AD #4263 – Ford Launches Chinese-Built Electric Vans in Europe; Technician Shortage Drives Up Repair Costs; Waymo Hits 500,000 Weekly Paid Rides

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

U.S. Q1 AUTO SALES EXPECTED TO DROP SIGNIFICANTLY
Sales of new cars and trucks in the U.S. are expected to drop a lot in the first quarter. Analysts say higher gasoline prices and economic uncertainty due to the war in Iran are part of the problem. Another reason is that a year ago, people were rushing out to buy a new car before tariffs kicked in, so sales were quite strong then. Also, the elimination of EV subsidies sent sales of electrics tumbling 28%. We’ll get the official numbers next week, but analysts are forecasting that total U.S. sales will be down about 6.5% for the quarter, with sales in March alone down an alarming 15%. Every automaker, with the exception of Mercedes-Benz, is expected to post a drop in sales. Cox Automotive says total sales for the year will come in at 15.8 million units, which is half a million lower than last year. It says sales will be down in all categories including retail, fleet, leased and used. 

TESLA SHARES FALL DESPITE POSITIVE 2030 SALES FORECAST
Speaking of sales, Tesla has been doing something kind of weird, at least for an automaker. It’s publishing the sales forecasts of 23 finance companies that follow Tesla stock. And those forecasts go out to 2030. On average, those analysts expect Tesla’s global sales for the first three months of this year to be 365,000 units, up 8.6% compared to a year ago. They believe sales for the full year will come in just below 1.7 million vehicles, up about 3% compared to last year. But these analysts also expect Tesla’s sales to hit 3 million units by 2030, which is 79% more than it’s selling today. Now, you’d think the market would love that kind of forecast. But maybe investors were expecting more. Tesla stock dropped $13 a share on the news.  

WAYMO HITS 500,000 WEEKLY PAID RIDES
Waymo just hit a significant milestone. The company says its robotaxi business is now providing 500,000 paid rides a week. That’s double the number of riders from last April. At the start of 2025, Waymo was operating in three cities, LA, San Francisco and Phoenix but now it’s expanded to 10 cities. Waymo made this announcement on X, which to us feels like it’s taking a shot at Elon Musk and Tesla’s robotaxi business, which right now is nowhere close to Waymo.

TECHNICIAN SHORTAGE DRIVES UP CAR REPAIR COSTS
Almost anyone who’s tried to get their car serviced lately is probably aware that there’s a serious shortage of car techs in the U.S. The National Auto Dealers Association says that dealerships have 56,000 unfilled openings for techs, which is leading to delays and higher costs. Cox Automotive says maintenance and repair costs have been going up 8.5% a year for the last five years on average, and even higher than that for the last 3 years. So automakers are ramping up apprenticeship programs to produce more techs. For example, GM enrolled 1,500 apprentices last year, Ford enrolled about 700. Mopar, Toyota, BMW, Mercedes, Hyundai, Subaru and Volvo also have training programs. But it’s clearly not enough, and the industry needs to do a better job of getting the word out. After all, these are jobs that can’t be off-shored and won’t be replaced by robots.

      

VOLKSWAGEN & RIVIAN COMPLETE JV WINTER TESTING
Volkswagen and Rivian are making progress with their partnership. Validation models that feature the joint venture’s new Software Defined Vehicle architecture recently completed winter testing in Sweden. The model pictured is a pre-production version of the Volkswagen ID.EVERY1, but vehicles from Audi and Scout were also included in the tests. Over several months teams validated the architecture’s OTA functionality and fine-tuned the interaction between hardware and software for things like the all-wheel drive system and traction control. And to help integrate brand-specific functions more quickly into future models, Volkswagen, followed by Audi and Porsche, are also going to start sending software specialists to the U.S. in May to spend months learning all about the architecture and the code that it uses. The VW ID.EVERY1 will likely be the first to launch with a scheduled debut planned for next year and a starting price around 20,000 euro. 

CHEVROLET DEBUTS NEW 535-HP CORVETTE GRAND SPORT
Chevy is debuting the newest generation LS V8 for the Corvette. The LS6 offers more displacement, 6.7L, a larger throttle body and intake and a revised exhaust system, which along with the other upgrades boosts horsepower up to 535, a jump of 45 horsepower. The engine will become the standard option for all naturally aspirated Corvette’s next year, but it’s making its debut in the Grand Sport. The trim, which traces its roots back to the 1960s, comes with a new brake package, Magnetic Ride Control as standard, Michelin sport tires and a number of unique touches inside and out. There’s also a Grand Sport X version that pairs the new LS6 with the front e-axle and battery from the Corvette ZR1X, which combine for over 720 horsepower. Production starts this summer. Sales will likely start in the second half of the year and prices will likely start around $100,000.

FORD TO LAUNCH CHINESE-BUILT ELECTRIC VAN IN EUROPE
Ford is going to start importing an electric version of the Transit City van built in China to Europe. The model is made by Ford’s Chinese joint-venture partner Jiangling Motors and is based on its Touring EV. The van features a 54-kWh LFP battery, a 147-kw electric motor and has up to 254-kilometers or 158 miles of range. All models are front-wheel drive with three available body-types; a short-wheelbase, low-roof version; a medium-wheelbase, high-roof variant and a flatbed or chassis cab version. Ford is positioning the Transit City as an affordable alternative to the E-Transit Custom van that it already sells in Europe. The company didn’t reveal pricing but says the Transit City will be between the E-Transit Courier which starts just under $36,000 and the E-Transit Custom that’s priced at $58,300. Orders for the Transit City open in the second quarter of this year and deliveries are expected to start by the end of the year.

INFINITI UNVEILS NEW QX65 FASTBACK CROSSOVER
Infiniti introduced the all-new QX65, which is the fastback version of the QX60. The model is powered by a 2.0L turbo engine that’s matched with a 9-speed automatic transmission. That setup produces 268-horsepower and 286-lb-ft of torque. Inside, it features two 12.3-inch display screens with Google-built in and is also available with a number of safety and driver assistance features. The QX65 will be built at Nissan’s plant in Tennessee and goes on sale this summer in the U.S. with a starting price around $55,500.

And that’s a wrap for today’s show. Thanks for making Autoline a part of your day and I hope that you have a great weekend.