AD #4133 – Chinese Automaker Blatantly Rips Off Bugatti Chiron; PHEVs No Cleaner Than ICE; SAIC MG Fails Euro NCAP Test Spectacularly

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PHEVs NO CLEANER THAN ICE
A report from T&E, a transport research and campaign group in Europe, says that PHEVs should not count as low-emission vehicles because they produce more CO2 than their official ratings. T&E cites data from the European Environmental Agency that found real-world emissions for PHEVs were more than 130 grams of CO2 per kilometer, which is five times the official ratings or about the same as a mid-size gasoline powered car. And that’s because PHEV owners aren’t charging their vehicles as often as officials expected, which means they’re mostly being powered by gas instead of electricity. Even so, European auto executives say the EU’s CO2 emission targets are too strict and they want plug-in hybrids to be given a larger role in meeting those targets.

GERMAN CHANCELLOR FAVORS CO2 REG FLEXIBILITY
And the political pressure to ease up on those CO2 rules is growing. Germany’s Chancellor says he’s in favor of providing automakers more flexibility in meeting the targets. Many automakers want the EU to lift its ban on internal combustion engines in 2035. However, Germany’s Chancellor didn’t go quite that far. But he did say, “One-sided political commitments to specific technologies are the wrong.” 

 

STELLANTIS PROPOSES CASH FOR CLUNKERS IN EUROPE
So what kind of flexibility do automakers in the EU want? Stellantis has a couple of ideas. It’s proposing a policy that would give automakers credits for scrapping old cars that pollute more. The idea would be to get car owners to give up their clunkers and to buy a new or used car, less than three years old. Automakers would be given a credit of 70 grams of CO2 per kilometer for every clunker that gets scrapped. Stella is also proposing that the EU loosen its safety standards for smaller cars, so that it could sell cars in Europe priced under €15,000 or less than $17,000.

SAIC MG FAILS EURO NCAP TEST SPECTACULARLY
And speaking of safety standards, Euro NCAP, which crash tests and rates the safety of cars in Europe, says the MG 3 small hatchback suffered a serious seat failure that it has never seen before and it started crash tests in 1997. During the frontal offset crash test, the driver’s seat latching mechanism failed, which caused the driver’s seat to twist and could lead to worse lower leg injuries. MG, the British brand, now owned by Chinese automaker SAIC, says it will make changes to the latching mechanism in new models but not for models already in customer hands. Euro NCAP says it has reported the fault to relevant authorities so they can determine if a recall is needed and it recommends consumers look for an alternative vehicle. But despite the serious failure, the MG 3 still received a four-star rating because it performed well in other areas and Euro NCAP’s scoring system doesn’t allow a deduction in a case like this.

TESLA’S DOOR HANDLES CALLED DANGEROUS
Tesla vehicles perform very well in crash tests and have some of the highest safety ratings. But there is one issue that’s becoming more of a concern, its electrically powered doors may not work if the vehicle catches fire after a crash. Bloomberg reports there have been 140 consumer complaints about Tesla’s doors not working properly since 2018. Tesla’s are equipped with a manual release inside the vehicle but they’re located in different spots for different models and some early versions didn’t have manual releases for rear seat passengers. The real problem is with first responders who can’t open the doors from the outside after the car is involved in an accident. NHTSA says it’s aware of the incidents and complaints and is communicating with Tesla to get more info and determine if a full investigation is needed.

    

BMW GOES ALL IN ON V2G EVs
Owners of BMW’s new EVs in Germany, starting with the iX3, will have vehicle-to-grid capability, meaning energy grid operators can use the electricity that’s stored in the vehicle’s battery pack. These customers still have full control over when and how their vehicle is charged, so the battery stays at whatever level they want it to be. But they can also earn money this way and the more the vehicle is plugged in and available, the more they can earn. BMW says iX3 owners in Germany will be able to earn up to 720 euros or $842 a year, which would pay for enough electricity to drive the equivalent of 14,000 kilometers or 8,700 miles. The BMW iX3 has a 109-kWh battery pack and, according to an AI search, the average German household uses 9-14 kWh of energy a day. So, the iX3 could power a house for about 8-12 days. And if you can get a whole bunch of these EVs plugged in at the same time, then grid operators have a pretty big energy source to tap into. BMW says the technology will gradually spread across its model range and will eventually integrate an entire platform that also includes solar and other forms of energy storage. 

VW & ELLI BACK BIDIRECTIONAL CHARGING
And it’s not just BMW. Volkswagen and its energy and charging subsidiary Elli are also launching a bidirectional charging pilot in Germany. They’re looking for several hundred participants right now, who will be provided with an 11-kW bidirectional charger from Elli. These EVs will then be combined into what’s called a Virtual Power Plant, which can sell available electricity back to the grid. By the end of the decade VW & Elli hope to have hundreds of thousands of EVs connected together into an entire network and, like BMW, also plan to integrate things like solar and energy storage into the system. 

FERRARI UNLEASHES 849 TESTAROSSA
Ferrari introduced its latest model, the 849 Testarossa, and it’s a PHEV. Available as a hard top or retractable hard top, the 2-seat, rear-engine sports car has a completely new design language on the front end, which looks like it has two wings grafted into the nose. Also note the two spoilers on each side of the rear. Its twin turbo, V8 engine, along with 3 electric motors crank out a combined 1,050 horsepower. Two of those electric motors power the front axle, making this an all-wheel-drive car. The third electric motor provides power to the rear axle, but also harnesses braking energy. Ferrari says it’s derived directly from the unit it uses on its Formula One cars. Despite the prominent wings on the front and rear of the car, the floor generates 35% of the total downforce, with strakes attached to the underside creating vortexes to increase airflow and negative lift. Those side scoops behind the doors not only feed the engine’s radiators, they also direct airflow out at the side and rear corners of the body to reduce turbulence off the rear-end. Ferrari didn’t release official prices, but the 849 is expected to cost around $540,000. 

CHINESE AUTOMAKER BLATANTLY RIPS OFF BUGATTI CHIRON
That Chinese vacuum maker that said it wants to challenge Bugatti with an all-electric supercar didn’t get very creative with its design. In fact, in my opinion, it flat out copied the Bugatti Chiron. The scalloped sides, thin rear taillight and split rear window of the rendering are all very similar to the Chiron and there’s no looking past the grille, which is in Bugatti’s iconic shape. Reports say Dreame will show a physical prototype at CES next year and is looking for manufacturing locations in Germany. But we’ve got to imagine that Bugatti is already pursuing legal action against the vacuum maker.

Don’t forget to join us for Autoline After Hours tomorrow. As we reported yesterday, Sandy Munro will be on the show. We’ll also have Joe White from High Speed Rodeo and Sandy Bahruah from the Detroit Region Chamber of Commerce, because one of the topics we’ll get into is, how does a region that relies on legacy automakers make sure that it survives and prospers as the industry goes through massive changes.

And that wraps up today’s show, thanks for watching.