Photo: Ford
Ford maintains its place as America’s second-best-selling EV maker after tripling its electric-car sales, Porsche is being sued for $300 million for claiming it “withheld inventory” from a Florida dealership, and public ridership Local transport in the US will get back on track after the pandemics. All this and more in The Morning Shift for Wednesday 5th October 2022.
1st gear: Ford EV sales triple in September
It’s sales season again, and after Tesla reported results that weren’t quite what expected and GM sold a lot more cars last quarter, it’s now up to Ford to unveil its secrets. And it’s a mixed bag for the Blue Oval, as Bloomberg reports that EV sales for Ford tripled, but fewer cars were moved overall than in the same period last year.
Ford reported that sales of electric vehicles, including the Mustang Mach-E, Ford F-150 Lightning and E-Transit van, rose 197 percent in September after shifting 4,691 units. This accounted for 3 percent of the company’s revenue for the month, which was down 8.9 percent compared to the same period last year. Bloomberg reports:
In the latest tally, Ford beats GM in the EV race. The Mustang Mach-E sold more than 28,000 units through September 30, outperforming the Chevy Bolt and a small number of Hummer and Cadillac electric vehicles by about 5,000 so far this year. Add in the 8,760 Lightning electric pickups that Ford has sold since June, and the automaker sits firmly in second place in the EV race behind market leader Tesla Inc.
Ford’s gasoline-electric hybrid models, led by the F-150 Hybrid and the Maverick compact pickup, are also in high demand, with the manufacturer’s hybrid sales up 22.6% year-to-date. Ford said it received 86,000 orders for Maverick last month, when order banks were open for just a week and the new 2023 model year truck was selling out.
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Despite the challenges in September, Bloomberg reports that Ford’s sales rose 16 percent in the third quarter of 2022. It added that stock of Ford’s new Lightning electric pickup “remains on dealer lots on average for just eight days” before being shipped to a new buyer.
Lightning sales will be seen in the coming months as Ford recently hiked the price of its electric truck by as much as $8,500.
2nd gear: Porsche sued by dealer for “withholding inventory”.
The more I read about car dealerships in the US, the more it seems like an elaborate scam that you just have to be a part of. But now all that tire-jumping has become too much for a Porsche dealership in Florida, and he’s suing the German automaker for $300 million.
According to Automotive News, The Collection in Coral Gables, Fla., is suing Porsche for $300 million, alleging that the German company is “withholding inventory” because the “dealer house failed to build a new standalone store.” Automotive News reports:
The Collection, a multi-brand dealership in Coral Gables, Fla., alleges that Porsche violates the state’s dealer franchise law by restricting allocation of “pool cars” after the retailer refused to provide an exclusive brand store to build.
“Porsche said the pool cars, which typically make up no more than 20 percent of available stock, will be allocated to dealers at the factory’s discretion. To qualify, dealers must operate exclusive Porsche stores and meet the facilities’ design standards, the company said.
“Sean Burstyn, the Miami attorney representing The Collection, said Florida franchise law prohibits an automaker from requiring dealerships to set up exclusive facilities.”
The Collection markets cars for Porsche, Ferrari and Aston Martin from its Florida dealership and has so far refused to open a standalone Porsche store.
For example, Automotive News reports that a Porsche insider said it would be “unfair” to offer the Florida dealership access to rewards like pool cars when nearly 200 other dealerships have heeded his demands and set up separate Porsche dealerships.
3rd gear: US talks with South Korea on EV rebates continue
After the inflation-cutting law went into effect in August, you might have thought the saga of EV tax cuts was drawing to a close. But regulations in the law about where vehicles had to be built to qualify for up to $7,500 in tax breaks opened up a whole other can of worms.
Under the new law, electric vehicles in the US must be assembled to qualify for the tax break, and future regulations could also add battery procurement provisions. Because of these tough new rules, only 20 cars now qualify for the tax breaks. The America-focused legislation angered automakers like South Korea’s Hyundai and Kia, both of which have recently rolled out some very attractive electric vehicle deals.
Portal reports that South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeol has called for changes to the ruling, after raising concerns that the new tax cuts would hit their country’s automakers. Portal reports:
President Joe Biden has indicated his willingness to continue talks with South Korea over recent U.S. legislation denying subsidies to most foreign electric vehicle (EV) makers, an official from Yoon’s office said Wednesday.
Biden, in a letter to South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol, who last month asked the US president for help addressing Seoul’s concerns, assured that the new US rules would hurt South Korean automakers.
4th gear: Sixt buys 100,000 electric vehicles from BYD
After rental company Hertz announced plans to add more than 100,000 Teslas to its fleet, then 65,000 Polestar electric vehicles, and finally 175,000 GM electric cars, it seemed only a matter of time before other rental companies jumped on the electric bandwagon.
Now, Automotive News is reporting that Sixt is set to buy 100,000 electric cars from Chinese automaker BYD to add to its rental fleet in Europe in the coming years. According to Automotive News:
Sixt will purchase around 100,000 electric vehicles from China’s BYD under a partnership agreement signed by the two companies.
As part of the first stage of the agreement, Sixt will order several thousand all-electric vehicles from BYD, the first of which will be available to Sixt customers in Europe in the fourth quarter, the German car rental company said in a statement.
Sixt then agreed to buy around 100,000 more electric vehicles by 2028, the lessor added.
The first BYD vehicles are expected to arrive in Sixt fleets in France, Germany, the Netherlands and the UK. The first model offered by Sixt is the BYD Atto, an electric compact crossover.
5th gear: U.S. public transit ridership almost back on track
Two years ago, public transport was in a state of disrepair and ridership fell off a cliff as people were told to stay home and avoid crowded spaces to curb the spread of Covid-19. But now it’s a different story as mass transit passenger numbers are picking up again here in the US.
According to Intelligent Transport, the American Public Transportation Association’s latest ridership dashboard found that the return to the office and school resulted in an increase in public transit ridership. In fact, the report noted that passenger numbers are now “more than 70 percent of pre-pandemic levels.” Intelligent transport reports:
The Covid-19 pandemic had an immediate and significant impact on public transport ridership. The drop in ridership began in mid-March 2020 and coincided with emergency stay-at-home orders being issued in many cities and states across the country.
Rider numbers fell to a low of 10 to 40 percent of pre-pandemic levels in many cities. After falling to 20 percent of pre-pandemic levels in April 2020, ridership has recovered to more than 70 percent of pre-pandemic levels. This increase in ridership reflects transit companies’ adaptation to the rapidly changing needs of their communities while providing a safe and reliable service.
There’s still a long way to go to get things back to how they were. But maybe with a little investment here and there in mass transit services in the US, ridership can surpass 2019 levels.
Conversely: F1 is still learning from its mistakes
Neutral: What should Ford electrify next?
Ford has a pretty nice range of electric vehicles on the market now, there’s a pickup, an SUV and a pretty excellent panel van. But what should it electrify next? Would you like to try an EV hatchback or maybe a sedan? How about a proper electric muscle car or even a Bronco EV?