Speaker 1: This is out Aligned Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. President Trump's threat to slap
twenty five percent terraffs on vehicles imported from Canada and Mexico next month could raise the prices of full sized pickups in SUVs by nine grand. That's according to a
study from the Anderson Economic Group. Pat Anderson, the CEO
of the group, says that if automakers don't make production adjustments to offset the tariffs, the impact could be over ten grand per vehicle. So far, most sales forecasts predict
that new vehicle sales in the US will come in around sixteen point one million units. But those terraffs, even
if they're phased in over time, will blow a hole in those forecasts. More importantly, full sized trucks and SUVs
are where GM, Ford and Stalantis make the bulk of their profits, and if those sales drop, their guidance to Wall Street goes out the window. So how will automakers react.
We've already seen Ford delay the intro of the next gen F one fifty by a year. Stillants has paused
retooling of the Brampton plant in Canada for the new Jeep Compass, but Auto Fourcast Solution says that Ram heavy duty trucks are still scheduled to be made in Mexico until twenty thirty two. And by the way, that's the
same year that the next gen Jeep Wrangler code name J seventy and Gladiator code name J seven P will go into production in Toledo, Ohio, and they're moving to the Stella frame platform, which makes us believe there's going to be both a BEEV and E REV version of them.
Japanese automakers would also be heavily hit by US tariffs.
The United States is the top sales market for Toyota, Honda, Nissan, and Subaru, which also make a lot of their vehicles in Canada and Mexico. So Japan's Automobile Manufacturers Association is
urging the Japanese government to help shield its automakers from any tariffs that may get imposed, and that includes on steel and aluminum, which have also been threatened with twenty five percent teriffs by the Trump administration. However, the report
doesn't say what kind of protection Japanese automakers are looking for.
We've got some more disappointing news out of Europe this morning.
New car sales fell yet again. In January, sales in
the EU were down two point six percent, and even when you throw in the non EU members into the mix, meaning the UK and the Scandinavian countries, sales were down two point one percent to only a million vehicles, that several hundred thousand vehicles below where it used to be.
The only bright spot was with hybrids and beeves. Everything
else was down. Hybrid sales jumped Homeost seventeen percent to
over three hundred and forty seven thousand units, accounting for thirty four percent of all vehicles sold. Surprisingly, despite having
such a strong hybrid lineup, Toyota sales were down five percent.
Beevs were up thirty seven percent at more than one hundred and sixty six thousand units, accounting for sixteen point three percent market share. Even so, Tesla had a horrible month,
with sales in the EU down fifty percent, coming in at only seventy five hundred vehicles, behind Suzuki and Mazda.
The only automakers which posted sales gains were Seic, the Chinese automaker, up a whopping seventy six percent. The Volkswagen
Group was up five point six percent thanks to a fifteen percent rise at the Volkswagen brand, and Renault was up five percent, but every other automaker posted a drop in sales. Afila, the joint venture between Honda and Sony,
celebrated the grand opening of its first studio in Los Angeles.
Visitors can get a first hand look at the Afila once a day, which starts at eighty nine nine dollars, and place reservations for the model with a fully refundable deposit of two hundred dollars at the Afila website. The
studio will only be opened for six months, However, Afila plans to open two more studios in California in the second half of the year. But like VW dealers fighting
scouts direct sales plan, we think a FELA will face similar opposition from Honda dealers.
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Speaker 1: Tesla is improving its hands free driving system in China, but some owners are still disappointed with its capabilities. The
update allows the vehicle to operate on roads in urban streets with the ability to take exit ramps, navigate through intersections, recognize traffic signals, turn left or right, make U turns, and change lanes, but it's still not as capable as the supervised FSD system that Tesla offers in the US, which is the kind of capability that Elon Musk has been promising to Chinese customers for years. Tesla has allowed
owners to pre order FSD in China since twenty twenty two, with a price tag that now sits at roughly eight eight hundred dollars, And on top of all of that, Carnu's China reports that the update is currently only available for vehicles with hardware four, which only started rolling out about a year ago. According to reports, the system is
less advanced because it hasn't had enough training on Chinese roads and traffic rules, but that could soon change. Tesla
changed the name of FSD in China to FSD Intelligent Assisted Driving, kind of how it changed FSD to Supervise FSD in the US, and some speculate that the system will launch in China before the end of the year.
And speaking of Tesla, the company's VP of engineering says the model and acts will quote get some love later this year, including a little bit of the stuff we've been putting in the three and y. The VP didn't
elaborate anymore, but it's been about four years since their last update. EV owners are more satisfied with their vehicles
than they were a year ago. JD Power released its
twenty twenty five US Electric Vehicle Experience Ownership study, which focuses on the first year of ownership, and it found that satisfaction amongst both premium and mass market evs improved compared to last year. The study takes a ton into account,
including accuracy of stated battery range, availability of public charging stations, battery range, cost of ownership, driving enjoyment, ease of charging at home, interior and exterior styling, safety and technology features, service experience, and vehicle quality and reliability, and the BMWA ix was the highest ranked overall EV and the highest amongst premium models. It was followed by the BMWi four
and the Rivan R one s amongst premium evs. On
the mass market side, the Hyundai Ionic six ranks the highest, and it's followed by the Kia EV six and the Chevy Equinox EV. But here's something that could affect EV satisfaction.
According to a new report from Upstream, an automotive cybersecurity company, cyber attacks targeting automotive and mobility products increased thirty nine percent twenty twenty four, mainly for more attacks at EV charging stations. The study found that fifty nine percent of
EV charging attacks had the potential to impact millions of devices, including chargers, mobile apps, and vehicles. Upstream says the interconnectedness
between all those devices increases the risk of cyber attacks.
With the range extended version of the RAM fifteen hundred, called the RAM Charger, launching in the second half of this year, the company held a presentation detailing a lot of the truck Let's start with the new Stella frame architecture, which is similar to the gas powered fifteen hundred, but the center section of the frame uses thicker steel and is eight inches wider. That helps fit and protect the battery,
but also allows the exhaust and a twenty seven gallon gas tank to still be packaged within the frame rails.
The battery pack has a total capacity of nearly ninety two kilowad hours, but only has a usable space of about seventy kilowad hours. RAM says it does that because
vehicle performance would start to be affected, especially while towing, if the state of charge of the battery went down to ten to fifteen percent in relation to total capacity, so the RAM charger will still have more battery capacity to tap into even when the icon on the dash says the battery is low, but to help maintain performance, the engine generator will kick in. It uses the company's
three point six liter Pennastar V six, but there's no starter, EGR system, prop shafts, or transmission. Instead, it has a
generator bolted to the back of it, and the engine spins up the generator to provide power to the battery pack or directly to the truck's front and rear drive modules, so there's no direct link between the engine and the wheels.
But even with a low battery light, RAM says the truck can still do one hundred and fourteen miles an hour and pass the Davis Damn test while towing a fourteen thousand pounds trailer. That ability is part of the
reason it doesn't use a smaller, more efficient engine, which would struggle in those kinds of situations with power plugs in the bed, bi directional charging capability, one hundred and forty five miles of EVY only range and six hundred and ninety miles of total range. Ram calls it the
goal locks truck because it has a little bit of everything for everybody. But that brings us to the end
of today's show. Thanks for tuning in.
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About this episode
The episode covers the impact of potential 25% tariffs on vehicles imported from Canada and Mexico, which could significantly raise prices for full-sized pickups and SUVs, affecting automakers' profits and production plans. It highlights declining new car sales in Europe, with Tesla's EU sales dropping 50%, while hybrids and BEVs gain market share. Tesla's FSD updates in China and upcoming improvements to Model S and X are discussed. JD Power's EV satisfaction study ranks BMW iX highest, and cybersecurity risks for EV charging stations are noted. The Ram Charger EREV truck's specs and towing capabilities are detailed, showcasing its innovative hybrid design.
- U.S. Tariffs Could Raise Pickup Prices $10K - Wrangler, Gladiator Moving to STLA Frame Platform - Japanese OEMs Worry About U.S. Tariffs - Tesla Sales Plunge 50% in the EU - Afeela Opens 1st Studio in LA - Tesla Autopilot Update in China Disappoints - Tesla Model S and X to Get Facelifts - BMW iX Rated Most Satisfying EV - Cyber Attacks on EV Charging Stations Up 39% - Ram EREV Can Tow 14,000 Lbs.
