Category: Brands

Plans for a jointly developed electric sports car between European niche automakers Lotus and Alpine are reportedly scrapped. The collaboration ended on friendly terms according to Automotive News Europe, though a specific reason for the decision wasn’t mentioned.

The partnership was announced in 2021. Renault Group – the parent company for Alpine – revealed at the time that Alpine would become a purely electric performance brand. The plan was to have things cooking mid-decade, with a next-gen electric sports car co-developed with Lotus being a vehicle shared by both brands. Automotive News Europe cites Lotus as stating the company simply decided not to progress further with the project, though future cooperation is still possible. Autocar reports Alpine as confirming the news in a statement.

It’s worth noting the report specifically calls out just the planned sports car project. Alpine’s future electric ambitions include larger SUVs that could utilize Lotus platforms. By future electric ambitions, we’re referring to vehicles beyond more immediate EVs drawing from Renault’s portfolio, specifically a sporty hatch based on the new Renault 5 and a crossover called the GT X-Over. Of course, Lotus launched the Eletre last year, the company’s first SUV which was speculated to provide the foundation for Alpine’s larger offerings. The original plan had Alpine bringing these SUVs to market later in the decade.

For now, the current-generation A110 is still very much alive with its turbocharged four-cylinder engine. The mid-mount powerplant dishes up 300 horsepower in the A110 R, the latest version of the small sports car that debuted in October 2022. Infused with track-focused suspension and a healthy dose of carbon fiber, it clips to 60 mph in less than four seconds while still being a road-legal machine. That is, road-legal in Europe, anyway. The current A110 in any form isn’t offered for sale in North America, but with it expected to stick around until at least 2026, Renault is at least considering other export options.

COMO, Italy – BMW has resurrected the spirit of the original Z3 Coupe with the Touring Coupe concept, and is considering limited production of the two-seat shooting brake, which was originally developed as a one-off model based on the Z4.

The concept, unveiled here on the eve of the Concorso d’Eleganza Villa d’Este classic car show, is intended for the joy of travelling together, BMW says.

The Touring Coupe is for “two people and their luggage, enjoying their drive from Munich to Como,” Adrian Van Hooydonk, head of BMW Group design, told reporters on the sidelines of the concept unveiling on Friday.

Automakers removed 27,240 vehicles from their global production schedules last week because of the unrelenting shortage of microchips, according to the latest estimate by AutoForecast Solutions.

Each region of the world made new factory cuts last week, with plants in Asia outside of China leading the way by trimming 11,672 vehicles. Meanwhile, companies axed 8,510 vehicles at North American assembly plants.

Since the beginning of this year, automakers have eliminated plans to build 1.2 million vehicles. About 16.2 million vehicles have been cut since AutoForecast Solutions began tracking the impact of the semiconductor shortage in 2021.

“The hope remains that these losses will be minor by 2024,” said Sam Fiorani, AutoForecast Solutions’ vice president of global vehicle forecasting, in an email.

A new manufacturing process developed by supplier giant Magna International Inc. and the Department of Energy’s Pacific Northwest National Laboratory could soon make it possible to reduce aluminum parts suppliers’ reliance on new aluminum.

The process — Shear Assisted Processing and Extrusion — allows a company to collect scrap and leftover aluminum trimmings and directly turn it into material suitable by automotive standards.

Typically, recycled aluminum used in auto parts is added to newly mined aluminum to ensure higher quality.

But reducing the need for new aluminum would help companies cut carbon emissions by as much as 90 percent compared with typical processes, according to Magna and Pacific Northwest National Laboratory.

Staff Reporter John Irwin spoke with Aldo Van Gelder, 57, general manager of Magna’s corporate R&D center, about the collaboration. Here are edited excerpts.

Q: What spurred this partnership?

A: It’s tied to the increased consumption of aluminum and extrusions in vehicle structures. As that becomes more important, we’re looking at what type of processes and technologies are coming to market that we could use that could provide us a competitive advantage and garner more market share.

The expectation is the market for extrusions will double in the next 10 years. We’re moving with the market in that direction, with the way customers are designing those vehicles. It’s matching our process and footprint with the market and our customers.

What does this require from a capital perspective?

You can call it heavy manufacturing, so it’s capital intensive. If you look at casting or stamping or injection molding, all of these are capital intensive. Very few product areas that we operate in aren’t capital intensive. The fact that this can provide strategic advantages in terms of energy efficiency and lower cost is the primary reason we’re interested in this technology.

McLaren’s new 750S coupe may not appear radically different from the 720S it replaces for 2024. But look closer at those wheels.

McLaren engineers wanted the 750S to be more powerful and faster, with a 0 to 60 mph time of under three seconds, and that meant the new model needed to be lighter.

The project eliminated more than 30 pounds from the wheels alone — with no compromise to structural integrity — by milling out parts of the nonload-bearing section of the 10-spoke forged alloy rims. The results are the lightest wheels ever fitted as standard equipment on a series production model McLaren.

ST. CATHARINES, Ont. — Ontario Premier Doug Ford says the province is offering more money in a bid to keep automaker Stellantis from pulling out of building an electric-vehicle battery plant in Windsor, Ont.

Stellantis and LG Energy Solution announced last year that they were building the $5-billion plant, but have in recent days stopped construction and warned they were implementing contingency plans because the federal government hasn’t lived up to an agreement.

The CEOs of the two companies wrote last month to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying Ottawa had confirmed in writing five times that it would match production incentives under the United States’ Inflation Reduction Act, but has not delivered on those commitments.

But the federal government has been pressuring Ontario to pitch in as well, saying the province also has to pay its “fair share.”

Ford has said he is disappointed with how the federal government has handled the issue since the province didn’t make those production subsidy commitments, but said he is working with officials in Ottawa.

“I will confirm we’re putting more money on the table,” he said after an unrelated announcement in St. Catharines, Ont.

“This is all about saving jobs and giving people the quality of life they deserve in southwestern Ontario.”

The premier wouldn’t say how much, in order to protect those jobs.

Construction at a portion of the NextStar Energy plant – a joint venture between the automaker and LG Energy Solution (LGES) –   was halted May 15 after the companies accused the federal government of not living up to promises to match incentives contained in the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act. The automaker also warned that it was making contingency plans – a sign that it was willing to move the project across the border.

The plant, expected to employ 2,500 people and slated to begin production next year, would be capable of producing 45 gigawatt-hours of lithium ion cells and modules annually to feed Stellantis plants in Canada and the U.S.

Construction on the module portion of the plant was stopped, but work continued elsewhere on site.

The automaker has been accusing Ottawa of reneging on a previously made promise, alleging the federal government had “not delivered on what was agreed.”

Stellantis’ frustration with the pace of federal government negotiations appeared to heat up after Canada signed a deal April 21 of this year with Volkswagen for a battery gigafactory in St. Thomas, Ont. The federal government has committed to provide up to C$13.2 billion ($9.8 billion USD) in manufacturing tax credits to VW through 2032, while Europe’s largest carmaker is investing up to C$7 billion to build the plant.

The incentives nearly match those in the Inflation Reduction Act, which includes an incentive of US $35 per kWh of cell production and a US $10 per kWh incentive for battery module production.

Cells and modules are two separate parts, both to be assembled at the Windsor site.

Volkswagen will receive no federal support for battery modules made in St. Thomas., according to Hans Parmar, a spokesperson for Innovation, Science and Economic Development Canada.

Meanwhile, the province put up C$500 million for both deals, Ford previously said, and is ensuring roads and energy for the plants.

Flavio Volpe, head of the Canadian Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association praised the premier.

“Doug Ford stepping up in a crisis is on brand. And I wouldn’t expect the premier to make a statement if he wasn’t certain we solved this,” Volpe said. “We’re back on track. Hopefully we can pick up the momentum we started with this deal.

“All we’ve signaled to other investors is that details matter. We don’t have a standing tax credit, so you’re going to have to negotiate terms, and get it right the first time.”

The news pleased Unifor Local 444 President Dave Cassidy, who represents hourly workers at the Stellantis Windsor Assembly Plant, where minivans are currently made but will soon be swapped out for new electrified product.

“Like my father always told me, stick and stay and it’s bound pay. I expected this. I knew he’d [Ford] come through. He’s been very clear about it,” Cassidy told Automotive News Canada.  Cassidy said he has been in regular contact with the premier. 

“This is a great day, that we’ve just solidified this.”

Stellantis declined comment on the matter Friday.

With files from Automotive News Canada and the Canadian Press.

The Lamborghini Revuelto is the automaker’s new flagship model, replacing the Aventador. It’s also a plug-in hybrid and signals a change for the iconic company as it focuses on the industry’s digitized future that goes well beyond the car. A new video provides a behind-the-scenes look at the Revuelto’s production process, showing off the high-tech artistry and the artisans who build it.

The Revuelto’s modular production line is comprised of 15 stations that are flexible thanks to the use of autonomous vehicles. This will allow Lamborghini to quickly adapt to changes in production volumes, model mix, or other production needs, like adding a new engine, and better serve customers’ customization requests. Employees in specialized areas such as hybrid and engine technology, saddlery, and others undergo more than 500 hours of training in order to build the Revuelto.

Lamborghini also completely fabricates the Revuelto’s carbon-fiber monocoque in Sant’Agata, with the chassis being 25 percent stiffer and 10 percent lighter than the Aventador’s. The company is also assembling the Revuelto’s electric motor in-house, a first for the automaker. Each one undergoes testing, which puts the motor through a static, a dynamic, and an NVH test. Lamborghini also performs a load test that simulates the Nardò circuit.

The Revuelto is a hybrid that uses three electric motors to provide additional horsepower and performance alongside the 6.5-liter V12 engine behind the cabin. The supercar makes a combined 1,001 horsepower; however, its EV mode cuts that back to 180 hp. An eight-speed dual-clutch transmission routes power to all four wheels, propelling the car to 60 miles per hour in 2.5 seconds. It can reach 124 mph in under 7 seconds while on its way to a top speed of over 217 mph.

We won’t have to wait too much longer for the Revuelto to go on sale, as it will launch in the US later this year for the 2024 model year. Lamborghini hasn’t announced how much it will cost, but we expect it to supersede the Aventador’s half-a-million-dollar price tag. However, until then, you can configure one to your heart’s content and worry about paying for your dream supercar later.

Aston Martin said Geely Automobile Holdings had committed to invest about 234 million pounds ($295 million) in the British luxury automaker, making the Chinese automotive group its third largest shareholder.

As part of the transaction, Geely will acquire a 17 percent stake in Aston Martin, purchasing 42 million shares from Chairman Lawrence Stroll’s Yew Tree consortium along with 28 million new shares, Aston Martin said in a stock exchange filing.

“Geely Holding, who initially became a shareholder last year, sees tremendous potential for Aston Martin’s long-term growth and success,” Stroll said in a statement.

“They offer us a deep understanding of the key strategic growth market that China represents, as well as the opportunity to access their range of technologies and components,” he said.

Aston Martin has struggled with cash and acquired Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund as a shareholder last year as Stroll looks to turn around the automaker and pivot to battery-powered sports cars. Analysts have in the past said that Aston’s lack of scale and precarious cash balance made it vulnerable.

Currently, Stroll’s Yew Tree is the company’s largest shareholder, followed by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund.

Geely owns multiple brands including British sports-car maker Lotus, Zeekr, Volvo Cars and Polestar, via a joint venture with Volvo.

Geely acquired a 7.6 percent stake in Aston Martin in September last year.

“Our decision to increase our shareholding in Aston Martin reflects our confidence in the company’s growth prospects, its technologies and its management team,” said Geely Chairman Eric Li.

Reuters and Bloomberg contributed to this report

WIXOM, Mich. — Cirba Solutions, a new battery recycler formed from companies with decades of industry experience, plans to expand its electric vehicle battery recycling business sevenfold in the next few years.

The key to Cirba Solutions’ future are its regional facilities.

“The name of the game is to make sure we’ve got locations where we can price materials close to our customers, and also sell that material back close to where the customers are going to be building new batteries for the industry,” said CEO David Klanecky on a tour of the Cirba Solutions plant here.

The company now has six plants, but that will nearly double in the next five years. Cirba has plants in Wixom, Mich., near Detroit; Anaheim, Calif.; Mesa, Ariz.; British Columbia in Canada; and Lancaster and Baltimore in Ohio, both near Columbus. A seventh facility, its flagship, near Columbia, S.C., is slated to open next year.

A small player in the battery recycling sphere, Cirba Solutions is leaning on longstanding relationships with automakers, battery manufacturers, cathode producers and others as it faces competition from prominent battery recycling companies.

Cirba plans to invest more than $1 billion in the battery recycling and materials business in the next decade, Klanecky said. Its employee count — about 300 — is set to double in the next two years.

Regional centers empower the company to offer multiple collection points and to reduce carbon emissions. When Cirba Solutions gets a call to pick up batteries, a representative can travel almost anywhere in the continental U.S. within 48 hours, said Klanecky.

“That’s a massive competitive advantage,” he said. “No one else can do that in the industry.”

The company formed from a series of mergers of three companies: Heritage Battery Recycling, which specialized in battery and materials processing innovation; Retriev Technologies, which specialized in battery materials processing; and Battery Solutions, which specialized in battery collection, logistics and services. Heritage Battery Recycling and Retriev Technologies merged in 2021 and acquired Battery Solutions last year. The combined entity was branded Cirba Solutions in 2022.

Today, Cirba Solutions markets itself as the most comprehensive battery materials and management company for end-of-life batteries and gigafactory scrap.

But analysts say Cirba Solutions will likely face challenges from competitors that have existing partnerships with major automakers.

“There is a place for smaller-scale players in this landscape, but they would have a tough time competing with the likes of Li-Cycle and Redwood Materials,” said Prabhakar Patil, former CEO of LG Chem Power who now advises battery companies.

As EV sales continue to scale, one of Cirba Solutions’ strengths is battery collection in the consumer electronics market, Patil said.

The company uses metals from phones, laptops and even hearing aids to develop materials for batteries, Cirba said.