Honda Look To GM For Help Building EVs | 09 Sep 2021

Episode 1206,   Sep 09, 2021, 12:00 AM

Today’s big EV stories:
• Honda, GM to share EV parts
• Tesla finishes construction of Shanghai-based Supercharger production plant
• Bosses from electric carmaker Rivian to visit UK site being considered for giant factory
• Ford poaches top tech executive Doug Field who helped lead Apple's top-secret car project
• Volkswagen Says It Will Lease Used EVs To Maintain Control Over Its Batteries
• New Britishvolt battery cell factory under construction
• Porsche Taycan’s strong demand outpaces automaker’s production capacity
• MotorTrend: We Drive the 2022 Rivian R1T Off-Road Across the Trans-America Trail, Part 1
• Tesla sold 44,264 China-made vehicles in August, local deliveries up
• TESTED: 2021 Tesla Model S Plaid travels 345 miles
• A Tesla Recored A Man Faking Being Backed Into At A Gas Station

Show #1206.

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Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are in the world, welcome to EV News Daily for Thursday 9th September. It’s Martyn Lee here and I go through every EV story so you don't have to.

Thank you to MYEV.com for helping make this show, they’ve built the first marketplace specifically for Electric Vehicles. It’s a totally free marketplace that simplifies the buying and selling process, and help you learn about EVs along the way too.

 HONDA, GM TO SHARE EV PARTS

- The Japanese automaker Honda is strengthening ties with General Motors to share components for electric vehicles. They aim to shorten the time needed to develop new models, and keep up with the wave of electrification taking place around the world.  Honda will develop platforms for small and medium-sized cars. GM will make them for larger models.


TESLA FINISHES CONSTRUCTION OF SHANGHAI-BASED SUPERCHARGER PRODUCTION PLANT

- Tesla completed the construction of its Supercharger production plant in Shanghai in late August and is going through debugging of the equipment that will run from August 21 to September 25, according to a local media outlet.

- The building works officially commenced on January 20 this year, according to an environment impact assessment report. The plant consists of 5 semi-automatic assembly lines, which are capable of producing 10,000 Superchargers per year.  The site will produce the V3 Superchargers.


BOSSES FROM ELECTRIC CARMAKER RIVIAN TO VISIT UK SITE BEING CONSIDERED FOR GIANT FACTORY

- Bosses from Amazon-backed US carmaker Rivian are flying into the UK next week to visit a potential site for a giant electric car factory, sources have told the West of England mayor's office.  California-based Rivian is said to be eyeing an area between Bristol and Bridgwater, in Somerset, for a UK plant.

- Rivian executives will be involved in a series of meetings with government and business officials, and will visit Somerset’s 616-acre Gravity smart campus - off junction 23 of the M5.

- Rivian bosses will also visit Bristol to find out about the city’s innovation expertise, concluding with a dinner aboard the SS Great Britain. They will then fly on to Germany to visit a rival site before making a final decision, it is understood.


FORD POACHES TOP TECH EXECUTIVE DOUG FIELD WHO HELPED LEAD APPLE'S TOP-SECRET CAR PROJECT

- Ford has hired former Tesla and Apple executive Doug Field to lead its emerging technology efforts, a key focus for the automaker under its new Ford+ turnaround plan.The hire is a major new addition for Ford, while a big hit to Apple and its secret car project, which the company has yet to confirm exists. Apple, in an emailed statement, said: “We’re grateful for the contributions Doug has made to Apple and we wish him all the best in this next chapter.”

- The hire is a major addition for Ford and a big hit to Apple and its secret car project, which the company has yet to confirm exists.

- Field — who led development of Tesla’s Model 3 —most recently served as vice president of special projects at Apple, which reportedly included the tech giant’s Titan car project.


VOLKSWAGEN SAYS IT WILL LEASE USED EVS TO MAINTAIN CONTROL OVER ITS BATTERIES

- At the Munich auto show this week, Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess told the press his company plans to offer leases on its used EVs as a way to maintain control over the batteries that power them.

- Automotive News Europe reports Diess told the audience that Volkswagen will offer used-vehicle leases on its ID family of electric vehicles, including those in North America, as a strategy to keep control over their valuable batteries. Diess said the secondary leases would allow the company to recycle the valuable battery packs into new uses, including home power centers and fast chargers.

- “In Europe, we are trying to get a second lease and even a third lease, and keep the car in our hands,” Diess said. “Battery life we think today is about 1,000 charging cycles and around 350,000 kilometers [about 215,000 miles], something like that. So, the battery would probably live longer than the car, and we want to get hold of the battery. We don’t want to give the battery away.”


NEW BRITISHVOLT BATTERY CELL FACTORY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

- Works have begun at Britishvolt’s new battery cell factory in Blyth, Northumberland. Planning permission for the cell factory was granted unanimously by Northumberland County Council in July and construction of the facility is scheduled to begin in autumn or winter this year.

- The production facility will be built on the 95-hectare former site of the town’s power station. Once up and running, the company is planning to start production in 2023, according to the latest Britishvolt announcement. In total, the plant is expected to create around 3,000 direct jobs and a further 5,000 in associated supply chains.

- The project is to be built in three phases of ten GWh each, reaching a full capacity of 30 GWh by the end of 2027. To get things underway, Britishvolt has commissioned construction partner ISG with the preliminary work. ISG will clear the site and take preparatory steps for the utilities and infrastructure of the construction site.


PORSCHE TAYCAN’S STRONG DEMAND OUTPACES AUTOMAKER’S PRODUCTION CAPACITY

- The Porsche Taycan is experiencing massive demand with delivery estimates stretching up to six months, said CEO Oliver Blume. The demand for Porsche’s all-electric four-door sedan outpaced the company’s production capacity for 2021 in the first quarter alone. 

“Our original production capacity for the Taycan was 20,000 units this year – we’ve sold that many in the first half of the year,” Blume said during a panel discussion at the IAA Mobility show in Munich. The Porsche CEO noted that “incoming orders are huge,” including in China.

- The Taycan’s popularity continued to accelerate in Q2 2021, with Porsche exceeding all the deliveries in 2020 in just the first half of the quarter. The accelerated popularity of the Taycan was partly due to the new variants released of the all-electric four-door.


MOTORTREND:  WE DRIVE THE 2022 RIVIAN R1T OFF-ROAD ACROSS THE TRANS-AMERICA TRAIL, PART 1

- This route winds around the Appalachians, across the mighty Mississippi, through the Great Plains, and over the Rockies, before threading through the west's high-desert slick rock and redwoods to the coast. Some paved roads dot the trail, but they're few and far between. Because of the endeavor's sheer scale and distance, MotorTrend together with Rivian dedicated 43 days to the adventure, split into five legs. We divided into five crews of staffers as we navigated our convoy of two near-production-spec 2022 Rivian R1Ts and our support vehicle, a Ram 1500 TRX, across the Trans-America Trail.


TESLA SOLD 44,264 CHINA-MADE VEHICLES IN AUGUST, LOCAL DELIVERIES UP

- U.S. electric vehicle maker Tesla Inc in August sold 44,264 China-made vehicles, including 31,379 for export, the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) said on Wednesday. Local sales of China-made vehicles jumped to 12,885 cars last month from 8,621 cars in July. Tesla's sales in the first month of each quarter are usually lower than the following two months.

- China's BYD sold 60,858 electric vehicles last month, while General Motors Co's China joint venture with SAIC Motor delivered 43,783 units.


TESTED: 2021 TESLA MODEL S PLAID TRAVELS 345 MILES

- Tesla's tri-motor 1,020-hp flagship sedan covered 345 miles on Edmunds' real-world EV range loop, falling just shy of its EPA-estimated range by 3 miles.It ties the 2021 Tesla Model 3 Long Range for first place on our EV range leaderboard among both luxury and non-luxury EVs.  The Plaid proved to be pretty efficient when driven with restraint, consuming slightly less energy than a Porsche Taycan 4S tested in similar conditions


A TESLA RECORED A MAN FAKING BEING BACKED INTO AT A GAS STATION

- Arthur Bates Jr., the 47-year-old man in question, was in the gas station’s parking lot where the “incident” occurred. In video footage from the Tesla released by local authorities, Bates can be seen behind the vehicle.

- In the video, Bates can be seen behind the Tesla as it slowly reverses. As the vehicle comes to a stop, Bates literally walks into the bumper of the car and collapses on the ground pretending he’s in pain and placing his foot on the back of the car.


- Bates then had the nerve to go and call for emergency services, with an ambulance and firefighters coming to check him for injuries. Police managed to find the driver of the car who explained that they witnessed Bates intentionally getting behind the vehicle


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