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Runtime: 11:06
0:00 Only 20% of Americans Want an EV
0:39 Ford’s Hybrids More Profitable Than ICE
1:22 Renault, Geely Join Forces to Make ICEs
2:32 EU Invests in Fuel Cell Vehicles
3:21 Hyundai Sued Over Child Labor
4:38 Jeep Launches 1st EV for U.S. Market
6:32 Subaru WRX tS Gets Performance Tweaks
7:23 DS Adds Armored SUV to Lineup
8:10 Renault Turning to Chinese to Develop Cheap EVs
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This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
ONLY 20% OF AMERICANS WANT AN EV
This transition to electric vehicles sure is looking a lot more challenging than it did just a few years ago. A study from KPMG says that only 20% of U.S. consumers would buy an EV over an ICE or hybrid. Of course, if 20% of them did buy an electric it would double today’s EV market share. But automakers need a lot more than 20% of the market to switch to electric if they’re ever going to make decent profits selling EVs.
FORD HYBRIDS MORE PROFITABLE THAN ICE
This new reality has General Motors and Ford putting more emphasis on selling hybrids and PHEVs. But they have different ideas of where that strategy will take them. GM says that PHEVs are just a bridge technology until the market goes all EV. Ford says that PHEVs and hybrids are not a bridge technology because they’re going to be around for a long time to come. Ford’s CEO Jim Farley says many of their hybrids are now more profitable than their ICE versions. Interestingly, he also says that EVs should not be subsidized. That could mean that skunk works project he’s got going to slash the cost of EVs is making real progress.
RENAULT, GEELY JOIN FORCES TO MAKE ICE
There’s no question that hybrids, PHEVs and EREVs or extended range EVs like the Volt are suddenly looking a lot more attractive to car buyers. In the U.S. and Europe, hybrid sales are up strong and are outpacing the market. In China, the fastest growing segment is with EREVs. And since they all use internal combustion engines, that means piston power is going to be around longer than automakers thought a few years ago. This is why Renault and Geely officially created a new company called Horse Powertrain, that will make ICEs, including hybrid systems and batteries. Horse will also work on engines that can run on methanol, ethanol or hydrogen for low-carbon emissions. And it’s a big operation. Horse has 17 factories worldwide, 5 R&D centers, around 19,000 employees, annual revenue of 15 billion euros, an annual production of about 5 million powertrain sets. It will supply them to Renault, Nissan, Mitsubishi and Geely’s brands.
EU INVESTS IN FUEL CELL VEHICLES
There’s still a lot of skepticism about whether hydrogen vehicles will ever catch on. But Europe believes it will play a key role to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. So, it launched an aid program, called Hy2Move, to help companies develop hydrogen powered products. BMW was the only automaker part of its latest round of funding, which handed out a total of 1.4 billion euros. Michelin and Airbus also received grants. BMW will announce more details soon. But it’s already testing a fleet of fuel cell powered versions of the X5 SUV. In all, 11 companies will take part in 13 projects in the Hy2Move program and the EU says it will create 3,300 jobs by 2031.
HYUNDAI SUED OVER CHILD LABOR
Hyundai is in hot water in the U.S. over the illegal use of child labor at a parts plant in Alabama. Yesterday, the Department of Labor sued the automaker, along with auto parts company, SMART Alabama and the labor recruiting firm, Best Practice Service, for employing a 13-year-old. The Labor Department says the child worked up to 60 hours per week at SMART’s plant and ran heavy machinery to make parts for Hyundai’s plant in Alabama. At the time, SMART was a subsidiary of Hyundai and the Labor Department says they were “so integrated” that “the two companies were a single employer for purposes of liability” under U.S. law. The Labor Department also wants all three companies to return any profits related to the use of child labor. In a statement, Hyundai says it no longer has any ownership in SMART and that it took immediate measures once it learned about the issue.
JEEP LAUNCHES FIRST EV FOR U.S. MARKET
Jeep pulled the wraps off the production version of the Wagoneer S, which is based on the STLA Large platform. But while that platform can accommodate both gas and electric powertrains, the Wagoneer S is, for now, exclusively a battery electric. It features a 100 kWh battery pack that will return more than 300 miles or 482 kilometers of range and comes standard with an AWD system that puts out 600 horsepower and helps the Wagoneer S do 0-60 MPH in 3.4 seconds. It’s also a 400-volt system, which allows the EV to charge from 20-80% as fast as 23 minutes. Styling wise, it stays pretty true to the concept, including the thin 7-slot grille and a somewhat large spoiler off the roof that creates a large gap between it and the backglass. Inside, there’s four display screens mounted on the dash, including one for the front passenger and a light bar that stretches across the dash and into the doors helps tie it all together. Jeep says the Wagoneer S will go on sale in the U.S. and Canada in the fall of this year, before heading to other markets around the world. The first version available is called the Launch Edition and it starts at $72,000, including destination charges, but before any EV tax breaks or incentives. Now, if you’re thinking that the Wagoneer S doesn’t live up to its off-road persona, well, it also showed off the Wagoneer S Trailhawk concept, which would fit that bill. It features a raised suspension system, rugged all-terrain tires, a rear axle locker and an off-road ‘Rock’ mode. However, this is still just a concept, for now.
SUBARU WRX tS GETS PERFORMANCE TWEAKS
Subaru is launching a new more performance-focused version of the WRX called the tS. It’s equipped with a new STI-tuned suspension that features electronically controlled dampers, which help improve performance and handling. It also comes with 19-inch wheels that are filled with high-performance Brembo brakes and gold colored calipers. The interior features an all-new 12.3-inch digital gauge cluster, Recaro racing front seats and blue trim accents. Like the standard WRX, the tS is powered by a 2.4L turbocharged boxer engine, mated to a 6-speed manual that produces 271 horsepower. The tS goes on sale early next year in the U.S. and pricing will be announced later this year.
DS ADDS ARMORED SUV TO LINE-UP
This looks like a normal SUV from DS Automobiles, which is part of Stellantis, but it’s actually an armored version that costs 165,000 euros and can stop a bullet from a handgun. Based on the plug-in hybrid DS 7, it was upfitted with special materials that are especially resistant to heat and impacts, High Performance Polyethylene, armored steel and safety glass. Despite all that extra stuff, DS says it only added 164 kilograms or 360 pounds to the overall weight. It only expects to convert a small number of them to armored vehicles and that conversion is done in France not too far from where the vehicle is made.
RENAULT TO DEVELOP €20,000 TWINGO EV
Renault and Volkswagen recently ended talks to jointly develop small affordable electric cars and now we may know why. Reuters reports that Renault is going to link up with a Chinese automaker to build the next-gen version of the Twingo, which should have a starting price under 20,000 euros. Renault is making the move to slash its development costs and time, which it plans to cut to just two years. It’s not known who Renault will team up with, but it has a number of companies to choose from. It currently has partnerships with Dongfeng and Geely and back in January, CEO Luca de Meo met with leaders from Li Auto and Xiaomi.
But that brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for tuning in and I hope that you have a great weekend.
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If hybrids are profitable for Ford, why are they dropping all of them except pickup trucks? With Escape and Explorer hybrid going away, they are dropping all of the hybrids except Maverick and F-150.
Some sanity from KPMG, strangely, I guess they value their analytic credibility over The Message. But still, of that 20%, how many are young unemployed or underemployed 20 somethings who of course like the idea of an EV but can’t afford any car or even rent for that matter. I hope they went into that minutia because the better measure would be those who want EV and are actually in the position to purchase one.
How much extra money does a hybrid cost to make? At some point, you have to wonder why any non-hybrid ICEs are made. Maybe the government should buy only hybrids for their fleet, in order to encourage more hybrid models to be built.
Found online that the Hyundai plant used stamped body panels manufactured by Smart where this 13 year old girl was employed. She worked there for 7-8 months. She was likely running a stamping press. Wow! I’m curious if she just lied about her age in order to work. Also how is an employer supposed to verify age? If she lied said she was 18 and never graduated HS I’m not sure how they would know. I doubt the SS office has the staff to track down employers that are paying into SS using a SS # of an underage person.
Will be interesting to hear the whole story on this one.
Based on my limited knowledge of hiring rules from a long time ago managing a restaurant in Missouri, there were very specific processes for hiring. Every individual that we considered for hiring would give us their Social Security Number on the application, which we then had to call a government department that verified and approved/denied the applicant’s employable status over the phone. That was before everything was computerized, so I would think it would be even more thorough these days. The potential employee would be denied if they were illegal, underage, or any other issues with the SSN. Maybe its more convoluted adding in the “Best Practice Service” company middle-man, but one of three situations should be fairly obvious if every new hire needs clearance from the Labor Department. Either 1) they were paying her cash under the table, 2) it was a Labor Department error, or 3) the company made nefarious employment processes to get around the national hiring protocol. If it was the last situation, I doubt they would go to the trouble for just one individual, so the LD should look for others.
It seems like this is the reason that Jeep/Stellantis discontinued the Cherokee, so that there is no indirect competition with it in the showrooms. This is especially true, when the 6 cylinder version is introduced. IHMO, this should have been a Chrysler product and Jeep’s focus should have been just the Recon version. What’s interesting is that the new Porsche Macan EV and the Audi equivalent, are coming out new with 800V batteries and, according to an article in AutoCar, this has only has 400V. While that may be enough to remain competitive, it appears that they are already behind the competition even though they are just coming out the door. It also shows how quickly tech is advancing and how difficult it is and will be for even major automakers to keep up!
Maybe this girl is of Hispanic descent and claimed to not have a SS#. Not sure where all the illegals are working but since a few million have entered some have to be working without the proper paperwork.
To me the Jeep brand seems to be almost as lost as Ford. They want to go electric but don’t seem really sure about how to balance their EV desire and the actual demand. Clumsily announcing one thing to turn around and do something different. We’ve all heard no more engines in development. Full Electric brand by 2030 something. Now Hybrid resurgence and a scramble to develop small engines to work in a hybrid application. Killed good selling vehicles to make way for product that is now being delayed. It just seems like they are pushing a rope. On the flip side. All the grief that Toyota was getting for not announcing a line-up of BEVs are looking like the smartest automaker of them all.
Kevin A, Ford Maverick, and various Toyota hybrids cost ~$1400-1700 more than non-hybrid versions of the same vehicle, so I suspect that is close to the additional cost to build them. That’s non plug-in hybrids with <2 kWh batteries.
I don't know who is and isn't legal, but I see a lot of Spanish speaking people in Florida mowing grass and doing construction work. A lot of these people might be hired and paid "under the table" without any documentation being checked. You'd think an auto parts supplier or major meat packing company would do proper checking, but apparently some don't.
The employment of the underage worker may come down to just “who” employed her first, as well. As I understand, a number of OEMs and their supplier, get their employees from second and third party operations (a temp company) like Kelly Services, Minute Men, ABC Staffing and the like. They pay these companies a flat rate, to use their employees for 30, 60 or 90 days, and if they like them, the bigger company might hire them full time. Yet, they may put the work of gathering, vetting and other responsibilities on the temp company and OEM/supplier may have just collected what information that the temp service had, into the bigger operation. The thing is, you don’t need a drivers license to operate a hi-lo, tractor, work a stamp press or, necessarily to drive a vehicle on private property, or a number of children who work on their parent’s farm would be breaking the law every day! That being said, I had an arborist and his tree company clear a couple dead trees from my property. He was a bit of a talker and while we were working on the estimate, he told me that he use to an employee of DTE, doing the same thing, clearing trees from power lines and related things like that. Then DTE wanted to get away from having employees do the work, as they were moving in the direction of hiring private contractors to do the work. Having the experience and knowing what they wanted, he saw this as an opportunity. So, just before he was let go, he started his own tree company and when the work went out to bid, he was able to get the work for several years. Are you still with me? After doing this for them for years, DTE wanted to pay less for the work done, so following a rule that farmers get to use, they began to use companies that hired “farm workers”, who were essentially labors, to do their tree clearing. So DTE would hire company “A”, who would hire company “B”, to do the work. Company “B” would be paid a flat rate, from company “A” and who ever company be used, how old they were, what their legal status was, etc., did not matter, as long as the work was done. Accord to the individual I spoke with, as farm workers, some of the record keeping that other companies were required to do, DTE, company “A” and “B” weren’t required to do, because this loophole. As you might imagine he was a unhappy with that direction from DTE, because he lost good paying work twice. I just wonder if this underaged employee got into the Hyundai, though something like this?! But as crazy as what happens sounds with Hyundai, the system works because they found her, right? It may have started with an anonymous complaint from a coworker, but once someone looked into it, they were able to prove what was happening and take action. While the young lady should not have be hired in the first place, the wrong was righted.
Ok, what’s DTE?
My apologies, DTE is one of two utility companies in the state of Michigan, the other is Consumers Energy, providing both electricity and natural gas services. On the electrical side they trim tree limbs near wires, or clear whole areas to establish new service lines in growing villages, towns, subdivisions and communities, as the suburbs move farther away form major cities in Michigan. Arguably, the two companies hold a bit of a monopoly in the power/energy sector, but doing just enough so as not to be accused of doing so! But that is a conversation for a different day and a different outlet!
Maybe issue with the underaged worked, started off innocently enough, her working with, under, around and with the permission of a family member, doing odd jobs, for short hours, that were in keeping with the age limit requirements. As she gained experience, hands on training and skill, she might have been plugged in when workers were absent, on break or had a day off and there was work available to do that she had the ability to preform. Perhaps it was from there that things took a turn, and she was asked to do things for longer periods of time, when things went side ways. Just a thought.
From what I remember when this story first broke a few months ago, the underage person was a child of the plant manager. Paid under the table and bypassed all the controls for hiring full time employees.
It looks like it’s a lot more widespread than one underage employee.
https://www.reuters.com/investigates/special-report/usa-immigration-hyundai/
So the old days of Immigration showing up and half the plant running out the back is being replaced my Labor Dept entering and a bunch of kids running out the back. Good job Biden letting in so many undocumented immigrants that desperately need work now and will even send their 12–13-year daughters to work. This is just the beginning as there are so many jobs out there that dont have the checks in place to catch this sort of thing. Lots of cash jobs putting these young girls at risk of getting hurt or worse.