Cars Clips: August 15, 2024
2024 Elections |
Trump slams EV charging stations — except at his hotels — “But Trump the businessman sees the charging station differently. At the same venue where he spoke — his golf resort in Doral, Florida — his company operates three recharging stalls and has offered the service since 2016, the year he won the presidency. The Trump Organization also quietly makes charging stations available to customers at hotels in Las Vegas and Chicago, and at three condo buildings in Florida and New York, according to public data from the Department of Energy and PlugShare, a charger mapping service. The organization’s other properties do not offer chargers, according to the data.” [E&E News, 8/14/24 (=)]
Department of Energy (DOE) |
Exclusive: Biden channels $50 million to help auto suppliers on EVs — “The Energy Department is steering around $50 million into six states to help small- and mid-sized auto suppliers convert facilities to serve EV value chains. Why it matters: The money for states with large auto workforces is the latest of many White House financial carrots to help the industry go electric. Michigan, a critical swing state, is getting the largest share. But money is flowing to several very red states, too. It's an example of what backers hope makes the Inflation Reduction Act durable — the billions of dollars flowing into GOP-leaning states and congressional districts. Driving the news: DOE on Wednesday is announcing the eligible states and amounts, which enables specific applications to start flowing in. Michigan: $18.4 million” [Axios, 8/15/24 (=)]
Courts & Legal |
Eight states file court brief challenging California’s electric vehicle mandate — “Iowa Attorney General Brenna Bird led a coalition of eight state attorneys general in filing a court brief supporting Ohio’s lawsuit against the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) over California’s electric vehicle mandates. California’s mandate requires all new cars and vehicles sold in California to be electric by 2035. The mandate passed in August 2022 by the California Air Resources Board was intended to improve air quality and reduce greenhouse gas emissions. Bird and others allege the EPA violated the states’ equal sovereignty rights when the agency allowed California to pursue its own regulatory standards while preventing other states from doing so.” [Des Moines Register, 8/15/24 (=)]
Vehicle & Engine Manufacturers |
Texas sues GM for allegedly violating drivers' privacy — “General Motors has been sued by the state of Texas, which accused the automaker of installing technology on more than 14 million vehicles to collect data about drivers, which it then sold to insurers and other companies without drivers' consent. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said Tuesday's lawsuit arose from a probe announced in June into whether several automakers collected and sold mass amounts of data without drivers' knowledge.” [Detroit Free Press, 8/15/24 (=)]
Toyota bets big on hybrid-only models as EV demand slows — “Toyota may be one of the slowest legacy automakers to develop electric vehicles but it could be the first to jettison cars powered only by gasoline. Almost three decades after launching the Prius, its pioneering gasoline-electric hybrid, Toyota is moving to convert most, and eventually maybe all, of its Toyota and Lexus line-up to hybrid-only models, two Toyota executives told Reuters. Toyota's stubborn focus on hybrids over EVs is part of a broader challenge by the world's biggest automaker to the prevailing industry and regulatory orthodoxy that all cars will be electric in the near future.” [Reuters, 8/15/24 (=)]
Battery & Charging Companies |
Scoop: How EVgo is trying to fix car-charging headaches — “EVgo, one of the nation's largest charging networks, is rolling out efforts to diagnose equipment issues in real time as part of a broader plan to replace outdated chargers and improve customer service, the company tells Axios exclusively. Why it matters: While the number of public chargers continues to grow, many networks still aren't reliable enough to ease the public's charging anxiety — a leading concern about EVs. Driving the news: EVgo says it's making several enhancements to its network through its EVgo ReNew program, introduced in January 2023 to bolster reliability and convenience.” [Axios, 8/14/24 (=)]
Electric Vehicles |
Drivers see slow progress in EV charging — “American drivers are losing patience with unreliable electric vehicle chargers, per the results of the latest annual J.D. Power survey Wednesday morning. Why it matters: Charging headaches remain one of the biggest hurdles slowing EV adoption, and that in turn is slowing investment in the space. By the numbers: One in five EV owners said they weren't able to use a charger they'd visited, per the survey. More than 70% of those drivers said the reason was because of broken or out-of-service equipment. Yes, but: Drivers say they are slightly more satisfied with charging speeds at DC fast chargers — though satisfaction rates overall remain pretty dismal, earning a score of 622 out of 1,000.” [Axios, 8/15/24 (=)]
The New Acronym In The EV Revolution Is EREV (Extended Range Electric Vehicle) — “The extended range electric vehicle (EREV) has become the fastest growing propulsion system for cars in China. EREV sales have more than doubled in that country in the past year and now account for 30% of the country’s plug-in hybrid sales, according to research service BNEF. They will begin arriving in America next year when Stellantis rolls out the Ramcharger, an EREV version of its Ram 1500 pickup truck that it says will have a 690 mile (1110 km) driving range.” [Clean Technica, 8/14/24 (=)]
What's keeping drivers from buying EVs? Mostly price. — “More drivers are buying them, but electric cars still make up a small share of the market in Rhode Island. A new survey from AAA Northeast of drivers in the Ocean State and its neighbors raises questions about how fast the electric vehicle market share will grow, even as state and federal lawmakers pass policies that aim to electrify the transportation sector and cut greenhouse gas emissions. More than half of the 1,749 AAA members from Rhode Island, Connecticut, Massachusetts, New York and New Jersey who responded to the survey said they never plan to buy a fully electric vehicle, and nearly as many said they wouldn’t even consider a plug-in hybrid.” [Providence Journal, 8/15/24 (=)]
States & Local |
States scramble to replace gas tax cash — “Pennsylvania’s EV fee — $250 annually, once it’s phased in — will be among the most expensive in the country. But it’s hardly an outlier. Most states now levy a dedicated fee on electric vehicle owners. Some also have rolled back other incentives, such as New Jersey’s decision this year to restart sales tax on EVs. Or they have reconfigured registration fees to land more heavily on EVs, as in Maryland. The justification from both Democratic and Republican policymakers for making EVs more expensive is that states are staring down a budgetary cliff. The gasoline tax — long the backbone of transportation funding — has lost potency as vehicles become more efficient. According to data compiled by the Pew Charitable Trusts, some states collected less from motor fuel taxes in 2021 than during the administrations of George W. Bush or Bill Clinton. Now, the rise of electric vehicles threatens to make the gas tax obsolete everywhere.” [Politico, 8/14/24 (=)]
City's all-Tesla police fleet aims to save money, fight crime and cut emissions — “In South Pasadena, new police cars are patrolling to reduce crime and cutting emissions at the same time. The South Pasadena Police Department last week unveiled what the city says is the first all-electric police fleet in the country, sporting 10 Tesla Model Ys for patrol and 10 Model 3s for detectives and administrators.” [Detroit News, 8/14/24 (=)]
Which Michigan counties have most EVs? Which have none? Politics play a role — “Washtenaw County has a reputation for environmentalism and liberalism. It was the first Michigan county to attempt a plastic bag ban; the first with a climate action plan; and the county seat of Ann Arbor is banning gas-powered leaf blowers because of their carbon emissions. It last voted for a Republican for president in 1984. So perhaps it's no surprise that the county is also Michigan’s de facto capital of electric vehicle ownership. Residents there are nearly three times more likely to drive an EV than the average Michigander, with 4,380 registered electric vehicles among the county of 366,000 residents, according to data obtained by Bridge Michigan. That’s almost 17 times as many as in the entire Upper Peninsula, which is home to 261 registered EVs, Secretary of State records show.” [Bridge Michigan, 8/14/24 (=)]
Polestar starts US production, skirting tariffs — “Dive Brief: Polestar has launched production of its luxury SUV, the Polestar 3, at Volvo Cars’ Ridgeville, South Carolina, factory, according to a Wednesday press release. The electric vehicle maker — owned by Geely Holding and Volvo Cars — is working to grow its manufacturing footprint ahead of expanded U.S. tariffs on electric vehicles and materials from China, home to its Chengdu factory.” [Automotive Dive, 8/14/24 (=)]
Polestar starts US production to sidestep steep EV tariffs — “Polestar Automotive Holding UK Plc has started production of its Polestar 3 sport utility vehicle in the US to sidestep the nation’s tariffs on Chinese-made electric vehicles. The $73,400 model, which was delayed due to software issues, is being assembled at a Volvo Car AB factory in Ridgeville, South Carolina and will be sold in the US and Europe. The SUV has been made at a plant in Chengdu, China since February.” [Bloomberg, 8/14/24 (=)]
International |
Coming to ‘iPhone City’: An Electric Car Factory From Foxconn — “The core of Foxconn’s business is in Zhengzhou, the capital of Henan province in central China, known as “iPhone City.” That’s where a network of suppliers, infrastructure and factories, and sometimes as many as 250,000 Foxconn employees, manufacture most of the world’s iPhones for Apple. Now Foxconn, a Taiwanese electronics giant, is planning to build a new, 700-acre campus in Zhengzhou to make electric cars. The question is, who will be the customers? In February, Apple canceled its long standing project to develop electric cars after plowing more than $10 billion into it. Many of its rivals in China have charged ahead.” [New York Times, 8/14/24 (=)]
A Chinese Self-Driving Start-Up Is About to Go Public in the U.S. — “One of China’s leading autonomous driving start-ups is set to go public in New York as soon as this week, with the strained relationship between Beijing and Washington lurking in the background. WeRide, which makes software that powers driverless vehicles, has given potential investors an extensive list of the many ways geopolitics could damage their investment. Export controls on Chinese firms by the U.S. government could limit WeRide’s access to advanced semiconductors.” [New York Times, 8/15/24 (=)]
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