AD #3598 - SAE To Standardize Tesla’s NACS; GAC Develops Ammonia Engine; Car Brand Loyalty Down, But Not Tesla

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

Is the auto industry in a funk? Has it stalled out? Those

were words used by Tom Libby, Associate director of SMP Global Mobility, during a presentation yesterday about brand loyalty trends for the first third of the year.

In fact, this chart shows that brand loyalty is down about five percent since before the pandemic hit. And interestingly, the performance of brand loyalty closely mirrors

the inventory level of automakers. And that makes sense. As vehicles became harder

to find, customers were more likely to cross shop another brand. But I

don't think these numbers are all that disappointing. Sure, automakers would like to

be less constrained for certain components like semiconductor chips, but they've also enjoyed record return on sale Since inventory was tight, they didn't have to discount cars and because of that, the old norm of fifty five to sixty five days of inventory are probably over. And now let's shift back to the loyalty trends.

And when you look at both mainstream and luxury brands, about half of buyers are return customers to those brands, meaning the other half are defecting to another brand. But remember, someone could still stay under an automaker's umbrella, like

going from a Chevy to a Buick, which is actually much more common than staying with a particular brand. And here's another bragging point for all the Tesla

fans. Its loyalty is much higher than any other brand, whether you're talking

about mainstream or luxury, and without Tesla in the equation, when talking about total loyalty to all evs, the rate drops off significantly. This means that

Tesla is stealing a lot of customers from other brands, and most interesting to me is that they're mostly coming from mainstream brands and the Japanese automakers are being hit the hardest. Not having many evs in their lineups is hurting them.

And here's one last bit of interesting data is this chart showing customer loyalty to body type. It's surprising to see how level everything has been for the last

four years, especially with Sedans. Tesla's North American Charging Standard or n ACS

is quickly moving toward becoming the standard charger design in North America. SAE International

announced it's going to standardize the NACS connector, which is the next step before forming a way to validate and maintain the system. But it also means that

any supplier or manufacturer can use, build, or deploy Tesla's plug. So

let's hope this changeover also greatly improves the charging experience at non Tesla charging stations.

And yet another automaker is adopting testless charging system. Volvo announced it will

equip the EVS itsels in North America with NACS ports starting in twenty twenty five.

Volvo owners will also have access to twelve thousand testless superchargers in the US and Canada starting next year. Volvo is the first European automaker to adopt testless

charging system and the fourth OEM overall, following Ford, GM and Rivian.

We want to know what drives your testing. OTA Connected Car Diagnostics Remote Testing

in Trepid Control Systems is here to help you work from anywhere intrepid control systems driven by your data. Small pickups performed wholly in rear seat safety tests done

by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety or IIHS. None of the five trucks

it tested earned a good rating. The best was the Nissan Frontier, which

earned an acceptable rating. The Ford Ranger was rated marginal, and the Chevy

Colorado, Jeep Gladiator, and Toyota Tacoma all earned poor ratings. The IIHS

only tested crew cab versions of the trucks, and the ratings are based on the iihs's updated moderate overlap front crash test at launch last year, which now includes rear seat protection. It found that the dummies head would come dangerously close

to the front seatback, and that data showed a risk of neck and chest injuries. The IIHS says these issues indicate that better seat belts are needed in

the rear, like the more advanced ones used in front seats. Thanks to

improving inventory, car sales are rebounding in the US. According to a new

forecast from Cox Automotive, sales in the first half of the year will hit seven point six five million units, up eleven percent compared to a year ago, and because the first half was stronger than expected, Cox is increasing its full year forecast to fifteen million units, up from fourteen point one. A

big reason for the improvement is an increase in inventory levels, which are up seventy percent compared to last June. Another big driver of the increase is the

fleet market. Fleet sales are expected to increase forty percent in the first half

compared to last year, while retail sales are only expected to increase three percent.

Cox is also forecasting that BV sales will pass a million units for the first time in the US this year. In the first half, they're expected

to fall just shy of five hundred thousand units. B evs now account for

nearly seven percent of the new car market in the US. And speaking of

EV sales, testless strategy of slashing car prices to boost sales is paying off in China. According to an analyst with China Merchants Bank International Securities, Testless

sales will hit one hundred and fifty five thousand units in the second quarter, which is thirteen percent more than the record it's set in the first quarter, and Deutsche Bank is forecasting about the same for Tesla in China, and it's growing sales even though it's b EV market share is shrinking in China as more models hit the market. It's now below fourteen percent share, down from sixteen

percent in the first quarter of the year. Tesla will reveal its global sales

numbers over the weekend. You know there's still going to be demand for ice

powered vehicles for many years to come, which is why we're seeing investment in things like synthetic fuel and now. Chinese automaker GAC says it's developed a viable

engine for passenger cars that runs on ammonia. It's a two leader unit that

burns liquid ammonia, producing one hundred and twenty kilowatts or about one hundred and sixty horsepower, while reducing carbon emissions ninety percent compared to conventional fuels. GAC

says it solved previous issues with ammonia like low flammability and high nitrogen oxide emissions, but like synthetic fuel, the real issue will be building an infrastructure for ammonia. GM Defense, a subsidiary of GM, has a goal to generate

a billion dollars a year in revenue by twenty thirty, and it's been a bit of a tear recently. In the last year, it's announced at least

four new projects, including a new deal with the US Department of Defense prototype energy storage units based on GM's All Team platform. They can use hydrogen or

fuel power generators as well as stationary and mobile batteries to power equipment or create many micro grids in remote areas. If the project is a success, GM

Defense will supply the storage units to the US Marine Corps. And a programming

note here. Autoline will shut down next week for our summer break, so

there won't be any new Autoline dailies or in after hours on Thursday, but we will resume our normal schedule on the tenth of July, and with that we wrap up today show. Thanks for watching. Autoline Daily is brought to

you by Bridgetone Solutions for your journey Intrepid Control Systems over the year engineering boost your gage, and by Scheffler We Pioneer Motion. At Scheffler We Pioneer Motion

electrifying mobility, manufacturing smarter, reducing CO two emissions, making energy production clean.

Scheffler Pioneer's Motion to advance how the world moves

AD #3598 - SAE To Standardize Tesla’s NACS; GAC Develops Ammonia Engine; Car Brand Loyalty Down, But Not Tesla

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