AD #3662 – BYD 4th-Best Selling Brand Globally; Tesla Launches Entry-Level Model Y; EV Battery Output to Grow 6X by 2030

  

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

BYD 4TH-BEST SELLING BRAND GLOBALLY IN AUGUST
As we reported yesterday, BYD nearly caught Tesla in pure electric sales in the third quarter, falling just 3,500 units shy. But the Chinese automaker is also becoming one of the top automakers in the world in terms of overall sales. According to data from TrendForce, BYD was the fourth best-selling brand globally in August behind Toyota, Volkswagen and Honda respectively. BYD took the fourth spot from Ford, which tumbled to the sixth behind Hyundai because of sales drops in the U.S. and Europe. BYD’s global market share in August was 4.9%, just a tenth of a percent behind Honda. TrendForce says BYD needs to speed up its overseas expansion if it wants to move higher on the list.

EV BATTERY PRODUCTION TO GROW 6X BY 2030
Thanks to government EV mandates, global battery production is expected to increase significantly by the end of the decade. According to a study from ABI Research, global EV battery production is expected to increase nearly six times to 2,585 GWh by 2030. ABI says the growth will come from evolutionary improvements to lithium-ion battery production, like making it cheaper and easier to manufacture at scale. ABI says that while solid-state batteries receive a lot of attention, they won’t make an impact this decade because they’re too expensive and difficult to manufacture. Solid state still requires changes in cell design and manufacturing, unlike lithium-ion batteries.

VOLVO EX30 STARTS JUST OVER $36,000 IN U.S.
Volvo is giving its small, electric crossover, the EX30 an affordable starting price in the U.S. The automaker announced it will start at $36,245 including destination charges. That’s for a single-motor model, which has an EPA estimated 275 miles of range. A twin-motor model starts at about $46,200. The EX30 comes standard with Google built-in as well as a suite of advanced safety technology. Deposit holders can start configuring their vehicle this fall and deliveries are expected to begin in the first half of next year.

TESLA REINTRODUCES ENTRY-LEVEL RWD MODEL Y
And speaking of affordable electric crossovers, Tesla just reintroduced the entry-level, rear-wheel-drive version of the Model Y in the U.S. and dropped the starting price to $45,630 including destination charges. But the model also qualifies for the full $7,500 EV tax credit, which means its price can go as low as $38,000, before any state incentives. The model has a range of 260 miles and can move from 0 to 60 MPH in 6.6 seconds. While Tesla hasn’t revealed what battery its equipped with, it’s speculated that it has an LFP or lithium iron phosphate pack, which helps keep its price down.

SECOND LIFE EV BATTERIES COULD BECOME BOOMING BUSINESS
Second life EV batteries could become a booming business, especially for home energy storage. That’s one of the findings that came out of the SAE’s North American International Propulsion Conference. The batteries could last as long as they did in an EV, but would cost half as much to buy, maybe as little as $35/kWh. The growth rate for second use batteries could be as much as 16% compounded annually. 25-30% of IC engines are pulled from scrapped cars and sold, and the same could happen for batteries.

NISSAN SHOWS OFF WILD, HYPER URBAN CONCEPT
The Japan Mobility Show kicks off at the end of the month and Nissan is using it as an opportunity to reveal a new family of futuristic EVs. They will all feature ‘hyper’ in their name and the first is the Hyper Urban crossover concept. With concepts that are this far out there I like to look at lighting signatures, proportions and silhouettes. Those are the most likely things to carry over into production. I also think Nissan could keep the two-tone look at the rear. The ‘hyper’ concepts feature bi-directional charging and are meant for long-term ownership with updates to both the software and hardware. For example, Nissan says the interior could be refreshed with a new instrument panel. I’ll be interested to see the other vehicle segments that Nissan uses for its remaining ‘hyper’ concepts because I think we’ll see it follow the same with its production EVs.

MERCEDES-BENZ CUSTOMIZES 300,000TH TRUCK
Small, big or really big, truck owners love to customize their vehicles. That makes even more sense for big rig drivers who can practically live in their trucks. And Mercedes-Benz Custom Tailored Trucks, which is a department of Mercedes-Benz Trucks and does special conversions, just finished its 300,000th custom truck. On top of the custom-made parts it’s developed in its 20+ years, Custom Tailored Trucks will also install additional axles, adapt wheelbases and install crew cabs with more seating. It has the future in mind as well. It’s now working on a so-called “lowliner” version of the eActros 300, which can be used with megatrailers and in automotive logistics. I admit I was a little shocked to see how many trucks Mercedes has customized right from the factory. I wonder if it even customizes more vehicles than Bentley or Rolls-Royce? 

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