AD #4180 - Volkswagen Is Running Out of Cash; Cyber-Attack Dents JLR’s Earnings; Chery Fails “Stairway to Heaven” Climb

Speaker 1: This is Autoligned Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. It almost sounds hard to believe,

but Volkswagen, which generated three hundred and forty seven billion euros in revenue last year, is running out of cash.

The situation is so dire that its supervisory board just slammed the brakes on any capital investments for the rest of the year. VW is short on investments, it has

to pay off next year by about eleven billion euros, and the board is practically looking under the couch cushions for spare change. In its Q three filings, VW reported

that it generated zero free cash flow this year, which is what management usually likes to tap into to fund investments.

All this has got analysts talking about the need for VW to sell off non core assets, and that makes us wonder if Scout could be in trouble. Not Surprisingly,

Jaguar Land Rovers profits took a beating in its most recent quarter due to the cyber attack that crippled its entire global operations for more than a month. The automakers

sold just over sixty six thousand vehicles, down twenty four percent compared to a year ago that brought in four point nine billion pounds in revenue, which was also a twenty four percent decline, and it posted a net loss of five hundred and forty seven million. While the cyber

attack was the main reason for the losses, Jlar's earnings were also impacted by us Terrace and Jaguar phasing out sales as it pivots to a new electric lineup that debuts next year. However, the worst should be in Jailr's

rear view mirror. Its production has returned to normal levels,

and Ray Scott, the CEO of the supplier Lear, told the Automotive Press Association that he believes the company will make up most of its loss production by the end of the year. Tesla is working on adding Apple CarPlay

to its vehicles. Bloomberg reports that the company has been

testing the system and discussed rolling it out in the coming months. According to people with knowledge on the matter,

CarPlay wouldn't fully replace Tesla's operating system like it does in some other vehicles, but would instead get its own display window. It also wouldn't be integrated with FSD, But

if the report is true, it would be a big reversal for the company because up until this point, it's ignored customer please to add the feature, instead pushing its own in house infotainment system. But car buyers really enjoy

the feature. According to a study from Mackenzie and Company,

a third of car buyers said not having Apple CarPlay or Android Auto would be a deal breaker.

Speaker 2: The automotive and industrial sectors are undergoing an historic transformation electrification, digitalization, supply chain reinvention, regulatory shifts. The pace is accelerating and

the pressure to adapt is real. This is not a

time for hesitation. It's a time for bold decisions backed

by fast, effective execution. You need a partner who understands

complexity from factory floors to boardrooms and delivers measurable results.

That partner is Alex Partners. When it really matters.

Speaker 1: The first company could soon start mining lithium from that giant deposit in Arkansas called the Smackover Formation, which contains more than five million metric tons of the metal. Writers

reports that Lithium Company Standard Lithium now has the backing of US Senators, the Department of Energy, and Permitting officials, and is aiming to start operations in twenty twenty eight. However,

it still needs approval for direct lithium extraction, or DL, a process that's potentially more efficient at extracting lithium compared to current methods. So far, no company has been able

to make DL work at a commercial scale, but Standard adopted a new DL process that it believes will work and that it will get approval for. Toyota hopes to

expand the potential of IC engines that run on liquid hydrogen through its racing efforts. The automaker has been using

this setup on the track since twenty twenty three, but it's made continuous improvements over the last two years and is introducing a couple of upgrades this weekend. That includes

one of the things that makes liquid hydrogen so unique that it needs to be stored at cryogenic temperatures to remain a liquid. Instead of pumping hydrogen from outside of

the tank, Toyota submerged the pump right into the tank.

While that freed up space, allowing the tank to be bigger, it now had to deal with those frigid temperatures, so it's testing out a super conducting pump, which can lose most of its electrical resistance when cooled to extremely low temperatures.

That makes the pump really efficient, and Toyota also hopes it improves the durability of the fuel delivery system during the race. On top of that, a flange was eliminated

on top of the tank because it was a possible source for heat to get in, because when liquid hydrogen warms above cryogenic temperatures, it starts to boil off. Over

ninety percent of American drivers buckle up whenever they drive, but the ones who don't account for nearly half of all traffic deaths. A study by Pegasus Legal Capital found

that unbelted occupants account for nearly fifty percent of all fatalities, and people who are sixteen to twenty four years old account for thirty seven percent of that. Pegasus warns that

not wearing a seat belt can be considered contributory negligence in a personal injury claim, meaning you may not be able to collect full damages even if you weren't at fault.

Borg Warner was just given an R and D award for a new type of electric motor that it developed with the oak Ridge National Lab. The motor doesn't use

any rare earth magnets and yet still has twenty five percent more power density than similar motors that do use rare earth magnets. It also doesn't use any brushes or

slip rings, which makes it more reliable and helps shrink the size by fifteen percent. Borg Warner says the motor

has ninety two to ninety five percent efficiency and can run at over twenty thousand rpm. Chinese automaker Cherry underestimated

the capabilities of one of its SUVs. A full wind

X three to L tried climbing the nine hundred and ninety nine steps stairway to Heaven on China's tian Men Mountain, but at one point loses traction and slides back down a portion of the steps, hitting and breaking a rock guardrail.

Cherry issued an apology the next day, saying, in part the incident quote exposed our insufficient assessment of potential risks and lapses in detail control. It's possible the automaker was

trying to replicate the stunt being pulled off by a range Rover Sport in twenty eighteen, which went viral and racked up nearly seven million views. But that brings us

to the end of today's show. Thanks for tuning in,

and I hope that you have a great weekend.

Speaker 3: Auto Line Daily is brought to you by Alex Partners.

When it really matters, CSP the Composites solution partner Intrepid Control Systems, over the air engineering boost your game and thanks to the following YouTube and Patreon members.

Speaker 4: Developing today's FAY vehicles. Issues can happen in an instant.

What good is knowing your problems without the data to solve them. Meet Wireless neo vi Cloud your secure off

the shelf solution, empowering real time collaboration for quick resolution.

With Wireless neova Cloud, your team can prevent issues before they can escalate. Driver communication data and remote diagnostics to

analyze and resolve your problems using OTA, allowing your executives to oversight throughout the process. Wireless neovi Cloud your vehicle

update solution in production and on the road in trapid control systems driven by your data.

Speaker 5: Atp we work with OEM engineers across the country on their journeys to lighter, safer, and more eco friendly vehicles.

Learn more at VCSP dot com.

Speaker 3: Wards is the industry leader for news data and analysis.

That's why companies across the globe subscribe to our premium service, maybe even your own log in for subscriber access. Now

check your company's intranet for details, and rely on wardsauto dot com to keep you informed.

AD #4180 - Volkswagen Is Running Out of Cash; Cyber-Attack Dents JLR’s Earnings; Chery Fails “Stairway to Heaven” Climb

Land Rover Range Rover

About this episode

Original notes