Follow us on social media:
Runtime: 11:24
0:00 ACEA Wants Quick Negotiations with Trump
1:07 Porsche, Mercedes Sales Down in Q1
1:52 Republicans Blocked from Revoking California Waiver
2:38 India Says “No” to BYD
4:22 Stellantis Studies What To Do with Maserati & Alfa
5:20 Lancia Improves Ypsilon EV
5:56 Stellantis Remanufactures LED Headlamps & Screens
6:48 Continental Officially Spins Off ContiTech
7:57 XPeng Raises Price of Van
8:37 Wuling Has Cheapest EREV in China
Visit our sponsor to thank them for their support of Autoline Daily: Bridgestone, Intrepid Control Systems and Teijin Automotive.
This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
ACEA WANTS QUICK NEGOTIATIONS WITH TRUMP
Here’s a quick recap of the tariff impact before we get to the rest of the news. The ACEA, which represents almost all the automakers in Europe, is urging the EU to start negotiating with the Trump Administration to ease the tariff impact. It says that Trump’s tariffs on vehicles and components could cost the European auto industry €80 billion. Meanwhile, Mercedes-Benz says it’s going to eat the cost of the tariffs for now, which will keep the brand competitive and help its dealers maintain sales volume. Automotive News reports that Stellantis is telling suppliers it will cover the cost of the tariffs as long as suppliers show how they will reduce exposure to them. By the way, the tariffs on components don’t go into effect until May 3rd. And they’re not being applied to components made under the USMCA trade agreement because the Trump Administration hasn’t figured out how to do that yet.
PORSCHE, MERCEDES SALES DOWN Q1
Porsche and Mercedes-Benz finally reported their Q1 sales, and it looks like it could be a rough 2025. Mercedes saw its sales fall 7%, while Porsche was down 8%. But here’s the weird thing. Their sales were up in the U.S. The drop off was all in China and Europe. Porsche really took a hit in China, with sales falling 42%, while sales in the U.S. were up 40% and set an all-time record. But now, with Trump’s tariffs about to take a bite, it’s hard to see how they’ll maintain sales momentum in the U.S. Even though Mercedes says it will absorb the cost of the tariffs, the question is how long can it afford to do that?
REPUBLICANS BLOCKED FROM REVOKING CALIFORNIA WAIVER
House Republicans were just dealt a blow in their attempt to revoke California’s emission standards. California has for decades been granted a waiver by the EPA to set its own emission regulations but Republicans in the House of Representatives introduced resolutions to use a contested method to revoke the waiver and allow them to repeal it with just a simple majority. But the Senate parliamentarian just ruled that the regulations California enacted using the waiver cannot be dismissed under the Congressional Review Act, which aligns with a prior federal decision on the matter. While the parliamentarian’s decisions aren’t binding, it is rare for lawmakers to go against them.
INDIA SAYS “NO” TO BYD
BYD is growing by leaps and bounds globally but its growth in India is going to be limited because the government is restricting the automaker’s investments in the country. Last year, India rejected a $1 billion investment from BYD with a local partner. And during an interview with Bloomberg yesterday, India’s commerce minister said that it has to be cautious about who it allows to invest in the country and “as of now it is a no” to BYD. He also said that India needs to be cautious about “dumping” from China. Another Chinese automaker, Great Wall Motor, gave up on the Indian market after being denied regulatory clearances as well.
STELLANTIS STUDIES WHAT TO DO WITH MASERATI, ALFA
It looks like Stellantis could be starting the process to figure out what it’s going to do with Maserati and Alfa Romeo. The automaker has hired consultancy McKinsey & Co. to help it assess options for the brands. No doubt the new U.S. tariffs played a role in the move. Both brands import all of the vehicles that they sell in the U.S. and about 35-40% of Maserati’s sales come from the U.S. So, any disruption could have a big impact on Maserati’s profits and it already posted an operating loss of $285 million last year. Potential options for Alfa and Maserati allegedly include possible partnerships with other companies or even a full-blown spin-off in the future. Some Asian companies have reportedly already expressed interest in the brands, but according to sources, Stellantis Chairman John Elkann has no plans to sell to a Chinese rival.
LANCIA IMPROVES YPSILON EV
We think another Stellantis brand that could find itself under consultancy review is Lancia. It only has a single model remaining in its lineup, the Ypsilon. But it is making some upgrades to the all-electric version. Thanks to an enhancement to the battery chemistry and improvements to powertrain efficiency, the range of the Ypsilon EV improved by 6% or 22 kilometers, which is just over 13.5 miles. So, it can now travel 425 kilometers or about 265 miles on a charge.
STELLANTIS REMANUFACTURES LED HEADLAMPS, SCREENS
And in one last bit of Stellantis news, at the end of 2023 it expanded a partnership with supplier company Valeo to start offering remanufactured electronic components, which are restored to the same specs and performance and come with the same warranty as new parts, but at a lower cost. They kicked off rebuilding front cameras, but starting in June that also includes LED headlamps and interior display screens. Up to 50% of the raw materials in the remanufactured headlamps are from old LED units, which helps cut CO2 emissions by up to 70% compared to making a new one. The headlamps will first be offered for a couple of Peugeot models, while the rebuilt displays will go into Peugeots, Citroens, DSs and Opels.
CONTINENTAL OFFICIALLY SPINS OFF CONTITECH
Thirty years ago, Continental, the giant German tire company, decided to spread out into other automotive components and technologies. Back then, the thinking was that tires were a low margin, low growth business and if the company wanted to expand, it had to get into new lines of business. Fast forward to today and Continental has completely switched that thinking. Its tire business is now the most profitable part of the company, and it’s spinning off its components business, or what it calls ContiTech. It’s a mish mash of products for different business sectors including agriculture, construction, food processing, mining, and of course, automotive. Some of its automotive tech includes autonomy, connectivity and safety systems. You’d think that technology would be snapped up by competitors or private equity, but one of the reasons that Continental is spinning off ContiTech is that it couldn’t find anyone who wanted to buy it. But after the spin-off it wouldn’t surprise us to see ContiTech start to sell off pieces of its business.
PRICE WAR ENDING? XPENG RAISES PRICE OF VAN
Is this a sign that the price war in China is starting to end? Xpeng is raising the price of its X9 minivan for the 2025 model year. The van went on sale last year with a starting price of just over $49,000 but the model now starts at $54,500 or a $5,500 increase. It does offer upgrades like more features and technology, but the powertrain is similar to the outgoing model. The X9 also hasn’t sold that well with 23,300 deliveries from January 2024 to February 2025.
WULING HAS CHEAPEST EREV IN CHINA
According to CarNewsChina, Wuling now has the cheapest EREV or extended range electric vehicle in China. The Hong Guang EREV van just went on sale with a starting price of roughly $9,400. It features a 94 horsepower 1.5L engine that acts as a generator for an 8.5 kWh battery pack, which sends power to a rear-mounted 100 horsepower electric motor. That setup returns an electric-only range of about 50 kilometers or 31 miles and a combined range of 1,000 kilometers or 621 miles. But what’s more impressive to us is that the all-electric commercial version of this van only costs about $137 more.
And that brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for making Autoline a part of your day.
Thanks to our partner for embedding Autoline Daily on its website: WardsAuto.com
Sean,
Mercedes ate the full 25% because, unlike what you reported here today, it is NOT doing very well in the US market. Look at Merc VS BMW: the two traditionally were neck and neck in the US market:
Q1 2025 market share: Merc only 1.91%, BMW 2.42%
Calendar 2024: Merc 2.30%, BMW 2.49%
Calendar 2021: Merc 2.22%, BMW 2.44%
Calendar 2020: Merc 2.23%, BMW only 2.10%!
In addition, Merc’s troubles in the US market were obvious to me since last Thanksgiving, when I saw the $20,000 discount you get if you LEASE the EV version of the S class, the EQS, a car with such a poor (for an S CLASS Flagship) interior, I sat in it and rose up without bothering to test drive it! First time in my life I did that.
Merc now understands that more damned screens (and especially screens that are not integrated in the dash but stick out like in a cheap Hyundai) is NOT Flagship Luxury and I am sure the next refresh of their interiors will show it.
Of course ACEA wants negotiations ASAP, the US is their biggest market, and if we lose 1 in Europe, they lose 10 or 100 in the US, and especially in the automotive sector. If negotiations fail, I see them (Merc, BMW and VW) use their existing US plants to make more models here.
Other nations like China which foolishly seem to impose… countertariffs to the already retaliatory US tariffs for those nations’ existing huge tariffs and non-tariff barriers, which they did 100% to “save face”, something 100 times more important in China than anywhere else, will soon,, whether they want it or not, by necessity negotiate tariff reductions.
Markets seem to agree with the above. Overnight, Asia and later Europe closed up by huge percentages, and at this time on Wall Street, all indices are up between 1.5% and 2%.
Part of why Mercedes has lost sales to BMW is that, at least according to CR, most BMWs perform better and are more reliable than their Merc competitors. While EVs don’t make up a big portion of sales for either, Mercedes EV prices are much higher than than for competing BMW EVs.
One result of this tariff mess for car enthusiasts, will be that even fewer car models will be sold in the US. Most of the few cars BMW and Mercedes sell in the US will probably go away. They each might move production of one model, like 3 Series for BMW, to their US plants, but are more likely to drop most of them. Maybe the companies can “eat” the tariffs on low volume, but probably high margin S-Class and 7 Series. BMW will probably exit Mini from the US market. They are not going to move production of lower priced cars that sell most of their volume in other markets.
Yes, markets regained some of their losses, but far from all of them.
Do enthusiasts really buy modern cars anymore? Can’t get a manual transmission, you need a super computer and software to tune them, or have to pay a lot for a specialty shop to do so. Then your warranty is voided and it’s all on you if something blows up. Sometimes they blow up straight from the factory (GR Corolla).
I guess you could say Vettes but that’s mainly the 55 and older crowd. Exotics are big with the YouTube set who like to rebuild wrecks. But still a rich man’s game.
I think people have started going vintage for the simplicity and established aftermarket.
The German premium brands have many low volume derivative models. Before the tariff war, Audi, BMW, and MB announced the discontinuation of car-based coupes. BMW and MB still have several low volume CUV-based coupes. They and/or their customers wont hurt much if these models are dropped or they eat the tariff on these low volume models.
@Daily Driver I recognize what you are mentioning: my son is looking for a 25 year old BMW M3 for exactly that reason. His current daily driver is a Mustang Mach E GT.
Lancia certainly has built some interesting cars over the years. Can’t remember the last time I saw one.
Daily Driver, some enthusiasts buy modern cars, but the numbers are small. I bought a 718 Cayman, with a manual transmission, but those cars are discontinued, to be replaced with some kind of EV sports car.
Drew, was BMW going to discontinue the 2 Series coupe and M2 for 2026? If they weren’t I suppose they will with the tariffs. The M2 is one of the few BMWs you can get with a manual transmission. M-B replaced two coupes with one, the CLE, for the 2025 model year. I don’t know about the 2026 model year. Lexus LC500 coupe and convertible are still listed, but sell in small numbers.
Wim, I test drove and almost bought an M3 in, I think, 1994. Being a GM salary employee, it wouldn’t have gone over well with some fellow employees, and importantly, my boss at the time.
@Kit You probably would have parked on the parking lot a mile away 🙂
Wim, yeah. I would have gotten extra exercise.
@Regulus and Kit on stock market: because I thought it was going well I stopped looking today. I was very happy with the higher prices.
Jus looked again and unfortunately we are down again, 0.7 to 2%, depending at which index I am looking. Hopefully better tomorrow.
@Regulus on EQS interior: same here. I rode in one in NYC at night when my colleague drove me back to my hotel. It was dark outside so all lighting inside of the car was on. I perceived it as tacky. The vehicle seemed to have great ride and handling, though. Admittedly we only drove a few blocks through Manhattan traffic but that seemed solid.
I haven’t seen an EQS, but a classy interior is something that should distinguish a $100K+ car like that from other cars. It sounds like they really missed it with the EQS. Even a Camry or Accord has all of the gadgets anyone could want, except advanced autonomy. You should get a really nice interior, in addition to extreme quietness and extra rear seat room, for the extra 70K you pay for an S-Class.
I haven’t seen the interior of a current gas S-Class, but I suspect it is not what they were a generation or two ago, but it’s, presumably, better than the EQS.
Kit, BMW discontinued the 6 Series, I8, and the 3 Series Gran Tourismo. It also discontinued the bulky XM CUV.
Drew, thanks fo info. I hope the rwd 2 survives a while longer.
@Kit I’m jealous, the 718 Caymans are beautiful. I have looked at the GT4s for sale online many times. They’re just so pricey(let alone the RS) and I fear they wouldn’t hold value like pretty much any 911 does. Hope you’ve enjoyed driving the heck out of yours.
@Wim – if your son would consider an unmodified 03 M3 Cabrio then I can help!
@Daily Driver: that is exactly what he is looking for. My phone number is 734 355 9291.
@Drew: they ended the 6 series? Oh, no, that was the BMW I thought was the coolest. I drive Mercedes and would not buy a BMW myself, but they are great cars.
@Daily Driver, my Cayman is a base car, 2.0 turbo, but is a fun car. The GT4 may ultimately be more collectable and appreciate more than cars like mine, but yeah, they are pricey.
Wim, the 6 and last gen Z4 were the last good looking BMWs. The 3 sedan and 4 Grand Touring are OK. But t he 7 sedan and electric sedan are hideous. Just my opinion. Sorry if I offended anyone.
I never understood how Lancia stays around. They have been resting on the Ypsilon for a very long time now. Even 15 years ago I felt Lancia was a doomed brand but it somehow keeps hanging on. You would also think that singular vehicle would be good since that is all Lancia has to focus on, but it isn’t. It defies logic. Of course Chrylser only has the pacifica to work on, and it isn’t good either. I can’t understand that. Other brands have a full line of vehicles and they are able to make every one of those vehicles better than what Chrysler/Lancia produces.
The Pacifica is good. I know people who have them, and they not only drive decently and are comfortable, but are reliable. These are non-hybrids. The plug-in hybrid is unreliable, in CR’s surveys. Trump may end up killing the Pacifica, though. It is built in Windsor, Ontario, as Chrysler vans have been since 1984, but these tariffs could do it in.