Tesla's global sales dipped slightly in 2024 despite adding the Cybertruck, but it set a new sales record in China amid tough competition. U.S. car sales hit their highest level since 2019, with EV sales growing to about 8% of the market. GM's mixed results in China show a drop in overall sales but a surge in EVs. The federal EV tax credit rules shifted again, affecting eligibility for several models. Carvana faces accusations of shady accounting from Hindenburg Research. Autonomous vehicle pilots are expanding at major airports, and IndyCar may switch from magnesium to aluminum wheels due to supply concerns linked to China.
Topics:tesla sales trendschina ev marketus car salesgm ev strategyfederal ev tax creditcarvana accounting allegationsautonomous vehicles airportsindyar magnesium supply issues
- Tesla Global Sales Down… - …But Up Strong in China - GM Sales Sink in China, But NEVs Up Strong - U.S. Car Sales Highest Since 2019 - Biden To Block Nippon From Acquiring U.S. Steel - More EVs Lose U.S. Sales Subsidies - Some Models Gain Access to EV Credit - Hindenburg Accuses Carvana Of Shady Accounting - Pony.ai Expands AV Service to Hong Kong Airport - Oxa Tests AVs At Heathrow Airport - IndyCar Going with Aluminum Wheels
"...lectrified GV seventy. The Cadillac Optic and the Tesla cyber Truck are eligible to get the credit now too, But incom..."
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Speaker 1: This is out Aligned Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. No doubt you heard that
Tesla's sales were down for twenty twenty four. That's a
far cry from the days when the company was growing at fifty percent a year. Some investors took that as
a cell signal, and the stock dropped by eighteen percent. Specifically,
Tesla sold one point seven million vehicles, which was close to the year before, but sales dropped by exactly fifteen thousand, seven hundred and eighty three vehicles despite adding the cyber truck to the lineup. We think Tesla probably sold about
fifteen to sixteen thousand cyber trucks, so it's interesting to see that sales were down by almost the same number that the truck added to the total. But in China
it was a different story for Tesla, where it set a sales record. It sold over six hundred and fifty
seven thousand cars there, up eight point eight percent, which is all the more impressive considering the brutal competition it's facing from byd and Chinese EV startups. Even so, production
at Gigafactory Shanghai was actually down because Tesla exported three point three percent fewer cars from China. That's the first
time that production at at Shanghai factory has dropped. General
Motors also has a mixed bag of sales results in China.
It's sold six hundred and seventy three thousand vehicles there, down twenty three percent from twenty twenty three, but its sales of EV's and plugin hybrids shot up fifty six percent to just under one hundred and five thousand vehicles.
And by the way, that does not include Woulings or Boojan's EV sales. This is strictly Cadillacs, Buicks, and chevrolets.
GM says it's going to add more evs and phebs to its Chinese lineup this year and maybe that can help it turn its sales situation around. Now, let's shift
over to sales in the US. They're expected to be
over fifteen point eight million units for all of last year, which would be the highest level since twenty nineteen. EV
sales are also forecast to go up by one hundred thousand units to one point three million, which would represent about eight percent of total sales in the US. GM
will likely be the top automaker, but the Hyundai Group set its own record, selling over one point six million vehicles, including well over one hundred thousand pure electrics. President Biden
is going to block US Steel from being acquired by Japan's Nipon Steel. Automakers and suppliers backed the fourteen point
one billion dollar deal because they preferred Nipon taking over US Steal instead of Cleveland Cliffs, who was also bidding for the company, but they said it would create a monopoly and lead to higher steel prices. US Steel Share
also approved the deal with Nippon, but it faced opposition from the United steel Workers union, so it looks like that lobbying by workers paid off with a deal being blocked.
But this now puts US Steel's future up in question.
After Cleveland Cliffs lost a bid for the company, it purchased a Canadian steel producer and has since indicated it may no longer be interested in purchasing some or all of US Steel, so it could be tough for US Steel to find a new buyer.
Speaker 2: Knowing that a little rain won't slow down your day, that's what really matters. Bridge don't runs a hi attract
hires confident control in wet conditions.
Speaker 1: The continued evolution of the requirements for the federal EV tax credit in the US has led to confusion over which vehicles actually qualify, and that list just changed again.
Models that can no longer get the credit include the Rivian R one T and R one S, the Volkswagen ID four, the Nissan Leaf, and the Chevrolet Bolt. Also,
six out of the seven plug in hybrids that qualified are no longer eligible. The only one that remains is
the Chrysler PACIFICA PHEV, and this could be a big blow to Stalantis. Without many EVS in its lineup, the
automaker has relied on the success of Jeep's four y E models to help generate ZEV credits, but losing out on what's essentially up to three thousand, seven hundred and fifty bucks off the price tag could impact sales and could potentially lead to fines if Stalantis's fleet fuel economy gets too high. However, there's also several models that are
gaining access to the credit. All of the Hondai Group's
evs that are now being built in the US are eligible.
That includes the Hyundai YAYANIK five and nine, the Key EV six and nine, and the Genesis Electrified GV seventy.
The Cadillac Optic and the Tesla cyber Truck are eligible to get the credit now too, But incoming President Donald Trump has said he'll get rid of the federal EV tax credit, so this could all change again soon. When
Carvana hit the US retail scene in twenty seventeen, it was considered something of a novelty. It sold used cars
from big glass towers that are basically like giant vending machines.
When COVID hit and people were quarantined, Carvana started offering pickup and delivery services where customers did not have to deal with another human being. Sales instantly shot up, and
Carvana's stock rocketed up sevenfold. But then the goroll slowed
and dropped, and so did the stock. The company came
close to bankruptcy. But last year it looked like the
company had solved its problem and was growing strong again, and the stock shot up three hundred and seventy five percent. However, yesterday,
Hindenburg Research, the investment firm that shorts a company stock then publishes damaging revealings about its finances, went after Carvana.
It says Carvana's growth really comes from shady accounting, which Carvana strongly denies. Hindenburg has mixed results going after companies,
but it also has scored some big wins, notably when it took down Lordstown Motors. Autonomous vehicles continue to make progress,
and now we're seeing them being used at airports. Av
startup pony Ai announced that it's partnering with Hong Kong International Airport to provide autonomous rides for passengers starting by the end of this year. The service will initially provide
rides to airport staff, but it will eventually expand to urban areas. Also offers paid robotaxi services at Beijing International
Airport and over In the UK, autonomous startup Oxa partnered with delivery company DHL to test self driving vehicles at London's Heathrow Airport to showcase the technology's capabilities. An autonomous
passenger vehicle was driven in and around Heathrow Airport for fourteen days, covering thirteen hundred kilometers or more than eight hundred miles, and while a passenger vehicle was used for the test. The goal of the project is to develop
vehicles that can be used for baggage transfer and here's something worth keeping an eye on. Indy Car is looking
at dropping magnesium wheels on its race cars and going with aluminum, and it all has to do with China.
Last month, China banned exports of materials to the United States like germanium, gallium, and antimony. So far, magnesium hasn't
been banned, but it's on a list of minerals and materials that could be banned at some point in the future.
So there's been a rush in the US to stockpile these materials, which is undoubtedly why IndyCar is having a hard time finding enough magnesium to cast racing wheels, which is why it wants to go with aluminum. IndyCar plans
on having enough wheels for twenty seven cars during a race season. Each car gets ten sets of wheels or
forty wheels per car, so for the whole field, that's over one thousand wheels per season. And that brings us
to the end of today's show and this week thanks for making autoline a part of your day and I hope that you have a great weekend.
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