AD # 4197 – Audi Sells Italdesign; Dongfeng Hits +48% Efficiency with Turbo-Four; Ford Suppliers Get China Rare Earths

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

AUDI SELLS ITALDESIGN
Italdesign is one of the most famous independent design studios in the auto industry. Founded by the legendary Giorgetto Giugiaro, it created breakthrough designs for Volkswagen, Alfa Romeo, De Tomasso, BMW, Ferrari, Lamborghini, American Motors, Fiat, Hyundai and a bunch of others. Giugiaro was also selected as the Designer of the Century, meaning the 20th Century, in 1999. Audi was so enthralled with Italdesign, that it bought the company in 2010. But now it’s selling it to a technology-consulting company in California called UST. Lamborghini, which is also part of Audi, will still own part of Italdesign. Here’s our Autoline Insight. This is just the first step in more to come. Audi and its parent company Volkswagen are going to have to start selling off other assets to raise money and cut costs.

EU COULD DELAY ICE BAN TO 2040
There’s a big battle in Europe over plans on the books to ban the internal combustion engine in new cars starting in 2035. Most automakers are dead set against the plan, and it looks like the EU is going to push that back to 2040, as long as automakers fill the gap with hybrids, extended range EVs, fuel cells and e-fuels. Europe’s goal was to have electric cars account for 25% of all sales right now, but they’re only at 16%. And regulators are kind of bowing to reality.

VW TO ADD EREVs TO U.S. & EU LINEUPS
Hot on the heels of that announcement, Volkswagen is talking about adding EREVs to its lineup in the U.S. and Europe. We already knew that Scout was pivoting from pure EV to EREV, but it sounds like VW is thinking about offering EREVs across its lineup, because they eliminate range and charging time anxiety. They’re popular in China, but there’s still questions whether American and European car buyers will go for them.

DONGFENG HITS +48% EFFICIENCY WITH TURBO-FOUR
Some Chinese automakers have a huge start when it comes to EREVS. BYD, Geely and Dongfeng have developed EREV engines that have the highest thermodynamic efficiency in the world. In fact, Dongfeng just set a new record, hitting just over 48% efficiency at converting gasoline into power. Toyota used to have the record with the Prius engine at 41%. Dongfeng’s engine is a 1.5-liter variable-vane turbo four, with a 15.5:1 compression ratio, and a fuel injection system that runs at 500 bar. That’s 7,251 psi, which is more than twice as much as most gasoline engines. It uses electronic variable valve timing and a valve seat free design. Other details include an electric oil pump and thermal spray coating of the cylinder bores. Remember when we thought the Chinese would never catch up to everyone else in combustion technology? Yeah, I remember too.

FORD SUPPLIERS GET CHINA RARE EARTHS
Good news for Ford. China just issued licenses to the automaker’s suppliers to get shipments of rare-earth magnets. Ford had to halt production at several plants earlier this year after China restricted shipments as part of the trade war with the U.S. Companies had to apply for licenses for every shipment, which created shortages, and China and the U.S. recently agreed to streamline the process. Even so, not all automakers have been as lucky as Ford. Germany’s foreign minister says that its automakers are still waiting for approval.

CHINA TAKES LEAD IN HOT-STAMPED STEEL
Hot-stamped high-strength steel is used in all kinds of structural applications for the body-in-white, like the A and B-pillars, door rings, crossbeams and the front shot guns. They call it hot stamped because the steel is so hard it has to be heated up until it’s red hot before it’s soft enough to be stamped. The harder you can make this steel, the thinner the gauge you can use, and that saves weight. And this is yet another area where China is taking the lead. While most of this steel used in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere is rated at less than 2,000 MPa, or megapascals, the Xiaomi YU7 is rated at 2,200 MPa, and Chery says it’s going to start using high strength steel with 2,500 MPa. And so, we can add high strength steel to the list of technologies where China is leaving the rest of the industry behind.

NISSAN UNDERCUTS TESLA FSD BY $4,000
Tesla’s latest Full Self Driving system is mighty impressive. But it’s an $8,000 option. Nissan wants to come out with a similar system that only costs $4,000. It’s expanding a partnership with British startup Wayve, a company that develops AI systems for autonomous vehicles. They’ve already developed a prototype and just signed a deal to integrate Wayve’s software into Nissan’s next-gen ProPilot driver assist. It will debut in Japan in the 2027 fiscal year but Nissan didn’t say which model it will be. The automaker also plans to offer it in North America. The technology will support both ADAS and point-to-point driving and will be offered in a broad range of Nissan’s lineup. And oh, by the way, it doesn’t use lidar.

JLR IP CROSSBAR CUTS CO2
JLR has come up with a clever way to significantly reduce CO2 emissions. The automaker reengineered the instrument panel crossbar beam for future vehicles using fiber-reinforced plastic and steel. The crossbeam is located behind the dashboard of a vehicle and plays a key role in safety, protecting passengers and mounting airbags, while reducing noise and vibration. Traditional crossbeams are made from aluminum, magnesium or steel and by eliminating magnesium, which is highly carbon intensive to produce, JLR says the new structure can save 50,000 metric tons of CO2 annually.

Before we go, be sure to tune in to Autoline After Hours when it goes live at 3 pm eastern this afternoon. We’re going to look at how legacy automakers got the whole EV thing so wrong. We’ll have Patrick Anderson, from the Anderson Consulting Group, and Jackie Charniga from the Detroit Free Press on the show. So join John and Gary when the show gets going.

And that wraps up today’s report. We’ll be right back here tomorrow, bringing you the latest developments in the automotive industry.