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Runtime: 8:58
0:00 U.S. SAAR Drops To 15.3 Million
0:47 Porsche SE Profits Plummet
1:14 Polestar Struggles to Stay Listed
1:50 Tesla Supercharger Availability on Google Maps
2:30 GM Makes Management Moves
2:59 GM to Suppliers: Get Out of China
4:01 Hesai Lidar Sales Up 230%
4:58 Peugeot Reimagines Compact Cars
6:02 Mercedes GLB’s Massive Screens
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This is Autoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry.
U.S. SAAR DROPS TO 15.3 MILLION
We’ve got more data on U.S. new car sales for October and they don’t look good. Last week we reported sales for the automakers that provide monthly numbers. But Cox Automotive just provided us with a more complete picture. The SAAR, or seasonally adjusted rate, dropped to only 15.3 million vehicles, compared to 16.1 million a year ago. We knew there’d be a drop-off after people rushed into showrooms to buy EVs before the subsidies evaporated, but we didn’t think it would drop by that much. So this suggests to us that the downturn is not just about EVs.
PORSCHE SE PROFITS PLUMMET
Volkswagen is the world’s second largest automaker, but it’s controlled by a holding company called Porsche SE, which is owned by the Porsche and Piech families. And Porsche SE just saw its profits plummet by 36%. That’s got the company thinking about diversifying its portfolio. And it’s exploring getting into military procurement, as Germany and most of Europe ramps up their defense spending.
POLESTAR STRUGGLES TO STAY LISTED
Polestar is in danger of being delisted from the NASDAQ stock exchange. As of the close of trading yesterday, the company’s shares were only at 24 cents. The NASDAQ requires a minimum price of $1 per share and so it warned Polestar it could be delisted. To help boost that price, Polestar is going to do a reverse stock split, which will reduce the number of its shares thus increasing their value. Polestar is really struggling right now, posting a net loss of $365 million in the third-quarter.
TESLA SUPERCHARGER AVAILABILITY ON GOOGLE MAPS
It’s going to be easier for EV owners to find an open charger at one of Tesla’s Supercharger stations. Google Maps is now listing the total number of stalls at Supercharger locations and how many are available. Previously that info was only available to Tesla owners with the Tesla app but now anyone can get it using Google Maps.
GM MAKES MANAGEMENT MOVES
General Motors is making some important management moves. Steve Hill, who was running GM China, will now get a new job focusing on exports and retail innovation. John Roth, who was running Cadillac, will now become president of GM China. And Kristian Aquilina, who was running GM Canada, will now run Cadillac. Keep these names in mind, because we think they’re all being groomed for potentially higher positions later in their careers.
GM TO SUPPLIERS: GET OUT OF CHINA
Speaking of General Motors, it’s dropping something of a bombshell on its North American suppliers. It doesn’t want them sourcing anything from China—no parts, no components, not even materials. And it applies to all the vehicles GM makes in North America. GM says it wants to make sure its supply chain will not get disrupted by geo-political problems. China recently clamped down on exports of rare earth materials and computer chips, which disrupted global automotive production. And while China has since eased up on those restrictions, GM isn’t taking any chances. It’s giving its North American suppliers until 2027 to unwind from China. We think it’s important to note that two of GM’s board members have deep ties to the U.S. military and probably have a lot of influence on GM’s strategic thinking. Wesley Bush is the former Chairman of Northrop Grumman. And Jan Tighe is a retired admiral from the U.S. Navy.
HESAI LIDAR SALES UP 230%
While Elon Musk doesn’t believe lidar is necessary for autonomous vehicles, Chinese lidar maker, Hesai, is growing by leaps and bounds. As of August, it controlled 46% of the lidar market in China. In the third-quarter, Hesai delivered more than 441,000 lidar units, up a whopping 230% from a year ago. And through the first nine-months of the year, it delivered more than 1 million lidar units, making it the first lidar company in the world to hit that mark. Thanks to that success, Hesai will achieve full-year GAAP profitability one quarter ahead of schedule. And the growth should continue. The company has secured contracts to supply its top two customers for their entire 2026 lineups. And, in China, it also has several partnerships with companies for robotaxis, which can use up to 8 lidars.
PEUGEOT REIMAGINES COMPACT CARS
Peugeot revealed its vision for a future compact car, a concept called the Polygon. The styling is pretty wild, especially for a vehicle under 4 meters or 13 feet long, so I tried to focus on the type of stuff that I think Peugeot actually wants in its future compact cars. That includes things like more recycled materials, using fewer parts and interchangeable components as well as making the manufacturing process more efficient. One piece of tech from the Polygon that will for sure make its way to a production vehicle is a full steer-by-wire system, where there’s no mechanical link between the steering wheel and tires. The steering ratio changes with the vehicle’s speed and it even sounds like that square steering wheel will be part of the package. Peugeot says it will launch steer-by-wire in 2027. There’s no mention of what powers the Polygon, but any future compact car the company would likely ride on the STLA Small platform, which can accommodate many powertrain types.
MERCEDES GLB’S MASSIVE SCREENS
And speaking of new models, Mercedes is currently cold weather testing the all-new GLB, but it also revealed the SUVs interior for the first time. I know I said the same thing when Mercedes revealed the all-new GLC in September, but I’m surprised to see the huge digital screens on the dash. That’s because Gorden Wagener, Mercedes’ Chief Design Officer, said earlier this year “screens are not luxury” and “… we have to create luxury beyond the screen.” Well, based on all the new models it’s coming out with, it seems like the other people in charge at Mercedes don’t feel the same way.
And that brings us to the end of today’s show. Thanks for tuning in.
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Gorden Wagener is correct. Screens are not luxury and that interior is about as tacky as they come. If someone told me that is the new interior of the Fiat 500, I would believe them.
The Peugot concept has shades of their famous 205 model from the 80s. Extend the mid-section a small amount and add some rear overhang and you are complete with a retro styled model 205. Have to add some glass when they extend the mid section or it will turn into a retro-styled AMC Gremlin.
Maybe Mercedes’ “screens are not luxury” means the next S-Class will not have huge screens, but the lesser B and C will have them.
I saw a Polestar 2 a couple days ago, and while it looked ok, it’s hard to see why anyone would buy one when you can get, say, a BMW i4 for substantially less money.
Kit,
I have seen a couple of Polestars and came away with the same thought. Why would anyone buy this over the much cheaper competition? I don’t see the value proposition within the polestar brand. Which was true when they first launched and remains true to this day.
As an aside. I did come across a 3 year old Audi E-Tron EV. It had 20k miles on it and the seller, who had to reduce the price recently by 3K, was asking $22K. It sat for months at $25K. That is some really steep depreciation from its 85K MSRP to 22K in just 3 years and 20K miles. I guess nobody wants those either and is another EV that never really had a good value proposition when it was new.
I suspect that more OEMs beyond GM are divesting in China. They may be less advanced on their divestment journey and less public about their plans, but I bet that they are making the same moves GM is making. I also think 2027 is an important year as that is when most of the Chip suppliers said they would be on-line within North America.
I-Pace also has very high depreciation, but Waymo loves them.
Essentially all EVs have very high depreciation. From what I find, a Tesla Model Y depreciates about 60% in 5 years, while a Highlander Hybrid depreciates about 40%, and I would expect the Y to do better than most EVs.
I nearly always buy cars new, to get what I want. I’ve never leased, but if getting an EV, I probably would lease. Vehicles like that E-Tron could be a good buy, if they are reasonably reliable, and if they will be supported by the manufacturer for their usual lifetime, but I don’t think I’d want to chance it.
I presume that GM will stop importing China made vehicles like the Envision. Not sure how many more vehicles are China built and sold in North America?
Are there any vehicles out their without steering columns?
Lincoln Nautilus and a Volvo and Polestar or two are from China. I don’t know if others are sold in Canada. I think there are Chinese brands sold in Mexico.
Kit,
At that price I was definitely tempted to get that E-Tron. I heard that they do have some problems though so I am doing more research on those problems. I don’t want to buy a $22K brick.
I wonder if the E-Tron was replaced with another EV, or if they went back to ICE.