Used-Car Pandemic Hangover Could Last for Years
With consumer demand flourishing, dealers need cars to sell. So as automakers struggle to build new ones, retailers are doing everything they can to acquire used vehicles for their lots, reports Automotive News. "It's to the point of putting flyers on windshield wipers in malls," said John Luciano, president of Street Volkswagen in Texas and AIADA BOD member. "Every store in the country has had to get in acquisition mode — everybody." There are many factors affecting the used-vehicle market, but one key variable for it to return to seasonal norms — and for dealers such as Luciano to feel some kind of relief — is that automakers need to assemble more vehicles. That ability has been hobbled by the pandemic shutdowns and shortage of microchips. But what about the vehicles that were never built? The dearth of near-new vehicles that will result from the production shortfalls will have a "significant effect" on the used-vehicle market going forward, said Dale Pollak, founder of vAuto inventory management software and executive vice president of Cox Automotive. Read more here (Source: Automotive News).
Mercedes-Benz Customers Waiting More Than a Year for Cars Due to Chip Shortage
Reuters reports that Mercedes-Benz customers are facing waiting times of more than a year for their orders because of interruptions to production caused by chip shortages, Daimler Chief Executive Ola Kallenius told a German newspaper in an interview on Friday. "Demand is huge at Mercedes-Benz and at the same time there are unfortunately severe limitations," he told Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. "For some models the waiting times are longer than we would like, in some cases over a year." Kaellenius repeated a previous forecast that the troubles with chip supply plaguing automakers worldwide would continue into 2023, as structural problems as well as pandemic-induced lockdowns in key supplier countries persist. Read more here (Source: Reuters).
Manley Expected to Ensure Stability at AutoNation
When the Mike Manley era at AutoNation Inc. begins Nov. 1 following a two-decade growth story under Mike Jackson, company watchers expect the new industry veteran atop the largest U.S. dealership group will study the retailer before making strategic shifts, reports Reuters. Many analysts see the transition of power to Manley, a soft-spoken Brit and former Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO known for bolstering Jeep's product pipeline and expansion around the globe, as a move that will ensure stability for the auto retail giant that has had three CEOs in as many years. "Mike Manley is a world-class, globally proven, day one-ready CEO," Jackson, AutoNation's outgoing chief, told Automotive News last week. "Here's the transition plan: Mike, here's the parking space. Boom. I pull out, he pulls in." Unlike with AutoNation's last two tries at filling Jackson's shoes, the dynamic CEO, 72, will be absent when his successor takes over. He retires from the Fort Lauderdale, Fla., company and its board the same day Manley, 57, takes over. Read more here (Source: Reuters).
Honda Calls EV Tax Credit Bill 'Unfair'
Los Angeles-area automakers are keeping an eye on a budget bill recently passed by the House Ways and Means Committee, which if approved by Congress, would expand the consumer EV tax credit and provide an additional $4,500 for vehicles made by union labor, reports the Los Angeles Business Journal. The bill introduced by Rep. Dan Kildee (D-Mich.) would extend the $7,500 EV tax credit through 2031 but limit it to sedans costing less than $55,000, while price tags for vans, SUVs and pickup trucks could not exceed $64,000, $69,000, and $74,000, respectively. The tax credit would go up by $4,500 if the EV meets “domestic assembly qualifications” in which “final assembly of such vehicle occurs at a plant, factory or other place which is operating under a collective bargaining agreement,” according to the bill. Torrance-based American Honda Motor Co. Inc. said in a statement that it was “disappointed” in the proposal. It described the union portion of the proposed legislation as “unfair.” Honda, which operates nonunion factories in Alabama, Georgia, Indiana, and Ohio, announced in April that it expects battery electric and fuel cell electric vehicles to comprise 40% of its sales in North America by 2030 and 100% by 2040. Read more here (Source: Los Angeles Business Journal).
Tesla Drivers Can Now Request Full Self-Driving Beta with the Press of a Button
Electric vehicle maker Tesla rolled out a long-awaited software update Friday night that allows customers to request access to its controversial Full Self-Driving Beta (FSD Beta) software. CNBC reports that the move delighted fans of CEO Elon Musk and Tesla, but it risks drawing the ire of federal vehicle safety authorities who are already investigating the automaker for possible safety defects in its driver-assistance systems. FSD Beta is an unfinished version of Tesla’s premium driver-assistance software, FSD, which the company sells in the U.S. for $10,000 upfront, or $199 a month. FSD is marketed with the promise of enabling a Tesla to automatically change lanes, navigate on the highway, move into a parking spot, or roll out from a parking spot to drive a small distance at a slow pace without anyone behind the wheel. Read more here (Source: CNBC).
Around the Web
This 2018 Invention Could Provide Expensive, Portable Flood Protection for Your Car [Autoblog]
10 Worst Cars to Receive the Car of the Year Award [HotCars]
"Automania" at MoMa: How Our Love of Cars Fueled Art [CBS News]
