The discussion covers a wide range of automotive industry updates including the UAW's challenge to the Mercedes union vote, a predicted surge in US EV sales despite recent slowdowns, and Porsche's struggles in China's EV market. BMW is dialing back its large kidney grille with a new concept car, while Nissan joins other automakers adopting gigacastings to reduce costs and weight. Mazda, Subaru, and Toyota collaborate on carbon-neutral internal combustion engines tailored for electrification. Additionally, Magna seeks new customers amid Fisker's troubles, Chinese automakers expand exports to Brazil and Egypt, and Renault unveils a modular EV van designed as a mobile healthcare center.
Topics:uaw union election disputeus ev sales growthporsche ev sales chinabmw kidney grille redesigngigacastings in ev productioncarbon neutral internal combustion enginesmagna manufacturing partnershipschinese ev exports brazilrenault mobile healthcare vanautomaker collaborations
- UAW Asks NLRB to Void Mercedes Vote - EVs Poised for U.S. Growth Spurt - Porsche Struggles to Sell EVs in China - BMW Tones Down Massive Kidney Grille - Nissan to Use Gigacastings - Toyota Develops Carbon-Free IC Engines - Magna Steyr Courts Chinese OEMs - Brazil #1 for Chinese NEV Imports - BYD Open 100th Dealership in Brazil - FAW to Make EVs in Egypt - Renault Makes a Mobile Health Center
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Well, we sort of expected this to happen. The UAW is asking the
National Labor Relations Board to avoid the recent election at Mercedes plant in Alabama and to hold another one. The union claims the election was unfair because the automaker
allowed anti union workers to solicit votes on company time, while pro union workers were prevented from doing the same. The UAW also claims that Mercedes fired four
pro union employees, but fifty six percent of the workers at that plant voted against joining the union, so we think it's unlikely that another vote will take place. However, if the UAW didn't contest the results, we think it
could have been criticized by members for not fighting hard enough. Everyone's talking about
how much sales of evs slowed down in the US, but Bloomberg says that may be just a blip and that evs are poised for their next growth spurt.
It says six out that the top ten EV makers actually saw their sales rocket up in the first quarter. For Toyota, Mercedes, BMW, Rivian,
and Hyundai Kia all saw their sales grow by more than fifty percent last year. There were one point one million evs sold in the US that could
rise to one point six million this year, and the International Energy Agency forecast that they could hit two and a half million next year. Portia is coming
out with the new nine to eleven today, the first time it will offer a hybrid version of the model that defines what the brand is all about.
That debut was going on while we were getting ready for this show, so we didn't feel like there was enough time to properly cover it today. But
while all eyes will be on the unveiling of the new nine to eleven, we want to direct your eyes to a news item that many will miss.
Porscha is struggling to sell electric cars in China. Sales fell twenty three percent
last year and we're down another twenty four percent in the first quarter. We
think it has to do with a wave of Chinese competitors, because Porscha's dealers in China are now selling tay Coons at a loss and they want Porsche to compensate them for that. We're not surprised to see mass market foreign brands struggling
to sell EV's in China, but it is shocking to see an iconic brand like Porscha getting steamrolled by Chinese upstarts. It sure looks like BMW is starting
to tone down on its massive twin kidney grills. That's been the case on
several new models and for a new concept it just pulled the wraps off of called the Skytop. It's an open top two seater that it calls a historic
ancestor to the BMW Z and five oh three. We saw reports that BMW
may make a few of these cars, but for now, the Skytop is just a design exercise that will be displayed at car shows, so we're only going to hit on a few of the highlights for now. It does come
with a small removable leather roof panel. Some of the leather treatment on the
interior looks like something you might find on a high end shoe. The rear
window can go all the way down, which gives you a nice view of the boat tail like rear end, and BMW says it will have its most powerful V eight under the hood. Legacy automakers are catching on to the advantages
of using Gigaca castings. Cadillac is using them on the nearly four hundred thousand
dollars celestic. Toyota is working on them for its next generation EVS. So
we're Ford, Volvo, and Hyundai, and now Nissan is joining the party.
Automotive News reports Nissan will use gigacastings in its next generation eves that are going to debut in twenty twenty seven. It says they'll cut costs by ten
percent, weight by thirty percent, and production time by twenty percent. Nissan
plans to start with a rear gigacasting module made with six thousand ton presses.
Mazda, subru and Toyota created the Multi Pathway Workshop, which is all about a commitment from each brand to develop new engines tailored to electrification and carbon neutrality.
But this is not about designing a common engine family. Each company will
keep some of their brand DNA. For example, Subu will continue making Horizon
le opposed boxer engines, but showed how it will convert them to hybrid drive with what looks like an electric motor between the engine and trans It already has a prototype system to display in the updated cross Track. Mazda, on the
other hand, says it's continuing work on rotary engines and displayed both a one motor EV and a two motor EV system. Presumably the engine would be used
as a range extender. Another way the companies planned a decarbonized ices is by
reducing the packaging size, and Toyota things that can do that by specifically designing engines to be paired with electric motors like subarup. It looks like it places
an electric motor between the engine and trans and also thinks that reducing the powertrain size will allow it to reduce the overall size of the car, and all three manufacturers will try and make the engines compatible with carbon neutral fuels. Toyota
showed off a two liter turbocharged unit and also announced a partnership with Eneos, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries and Idomatsukoson to develop and lodge carbon neutral fuels for cars.
However, it's gonna take some time. Right now, they're just kicking off
a study of the fuels and don't expect to introduce them first in Japan until twenty thirty. With Fisker on the verge of going bankrupt, Magna's Styre,
which makes the Ocean for Fisker, is looking for other customers to take up that capacity. Automotive News reports that Magna is in talks with Chinese automakers to
manufacture vehicles at its plant in Austria, where it built the Ocean. That
plant is intriguing to Chinese automakers because producing vehicles in the EU could allow them to ease political tensions and avoid new tariffs that could be imposed soon. Magna
didn't reveal what automakers it's intox with, but it does have a joint venture with Baiic to produce vehicles in China. But it's not just Europe where Chinese
automakers are expanding their presence. According to the China Passenger Car Association, Brazil
passed Belgium to become the largest export market for Chinese new energy vehicles. More
than forty thousand BEVs and PHAs were exported to Brazil in April, which was thirteen times higher than a year ago and the second month in a row that Brazil was China's largest NYV export market. Part of the reason for the surge
is that Brazil is increasing terrace on EV and hybrid imports in July to help boost local vehicle production. Even still, Brazil is becoming an important market for
Chinese automakers. It's now the second largest export market for all types of vehicles
after Russia, and byd is one of the leading the way in Brazil.
The automaker just celebrated the opening of the one hundredth dealership in the market and it wants to grow that to two hundred and fifty by the end of the year. And in one last bit of China taking over the automotive world news,
FAW is partnering with Egypt's GV Investments to produce affordable evs in the country.
Starting in the first quarter of next year. Renault is showing off a
mobile healthcare center in a new concept van called the U First. It's a
modular EV based on the automaker's flex E Van commercial vehicle architecture that underpins the Master Van. It features a doctor's exam room to offer care to patients.
There's a medical assistant on board, while a physician can remotely monitor vital signs and use a screen to talk with the patient. A total of twenty two
companies helped develop the Connected van and it was created to serve what they call medical deserts in small towns in developing countries. In addition to providing healthcare.
Renault says the modular van can be used for other cases like mobile bike repair or even recycling services. But that brings us to the end of today's show.
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