Tesla is under federal investigation again, Ferrari is happy to be able to build old-fashioned engines for many more years, and Polestar’s has the entire future of the United States on its first SUV. All that and more in this version of Morning shift for Tuesday, March 28, 2023.
Gear #1: Now Seatbelts
Back in October, Tesla About 24,000 Model 3s recalled due to a problem with the second row seat belt buckle and buckle. It is currently being investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) due to two customer complaints about improper seat belt fastening on Model X 2022 and 2023, which broke. from the seat frame during normal driving without a collision. From Related press:
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration’s investigation includes about 50,000 Model X SUVs from the 2022 and 2023 model years.
The agency said it had two complaints from Tesla owners that the front belts were not fully connected at the factory.
Documents released by the agency on Tuesday show the belt link and the pre-tensioner, which tightens the belt before impact, is anchored to the seat frame.
Both complaints allege that the front link and pre-tensioner become detached from the frame while the vehicle is moving and force is applied. Both incidents were unrelated to collisions.
The agency said it was opening an investigation into Tesla’s manufacturing processes, the frequency of incidents and its prevalence. Investigations may result in recalls.
As you may know, this is not the only Tesla poll by NHTSA at the moment. Authorities are currently reviewing reports of Model Ys being delivered to customers no bolts holding the important steering wheeland it also recently concluded an investigation into the company Fully self-driving technology leads to 360,000 vehicle recall.
Compared to software gremlins, seat belt problems are relatively uncomplicated — the kind of manufacturing hassle that automakers typically solve before the government gets involved. But there seems to be some looseness as Teslas come off the assembly line these days, so it’s not entirely surprising that this one slides right in.
2nd gear: Ferrari is feeling good
Why not? The European Commission is set up to approval of a synthetic fuel remediation regulation — an expensive way to keep cars with internal combustion engines on the road at a reduced environmental cost. Of course, Ferrari owners can pay that bill, and CEO Benedetto Vigna must be expecting it. From Reuters:
CEO Benedetto Vigna told a Reuters Newsmaker event: “The good news for us as a company (…) is that in addition to electric cars, we will also be able to continue with cars. its internal combustion engine.
“This decision is very exciting for us because it allows ICE to get through 2036,” he added. […]
Presenting its new business plan last year, Ferrari said hybrid and all-electric models will account for 80% of that by 2030, while 20% will still be powered by combustion engines. in.
“This has not changed,” Vigna said. “We don’t want to tell the customer which vehicle to use. We want to offer them three types of propulsion – hybrid, electric and ICE – and they will choose.” [sic].
You have to believe that a Ferrari EV will sell well, like Maranello’s First SUV. You also have to believe that there are self-proclaimed purists out there who will accept nothing but the roughest V12. It’s ridiculous to imagine that Ferrari will most likely produce a car with such an engine 13 years from now, when everyone else has stopped. With exclusivity and factoring in an inflationary trajectory, I would expect it to cost around $50 million, new.
3rd Gear: Polestar’s is going big in the US
going to happen pole star 3, the first midsize SUV from the Volvo spinoff, will arrive in North America near the end of the year. We love SUVs in this part of the world, and so Polestar is seizing the opportunity to remind or perhaps inform Americans for the first time that it exists and that there are options besides the Model X. of Tesla in this segment. From auto news:
Polestar plans to roll out a $20 million marketing campaign in the second quarter as the Swedish electric vehicle maker prepares pumps for its first crossover in the United States, where trucks dominate.
This investment will surpass Polestar’s marketing spend in the first quarter of 2021 as the fledgling electric-car brand splashes out on a Super Bowl ad.
The Volvo Cars division will spend more money marketing the Polestar 3, a Porsche Cayenne-sized crossover, to Americans in the second quarter than in the past nine months combined, Polestar North American boss Gregor Hembrough said. auto news.
[…]
Hembrough said North America, which includes the US and Canada, will be Polestar 3’s biggest market, accounting for about 25% of global sales.
Polestar USA head Gregor Hembrough added that unlike pole star 2, which is not quite a sedan or SUV, the manufacturer has assured that “the US market is the first production place” for this model. The Polestar 3 will be a bit expensive to qualify for the EV tax credits – it starts at $85,300 and the cutoff for an SUV is $80,000 assuming all battery sourcing regulations are in place. be met. But considering the category it’s in, you have to imagine that buyers won’t be put off by that.
4th device: Japan, USA and Battery
The Biden administration on Tuesday announced a trade agreement with Japan involving export taxes on raw materials used in the production of EV batteries. From The Wall Street Journal:
Under the deal, the United States and Japan agreed not to levy export taxes on key minerals they trade and to coordinate labor standards in mineral production, among other steps, under a notice of the United States. pact builds on a limited trade agreement the two countries reached in 2019 and they will review the minerals deal every two years to see if they should terminate or change it.
The Biden administration has begun pursuing trade deals with close allies on key minerals as it tries to solve two problems: the restrictions it places on new subsidies to electric vehicles and China’s current dominance in the supply of minerals such as lithium and graphite needed to make electric vehicles.
It’s important to clarify here that this agreement only applies to batteries and other energy-related technologies – it does not extend to all goods traded between countries. And depending on how the US Treasury Department issues battery sourcing guidelines this week, it may not necessarily make Japan-sourced electric vehicles and batteries eligible for the credit. of the IRA. polite CNBC:
But when asked whether the trade deal qualifies batteries, components and vehicles originating from Japan to enjoy that portion of the tax credit, officials said that decision is up to the Treasury Department. main.
Officials said the USTR does not intend to seek congressional approval of the minerals trade agreement because it falls under its authority to negotiate industry trade agreements at the executive level.
But it said the terms of the agreement to promote labor rights and recycling in their battery mineral supply chain would help both countries.
“Japan is one of our most important trading partners and this agreement will allow us to strengthen our existing bilateral relationship,” US Trade Representative Katherine Tai said in a statement. dad.
Predictions for the current dangerous rules almost four months late is killing me.
5th device: Magna is shopping a futuristic factory around
Everyone is building a factory in North America to make EVs, to get the existing subsidies. Magna also liked the idea. However, all the major automakers have pretty much figured out what, where, and with whom they will build their base of operations in the US and the nature of Magna’s business is to build concrete models on some brands. That makes the company’s next move unclear at the moment. From auto news:
“We are working with a number of clients on ideas to help them in North America,” says Prettner. “We have a team looking at location options, looking at options, working on layouts, and presenting different solutions to customers on how we can help them build their vehicles in North America. .” […]
That could lead Magna Steyr to partner with EV startups and new players in the market. That’s a strategy the company is pursuing in Graz, where it contracted the Ocean SUV to Fisker, the EV startup. engineering and production. In that strategy, aspiring EV participants and smaller volume manufacturers can rely on Magna to help bring their vehicles to market sooner, without needing huge capital to build new platforms. that internal capability. “We have complete know-how on vehicles [and] technical know-how,” Prettner said. “We have access to the entire supply base because of that.”
One analyst cited in the story – Tom Narayan of RBC Capital – is skeptical about how profitable the strategy of partnering with startups will ultimately turn out to be profitable for Magna. Contract manufacturers can be forced to bear the costs of cash-strapped companies, and you never want to be in a position to wait for Fisker or Faraday to pay. Maybe Magna should seize the opportunity to grab the production version of Prototype EV it was built for Sonyin front of the technology company Befriend Honda.
Reverse: Geely buys Volvo
On this day 13 years ago, Geely of China bought Volvo from Ford for $1.8 billion. You have to give it to Geely President Li Shufu, who said at the time that he has “deep faith that the manufacturing footprint in Gothenburg and Belgium will be maintained for a longer period of time.” It was, and like Mazda and Land Rover, Volvo today much more unique than Ford. Alike can’t really speak for Jaguarin spite of.
Neutral: Talk about
Has anyone signed up for a Jaguar recently? Apparently the latest thing is that Jaguar dealers are being pushed by the company to consider selling Land Rovers as a replacement. JLR is like the American part of Stellantis, insofar as Land Rover is Jeep and Jaguar is Chrysler, and the latter technically remains out of the cache.
