Automobile Industry

Industry Roundup

Electric & Hybrid Vehicles

Northvolt-Hydro JV Hydrovolt begins operations as Europe's largest EV battery recycling plant in Fredrikstad, Norway; fully automated plant recovers 95% of materials, can process 12,000 tons/year of batteries, aims to expand to 500,000 tons/year by 2030
Contify Automotive News (05/16)

GM collaborates with Red Hat to develop a software ecosystem based on the Red Hat In-Vehicle Operating System for GM’s Ultifi software platform; the software will support in-vehicle safety, advanced driver assistance systems, other systems
General Motors Co. (05/16)

Light Vehicles

Low inventory, high demand drive new-vehicle average price up 0.7% month-over-month to US$46,526 in April; luxury vehicles account for 17.4% of total April sales, with inventory supply remaining in low 30s: Kelley Blue Book
Cox Automotive Inc. (05/16)

VW to continue to use coal to generate electricity for Wolfsburg, Germany, manufacturing plant due to Russia-Ukraine conflict; company had planned to convert the coal-fired boilers at its cogeneration plants to steam and gas turbine units
Mining Newswire (05/16)

Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs)

2022 Subaru Forester named Top Safety Pick+ by IIHS; to qualify for award vehicles must earn good ratings in six IIHS crashworthiness evaluation, with Forester earning superior ratings for front crash prevention system
Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (05/16)

VW creating independent US company named Scout to design, manufacture EV pickup and SUV in US, with production starting in 2026; the electrified Scout brand will use a new technical platform concept
Volkswagen AG (05/12)

Heavy Trucks/Commercial Vehicles

Shell Recharge Solutions North America and Penske Truck Leasing deploy 23 light-duty electric truck charging stations in California as well as 10 sites in other states to support Penske's growing e-truck fleet; new sites to bring charging network up to 79
States News Service (05/16)

DHL to deploy 44 electric Volvo trucks on European routes to advance shift to heavy e-trucks; DHL Parcel UK has already ordered six trucks, while DHL Freight has ordered two, which will save nearly 600 tons/year of CO2 and 225,000 liters of diesel fuel
MarketLine (05/16)

Pickup Trucks

Rivian recalls 500 R1T EV pickup trucks to fix sensor that could cause the front passenger seat airbags to deploy when a child or child seat is in the seat; company is notifying customers, will replace front passenger seat at no charge
Chicago Tribune (05/16)

Vans

Ford Pro introduces new E-Transit Custom EV van for European market with targeted range of up to 380 km, full towing capacity, DC fast charging; van is first of four all-electric commercial vehicles Ford Pro will introduce by 2024
Ford Motor Co. (05/16)

Automotive Care

Honda introduces new Service Pass that covers select factory-scheduled maintenance including oil, filter changes, tire rotation for two years or 24,000 miles on eligible 2023 models; all new models still covered by limited and powertrain warranties
Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (05/11)

Valvoline reports fiscal Q2 net income up 19% from a year ago to US$81.0M, with sales up 26% year-over-year to US$886.0M driven by strong demand, pricing actions: retail services up 23% from a year ago, same-store sales grow 13.1% as units increase 7%
Valvoline LLC (05/10)

Automotive Use

Cristex Composite Materials joins UK-based National Composites Centre's SME affiliate scheme for specialist training, addressing industry challenges; Cristex manufactures advanced fibers, fabrics, plastics, adhesives for green energy, transport industries
National Composites Centre (05/16)

UK's National Composites Centre, B&M Longworth, Cygnet Texkimp develop low-cost process to reclaim, recycle carbon fibers from hydrogen pressure tanks used for cars, aircraft; carbon fiber demand to grow five-fold from 2025-2030, exceeding global capacity
National Composites Centre (05/13)

Auto Parts & Accessories

Panasonic reports Tesla seeks faster development of 4680 battery cells, which Panasonic plans to initially make in Japan, with Tesla CEO Elon Musk saying they are crucial to lowering costs of EVs; demand from Tesla for current 2170 cells remains strong
Green Car Reports (05/16)

Global on-board diagnostics telematics market projected to grow to US$2.93B by 2026, with CAGR growth of 12.75% from 2021 to 2026; growth driven by government initiatives that will increase the adoption of OBD telematics systems
PR Newswire (05/16)

Tires

USTMA urges Biden administration to use rubber modified asphalt, tire-derived aggregate made from scrap tires in national infrastructure projects; products offer economic, environmental, performance benefits and support markets for recycled products
U.S. Tire Manufacturers Association (USTMA) (05/16)

Hankook reports Q1 operating profit down 32.2% from a year ago at 126.0B Korean won, with sales up 10.8% year-over-year to 1.8T Korean won; high-inch passenger tires account for 39% of total sales, as US market sees surge in sales of replacement tires
Contify Automotive News (05/13)

Batteries

ACE Green Recycling plans to build four lithium-ion battery recycling facilities across India, Thailand, US, each with 10,000 tonnes/year capacity; India facility to start by Q3, and Thai, US facilities to start in 2023, reaching full capacities by 2025
MarketLine (05/16)

WoodMac: Heavy-duty transport is critical sector to decarbonize; while 42% of heavy-duty vehicles can be electrifiable today, lack of model availability, capacity concerns and battery supply chain issues to result in slower ramp-up over next several years
Wood Mackenzie (05/12)

Car Dealers

Mercedes-Benz recalls 292,287 2006 to 2012 ML, GL and R-Class vehicles, advises customers to stop driving vehicles because corrosion in joint area of brake booster housing may cause vacuum leak; dealers to inspect part, replace if necessary
Mercedes-Benz AG (05/13)

Hyundai recalls about 215,000 2013 to 2014 Sonata sedans to replace low-pressure fuel hose that may crack due to engine compartment heat; dealers to offer free hose replacement, with customer notifications beginning July 5
Cars.com LLC (05/12)

Autonomous Transportation Technology

AAA finds 77% of consumers more interested in improving existing automated driver safety systems than developing new ones, with 18% interested in developing self-driving cars; 85% of consumers unsure of self-driving technology: survey
American Automobile Association (AAA) (05/13)

Torc Robotics announces Axel Gern as senior VP of engineering and managing director at the Torc Europe GmbH engineering facility in Stuttgart, Germany; Gern previously served as chief technology officer for the Daimler Truck Autonomous Technology Group
PR Newswire (05/13)

Driverless Vehicles

Uber debuts autonomous vehicle food delivery pilot in Santa Monica and West Hollywood, California, via partnership with Motional; vehicles will be actively supervised by human operators, company says 'it will be some time' before technology can be scaled
CE Noticias Financieras (05/16)

Covenant’s long-haul operations to integrate with Aurora’s autonomous trucking product, which is a hybrid driverless model; collaboration to identify lanes where Aurora Driver can make greatest impact, maximize fuel efficiency and develop education
Business Wire (05/11)

Electric Vehicle Charging

Over 20 industry partners collaborate on world's first megawatt charging project to implement a high-performance charging network with at least 1,700 green e-charging points across Europe; partners include Germany-based MAN Truck & Bus and ABB E-Mobility
ABB Ltd. Switzerland (ABB Turbocharging) (05/13)

Thor Industries study finds 97% of EV RV owners expect to drive three hours or longer per charge, 70% say onboard fuel cell has positive impact on purchase interest; 34% expect charging to take 45-to-59 minutes: study
THOR Industries Inc. (05/13)

Ride-Sharing/Mobility Services

Lyft reports Q1 net loss narrows to US$196.9M from US$427.3M a year ago, with revenue up 44% year-over-year to US$875.6M; increased demand pushes rideshare volumes to new COVID-19 high, supported by resilient driver levels
Lyft Inc. (05/10)

Automotive & Driving

EV subscription firm Autonomy expands services into Fresno, California, and surrounding cities; Fresno County has lower penetration rate of EVs compared to rest of state, while the county is projected to have more than 170,000 plug-in EVs by 2030
Business Wire (05/16)

Bridgestone reports Q1 GAAP profit down at 53.8B yen from 285.2B yen a year ago, with revenue up at 891.0B yen from 727.2B yen a year ago; revenue impacted by suspended Russian production and tire exports to Russia, with future revenue uncertain
Bridgestone Corp. (05/13)

Zero-emission vehicles account for 16.3% of new vehicles sold in California this year, up from 12.4% a year ago; 1,135,387 zero-emission vehicles have been sold in the state, which has given out over 250,000 Clean Fuel financial rewards
U.S. Fed News (05/13)

Auto Parts & Accessories

Global automotive balance shaft market projected to hit US$18.8B by 2027, with CAGR growth of 5.6% from 2022 to 2027; growth driven by increase in sales of passenger vehicles worldwide, rising use of commercial vehicles in transportation, logistics
PR Newswire (05/12)

Cummins debuts 15-liter hydrogen engine with over 810 ft-pounds of torque, 290 hp for medium-duty version at ACT Expo in Long Beach, California; engine uses zero-carbon hydrogen fuel and is expected to enter full production in 2027
ENP Newswire (05/12)

Tier One OE engine, chassis component supplier Eglin Industries names John Brune VP of OEM Sales Engineering to oversee OEM sales, product engineering, service functions; Brune previously served as VP of Technology and Innovation at GT Technologies
Elgin Industries (05/12)

Automobiles & Components group

Q1 battery-electric vehicle registrations in US up 60% from a year ago, as new vehicle sales drop 15.3% in the quarter; Tesla accounted for 75% of new EV sales in Q1, with Ford reporting EV sales up 139% as Mach-E SUV shows strong growth
Dashboard Insights (05/13)

BMW using paints made from biomass instead of crude oil at European plants to cut CO2 emissions by 40%; BMW also using sustainably-produced corrosion protection at plants in Leipzig, Germany, and Rosslyn, South Africa
BMW AG (05/13)

Fisker reports it will build Pear EV at 6.2 million square-foot Foxconn plant in Lordstown, Ohio, beginning in 2024, with facility building minimum of 250,000 units per year; Foxconn recently acquired the plant from EV maker Lordstown Motors for US$230M
Fisker Inc. (05/13)

Batteries

Fleets are accelerating adoption of clean vehicles, with 85% reporting their clean vehicle use will grow in next five years; 1,800 battery-electric school buses are deployed or ordered as fleets place record-setting orders for commercial EVs: report
PR Newswire (05/11)

Electric & Hybrid Vehicles

Tesla cuts production at Shanghai, China, Giga 3 plant to 200 EVs daily due to supply shortages caused by COVID-19 lockdown of city; Tesla uncertain when it can resume production of 1,200 vehicles per day
Zack's Commentary (05/13)

Stellantis names Maxime Picat as Chief Purchasing and Supply Chain Officer, replacing Michelle Wen, as Uwe Hochgeschurtz named Enlarged Europe COO, replacing Maxime Picat in role; Picat to focus on cutting EV costs by 40%
Stellantis NV (05/12)

Stellantis develops performance EV prototype with 600 kw regenerative braking system; vehicle also equipped with Formula E braking that Stellantis says is made redundant by regenerative system
Green Car Reports (05/11)

Electric Vehicle Charging

EV charging firm Blink Charging Q1 net loss widens to US$15.1M from US$7.4M a year ago, with total revenues up 339% to US$9.8M; product sales up 382% driven by increased sales of commercial chargers, DC fast chargers, residential chargers
GlobeNewswire (05/11)

Tesla recalls 130,000 vehicles in US because touch screens can overheat, go blank after fast-charging process; recall involves 2021 to 2022 Model S sedans, Model X SUVs and 2022 Model 3 sedans, Model Y SUVs
Associated Press (05/11)

Pacific Gas & Electric adds three new bidirectional EV charging test programs to start in 2022 or 2023 involving up to 200 commercial customers, 1,000 residential customers; PG&E microgrid pilot to test EVs as backup power sources during outages
Green Car Reports (05/10)

Heavy Trucks/Commercial Vehicles

Cummins and Daimler Truck North America upfitting Freightliner Cascadia trucks with Cummins fourth-generation hydrogen fuel cell powertrains for North American market; units to be available in 2024 for select customers
Cummins Inc. (05/12)

Dana to supply Lion Electric with electric drive systems, including electric motors, inverters, controllers, driveshafts, axles, for all Lion EV buses, medium-duty trucks; Lion preparing to start vehicle manufacturing at Joliet, Illinois, facility
Dana Ltd. (05/11)

Bollinger Motors announces its Class 3 through 6 EV trucks to be assembled by Roush Industries at Roush facility in Livonia, Michigan; deal includes assembling truck platforms, chassis cabs
Green Car Reports (05/11)

Light Vehicles

Toyota reports fiscal Q4 net income up at US$25.4B from US$20.0B a year ago, with net revenue up 15.3% to US$279.4B; global vehicle sales total 8,230,000 units, with North America vehicle sales totaling 2,394,000 units, up 81,000 from a year ago
Toyota Motor Corp. (05/12)

Toyota adjusts May global vehicle production goals down to 700,000 units from 750,000 vehicles due to semiconductor shortage; Toyota temporarily suspends operations of 14 lines in eight Japanese plants from May 16-21
U.S. Regulated Equity Markets (Alternative Disclosure) via PUBT (05/11)

Toyota ranks number four on DiversityInc’s 2022 Top 50 Companies for Diversity; listing criteria include leadership accountability, human capital diversity metrics, talent programs, workforce practices, supplier diversity, philanthropy
Toyota Motor Corp. (05/10)

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