Autoline Daily Apr 22, 2026

AD #4281 - GM Delays Next-Gen Full-Size Electric Trucks; Ferrari Prices New Luce EV at $645,000; Volkswagen Launches Massive EV Offensive in

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Car

General Motors is indefinitely delaying its next gen full size electric trucks

GM is saying it won’t be launching its next big electric truck plans on schedule. That can affect when customers can buy new electric trucks and how quickly the supply chain and pricing catch up.

Car

Gmc Sierra

The GMC Sierra is a popular full-size pickup. The hosts are saying GM wanted to make an electric version that could be priced more accessibly.

Car

Cadillac Escalade

The Cadillac Escalade is a big luxury SUV. The episode is saying GM was working on electric versions for that kind of high-end buyer.

Car

Chevy Silverado

The Chevrolet Silverado is one of GM’s biggest-selling trucks. The episode is pointing out that GM wants an electric version to reach more buyers.

Company

Factory Zero plant in Detroit

Factory Zero is GM’s EV-focused factory in Detroit. When EV sales slow down, factories like this can reduce shifts or lay off workers temporarily.

Term

“Extended range EV” usually refers to an EV that can go farther than a battery-only car by using an additional energy source (often a small engine/generator) to recharge the battery. The transcript implies GM is exploring this approach to address range anxiety and slow EV sales.

Term

plugin hybrid versions

A plug-in hybrid is a car that can run on electricity, but it also has a gas engine as backup. You can charge it at home, and it can help bridge the gap until EV charging is easier.

Term

renewable energy to cover one hundred percent of its electricity use

GM is saying it buys renewable electricity so that, on paper, it uses 100% clean power. It’s meant to reduce the company’s overall carbon footprint.

Car

Ferrari Luce

The Ferrari Luce is a luxury sports car from Ferrari. The podcast is talking about how its price is set very high, and that can make it feel more exclusive. People may be more interested when something is priced as a top-tier product.

Term

Tesla battery business

Tesla isn’t just selling cars; it also makes batteries for energy storage. The hosts are talking about how much money that battery side is making and how fast it’s growing.

Term

energy storage deployment

Energy storage deployment is how much battery storage gets installed. The episode says Tesla’s installed amount fell in the latest quarter compared with the year before.

Car

Tesla Model Y

They say the Tesla Model Y still sold the most in California, even though Tesla’s overall registrations dropped. It suggests the Model Y is still the main driver of sales.

Term

AI Generative Voice Assistant

This is an AI voice feature that can talk back and answer questions in a more natural way. The hosts say Tesla is registering it in China so it can offer it to customers there.

Company

China Cyberspace Administrator

This is a Chinese government agency that regulates online and AI technologies. Tesla registering the feature there suggests it needs approval to be offered in China.

Company

Intrepid

Intrepid is a company that helps car makers test and build new vehicle technology. They provide tools and platforms to make sure new vehicle systems work reliably.

Concept

diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs)

Modern cars can detect problems and save them as “error codes.” Those codes help the factory figure out which cars have issues so they can be fixed before the cars are allowed to be built and shipped.

Concept

software versions

Software versioning matters in modern vehicles because emissions, safety logic, and feature behavior can change with updates. By tying compliance checks to exact software builds, manufacturers can ensure each car meets requirements before it’s cleared for production.

Brand

Volkswagen Group

Volkswagen Group is laying out a major EV expansion plan for China, including a large number of electrified models and a shift toward more capable vehicle computing and AI features. The segment connects that strategy to platform plans and the competitive pressure in China’s EV market.

Concept

Bev's PHBs and erevs

The transcript references “PHBs” and “erevs” as part of Volkswagen’s electrified lineup. These terms generally point to different electrification approaches (battery-electric vs. extended-range/other hybridized EV strategies), which affects range, charging needs, and how the powertrain is packaged.

Concept

onboard AI agent

An onboard AI agent is software that runs inside the vehicle to interpret user intent and respond more naturally, often using large language models. In this context, it’s described as improving how drivers “talk to the car” and expanding into driving, cockpit, and service experiences.

Concept

large language model

An LLM is a type of AI that’s good at understanding and producing human language. In a car, that can help the assistant understand your requests more like a person would.

Car

Cupra Born

The Cupra Born is a sportier electric hatchback from Cupra, based on Volkswagen’s ID.3 platform. It’s meant to feel more performance-focused, with stronger power options than the standard ID.3.

Car

Born Bourne

The “Born” appears to be a car name used in a discussion about a platform and upgrades—where the podcast compares how one model’s base platform received improvements. It’s mentioned alongside another name (“Bourne”) in a way that suggests the episode is focusing on how different versions or related models share engineering foundations but get different updates. That makes it relevant to buyers who care about what changes actually matter under the skin.

Concept

MEB plus platform

MEB+ is Volkswagen’s newer electric-car “foundation” that helps engineers build EVs more efficiently. When a car moves to MEB+, it usually gets better design flexibility and updated tech.

Concept

zero to 100 kilometers an hour time

This is a measure of how fast the car accelerates from a stop to 100 km/h. It’s a quick way to compare performance between EVs.

Brand

Kia

Kia is being praised for its bold design choices. They use concept cars to show what future passenger cars could look and feel like.

Car

Kia Vision Medatismo

This is a Kia concept car. Concept cars are like “preview” vehicles that show what a brand might build next, especially for design and new tech ideas.

Car

Alfa Romeo Milano

The Alfa Romeo Milano is a car model name connected to design events in Milan. The podcast mentions Milano Design Week, which is where design ideas and concepts are highlighted. So the discussion is likely about the car’s design presence and how it’s being introduced to the public.

Term

autonomous tech stack

Think of the autonomous tech stack as the robotaxi’s software “brain.” It includes all the programs that help the car understand the world and decide what to do next.

Term

LFP batteries

LFP is a type of EV battery chemistry. It’s generally safer and cheaper than many alternatives, and it can handle lots of charging cycles.

Company

CTL

CTL is the company mentioned as making the battery tech in this story. They’re working on batteries that charge faster and handle cold weather better.

Term

battery swapping

Battery swapping means you trade your low battery for a full one at a station. It can be faster than charging—especially when it’s very cold outside.

Term

pulse heating

Pulse heating is a way to warm the EV battery using short bursts of energy. Warming the battery helps it charge faster when it’s freezing outside.

Company

Bridgestone Solutions

This is the sponsor name for the show. Bridgestone is a well-known automotive company, best known for tires.

LIVE

Speaker 1: This is Outoline Daily, the show dedicated to enthusiasts of the global automotive industry. Ford and Ram recently acts their

full size electric trucks, and now General Motors is indefinitely delaying its next gen full size electric trucks. The automaker

was developing more affordable versions of the electric GMC Sierra, Chevy, Silverado, Hummer, suv and pickup in Cadillac Escalade, but Crane's Detroit Business Reports suppliers were told the program was halted with no new timetable. The refresh models were supposed to go into

production in twenty twenty eight, but Crane's reports that GM is expected to launch plugin hybrid versions of the Sierra and Silverado, and it's also in talks with suppliers about developing an extended range EV Sales of GM's full size electrics have been slow, and it recently had to lay off workers for a month at its Factory Zero plant in Detroit, where it makes the models Peking of General Motors.

It claims it's the first US automaker to secure enough renewable energy to cover one hundred percent of its electricity use across all its US facilities and globally, It's matt seventy percent of its electricity use with renewables. GM says

using renewables for electricity gives it price stability, makes the grid more resilient, and provides energy in dependence. Everyone is

complaining about how expensive electric cars are, and automakers are doing everything they can to bring prices down.

Speaker 2: Except for Ferrari, that is.

Speaker 1: Bloomberg reports that it's pricing its Luchev at a cool five hundred and fifty thousand euros or six hundred and forty five thousand bucks. That's two hundred thousand euro more

expensive than the Perrosangway Suv, its other four door car.

This may be a rare example where a sky high price on an ev actually it makes sense. After all,

Ferrari's brand image is all about exclusivity, prestige, and maybe even a little jealousy, and pricing the Luce so much higher may actually improve its appeal to the Tafosi or the Ferrari faithful. There's a lot of Tesla news today.

First up, the company will report its first quarter earnings later today, and Wall Street.

Speaker 2: Analysts expect to blowout.

Speaker 1: Testless Q one revenue is forecast to increase fifteen percent from a year ago, and its adjusted profits are expected to increase thirty percent. While that's good news, one of

the bright spots for the company has unexpectedly slowed. Tesla's

battery business saw rapid growth, with revenue rising from two point eight billion and twenty twenty one to twelve point eight billion last year. Testless annual deployments of energy storage

doubled in twenty twenty four and grew another forty nine percent in twenty twenty five, reaching forty six point seven gigawatt hours last year. But in the first quarter of

this year, energy storage deployment unexpectedly dropped to eight point eight gigawatt hours, a fifteen percent dropped from a year ago, and that's not the only big drop the company suffered.

Its Q one registrations in California dropped twenty four percent from a year ago. However, the Model Y was still

the top selling vehicle in the state. And lastly, Tesla

has registered its AI Generative Voice Assistant with China Cyberspace Administrator.

The feature has become popular, especially with tech savvy customers, and that should help Tesla better compete in China.

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and validation of vehicle platforms. Intrepid's Neovi cloud platform helps

manufacturers quickly identify diagnostic trouble codes and defects by pinpointing which vehicles have specific software versions. This allows them to

isolate non compliant vehicles in real time using analytics, part numbers, DTCs, and organized secure cloud based data. All of these steps

ensure vehicles are cleared for production and ready for the road.

Taking your fleet testing into the future of mobility, Intrepid control systems driven by your data.

Speaker 1: Earlier this month, we talked about four of the new models that the Volkswagen Group would have on display at the Beijing Auto Show. That was just the tip of

the iceberg in all. It says it will introduce twenty

electrified vehicles into the Chinese market this year, including Bev's PHBs and erevs, and by the end of the decade it plans to expand to fifty models.

Speaker 2: Thirty of which will be pure electric.

Speaker 1: Some of those vehicles include the first pure electric from its entry level Jetabrand, which is previewed with an suv.

Speaker 2: Concept called the Jeta X.

Speaker 1: Volkswagen revealed its second id Uniques model that it developed with Japong, a large sedan called the nine, and the id or A T six is the first of a new series from FAW Volkswagen.

Speaker 2: It's a mid size suv that's built.

Speaker 1: On a new locally developed China electronic architecture. In the

second half of this year, all models on this platform will get an onboard AI agent that uses a large language model to make talking to the car seem more natural than Next year, VW Group will come out with the next gen version of its China architecture, which will have a more powerful central computing platform and a multi agent AI system including AJA for driving, cockpit experience and ecosystem services. I believe the group is the top seller

of ice vehicles in China, but with that segment shrinking, it's no longer the top automaker in China, so that's why it's trying.

Speaker 2: To step up its EV game.

Speaker 1: And speaking of the VW Group, Cooper showed off the new Bourn which will go on sale in Europe this summer.

Speaker 2: This is basically.

Speaker 1: Cooper's version of the ID three, and since the ID three just moved to VW's new MEB plus platform and got a bunch of upgrades, so did the Bourne. But

since Coopra is a sportier brand than Volkswagen, the Bourne gets the two biggest battery and motor options, as well as a new VZ model that offers a two hundred and forty kilowatt or roughly three hundred and twenty horsepower electric motor and will do zero to one hundred kilometers an hour in five point six seconds. Cooper's sales were

down about ten percent in the first quarter, but with high fuel prices, more affordable evs like the Bourne are gaining traction in Europe, so we'll have to see if Coopra can start turning its sales around. Kia keeps knocking

it out of the park with its styling and its concept car called the Vision Medatureismo, shows that Kia will continue pushing the design envelope. It also demonstrates how Kia

wants to keep passenger cars relevant and aspirational.

Speaker 2: The design is a blend of sharp lines.

Speaker 1: And chiseled features that give it a chunky yet smooth flowing look. Interestingly, while the rest of the world is

flocking to the Beijing Auto Show, Kia presented the Vision Medatismo at the Milano Design Week, which is what the design community really watches. Kia actually unveiled the car in

Korea last December, but it clearly wants more people to see it and it probably realized that if it displayed at the Beijing Show, it would have simply got lost in the clutter. And speaking of the Beijing Show, Gili

is going to show off its purpose built robotaxi that was designed from the ground up as a robotaxi and is not adapted from another platform. But we think it

will probably be the same vehicle as Weimo's Robotaxi, called the Ohi. Gili's brand Zeeker is building it for Weimo,

which is already testing it in at least four US cities.

Speaker 2: But there's a big difference between the two.

Speaker 1: The Ohig is fitted with Weaimo's autonomous tech stack, while Gili has a completely different stack that it developed on its own. So how does Weimo get away with bringing

a Chinese made vehicle to the US.

Speaker 2: Well, we think it's.

Speaker 1: Because it's not selling them, and it's not using any Chinese technology related to conductivity or capturing data. LFP batteries

keep making impressive progress. Lithium iron phosphate batteries are cheaper

than most other chemistries, they don't burn easily, you can fully charge them repeatedly without much degradation, and now you can charge them pretty quickly. CTL unveiled its latest LFP

that can charge from ten to ninety eight percent in six and a half minutes. And yet even with quick

charging capability, CTL is getting into battery swapping for evs that operate in extremely cold temperatures minus thirty three degree c which is negative twenty two degrees fahrenheit. Cold weather

slows down battery charging, though CTL uses what it calls pulse heating to warm up the battery, which can get to that ninety eight percent charge in nine minutes.

Speaker 2: But for EV owners who don't want.

Speaker 1: To wait nine minutes in the cold, battery swapping can get the job done in about two minutes. That's a

wrap for today's show. Thanks for making autoline a part

of your day.

Speaker 4: Autoline Daily is brought to you by Bridgestone Solutions for your journey CSP, the Composites Solution partner Intrepid Control Systems.

Over the Air Engineering Boost your game and thanks to the following YouTube and Patreon members.

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About this episode

GM is indefinitely delaying its next-gen full-size electric trucks, with suppliers told the affordable Sierra/Silverado/Hummer/Cadillac Escalade EV refresh is halted and no new timeline—though GM may pivot toward plug-in hybrids. Ferrari’s new Luce EV is priced at about €550,000 ($645,000), framed as a deliberate exclusivity play. Tesla’s earnings outlook is strong, but energy storage deployments and California registrations are down, and it’s registering a generative AI voice assistant in China. Volkswagen lays out a major China EV push with AI on new architectures, while Kia, Geely/robotaxi, and CTL’s fast LFP charging and swapping round out the tech news.

AI Generative Voice Assistant autonomous tech stack battery swapping Bridgestone Solutions China Cyberspace Administrator CTL diagnostic trouble codes (DTCs) energy storage deployment extended range EV Factory Zero plant in Detroit

Alfa Romeo Milano Cadillac Escalade Chevrolet Silverado Cupra Born Ferrari Luce GMC Sierra EV Tesla Model Y

Original notes

- GM Delays Next-Gen Full-Size Electric Trucks - GM Reaches 100% Renewable Energy in U.S. - Ferrari Prices Ultra-Luxury Luce EV at $645,000 - Tesla Profits Rise Despite Battery Business Stall - VW Launches Massive EV Offensive in China - Upgraded Cupra Born EV Debuts - Kia Vision Meta Turismo Pushes Design Limits - Geely Unveils First Purpose-Built Robotaxi - CATL Reveals Ultra-Fast Charging LFP Battery Tech

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