+++ Tesla gave FORD a “huge gift” in demonstrating how to cut costs on electric car development and production, CEO Jim Farley said. Ford’s Model E electric division lost $1.3 billion in the 3 months to the end of September as it negotiated a “challenging market” for the Mustang Mach-E as well as investing in new EV products, the company said. The firm is aiming to overturn Model E losses with its second generation of electric vehicles, which it aims to launch from 2025, starting with a new electric pick-up and a 7-seat SUV. +++
+++ The owner of a Range Rover Evoque has accused JLR of repairing her vehicle using second-hand parts, as the company struggles to source new, replacement components for thousands of its customers’ cars. Around 10.000 customer cars across the United Kingdom are awaiting replacement parts, with around 5.000 of them off the road at JLR dealerships. The crisis, which originated at the firm’s newest parts facility, Mercia Park, was revealed by Andrew Woolliscroft, client director at JLR, during a dealer summit in October. “Mercia is a bottleneck and we have a backlog of orders”, said Woolliscroft. The shortage of parts had “nearly stopped workshops from being able to operate”, he added. He said the company had run out of courtesy vehicles as well as the space required to store customers’ cars for repair and predicted the crisis would last until the end of November. Among those owners waiting for a part was Bob Archell. His Range Rover Sport P400e was diagnosed with a faulty wiring harness in April. “I was on the phone so much to Land Rover I think they lost patience with me”, he said. Its new replacement finally arrived in September but, by then, Archell had rejected the car. His case is ongoing. Meanwhile, an employee at a JLR dealership has told that, to beat the waiting list for new parts and speed up repairs, the manufacturer has instructed dealers to use second-hand parts. “JLR has told retailers to source non-genuine parts to get cars fixed and out of their workshops for the last 6 months”, he said. “One JLR senior manager even suggested we use second-hand parts if necessary, although this was ridiculed by retailers”. However, they are backed up by an owner’s experience of her 4-year-old, diesel-powered Range Rover Evoque, which, after it broke down, was repaired by an official Land Rover dealer using second-hand parts. The owner, Laura Brannock, who lives in Castle Douglas, says her car first broke down in April. It was eventually inspected in June by the dealer, who told her the new replacement parts it required wouldn’t be available until early December. In August, Brannock, who relies on her Evoque to take her son to regular hospital appointments, contacted Reject My Car (RMC), a consumer advocacy service, for its assistance. Following its intervention, within days the parts became available and were fitted to the car. Brannock then drove it to RMC’s offices near Glasgow so the company could inspect the repair. Its engineer reported that it had been fitted with a refurbished engine and turbochargers, had very little oil and was displaying 23 fault codes. “In our experience, the number-1 complained-of brand is JLR, with its failure to fix, due to lack of parts, the number one cause of customer rejections”, said Ian Ferguson, founder and managing director of RMC. He has advised Brannock not to drive the car while the firm pursues her case. A spokesperson for JLR said that only genuine Land Rover parts had been used for the repair of Brannock’s Evoque, that her vehicle was out of warranty and that she had been kept mobile at no cost to her. Regarding the use of second-hand parts, they said: “It is JLR’s top priority to resolve the temporary parts delays some of our retailers are experiencing and minimise the impact to our clients. The use of parts locally sourced by our retailers for replacement and repair is a long-established practice in exceptional circumstances, provided those parts are fit for purpose and meet JLR specifications. This is clearly stated as part of any warranty agreement”. +++
+++ A refreshed MERCEDES G-CLASS is on the way. A select group of journalists recently got to ride in one of the prototypes and discovered new suspension tech coming to the updated SUV. The facelifted G 63 will allegedly offer an optional system that will replace the anti-roll bars with a continually variable electro-hydraulic system. The tech will use flow valves on each damper that can transfer fluid from side to side through valves. A gas-filled metal sphere at each axle acts as an accumulator and handles distributing the liquid where it needs to be. The adaptive system can alter damping based on road speed, steering, angle, body movement and the drive mode. Wheel articulation reportedly improves, too. The tech also weighs less than using mechanical anti-roll bars. The optional suspension coming to the G 63 is an evolution to the suspension with semi-active, hydraulic roll stabilization available for the latest AMG GT and SL-Class. “We saw the advantages it brought to our sports cars and immediately began thinking of what it could do for our offroad models”, Ralf Haug, head of suspension at Mercedes-AMG, told. The updated G 63 reportedly adopts the mild-hybrid powertrain from the GLE 63. It uses an electrically assisted twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 producing 612 hp and 850 Nm of torque. For comparison: the existing G 63 uses a twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 making 585 hp and 850 Nm. Mercedes is preparing only minor revisions for the refreshed G-Class such as small tweaks to the front end for the G63. No significant alterations are planned. However, rumours suggest the cabin might receive more significant upgrades. The model would possibly adopt the large screens that are already available in Mercedes products like the S-Class and SL-Class. The refreshed G-Class will reportedly debut around the middle of next year. It will arrive at about the same time as the fully electric EQG. +++
+++ 2024 promises to be an important year for the MG brand, as the historic British marque, now under the control of Chinese giant SAIC, has enjoyed tremendous growth in recent years and is now working to build on that success. Undoubtedly, the central event of the year, at least in terms of image, will be the launch of the 100% electric Cyberster 2-seater, which pays homage to the tradition of roadsters on which MG has built its fame. However, there will be 2 other more commercially substantial developments, targeting the B and C segments, and we could even see the debut of a new hybrid system, although it is a mystery as to which model it would be aimed at. After the good response to the ‘4’, whose range includes the high-performance XPower version, MG is thinking about the lower segments. The long-awaited urban car we thought we’d see in 2023 is still waiting, but it looks like the company is going to enter the strategic B-segment this year. It’s not specified with what kind of car (it could be a small SUV), although I already know it won’t be exclusively electric. In the case of the arrival of a classic SUV, the most logical candidate would be the ‘3’; a 5-door model of around 4 meters in length that has been on the market since 2011 and is due for a new generation in 2024. The engines so far have been pure petrol and not electrified, but in the new one they probably will be. A sporty-looking SUV in the C-segment was already on MG’s list last year and for 2024 we know that the company is planning something along those lines, although nothing is confirmed at the moment. As mentioned a year ago, the assumptions are different: it could actually be a model already in the MG range but destined for other markets, such as the One, or perhaps a vehicle made from the 2021 Roewe R ES33 prototype, a car that also served as the basis for developing the Marvel R. We’ll see. The launch of the Cyberster electric roadster will be the perfect excuse to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the MG brand, with which the Chinese manufacturer confirms its desire to recover the original values and identity of the British company. A philosophy that will surely also inspire the next models. The Cyberster is just over 4.5 meters long, 1.9 meters wide and 1.3 meters high, with a wheelbase of almost 2.7 meters, and features striking doors that open upwards, as well as a classic fabric soft top. It has 2 electric motors (all-wheel drive, therefore) and the combined power output is 544 hp, for 0-100 in just 3.4 seconds. Prices will start at about €75.000. +++
+++ It’s hard to believe 10 years have passed since NISSAN unveiled this IDx (photo) at the Tokyo Motor Show as a conceptual entry-level sports car, with a Nismo version to boot. A decade later, there’s still no sign of a production version whatsoever. That said, there is a glimmer of hope a sub-Z model will be released one day, based on a statement made by the company’s product planning boss Ivan Espinosa in an interview. “Depending on which point in time you take, we’ve always had the GT-R, we’ve always had Z, and we’ve always had an entry level car; either a hot hatch like Sunny, or something else down there at that price and performance point. And this today is something that we kind of miss: this price and performance point”. As to which shape it would take, he suggested it wouldn’t be a hot hatchback like the Sunny of yesteryear. It would have to be a “smaller electric sports car” and a “bit more affordable” to cater to customers in their early 20s. To lure in such a young clientele, Espinosa said the car would have to be “exciting and engaging to drive” while offering a Nismo derivative. Domestic rivals are also thinking of hybrid and electric performance cars as the Japan Mobility Show hosted the premiere of the Honda Prelude, Mazda Iconic SP and the Toyota FT-Se. Nissan attended the show with its very own spectacular concept, the Hyper Force, serving as a window into the GT-R’s inevitable electric future. Back in 2021, vice president of Nissan Design Europe Matthew Weaver shared his work on a hypothetical Silvia revival. It wasn’t long after that when a juicy rumor from Japan’s Best Car magazine speculated an electric revival of the nameplate as early as 2025. However, I took that report with a healthy dose of scepticism. +++
+++ OPEL is considering the development of an entry-level city car that will be priced from around €25.000, according to the boss of the brand. The new entry point is envisioned as a diminutive, urban-oriented proposition to sit below the Corsa Electric (which opens at €34.999 in the Netherlands) in a space similar to that previously occupied by the likes of the Adam and Karl. That would make it a rival to the forthcoming Renault 5 Electric and the Volkswagen ID.2. Florian Huettl, the CEO of Opel, said a city car “was possible” as “there is space in the new range for a smaller model than the Corsa”, although he wouldn’t confirm if such a car had been designed. Huettl hinted that the key to a Opel city car would most likely be the development of new energy-dense battery chemistries, which will bring production costs down, enhance interior space and lower vehicle weight. Reducing the overall size of battery packs would allow future small EVs to offer ranges similar to those of larger existing models while maintaining a compact footprint and low price point. “That is the goal”, added Huettl. “Our target for the next generation is €25.000 for an EV”. He added that cheaper electric cars are becoming “a big pull” within the automotive world, especially from customers, and the brand needed to react to this. Opel has several options it can use to engineer a future electric city car. Parent company Stellantis has a range of platforms, including the forthcoming STLA Small architecture, which will replace the e-CMP platform used by the current Corsa Electric, along with the Peugeot e-208. The STLA Small architecture is designed to accommodate cars ranging from the A-segment to the C-segment, with batteries of between 37 kWh and 82 kWh. It will also allow for a range of motors and power outputs, starting from around 95 hp; ideal for a small city car. Figures released by Stellantis suggest that the platform, which is scheduled to underpin its first production car in 2026, can be used for cars as small as 3.600 mm long and 1.700 mm wide. Another option would be to adopt sister firm Citroën’s Smart Car platform. This is being used for the recently revealed ë-C3, which will cost from €24.680 at launch. Citroën CEO Thierry Koskas recently hinted that this architecture could be made available for other Stellantis brands and be used by cars smaller than the average supermini. “The Smart Car platform is supposed to go in the future in other vehicles from Citroën, maybe from other brands”, he said. “This is a platform that will receive different vehicles, because it’s a very promising platform where we can do a lot of things, and not only, by the way, B-segment hatch cars”. At this early stage, there has been no official indication that Opel is actively considering launching a sibling model for the ë-C3. Notably, though, it does sell its own version of the Citroën Ami (dubbed the Rocks Electric) in various global markets. +++
+++ Have you heard about a company called Zeekr? If this is absolutely the first time you see its name written, all you need to know about it, for now, is that it is a maker of premium electric vehicles and is owned by Geely, the same firm that also owns Volvo. More importantly, Zeekr, which was founded in 2021, pushes the boundaries when it comes to vehicle design with edgy, extravagant and modernistic concepts and production vehicles. And it is one of many Chinese brands to do so. It turns out that this new design trend is seen as a positive development in the industry by PORSCHE as its head of design, Michael Mauer, recently admitted it changes the game for the generally more conservative legacy automakers from Europe. “These startups, with no heritage, they can do things completely different”, Mauer told in a recent interview. “I consider it a positive thing actually, as a designer, because that makes the decision-makers (i.e., the management board) more open-minded”. But what is the goal when it comes to some of Volkswagen’s and Porsche’s iconic nameplates? Obviously, they need to make the transition into the new era of personal mobility where they will compete against new arrivals such as Zeekr, Nio, Li Auto, Xpeng and other new companies from China. Mauer puts it in a more metaphorical way: “I always have this image in my head of this stone that you throw into the future. The question is, how far do I throw it? Hitting that sweet spot exactly, going far enough into the future, but not too far, is a real challenge”. Despite the fact that the Chinese market is getting more and more challenging with these new local EVs, Porsche enjoys strong results in the country. During the first 6 months of the year, the Stuttgart-based firm delivered 43.832 vehicles in the People’s Republic representing an increase of 8 percent year-on-year. The Taycan, Porsche’s only electric model on sale today, saw an increase of 46 percent compared to the first half of 2022. In fact, China is currently Porsche’s single largest new car market in the world. +++
+++ STELLANTIS , the automotive behemoth that has no fewer than 16 brands in its portfolio, including Citroën, Fiat and Opel, wants to make cheap EVs more readily available with a bit of help from a new Chinese partner called Leapmotor. After a €1.5 billion investment, Stellantis will own a 20 percent equity stake in Leapmotor’s parent company, and the 2 will set up a joint venture that will (you guessed it) export the Chinese manufacturer’s battery-powered cars in other parts of the world. The new JV, called Leapmotor International, will be incorporated in the Netherlands and the first market to get the affordable Chinese EVs will be Europe, with more scheduled to follow, according to Stellantis’ third-quarter financial results call. It will be interesting to see how the automotive group will price the cars it will be importing to Europe. The cheapest model made by Leapmotor, the pint-sized T03 that measures just 3.620 millimetres long, starts at about €10.500 in China, before tariffs and country-specific value-added tax, so there is some wiggle room, at least at first sight. But Leapmotor also makes the more expensive C01 saloon and C11 SUV, along with their extended-range (EREV) versions, so the jury is still out on how Stellantis will market these Chinese cars on the Old Continent, especially considering how Leapmotor has focused on the mid- to the high-end market in its home country, according to Stellantis’ own press release. The first batch of exported EVs will reach European shores next year, with the newly formed joint venture targeting 500.000 sales outside of China by 2030, plus an additional 1 million cars per year in China in the long term. Stellantis CFO Natalie Knight said during the company’s third-quarter earnings call that the new brand is aimed at consumers “who are cost conscious but want the best technology in their products,” referring to Leapmotor vehicles’ ability to receive over-the-air (OTA) updates, as well as their proprietary “Four-Leaf Clover” Leap 3.0 centrally-controlled electric and electronic architecture. +++
+++ As much as massive software stacks have proved what they can do for the transportation industry, we don’t know of a carmaker that has escaped the the pain of public software glitches. Lucid had to issue 3 good old-fashioned recalls in 1 day in August, 2 of which dealt with software problems. GM sent an over-the-air update during the summer to cars on the new Global B electrical architecture, an update that ended up draining the 12-volt batteries in roughly 4,000 vehicles. Tesla had to face a $2-million court case of he-said-she-said when an OTA update reduced driving range in Tesla vehicles by roughly 20%. Even with all that, I don’t know any automaker in the world that’s had as many problems with software, for as long, as the VOLKSWAGEN GROUP . The conglomerate’s board has just approved laying off 2.000 employees in the Cariad software unit as part of the latest restructuring intended to right the digital ship. Former group CEO Herbert Diess established Car.Software Organization in 2020, eventually renaming it Cariad and giving the task of creating “a uniform software and technology platform for all Volkswagen Group brands”. Volkswagen’s info page on the division says the unit employs roughly 6.000 people around the world, up from roughly 4.500 at the end of 2021. Despite that same page claiming Cariad is building “the leading tech stack for the automotive industry”, the failed stacks brought down the division’s first CEO in less than a year, then brought down Volkswagen Group CEO Diess 2 years later as problems continued. It then probably played a role in bringing down Audi brand CEO Markus Duesmann and much, if not all, of Audi’s Project Trinity when Oliver Blume took over as CEO of the Volkswagen Group. It finally took out Cariad’s second CEO, Dirk Hilgenberg, over the summer. And aside from the career killing, Cariad’s woes have proved problematic for every battery-electric car Volkswagen Group launch since the ID.3. Blume put ex-Bentley production manager Peter Bosch in charge in May. Since then, Bosch has been at work on a reorganization plan to get the software division running as it should so that the software runs as it should, and so that vital products like the Audi Q6 e-Tron and Porsche Macan-E can get out the door as envisioned. Bosch’s plan involves laying off those 2.000 employees over the next 15 months, a step that would rewind back to 2021 staffing levels, but that action needs to be discussed with VW’s Works Council as it concerns labor issues. While all that’s getting sorted, sources told the Q6 e-Tron and the Macan are being delayed by another 16 to 18 weeks. If that ends up being the timetable, those products will have endured more than 2 years of delays in total. In 2019, a Porsche exec told the Macan-E would arrive in dealerships in 2021, the ICE-powered Macan hanging around until 2023 before retiring. Come 2021, the Q6 e-Tron and Macan-E were due to be unveiled in 2022. By the end of 2022, that was 2023. Now it’s going to be in 2024, perhaps March, and Autointernationaal.nl has been told that whenever Macan-E arrives, it will be sold indefinitely alongside the current-generation ICE version as long as the market demands it. As it awaits its v1.2 VW Group software, Porsche said it’s going to move ahead with Google Built-In as an interim solution. More worryingly, Cariad’s timetable was meant to have v2.0 out by 2025, when products like the electric Cayman and Boxster are expected, but v2.0 has been buried in favor of a redesign from scratch. +++
