12 Jan 2022 | Mercedes-Benz Go Their Own Way On EV Motors

Episode 1339,   Jan 12, 2022, 05:06 PM

Today’s big EV stories:
• Mercedes plans to build next-gen EV powertrains in-house
• Tesla's Shanghai gigafactory delivers over 480,000 vehicles in 2021
• Kia EV6 Wholesale Shipments Above 5,600 In December 2021
• Polestar Hits 2021 EV Targets
• Volkswagen aims to double electric car sales in China
• Why Rivian's COO departed during crucial launch period
• Porsche EV Makes World Record Climb
• Montpellier foregoes hydrogen project for battery-electric buses
• Stellantis says "bye" to diesel
• New entry-level Citroen e-C4 Sense launched
• VW ID.4 EV price and range changes are coming
• EV Prices Soared in 2021, Benefitting Tesla
• Audi's all-electric RS Q e-tron fires into first
• France Plans $1.1 Billion to Safeguard Metals for EV Batteries
• California proposes $6.1 billion on electric vehicle initiatives
• Oregon doubles electric vehicle rebates for lower-income families

Show #133

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Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are in the world, welcome to EV News Daily for Wednesday 12th January. 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.

Welcome to a new Patreon ProducerJONATHAN AYRES

MERCEDES PLANS TO BUILD NEXT-GEN EV POWERTRAINS IN-HOUSE

- Mercedes-Benz plans to build the complete powertrain for its new MMA and MB.EA electric architectures entirely in-house starting in 2024, a top executive said.

- Markus Schaefer, head of development at Mercedes parent Daimler, told Automotive News Europe sibling publication Automobilwoche. “To do this, we are significantly increasing the depth of added value and are also switching from third-party sourcing to in-house production. Until now, the electric powertrains have come from external partners. We want to control the overall system of electric motor, battery and power electronics as much as possible, similar to what is the case with the combustion engine"

- This also includes the inverter, which transfers the energy from the battery to the engine.

- Among them are ZF Friedrichshafen, which supplies powertrain modules for the EQC midsize SUV, and Valeo Siemens eAutomotive, which supplies motors for the EQS, Mercedes’ luxury EV flagship.

Mercedes has announced that it will build high-performance axial-flux electric motors developed with the British startup Yasa – which Daimler acquired -- in Berlin, and Schäfer said a second "kit," with radial electric motors for smaller vehicles will be built in Mercedes’ Untertürkheim plant. In addition, battery cells developed in-house will soon be ready for use in Mercedes vehicles.


TESLA'S SHANGHAI GIGAFACTORY DELIVERS OVER 480,000 VEHICLES IN 2021

- Deliveries at the Shanghai Gigafactory stood at 484,130 vehicles last year, an increase of 235 percent from 2020.Last year, over 160,000 of Tesla's made-in-China cars were exported to over 10 countries and regions in Europe and Asia.

- The localization rate of spares reached 90 percent


KIA EV6 WHOLESALE SHIPMENTS ABOVE 5,600 IN DECEMBER 2021

- The most important new Kia model from the perspective of electrification - the Kia EV6 - continues its ramp-up at a rate of several thousand per month. In December, Kia reports 5,605 wholesale sales (closely related to production), which includes 1,495 units sold in South Korea, and 4,110 exported.

- Cumulatively, the company produced almost 30,000 EV6, out of which about a third were sold in South Korea, and two-thirds were exported (mostly to Europe).

- In 2021, the company sold over 87,000 electric cars:  EV6: 19,052 - 11,023 (South Korea) and 8,029 (outside South Korea/Europe) Niro EV: 59,396 (outside South Korea) (up 69% year-over-year) Soul EV: 9,412 (outside South Korea) (up 69% year-over-year)


POLESTAR HITS 2021 EV TARGETS

- The company delivered on its global sales target of 29,000 vehicles in 2021, representing year-on-year growth exceeding 185%.

- Polestar increased its global presence from 10 to 19 markets in 2021, with growth in Europe and Asia Pacific. In the first half of 2022, Polestar plans to add Spain, Portugal and Ireland to its European market footprint, and enter the Middle East with presence in the UAE, Kuwait and Israel. By the end of 2023, Polestar aims to be operating in at least 30 global markets.

- Polestar’s retail footprint more than doubled in 2021 to 100 locations globally and the company aims to have 150 in operation by the end of 2022. In addition to the openings of inner-city Polestar Spaces, the company debuted its new, larger, out-of-town Polestar Destinations. The first permanent Polestar Destination opened in December 2021, outside Gothenburg, Sweden.

- Polestar also announced its plans to launch three new cars in the coming three years. Polestar 3, a premium electric performance SUV, is set to launch in 2022 and will be the first Polestar to be built in the US. Polestar 3 will benefit from advanced technologies from Luminar, Nvidia and Zenseact that will provide cutting-edge unsupervised autonomous driving functionality.


VOLKSWAGEN AIMS TO DOUBLE ELECTRIC CAR SALES IN CHINA THIS YEAR AFTER MISSING TARGETS

- Volkswagen AG (VOWG_p.DE) said it would likely double sales of its ID battery electric vehicles in China this year and aims to do even better but the automaker could be hamstrung by a shortage of semiconductors.

- The German automaker sold 70,625 of its ID electric vehicles in China last year, missing its goal of selling 80,000 to 100,000 cars

- While China's EV market is seeing very strong growth, most foreign automakers have lagged their Chinese counterparts in designing smart cars that appeal.


WHY RIVIAN'S COO DEPARTED DURING CRUCIAL LAUNCH PERIOD

- Rivian Automotive Inc.’s COO stepped down last month while the EV maker was in the midst of its inaugural production rampup.

- Rod Copes left the company after he had held the title since March 2020, according to his LinkedIn profile.

- The fast-growing truckmaker, which in November completed the year’s biggest initial public offering, has hit a rough stretch recently, saying in December that it would fall “a few hundred vehicles short” of its goal to build 1,200 units for the year

- it produced 1,015 vehicles last year and delivered 920.


PORSCHE EV MAKES WORLD RECORD CLIMB UP PIKES PEAK

- The feat, documented in a video released by Porsche on January 11, covers the entire five-state, 1,400-mile journey into the record books for the greatest altitude change ever achieved by an electric car.

- The driving team began its journey at the bottom of the Eagle Nickel and Copper Mine in Michigan, the lowest driveable point in the United States, and trekked across five states, ascending 15,889 feet and ending at the summit of Pikes Peak in Colorado's Rocky Mountains.

- In total, it took 33 hours and 48 minutes

- Dai Yoshihara, who was a 2020 Pikes Peak International Hill Climb class winner, managed to get the Taycan Cross Turismo across the line for the record.


MONTPELLIER FOREGOES HYDROGEN PROJECT FOR BATTERY-ELECTRIC BUSES, FOR NOW


STELLANTIS SAYS "BYE" TO DIESEL AS CITROËN, PEUGEOT, OPEL VANS GO EV-ONLY


NEW ENTRY-LEVEL CITROEN E-C4 SENSE LAUNCHED PRICED FROM £28,495


2022 VW ID.4 EV PRICE AND RANGE CHANGES ARE COMING TO THE US


RECURRENT SHOWS EV PRICES SOARED IN 2021, BENEFITTING TESLA


DAKAR | AUDI'S ALL-ELECTRIC RS Q E-TRON FIRES INTO FIRST


FRANCE PLANS $1.1 BILLION TO SAFEGUARD METALS FOR EV BATTERIES


CALIFORNIA PROPOSES $6.1 BILLION ON ELECTRIC VEHICLE INITIATIVES


OREGON DOUBLES ELECTRIC VEHICLE REBATES FOR LOWER-INCOME FAMILIES



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