The 2011 Model Year will probably not go down as one of the better lineups in the Chrysler brand’s history, consisting of only four models from three nameplates. But, according to Automotive News [sub] it will probably be one of the most exclusive and rarest years for the Chrysler Group, which includes Chrysler, Dodge, Ram and Fiat, as the 2012 model-year will go into production as soon as dealers receive the “one or two buildouts” of 2011 vehicles.
So, you want something with four-doors, blazing speed and sharp handling? Germany has got you covered. Photos have leaked of the next generation of Teutonic supersedans, giving an insight into a new wave of four-door performance. First up is the BMW M5, which is set to debut at the forthcoming Shanghai Auto Show, displaying the 560 HP sedan in remarkable detail. In response, Audi has let its own turbo-V8 luxury sedan be snapped in testing, even though the S6 shown here won’t be a true M5 competitor, offering “only” around 440 HP. A twin-turbo version making an M5-rivaling 555 HP is said to be waiting for the RS6, as well as a Bentley Continental GT V8. [Gallery after the jump]
One of the toughest challenges facing industry analysts right now involves determining what the market for electric vehicles actually looks like, what kind of volumes it will support and for how long. It’s a problem that I’ve hashed over at length with an old college buddy who now works at a cleantech investment firm, and let me be the first to say that it’s not an easy problem to pick apart. The number of unknown quantities and moving parts explains why opinions among money managers can vary so wildly even about relatively marginal firms like Tesla.
Luckily, Thilo Koslowski of Gartner Research [and celebrated coiner of the term “the trough of disappointment”] has dedicated himself more thoroughly to the problem, and has some startling findings to report. For example, despite the relentless pro-EV hype present in all levels of the media, Koslowski’s research shows that more consumers are actually considering buying a natural gas-powered vehicle. Looks like Edmunds’ Jeremy Anwyl was on to something when he called for an end to EV tax credits in favor of greater support for natural gas cars.
Compared to March 2010, Ford enjoyed the greatest improvement in sales-weighted fleet MPG in the US market on an adjusted (EPA) basis. But the new king of efficiency, Hyundai, also saw its fleetwide efficiency improve, rising to 26 MPG, some 1.9 MPG better than the next closest competitor, Honda. No wonder the Koreans are the first (and only) automaker to disclose its CAFE fuel economy (as well as the first automaker to publicize the difference between CAFE ratings and the adjusted numbers you see here). For the first quarter of this year, Hyundai’s CAFE rating (as calculated by the automaker) stands at 35.8 MPG, with some 22 percent of its sales mix coming from vehicles rated at 40 MPG on the highway (28% for March). [chart courtesy of TrueCar]
Ford has made it clear that a 250 HP “ST” version of its 2012 Focus will be making its way to America, hopefully opening a new chapter in Ford’s US-market hot hatch history. The perfect followup? How about a 180 HP Fiesta ST, featuring the new 1.6 liter Ecoboost engine? Autocar says its coming to the UK by the end of this year, and Ford is already teasing its arrival with the release of a “warm” Fiesta, the 134 HP S1600 (above). There’s no word on US availability yet, but if Ford’s going to bring us the Focus ST, why not its baby cousin? With the Fiesta getting plenty of play in rally racing and, far more importantly, Ken Block videos, this seems like an easy call. If nothing else, it will at least look like the bargain of the lifetime compared to the Fiat 500 EV.
HYPE! Yes, according to a pimptastic Morgan Stanley report [via BusinessInsider], Tesla is about to become “the 4th American Automaker,” despite the fact that it hasn’t actually built a car in any kind of volume. The report enthuses
The confluence of structural industry change, disruptive technology, changing consumer tastes and heightened national security creates an opportunity for significant new entrants in the global auto industry. California dreaming? We don’t think so. In our view, the conditions are ripe for a shake-up of a complacent, century-old industry heavily invested in the status quo of internal combustion. The risks are high. So is the opportunity. Enter Tesla.
Did you just throw up in your mouth a little? Don’t worry, there are highly convincing charts to help you learn to stop worrying and love the auto industry’s answer to Apple. After all, when it comes to Tesla, charts always tell the whole story.
For March, TrueCar has included a chart diagramming the ratio of incentive spending to average transaction price, giving us a look at two key metrics on a single chart. Short of a complete fleet sales or a retail market share breakout falling into our laps (crazier things have happened), this is one of the more important metrics you’ll want to look at to qualify the raw volume numbers coming out of March. But it’s not the only one…
March sales are coming in, and it looks to have been another month of steady growth for the US market. GM’s “core brand” sales were up 11 percent, Chrysler enjoyed a 31% increase in volume, while Ford’s sales grew 19 percent. For only the second time since 1998, Ford beat GM’s overall volume by 5,674. Meanwhile, Nissan recorded its strongest monthly sales in its history in the US market, and at came within 589 units of topping Chrysler’s volume. Honda’s sales rose 19 percent last month. Hit the jump for a developing table, and check back in for more sales data as it becomes available.
Toyota reports [PDF] that it has increased its MSRPs by an average of 1.7%, as the automaker seeks to regain control over pricing which has taken a hit in the year since its recall scandal. Of course, the fact that the firm’s supply of vehicles is likely to be limited by the chaotic aftermath of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami was causing its transaction prices to rise anyway, but Toyota tells Automobile magazine that the MSRP increase
has no relation to any production shut downs or shortages stemming from the recent disaster in Japan
Uh huh. Whatever you say.
Bugatti’s jumping onto the high-po four-door bandwagon, as its parent company Volkswagen has approved its Galibier concept for production, according to Automotive News [sub]. Initial specs: 1,000 HP and a $1.4m pricetag. All other questions should be directed to the video above.
Somebody must have slipped Fiat-Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne some Sodium Pentothal as an April Fools joke, as he’s just topped his previous high-water mark for ill-advised candor (set earlier this week). Automotive News [sub] quotes the feisty CEO admitting
The economics of EVs simply don’t work. On the 500 that (Chrysler) will begin selling in the U.S. next year, we will lose over $10,000 (per unit) despite the retail price being three times higher [than the gas version].
And no, it’s not an April Fools day story! Bloomberg reports
The United Auto Workers membership rose 6 percent to 376,612 last year, the first gain in six years as U.S. automakers began hiring amid a recovery in sales.
The UAW’s membership increased by 21,421 members from 355,191 in 2009, according to a union filing today with the U.S. Department of Labor.
UAW President Bob King has wasted no time in declaring this a sign of recovery in what you might call the UAW’s “core business”:
This increase is a reflection of new organizing by the UAW, the recovery of the domestic auto industry and UAW members who won a first contract during the year. We hope to continue this growth in 2011 and beyond, as we fight to win a more fair and democratic process for workers to organize.
Of course, King’s attempt to link this minor improvement in his union’s membership to the recovery of the domestic auto industry is the real April Fools joke here…
A news brief from the Agenzia Giornalistica Italia notes
AGI) Turin – FIAT CEO Sergio Marchionne has said that it is not true that FIAT is Americanizing its models, on the contrary, more than 50% of Chrysler parts “start off from a European basis”. Speaking at a press conference, Marchionne also emphasized that the “internationalization process has began, and is making progress and our engineering is too.” The CEO also said that, “it is totally absurd to say that an American car is not a Fiat product.”
Oops!
As galling as the auto bailout was for many Americans, the hidden “stealth bailouts” that occurred during the government-led industry reorganization are often even more galling. Today the final chapter of one of those “stealth bailouts” has taken place, as GM has sold its stake in its spun-off supplier Delphi for $3.8b, booking a $1.6b gain on the deal. So, how is GM divorcing its former in-house supplier a stealth bailout? Back in the dark Summer of 2009, the government organized a GM-led rescue of Delphi, which had been languishing in bankruptcy since 2005 (after GM. By buying a chunk of Delphi for $2.5b of the government’s money and selling it back for a profit, GM’s helped itself to a little extra bump of public money. Oh, and did we mention that GM dropped all kind of pensions in Delphi’s lap when it spun the supplier, including workers who had never been employed by Delphi.
But that’s not the worst part: any guesses as to why GM’s stake in Delphi is suddenly worth so much more? A recovering industry, perhaps? Wrong. Shortly after GM bought back its stake in Delphi, the supplier dumped $6.5b worth of pensions onto the government’s Pension Benefit Guarantee Company, causing huge benefit cuts and hidden government costs. What did the PBGC’s stake, given as “partial compensation” for that pension dump, yield it? A cool $594m. Meanwhile, thanks to the government ‘s arguments, GM still had to top-up UAW retiree pensions, leaving non-union retirees and members of other unions out in the cold [read all about it in a just-released GAO report in PDF here]. A shell game inside of a political payoff inside of another shell game, in other words. There’s nothing to not love here…
Tesla has sued Top Gear for depicting its Roadster running out of electricity in the 2008 segment shown above. According to the San Jose Mercury News, Tesla is suing because
Top Gear’s allegation that the car’s range is 55 miles is defamatory because it suggests Tesla “grossly misled potential purchasers of the Roadster,”
But Top Gear spokesfolks tell the BBC
We can confirm that we have received notification that Tesla have issued proceedings against the BBC. The BBC stands by the programme and will be vigorously defending this claim.
And, as long as the Tesla Roadster that Top Gear tested was a first-generation machine (and we think it is), Tesla’s going to have a little problem making the case that the BBC defamed their car…
(Read More…)
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