Level 4 capability is rolling in the streets of Sejong Smart City. . .
By Gary S. Vasilash
Hyundai Motor Company—the parent organization of the firm that brings us Elantras and Tucsons and so on—announced it is launching a “RoboShuttle,” which is a Hyundai H350, light commercial, four-door van that is loaded with autonomous driving and artificial intelligence such that it will be able to transport people “with minimal intervention from a safety driver.”
Almost-autonomous vehicle. (Image: Hyundai)
More simply: this is going to be the basis of a ride-hailing service (there is the Shucle app developed by AIRS Company, which happens to be an AI research lab owned and operated by Hyundai). The system will determine the most-optimal routes based on demand.
The RoboShuttle will operate along a 6.1-km route—in Sejong Smart City, South Korea.
Think about that: “Sejong Smart City.”
It sounds exactly like the sort of place where there should be autonomous shuttles hailed by the Shucle app.
In the U.S. it is difficult to get the potholes filled in in many cities, and the South Koreans have established a city that is described as being smart.
And if you want one, make sure your digital account if full of digits
By Gary S. Vasilash
“The new BMW CE 04 is the link between the user’s analogue and digital worlds. It is both a means of transport and a means of communication for the big city commuter. With its forward-looking design thanks based on an innovative package, it sets out to redefine the scooter segment.”
That’s Edgar Heinrich, head of Design, BMW Motorrad.
The CE 04 is a scooter. An electric scooter.
Heinrich and the BMW CE 04 electric scooter. (Image: BMW)
How it is a means of communication is curious. And while its design has a shard aesthetic to it, which is about as far from the smooth lines characteristic of a Vespa, it isn’t entirely clear whether this is “forward-looking” or just “Blade Runner.”
It produces 42 hp. It has a maximum speed of 75 miles. It has a maximum range of an estimated 80 miles. It can carry two people (which would probably have an effect on the speed and range).
Its 147.6-volt lithium-ion battery pack recharges fairly quickly: from 0 to 100% in 4 hours and 20 minutes when plugged into a normal household outlet (Level 1). For a Level 2 charger (one of those units you’ve seen in parking lots, say, at Whole Foods) it is 1 hour and 40 minutes. If you charge the battery from 20% to 80% (which would presumably provide a range of 64 miles) on a Level 2 charger, it is just 45 minutes. Or the time to do a good shop at Whole Foods and a quick cappuccino.
But there is one number that is somewhat brake-applying for most people: It has an MSRP of $11,795.
Although the report produced by the U.S. Dept. of Commerce in February 2019 about the importance of imposing tariffs on imported motor vehicles and components, “The Effect of Imports of Automobiles and Automobile Parts on the National Security,” had been kept under wraps by the Trump Administration and was released in redacted form last week, the rationale for keeping this report, which could have resulted in tariffs on the 25 to 35% level (remember: the consumer pays the additional costs, not the manufacturer), on a shelf somewhere probably had a little something to do with its level of stupidity.
Consider just this line:
“While the U.S. defense industrial base is dependent on the American-owned automotive sector for the development of high-tech products and capabilities, the U.S. commercial automotive industry is unable to survive solely by supplying the DOD.”
It is shifting the structure of its traditional powertrain business to achieve more resources for EVs
By Gary S. Vasilash
Admittedly this is sort of confusing. Volvo Cars is owned by Geely Holding. The two companies have announced that they are creating a joint venture, Aurobay, which will be dedicated to powertrain operations.
Volvo Cars will wrap in the assets from Powertrain Engineering Sweden, which includes an engine plant in Skövde, Sweden, another engine plant in China, a R&D team, and other powertrain items.
The purpose of the creation of Aurobay is said to be to allow Volvo Cars to focus on developing electric vehicles. Volvo has announced it plans for 50% of its global vehicle sales to be full EVs by 2025, with the remaining half hybrids. And by 2030, all of its vehicles are to be fully powered by electricity.
The slightly confusing part about all this is if Geely owns Volvo, presumably that means it owns Volvo’s assets.
So this creation of the joint venture seems as though it is something that could have been executed by a memo from HQ.
One more thing about Aurobay: there is the potential to serve customers that aren’t Volvo or Geely.
Of course you’re going to find a super car in London
By Gary S. Vasilash
There will be 150 Rimac Automobili Neveras produced. The car is all electric. The car is rated at 1,914 hp.
The Rimac Nevera in London. (Where are the other cars?) Because it is an electric vehicle, it can travel through the Ultra Low Emissions Zone without a problem. (Image: Master Krishan)
In this photo, the Nevera is in London. This outing is the first time the car has been outside of where it was designed, engineered and built, Croatia. It will be going to the Goodwood Festival of Speed later this week. Which is reasonable. It will be part of the hillclimb in the Supercar Run.
Given that its four electric motors power it to 60 mph in 1.85 seconds and up to 100 mph in 4.3 seconds and will hit 186 mph after 9.3 seconds, odds are it will do well.
The Nevera was in London because its official retailer in the country, H.R. Owen, is there.
The vehicle has a sticker of two-million Euro, which is 1,712,730.00 British pounds.
The Nevera will go on something of a world tour, making some 20 stops in Europe, Asia and the U.S.
Odds are the vehicle will be sold out before it gets much further.
Not exactly what you might think vis-à-vis a fuel-efficient vehicle
By Gary S. Vasilash
The Bentley Flying Spur is an imposing, stately sedan that is meant to go fast, thus its name.
The car is 209 inches long, 87 inches wide (mirror to mirror), 58 inches high, and when equipped with a V8 weighs 5,137 pounds. Large, solid and powerful.
It has a top speed of 198 mph.
The car has also been offered with a W12 engine (think of two V’s).
And now there is another variant, the Flying Spur Hybrid.
Yes, you can plug it in to charge the 14.1 kWh lithium-ion battery. (Image: Bentley)
It is part of Bentley’s “journey to electrification.”
The hybrid powertrain is based on a 2.9-liter V6 gasoline engine with an electric motor fitted between the engine and the transmission.
The turbocharged V6 engine produces 416 hp. The electric motor produces 134 hp. The system output is 543 hp.
While the V8 has more horsepower overall—549.5 hp—when looked at from a per liter metric, the Hybrid generates 152 hp per liter, more than the V8.
However, the V8’s 198 mph top speed bests the Hybrid, which is poking along at 177 mph.
What’s more, the V8 can go from 0 to 60 more quickly—in 4.0 seconds. 0.1 faster than the Hybrid.
When you get back to the point that these vehicles weigh more than two tons, even 4.1 seconds seems nearly impossible—especially for what the company describes as “the most efficient Bentley ever.”
An up-close look at bringing the clever small truck to the market
By Gary S. Vasilash
The Ford Maverick is what is being called a “white space” vehicle, a small—199.7-inch long—pickup truck with four doors and seating for five. As a point of reference, a Ford Ranger is 210.8 inches long and an F-150 is 231.7 inches long.
It will come standard with a hybrid powertrain that will provide an estimated combined fuel efficiency rating of 37 mpg. And the standard model has a payload capacity of 1,500 pounds and is capable of towing 2,000 pounds.
(Image: Ford)
The starting MSRP for the Maverick is $19,995.
And when asked whether this is some sort of artificially low price, both Chris Mazur, Maverick chief program engineer, and Trevor Scott, marketing manager for the Maverick (and Ranger), unambiguously maintain that this truck is the real deal.
It is, they say “Built Ford Tough.”
That claim is fairly bedrock for the Ford truck lineup so you can be confident that they’re not going to be using it unless there is confidence that they’re going to deliver with this pickup the same way that’s done for the other Ford trucks.
The interesting thing about the Maverick is how it was developed—done in a way unlike has been the case at Ford (as well as other companies that develop, well, anything). And this approach has not only led to the various innovations that are part of the Maverick, but also contributes to the cost-efficiency that the MSRP underscores.
One of the things about the truck is that the team, observing the way that real people use their trucks (not that the people on the team aren’t real people, too) is that many of them hack solutions, whether it is drilling holes in the sidewalls of the box to access electricity or jury-rigging the means to secure a mountain bike in the back. So Mazur says that they thought about that and have made power access simply available will provide CAD files that will allow owners to 3D print tooling for things like attachments.
It is almost that DIY ethos that is characteristic of the product development.
When the development started—pre-COVID—it was decided that there would be a cross-functional team consisting of representatives and participants from all functions that would be necessary to get the job done.
All of the participants wouldn’t just be in the same email group—they would be in the same room. Finance. Manufacturing engineering. Everyone was there. If there was a question to be answered, there was the person—right over there—who probably had the answer.
And they worked to be fast. Their “audacious goal” was to cut 25 months out of the development program.
They made quick models. They plastered the wall with documents and Post-It notes.
When it was time for the upper management reviews, it was there in the room, with the working documents and models and whatnot. Binders and PowerPoints were not on the schedule.
And when COVID hit and the people left the room for their own houses, they were still a team that knew one another, knew who to talk to to get answers, knew who was involved in what aspect of the development.
They were able to get things done.
They didn’t hit the 25-month goal, Mazur admits.
But they took 20 months out of the process.
Remarkable by any measure. And they had a pandemic to contend with.
Realize that as Ford has decided that things like trucks are important to its offering in a way that cars no longer are, the Maverick is a key vehicle in its product lineup.
Mazur and Scott are our special guests on this edition of “Autoline After Hours.”
John McElroy and I are joined by Mike Martinez of Automotive News, who covers Ford.
It is a full hour devoted to the Maverick.
If you have any interest in the truck or in an innovative approach to development, you’ve got to watch this show because you’re not likely to ever get a better sense of how the Maverick has been created.
Genesis, the luxury brand that is part of the Hyundai Group, wanted to make sure that its entry into the European market is well noted, so it went to a town in Switzerland, Lauterbrunnen, which is in the Swiss Alps, picked out a mountain, and created a lightshow that displayed the company’s logo.
Vehicle plants that make a million vehicles of one type are comparatively rare, so a nod to the folks at the Ford Kansas City Assembly Plant, who made the millionth Transit commercial van there this week.
Consider this: the Transit comes in various lengths, from 217.8 inches to 263.9 inches. So let’s take something about in the middle, 235.5 inches. A million Transits parked nose to tail would be about 3,800 miles long. That’s a lot of trucks. (Image: Ford)
The plant began production of the vehicle in 2014.
Undoubtedly as a result of their expertise (and the tooling on had probably plays a role, too), they’ll start building the E-Transit, an all-electric cargo hauler, later this year.
Turns out that police pursuit pickups are really quite quick
By Gary S. Vasilash
According to test data from the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department, the 2021 Ford F-150 Police Responder has the best acceleration of any pursuit-rated police vehicle tested.
You don’t want to see this in your rearview mirror, do you? (Image: Ford)
The tests show that the vehicle does a quarter mile in 14.4 seconds. That 0.4 is important because that is how much faster it is than its closest competitor.
The Michigan State Police are also running tests on the pickup. So far it has measured a 0 to 60 mph time of 5.4 seconds. Again, number-two is 0.4 seconds slower.
However, they’ve found the F-150 going from 0 to 100 mph in 13.1 seconds, which is 0.8 seconds faster than the runner up.
The top speed? The Michigan State Police say 120 mph, which is 15 mph faster than the 2020 model of the truck.
A big contributor to the performance?
A new torque-on-demand 4×4 transfer case.
This is the case because it gets the torque to the wheels faster.
It is also beneficial when cornering.
Both police departments run 32-lap vehicle dynamics test.
The improvements in cornering capability resulted in a 5.8-second reduction in the average lap time in Michigan and a 3.6-second reduction in LA.
No, it’s not that the LA cops are slower drivers than those in Michigan: They put 400 additional pounds of payload into the trucks during testing to simulate cargo.
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