybrids this year and boost that to $10 billion by 2027. To signal the new direction of the company, it’s also changing its logo. BorgWarner is also a sponsor of Autoline. 

 

KOBAYASHI TO RACE IN NASCAR
Much of the public used to look at NASCAR drivers as moonshiners or hicks. But these days the series is attracting some internationally known drivers, like former Formula 1 champions Jacques Villeneuve, Kimi Raikonnen and Jenson Button. And now Kamui Kobayashi, who won the 24 hours of LeMans, as well as two WEC championships with Toyota Gazoo Racing, will compete in the NASCAR race at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway road course in August. He’ll drive for the 23XI Racing team and will be the first Japanese driver to race for Toyota in the series.

That brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for making Autoline a part of your day.