Richard’s Rearview Mirror, an auto industry recap for the week ending Mar. 4, 2023

March 5, 2023 RichardReina Rearview Mirror industry recap AAA, Audi, Corvette, EU, Ford F-150 Lighhtning, JD Power, Polestar, Rivian, Tesla, VW

AAA SURVEY SHOWS INCREASE IN FEAR OF AUTOMOTIVE AUTONOMY

For the last few years, the AAA (American Automobile Association) has been conducting an annual survey of consumer attitudes toward “automated driving”. The most recent survey, results of which were released last week, showed a marked increase in the percentage of drivers who are afraid of fully automated vehicles. The number jumped 13%, from 55% in 2022 to 68% this year. Yet many are supportive of ADAS (Advanced Driver Assistance Systems) in their cars, such as adaptive cruise control, blind spot monitoring, and emergency braking. The AAA survey shows that there is confusion among drivers in distinguishing between ADAS-equipped vehicles and fully autonomous vehicles, leading to some level of mistrust in them.

U.S. PEDESTRIAN FATALITIES IN 2021 REACHES 40-YEAR HIGH

In spite of more and more safety systems in modern automobiles, the number of pedestrians killed on roadways in 2021 was the highest it has been in 40 years. Additionally, the first six months of 2022 resulted in 3,434 pedestrian lives lost, a 5% increase from 2021. Highway traffic experts blame a number of factors, including more aggressive driving, heavier vehicles, and roadway and sidewalk infrastructure which favors vehicle speed over pedestrian safety.

F-150 LIGHTNING PRODUCTION TO RESUME MID-MARCH

The Ford Motor Company, having stopped all F-150 Lightning EV pickup production several weeks ago because of an unspecified battery issue, announced that Lightning production will resume on March 13, although the company has not as of yet stated any details about the problem or what was done to resolve it.

TESLA’S INVESTOR DAY MEETING LACKS ANY NEW PRODUCT INFO

Elon Musk and a team of executives held what they billed as an Investor Day meeting on March 1, announcing plans to cut costs, build a factory in Mexico, and streamline operations. However, those (i.e., Wall Street) who were hoping for big product news such as a new, lower-priced EV, or more details about the soon-to-be-released CyberTruck, were left disappointed, and the drop in stock value reflected that disappointment.

TESLA SHAREHOLDERS SUE COMPANY OVER FALSE FSD CLAIMS

FSD, or “Full Self-Driving”, is a Tesla option which costs up to $15,000 above the cost of the vehicle itself. A group of Tesla shareholders has sued the company, claiming that they were misled, both by the promise of “SAE Level 4” autonomous driving which in reality is Level 2, and by the failure of Tesla to reveal certain inherent dangers in FSD.

RIVIAN PINS HOPES ON 2023 AFTER REPORTING BIG LOSSES IN 2022

Rivian, the all-EV manufacturer which builds the R1T pickup and R1S sport utility, reported that it lost $1.7 billion in the 4^th quarter of 2022, bringing calendar year ’22 losses to $6.8 billion. Yet the company hopes to produce 50,000 vehicles in 2023, which would be about twice its 2022 total. While the company claims that demand for its trucks remains strong, its primary objective for this year will be, like so many other auto manufacturers, to drive down costs. Down the road, Rivian plans to put up a new plant in GA to produce two smaller and presumably more affordable models, the R2T and R2S.

J. D. POWER EV SATISFACTION SURVEY: RIVIAN AND MINI ARE TOPS

The consulting firm J. D. Power has released its 3^rd annual “Electric Vehicle Experience (EVX) Ownership Study”. While the survey continued to segment vehicles into premium and mass-market segments, the ownership focus changed this year to first-time EV purchasers. In the premium segment, the Rivian R1T pickup came out on top, with the Tesla Model 3 in 2^nd. The Model 3 was in first place the previous two years. The Mini Cooper Electric ranked 1^st among mass-market models, beating out the 2^nd place Kia EV6. The Kia Niro EV was on top the previous two years.

VW TO BUILD SCOUT PLANT IN SC

VW announced that it has chosen SC as the location for its new U.S. manufacturing plant, where the Scout EVs will be built. The company will invest $2 billion in the operation, which will bring around 4,000 jobs to the area. Production could begin in 2026, with VW hoping to churn out up to 200,000 Scout vehicles annually.

FOUR-DOOR CORVETTE MAY BE ON ITS WAY, ZORA SPINS IN GRAVE

Rumors continue to swirl that GM is planning to extend the Corvette as its own brand, coming out with a 4-door EV followed by a crossover EV, both named “Corvette”. Instead of sharing a platform with other GM EVs, these vehicles will use a platform unique to them, and tuned more for performance. Before you write your scathing letters to GM, know that the 2-door ICE Corvette is intended to continue, at least for now.

VINFAST DELIVERS FIRST U.S. VEHICLES, DROPS LEASE PRICE

Vietnamese EV maker Vinfast delivered its first 45 vehicles to U.S. customers last week. Further, the company announced a drop in its published lease price. The monthly number has decreased from $599 (in January) to $399 (on Monday) to $274 (via messages sent to those who paid a deposit). Initial deliveries are scheduled only in California for now.

FISKER OCEAN EV DELIVERIES TO BEGIN THIS YEAR

Fisker announced plans to begin deliveries of their Ocean EV in 2023. The Ocean, which was shown in prototype form at the 2020 CES and then in final form at the 2021 L.A. Auto Show, has obviously been in the works for some time. The company claims that the base model, the Ocean Sport, will start as low as $37,499. Fisker, relying on Magna as a manufacturing partner, plans to build 42,000 units of the Ocean this year.

USPS TO PURCHASE FORD EV VANS

The U.S. Postal Service announced that it will buy over 9,000 Ford E-Transit vehicles, and will install 14,000 charging stations at its post office facilities across the country. Deliveries of the Ford E-vans will begin later this year. To fulfill a shorter-term need, the USPS will also be buying the same number of Ram ProMaster ICE vehicles. No word on whether consumers would have access to the chargers (“let me drop off this package for mailing and top up the F-150 Lightning while I’m there”). Now that I think about it, allowing customer access to these chargers could put the USPS back in the black….

AUDI AND POLESTAR SAY ‘NO’ TO EV PRICE CUTS

After Tesla slashed its prices, giving rise to concerns of an all-out price war, Ford cut its EV prices, but GM and VW said they would not follow suit. Now other companies have also spoken up. Jens Puttfarcken, the head of Audi Europe, said that Audi will adjust prices only when it is right for Audi to do so. And Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath told analysts that Polestar will not play the price game, as it plans to stay in the luxury EV segment and will not chase volume like mass-market manufacturers.

EU POSTPONES ICE BAN AFTER “NEIN” FROM GERMANY

The EU had scheduled a vote on approving a new law effectively banning the sale of ICE cars after 2035, but that vote has now been put on hold. Germany wants the EU to consider allowing the use of synthetic fuels; it’s suspected that Germany, a country well-vested in automotive manufacturing, wants to afford some protection for its legacy auto makers. Italy, which had earlier declared it would not support the total ban of ICE vehicles, also supports the use of renewable fuels.

AM RADIO GOING THE WAY OF THE DODO BIRD?

Many new vehicles are being produced without an AM radio. The trend has been growing for years among EVs, and now, even some hybrids and ICE cars lack AM radio. (My 2023 Volvo V60, which is a mild hybrid, has no AM radio, and frankly, I miss it. For up-to-date traffic and weather reports in the NY Metro area, AM radio was the best.) Concern is increasing, though, among some government officials who believe that access to an AM signal is a necessity during national emergencies. There is some rumbling that Congress may take action, and either request or insist that car makers include AM radio in their infotainment systems.

Cars on the street, 1984-1985

January 15, 2023 RichardReina Cars on the street Audi, Park Slop;e, Volkswagen, Volvo dealership

I again found myself poring through old photo albums when I noticed that I had a few street scenes from 1984 and 1985 which I found interesting. Here they are, and here’s hoping you also find them of some interest.

BLOOMFIELD, NJ

I lived in Bloomfield from 1980 to 1989, and would occasionally take snapshots of parked and moving cars.

This shot was taken along a service road of the Garden State Parkway. I was practicing my panning. Here is a Subaru Coupe neck and neck with a Mercury Colony Park station wagon

The silver VW Scirocco on the right was mine, parked behind my apartment complex. Next to it are a very rusty mid-70’s Chevelle, and a 1965 Ford Fairlane, coming up on 20 years old, making it an ancient car for its time.

My college friend Beth came to visit me in Bloomfield. I think she bought this Subaru new. (I find it ironic that it’s a 2-door like the Subie above; this was back when Americans actually bought 2-door cars.) It’s probably FWD, as AWD was not yet standard across the board. Note the VW Squareback; when did you last see one in the wild?

SMYTHE VOLVO, SUMMIT NJ

I worked at this Volvo dealership from 1980 to 1986, and would sometimes bring my camera to work, if only to document some of the goings-on.

The dealership bought, then later demolished, an apartment building on an adjacent property. I had the camera ready to take some photos of the planned destruction. Note the Ford T-Bird and Honda Civic on the left, and various Volvos in for service on the right. And that’s our gal Friday, Sue, imploring me to not take her photograph!

Street parking near the dealership was non-existent. Management made a deal with the church across the street which allowed employees to park there (the lot, frankly, was practically vacant except on Sundays). Yes, an employee (a son of one of the dealer principals) commuted in a Volvo 1800. At the top of the row, next to the Chevy Caprice, is a VW Dasher diesel wagon driven by the Parts Manager. The silver wagon on the far right is my Audi Fox wagon.

The Service write-up counters and the Parts retail counter were inside the workshop. Customers entered a back door and literally walked among cars on the lifts. This is the view from my service advisor’s desk. The place looks incredibly dingy, yet I don’t remember it that way. I guess I got used to being in that environment on a daily basis.

CLINTON, IOWA

I made a Christmastime trip with my girlfriend to visit her family in Iowa. We drove, and I didn’t trust the Audi to make the trip, so I rented this Tempo. It was among the first of Ford’s jellybean cars. The car performed just fine.

PARK SLOPE BROOKLYN, NY

These next two photos were taken in the Park Slope Brooklyn neighborhood where my girlfriend lived. This photo was heavily edited to focus on the cars. In the foreground are a Honda Civic and Toyota Tercel (I think). Across the street it’s harder to tell, but I will guess that the car on the left is a Datsun/Nissan, maybe a Sentra, and the one on the right a then-current Buick Riviera.

Yes, this Porsche 356 Coupe was parked on the street in Park Slope. What was it worth in 1984, a couple grand? My current edition of the CPI value guide pins this 356 SC at between $66k and $126k.

German Once More: My 1977 Audi Fox Wagon

August 14, 2016 RichardReina Family cars Audi, Audi Fox wagon, Smythe Volvo, VW Dasher

After buying new cars in 1977 and 1981, I decided to try to save a little money by returning to something used. Both of the new purchases had been Volkswagens, and my overall experience had been good. Although I was working for a Volvo dealer, the Swedish car maker’s then-current lineup of 240s, 260s, and 700s were too large and staid for a single dude like me. I liked the fuel economy, hatchback utility, and front wheel drive of these German subcompacts.

In the summer of 1984, the dealership where I was employed, Smythe Volvo, took in a 1977 Audi Fox station wagon on trade. The outside of the car looked scruffy, but the interior was OK, there was no significant rust, and the mileage of 79,500 was about what you’d expect on a 7-year-old car. Besides, it was a stick (an automatic would have been a deal-breaker). The car was what you might call a “beater”, and my rationale was that since I was mechanically inclined, a beater would give me a cheap entry price and allow me to perform my own maintenance and repairs as necessary.

The '77 Audi Fox, soon after purchase — **The ’77 Audi Fox, soon after purchase**

I spoke to Bill Smythe, one of the dealer principals, about buying the wagon. He seemed reluctant at first, but then relented, and sold me the car for $850 (plus tax & registration; they were kind enough to waive any doc fees).

The Audi Fox was the mechanical equivalent to the VW Dasher of the day (and not to be confused with the later VW Fox). As such, its engine sat longitudinally, not transversely like my two previous VWs. The Audi interior was likely a slight upgrade over its Dasher cousin. Other than that and an Audi grille, the Fox and Dasher were almost indistinguishable from each other.

**The farther from the lens, the better it looked**

The first issue I had with the car was oil consumption – by now, I knew the problem was valve stem seals, and I had one of the techs in our Service Department take care of it for me as a side job. I attended to the wipers/brakes/tires, to assure that they were good. The problem with the Fox, though, was typical of ‘beaters’ as they teeter toward the end of their useful lives: it was nickel-and-diming me to death.

Once I got the oil consumption conquered, the exhaust system fell off. The car ate front brake pads every 7-8,000 miles, and I didn’t know why. The radiator sprung a leak and needed replacement. That’s when I saw that every coolant hose was dry rotted. I blew out an almost-new Michelin tire on a sewer grate (not the car’s fault, but still….).

"We" failed inspection- note the sticker. One friend gave car the nickname "Worm wagon" (see plate) — **“We” failed inspection- note the sticker. One friend nicknamed it the “worm wagon” (see plate)**

While each one of these repairs was simple enough, and none of them broke the bank, it became obvious that the previous owner had neglected the beast. Confidence that the car would get me to my destination and back began to slip away.

Looking good in Adirondack scenery — **Looking good immersed in Adirondack scenery**

One of the final indignities was the fuel pump failure, which happened at a buddy’s house in Brooklyn. I borrowed a car to drive home and get a replacement part, because I had the bright idea to replace the pump in his driveway (in November) in order to save a tow charge. Sure, I got it done, but adding up the time and effort, towing it may have been the better decision.

In front of my brother's house, behind his '81 Ford Escort — **In front of my brother’s house, behind his ’81 Ford Escort**

By early 1986, after two and a half years, it was time to quit. According to the log book I kept, I got rid of it at 110,000 miles, which looking back, surprises me. My memory is of a car which almost constantly needed attention, yet, it carried me over 30,000 miles. Nevertheless, it was time to switch brands. After three Volkswagen products in a row, for the next car, I would be turning Japanese for the first time.

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