The discussion covers former President Trump's sharp criticism of UAW leadership and his stance on auto manufacturing in Mexico and China, alongside his promise to challenge EV regulations. Ford's shift from electric SUVs to super duty trucks in Canada is highlighted as a strategic move amid fluctuating EV demand and potential UAW strikes. GM's joint venture in China faces steep declines due to consumer preference for local EV brands. Tesla's U.S. sales drop notably, while the broader EV market grows. Challenges with robotaxis in China and advances in vehicle simulation technology also feature, plus Toyota's Land Cruiser launch in China.
Topics:trump and uaw conflictford production strategygm china sales declinetesla us sales dropev market trendsrobotaxi challenges in chinavehicle simulation technologytoyota land cruiser china launch
- Trump to UAW’s Fain You’re Fired! - Trump Welcomes Chinese Auto Plants in U.S. - Ford Axes EVs, Adds Super Duty to Oakwood Assembly - GM Sinking Fast in China - Is China’s Price War Ending? - Tesla Sales Drop in California… - …And Across the U.S. - Many Chinese Don’t Like Robotaxis - VI-Grade Unveils Virtual Proving Ground - New Land Cruiser Debuts in China as The Prado
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This is out Aligned Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. Last night, former President Donald Trump gave his acceptance speech to become
the Republican Party's nominee for president, and while we tried to avoid politics, Trump actually had quite a bit to say about the automotive industry. First of
all, he told UAW members that UAW President Sean Fain should be fired immediately.
He said the UAW should be ashamed of itself for allowing China to build auto plants in Mexico with plans to ship cars to the US. Previously,
the UAW endorsed Biden for president, and Fane called Trump a scab. Trump
also said he would welcome the Chinese to build those plans in the US instead of Mexico and threaten new tariffs of up to two hundred percent if they didn't.
He also promised to get rid of the US's EVY mandate his first day on the job. Of course, we have to point out that there is
no ev mandate in the US. There are emissions and fuel economy regulations which
make it almost impossible for an automaker to meet them without having EVS In their lineup, but there is no mandate. If Trump tried to overturn those regulations,
there would likely be court fights that would go on for years. Even
so, his administration could have a big impact on EV adoption, and in another sign of uncertainty over evs, Ford announced it will retool its assembly plant in Oakwood, Ontario, to make super duty trucks instead of electric SUVs.
Ford says it can't keep up with demand for super duty trucks despite running its other truck plants on max overtime, so the oak Wood plant will be tooled to make one hundred thousand super duty trucks. Ford will also increase V eight
production at its engine plant and Windsor, Ontario, and will increase production of transmissions, axles and components for the trucks at its plants in the US.
The Oakwood assembly plant in Canada was going to make electric three row SUVs for Ford and Lincoln, but those plans were delayed due to weaker demand for evs and because big evs need big, expensive battery packs. We also need to
point out that this move helps protect Ford in case of a UAW strike at the end of the current contract. Last fall, the union damaged Ford financially
by striking its Kentucky truck plant, which makes super duty trucks. That's the
most profitable plant that Ford has, so with a second source in Canada, Ford is protecting itself against any future UAW strikes. China's transition to evs is
crippling General Motors joint venture with saic The JV has the capacity to build one point nine million vehicles a year, but through the first half of the year it's only produced two hundred and ten thousand vehicles, down fifty four percent from a year ago, and in June the downward pace accelerated, with production being cut by seventy percent to below twenty eight thousan four hundred vehicles. In twenty
seventeen, SEICGM sold two million vehicles, and last year that fell to a million, and then the first half of this year, deliveries plunged fifty percent to only two hundred and twenty five thousand vehicles, and evs are a big reason for the drop. While the JV has expanded its EV lineup over the
last two years, car buyers just aren't interested in them. SEICGM is averaging
below ten thousand EV sales a month. Chinese consumers are increasingly turning to Chinese
brands because they offer better connectivity, infotainment, and driver assistance technology than foreign legacy automakers. Due Michigan is leading the charge in mobility and innovation and I
can't think of a better state to be in. Is the ev price war
in China coming to an end? Not likely, but BID is coming out
with a slightly updated version of the Seagull that has a slightly higher starting price.
While we only have this one picture of the refreshed model, it's not all that different from before other than new wheel designs, a few interior options, and three hundred and sixty degree cameras. The new Seagull will launch next
month at China with a starting price of roughly nine hundred dollars, which is about three hundred dollars more than before, but it only tops out at twelve grand. Through June of this year, BID has sold more than one one
hundred and sixty seven thousand seagulls in China, so that extra three hundred bucks would have generated an extra fifty million dollars in revenue. California is one of
Tesla's most important markets, accounting for ten percent of its global sales, but for the third straight quarter, registrations have dropped. According to the California New
Car Dealers Association, taskless registrations were just over fifty two thousand vehicles in the second quarter, down twenty four percent from a year ago. Meanwhile, the
overall BEEV market was down one point three percent in Q two, and in the first six months of the year, taeskless California registrations are down seventeen percent.
The Model Y is still the best selling vehicle in California, but sales are dropping fast and testless problems are just not in the Golden State. According
to S and P Global Mobility Testesla's US registrations in May were just over forty eight thousand, five hundred vehicles, which is down fifteen percent from a year ago and is the fourth straight month that its US registrations have dropped. Tesla's
share of the EV market has slipped from sixty percent a year ago to forty six percent this year, but the automaker isn't sitting back and is getting aggressive to help boost its sales. This morning, Audu Line even got a promotional
email from Tesla offering one point nine percent loans for the Model Y, and while Tesla is slumping, the b EV market in the US is growing faster than the overall market. S and P Global reports that ev registrations were up
nine point six percent in May to nearly one hundred and five thousand vehicles, while the overall market was down point seven percent to just under one point four million. BEVs now account for seven and a half percent of the US market.
Ford was a distant second to Tesla with just over seven thousand EVY registrations in May. Kia was hot on its heels with more than sixty eight hundred.
Hyundai was next with just over six thousand, and Rivian rounds out the top five with more than fifty one hundred EVY registrations. Looks like robotaxis in
China are going through the same kinds of growing pain seen by operators in the US. Carnus China reports that the city of Wuhan has accumulated three hundred complaints
on its traffic management website with stories of robotaxis clogging up streets and intersections.
A viral video even showed one getting confused by a plastic bag, so it just stopped in the middle of the road. Taxi drivers are also calling on
cities to limit robotaxis because they say they're cutting into their number of rides, kind of like taxi drivers pushing back against uber and Lyfted. The US price
is a main motivator for the reason to switch without the need for a driver.
Robotaxi operators are charging half the price of a regular taxi in some cases, and with available discounts, it's possible to take a five kilometer or roughly three mile ride for as little as thirty five cents. Reports say at its
peak, robotaxi operator Apollog is averaging twenty rides a day per vehicle, which is slightly more than taxis with human drivers. Automakers are turning to simulation to
develop new vehicles much faster and cheaper by iterating and testing designs in the virtual world. And VII Grade, a German company that makes driving simulators, just
came out with what it calls a virtual proving ground. It has a high
speed oval, highways, country roads, cobblestones, dirt roads, dry roads, wet roads, different gradients, a hand handling track, a rally track, and even more. We've driven several of VI Grade simulators and they're super
realistic. And while virtual proving grounds are not going to eliminate real proving grounds
anytime soon, they sure will cut down on how much testing has to be done in the real world. An off roading icon is about to hit China.
Gascou reports that Toyota and its joint venture partner FAW started building the all new version of the Proto otherwise known as the land Cruiser at their plant in the country. It's the same as the one they debuted in other parts of
the world about a year ago. The same digital screen array, multi terrain
driving modes, the same assistance systems, and the two point four leter four cylinder hybrid powertrains set up. Pricing is about the same two roughly sixty to
seventy five thousand dollars. But that brings us to the end of today's show.
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