Trade News – Page 322

Grid could use a jolt from lawmakers in preparation for EV influx, report says

Lawmakers must press for a more reliable and resilient electric grid to support the millions of electric vehicles slated to arrive on the nation's roads.

That's the conclusion of a report issued last week by a pair of nonprofit organizations that say policy and legislation are needed to provide and expand the possibilities offered by vehicle-to-grid technology, or V2G.

V2G tech shows emerging promise in offering a range of benefits and services to EV owners. It can also be used to store energy that feeds the grid and provides emergency power in times of need.

The 21-page report, titled "Advancing Vehicle to Grid Technology Adoption" and written by Securing America's Future Energy, or SAFE, and the Electrification Coalition, outlines the benefits of vehicle-to-grid and gives specific policy recommendations for federal, state and local governments.

SAFE and the Electrification Coalition are both focused on promoting and enabling electric transportat…

How Geely built an auto empire in Europe

The old guard of European automakers has a new member, one focused on electrification, forward-looking technology and manufacturing efficiency.

No, it's not Tesla.

The automaker that is quietly disrupting Europe's auto market is Geely, the Chinese conglomerate founded by billionaire Eric Li that now owns or collaborates with more than a dozen European companies.

In doing so, Li, who started his career making refrigerator parts, has created a web of interdependent enterprises that form the foundation of a vertically integrated mobility business that engages with a variety of partners.

Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, headquartered in Hangzhou, China, is the umbrella company for an expanding empire with four business divisions: passenger vehicles, commercial vehicles, technology and mobility services. Revenue in 2021 was $47.2 billion, with 2.2 million vehicles sold, according to Geely.

Starting with the 2010 acquisition of Volvo Cars from For…

Lawsuit: BMW kept equity after car totaled

A California man has sued BMW, claiming the automaker improperly kept nearly $25,000 in equity owed him after the M5 he leased in 2019 was totaled amid this year's hot used-vehicle market.

Alexander Russell's lawsuit in the U.S. Central District of California seeks class-action status for himself and other BMW lessees experiencing similar circumstances. It estimates the class could span more than 1,000 plaintiffs.

Russell took out a 36-month lease on a $115,816 2019 BMW M5 Competition from Sterling BMW in Newport Beach, Calif., in October 2019. On Feb. 14, 2022, he was involved in an auto accident that left the M5 a total loss.

The lease's residual value was $81,589.57, the lawsuit states. However, Russell's insurer, Safeco, set the vehicle's market value at $106,178.97. Russell's lawsuit alleged this would leave him with $24,589.40 in equity after the balance of the financing was repaid.

"However, despite numerous attempts by Plaintiff's attorn…

Digital options add value for dealers as well as customers

Josh Baer, formerly the head of pricing and strategy for Santander Consumer USA, joined digital auto retail and finance platform leader AutoFi in May as its president.

Baer will run AutoFi's lender and enterprise segments. In a press release announcing Baer's hiring, the company said he will focus on speeding growth in those businesses with "transformative retail and financing experiences" that will help clients meet consumer preferences.

AutoFi's software allows consumers to browse dealership inventory and see financing offers tailored to the dealership's preferences.

Baer, 47, sat down with Staff Reporter John Huetter to talk about the growth of digital retailing in automotive lending. Here are edited excerpts.

Q: What is your perspective on where the digitization in the auto industry is right now?

A: I think it's largely talked about and acknowledged that the auto industry is changing. The pace of how quickly digital takes over — I thi…

OBITUARY: Lou LaRiche

DETROIT — Longtime auto dealer Lou LaRiche died June 9 at age 90 in Northville, Mich. After working with his father and brothers at the family dealerships in Cleveland, LaRiche opened his first dealership in 1964, a Volkswagen franchise in Findlay, Ohio. In 1971, he opened Lou LaRiche Chevrolet in Plymouth, Mich. Over the years he acquired a Toyota-Subaru dealership, which was sold in 2021, and a Chevrolet-Cadillac dealership, both in Findlay.

BrightDrop’s Rachad Youssef: Why GM and BrightDrop are poised to succeed (Episode 153)

GM is trying to capture a sizable slice of the delivery market with BrightDrop electric vans. BrightDrop Chief Product Officer Rachad Youssef hints at BrightDrop's plans for the future and the opportunity within the delivery and logistics market.

How do I subscribe?

Apple Podcasts: “Shift: A podcast about mobility” is available on the iTunes Store and through the ‘Podcast’ app pre-installed on all iOS devices. Click here to subscribe.

Spotify: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" can be streamed through Spotify on your desktop, tablet or mobile device. Click here to subscribe.

Google Play: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" is available on Android devices through the Google Play store. Click here to subscribe.

A digital window on Ford’s past

Ford Motor Co. celebrated its 119th anniversary last week by launching an online database that lets the public sift through the venerable archives documenting its first century.

The Ford Heritage Vault lets anyone view and download artifacts for their personal use, at no charge. The company described it as the U.S. auto industry's most comprehensive online database.

The collection features more than 5,000 photographs and product brochures from Ford and Lincoln vehicles, spanning from the automaker's founding in 1903 to its 2003 centennial.

"We're opening up in a way we've never done before," Ted Ryan, Ford archive and heritage brand manager, said in a statement. "Our archives were established 70 years ago, and for the first time, we're opening the vault for the public to see. This is just a first step for all that will come in the future."

Ford's archives team curated the material over the past two years, and it piloted the collection with the h…

SpaceX staffers allegedly fired for calling out Musk

A group of SpaceX employees was reportedly fired last week after writing an open letter decrying CEO Elon Musk as a frequent "embarrassment" to the company.

The letter to SpaceX President Gwynne Shotwell says recent actions by Musk, who is also CEO of Tesla Inc., and allegations of sexual harassment against him are harming the rocketry company's reputation.

"Elon's behavior in the public sphere is a frequent source of distraction and embarrassment for us, particularly in recent weeks," the letter says, according to The Verge.

"As our CEO and most prominent spokesperson, Elon is seen as the face of SpaceX — every tweet that Elon sends is a de facto public statement by the company. It is critical to make clear to our teams and to our potential talent pool that his messaging does not reflect our work, our mission or our values."

SpaceX fired "a number of employees involved" in writing the letter, according to an internal em…

Cybertruck, Lightning or first available?

Tesla, General Motors and Ford Motor Co. say they have enormous waiting lists for their electric pickups. But each list likely contains many of the same names, as consumers place multiple refundable reservations to keep their options open, according to a survey conducted by battery health analysis firm Recurrent.

The study, released last week, surveyed more than 200 consumers who had at least one pending EV reservation between April and May and found purchasers tended to over-order electric trucks because of concerns over whether the manufacturer would actually fulfill the purchase. Eighty-nine percent of Tesla Cybertruck reservations overlapped with another truck preorder, and all Ford F-150 Lightning and Chevrolet Silverado EV preorder customers also had reserved another vehicle, according to the results.

"There's just a ton of pent-up demand for an electric pickup truck," Recurrent CEO Scott Case told Automotive News. "The pickup is this ico…

Corvette art comes with a matching car

Chevrolet is auctioning off a unique piece of Corvette artwork that comes with a rather valuable bonus: an actual car painted to look like the image.

The "Own the Color" auction, which runs June 20-24, is for a non-fungible token of the upcoming 2023 Corvette Z06 created by the artist Xsullo. An NFT is a digital asset with a unique identifier so it cannot be copied.

The winning bidder will also get a Corvette Z06 custom-painted in the "Minted Green" color from the artwork. Chevy said it will be the only production 2023 Z06 offered in that color. The car will be equipped with the Z07 performance package, carbon-fiber wheels, a commemorative plaque and a VIN inspired by binary code.

Proceeds will go to DonorsChoose, which helps teachers collect donations toward public school classroom projects.

"Corvette is a halo at Chevrolet. It's the pinnacle of performance and staying cutting-edge means getting into new territories as a bit of a pioneer," Stev…

Congress: Don’t blindly reopen EV credit spigot

In a mildly rare show of automaker unity, the CEOs of General Motors, Toyota Motor North America, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis jointly petitioned congressional leaders last week, asking that Congress effectively take the lid off the $7,500 tax credits automakers have used for more than a decade to lure consumers into electric vehicles.

The CEOs specifically asked that Congress do away with the 200,000-vehicle-per-automaker cap on the existing tax credits until "the EV market is more mature" and could conceivably stand on its own.

We believe strongly that Congress should reject this request as written. The choice for lawmakers is either to do nothing and let existing tax credits expire or, as we argued just last month, reconfigure any subsequent taxpayer EV subsidies to assist consumers of lesser means to make the leap to EVs, instead of underwriting the second or third vehicles of the wealthy.

We proposed some "standard equipment" on any expansion: A t…

Clarios shows 12-volt batteries have a big role to play in EV era

HOLLAND, Mich. — For good reason, much has been made of the new high-voltage battery systems automakers and suppliers have designed to power the next generation of electric vehicles.

But don't forget about the humble 12-volt battery.

Low-voltage batteries remain a fixture in battery-electric vehicles, helping to power everything from locks and lights to engine control units. As the name would suggest, the batteries make the vehicle's low-voltage systems run even as high-voltage battery packs propel the vehicle.

But like the rest of the industry, suppliers of low-voltage batteries have been innovating to keep up with the changing needs of their automaker customers. Look no further than Clarios, the world's largest supplier of low-voltage batteries and whose batteries are in about 1 in every 3 vehicles on global roadways today.

The company's factory in Holland, Mich., on the west side of the state, has become a hub of sorts for Clarios' emerging l…