Ford is cutting prices on the Mustang Mach-E EV by up to $4000 and adding more power and range. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ Toyota confirmed that on May 19 it will unveil its 2024 Tacoma mid-size pickup, which will offer multiple cab and bed configurations and an available manual transmission. More at Motor Trend.
+ A study by iSeeCars has identified the vehicles built between 2012 and 2022 that are most likely to last 250,000 miles, with the list topped by Toyotas and Chevy and GMC pickups. More at Autoblog.
+ Sales of Japanese cars in China have tumbled 32 percent this year as buyers there shift to electric vehicles, a category where the Japanese carmakers have been moving cautiously. More at Reuters.
+ Michael Andretti says his Andretti Autosport team will field cars in European Formula 2 and Formula 3 to develop drivers if his proposed Formula 1 operation is granted an entry. More at Racer.
+ Steve Carlisle, General Motors’ President of North America, will retire after 41 years with the automaker, to be replaced by Rory Harvey, current global vice president at Cadillac. More at the Detroit Free Press.
+ BMW is warning the owners of about 90,000 older vehicles sold in the U.S. not to drive them due to an increasing threat that the air bag inflators might explode in a crash. More at The Detroit News.
+ Lordstown Motors expects to end production of its Endurance pickup truck “in the near future” as the embattled EV startup runs out of cash and seeks additional capital. More at CNBC.
+ Ford has announced multiple price cuts of up to $4000 for models of the Mustang Mach-E electric crossover, while adding an improved battery pack with faster charging times. More at Car and Driver.
+ At $1.16 million, a 1936 Delahaye 135M Competition Court Cabriolet by Fagoni et Falaschi was the top seller at the Worldwide Auctioneers Enthusiast Auction in Auburn, Indiana. More at Old Cars.
+ Legacy Motorsports, the NASCAR Cup team co-owned by seven-time champion Jimmie Johnson, will switch from Chevrolet to Toyota next year, bringing the Toyota entries to eight. More at NBC Sports.
Photo courtesy of Ford.
Review the previous MCG Executive Briefing from May 1 here.
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Is the EV market collapsing already?
Positively not. Ford is reducing prices to compete with Tesla, which has the highest gross profit margins in the auto industry and is continually cutting prices. Some observers are calling it a price war, which is technically incorrect. In a price war, competitors cut prices below cost to claim market share. Tesla is cutting prices while maintaining profitability — much as Henry Ford did with the Model T. -McG
It has never really taken hold. Sure, they are increasing sales, but not at the pace they want you to think they are. Going from 2% to 4% sales is doubling sales for sure, but nowhere the market share they want you to believe they have. The companies going strictly EV in just a year or two will be the ones hurting when the sales don’t materialize. The companies with a balanced slate of offerings will be much better off. There is a market for EV’s, but it is still miniscule compared to ICE vehicles and will remain that way until the Govt interferes with the market and forces them on consumers. You can’t just change the market and consumers overnight without force.