AD #4096 - Uber Partners with Lucid and Nuro On Robotaxis; Porsche Plans More Jobs Cuts; Subaru Reveals New Uncharted EV
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AD #4096 - Uber Partners with Lucid and Nuro On Robotaxis; Porsche Plans More Jobs Cuts; Subaru Reveals New Uncharted EV
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Speaker 1: This is underlined daily the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. Uber seems super bullish on robotaxis
and is willing to back that up financially. It announced
that it's investing hundreds of millions of dollars into Lucid and Neuro to launch a robotaxi fleet next year, and thanks to regulatory filings, we know that three hundred million dollars is going to Lucid. The ev maker says some
of that money will go towards developing the self driving tech with Neuro. Right now, they're testing versions of the
Gravity suv fitted with Neuro's Level four capable autonomous system at the av company's test track in Las Vegas. The
plan is to launch twenty thousand or more of these gravity robotaxis over the next six years, which will be owned and operated by Uber and its third party partners.
Lucid stock price shot up over fifty percent yesterday after the investment from Uber, and the ev maker also announced a one for ten reverse stock split, meaning that for every ten existing shares that are held by shareholders will now be combined into one new share. It's meant to
boot share price, which currently sits at a little over three dollars, but Lucid claims it's not about the fear of being delisted, rather to attract larger investors. Now, let's
go back to Uber and robotaxis for a moment, because if you watch this show, you know that Uber has been going a bit robotaxi crazy. In the US, it
has deals with Waimo, Volkswagen and now Lucid, and for international markets it recently partnered with China's by Dew. It
looks like investors really like the path that Uber is taking.
Speaker 2: With the company now worth more.
Speaker 1: Than most automakers, Sales of used high end luxury vehicles are probably going to go through the roof in China.
The country hits ultra luxury goods, including cars, with an extra tear called a consumption tax, and China just lowered the starting price at which vehicles are slapped with that tax.
It's now applied if the transaction price goes over one hundred and twenty five thousand dollars, which is a drop of about fifty six thousand dollars compared to before. For
the first time, new energy vehicles will be taxed as well, but pure BEVs and fuel cells will only be taxed after the sale. Any IC based vehicle will be taxed
at production or import and after the sale, which now also includes optional features, customization, and after sales services. But
I say the sale of used high end luxury vehicles will probably shoot up because the tax will no longer be applied to them, regardless of the price or when the vehicle was registered. We've already seen automakers and dealers
in China abuse selling and exporting vehicles that are labeled as used but have no or very few miles on them, and it would seem this new tax policy for used high end luxury vehicles could promote the same behavior. Faraday
Futures trying to make a comeback with a mini van.
The company revealed its new model, called the FX super One at an event in La yesterday. The grill of
this thing is basically a big TV screen that can have virtually any look and also uses sensors and AI to express emotion and communicate with other road users. The
super One will feature LDAR as well and shows off a luxury interior and is planned to launch with all wheel drive and two power trains, pure battery electric and a p have at a later date. The company says
it's gotten over ten thousand, one hundred dollars pre orders and has raised over one hundred and five million dollars in financing to fund its growth strategy, which includes making the new model at its facility in California.
Speaker 2: However, no word.
Speaker 1: On when that might be, and we've heard a lot of promises from Faraday in the past. It's sold less
than twenty examples of its three hundred thousand dollars FF nine to one, which was first shown off in twenty seventeen, and one hundred and five million dollars is nowhere near enough to tool up and build a new model at scale.
One advantage that Faraday could have is that the Super one is just a rebadged version of a van that's made by one of the brands owned by Chinese automaker great Wall Motor.
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Speaker 1: The Trump administration is planning to significantly ramp up terraff on graphite from China, a key material that's used for making EVY batteries. The Commerce Department issued a preliminary ninety
three point five percent tariff on imported Chinese graphite because it says companies were violating anti dumping laws and that the material was unfairly subsidized. Plus, this will stick back
on top of existing tariffs, so the effective rate on graph height will be one hundred and sixty percent. Battery
makers aren't happy and say costs are going to rise since they're heavily reliant on graphight from China, which dominates global production. Last year, the US imported one hundred and
eighty thousand metric tons of graphite.
Speaker 2: And about two thirds of it came from China.
Speaker 1: The Commerce Department will make its final decision on the increase by the end of the year. Porsche is planning
another round of job cuts to help reduce costs. Earlier
this year, the automaker announced it would be cutting thirty nine hundred jobs by twenty twenty nine.
Speaker 2: But apparently that wasn't enough.
Speaker 1: Bloomberg reports that CEO Oliver Bluma sent a memo to employees telling them it plans to start negotiations on additional job cuts in the second half of the year. Blooma
set its current business model quote no longer works in its current form. Porscha's profits are taking a hit because
of slumping sales in China and the new US terraff on car imports are also increasing costs. The automakers aiming
to boost its operating margin to fifteen to seventeen percent in the medium term, up from eight point six percent in the first quarter of this year.
Speaker 2: But Portia isn't alone.
Speaker 1: Jaguar land Rover announced it's cutting five hundred managerial jobs, also due to slumping sales in China and the cost to US traffs. It will reduce jobs through voluntary layoffs.
According to its latest annual report, Jlar's employee costs grew by around a billion dollars from twenty twenty three to twenty twenty four. And speaking of job cuts, the National
Highway Traffic Safety Administration is reducing its workforce by twenty five percent. The cuts are part of the Trump Administration's
voluntary layoff program, and NITZE could face more job reductions if Congress followed through on proposed budget cuts that are being considered.
Speaker 2: Here's a surprise.
Speaker 1: Subaru is going to have a front wheel drive model, but it might not be what you think. Subaru launched
an all new, fully electric model called the Uncharted, which is based on the new electric Toyota COCHR. It features
a seventy four point seven kilowat hour lithium ion battery.
All wheel drive versions have an estimated two hundred and ninety miles of range and three hundred and thirty eight horse power, and have a zero to sixty mile per hour time of under five seconds. Front drive models are
expected to have more than three hundred miles of range and two hundred and twenty one horses The Uncharted come standard with the next charging port, and it can charge its battery from ten to eighty percent and thirty minutes inside.
The model features a fourteen inch infotainment screen and it's available with a suite of driver assistance technologies. The Uncharted
goes on sale in the US in early two, twenty twenty six. But that brings us to the end of
today's show. Thanks for tuning in, and I hope that
you have a great weekend. Auto Line Daily is brought
to you by Intrepid Control Systems over the year engineering boost your game and by WARDS is the industry leader for news, data and analysis.
Speaker 2: That's why companies across the globe subscribe to our premium service.
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About this episode
Uber is heavily investing in robotaxis, committing $300 million to Lucid and Nuro to launch a fleet of autonomous Gravity SUVs next year, signaling strong confidence in self-driving tech. Lucid’s stock surged following the investment and a reverse stock split. Meanwhile, China’s new tax policy on luxury vehicles may boost used car sales. Faraday Future unveiled a futuristic electric minivan with AI features, though production timelines remain uncertain. The US plans steep tariffs on Chinese graphite, impacting EV battery costs. Porsche and Jaguar Land Rover are cutting jobs due to sales challenges and tariffs. Subaru revealed the all-electric Uncharted, a front-wheel-drive model launching in 2026 with impressive range and performance.
Original notes
- Uber Partners with Lucid and Nuro On Robotaxis - China Removes Tax on Used High-End Luxury Cars - Faraday Future Reveals New Electric Minivan - U.S. Ramps Up Tariffs on Chinese Graphite - Porsche Plans More Jobs Cuts - JLR Slashes 500 Jobs - NHTSA Cuts 25% Of Workforce - Subaru Reveals New Uncharted EV
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