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Category: Automotive

Retail News Asia is committed to providing both local and global retailers with the latest Auto and Car news throughout the Asian market. This on a daily base.

  • Tesla Reports Two New Fatal Crashes Involving Driver Assistance Systems

    Tesla Reports Two New Fatal Crashes Involving Driver Assistance Systems

    Tesla told U.S. auto safety regulators it has reports of two new crash fatalities in Model 3 cars tied to advanced driver assistance systems in the month ending October 15, data released Tuesday by the government shows.

    The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) in June began releasing data provided by automakers on reports of crashes tied to driver assistance systems like Tesla’s Autopilot.

    “NHTSA has reviewed these crashes and is conducting appropriate follow-up. NHTSA uses many data sources in its enforcement processes,” the agency said Tuesday.    NHTSA issued an order in June 2021 requiring automakers and tech companies to immediately report all crashes involving advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) and vehicles equipped with automated driving systems tested on public roads. The safety regulator said Tuesday it uses data submitted by automakers under its 2021 order as part of its investigations.

    Nearly all of the 18 fatal crashes reported since July 2021 that had to do with driver assistance systems involved Tesla vehicles.

    The agency has emphasized crashes are tracked by individual automakers in different ways and discouraged comparisons of performance among automakers partly due to lack of comprehensive metrics to track how widely each system is used or how crashes are reported.

    Separately, since 2016, NHTSA has opened 38 special investigations of crashes involving Tesla vehicles where advanced driver assistance systems such as Autopilot were suspected of being used. Overall, 19 crash deaths have been reported in those Tesla-related investigations.

    Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.

    It has said Autopilot allows vehicles to brake and steer automatically within their lanes but does not make them capable of driving themselves.    In June, NHTSA upgraded its defect investigation into 830,000 Tesla vehicles with Autopilot, a required step before it could seek a recall.

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  • Royal Enfield Electric Concept Motorcycle Photo Leaked

    Royal Enfield Electric Concept Motorcycle Photo Leaked

    Electric mobility is the future and almost all vehicle manufacturers in India moving towards that future in some capacity. And this includes Royal Enfield as well. The Chennai-based legacy brand has already said that it has begun testing EV prototypes in India and other parts of the world. While so far not much was known about the EV, now an image of the company’s first electric concept motorcycle has leaked online by Autocar. The photo, which gives us a partial look at the profile of the electric concept bike, tells us that it will be called ‘electrik01’.

    Visually, Royal Enfield’s electric concept motorcycle comes with a neo-vintage-themed design and styling accentuating the long, slender fuel-tank-like structure, while the front suspension looks like girder forks. However, we also see some modern elements like alloy wheels. The frame of the bike, which extends over the tank like an exoskeleton, is treated in brushed silver and offers a good contrast to the British racing green hue of the tank, which bares the brand logo. And finally, there is also a very retro-looking round headlamp, which we expect will get LED lighting.

    In the photo, you will also get to see a portion of the battery pack, which is covered by an all-black housing. Having said that, it’s too soon to speculate anything about the technical specifications, like the battery and range, of the electric motorcycle.

    As for the timeline for the electric motorcycle’s arrival, we believe it’s still a few years away. In fact, even when we consider the modern internal combustion engine (ICE) bikes from Royal Enfield, the motorcycles are put through extended periods of testing and development. And we believe the company would like to check all boxes before it’s ready to show even the prototype model. Having said that, it has been reported that the company will introduce a new vertical, maybe a new brand, for its electric vehicles and aims to launch its first EV by 2025.

    Furthermore, Royal Enfield is yet to formally announce any investment plan for EVs in particular. However, its parent company, Eicher Motors, have applied for the PLI scheme under the champion OEM category, which confirms that it will invest Rs. 2,000 crore over a period of five years. The investment is likely to be used for beefing up its EV technology and focus on gathering resources for its electric two-wheelers.

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  • Volkswagen Is Developing An Electric Golf Hatchback

    Volkswagen Is Developing An Electric Golf Hatchback

    Many had believed that with Volkswagen doubling down on EVs with the ID brand, it would be the end of the line for the Golf hatchback which is one of the group’s icons. It has been indicated that the current gasoline-based Golf could be the last of its kind. But now, there could be a change of heart.

    In a recent interview, Thomas Schafer of the Volkswagen group revealed, “ We would not let go of the Golf name, no way.”

    “We have iconic brand names, Golf and GTI. It would be crazy to let them die and slip away. We will stick with the ID logic, but iconic models will carry a name,” he added.

    Of course, we have already seen Ford and GM bring out their iconic brands for the electric car age with electric versions of the Mustang, F-150, and Hummer’s return.

    Schafer added that Volkswagen could retool the Golf with the ID brand as they have done so with the ID Buzz model bringing back the iconic van that Volkswagen had sold in the 60s and 70s.

    “We might have ID Golf,” Schafer postulated.

    Schafer also added that the ID brand would never replace Golf.

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  • Tesla Recalls 3,21,000 U.S. Vehicles Over Rear Light Issue

    Tesla Recalls 3,21,000 U.S. Vehicles Over Rear Light Issue

    Tesla is recalling more than 321,000 vehicles in the United States because tail lights may intermittently fail to illuminate, the company said in a filing made public Saturday.

    The news follows the company’s recall on Friday of nearly 30,000 Model X cars in the United States over an issue that may cause the front passenger air bag to deploy incorrectly, which sent its shares down almost 3% to a near two-year low.

    In the filing published Saturday to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), the electric vehicle manufacturer said the tail light-related recall covers some 2023 Model 3 and 2020-2023 Model Y vehicles.

    Texas-based Tesla said it will deploy an over-the-air update to correct the rear light issue and said it has no reports of any crashes or injuries related to the recall.

    The company said the recall followed customer complaints it became aware of in late October, largely from foreign markets, claiming vehicle tail lights were not illuminating.

    The investigation found in rare cases the lights may intermittently not work due to an anomaly that may cause false fault detections during the vehicle wake-up process. Tesla said it had received three warranty reports over the issue.

    Tesla has reported 19 U.S. recall campaigns in 2022 covering more than 3.7 million vehicles including four callbacks in November, according to NHTSA data.

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  • Lyft, Motional To Launch Robotaxi Service In Los Angeles

    Lyft, Motional To Launch Robotaxi Service In Los Angeles

    Lyft and driverless technology firm Motional said on Thursday that residents in Los Angeles will be able to book robotaxis on the ride-hailing company’s app, but did not specify by when the service will be available.

    Tough regulatory scrutiny and delayed commercial adoption of autonomous vehicle technology have delayed deployment of robotaxi services, worrying investors.

    Los Angeles will become the second city where the companies will offer the driverless taxi service after Las Vegas.

    Motional which uses Hyundai Motor Co’s IONIQ5 electric car for the robotaxi service is a joint venture between the South Korean manufacturer and automotive technology company Aptiv.

    The autonomous vehicle technology company also has a 10-year agreement with Uber Technologies Inc for supplying driverless vehicles.

    Competitor Waymo started its autonomous ride-hailing service in Phoenix, Arizona last week.

  • Hyundai inaugurates 100,000-car plant in Vietnam

    Hyundai inaugurates 100,000-car plant in Vietnam

    Hyundai Motor has inaugurated its second plant in Vietnam with a capacity of 100,000 automobiles per year.

    Covering an area of over 50 hectares in the northern Ninh Binh Province, the new plant will turn out eco-friendly and fuel-saving vehicles, said Thanh Cong chairman Nguyen Anh Tuan.

    Hyundai entered the Vietnamese market in 2009 through a joint venture with local conglomerate Thanh Cong Group. It imports parts for local assembly in what are known as knock-down kits.

    The plant will increase Hyundai’s Vietnamese production capacity to 170,000 vehicles a year when it becomes fully operational, likely in 2025.

    The South Korean automaker has invested nearly VND12.3 trillion (roughly $496 million) in Ninh Binh province.

    In the first 10 months, 397,457 cars were sold and auto sales could exceed 400,000 for the first time in eight years, according to the Vietnam Automobile Manufacturers Association (VAMA).

  • Slovakia’s Inobat Eyes Electric Vehicle Battery Plant In Serbia

    Slovakia’s Inobat Eyes Electric Vehicle Battery Plant In Serbia

    Slovakian battery maker InoBat said on Monday it has signed declarations of intent with the Serbian government to build an electric vehicle (EV) battery factory in the Balkan country with a capacity of up to 32 gigawatt hours (GWh).

    The plant would open with an initial capacity of 4 GWh in 2025.

    The Serbian government has agreed to provide funding of up to 419 million euros ($431 million) including grants and tax incentives to support the project, InoBat said.

    Although the agreement is not final, a source familiar with the matter said it is close to being so.

    InoBat has said it wants to build a gigafactory in western Europe and one in eastern Europe.

    Last month InoBat said it had signed a declaration of intent with Spain’s government to build a gigafactory in Valladolid. The declaration is not a finalised agreement and other locations, including the United Kingdom, remain under consideration for InoBat’s western European factory.

    Some European battery startups have struggled to raise billions for huge gigafactories, while others like InoBat are focused on expanding slowly as they land customers contracts.

    InoBat will open a 45 megawatt-hour (MWh) pilot line in Bratislava early next year to produce high-performance batteries for customers to test and says it has signed customer agreements, including with German air taxi developer Lilium worth 500 million euros by 2030.

    The company aims to build battery production capacity in 4 GWh increments starting in 2025 – costing around 350 million euros each – as contracts are signed.

    InoBat also plans a research & development facility in Indiana, which could expand into a gigafactory, in a joint venture with fintech company Ideanomics.

    Ideanomics is an investor in InoBat, as is mining group Rio Tinto.

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  • Indonesia To Set Up $2 Billion EV Fund With China’s CATL, CMB International

    Indonesia To Set Up $2 Billion EV Fund With China’s CATL, CMB International

    The Indonesia Investment Authority, the country’s sovereign wealth fund, is to set up a green electric vehicle (EV) fund of at least $2 billion with China’s battery maker CATL and CMB International, the fund’s CEO said on Monday.

    The announcement was made in a live-streamed business conference on the sidelines of the G20 summit.

    INA CEO Ridha Wirakusumah then signed an agreement for the partnership with company executives from CATL and CMB International.

    The fund will invest in the EV value chain to capture a market that is expected to grow fast globally, driven by countries’ pledges to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Ridha said.

    “With CATL and CMB International as the main partners, we are looking for limited partners to invest in the green EV fund, to seize this EV value chain opportunity primarily in Indonesia,” Ridha said.

    Indonesia’s own EV market is on track to grow, with 2.1 million electric motorcycle and 400,000 electric cars expected to be sold by 2025, Ridha said.

    Indonesia is keen to develop its own EV and battery industries at home, after banning exports of nickel ore to ensure supply for investors since 2020.

    Earlier this year, CATL announced a $6 billion power battery project in Indonesia, in partnership with Indonesian companies.

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  • Elon Musk Says ‘I Have Too Much Work On My Plate’

    Elon Musk Says ‘I Have Too Much Work On My Plate’

    Billionaire Elon Musk said on Monday he was working “at the absolute most amount…from morning til night, seven days a week” when asked about his recent acquisition of Twitter and his leadership of automaker Tesla Inc.

    “I have too much work on my plate that is for sure,” Musk said by videolink to a business conference on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Bali.

    Musk is chief executive of both companies and also runs rocket firm SpaceX, brain-chip startup Neuralink and tunneling firm the Boring Company. Wearing a batik shirt sent by the organizers, he appeared on screen lit by candles, explaining that he was speaking from a place that had just lost power.

    Tesla investors worry that Musk, a self-confessed “nanomanager” who has been personally involved in working-level decisions from car styling to supply chain issues, is distracted at a critical time for the world’s largest electric vehicle maker.

    Tesla’s shares have halved in value since early April, when he disclosed he had taken a stake in Twitter. His Tesla share sales, including another $4 billion last week to bring his Twitter-related sales to $20 billion, have added to the pressure.

    When asked about the complexity of industrial supply chains “decoupling” from China and the risks from Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Musk returned to how busy he was.

    Responding to an observation that many business leaders in Asia wanted to be the “Elon Musk of the East,” Musk said: “I’d be careful what you wish for. I’m not sure how many people would actually like to be me. They would like to be what they imagine being me, which is not the same thing as actually being me. The amount that I torture myself is next level, frankly.”

    Musk also said he wanted to see Twitter support more video and longer-form video so that content creators could make a living on the platform, but did not provide details. His remarks were streamed live on Alphabet Inc’s YouTube.

    Indonesia has been trying to secure a deal with Tesla on battery investment and potentially one for SpaceX to develop a rocket launch site.

    Musk made no commitment to either of those but said Indonesia had a large role to play in the electric vehicle supply chain and that it would make sense “long term” for SpaceX to have multiple launch points around the globe.

    It was not clear where Musk was during the Bali event. His personal jet has remained in Austin, Texas, Tesla’s headquarters since the weekend, according to @ElonJet, a Twitter account that tracks Musk’s Gulfstream G650.

    “I’m just looking at this video and it’s so bizarre,” Musk said. “I’m sitting here in the dark surrounded by candles.”

    Musk added he believed that the economy would make the transition to sustainable energy, adding it was “just a question of how long it takes.” He said space exploration should remain a priority “so we can understand the nature of the universe and our place in it.”

    “Maybe we’ll find alien civilization or discover civilizations that existed millions of years ago, but we see the ruins of ancient civilizations. I think that would be incredibly interesting,” he said.

  • Skoda Slavia Monte Carlo Edition To Be Launched Soon

    Skoda Slavia Monte Carlo Edition To Be Launched Soon

    Skoda Auto India will soon introduce a Monte Carlo edition of its compact sedan, the Slavia. In a recent interaction with car&bike, Petr Šolc, Director – Sales & Marketing, Skoda Auto India said that the company wants its top-selling models Slavia and Kushaq to be well-established in the Indian market. And Skoda feels that one way to ensure that would be by introducing special edition models. While it has already launched the Kushaq Monte Carlo and the first-anniversary edition of the compact SUV, next the carmaker plans to introduce the Slavia Monte Carlo in India.

    Talking about the need for expanding the model line-up Šolc said, “We are going step by step. Of course, we are happy that we have introduced the Monte Carlo version of the Kushaq and we are looking if would it make sense perhaps for us to bring more of the special editions. Like a Monte Carlo on the Kushaq, but also on the Slavia. This is definitely also our ultimate goal to ensure that both these products are well established in the market.”

    The Skoda Slavia compact sedan, along with the Kushaq, has played a major role in the huge turnaround that the brand has witnessed in India. The compact sedan already accounts for average monthly sales of around 2000 units and the introduction of a top-of-the-line Monte Carlo trim is only going to add to the car’s volumes.

    Skoda’s Monte Carlo edition cars are designed to pay homage to the brand’s racing pedigree. Like the other Monte Carlo models, which we have seen in the Indian market so far, the Skoda Slavia Monte Carlo will also come in a special red exterior paint job with blacked-out accents. The car is also expected to get all-black wheels with red calipers, a blacked-out roof and the Monte Carlo badge. The cabin too will get an all-black treatment with red accents and possibly some add-on features like a bigger 10.1-inch touchscreen infotainment system.

    We expect the Monte Carlo edition to be based on the top-end Style variant of the car, and it will be offered with both the manual and automatic variants of the 1.0-litre TSI and the 1.5-litre TSI engine option. Expect at least a premium of Rs. 30,000 to Rs. 50,000 over the asking price of the Style variants of the Slavia for the Monte Carlo trims.

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  • Toyota’s Upcoming Hybrid Sedan Teased Ahead Of Global Debut

    Toyota’s Upcoming Hybrid Sedan Teased Ahead Of Global Debut

    Electrification has been one of the key focus areas for Toyota in the global markets. Earlier this year Toyota showcased its all-electric range and now it has released a teaser image of its upcoming hybrid sedan, which is likely to be the successor of the Prius hybrid. In fact, it’s most likely the same mysterious model that it teased alongside the bZ4x crossover. The model is expected to share its underpinnings and powertrain with the bZ3 sedan which is sold in China and will make its debut on November 16.

    The teasers were released on the company’s Japanese social media handles, however, the brand is refraining from sharing any further details as yet. In fact, the company hasn’t even revealed its name yet, while we expect it use the venerable Prius moniker for this hybrid model. Both teasers show “Hybrid Reborn” lettering while the tapering roofline silhouette will remind you of the Prius sedan. Moreover, the word “reborn” itself hints at Toyota going with the Prius name for this new model rather than coming up with a new branding

    The fourth-gen Prius has been around since 2015, and it’s high time for a generation update. The previously teased bZ had a similar profile, but that was a different car since bZ brand is reserved for pure electric models. Toyota had earlier said that the Prius will remain one of the front-runners in its electrified range and we expect the next-gen model to be a plug-in-hybrid, followed by a hydrogen fuel-cell iteration.

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  • Musk sells Tesla shares worth $3.95 bln days after Twitter takeover

    Musk sells Tesla shares worth $3.95 bln days after Twitter takeover

    Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has sold $3.95 billion worth of shares in the electric vehicle maker, according to U.S. regulatory filings, days after he completed his purchase of Twitter Inc for $44 billion.

    Musk, whose net worth dropped below $200 billion after investors dumped Tesla stock, unloaded 19.5 million shares between Friday and Tuesday, filings published by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission showed.

    The latest share sale leaves Musk with a stake of roughly 14% in Tesla, according to a Reuters calculation.

    The purpose of the sale was not disclosed.

    The latest sale dump comes as analysts had widely expected Musk to sell additional Tesla shares to finance the Twitter deal.

    Musk, the world’s richest man, had asserted in April he was done selling Tesla stock. Still, he went on to sell another $6.9 billion worth Tesla shares in August and said the sale was conducted to pay for the social media platform.

    Musk, the world’s richest man, had about $20 billion in cash after selling a part of his stake in Tesla, including the sales made last year. This would have required him to raise an additional $2 billion to $3 billion to finance the takeover, according to a Reuters calculation.

    Tesla has lost nearly half its market value and Musk’s net worth slumped by $70 billion ever since he bid for Twitter in April.

    Twitter and Tesla did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment.

    Musk took over Twitter last month and has engaged in drastic measures including sacking half the staff and a plan to charge for blue check verification marks.

    The billionaire pledged to provide $46.5 billion in equity and debt financing for the acquisition, which covered the $44 billion price tag and the closing costs. Banks, including Morgan Stanley and Bank of America Corp, committed to provide $13 billion in debt financing.

    Musk’s $33.5 billion equity commitment included his 9.6% Twitter stake, which is worth $4 billion, and the $7.1 billion he had secured from equity investors, including Oracle Corp co-founder Larry Ellison and Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal.

    Musk had tried to walk away from the deal in May, alleging that Twitter understated the number of bot and spam accounts on the platform. This led to a series of lawsuits between the two parties.

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  • Porsche Taycan Reaches 100,000 Production Milestone

    Porsche Taycan Reaches 100,000 Production Milestone

    The Porsche Taycan first made its public appearance as the Mission E Concept back in September 2015 at the Frankfurt Motor Show and the final production model rolled out exactly four years later in September 2019. And in just about three years, the company has rolled out 1,00,000 units of the Taycan. The Porsche Taycan Turbo S finished in Neptune Blue is the milestone car which was assembled on November 7 and is heading to a customer from the UK

    According to Porsche, the US, China, and the UK / Republic of Ireland are the Taycan’s most popular markets. That said, deliveries have slowed down this year due to supply chain bottlenecks, with 25,073 EVs shipped to customers in the first nine months of the year, or 12 percent less than in the same period of 2021. But the delays haven’t slowed down demand for the electric car as the order book continues to show good figures.

    Moreover, one of the owners, a Transport entrepreneur Jean-Hubert Revolon has already clocked 1,88,119 km on the ODO of his Taycan. He bought a Taycan 4S in mid-August 2020 and lives in France in the Lyon area. Revolon often drives to neighboring countries, covering as much as 1,200 km in a single day which is rather impressive.

    In fact, the company’s Head of Body Planning, Markus Kreutel did 134,911 km in a Taycan Turbo company car between February 2021 and August 2022. Distances as long as 1,500 km were swiftly covered by the performance EV during his business trips that frequently involved traveling from Zuffenhausen to Slovakia or the Ore Mountains.

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  • Tata Motors Rolls Out Its 50,000th Electric Vehicle

    Tata Motors Rolls Out Its 50,000th Electric Vehicle

    Tata Motors has announced achieving a new production milestone with the roll out of its 50,000th electric vehicle in India. The milestone EV, which was a Tata Nexon EV Max, rolled out from the assembly line, at the company manufacturing plant in Pune, Maharashtra. Right now, Tata Motors is the largest manufacturer and seller of electric passenger cars in India. Currently, the company sells the Nexon EV range, the Tiago EV and Tigor EV to private car buyers, along with the Xpress-T EV for fleet customers.

    The company says that a favourable policy environment, positive word of mouth from existing customers, practical product options, better ride and handling and attractive cost of ownership have helped the Company achieve this feat ahead of its target.

    Commenting on this achievement, Shailesh Chandra, Managing Director, Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and Tata Passenger Electric Mobility said, “Celebrating 50,000th EVs in India is a strong testament to how our portfolio is resonating with people across the country. EVs are offering a practical solution to problems of rising fuel prices and worsening pollution. Customers are now ready to welcome EVs and we are thrilled to witness the transition from early adopters to now EVs becoming a mainstream choice for Indian customers.”

    Tata Motors has had a major hand in democratising electric cars in India. The Nexon EV has continuously been the largest-selling electric vehicle in India, and the Tigor EV and the Tiago EV are enabling further expansion of the company’s EV volumes. In fact, in the current fiscal year, between April and August 2022, Tata Motors has sold 17,150 EVs in India, doing an average of 3000-4000 units a month.

    All products are powered by the high-voltage Ziptron architecture, and all three of them offer an ARAI-claimed range of over 300 km. Furthermore, with an aim to make EVs easily accessible, Tata Motors has entered 80 new cities, expanding its network to more than 165 cities, helping consumers to adopt EVs as their mode of personal mobility. Going forward, Tata Motors is focusing on a three-phased architecture approach for EVs and plans to launch 10 EVs in 5 years.

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  • Canoo To Build Battery Manufacturing Facility In Oklahoma

    Canoo To Build Battery Manufacturing Facility In Oklahoma

    Electric vehicle startup Canoo Inc said on Wednesday it would build a battery manufacturing facility at Pryor in Oklahoma with a capacity of 3,200 Megawatt hours production.

    The company’s Pryor facility will make proprietary battery modules, energy management system and thermal control technology, CEO and Chairman Tony Aquila said.

    Canoo added it will be the first electric vehicle company to produce battery modules using hydro-power from the Grand River Dam Authority.

    The company’s new battery manufacturing facility will be in the same industrial park as its future “MegaMicro” factory, Canoo said.

    Canoo last year announced Panasonic Holdings Corp, which also supplies battery cells to Tesla Inc, will be its provider for manufacturing battery packs.

    The EV startup, which is set to report third-quarter results on Nov. 9, had access to about $250 million in capital at the end of the second quarter.

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