Tag Archives: thedetroitbureau.com

Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Beats Original Mileage Estimate

The new GT version of the Ford Mustang Mach-E will deliver substantially better range than the automaker originally estimated — the EPA rating the high-performance package at up to 270 miles per charge.

Ford’s Mustang Mach-E is one amongst a wave of new EV products coming to market.

That’s 20 miles more than what Ford initially claimed for the Mach-E GT. Meanwhile, the Mach-E GT Performance Edition will deliver 260 miles per charge, up from Ford’s original estimate of 235 miles.

“We already pushed the envelope by creating an electric vehicle with the pony badge, so it’s only natural that we push it even further,” said Darren Palmer, Ford’s global director for battery electric vehicles. “Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition not only gives you the added performance you expect from the GT name, but accentuates the thrill with the responsiveness of an all-electric powertrain.”

Charging up the market

2021 Mustang Mach-E GT
The 2021 Mustang Mach-E GT gets 270 miles on a full charge, better than the previously expected 250 miles.

The electric “pony car” received something of a mixed response when Ford first unveiled it in November 2019 at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Some traditional fans lamented the idea of going electric, others disturbed to see an SUV wearing the familiar Mustang badge. But since the base and mid-range models went on sale late last year, the Mustang Mach-E has scored a solid hit. It has taken market share away from Tesla and helped power the 95% jump in overall U.S. sales of plug-based vehicles during the first four months of 2021.

Several factors have played out for Ford. Despite the concern of traditionalists, the crossover design comes at a time when SUVs have come to dominate the American market. And the initial models have come in with some of the best range numbers of any new battery-electric models. Depending upon the trim level and battery pack, the original front- and all-wheel drive Mach-E models delivered EPA numbers of 211 to 305 miles per charge.

The 2021 Ford Mustang Mach-E GT Performance Edition is expected to arrive sometime this fall.

The new GT models don’t quite match what the Tesla Model Y Performance model delivers, at 303 miles, but they remain contenders in the emerging electric muscle car segment.

The “standard” GT, meanwhile, punches out 480 horsepower and 600 pound-feet of torque. The Performance Edition bumps the torque number up to 634 lb-ft, enough, Ford says, to launch from 0 to 60 in 3.5 seconds. The special edition gets some additional help from stock Pirelli summer tires, the stock GT coming with all-season rubber.

Going head-to-head with Tesla

That’s about the same as the Tesla crossover with its performance package making 456 hp and 497 lb-ft of torque. Preliminary reviews have also faulted some aspects of the Tesla crossover’s handling. Initial reviews of the Mustang GT and GT Performance Edition are not yet available.

Ford has been taking advance orders for the Mustang Mach-E GT. It said Wednesday it will now take orders for the Performance Edition — and let those with existing orders upgrade.

The GT will start at $61,000, the Performance Edition at $66,000. Those figures don’t factor in the current $7,500 in federal tax credits, nor do they include delivery fees and taxes.

Deliveries are expected to begin this autumn.

Fisker, Magna Complete EV Deal

With a new wave of electric vehicles moving closer to launch pads, Fisker announced it signed a binding agreement with Magna International Inc. to build a new EV for distribution in Europe and North America. 

Henrik Fisker said his company and Magna aligned very quickly when it came to the Ocean.

This finalizes the memorandum of understanding the two agreed to last October. 

Fisker and Magna, one of the world’s largest automotive suppliers, also confirmed production of the all-electric Fisker Ocean SUV is slated to begin Nov. 17, 2022, keeping it on the original timeline for deliveries in late 2022. Production is expected to jump to 50,000 units in 2023.

The new vehicle will be built at Magna’s facility in Graz, Austria. The factory has produced more than 3.7 million vehicles for several global automakers, such as BMW and Jeep, throughout the years. The finalized agreement gives the EV maker a partner with deep pockets as it launches its EV venture. 

“From the start of this partnership, Fisker and Magna aligned very quickly on the importance of delivering a high-quality vehicle on time,” said Chairman and CEO Henrik Fisker.  

“We continue to strengthen our partnership beyond platform development and manufacturing into areas such as the development of Fisker Intelligent (FI) Pilot. I am very confident Fisker and Magna will deliver an incredible product to our customers.” 

Broad agreement critical

Magna’s facility in Graz, Austria already builds a variety of vehicles for established automakers.

This agreement runs through the expected lifecycle of the vehicle — 2029 — covering planned volumes, manufacturing costs, quality metrics as well as critical planning and launch phases. It also covers all facility investments, including body shop, a clear path to start-of-production in November 2022 and rapid ramp up to full run-rate production, the two companies said in a statement. 

It also allows for future collaboration and partnerships with the Ocean or other FM29 architecture variants, as well as collaboration on efficiencies in the production process that may drive post-launch manufacturing and cost innovations, the company noted in a release.

Along with the previously signed agreements on electric vehicle (EV) platform sharing and ADAS package, the agreement finalizes the framework established between the two companies beginning in October 2020, the statement added. As part of the deal, Canada-based Magna will take a 6% stake in Fisker. 

“Our complete vehicle systems approach, combining all elements of our portfolio, makes Magna’s proposition highly competitive — in capital efficiency, launch reliability and speed to market,” said Magna Steyr President Frank Klein. “Our collaboration with Fisker is an excellent example demonstrating the unique capabilities Magna offers as the go-to supplier when it comes to delivering world-class technologies and vehicles for our customers.” 

Fisker offers a good hint as to what it plans to bring out by 2025.

Partnership accelerates timeframe, reduces costs

By teaming up with Magna, however, Fisker should be able to better spread out its assets as it won’t have to come up with the money needed to set up a factory to start building the Ocean SUV – a project that Henrik Fisker said should save as much as $1 billion. 

Fisker also will have a ready-made, skateboard-style platform it can use to underpin the Ocean and some of the products scheduled to follow, amounting to more big savings.

The platform Magna has developed is slightly larger and will allow Fisker to make Ocean slightly larger. “So, it allows us to put in a third row and achieve class-leading range” with a larger battery pack than originally planned, said Fisker.The prototype featured an 80 kilowatt-hour lithium-ion pack. Fisker won’t say how much larger the new platform’s pack will be but stressed that it will allow the production version of the Ocean to top the longest-range version of the Tesla Model Y which currently manages 315 miles between charges, according to the EPA.

GM’s Cruise Secures $5 Billion Credit Line to Buy Vehicles

Cruise LLC CEO Dan Ammann announced the company secured a $5 billion credit line to buy the Origin shuttles it needs for its autonomous vehicle services from General Motors in a few years.

GM has already begun building the 100 pre-production Origin shuttles in Detroit.

GM — essentially Cruise’s parent company — will build the Origin’s driverless shuttles at its new Factory Zero plant in Detroit. To close the loop on this deal, the credit line comes from GM Financial, the auto company’s in-house finance arm.

The $5 billion credit line makes it so Cruise “can efficiently finance the expansion of our fleet as we scale up over the next few years,” Ammann wrote in a blog post Tuesday. “This bumps up Cruise’s total war chest to over $10 billion as we enter commercialization.”

Production is already underway as GM’s already built several pre-production models — a total of 100 are coming before they’re set for business.

Next step in the business plan

GM’s Factory Zero in Detroit is readying the first round of shuttles for validation and testing.

Ammann, who was previously president of GM before taking over as CEO at Cruise, noted in the blog entry that he’s excited seeing the first few vehicles already built and to have them begin the validation and testing process.

“Seeing them up close and in person is absolutely thrilling,” he wrote in the post.

The company, which also counts Honda and Microsoft among its investors, recently received the go-ahead to begin testing its self-driving technology in California from the state’s public utilities commission. The company is using Chevrolet Bolt EVs for the testing run. 

To date, Cruise has fielded 300 modified Bolt EVs, logging 2 million miles of testing on public roads. Most are being run near its San Francisco headquarters, though others are operating in Phoenix, another popular test site for autonomous startups, including Waymo.

Cruise’s $5 billion credit line aims to ensure the business can operate efficiently.

Until recently, companies like Cruise, Waymo and others have been allowed to test their autonomous technologies on public roads, but only with a back-up “safety operator” onboard, ready to retake control in an emergency.

Autonomous businesses

The Cruise Origin is expected to be used in a ride-sharing service similar to what Google spinoff Waymo plans to set up. It is unclear whether the GM subsidiary may also sell the Origin or other products to competing ride-share services.

The first production models of the toaster-shaped shuttle are expected to be ready for 2023. The company already set to begin a commercial ride-sharing service in Dubai that same year. 

The Cruise vehicles will use Level 4 technology that expands the range of roads on which they can operate without a driver onboard. The planned Cruise Origin shuttles won’t even have controls like a steering wheel or brake and accelerator pedals. Still, the vehicles will be “geo-fenced,” meaning they can be used only on specific roads and places and under defined conditions. It remains unclear when it will be possible to go the next step, fielding driverless vehicles that will be able to operate on their own, anywhere and at any time.

Honda Teases Next-Gen 2022 Civic Hatchback

The recently revealed Honda Civic sedan is set to get some company, the automaker set to unveil the next-generation Civic hatchback later this month.

The new Civic will make its global debut on June 23 at 9 p.m. EDT during the Civic Tour “Remix” virtual concert that will be livestreamed on YouTube.

If you squint and apply a little imagination, you can merge this spy shot with the teaser photo. (Photo credits: CarScoops)

But we’re getting a sense of what’s in store thanks to the teaser the Japanese automaker released today. And, beyond the obvious differences in a five-door layout, the 2022 Civic Hatchback appears to pick up on the same, basic mantra of the sedan with a design language Honda has described as “simple,” “clean” and “modern.”

 “The Civic Hatchback builds on the sporty and youthful design of the 11th generation Civic Sedan while showcasing European-inspired exterior styling, enhanced five-door versatility, and an available, fun-to-drive 6-speed manual transmission,” Honda said in a statement released today.

Lots in common

One safely can bet the new Civic hatchback will share plenty of new technologies, both for infotainment and safety, with the latest Honda sedan.

The interior of the Civic hatchback is likely to mirror that of the Civic sedan, which debuted earlier.

Based on the teaser — and recent spy shots — we can expect the Civic Hatchback to pick up on key sedan design cues. That includes a “thin and light” body design that adopts a low hood and front fenders. The nose also features a small grille above the front bumper, a larger one below, giving the new Civic sedan a more planted feel — something one can expect to carry over. Subtle flaring around the wheels yield a more aggressive and premium feel, or so Honda designers contend. The windshield pillars, meanwhile, have been moved rearward two inches, the glass flowing into a coupe-like roofline that tapers into a short rear deck.

Even with the windshield pushed back, the new cabin offers reasonable space for both front and back passengers, especially considering competitors in the compact segment. The low instrument panel is accented by a honeycomb mesh and the cabin adopts more premium materials than the outgoing sedan.

We also expect to see the two models to largely align on technology. The sedan’s base trim now gets a 7-inch color touchscreen for an infotainment system that comes with both Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. There’s an upgrade to a high-definition, 9-inch touchscreen that is paired with wireless versions of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. The 2022 Civic sedan became the first to offer a 12-speaker Bose premium sound system, and Touring models come with Qi wireless smartphone charging.

Si and Type-R also in the works

Expect to see the 11th-generation Civic hatchback appear in a variety of different configurations, including Si and Type-R performance packages.

The new Civic sedan’s about to get a stablemate with the debut of the hatchback later this month.

In the base trim, Honda will offer at least one of the two 4-cylinder powertrains now available in the Civic sedan:

  • A naturally aspirated 2.0-liter package making 158 horsepower and 138 pound-feet of torque and paired with an updated CVT;
  • The other option is an updated 1.5-liter turbo-4 now making 180 hp and 177 lb-ft, up 6 and 15, respectively.

The Type-R not only will get a boost in power but Honda has confirmed a manual gearbox will remain on the option checklist.

U.S. production planned

The 2022 Honda Civic Hatchback will be produced at the automaker’s plant in Greenburg, Indiana, marking the first time it’s been assembled in the U.S. While the ongoing semiconductor shortage is impacting industry production plans, the 5-door currently is scheduled to reach American showrooms later this year.

We’ll have more to report on the 2022 Civic Hatchback later this month.

Ford May Sales Rise Due to SUVs

Most automakers posting May sales results enjoyed massive upticks compared to their year-ago results — except Ford Motor Co. 

The Bronco Sport helped the company’s portfolio of SUVs keep its sales numbers positive in May.

Ford saw sales rise just 4.1% as inventories on its highly profitable trucks were very low, while Hyundai, Honda and others revealed triple-digit jumps for some vehicles and double-digit overall increases. No automaker has seemingly been hurt by the ongoing semiconductor shortage like Ford.

In fact, its retail sales results — excluding its fleet sales — were down 11.2% in May, a reflection of just how much Ford dealers are struggling to meet demand for the brand’s F-Series pickups. To be fair, CEO Jim Farley has repeatedly warned the second quarter would be the company’s worst due to the chip issue.

“Ford sales were up 4.1% on tight inventories, while year-to-date sales increased 11.3 percent,” said Andrew Frick, vice president, Ford Sales U.S. and Canada, in a statement. “Ford and its dealers are working harder than ever to match the right mix of inventory to best meet the needs of our customers at the local level. 

“We have been receiving a massive number of reservations for our all-electric F-150 Lightning over the last two weeks — totaling over 70,000 trucks. Ford brand SUVs had their best May sales in 18 years, while Lincoln SUVs posted a new May record.” 

SUVs carrying the company

2021 Lincoln Corsair Reserve front
Lincoln’s SUV, including the all-new Corsair, posted their best May since 2003.

The travails of truck inventories are well known. Fortunately, the company’s SUVs picked up the sales slack in May showing a 48.6% increase in total sales compared to last May and 27.9% on the retail level — again hurt by the chip problem.

Despite that difference, it was the company’s best May sales result for SUVs at the retail level since 2003. Ford brand SUVs were up 51.8% over a year ago on new product introductions of Bronco Sport and Mustang Mach-E, along with the continued momentum of Escape, Explorer and Expedition. 

The Bronco Sport and Escape performed well in the highly competitive small SUV segment, officials noted. Ford’s May retail share is up almost 4 full percentage points in the small SUV segment, with sales of both Bronco Sport and Escape expanding their sales within two very different customer groups. Escape sales were up 51.4%, while the majority of Bronco Sport customers are coming from outside the Ford brand. 

Lincoln SUVs did the Ford offerings one better, producing a record result last month. Lincoln SUV sales were up across the entire lineup in May with a total of 7,871 SUVs sold – up 24.3 percent. Perhaps just as impressively, the entire brand was up 5% and is up 15.3% for the year thus far. Those numbers are impacted by the massive drop in MKZ and Continental sales, which are no longer produced and dealers are trying to clear out remaining inventory.

2021 Mustang Mach-E
The Mustang Mach-E is part of the reason why the company’s electrified vehicle sales were up 184% last month.

EVs going crazy

A Mustang Mach-E sits for just 10 days once it gets to a dealer and many are selling upon arrival. Mach-E sales totaled 1,945 in May, and 10,510 year-to-date. 

The Mustang Mach-E is performing so well, the company is building more Mach-E’s than the original gas-powered pony car, according to Bloomberg. Ford’s plant in Mexico has produced 27,816 electric Mustang Mach-E models in 2021 while the Flat Rock, Michigan facility building the Mustang has churned out 26,089 vehicles, according to production data the automaker released Thursday.

Erich Merkle, Ford’s sales analyst, told Bloomberg that Mustang production in Flat Rock has been hampered by the chip shortage. However, Farley told a group of journalists after the introduction of the F-150 Lightning the Mach-E is outperforming expectations and its completely sold out of its initial production run.

Strong Mach-E sales doesn’t mean that the Mustang has suffered. The all-new Mustang Mach 1 helped lift performance Mustang sales to more than 13% of retail sales, compared to 10% last year, the news agency noted. 

Overall, Ford electrified vehicle sales skyrocketed 184% last month, some of which was driven by the aforementioned Mach-E, but it wasn’t alone, officials noted. F-150 PowerBoost totaled 2,852 for the month, Escape electrified sales totaled 3,617 – up 125% over last year. Explorer Hybrid sales also had a big increase of 132% compared with a year ago on sales of 1,156 SUVs. The future looks bright on that front as well. The previously mentioned F-150 Lightning secured more than 70,000 deposits since its debut about two weeks ago.

GM Looking at New Vehicle Market: The Moon

General Motors is looking to go to the moon again. 

GM Lockheed Martin lunar terrain vehicle
A new generation of lunar rovers under development by Lockheed Martin and GM could be used by Artemis astronauts in 2024.

The Detroit-based auto company, which produced the lunar rover for the Apollo 15 mission to the moon, is partnering with Lockheed Martin to develop and produce a “lunar terrain vehicle,” or LTV, for use by for NASA’s Artemis program.

The goal is to design and build a vehicle that allows astronauts explore more of the moon’s surface “than ever before,” according to GM officials. The LTV is just the first of several types of vehicles needed to help get astronauts across the moon’s surface.

“General Motors made history by applying advanced technologies and engineering to support the Lunar Rover Vehicle that the Apollo 15 astronauts drove on the Moon,” said Alan Wexler, senior vice president of Innovation and Growth at GM, in a statement. 

“Working together with Lockheed Martin and their deep-space exploration expertise, we plan to support American astronauts on the Moon once again.”

EV expertise + experience = LTV job

NASA astronauts at lunar South Pole
NASA needs a vehicle capable of traveling the lunar South Pole.

GM enjoys the advantage of having done this before. It aided NASA in the development of the agency’s Apollo Moon program, having developed, tested, integrated and produced the inertial guidance and navigation systems for the series, in particular Apollo that put astronauts on the moon for the first time in 1969.

Additionally, it helped to develop the Apollo Lunar Roving Vehicle (LRV) for Apollo 15-17. The all-electric LRV never drove farther away from NASA’s based than 4.7 miles during its time on the moon’s surface. Fortunately, GM’s electric vehicle technology has advanced substantially since then.

The new vehicles aim to travel “significantly farther distances,” including the moon’s South Pole, which is cold and dark with severely rugged terrain. The vehicles will also need to be able to haul plenty of equipment in addition to people. NASA, according to reports, is looking for a vehicle to be able to travel about 600 miles on a charge and about 6,000 miles in a 42-day period.

The GMC Hummer SUT, which is set to debut later this year, recently went through some extreme winter testing, which may lend the company’s engineers some much-needed insight into how their current battery technology will fare in the far-colder reaches of space.

Hyundai TIGER X-1 on the moon
A rendering shows how the Hyundai TIGER X-1 could maneuver across the moon.

Not the only automaker with lunar plans

GM isn’t the only auto company working on lunar vehicles, in fact, it may be described as the latest to prepare a vehicle to be driven on the moon. Earlier this year, Hyundai unveiled its autonomous, all-electric TIGER X-1, which it claimed could be used on the moon.

However, Toyota’s been working diligently with the Japanese Aerospace Exploration Agency, or JAXA, to develop a new lunar rover for its moon mission in 2030. The automaker started the project in 2019 and proceeded quickly enough that it expressed hope that NASA would use its vehicle for the 2024 mission to the moon.

The Lunar Cruiser, as Toyota calls it, is a six-wheeled, hydrogen-powered rover, and it made it clear that while the project began as a JAXA-inspired vehicle, it hoped the U.S. space agency would take notice.

“We have now found a new ‘road,’ which is the moon. And for this new road, we will be able to make a new vehicle,” Takao Sato, project head of Toyota’s Lunar Exploration Mobility Works and a former interior design engineer who worked on the Prius hybrid, told Automotive News. “This is a dream for us.”

Toyota is developing a lunar land rover that the company hopes NASA will use for a 2024 lunar mission.

Audi also prepared a remote-controlled buggy to be used on the moon in 2016. The German maker supported a team of scientists chasing the Xprize, hoping to launch their mobile lab atop an Indian rocket. The goal was to have it travel nearly a quarter-million miles before landing on the Taurus Littrow Valley — which just happened to be the last place an Apollo moon mission landed nearly 50 years ago.

GM’s first lunar models

The company’s first LRVs were battery-powered four-wheelers that they stripped down as much as possible to permit them to be loaded onto a Saturn V rocket for launch. They also folded so they could be loaded in the cargo back of the Apollo mission’s Lunar Excursion Module, or LEM.

Power was provided by what was, for the time, a highly sophisticated 36-volt silver-zinc potassium hydroxide batteries. They weren’t rechargeable, which didn’t matter on a one-way mission like Apollo — that’s likely to change this time around. The key was the battery pack’s durability in the moon’s devastating environment. Maximum range was 57 miles, though the longest distance driven was 22.3 miles on Apollo 17 – with the astronauts never getting more than 4.7 miles from their LEM base.

The first vehicles were somewhat purpose-built models, but GM is expected to develop — in concert with Lockheed Martin — a variety of vehicles. Autonomous, self-driving systems will allow the rovers to prepare for human landings, provide commercial payload services, and enhance the range and utility of scientific payloads and experiments.Lockheed, which will be leading this effort, has produced vehicles used for every Mars mission thus far, including the 11 spacecraft that has carried the rovers used on the Martian surface to the Red Planet. 

CEO Tavares Giving 14 Stellantis Brands a Chance to Prove Their Worth

The merger of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and the PSA Group created an automotive powerhouse now called Stellantis, but it’s also produced a jumble of 14 individual brands. And CEO Carlos Tavares says each of them will have to prove their worth — though he’s giving them time to do so.

Stellantis sign Auburn Hills
Stellantis’ North America offices in Auburn Hills, Michigan, house Chrysler, Dodge and Ram — which may not make the final cut.

Even before the merger there was widespread speculation that some FCA brands might be on the chopping block due to declining sales. But the merger adds a layer of complexity, especially at a time when Stellantis must pick up the pace of its electrification and mobility services programs.

As an executive known for moving quickly, Tavares seems to be in no rush, however. Instead, he appears to be willing to let all 14 of the Stellantis brands lay out plans and prove they’ll work.

Showing the love

“For the time being, we love them all,” the Portugese-born executive said during a webinar sponsored by Automotive News.

“Each (individual brand) CEO has 10 years for which I am telling him or her that he has the funding, the ability to build his long-term business plan and plan for the different product launches and technologies to make the brand grow or rebound and create value for the company.”

Smoke and mirrors won’t help the Dodge brand make the cut in the long term.

Post-merger, Stellantis has more individual automotive brands than any other company, even Volkswagen’s dozen. The list includes a handful of truly global marques, such as Jeep, but most focus on specific markets or regions. Ram is largely limited to the Americas, while Peugeot and Citroen abandoned North America back in the 1990s. Some, like Jeep, have posted dramatic growth in recent years. Others, including both Fiat and Chrysler, are struggling.

A troubled future for two namesakes

In fact, the two namesake Fiat Chrysler marques have been teetering on the edge almost since the day FCA was formed a decade ago. Former CEO Sergio Marchionne had largely shifted focus — and resources — to two Italian brands, Alfa Romeo and Maserati. But the grand plan the late Marchionne laid out has yet to pay off despite billions of dollars spent on new products.

When the FCA-PSA merger plans were announced in 2019 many analysts thought that a retrenchment was inevitable. And they pointed to Tavares, who was designated to become Stellantis CEO, as someone unwilling to tolerate ongoing losses.

2021 Chrysler Pacifica Limited AWD S front
The Pacifica is currently one of only two offerings from the once iconic Chrysler brand.

But the 62-year-old executive has also shown a willingness to give struggling brands a second chance. That became apparent when PSA completed the acquisition of long-struggling Opel-Vauxhall in 2017. The German-based manufacturer had lost billions under the ownership of General Motors during the prior two decades. Yet Opel wound up back in the black within the first year it was run by Tavares.

By the brand

Whether he can pull off a similar turnaround with the other Stellantis brands is far from certain. Fiat and Chrysler are clearly going to be the most trouble, according to analysts. The U.S. marque now offers only two models, the aging 300 sedan and the Pacifica minivan, not much on which to base a brand. Fiat’s U.S. turnaround fell flat and it is barely hanging on there. It’s continued to lose ground in its home European market, as well.

Dodge isn’t in much better shape. It does have a loyal following for its Charger and Challenger muscle cars, as well as the Durango SUV. But it will have to adapt to a world in which electric drivers, rather than supercharged Hellcat V-8s, rule the road.

2021 Jeep Wrangler Rubicon 4xe white climbing
Jeep’s new plug-in hybrid only continues to expand the brand’s global popularity, making it virtually assured of surviving long term.

Alfa and Maserati are still works in progress but have yet to deliver the sort of sales and earnings numbers Marchionne predicted at an FCA investors seminar shortly before his untimely death in July 2018. Both brands are making major changes to their product programs, among other things, increasing focus on electrification.

Only Jeep and Ram, of all the FCA brands, have a strong and clearly identified path laid out for them. But both must also adapt to an electrified future.

Europe has its own issues

The French Stellantis brands appear to be a bit better positioned than their Italian and American counterparts, but Peugeot, Citroen and DS have their own challenges, especially when it comes to entrenching themselves in China, the world’s largest automotive market. And, shortly after the FCA-PSA merger was completed this year, Tavares called off plans to return Peugeot to the American market.

Stellantis instantly became the world’s fourth-largest automaker based on vehicle sales once the deal was completed. But it lags behind its three largest competitors, Volkswagen Group, Toyota and the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, in some key categories. That includes not only a weak presence in China, but also a slow push into both battery and autonomous vehicle technologies.

It appears that Tavares is looking to give each Stellantis brand enough time to define the path forward, rather than racing to cut them out of the family.

Aston Martin’s New CEO Takes the Wheel

Having been owned by any number of automakers and industrialists, Aston Martin Lagonda is once more getting a new lease of life. 

The crisis-prone automaker barely skirted bankrupt for the eighth time last year, thanks to a cash infusion by Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll and an increase in Daimler AG’s equity stake to 20%, up from 2.6 percent. 

New Aston CEO Tobias Moers came over after leading Mercedes-AMG.

This was followed by the August arrival of the firm’s newest CEO, Tobias Moers, the former chief executive officer of Mercedes-AMG. 

A new chief executive and new goals

Moers came to Aston Martin Lagonda after more than 25 years at Daimler AG, most recently as Chairman of the Management Board, Chief Executive Officer, and Chief Technical Officer of Mercedes-AMG. During his tenure, Mercedes-AMG more than doubled its product portfolio and quadrupled the number of AMG units sold as part of a financially successful brand management strategy.

The move comes as Stroll, now Aston Martin Lagonda Executive Chairman, is looking to attain annual sales of 10,000 units, and achieve earnings of 500 million pounds, or $704.6 million, on annual revenues of 2 billion pounds, or $2.8 billion, by 2025. For now, merely securing a profit would be notable. 

Canadian billionaire Lawrence Stroll bailed out Aston Martin and is now executive chairman.

Aston Martin posted a first-quarter loss of 42.2 million pounds, or $59 million; that’s down from the 110-million-pound loss, or $153 million, from the same period last year. But revenue increased to 244 million pounds, or $340 million, a 153% increase year-over-year.

Action plan

The improving financial picture comes as Moers puts his plans into action by selling excess inventory, simplifying production, revising its product strategy, and entering into a technology agreement with Mercedes-AMG, which already supplies engines to Aston Martin, a point of contention with some brand enthusiasts, even though Aston Martin hasn’t designed and built its own engines from scratch since the 1960s.

“It is our obligation to fix the business and the company to get on a much more efficient level to produce and manufacture cars,” Moers said, during a recent interview with TheDetroitBureau.com from the company’s Gaydon, Warwickshire headquarters. 

“A company like us, you cannot run your own electrical architecture, it’s impossible. You’re not going to be able to be pay the bill for that. A Vantage could give a good margin, but we have to fix the business around us.”

This snarling V-12 puts out 1,000 horsepower and 11,000 rpms and it powers the new Aston Martin Valkyrie.

Moers is looking for the company’s production to be driven by demand, rather than wholesale supplying dealers with cars. “We started into the year close to 3,000 cars in stock,” Moers said, “and this is not good.” 

This explains why Moers will be keeping its two production facilities, in Gaydon, England and Saint Athan, Wales, but closing Gaydon’s paint shop. Saint Athan’s shop is new and can handle 10,000 units a year — more than enough to accommodate the 4,000 vehicles a year Moers sees as the brand’s natural demand. 

Looking ahead

Beyond what’s on the ground, Moers is streamlining future products by cancelling the hybrid V-6 planned for the Valhalla mid-engine supercar, and replacing it with a Mercedes-AMG hybrid electrified powertrain that will produce 1,000 horsepower. 

The Valkyrie, powered by a Cosworth-built V-12, is expected later this year, along with a mild hybrid version of the DBX, followed next year by a high-performance variant. And look for the Vantage, DB11 and DBS to receive mid-cycle facelifts. Further out, the company is planning to produce a fully electric Aston Martin, as well as vehicles based on the DBX platform.

The Aston Martin Valkyrie takes the British brand into a new realm of performance.

“It is not a challenge to bring all these products to life, that’s not the challenge,” Moers said. “But rebuild the brand and get a clear definition of what Aston Martin stands for? That’s one of the challenges, but we have a clear plan to do that.”

The new CEO said that the company’s IPO amidst crumbling finances caused consumers to doubt the firm’s continued existence, which is now assured, he said. 

“The ultimate goal for us is turning Aston Martin into a self-sufficient company, a self-maintaining company. You can see the strength of the brand. Everybody knows what Aston Martin is; but what does Aston Martin stand for? For sure we could be Ferrari competitors, but I don’t want to talk about being a competitor. We have to define our own path.”

However, that path doesn’t include a takeover by Daimler.

“There is no hidden agenda. I’m not here because they’re going to the buy whole company; that’s not the reason I’m here,” Moers said. “There are some cars out there which we count as a true competitor; their life is a bit too easy at the moment.”

Look for that to change.

Uber’s Stock Takes Hit After Mixed Q1 Results

The impact of Uber Inc.’s long legal battle about the classification of its drivers in the U.K. — which it ultimately lost — came to light: $600 million.

ADCU beats Uber in UK court 2021
The union representing Uber drivers in the UK secured a legal victory over the ride-hailing giant in the UK.

The California-based ride-hailing company revealed in its Q1 earnings report Wednesday that complying with the court’s decision comes with a massive price tag. The U.K.’s highest court ruling made drivers employees rather than independent contractors and entitled to benefits like any other full-time worker.

Overall, the rest of the report was a mixed bag, resulting in a drop in the stock price of about 5.6% after the results were revealed, closing at $51.18. The decline continued Thursday, sliding another nearly 9% to $46.65.

Hits and misses

The company beat analysts estimates in some areas, such as posting just a 6 cent loss compared with the 54 cents expected. However, it fell short in revenue generated where it was expected to bring in $3.29 billion during the quarter but generated just $2.9 billion.

Aurora bought Uber’s Advanced Technology Group for $400 million.

Uber’s Q1 net loss was $108 million, which looks impressive when compared with the $968 million it lost last quarter. One might suggest that the 24% jump in gross bookings compared with the previous quarter — and an all-time high — carried the company.

Nope. It was the $1.6 billion gain it received from the sale of its autonomous vehicle technology unit to autonomous vehicle tech company Aurora. Not only did the sale generate some cash, it also meant Uber wasn’t throwing cash at the business, which wasn’t making much headway in.

By the numbers

Its adjusted EBITDA loss was $359 million, which improved by $95 million from the prior quarter. Another bright spot was the company’s food delivery service, which performed better than its “core” ride-hailing division.

Delivery revenue was $1.7 billion, compared with $853 million. This part of the company carried the ride-hailing portion of Uber during the pandemic. Uber said the Eats segment revenue was up 28% quarter over quarter.

Uber is struggling to find drivers in the wake of the pandemic.

“We’re finally seeing the light at the end of the tunnel,” CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said on a call with investors. “Uber is starting to fire on all cylinders, as more consumers are riding with us again while continuing to use our expanding delivery offerings.”

Uber officials confirmed again the company expects to be profitable by the end of 2021.

Still needs drivers

Officials confirmed once again it was struggling to find drivers in the wake of the pandemic. 

Uber’s spending $250 million to increase drivers’ pay, including offering payment guarantees and other incentives to lure new drivers to the service and entice the existing ones to work more often.The effort comes as Uber and rival Lyft report their drivers are enjoying higher than average earnings due to a sharp jump in demand as states begin rolling back COVID-mandated restrictions. People are getting more and more freedom to return to “normal” and drivers are seeing a significant spike in rates due to the demand.

Q&A: Green Car Pioneer Ron Cogan Offers Sage Insights

Green Car Journal Publisher Ron Cogan at the 2020 Green Car Awards. He’s been covering the shift to environmentally friendly vehicles for three decades.

The automobile has transformed we live, work and play. Unfortunately, it’s also had a seriously detrimental impact on Planet Earth. And now, as it becomes more crucial to address issues like climate change, the automobile is in the crosshairs.

That’s a message many have come to just lately. Not Ron Cogan. The veteran automotive journalist was among the first to recognize the need to clean up the car, in 1992 launching Green Car Journal. Where some have focused exclusively on electrified vehicles, pure battery-electric models, in particular, Cogan and his magazine have looked at all the various green car technologies that have come — and, in many cases, gone — during the past three decades.

The latest issue of Green Car Journal focuses specifically on battery-electric vehicles. But, as is Cogan’s style, it takes a pragmatic, even somewhat skeptical, look at this potentially game-changing technology, recognizing there are still many challenges to be overcome before BEVs can clearly replace the time-tested internal combustion engine.

Cogan spoke to TheDetroitBureau.com about his years covering the green car world and what he sees coming in the years ahead.

Cogan’s enjoyed a front-row seat, watching and writing about the shift from ICE-powered vehicles to electrified models in the U.S.

TheDetroitBureau: These days, everyone is writing about electric vehicles but you’ve been at this for a long time, haven’t you? And don’t you take something of a broader look when it comes to environmentally friendly vehicles?

Ron Cogan: Green Car Journal, which launched in 1992, has been all about options, everything that’s happening in the green space, whether it’s methanol, ethanol and natural gas, even high fuel-efficiency gasoline. Now, there’s a huge push towards electrification. It wasn’t our call to tell people what to drive. With our 30th birthday coming up we wanted to let people read different opinions from industry leaders.

TDB: We now have General Motors CEO Mary Barra setting a transition to all-electric vehicles and announcing a second battery plant. Is this the year of the tipping point for battery-electric vehicles?

Cogan: I would agree there’s a tipping point going on in the sense that there’s a major commitment by a lot of automakers. It’s gone beyond lip service. For the industry, the tipping point is here. The question is whether it is a consumer tipping point yet. Only so many people are willing to step up to pure electric vehicles. More see a hybrid as the way to go because it’s so seamless, and some to plug-in hybrids. But have we reached a tipping point for consumers? I’m not so sure.

Cogan notes that hybrids provide a level of convenience that pure EVs cannot.

TDB: Yet BEVs do seem to be gaining a lot of momentum.

Cogan: Well, the range issues is being overcome to a large degree, But even with 250 miles, on a long trip you have to plan ahead (to find places to charge), which is why I think plug-in hybrids are going to be pretty huge. When you can’t plug in you’re not limited, so I think that category is really going to expand. With a plug-in you can do everyday driving in electric but switch to internal combustion when you have to go farther. I think it’s a win-win. And it will get more people into buying electric vehicles.

TDB: I find that the best way to promote electric vehicles is to get people into electric vehicles. They’re often surprised by the performance, for one thing.

Cogan: Yeah, today’s electric vehicles are pretty amazing given what they offer — everything a combustion vehicle can offer and more. The launch in an electric vehicle can be pretty exciting and some companies, like Tesla, are keying in on that, talking about how they can beat a Ferrari on track and all that. I think that’s surprising a lot of people.

Cogan is quick to note that EVs are not the only way to improve the efficiency of vehicles. His publication’s honored several diesels.

TDB: I have more and more people asking if this is the right time to buy an electric vehicle. Many worry that, like with an iPhone, if they buy today something better will soon come out and they’ll regret it. What would you tell them?

Cogan: The technology, the range, all of that will improve over time, as will the cost which will continue to go down incrementally. So, it’s a tough question. If you find the right vehicle that appeals to you, it makes sense, go ahead and buy the vehicle. There are some great choices out there now and there are going to be more coming up. The jump to 250 miles (which most new BEVs are offering) is huge and there are going to be more and more charging stations coming online. True, the nature of it is that there’s always going to be something better. But do you never buy an electric vehicle because of that?

TDB: Doesn’t that make an argument for leasing, rather than buying? You can move to something newer and better in a few years — and not worry about trade-in values.

Cogan: I think leasing is the ideal way to go with electric vehicles. It means you don’t have to take as much of a risk. You know what your payments are. You know when you’re going to turn it in. And then, you can move on to the next generation of electric vehicles. Leasing takes the risk out.

Green Car Publisher Ron Cogan, Chevy Marketing Director Steve Mojoras and the 2016 Volt, which was honored by the Green Car Awards.

TDB: Let’s talk about batteries — in particular, next-generation batteries. Honda, Ford and others are all talking about solid-state batteries (which supposedly will be lighter, deliver longer range and shorter charging times and even reduce the risk of fire). Are they real? And will they live up to expectations?

Cogan: It seems that if solid-state comes close to all the promises it would put BEVs over the top, making all the difference in the world. Solid-state, from what we hear, is the ideal technology.

TDB: What would you estimate will be the BEV share of the market by 2030? And could it be even bigger than people are forecasting now?

Cogan: It’s tough to make a prediction, and I try to avoid that. But automakers and other interests are pushing for them and there’s a lot of interest in setting up a nationwide rapid charging network. All of that takes us in the direction where we know there’s going to be significantly more electric vehicles sold by then. But many things could influence the fate of gasoline vehicles. How’s the price of gas? If gas prices stay low there’ll be less incentive for electric vehicles. Technology will influence things. A recession could, as well. Legislation clearly will have an influence, especially if it’s a disincentive to drive on gasoline.

Honda has been at the forefront of fuel-cell vehicles with the Clarity.

TDB: On the subject of politics, the Biden administration wants to have 500,000 charging stations in place by 2030. Could that mean a faster growth rate for electric?

Cogan: If we get the range to drive on battery like you would on gasoline and you have a network of rapid chargers, suddenly, your functionality is increased exponentially. But there’s no way yet to know if the government is going to create (that public charging network). Administrations change. Agendas change. So, I don’t put stock into what you can count on as far as legislation matters.

TDB: But the Biden administration is clearly making a lot of proposals to promote electric vehicles. Do you like what you’re seeing?

Cogan: Yeah, as far as I can tell. I mean, we’re going to see how this all unfolds. This administration has a more proactive agenda for environmental issues in general and clean cars, specifically, than the previous administration. But I have to say you can’t always count on that. Back under the Obama administration, he wanted a million electric vehicles by 2015. It was never going to happen because there weren’t enough vehicles to make it happen. (But) I look at all of these things (Biden is proposing) as positive … a direction that seems to make sense for electrified vehicles.

Cogan drove a GM EV1 for a full year.

TDB: You started publishing Green Car Journal in 1992. Looking back on the last three decades, what were biggest surprises, the things you didn’t count on early on?

Cogan: One of the milestones was the debut of the GM Impact prototype and then the actual production of the GM EV1, I drove one of those for a year. It was an amazing car to be in on the evolution of electric vehicles. It was also interesting to note how hydrogen was big and then (see automakers) backpedaling, Now they’re interested in hydrogen again. It’s gaining momentum again.

One of the (other) things that surprises me is that we’re seeing such a push for electrification, at the extreme high end of both luxury vehicles and sports cars and exotics.

 

TDB: To wrap up, is the age of the internal combustion engine coming to an end?

Cogan: I don’t think you can discount internal combustion because it keeps getting better and better. And I don’t think you can discount hybrids and plug-in hybrids and focus just on battery-electric vehicles. Those are all a big part of the solution. It may have narrowed from when we started publishing. It’s no longer really about ethanol and natural gas and propane. It’s really about electrification and significantly more efficient internal combustion engines — and a combination of the two. It’s going to be even more exciting in the years ahead seeing how it will play out.


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} div#JkaXGWBzgI div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-form-description, div#JkaXGWBzgI div.mo-optin-form-container div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost p { font-size: 18px !important; } div#JkaXGWBzgI div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-form-note { font-size: 14px !important; } }@media screen and (max-width: 480px) { div#JkaXGWBzgI div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-form-headline, div#JkaXGWBzgI div.mo-optin-form-container div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost h2, div#JkaXGWBzgI div.mo-optin-form-container div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost h1 { font-size: 25px !important; } div#JkaXGWBzgI div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-form-description, div#JkaXGWBzgI div.mo-optin-form-container div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost p { font-size: 16px !important; } div#JkaXGWBzgI div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-form-note, div#JkaXGWBzgI div#JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-form-note * { font-size: 12px !important; } } #JkaXGWBzgI #JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-field.mo-optin-form-name-field::-webkit-input-placeholder { color: #555555 !important; } #JkaXGWBzgI #JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-field.mo-optin-form-name-field:-ms-input-placeholder { color: #555555 !important; } #JkaXGWBzgI #JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-field.mo-optin-form-name-field::placeholder { color: #555555 !important; } #JkaXGWBzgI #JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-field.mo-optin-form-email-field::-webkit-input-placeholder { color: #555555 !important; } #JkaXGWBzgI #JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-field.mo-optin-form-email-field:-ms-input-placeholder { color: #555555 !important; } #JkaXGWBzgI #JkaXGWBzgI_inpost .mo-optin-field.mo-optin-form-email-field::placeholder { color: #555555 !important; } div#JkaXGWBzgI .mo-mailchimp-interest-container { margin: 0 10px 2px; } div#JkaXGWBzgI .mo-mailchimp-interest-label { font-size: 16px; margin: 5px 0 2px; } div#JkaXGWBzgI input.mo-mailchimp-interest-choice { line-height: normal; border: 0; margin: 0 5px; } div#JkaXGWBzgI span.mo-mailchimp-choice-label { vertical-align: middle; font-size: 14px; } div#JkaXGWBzgI .mo-mailchimp-interest-choice-container { margin: 5px 0; }div#JkaXGWBzgI .mo-mailchimp-interest-label { display:inline-block!important; } div#JkaXGWBzgI span.mo-mailchimp-choice-label { vertical-align:baseline!important; } div#JkaXGWBzgI .mo-mailchimp-interest-container { padding:18px 0 6px 0; } div#JkaXGWBzgI .mo-mailchimp-choice-label { font-size:16px!important; }