Category: Automotive

Spark Plug Manufacturer Develops Solid-State Batteries For Moon Mission

Solid-state batteries are the real deal, although those promising batteries with greater performance and high energy density to conventional lithium-ion are not yet ready for series-production and automotive applications. Surprising reinforcement in development comes from Japanese spark plugs manufacturer NGK SPARK PLUG CO., which developed solid-state batteries and intends to use it – together with… Continue reading Spark Plug Manufacturer Develops Solid-State Batteries For Moon Mission

BMW, Daimler and VW charged with collusion over emissions

Automotive industry EU gives car manufacturers 10 weeks to respond to findings from antitrust investigation VW, Daimler and BMW could face fines of up to 10% of their global annual turnover. Photograph: Ronald Wittek/EPA The European commission has charged BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen with colluding to limit the introduction of clean emissions technology, in the… Continue reading BMW, Daimler and VW charged with collusion over emissions

Friday Morning Auto News, Apr 05, 2019

Today’s issue of the Morning Auto News brought to you from Hong Kong ….

Fiat Chrysler settles 2016 suit over claims of phony US sales – Automotive News: Fiat Chrysler’s U.S. unit settled an antitrust lawsuit claiming the company pushed dealers to submit fraudulent sales numbers to prop up its share price.
Tokyo court rejects Ghosn appeal against 10-day detention – Reuters: The Tokyo District Court on Friday said it had rejected an appeal by Carlos Ghosn’s lawyers against the detention of the ousted Nissan Motor Co chairman for 10 days to question him regarding their latest accusations of financial misconduct.
Tilson: ‘This is the beginning of the end for Tesla’ – Yahoo: Tesla on Wednesday morning announced that it had only delivered 63000 vehicles to customers that quarter – a 31% drop from the previous quarter.
Here’s how Lyft is doing one week after its IPO – CNBC: Lyft’s first week as a publicly traded company had some twists and turns after positives sessions the last few days. The stock is now trading right at its …

Arrested, again: Why Ghosn has been detained, what is different now? – Reuters: Ousted Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn is back in the Tokyo detention center where he previously spent 108 days, after being released just last month on a $9 million …
What to expect after Elon Musk’s day in court – CNBC: Former SEC prosecutor Elliot Lutzker believes the agency won’t remove Musk as CEO, but he’ll face a fine significantly larger than $20 million.
London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone: what you need to know – Autocar: The first ULEZ is coming, and more cities will follow. If you drive in London, you need to know whether your car is affected London’s Ultra Low Emission Zone (ULEZ) will come into force on Monday 8 April, affecting hundreds of thousands of vehicles…
Ghosn’s Fate May Hang on Complex Financial Web in Middle East – Bloomberg: He built one of the industry’s biggest car alliances, which includes Renault and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. Until last year, he was a Davos Man business …
EU charges German carmakers with blocking emissions cleaning technology – Reuters: European Union antitrust regulators on Friday charged BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen with colluding to block the rollout of emissions cleaning technology in a move that could lead to hefty fines.
Volkswagen is testing level 4 autonomous driving in city center traffic – Yahoo: This is the first time that Volkswagen has conducted tests of such magnitude, using cars equipped with level 4 self-driving technology in urban areas.
2020 Karma Revero plug-in hybrid to use BMW engine – Autocar: Preview image shows the hybrid saloon will bear a close resemblance to the current model Re-engineered hybrid saloon will be fully unveiled in Shanghai and arrive in Europe next year The 2020 Karma Revero plug-in hybrid saloon will make use of a…
Ghosn faces 10 days in detention; lawyer to appeal – Automotive News: A Tokyo court approved a request by prosecutors to detain Carlos Ghosn for 10 days for further questioning, a move the ousted Nissan chief’s lawyer said he would appeal.
Uber adds one pound on journeys in London’s congestion charge zone – Reuters: Uber will add an additional pound to the cost of journeys in central London from next week after the city’s transport authority said private hire taxi operators will no longer be exempt from the congestion charge.
Fiat Chrysler’s retooling of Mack Engine would mean 700 temporary layoffs – Freep: If city and state officials greenlight Fiat Chrysler Automobiles’ plan to convert its Mack Avenue Engine factory in Detroit to an assembly plant, about 700 …
BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen charged by EU regulators with emissions collusion – Automotive News: EU antitrust regulators charged BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen Group on Friday for hindering competition on emissions-cleaning technology between 2006 and …
EU regulators charge BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen with emissions collusion – Reuters: EU antitrust regulators charged BMW, Daimler and Volkswagen on Friday for hindering competition on emission cleaning technology between 2006 to 2014.
Supercar brands using female advisory boards to tap the potential of women buyers – Yahoo: From Aston Martin to Lamborghini, top luxury car makers are investing in getting more women to buy their cars.
Russia sales rise nearly 2% in March on by gov’t subsidies – Automotive News: Russia car sales rose 1.8 percent last month to 160180, helped by the introduction of government subsidies in March for lower-priced vehicles, the Association …
Trump to Cap Week of Border Threats by Visiting Calexico Wall – Bloomberg: Supply chains are closely integrated between the two countries, particularly in the auto industry. Car makers and farmers, who have already been hit …
Brexit depresses car demand in UK as sales drop 3% in March – Automotive News: 3 Vauxhall saw volume rise 2.1 percent, ahead of sister brand Peugeot, which rose 1 percent, but behind sibling Citroen, which jumped 22 percent.
Western European car registrations down 3.7% in March – Automotive News: Western European car sales fell 3.7 percent in March as a recovery from emissions-test bottlenecks proved short-lived, LMC Automotive data showed.
Tokyo court approves 10-day detention of Ghosn that his lawyer will appeal – Reuters: A Tokyo court approved on Friday a request by prosecutors to detain Carlos Ghosn for 10 days for further questioning, a move the ousted Nissan boss’ lawyer said he would appeal.
Coalition modelling not far off Labor’s electric vehicle target – despite criticising it – Guardian: Government modelling for climate policy cuts assumes an electric vehicle uptake of 25-50% of new car sales by 2030. Lisa Cox. Fri 5 Apr 2019 01.43 …
Carlos Ghosn to Stay Behind Bars for at Least 10 Days – WSJ: TOKYO-Carlos Ghosn will be held in jail until at least April 14 without possibility of bail, a Tokyo court said Friday. The former chairman of Nissan …
Court Approves Request to Keep Ghosn Detained Until April 14 – Bloomberg: Carlos Ghosn will remain in jail until at least April 14 after a Japanese court granted prosecutors’ request to keep the former chairman of Nissan Motor Co. longer …
Canadian AI company shapes supply chain – Automotive News: As automakers race to develop self-driving vehicles, they look to companies such as … are spending a lot of their AI resources on autonomous driving.
Austria’s AI Brain Has a Plan to Take Down Waymo and Tesla – Bloomberg: Silicon Valley has an early lead in driverless cars, but a collaborative effort across Europe wants to close the gap.
Detroit partners with Maven in first step to support car-sharing – Detroitnews: Patty Fedewa hasn’t owned her own car since January 2009, but she typically needs one to pick up her 11-year-old daughter from a private …
Morgan Stanley Wins Stabilization Role for Uber IPO – Bloomberg: Morgan Stanley will take on the profitable job of overseeing Uber Technologies Inc.’s stock in the early hours of trading after the global ride-hailing …
Elon Musk says he’s ‘very happy’ after judge orders settlement negotiations with SEC – Yahoo: Tesla (TSLA) CEO Elon Musk emerged from a Manhattan federal district courtroom Thursday afternoon with a renewed opportunity to resolve a …
Google to pull plug on AI ethics council – Reuters: Alphabet Inc’s Google said on Thursday it was dissolving a council it had formed a week earlier to consider ethical issues around artificial intelligence and other emerging technologies.
Google Scraps New AI Ethics Council After Outcry – Bloomberg: The Alphabet Inc. company introduced the group, called the Advanced Technology External Advisory Council (ATEAC), on March 26. Google asked …

Related

Lucid Motors gets real as Saudi funding comes through

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Things just got real for Tesla competitor Lucid Motors.

The company, which announced a $1 billion deal with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund last September, confirmed on Thursday that the investment is complete. That could make Lucid the most realistic competitor to Tesla yet, as it plans to bring its nearly fully developed Lucid Air to production next year and now has the funding to do so.

READ THIS: Saudi investment fund takes $1 billion stake in Lucid Motors

Lucid is privately held, so terms of the deal have not been revealed, but the Saudi fund is thought to have acquired a majority stake in Lucid. The Saudi investment fund also owns a 5 percent stake in Tesla.

The Lucid Air is an electric luxury sedan starting with a 240-mile range and 400 horsepower. It could start at around $60,000, while a higher-end version will have 1,000 horsepower, 400 miles of range, executive reclining rear seats, and has been clocked at 217 mph at the Transportation Research Center test track in Ohio.

CHECK OUT: Lucid Air electric luxury sedan: a Tesla Model S owner's take

Lucid says the car will be “self-driving ready.”

Based in Newark, California, the company has also broken ground on a factory to build the cars in Casa Grande, Arizona, and is working on an SUV to follow up the Air.

DON'T MISS: Lucid owners will get access to Electrify America's chargers, another jab at Tesla

The company also announced a deal to provide Air buyers with access to Electrify America's network of fast chargers to, eventually, rival Tesla's Supercharger network.

The new funding looks set to move Lucid ahead of other startup electric-car competitors such as Faraday Future, SF Motors, and possibly even Chinese startups such as Byton and Nio, in bringing Tesla some new electric luxury competition.

Faraday Future joint venture to create electric MPV based on FF91

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MPV designed by Faraday Future, for joint venture with The9
Last month the troubled electric car hopeful Faraday Future was given (another) new lease on life, via a new joint venture with The9, a Chinese online game company, that will produce a new model for the Chinese market based on Faraday’s nearly mothballed FF91.

It’s now a lot clearer what that vehicle, to be produced as soon as next year, is. It isn’t a version of the FF91 but a van-like MPV—that Faraday Future teased in a photo released yesterday.

DON’T MISS: Faraday Future gets new money from gaming company to build in China, and the US

Faraday Future’s design team is creating the new vehicle, according to the California company, which is to be produced in China at up to 300,000 units annually.

Faraday Future FF 91

The vehicle will share its skateboard-layout Variable Platform Architecture with the FF 91. Based on the released teaser photo above, the vehicle is modern and van-like, with a steep rake to the windshield but a flat, extended roofline that should extend enough headroom and interior space to a second and third row (or perhaps more). As with the FF91, the wheels are pushed out to the corners, with very little overhang.

CHECK OUT: Faraday Future loses final founding executive

Faraday Future CEO Jia Yueting added to the description, tweeting (via an unverified account): “The V9 concept: a new mobility luxury intelligent space that blends design, AI and seamless cabin connectivity.”

Faraday Future FF 91 first pre-production prototype in Hanford, California factory

The company confirmed to Green Car Reports that there is no plan to offer the V9 in North America. Chinese suppliers and scale are also vastly different, so it may not have a significant impact on the economics of producing the FF91.

READ MORE: Faraday Future factory completes its first full car

The initial investment from The9 to Faraday Future, of $5 million for the U.S., is primarily for the design operations of the vehicle, according to the company. But additional tranches of funding will arrive provided milestones are met—with the completion of this design and Faraday Future turning over land to be used by the Chinese joint venture.

With the first sign of new vehicle and design work in many months, and the drama of Faraday’s past year of funding woes in the rearview mirror, the company could, potentially, get to why it exists—producing electric cars—by the end of the year.

Top German carmakers charged with blocking clean emissions technology

BRUSSELS (Reuters) – BMW, and Volkswagen face possible hefty fines after EU antitrust regulators on Friday charged the German carmakers and whistleblower Daimler with colluding to block the rollout of clean emissions technology. In the latest pollution scandal to hit the auto industry, the European Commission said it had sent so-called statements of objections to… Continue reading Top German carmakers charged with blocking clean emissions technology

Norsk Hydro’s production near normal after cyber attack

OSLO (Reuters) – Production at Norwegian aluminum maker Norsk Hydro was back to near normal after a cyber attack last month, the company said on Friday. FILE PHOTO: A sign warning employees not to connect devices to the network in the wake of a cyber attack is seen at the headquarters of aluminum producer Norsk… Continue reading Norsk Hydro’s production near normal after cyber attack

DENSO to Invest $1.6 Billion to Strengthen Development and Production of Automotive Electrification Products and Systems

SOUTHFIELD, Mich., April 5, 2019 /PRNewswire/ — DENSO, the world’s second largest mobility supplier, today announced it will invest approximately 180 billion yen (US$1.6 billion) over the next three years – from FY2018 to late FY2020 – to support its aggressive development and production of electrified automotive products, systems and technologies. To achieve its long-term business goal to create… Continue reading DENSO to Invest $1.6 Billion to Strengthen Development and Production of Automotive Electrification Products and Systems