zzdcar
Home
/
Reviews
/
Culture
/
Honda And GM Scrap Plans For Small, Affordable EVs
Honda And GM Scrap Plans For Small, Affordable EVs-June 2024
2024-02-19 EST 22:11:52

A photo of the Honda logo on the side of a building in Japan.

Good morning! It’s Wednesday, October 25, 2023, and this is , your daily roundup of the top automotive headlines from around the world, in one place. Here are the important stories you need to know.

announced plans to collaborate on electric vehicles last year, saying that the shared platform would allow them to . But anyone that was holding out for the fruits of their labor might be waiting a long time, as the project has now been canceled.

Rising costs and an “uncertain” landscape have been blamed for the cancellation of small electric crossover, . The companies had been hoping to create an EV that could be sold in the U.S. for less than $30,000, with GM and Honda relying on their collaboration to cut costs. According to Bloomberg:

“After studying this for a year, we decided that this would be difficult as a business, so at the moment we are ending development of an affordable EV,” Mibe said in an interview with Bloomberg Television. “GM and Honda will search for a solution separately. This project itself has been canceled.”

Mibe didn’t specifically mention the UAW strike, but cited cost and cruising distance challenges as reasons for halting the plan.

The development of a new EV platform was set to be together. In the past, the two companies have worked on hydrogen fuel cell technology and they are also collaborating on everything from vehicle batteries and gas-powered cars to self-driving technology.

Now, where should you look for the fabled affordable EV? Probably still to GM to be honest. Although the company might have killed its budget friendly Bolt once, it confirmed that for release one day.

2nd Gear: Porsche Says Think Of The Rich People

We’re at the end of , which means automakers around the world are and complaining that they made a few less million dollars than they expected. , and has warned that the current wave of economic uncertainty has hit shoppers’ appetite for luxury.

According to its third quarter results, Porsche is running “in line” with expectation and remains on track to hit its targets for the year, according to a . However, the automaker’s financial bosses have warned that this doesn’t mean the luxury industry is getting off scot-free.

Instead, Porsche warned that rising inflation and uncertainty surrounding the global economy all mean that rich buyers are less likely to spend big on luxury items like German supercars. As Reuters reports:

“We are suffering in the entire economy,” said [Chief Financial Officer Lutz] Meschke. “It is also hitting the luxury industry - you can follow it when it comes to share price development of all luxury retailers worldwide.”

However, he added that the third quarter was often slightly weaker for German carmakers given the long summer break.

Despite the slowdown in the third quarter of 2023, Porsche is predicting a bounceback in the coming months. The German automaker has a few tricks up its sleeves to try and pry the cash out of its rich buyers hands, including a new , updated and the all-electric over the coming year.

3rd Gear: UAW Cuts Its Demands

The United Auto Workers union is into against America’s big three automakers. After over working conditions, pensions and even should be working, the union appears to have softened on one key demand.

After going into negotiations demanding raises of 40 percent across the board, the union is now calling for 25 percent raises for all its members, . The move follows updates last week that progress was being made between the UAW and GM, Ford and Stellantis. Automotive News reports:

The new figure, relayed to some bargaining teams in recent days, would result in top hourly wages of about $41.20 in 2027. Ford Motor Co., General Motors and Stellantis each have proposed 23 percent raises, which would put top earners at about $40.39.

The difference between the union’s demand and what the companies have offered is roughly $3,100 per worker over the entirety of the contract, although one source cautioned that the target could shift at any or all of the companies as talks continue.

Despite rumors that the union is softening its demands, it is still holding strong on the picket line. In fact, at the assembly line that builds the Chevy Tahoe and Suburban, GMC Yukon and Cadillac Escalade. This latest round of walkouts brings the total number of striking UAW members to more than 45,000.

4th Gear: GM Workers In Brazil Strike

It isn’t just GM workers in North America that are walking off the job this week, as are also facing strike action. In South America, workers at a GM metalwork plant have walked off the job in protest against a round of layoffs at three factories in Sao Paulo state.

Workers at GM’s Sao Jose dos Campos, Sao Caetano do Sul and Mogi das Cruzes plants have all agreed to walk off the job after the American automaker announced that 1,200 workers would have their “contracts temporarily suspended,” . The sites affected build engines and gearboxes for GM vehicles such as the Trailblazer SUV and S-10 truck. As CNN explains:

The Sindmetal union representing metalworkers at the Sao Jose dos Campos plant said workers had voted to enter a strike on Monday, adding that employees of the Sao Caetano do Sul and Mogi das Cruzes plants had also agreed to similar measures.

“The plant will only resume production after the job cuts are canceled and job stability is guaranteed for everyone,” the union said in a statement, arguing that the company had agreed to provide stability for employees until May 2024.

GM announced it would be cutting its workforce in Brazil after declining sales and exports. The company, which confirmed the layoffs to CNN, said the move was “necessary” to give it the “agility of its operations” that it needs.

Reverse: America Used To Build Railroads

On October 25, 1853, members of the PaiuteIndian Tribeattack U.S. Army Captain John W. Gunnison…

On The Radio: AC/DC - You Shook Me All Night Long

Comments
Welcome to zzdcar comments! Please keep conversations courteous and on-topic. To fosterproductive and respectful conversations, you may see comments from our Community Managers.
Sign up to post
Sort by
Show More Comments
Culture
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I Can't Get Enough Of This YouTuber Who Builds Tiny, Fully Functional Scale-Model Cars
I love tiny, of . I have a that is roughly half the size of a normal cat, and she’s perfect. I own a 2013 , which is like the miniature version of a normal-sized vehicle (at least here in Texas) — but beyond that, I also own a Hot...
Jun 22, 2025
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
2024 Kia EV9: What Do You Want To Know?
At long last, we are about to get behind the wheel of for the first time. Sure, , and sure, , and sure , but hey — what can you do? Anyway, before we get behind the wheel of this three-row electric beast, we want to know what you...
Jun 22, 2025
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
Watch ABS Fail When MotorWeek Tests A 1997 Chevy S-10
MotorWeek’s is some of the on the internet. The long-running automotive news magazine has a treasure trove of tests after being on the air for over 40 years. Where else can you find detailed instrumented testing of long-forgotten cars like the or a ? MotorWeek’s recent Retro Review upload is...
Jun 22, 2025
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I Entered My Lifted Miata In A Real Off-Road Race, Here's What Happened
I have two automotive loves: The first is the Miata, the second is off-road racing. For a while I raced air-cooled Volkswagens in the deserts of California and Nevada and I was lucky enough to co-drive in a class 11 stock bug in the Baja 1000 a few years...
Jun 22, 2025
Subaru Had It Right All Along
Subaru Had It Right All Along
When first came to the United States, it sold small funky cars that were decidedly un-American. As the company grew its own identity and became more established in the U.S., it became the first automaker to offer an all-wheel-drive passenger car in 1975. Subaru was also an early-adopter of...
Jun 22, 2025
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
Toyota Is Moving A Prewar 700-Ton Press Machine Halfway Around The World
closed its São Bernardo Plant in November 2023, marking the end of its first overseas production facility. The closure caps off a period of continuous car production in São Paolo, , lasting over 60 years. The plant was home to a Komatsu 700-ton press that predates itself. And now...
Jun 22, 2025
Copyright 2023-2025 - www.zzdcar.com All Rights Reserved