Toyota to Assemble Three-Row Electric SUV in Kentucky

Posted on 31 May 2023 by Ken Zino

Toyota (NYSE:TM) said today it  will assemble an all-new, three-row battery-electric SUV at Toyota Kentucky starting in 2025. The company’s first U.S.-assembled BEV will be powered by batteries from Toyota North Carolina. The new battery plant, currently under construction, will receive an additional $2.1 billion investment to support the company’s drive toward carbon neutrality.

“Toyota Kentucky set the standard for Toyota vehicle manufacturing in the U.S. and now we’re leading the charge with BEVs,” said Susan Elkington, president of Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky. “Our incredible team of Kentuckians is excited to take on this new challenge while delivering the same great quality and reliability that our customers expect.” Continue reading →

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Short Circuit – Electric Vehicle Smartphone Apps

Posted on 30 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Usage of auto manufacturers’ mobile apps for electric vehicles (EVs) has increased, according to the J.D. Power 2023 U.S. OEM EV App ReportSM released today*. EV owners are still more likely to use their apps more than other auto owners, especially for needs such as viewing active charging status or checking range information, Power noted. Two-thirds (66%) of EV owners use their brand’s app at least half of the time they drive, which is indicative of its increasingly important role in the EV ownership experience in Power’s opinion.

 “Even though EV app usage has increased over time, the app features EV owners say are most important to them are among those that have the lowest satisfaction,” said Jason Norton, senior manager of global automotive consulting at J.D. Power. “Manufacturers need to focus on improving the performance of the areas that matter most to EV owners in order to maximize their impact and elevate the user experience.” Continue reading →

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Stellantis, TotalEnergies, Mercedes-Benz Open Battery Factory

Posted on 30 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Stellantis (NYSE: STLA), TotalEnergies and Mercedes-Benz, celebrated today the inauguration of  the Automotive Cells Company’s (ACC) battery factory in Billy-Berclau Douvrin, France, the first of three planned in Europe. ACC was founded by Stellantis and TotalEnergies/Saft in 2020; Mercedes-Benz became a partner in 2022. With an initial production line capacity of 13 gigawatt-hours (GWh), rising to 40GWh by 2030, the facility will make high-performance lithium-ion batteries. It will be making batteries before the end of 2023. (AutoInformed.com:Italian Battery Plant Moves Ahead with Final Deal among Mercedes-Benz, Stellantis, TotalEnergies/Saft)

“At the outset of this partnership in 2020, we agreed to an ambitious global timeline to develop electric vehicle batteries that would power our plan to electrify mobility,” said Carlos Tavares, Stellantis CEO. “As we execute our Dare Forward 2030 strategy and now move to hit our ambitious target of achieving carbon net zero by 2038, Stellantis is actively contributing to the European electrification transition with state-of-the-art EV solutions and supporting France’s crucial role in a sustainable future. I applaud every person involved in ACC for together we are building a strong coalition to strengthen Europe’s competitiveness.” Continue reading →

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GM Defense and Black Sage Technologies to Work on Drones

Posted on 30 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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GM Defense and Black Sage Technologies* today announced an agreement to explore the development of a Counter Unmanned Aerial System (C-UAS) for use on GM Defense military vehicles provided to global defense and government customers at the Canadian Association of Defense and Security Industries (CANSEC) 2023 show. The two companies will collaborate on the research, development and market viability of a C-UAS on properties such as the Infantry Squad Vehicle (ISV).

“We understand how critical optionality is for our customers, who look for ways to outmaneuver increasingly complex threats from around the globe,” said Steve duMont, GM Defense president. “Our teaming agreement with Black Sage helps us offer greater flexibility to warfighters while continuing to develop mobility solutions that perform in diverse environments. This collaboration enables GM Defense and Black Sage to leverage the synergies of our respective companies, extend battlefield capabilities and showcase solutions that can drive mission readiness.” Continue reading →

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Heavy Duty – Mitsubishi Fuso and Hino Motors to Merge

Posted on 30 May 2023 by Ken Zino

Daimler Truck, Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus Corporation (MFTBC), Hino Motors and Toyota Motor Corporation today concluded a Memorandum of Understanding on accelerating the development of advanced technologies and merging MFTBC and Hino. MFTBC and Hino will merge equally and collaborate in the areas of commercial vehicle development, procurement, and production.

How this works under various anti-trust laws and regulations is unclear to AutoInformed. Details on the scope and nature of the collaboration including the name, location, shareholding ratio and corporate structure of the new holding company will be decided during the next ~18 months. The parties predict signing of definitive agreements in the first quarter of 2024. They aim to close the transaction by the end of 2024. Once all parties involved reach an agreement, they will move forward based on the approval of the relevant boards of directors, shareholders, and authorities. Continue reading →

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Josef Newgarden Driving a Penske-Chevrolet Wins Accident Marred Indianapolis 500

Posted on 29 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Josef Newgarden, driver of the No. 2 Shell Powering Progress Team Penske Chevrolet, took his first Indianapolis 500 victory in accident-befouled running of Indianapolis 500 that was halted by three red flags. When the racing resumed after the final red flag with only one lap remaining, Newgarden won by 0.0974 seconds,  fourth closest finish in 500 history, passing 2022 winner Marcus Ericsson on the last lap.* Santino Ferrucci – driving for four-time Indy winner A.J. Foyt came in third. Of the 107 Indy 500s raced, it was the first to have multiple red flags for crashes. (AutoInformed.com: Chevy Versus Honda in Fastest Field Ever at Indy 500)

All told, Newgarden led just five laps of the 200. Newgarden – a two-time IndyCar series champion – started the race 17th on the grid. For Tim Cindric, President at Team Penske, it was his ninth Indianapolis 500 win and the 19th for Roger Penske as team owner; the first came in 1972. However, it was Roger Penske’s first as the owner of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway since he bought it three years ago. Continue reading →

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Toyota, Honda, GM Lead in Supplier Relations

Posted on 27 May 2023 by Ken Zino

Toyota, Honda and GM finished at the top of the 23rd annual North American Automotive OEM – Supplier Working Relations Index® Study* that evaluates the relations between US automakers and their suppliers by mega- consultancy Plante Moran. GM, Nissan and Stellantis improved their scores. However, Toyota and Honda dropped slightly, and Ford, with a troubled supplier history, fell significantly. Stellantis showed the greatest improvement at +17 points, followed by GM (10) and Nissan (6). Nissan took over fourth place from Ford which dropped 23 points – the largest drop by an automaker this year. Toyota lost 7 points and Honda declined by 3 points.

“The industry continues to face unprecedented challenges in the shift to EVs that unless effectively addressed will only get worse,” said David Andrea, Principal in Plante Moran’s Strategy and Automotive & Mobility Consulting Practice, which conducts the annual Study. “During Covid, a ‘war room’ approach was adopted to quickly resolve critical issues. That approach is what auto manufacturers need to maintain during the transition to EV technologies. The industry needs that level of collaboration, even without the pressure of a crisis.” Continue reading →

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German Surfing Culture?

Posted on 26 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Porsche technology said today that current big-wave world record holder Sebastian Steudtner has spent the past two years scientifically analyzing and optimizing his surfboard. Now the board, dubbed the Caçador RS* has been publicly revealed in Cascais, Portugal. Sebastian Steudtner is the current world record holder in big-wave surfing with a wave height of 26.21 meters. The subsidiary of Porsche Engineering claims the surfboard has been hydro-dynamically and aerodynamically optimized.

“To reduce drag and stabilize the board, patented attachments known as aero edges were added to the front and back of the board,” said Marcus Schmelz, Project Manager at Porsche Engineering. “We know this principle from automobiles: here, too, tear-off edges are defined, for example through the use of spoilers. They reduce air turbulence, making the car more stable and aerodynamic at high speeds.” Continue reading →

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Ford EV Customers to Get Access to Tesla Superchargers

Posted on 26 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) said late yesterday that it reached an agreement with Tesla Motors that will provide electric vehicle customers access to more than 12,000 Tesla Superchargers in the US and Canada.

“We’ve spent the last 10 years building an industry-leading Charging Network that enables freedom to travel and provides charging confidence for our Tesla owners. We’re excited to deliver on our mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy by welcoming Ford owners, and other electric vehicles who adopt NACS, to our thousands of Superchargers across North America,” said Rebecca Tinucci, Tesla’s senior director of charging infrastructure. Continue reading →

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Ford CEO says China is the Main Competitor, Not GM

Posted on 25 May 2023 by Ken Zino
Ken Zino of AutoInformed.com on Milestones - Production Begins for F-150 Lightning EV

“We’re in the second inning of a nine-inning game.”

Ford President and Chief Executive Officer Jim Farley talked of the challenges Ford is facing during the shift to electrification today at the Morgan Stanley Sustainable Finance Summit. In his view, Farley sees the Chinese as the powerhouse Electric Vehicle brands going forward, potentially with enormous advantages in scale, which poses problems for other competitors. Then there’s the geopolitics involved, as well as the materials used in EV batteries, notably lithium and nickel.

“If you localize Chinese technology in the US – the customer is going to get screwed,” Farley said. The candid, tough talk comes at a time when Ford is investing more than $50 billion (2022 through 2026) in electric vehicles and battery components. Ford is on track to reach an annual targeted production run rate of 600,000 electric vehicles globally by the end of 2023, and 2 million by the end of 2026. Electric vehicles are expected to account for half of Ford’s sales by 2030. Continue reading →

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May US Light Vehicles Sales Forecast Up 20%

Posted on 25 May 2023 by Ken Zino

Total US new-vehicle sales for May 2023are projected to reach 1,337,700 units, a 15.6% increase from May 20221, according to a joint forecast from J.D. Power and LMC Automotive* released today. Truck and SUV sales governed the market. May 2023 has 25 selling days, one more than May 2022. Comparing the same sales volume without adjusting for the number of selling days translates to a gain of +20.4% when compared month-over-month with 2022. The Biden Administration’s economic  recovery continues to soar upward. The forecast includes both retail and non-retail transactions.2

“The industry is positioned for another strong month in May as retail sales are estimated to surge 9.6% from a year ago. This positive performance is complemented by a projected 0.7% increase in average transaction prices. As a result, it is anticipated that consumers will spend nearly $47 billion on the purchase of new vehicles in May, showcasing a significant 13% growth from a year ago,” said Thomas King, president of the data and analytics division at J.D. Power. Continue reading →

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First Look – BMW 5 Series – Generation Eight

Posted on 24 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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BMW today revealed  the new 5 Series, which for the first time ever will have a fully electric version. One of the most enduring and popular mid-size sports luxury sedans, more than 10 million have been assembled since its 1972 debut. The global roll-out starts this fall; and it will be offered worldwide with an electric drivetrain, as well as internal combustion engines with a 48-volt mild hybrid technology. Coming to the US in 2024 is a plug-in hybrid version.

The new BMW 5 Series is manufactured – as always – at Plant Dingolfing, BMW’s largest European plant, which is celebrating its 50th anniversary. In 1973, the first vehicle manufactured was a first-generation E12 5 Series. Dingolfing today is not only the lead plant for BMW’s luxury class vehicles, but also the location of the company’s e-drive production competence center, which produces both the electric motors and the high-voltage batteries for the BMW i5 on site. Continue reading →

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Toyota to Buy Solar Power from Former Coal Mine

Posted on 24 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Toyota North America (NYSE:TM) said today that it has agreed to buy 100-megawatts (MW) of the electricity generated as part of renewable energy company Savion’s Martin County Solar Project. The project is converting the former Martiki Coal Mine, a brownfield site in Martin County, on the border of Kentucky and West Virginia, into a new solar photovoltaic energy facility. (AutoInformed.com: McKinsey – EU Decarbonization Targets Require Lots of Land)

“It is important that renewable power is more available to large-scale US energy buyers and converting brownfields like this offers a path forward for former energy communities to take advantage of the infrastructure they already have with transmission lines while providing clean energy to the grid,” said David Absher, senior manager of environmental sustainability at Toyota Motor North America. Continue reading →

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Buy a Citroën My Ami Buggy Online June 20?

Posted on 23 May 2023 by Ken Zino
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Citroën said today that a new limited edition of the “My Ami Buggy” Series will be available online – at 10 am on June 20th. This is a sequel of the 2022 of the online sale of 50 “My Ami Buggy Ultra-Limited Series” in France. (See Bruce Meyers in Notable Deaths During 2021)

Citroën will sell a new special edition of 1000 units, which will be available in ten countries: France including the French overseas departments, Italy, Spain, Belgium, Greece, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Luxembourg, Morocco and Turkey. Buggy is priced at €10,490, ~$11,300.50 if you can get one. The last time around it took the fastest buyer to complete the entire purchase process of the first sale 2 minutes and 53 seconds. The first will be delivered mid-September. Continue reading →

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McKinsey – EU Decarbonization Targets Require Lots of Land

Posted on 23 May 2023 by Ken Zino

In a thought-provoking report from the McKinsey consultancy* that just arrived at AutoInformed the amount of land required to meet the wind generation and solar photovoltaic capacity in Europe to arrive at the legally required climate neutrality by 2050 is substantial. In France, Germany, and Italy, where ~50% of the EU renewable-energy sources (RES) installations are expected, meeting 2040 RES capacity objectives would require an additional 23,000 to 35,000 square kilometers of land that is an area equal to the size of Belgium, according to McKinsey.

To say that this has political implications is, perhaps, an understatement. AutoInformed has observed for decades that abstract policy discussions and agreements can become quite contentious when they move toward implementation in one’s backyard – onshore or off the shoreline. Continue reading →

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