AD #4380 – Military Leaders Support Chinese Auto Ban; Unifor Threatens Strike Against Stellantis; GM Launches Next-Gen Small Block V8s

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

MILITARY LEADERS SUPPORT CHINESE AUTO BAN
On Monday President Trump said he’s willing to let Chinese automakers build cars in the United States. Yesterday, a group of retired military generals, admirals and business executives came out in support of a bill in Congress that would ban any cars using Chinese hardware and software that has anything to do with connectivity. It’s called the Connected Vehicle Security Act. The bill has strong bipartisan support and we believe it will almost certainly be enacted. 

HYUNDAI CEO WARNS AGAINST CHINESE IMPORTS
And American military and industry leaders aren’t the only ones who want to keep Chinese automakers out of the U.S. market. So does Hyundai’s CEO Jose Munoz. He warned that without tariffs and other safeguards, Chinese automakers would eat up the American market like they’re doing in Europe. The U.S. represents the last large profit pool in the world where mass production automakers can still make good money. But all that would be at risk if Chinese OEMs were allowed into the market.

UNIFOR THREATENS STRIKE AGAINST STELLANTIS
The battle between Stellantis and Canadian union Unifor over its idled plant in Brampton, Ontario is starting to heat up. Last week, the automaker signed a memorandum of understanding to sell the plant to Canadian defense company Roshel. But Unifor opposes the sale because its worried about widespread job losses in the supply chain since the scale of defense assembly versus auto is much smaller. Yesterday, Stellantis told Brampton workers that there is “no long-term business case” to continue making vehicles there and that the sale to Roshel is the best option. Stellantis and Unifor are also negotiating a new labor deal and the union says a strike is a “real possibility” if they can’t reach a deal on the Brampton plant. Stellantis currently builds the Chrysler Pacifica and Dodge Charger at its other Canadian plant in Windsor.

FTC CRACKS DOWN ON AUTO ADVERTISING
Wow, the Federal Trade Commission is really cracking down on car dealer advertising. The FTC warned car dealers that they better be completely transparent about the prices they advertise. Anybody has to be able to walk into the dealership and buy it for that price. No more claiming that the car was sold or no longer available. The advertised price has to include any destination charges and any dealer or document fees. The only thing dealers don’t have to include are taxes. They can still advertise the MSRP but it has to be displayed less prominently than the actual selling price. 

GM LAUNCHES NEXT-GEN SMALL BLOCK V8s
GM started developing its next-gen small block V8s years ago, but with average gas prices in the U.S. racing to $5 a gallon, it’s terrible timing to be launching the engines now. The new 5.7L and 6.6L units have more displacement than the old V8s, a big part of the reason why they make more horsepower and torque. And 2027 Silverados and Sierras featuring the new small blocks offer best-in-class towing. We suspect GM also addressed build quality, which resulted in an expensive recall of the old V8s that’s still costing the automaker. And so far we’ve seen no mention of any improvements to fuel economy, which is a bigger factor for consumers with higher gas prices. But unlike its competitors, GM’s light-duty full-size trucks offer a 4-cylinder turbo and a 6-cylinder diesel, which is capable of providing up to 27 MPH on the highway.

  

GM FAST-TRACKS PATRIOT MISSILE PARTS
Here’s a great example of how a car company can flex its manufacturing muscle to help the military, beyond just supplying vehicles. In August, defense contractor Lockheed Martin partnered with General Motors to make the outer casing for Patriot missiles. And GM delivered those parts in just 22 days. Lockheed says it typically takes months or years to manufacture the components. And this is just the beginning, the companies say they will continue to collaborate on future defense systems.

 

CATL BRINGS EV BATTERY SWAPPING TO EUROPE
CATL, the largest EV battery maker in the world, already operates the largest EV battery swapping network in the world, but recently it started expanding into heavy-duty battery swapping and now it’s bringing that technology to Europe. It signed a deal with DHL to collaborate in a number of areas, including working with OEMs to make battery swapping trucks, building both mobile and stationary swapping stations and launching pilot projects. CATL is also working with a number of other companies on the deal and I love the name of the joint venture it created with Octopus Energy to build the European swapping network. It’s called Swaptopus. And with the average price of diesel at over 2 euros a liter or more than $9 a gallon right now across the EU, battery swapping trucks become a lot more attractive. 

FIRESTONE UPGRADES BEST-SELLING TIRES
Tire maker Firestone, which is a subsidiary of Bridgestone, a sponsor of Autoline, just introduced the next-generation of its best-selling tires. The new Destination LE4 feature deeper tread depth and a new tread pattern which delivers longer wear life and improved performance in the rain and snow. The new tire is designed for CUVs, SUVs and light trucks and is available now in 65 sizes fitting to 15 to 22-inch wheels.

AUTOLINE SERIES INTO RUNNING A CAR COMPANY DEBUTS
Attention all you students of the industry. We’re about to drop the first chapter of the interview series that we’re doing with Chris Theodore. This is the first of 18 videos we’re posting covering roughly 25 hours of insights into everything that goes into running a car company. We’re pretty sure nothing like this has ever been published before. Chris is a former auto exec who played key roles in developing iconic cars like the 2004 Ford GT, the second-generation Chrysler minivan, the Jeep Grand Cherokee, and many more. The first chapter is about how automakers target the customer they’re going after, and it’s a fascinating process. All of you Autoline members who support us on Patreon and YouTube already know this because we posted it for you a week ago. You’ll be getting access to Chapter Two later today, which is all about how automakers go about designing new vehicles. We’re grateful for your support which is why we’re giving you access to this content before anyone else.

And with that we wrap up this week’s reports on the latest developments in the global automotive industry. Thanks for watching Autoline Daily.