The discussion covers the UAW's new strategy to organize workers at foreign automakers and EV startups in the US, potentially doubling its membership. Challenges in EV profitability are highlighted with Polestar's break-even timeline and Tesla's production benchmarks. Advances in manufacturing, like Volvo's giga casting presses, aim to reduce costs. The EU is delaying stricter emissions rules, while the US and Europe consider tariffs and restrictions on Chinese EV imports to protect domestic industries. Battery prices are dropping, enabling low-cost EV development. Chrysler plans an electric crossover inspired by the Airflow concept, and Ford revives the Mustang GT California Special package.
Topics:uaw union strategyelectric vehicle profitabilitymanufacturing innovationseu emissions regulationschinese ev tariffsbattery price trendslow cost ev developmentchrysler electric crossoverford mustang gt california special
- UAW Targets Transplants and EV Startups - Polestar Won't Break Even on EVs Until 2025 - Volvo Buying Giant Casting Machines - EU Backing Off Stricter Emissions - U.S. Wants Bigger Chinese Tariffs - Zeekr Moving Forward with U.S. IPO - Falling Battery Prices Pave Way for Affordable EVs - Chrysler Getting an Electric Crossover - Mustang California Special is Back
"But it is going to have to change at least a little bit because the concept was based on the current PACIFICA platform, while the actual production vehicle is based on the Stella Large platform. And speaking of the Pacifica, Fuel also said the hybrid version of the minivan will be sticking around until the end of the decade. One of the Mustang's more iconic packages is making a comeback for the new generation Pony. Car Ford revealed the new GT California Special,"
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UAW president Sean Fain says the union is going to target all the non union automakers in the US and recruit their workers to join them. After nearly
forty years of failing to organize any of the transplants, the union clearly needs a different strategy, and Fegne told Reuters, quote, We're going to find creative ways to get to workers. Foreign automakers and evy startups like Tesla and
Rivian play a significant role in the US auto industry. Collectively, they have
twenty five large manufacturing facilities that make things like engines, transmissions, stampings and moldings for final assembly, and there are more under construction. All told,
the transplants and startups employ about one hundred and twenty eight thousand hourly workers, compared to about one one hundred and forty six thousand autoworkers who are UAW members, So if the union can figure out how to organize them, it could practically double its membership of auto workers. It's really hard to make money selling
evs, even companies that are doing better than others at selling electrics are struggling.
Pollstar sold about forty two thousand vehicles through the first nine months of the year, but it says it doesn't expect to break even on evs until twenty twenty five. The good news for Polestar is it only sells one model right
now, so with several more models in the pipeline, it has a chance of meeting its targets. The Polestar three and four are expected to enter production
this year and next, and while Polestar says it needs an estimated one point three billion dollars until it hits that break even point in twenty twenty five, it's getting a cash in fusion of four hundred and fifty million dollars from parent companies Volvo and Jil to help build those new models. By our rough calculation,
Tesla didn't start turning a profit until it was making about eighty thousand vehicles a quarter. Since pole Star will be selling more expensive vehicles, it won't
have to make that many to turn a profit, and it hopes to sell one hundred and fifty five thousand to one hundred and sixty five thousand evs a year by twenty twenty five, about a month ago, reports came out that Ford and Hundai are getting giga casting machines from the same company that supplies them to Tesla. Those reports also said another unnamed premium automaker in Europe was getting
some presses and now we know who it is. Volvo is buying two nine
thousand ton presses from Idra to use at a new billion dollar factory in Slovakia.
The large castings these machines make combined several, sometimes hundreds of parts together, which helps reduce man manufacturing costs. Balvos plant in Slovakia is expected to
start making its next gen EVS around twenty twenty six and will eventually have the capacity for two hundred and fifty thousand vehicles a year. The European Union is
backing off a proposal for stricter vehicle emissions. Lawmakers are keeping rules in place
to limit nitrous oxide, particulate matter, and carbon monoxide for cars, but they voted to weaken NOx limits for trucks and delay the rules for cars for three years. The proposal originally wanted the new regulations to go into effect in
twenty twenty five. Automakers and several countries opposed the original rules because they said
it would be too costly, and they argued that since the EU will ban the sale of new ice vehicles starting in twenty thirty five, that automakers should focus on investing in electric vehicles instead of trying to make ice vehicles more efficient.
There's growing concern over low cost Chinese evs flooding foreign markets. Over in
Europe, an investigation was launched a potentially slap terrace on Chinese made evs sold in the region, which would help protect European automakers. And now in the
US, a group of bipartisan representatives sent a letter to the Biden administration urging it to increase the tariff on Chinese made vehicles, which is currently at twenty five percent. They also want to prevent Chinese automakers from exporting vehicles to the
US from Mexico, and like Europe, this is an effort to protect the US auto industry and while lawmakers want to rece strict the number of Chinese vehicles sold in the country. Reuter's reports that Chinese automaker Geele's premium brand Zeker is
moving forward with an IPO in the US. The company is expected to reveal
details about its plans sometime this week, and IT shares could start being traded within weeks of the announcement. Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley are reportedly underwriting the
IPO, and It's not stopping at the US. Zeker also announced plans to
expand into Europe as well. A number of automakers, including Tesla, Volkswagen,
Stalantis, and Renault, are all developing low cost evs that are expected to be introduced in the next few years, and a big reason they'll be able to do that is because battery prices are expected to fall significantly. According
to Goldman Sacks, battery prices are expected to drop to ninety nine dollars per kilowatt hour by twenty twenty five, which is forty per lower than prices in twenty twenty two, and Goldman estimates that battery prices will fall an average of eleven percent per year from twenty twenty three until twenty thirty. A big reason
for the drop is because battery raw material prices have tumbled this year. As
we reported earlier in the week, lithium is down seventy percent, nickel has fallen forty percent, and cobalt is down two and they're expected to remain low because supplies are higher than demand. So that's why automakers are confident they can
develop low cost evs. Right now, Chrysler's sad little lineup of only two
vehicles is going to grow to three, and that vehicle is going to be electric. Brand CEO Christine Fuel said its next model will be a purely electric
crossover in twenty twenty five, and it will be inspired by the Airflow concept.
That's a bit surprising because had to design. Ralph Shield said earlier this
year. The vehicle wouldn't have anything to do with what we've seen from the
Airflow so far, so we'll be interested to see what this model looks like.
But it is going to have to change at least a little bit because the concept was based on the current PACIFICA platform, while the actual production vehicle is based on the Stella Large platform. And speaking of the Pacifica, Fuel
also said the hybrid version of the minivan will be sticking around until the end of the decade. One of the Mustang's more iconic packages is making a comeback
for the new generation Pony. Car Ford revealed the new GT California Special,
which is highlighted by bright blue accents both inside and out. My favorite touch
is the repeating California Special script on the black stripe that runs along the lower part of the body. From a distance, it just looks like a sub
pattern. The original Mustang GT California Special was made in nineteen sixty eight.
It didn't make a comeback until two thousand and seven, but it's been offered on every generation Mustang since then. And a quick reminder that Autoline after Hours
goes live this afternoon at three pm Eastern time. John and Gary are going
to try and find out if we're reaching the end of affordable cars. But
that's a wrap for today. Thanks for joining us. Auto Line Daily is
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