Details

Published: 19 April 2021

• Registrations
• Ford
• Toyota
• USA

Toyota launched the Highlander to compete the Ford Explorer in European market

- Ford had decided in 2020 to launch in Europe its large Explorer SUV (5.06 m long ; E-segment ) which has been very successful in the United States for several years. Until now the American carmaker was focused to sell on the European continent SUVs of more reasonable dimensions, such as the Ecosport (4.10 m long ; B-segment), the Puma (4.20 m ; B-segment), the Kuga (4.60 m ; C-segment) and the Edge (4.80 m ; D-segment).

- The Explorer is a mid-range SUV for the US market, but in Europe it ranks among the bigger SUVs. There was therefore a risk of offering the Explorer on the European market, especially as the Edge was not successful there: this SUV introduced in Europe in 2016 has sold 45,000 copies in five years, or 9 000 per year. In 2020, it sold 3,500 units, up from 8,212 in 2019 and 8,225 in 2018. Today, the Edge is stopped in Europe.

- Ford thought it could ensure the Explorer's success by equipping it with a 3.0-liter plug-in hybrid 6-cylinder engine. But only 2,000 units were sold in Europe in 2020.

- Despite this poor result, Toyota wanted to compete the Explorer by offering its Highlander in Europe. This large 4.97 m-long SUV sold mainly in the United States has a 2.5-liter non-plug-in hybrid 4-cylinder engine. Less heavy than the Explorer (2,135 kg against 2,465 kg), the Highlander intends to attract customers looking for an SUV more spacious than the RAV4, as it can carry up to seven passengers like the Explorer. The Highlander is sold in Europe since January 2021, and it sold 260 copies in two months. The price of the Highlander is 65,000 euros compared to 75,000 euros for a Ford Explorer.

    

 

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Read more... Toyota launched the Highlander to compete the Ford Explorer in European market

Details

Published: 19 April 2021

• France
• Production
• Hungary
• Stellantis

The Stellantis group transfers the production of the EP engine to Hungary

- The Stellantis group has decided to transfer to Hungary the production of its EP petrol engine which is a four-cylinder block of 1400 cm3 and 1600 cm3 equipped today on the Citroën C5 Aircross, DS 3 Crossback, DS 7 Crossback, Peugeot 308, Peugeot 508, Peugeot 3008, Peugeot 5008 and Opel Grandland.

- This engine, whose origins date back to the time of the partnership between PSA and BMW on medium-capacity petrol engines, has seen its volume significantly reduced, as it only represents 218,000 units produced in 2020 out of a total of 2,4 million engines produced last year by PSA, or less than 10% of the total engine production of the carmaker.

- This engine will therefore be transferred in 2021 from the French plant in Douvrin to the Szentgotthard plant in Hungary (ex-Opel engine plant) which only produced 100,000 engines in 2020 (GM original engines). The Douvrin plant produced nearly 800,000 PSA engines last year, including 218,000 EP engines and 565,000 EB2 engines (three-cylinder 1,200 cc petrol).

- The objective of the carmaker is to boost the activity of the Szentgotthard plant, which would have continued to reduce its volume with the progressive end of GM origin engines, and to transform the activity of the Douvrin plant into a plant for producing batteries cells for electric cars from 2023. The Automotive Cells Company (ACC) joint venture that will produce these batteries cells is the result of a 50/50 partnership between Stellantis and the French battery producer Saft, a subsidiary of Total.

Note: This analysis was written before Stellantis announced the production at the Douvrinplant of the third generation of the EB 3-cylinder petrol engine. The corresponding analysis will be proposed soon.

    

 

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Read more... The Stellantis group transfers the production of the EP engine to Hungary

Details

Published: 19 April 2021

• Production
• Geely
• Belgium

Inovev forecast 90,000 units per year of the new Volvo C40

- The Swedish carmaker Volvo (a subsidiary of the Chinese group Geely) has unveiled the coupe version of its XC40 SUV (C-segment), thus following the strategy of other premium carmakers such as Audi, BMW or Mercedes who have developed a range of “coupe –SUVs”. The new model launched by Volvo is named C40, thus showing its link with the XC40.

- This name is also reminiscent of the old Volvo C30 (three-door B-segment coupe), C70 (D-segment coupe-convertible) and V40 (C-segment four-door sedan).

- Based on Volvo's CMA platform, the C40 will try to capture a younger target than the XC40, XC60 and XC90. The first model presented is equipped with the 100% electric motor of the XC40 Recharge, but we can assume that it will also be available later in thermal and plug-in hybrid (PHEV) versions like the XC40. The package electric motor + battery (78 kWh) enables the 100% electric C40 (named “Recharge”) to cover a distance of 420 km according to the WLTP cycle.

- According to Inovev, the new Volvo C40 could account for almost half of XC40 sales, or 90,000 units per year. The two models which share many components will be produced in the same plant, located in Ghent (or Gent) in Belgium, where the C40 will take over the V40 discontinued last year. The XC40 and C40 will also be made in China.

- The dimensions of the C40 are identical to those of the XC40, namely 4.43 m long, 1.86 m wide and 1.66 m high. The weight could be slightly less than that of the XC40 Recharge, around 2 tonnes.

    

 

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Read more... Inovev forecast 90,000 units per year of the new Volvo C40

Details

Published: 19 April 2021

• Production
• Tata
• United Kingdom

Jaguar Land Rover to close UK plant at Castle Bromwich

- The production development of electric cars is made inevitably to the detriment of thermal cars, but their price being much higher than their equivalent with thermal engines, we can say that some of the customers will prefer to keep their vehicle longer or acquire a second-hand vehicle (even electric) rather than ordering a new electric car, at least as long as the restrictions on the circulation of thermal vehicles are not generalized in all countries in Europe.

- This phenomenon, which was very quickly materialized at Smart (which eliminated the marketing of its combustion engine cars with a quick sharp decrease of sales) may cause a general drop in car registrations over the next few years, and therefore a decrease in the volume of automobile production, with a marked aging of the vehicle fleet. It may moreover go against the objectives of reducing emissions from automobiles. This is the reason why several carmakers have announced a reduction in their production capacities and others are considering following the same path.

- The Jaguar Land-Rover group (a subsidiary of the Indian group Tata Motors) recently announced that depending on the planned generalization of electric motorization on its models (60% at Land Rover and 100% at Jaguar in 2025), it would reduce soon its production capacities, notably by closing its plant in Castle Bromwich (UK), which currently produces the Jaguar XE, XF and F-Type. These three models should be finished in 2022 or 2023. The JLR group will then have only two plants in Great Britain: Solihull and Halewood, and one in Slovakia at Nitra.

    

 

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Read more... Jaguar Land Rover to close UK plant at Castle Bromwich