Interesting Car/Truck Manufacturer News

[Weather Man]

Tell Me Best
FollowView Profile

Buick Not Buying Into Electric Vehicles, So GM Is Buying Them Out​

Trista Sobeck - 31m ago

Electric vehicles are more than on their way. And, if General Motors has anything to say about it, they’re here to stay. Moreover, if Buick dealerships aren’t on board with the plan, GM will buy them out. The dealerships must opt-in to offering only electric-powered vehicles by 2030 as part of a larger all-encompassing plan for the future.


Buick dealerships received information about the buyouts today, Friday, September

The buyouts give owners a chance–and monetary support–to move on from the business. Investing in an all-electric future could cost them up to $200,000 in updates to their facilities.
According to Duncan Aldred, global head of Buick, “Not everyone necessarily wants to make that journey, depending on where they’re located or the level of expenditure that the transition will demand. So if they want to exit the Buick franchise, then we will give them monetary assistance to do so,” he said
Many Buick dealerships already sell GM vehicles or another one of GM’s brands. This is simply because GM does own Buick and other brands. The brand reports that General Motors has a laser-like focus on zero tailpipe emissions, putting their Buick dealerships on notice.

Buick is Looking Back to Move Forward With The Electra​

Buick had the car industry buzzing earlier this year when it announced that it would bring back the famous “Electra” line from 1962. The modern electric Electra is due in 2024. Buick has been quoted as saying, “The Electra is “isn’t just a single model but rather the name an entire line of future all-electric SUVs.”

Buick isn’t spilling many secrets, but the line likely won’t resemble the Electra from the 1960’s. The entire line will be Sport Utility Vehicles. (‘SUV’ only became a widely accepted term in the early 1980’s) GM and Buick had to reach into the past to re-up their trademarked name, Buick Electra, which sat dormant for years. The automaker applied for the trademark in December of 2021, signaling this year’s newest strategy.
But, the question remains of how many Buick dealerships want to jump ship. It was reported that GM offered 2,000 of its luxury brand dealerships the buyout option. GM offered buyouts to Cadillac dealerships two years ago. About 17% of the 8800 retailers accepted the offer.

The Future’s So Bright … ​

The brand’s fairly aggressive approach to getting all their sub-brands offering only electric vehicles by 2035 is a $30 billion investment. The electric cars will still be produced in its Detroit factory. Factory Zero was founded in 1980 as a symbol of the shift from gasoline engines to batteries. GM has been ready for this moment for more than 40 years.
One of the biggest hurdles Buick and GM face as it evolves to creating all-electric vehicles is obtaining computer chips from Asia. The company is finally seeing some progress as supply chains slowed to almost a complete halt during the COVID-19 pandemic. However, as Tell Me Best reported, many global issues are hindering the supply chain.

All Electric, All The Time​

In a long journey to get to an all-electric mode of transportation, electric vehicles will pave the way for a cleaner future. According to Tell Me Best, Honda is also honing in on an all-electric lineup. GM and Buick won’t be the only brands out there buzzing about the future. You can count on that.
The post Buick Not Buying Into Electric Vehicles, So GM Is Buying Them Out appeared first on Tell Me Best.

 

[365 Saleen]

I will be retired by 2030 and won't have to deal with this Woke BS. This is going to go down as one of the stupidest Corporate decisions in history. And GM is not the only one doing this.
All of this is being driven by the Government, not by customer demand. And following the will of the Government and not your customers is bound to lead to failure. It always has.

 

[jvandy50]

Know a guy that got a lightning and it's now for sale after a horrible experience on about a 250 mile round trip. We just aren't ready for that shit here in Arkansas lol

 

[Weather Man]

Honda Motor inks partnership with Hanwa to secure supply of battery metals​

HMC +0.19%Sep. 06, 2022 6:10 AM ET

• Japanese automaker, Honda Motor (NYSE:HMC) said on Tuesday that it entered a partnership with trading company Hanwa Co to secure stable supply of metals used in batteries for electrified vehicles.
• The company will be able to obtain essential metals such as nickel, cobalt and lithium through the partnership in the medium to long term.
• For the current year, the company laid out a target to roll out 30 electrified vehicle models globally and produce more than 2M
• EVs a year by 2030. It aims at selling only fully electric vehicles and fuel cell electric vehicles by 2040.

 

[Weather Man]

TheStreet
FollowView Profile

Ford Wants to Make a Major Change​

Luc Olinga - 3h ago

The automaker wants to deploy another weapon to allow it to play on equal terms with Tesla. Indeed, Farley would like to convince the company's dealers to considerably reduce the cost of delivering an electric vehicle to consumers, reports Reuters.

The chief executive officer will make this request during a meeting next week in Las Vegas with the dealers. The demand will come as part of new agreements on how dealers sell electric vehicles produced by Ford, Reuters said citing unnamed sources.

Ford did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

"We're working with our dealers to create a retail model better than what's offered by any traditional OEM [original equipment manufacturer] and better than the start-ups who are now scrambling to develop sales and service networks to support customers in an attempt to sustain and grow share," Farley told analysts during the second-quarter earnings' call.

Pressed by analysts, he then indicated that "we have to get this $2,000 out of our distribution cost to be competitive" with Tesla, Rivian (RIVN) - Get Rivian Automotive Inc. Report and Chinese EV makers. He pointed out that what all these rivals have in common is that they sell directly to consumers without going through dealerships.

Do Like Tesla?​

One-third of the $2,000 savings could come from implementing a new distribution system that Farley calls a "low inventory model: "The customer orders a vehicle, and then we ship the vehicle to the customer. That's what I mean by a low inventory model. We have to go to that," he explained.

"We think that's about -- worth maybe $600, $700 in our system. Another one is all the selling, SG&A [selling, general and administrative expenses], and advertising costs. We have three tiers of marketing. We think that's another $600 a vehicle," the CEO added.

He continued:

"We're going to simplify that. And we're going to just shift where the e-commerce platform that we don't have today -- all of our e-customers have a very predictable experience, whether they're in a dealership or in their bunny slippers, and they'll have a very simple, transparent, very easy purchase process. And we're going to invest."

Basically, Ford is not ruling out a Tesla-like system, with a website where consumers can order their vehicle directly from the manufacturer and where it can adjust prices when necessary and enjoy the benefits of an increase price.

One of Tesla's advantages over its rivals is in fact that the disruptor is not bound by franchise agreements, even if this means that it is absent in certain states. The system thus allows Tesla to deliver the vehicle to the customer as soon as it is ready and to avoid additional dealer-related costs.

Ford is not the only legacy carmaker to want to review its distribution network. General Motors (GM) - Get General Motors Company Report has just offered buyouts to U.S. Buick dealers who do not want to make the necessary investments when the brand is going to go all-electric.

 

[kazman]

Great! Let's put some more people out of work...

 

[Weather Man]

The Verge
FollowView Profile

No buyouts for Chevy dealers who don’t want to sell electric vehicles​

Andrew J. Hawkins - Yesterday 9:59 AM

Chevrolet won’t follow its sister brands Cadillac and Buick in offering buyouts to dealers who don’t want to make the necessary investments to upgrade to electric vehicles, Scott Bell, global vice president, told The Verge.

Chevrolet dealers are on the front lines in the multi-billion-dollar push to court mainstream car buyers.© Photo by Andrew J. Hawkins / The Verge
In fact, the dealers who do elect to take buyouts from Cadillac and Buick could end up exclusively selling Chevy vehicles, which Bell argues is good for his brand.
“The minute they pull back and say, ‘You know what, I’m not ready to go all in for those brands,’ they’re now 100 percent a Chevy dealer, which is a good thing for Chevrolet,” Bell said at a pop-up event in Manhattan celebrating the unveiling of the 2024 Chevy Equinox EV.
“they’re now 100 percent a Chevy dealer, which is a good thing for Chevrolet”
Last week, Buick’s top executive said that all 2,000 of the brand’s franchise dealers in the US will be given the opportunity to take a buyout. Taking the buyout means the dealer will no longer be affiliated with the Buick brand and can no longer sell Buick vehicles, although they can still sell other General Motors vehicles.
The deal mirrored a similar one offered by Cadillac to its dealers who didn’t want to invest in upgrades needed to sell the brand’s new EVs, like the 2023 Cadillac Lyriq. That process ended last year, with GM reporting that around one-third, or 575 dealers, took the buyout.

Cadillac and Buick’s loss is Chevy’s gain, according to Bell. (All three brands, along with GMC, are owned by General Motors.) He noted that the dealers that represent 95 percent of Chevy’s sales are already selling at least one electric vehicle: the Chevy Bolt. To Bell, those dealers have demonstrated a willingness to spend the money that’s necessary to sell even more EVs, which are set to be released next year.


No buyouts for Chevy dealers who don’t want to sell electric vehicles© Image: Chevy
“They’ve already raised their hand: ‘I’m in on the Bolt,’” Bell said. “They certainly have committed to the Chevy brand.”

It’s a bit hard to gauge how dealers broadly feel about EVs, but some evidence suggests they are less than thrilled about having to upend their business to accommodate an entirely new class of vehicles. Many car dealers have been in the business for years. Internal-combustion engines are their livelihood, and they are understandably hesitant to fully embrace the switch to electric.
they are understandably hesitant to fully embrace the switch to electric

Many automakers are requiring dealers to make expensive upgrades to their stores to accommodate charging stations and special equipment to service EVs. These improvements can run upwards of $300,000 per dealership. There’s also a growing rift between franchise dealers, which enjoy a lot of state-level political support, and direct-to-consumer brands like Tesla and Rivian, which eschew the franchise model.
Bell said he sees Chevy’s 3,000-plus dealers as being on the front line in GM’s multi-billion-dollar push to court mainstream car buyers to switch to electric. And the dealers seem to be on board.
“We want to beat Tesla on EVs,” Keith McCluskey, dealer chairman of the Chevrolet National Dealer Council, told Automotive News earlier this year. “We want to meet demand.”

The stakes are arguably just as high for Chevy as they are for Buick and Cadillac. The brand is central to GM’s EV strategy, with three new EVs coming out next year: the Silverado, Blazer, and Equinox. And while other EVs have gone up in price, Chevy has decided to keep the Bolt EV and Bolt EUV at a reduced price through the end of the year, underscoring GM CEO Mary Barra’s commitment to put “everyone in an EV.”
“Lyriqs and Hummers are awesome, but these are the three biggest segments in the market,” Bell said, gesturing to the show car versions of the Silverado, Blazer, and Equinox. “I won’t make a bombastic claim here today, but nobody else is going to touch this.”

 

[Weather Man]

Ford shows off new models and EV ambition at Detroit Auto Show​

F -0.54%Sep. 15, 2022 7:00 AM ET

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) is looking to make a big splash at the Detroit Auto Show this week. The Detroit automaker is prominently showing off the F-150 Lightning, Mustang Mach-E SUV, as well as the Bronco lineup that includes the Sport SUV and Heritage edition with styling cues from the 1966 original.
The Lincoln lineup being highlighted features the new 2023 Corsair premium compact SUV, as well as the Lincoln Star and Model L100 concepts that are said to evolve the brand’s Quiet Flight design.
Ford (F) is also hosting mixed and augmented reality displays that tackle a number of topics, such as a master class on the all-new Mustang, EV education, connected technology and Ford Pro commercial vehicle services.
Outside of the auto show, Ford Motor is making a strong play with its electric vehicle initiative by asking nearly 3,000 dealers to invest in upgrades to sell all-electric vehicles. The company is offering dealers the option to become "EV-certified" with investments of $500K or $1.2M. Dealers have until October 31 to make a decision and until the end of the year to make the investments in one of the two tiers.

 

[Weather Man]

General Motors announces $491M investment at Marion facility to support EV production​

GM +0.36%Sep. 15, 2022 12:07 PM ET3 Comments

• General Motors (NYSE:GM) plans to invest $491M at its Marion, Indiana metal stamping operations to help electric vehicle production, Reuters reported on Thursday.
• The U.S. automaker wants to prepare the facility to produce steel and aluminum stamped parts for future products, including EVs, built at multiple GM assembly plants.
• The investment will be used to add an around 6,000 sq ft additional space, purchase and install two new press lines, complete press and die upgrades and renovations.

 

[Weather Man]

Cleveland-Cliffs hikes prices by minimum $75/ton​

Aug. 24, 2022 5:50 PM ETCleveland-Cliffs Inc. (CLF)By: Carl Surran, SA News Editor55 Comments

Taitai6769/iStock via Getty Images

Cleveland-Cliffs (NYSE:CLF) closed +2% in Wednesday's trading after saying it raised current spot market base prices for all carbon steel hot rolled, cold rolled and coated steel products by a minimum of $75/ton, Dow Jones reported.
The higher prices are effective immediately with new orders in North America.
Cleveland-Cliffs (CLF) easily has more exposure to the auto industry than any other steelmaker, and perhaps the spot market price hike means stalled production rates are finally starting to improve.

 

[Weather Man]

The Drive
FollowView Profile

The 2023 Chrysler 300C Hemi V8 Sold Out in Just 12 Hours​

Nico DeMattia - 39m ago

Almost immediately after Stellantis announced the Chrysler 300C would return for just one year with Hemi V8, fans and potential customers rushed to their email and phones in hopes of snagging an allocation. Except, according to Motor Trend, after just twelve hours, there weren't anymore. In literally just half of one day, Chrysler sold out of its 2,200 limited-run 300C Hemi V8s (2,000 for the U.S. and 200 for Canada), which means there's now a waiting list for anyone that still wants one.

 

[Weather Man]

Hertz plans to order 175K EVs from General Motors by 2027​

HTZ -1.24%Sep. 20, 2022 12:16 PM ET3 Comments

Hertz Global Holdings (NASDAQ:HTZ) plans to order up to 175K EVs from General Motors (NYSE:GM) over the next five years, per a company statement.

According to Hertz, an agreement was struck by which the company will order thousands of Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac, and BrightDrop electric vehicles to expand its fleet. By the close of 2027, the car rental company expects to order 175K vehicles as its fleet expansion coincides with production ramps at GM.

"Our work with Hertz is a huge step forward for emissions reduction and EV adoption that will help create thousands of new EV customers for GM," GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra said. "With the vehicle choice, technology and driving range we're delivering, I'm confident that each rental experience will further increase purchase consideration for our products and drive growth for our company."

Deliveries of Chevy Bolt EV and EUVs to Hertz (HTZ) are anticipated to begin in early 2023.

 

[Rb0891]

Hertz plans to order 175K EVs from General Motors by 2027​

HTZ -1.24%Sep. 20, 2022 12:16 PM ET3 Comments

Hertz Global Holdings (NASDAQ:HTZ) plans to order up to 175K EVs from General Motors (NYSE:GM) over the next five years, per a company statement.

According to Hertz, an agreement was struck by which the company will order thousands of Chevrolet, Buick, GMC, Cadillac, and BrightDrop electric vehicles to expand its fleet. By the close of 2027, the car rental company expects to order 175K vehicles as its fleet expansion coincides with production ramps at GM.

"Our work with Hertz is a huge step forward for emissions reduction and EV adoption that will help create thousands of new EV customers for GM," GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra said. "With the vehicle choice, technology and driving range we're delivering, I'm confident that each rental experience will further increase purchase consideration for our products and drive growth for our company."

Deliveries of Chevy Bolt EV and EUVs to Hertz (HTZ) are anticipated to begin in early 2023.

Lmao at those morons at the rental places keeping them charged.

 

[Weather Man]

Ford shakes up leadership to shore up supply chain​

F -1.38%Sep. 22, 2022 1:40 PM ET20 Comments

Ford Motor Company (NYSE:F) is making a number of personnel moves to adapt its supply chain management on Thursday after being hit with an unexpected $1B surge in supplier costs.
The Michigan-based automaker explained that a few major leadership changes will “transform the company’s global supply chain management” and support EV aims. CFO John Lawler is expected to “oversee a makeover of Ford’s global supply chain operations on an interim basis” while the company conducts a search for a chief global supply chain officer. Jonathan Jennings, vice president of supply chain is expected to assist and report to Lawler.
Elsewhere, Ford Blue vice president Jim Baumbick was assigned expanded responsibilities in terms of overseeing the development of all Ford Blue products, as well as lead cycle planning, vehicle development engineering, and product development operations for the entire company. He is slated to partner with Doug Field, who was named chief advanced product development and technology officer to oversee EVs, software, and ADAS among other software initiatives.
Meanwhile, Lisa Drake was assigned responsibility for manufacturing engineering “as Ford scales to a run rate of 2M EVs per year by the end of 2026.” Finally, vice president of EV technology Chuck Gray was named vice president of vehicle hardware engineering. Both Drake and Gray report to Field.
“As we enter an intense period of execution for Ford Model e and our $50B investment in breakthrough electric and digital vehicles, Doug, Lisa and Chuck are taking on larger roles and building out very capable teams,” CEO Jim Farley said. “Developing and scaling the next generation of electric and software-defined vehicles requires a different focus and mix of talent from the accomplished Ford team and many exciting new colleagues joining our company.”
He added that a number of new hires bring “Silicon Valley credentials” to the automaker, highlighting a greater tech focus. Namely, Roz Ho was appointed chief connected vehicle software officer, joining after lengthy stints at HP Inc. and Microsoft. Farley highlighted the fact that Ho will join a host of executives in driver technologies and software that joined Ford from firms like Amazon, Google, Apple, Aptiv, and more.
Ford (F) shares fell 0.77% in the latter half of Thursday's trading session.
Read more on Ford’s (F) supplier warning’s sector-wide impact.

 

[Weather Man]

EVs to account for 60% of new car sales by 2030 - IEA​

Sep. 23, 2022 5:38 AM ETTesla, Inc. (TSLA), F, GM, STLA, TM, VWAGY, BMWYY, MBGYY, GELYYBy: Yoel Minkoff, SA News Editor2 Comments

sarawuth702

Electric vehicle investors are gleaning some important data from the latest update to the IEA's "Tracking Clean Energy Progress." The annual report assesses 55 components of the energy system – sectors, technologies, infrastructure and mitigation strategies - to evaluate progress towards reaching key medium-term milestones by the end of the decade. It's part of a broader effort of "Net Zero Emissions by 2050" that seeks to limit the rise in global temperatures to 1.5°C through innovation, behavioral change, sustainable bioenergy and international collaboration.
Snapshot: EV sales doubled worldwide last year to account for almost 9% of the total car market. The trend is picking up again this year as 2M EV sales were recorded during the first quarter, marking a 75% increase compared to the first three months of 2021. In fact, the IEA expects to "see another all-time high for electric vehicle sales [in 2022], lifting them to 13% of total light duty vehicle sales globally."
"Electric vehicles are the key technology to decarbonize road transport, a sector that accounts for 16% of global emissions," according to the report. "The Net Zero Emissions by 2050 Scenario sees an electric car fleet of over 300M in 2030 and electric cars accounting for 60% of new car sales."
Other highlights: The global EV fleet in 2021 displaced around 0.3 Mb/d of oil by consuming about 50 TWh of electricity, which accounts for less than 0.5% of current total final electricity consumption worldwide. The energy density of EV batteries has also been rising over the past year, while there has been a doubling in the market share of lithium iron phosphate cathodes, which require no nickel or cobalt. Meanwhile, deployment of publicly available EV charging points increased by close to 40% in 2021, with 500K public charging points installed, or more than the total stock of chargers available in 2017.

 

[Weather Man]

Inside EVs
FollowView Profile

Toyota's Upcoming "bZ3" Sedan Takes Aim At The Tesla Model 3​

Steven Loveday - Yesterday 12:19 PM

Toyota bZ3© InsideEVs

The Toyota electric sedan will begin its journey in China, with European sales likely to follow in 2024.​

Toyota has made it clear time and time again that it has no interest in rushing into fully electric cars. However, it will listen to its customers and follow the market's needs. In order to chip away at some of Tesla's growing market share in China and Europe, the Japanese automaker is ready to bring its fully electric sedan to market.
As Toyota slowly moves forward with EVs, it has developed its own proprietary global platform that's designed for electric cars from the ground up. The E-TNGA platform will serve as the foundation for a number of Toyota electric vehicles going forward.
The first fully electric Toyota vehicle on the E-TNGA platform is the bZ4X compact SUV. The automaker actually already started delivering the new model, however, there's now a global delay to the launch of the electric crossover due to a recall for a wheel-mounting concern.
According to Autocar, Toyota CEO and president Akio Toyoda shared last year that the bZ4X would be followed by a long list of future Toyota EVs. One such vehicle was known as the bZ Sedan when it was still a concept, though the publication believes Toyota will officially call it the bZ3.

 

[Weather Man]

Ford begins construction of $5.6B EV-focused facility​

Sep. 23, 2022 7:05 AM ETFord Motor Company (F)By: Kevin P. Curran, SA News Editor2 Comments

Justin Sullivan

Ford Motor Co. (NYSE:F) began construction of “BlueOval City”, a $5.6B high-tech assembly plant focused on EV production on Friday.

The company said the new plant will be critical to producing its projected 2M electric vehicle annual run rate globally by late 2026 and will create approximately 6K jobs in Haywood County, Tennessee once production begins in 2025. Production is set to focus on an electric trucks and advanced batteries for Ford (F) and Lincoln vehicles.

“We are building the future right here in West Tennessee,” Eric Grubb, Ford’s director of new footprint construction, said in a statement. “This facility is the blueprint for Ford’s future manufacturing facilities and will enable Ford to help lead America’s shift to electric vehicles.”

 

[Weather Man]

Ford to invest $700M at Louisville truck factory​

F -2.04%Sep. 27, 2022 1:13 PM ET

• Ford (NYSE:F) announced on Tuesday plans to invest $700M at its truck factory in Louisville, Kentucky, generating around 500 new jobs over the next four years.
• The investment will be used to equip the facility, which manufactures Super Duty pickup trucks and chassis cabs, plus the Ford Expedition and Lincoln Navigator large SUVs, with new machinery to help develop a redesigned version of its largest F-Series pickups.
• The automaker also plans to add around 500 jobs at the plant by 2026. The plant currently has around 8,700 hourly and salaried workers.
• Ford (F) is scheduled to unveil a revamped Super Duty for the 2023 model year at Churchill Downs on Tuesday night. The vehicle will go on sale in spring 2023.

 

[Tezz500]

Know a guy that got a lightning and it's now for sale after a horrible experience on about a 250 mile round trip. We just aren't ready for that shit here in Arkansas lol

Went Camping in the mountains this weekend with the 2022 F1Fiddy.

ZERO Chance the Lightning would have made that trip without being a complete pain in the ass the entire way up and back.

 

[Weather Man]

I hope they succeed.

MSN