AD #4348 – Digital Age? Smart Goes Old-School w/ New Ads; UAW’s Likely Demands; Australia Going EV Crazy

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

TOYOTA EARNINGS BENEFIT FROM WEAK YEN
Toyota’s global sales fell slightly in the last quarter, but thanks to a weak yen its revenue jumped 10% to nearly $86 billion. Its operating profit fell almost 9% to just $7 billion, but its net profit shot up 78%, coming in at $9.8 billion. Toyota made money in every region of the world, except North America, where it posted a loss. So the fact its net profit was up so much is significant, because North America accounts for 42% of the company’s revenue. Toyota definitely thinks the second half of the year will be better. It raised its guidance and announced it will spend $6.3 billion to buy back more than 4% of its outstanding shares.

COMMERCIAL TRUCK SALES UP IN EUROPE
We keep talking about the tough times the European auto industry is going through. But that applies to passenger vehicles, because the commercial truck side of the business is doing pretty well. In the first half, sales of vans were up 2%, trucks were up almost 10% and buses were up more than 22%. Diesels are the preferred power source in the segment, but they’re losing market share to electrics and hybrids. However the ACEA, the European automakers association, warns that electrification isn’t coming fast enough to satisfy EU regulations. But at least we can report on a part of the European auto industry that’s not shrinking.

UAW’S NEXT BARGAINING DEMANDS
At the end of the month the UAW is going to hold elections to see who will run the union. The membership may re-elect the current president, Shawn Fain, or go with someone else. There are 6 candidates in the running, and like any political candidate, they’re promising to get their members a lot more than they’ve got right now. The Detroit Free Press interviewed them and here’s the gist of what they’re promising to fight for in the next contract that comes up in 2028. They want full pensions, automakers to pay for retiree healthcare, job security, including protection from AI and automation. They want a shorter work week, the elimination of different tiers of workers, and of course, they want more money. So, no matter who wins the election, it sure looks like the union wants more out of GM, Ford and Stellantis.

  

SHALLOW DANUBE SHUTS DOWN FORD IN ROMANIA
Ford and Dacia have been forced to halt production in Romania because of electricity shortages. The country had to shut down one of its two nuclear reactors because drought lowered water levels in the Danube River so much it can’t cool the reactors. Ford builds the Puma, Transit Courier and Transit Tourneo Courier in Romania and Dacia produces the Duster and Bigster SUVs. The two companies say they are suspending production until August 19.

PROBLEMS WITH TESLA HW3
Even though he promised its vehicles had all the hardware needed for full self-driving, Elon Musk admitted during Tesla’s Q1 earnings call that models with the company’s Hardware 3 system do not have the capability to run Unsupervised FSD, the technology behind its current Robotaxi operations. So, in an effort to improve the capability of Hardware 3 vehicles, Tesla came up with an FSD Lite system, which is slightly scaled back from the current version of FSD running on Hardware 4. FSD Lite started rolling out in June and is the first major FSD update for Hardware 3 owners since early last year. However, it’s still only a Level 2 system that requires driver attention, so Tesla could still face lawsuits for Elon’s earlier promises, and Electrek reports that some owners are having issues with the new update. It received feedback that the vehicle’s Autopilot computer can start overheating within days of installing FSD Lite and even reports of complete computer failure, which requires a full replacement. If FSD Lite is the cause, Tesla will want to come up with a fix fast.

AUSTRALIA GOES EV CRAZY
Australia is going EV crazy as more affordable Chinese models hit the market and fuel prices go through the roof. In the first six months of the year nearly 104,000 pure electric vehicles were sold in the country, more than were sold all of last year. And in June, BEVs captured over 23% market share. Chinese automakers helped drive that first half growth, accounting for 80% of sales, but fuel prices are also on the rise. Gasoline is close to $7 a gallon in Australia and is expected to rise near $8. Diesel is even more. However, all those EVs are starting to impact fuel consumption. Just the EVs sold this year are reducing the country’s fuel demand by 2.6 million gallons every month, while its entire EV fleet is offsetting roughly 160 million gallons a year.

 

GERMAN DEFENSE COMPANY HIRES AUTOWORKERS
Here’s something we think we’ll see more of. German defense company Hensoldt has signed an agreement with the supplier Bosch, to open a software and engineering center in a vacant building located on Bosch’s campus near Stuttgart. The defense company is aiming to transfer as many as 300 of the supplier’s automotive staff to work at the site. It’s looking for employees with backgrounds in software development, systems engineering and electrical engineering. And this isn’t the first time Hensoldt has targeted auto employees. Last year, it hired nearly 200 workers from Bosch and Continental and earlier this year, it hired R&D workers from parts maker Aumovio.

MAGNA GETS 800V E-DRIVE CONTRACT WITH CHERY
Magna just landed a significant contract in China. It’s going to supply an 800 volt e-drive unit to Chery that makes 250 kilowatt power and includes a 2-speed gearbox. It will be built in China at Magna’s plant in Wuhan, but it’s significant to see that North American suppliers are winning contracts with Chinese automakers.

DIGITAL AGE? SMART USES MURALS FOR ADS
Smart is bringing back its iconic two-seater model and it’s launching a unique campaign to celebrate its return. The automaker has partnered with artists to create huge murals of the #2 in several cities around the world including Berlin, Paris, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Buenos Aires and Melbourne. Each mural will be different but they’re all bold and very vibrant. The all-electric #2 will make its world debut at the Paris auto show in October.

But that’s a wrap for this show. Thanks for tuning in.