William Maley

The tweet that has become Elon Musk's version of Pandora's Box has brought forth a lawsuit from the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Today, the SEC accused Musk of securities fraud when he tweeted that he had the funding secured to take Tesla private back in August. "Musk knew or was reckless in not knowing that each of these statements was false and/or misleading because he did not have an adequate basis in fact for his assertions," the SEC wrote in a complaint filed in Manhattan federal court today. "Musk's false and misleading public statements and omissions caused significant confusion and disruption in the market for Tesla's stock and resulting harm to investors." In the complaint, the SEC says the $420 share price was "based on a 20% premium over that day's closing share price because he thought 20% was a 'standard premium' in going-private transactions." At the time, that price would have been $419. The complaint goes on to say "Musk stated that he rounded the price up to $420 because he had recently learned about the number's significance in marijuana culture and thought his girlfriend 'would find it funny, which admittedly is not a great reason to pick a price.'" The SEC is requesting Musk "be prohibited from acting as an officer or director of any issuer that has a class of securities registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act." This whole mess began on August 7th with Musk tweeting this, This surprised a number of people and brought forth questions as to who would provide the large amount of funding needed for this. About a week later, Musk revealed that Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund (PIF) could provide the necessary funding. This was based on discussions with the fund within the past couple of years. But Musk would pull the plug on this a few weeks after announcing it. "Although the majority of shareholders I spoke to said they would remain with Tesla if we went private, the sentiment, in a nutshell, was ‘please don’t do this,” Musk wrote in a blog post. According to Bloomberg, the SEC was already investigating Tesla for various issues including projection into car sales before Musk made the tweet that brought forth a number of problems. “This unjustified action by the SEC leaves me deeply saddened and disappointed. I have always taken action in the best interests of truth, transparency and investors. Integrity is the most important value in my life and the facts will show I never compromised this in any way,” said Musk in a statement. "Neither celebrity status nor a reputation as a technological innovator provide an exemption from the federal securities laws," Stephanie Avakian, co-director of the SEC's Enforcement Division said during a press conference. Source: Bloomberg (Subscription Required), Roadshow, SEC (Link to the complaint) View full article

If you're expecting to see an Audi e-tron at your local dealership next spring, we have some bad news for you. According to Automotive News, Audi is testing a new retail model where dealers will not stock the model. Instead, they'll handle reservations for customers on the e-tron that begin with a $1,000 deposit. The hope is that will improve profitability of the e-tron. "I think it would be a beautiful world if you can go to a dealer — and we'd like to find that beautiful world — with zero floorplan [expense] and proper, full gross on the car. This would be a beautiful state; so let's go see if we can find this dream state," said Audi of America President Scott Keogh. This approach will allow all of Audi's dealers in the U.S. to sell the e-tron with worrying vehicle allocation and being stuck with trying move them off their lot. "The same network that got us to double our sales, and got us to 200,000 units [annually], is going to be the same network that's going to lead this electric revolution for us. And that's a massive competitive advantage — an onboard and engaged network," said Keogh. That isn't to say dealers will not be allowed to stock e-trons. A spokesman told Automotive News that dealers will be able to order e-trons for their inventory should they desire. They will also have demos available to buyers to check out. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) View full article

Yesterday, President Donald Trump announced that he had reached an agreement with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe to open trade talks between the two nations. Previously, the president had threatened a 25 percent tariff on cars to reduce imports and encourage more production in the U.S. The two agree that the "sanctions on auto exports won’t be applied while the talks take place." A key topic of talks will likely be giving better access to U.S. cars to be sold in Japan, something President Trump has complained about before. Data from Japan’s auto industry associations said only 0.3 percent of the 3.2 million vehicles sold in the country this year when American brands. Contrast this to 40 percent of the U.S.' market share being made up by Japanese automakers according to Bloomberg. But there arises a problem with Trump's ambition, Japanese buyers aren't interested. Japan has argued time and time again that the reason American automakers don't do some well is the perception of that American cars are " bulky and inefficient". There is one American brand that bucks this trend, Jeep. According to Bloomberg, Jeep sold more than 7,000 vehicles in the first eight months of this year - beating all other U.S. brands combined. Source: Bloomberg (Subscription Required) View full article

One of the most controversial moves during Johan de Nysschen's tenure as Cadillac President was moving the brand's headquarters from Detroit to New York in 2015. Executives at GM explained at the time this would Cadillac to separate from the day-to-day operations of their mainstream brands - Buick, Chevrolet, and GMC. Sources at the time said another reason for the move came down to various GM executive worrying about Cadillac's worldview from Detroit "was too myopic for a brand with global aspirations." But Cadillac will be moving out of their space at 330 Hudson Street in New York City back to Detroit. This was revealed by Cadillac's new president Steve Carlisle in a interview with the Wall Street Journal. The reason is that he wants the brand's leaders to be closer to GM’s vehicle design and engineering offices in Metro Detroit, especially considering Cadillac has a number of new and redesign models coming in the next few years. “We have a huge number of launches ahead of us. We’ve got to think about how we take inefficiencies out of the communication process between the Cadillac team and the GM partners," said Carlisle. Cadillac confirmed the move in a statement to The Detroit News. "The move will place the Cadillac brand team closer to those responsible for the new Cadillacs, including design, engineering, purchasing and manufacturing, ensuring full integration of Cadillac’s global growth strategy. Cadillac will maintain a brand presence in New York City with the Cadillac House, an experiential brand center which serves as a public space for events, concerts and collaborative partnerships until longer term brand plans are in place," said the brand. Cadillac didn't give a timeframe or where the headquarters would be located. Automotive News reports that U.S. Rep. Sander Levin, D-Mich., released a statement saying the headquarters would be based in Warren, MI - where GM has their technical center. A Cadillac spokesman declined to comment. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required), The Detroit News, Wall Street Journal (Subscription Required) View full article

Volkswagen was originally planning to roll out the Arteon in the U.S. towards the end of this year. But complications stemming from the European Union's Worldwide Harmonized Light-Duty Vehicles Test Procedure (WLTP) has caused the German automaker to push back the launch to early 2019. Automotive News reports that the first hint of the delay came when Volkswagen cancelled a media drive event in California that was scheduled for next month. A spokesman told the outlet the delay comes down to delays in the certification process caused by a backlog in meeting [new] WLTP worldwide emissions testing." Beginning this month, all new vehicles sold in the European Union must meet the new WLTP emissions parameters. But long delays in testing have meant that automakers only started receiving certification recently. This in turn has meant automakers are under immense pressure to keep an adequate supply of WLTP-compliant vehicles to dealers. The Arteon is one of those models and Volkswagen has made the decision to prioritize production for Europe for the time being. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required) View full article

Many new cars are fitted with various driver assist systems; backup cameras, blind spot monitoring, adaptive cruise control, forward collision warning, and lane-keep assist to name a few. But this has introduced the problem of drivers becoming too reliant on these systems, causing them not realize the limitations and taking their own "preventative measures". The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety published a report this month looking into drivers' experiences with the assistance technologies and seeing how they relate to their understanding of it. The group commissioned researchers from the University of Iowa to survey over 1,200 owners of 2016 and 2017 model year vehicles equipped with ADAS technologies. The study revealed that the majority of drivers have a favorable impression of ADAS tech, with at least "two in three owners of vehicles with each respective technology reported that they trusted it." Seven out ten respondents said they would want the respective ADAS tech on their current vehicle to be standard on their next one. But, the study revealed that many drivers overestimate the capability of ADAS systems. Here are some of the key findings, Over 80 percent of drivers surveyed don't fully understand the limitations or believed that blind-spot monitoring systems could detect a large number of fast-approaching vehicles, bicycles and pedestrians. 25 percent of drivers surveyed said they don't look for oncoming vehicles when they change lanes because their vehicle has blind-spot monitoring. Nearly 40 percent of drivers don't understand the limitations of forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking systems. A number believed that the former would bring the vehicle to a stop, when in actuality only warns a driver of a possible collision. One in six drivers didn't know if their vehicle came equipped with an emergency braking system. About 29 percent of drivers admitted "feeling comfortable engaging in other tasks while driving" when using the adaptive cruise control system. “When properly utilized, ADAS technologies have the potential to prevent 40 percent of all vehicle crashes and nearly 30 percent of traffic deaths. However, driver understanding and proper use is crucial in reaping the full safety benefits of these systems,” said Dr. David Yang, executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety in a statement. “Findings from this new research show that there is still a lot of work to be done in educating drivers about proper use of ADAS technologies and their limitations.” AAA says automakers, dealers, and rental agencies need to provide better education to drivers about ADAS tech and their limitations. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required), AAA Drivers Rely Too Heavily on New Vehicle Safety Technologies In Spite of Limitations Misunderstanding and misuse of driver assistance technology could lead to a crash WASHINGTON, D.C. (Sept. 26, 2018) – More and more, drivers are recognizing the value in having vehicles with advanced driver assistance systems (ADAS) like blind spot monitoring systems, forward collision warning and lane keeping assist. However, while many of these technologies are rapidly being offered as standard, many drivers are unaware of the safety limitations of ADAS in their vehicles, according to new research from the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. For example, researchers found that nearly 80 percent of drivers with blind spot monitoring systems were unaware of limitations or incorrectly believed the system could accurately detect vehicles passing at very high speeds or bicycles and pedestrians. In reality, the technology can only detect when a vehicle is traveling in a driver’s blind spot and many systems do not reliably detect pedestrians or cyclists. Lack of understanding or confusion about the proper function of ADAS technologies can lead to misuse and overreliance on the systems, which could result in a deadly crash. “When properly utilized, ADAS technologies have the potential to prevent 40 percent of all vehicle crashes and nearly 30 percent of traffic deaths. However, driver understanding and proper use is crucial in reaping the full safety benefits of these systems,” said Dr. David Yang, executive director of the AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety. “Findings from this new research show that there is still a lot of work to be done in educating drivers about proper use of ADAS technologies and their limitations.” In 2016, more than 37,400 people were killed in traffic crashes- a five percent increase from 2015. “With ADAS technologies offering proven safety benefits when properly used, it is important that automakers and others play a greater role in educating motorists about the technology available in the vehicles they purchase,” said Jake Nelson, AAA director of traffic safety advocacy and research. “AAA also urges drivers to take charge of learning their vehicle technology’s functions and limitations in order to improve safety on the road.” The AAA Foundation for Traffic Safety commissioned researchers from the University of Iowa to survey drivers who recently purchased a 2016 or 2017 model-year vehicle with ADAS technologies. Researchers evaluated drivers’ opinions, awareness and understanding of these technologies and found that most did not know or understand the limitations of the systems: Blind spot monitoring: 80 percent of drivers did not know the technology’s limitations or incorrectly believed that the systems could monitor the roadway behind the vehicle or reliably detect bicycles, pedestrians and vehicles passing at high speeds. Forward collision warning and automatic emergency braking: nearly 40 percent of drivers did not know the system’s limitations, or confused the two technologies- incorrectly reporting that forward collision warning could apply the brakes in the case of an emergency when the technology is only designed to deliver a warning signal. Moreover, roughly one in six vehicle owners in the survey reported that they did not know whether or not their vehicle was equipped with automatic emergency braking. False expectations for ADAS systems can easily lead to misuse of the technology or an increase in driver distraction. In the survey: About 25 percent of drivers using blind spot monitoring or rear cross traffic alert systems report feeling comfortable relying solely on the systems and not performing visual checks or looking over their shoulder for oncoming traffic or pedestrians. About 25 percent of vehicle owners using forward collision warning or lane departure warning systems report feeling comfortable engaging in other tasks while driving. “New vehicle safety technology is designed to make driving safer, but it does not replace the important role each of us plays behind the wheel,” Yang continued. “The prospect of self-driving cars is exciting, but we aren’t there yet. Automakers have an ethical and important responsibility to accurately market, and to carefully educate consumers about the technologies we purchase in the vehicles we drive off the lot.” As part of its ongoing traffic safety mission, new AAA Foundation research also evaluated the potential these popular advanced driver assistance technologies have in helping to reduce or prevent crashes. The findings show that if installed on all vehicles, ADAS technologies can potentially prevent more than 2.7 million crashes, 1.1 million injuries and nearly 9,500 deaths each year: ADAS Systems Crashes Injuries Deaths Forward Collision Warning/ Automatic Emergency Braking 1,994,000 884,000 4,738 Lane Departure Warning / Lane Keeping Assist 519,000 187,000 4,654 Blind Spot Warning 318,000 89,000 274 Total Potentially Preventable by all systems 2,748,000 1,128,000 9,496 Despite the findings that show confusion about some ADAS technologies, at least 70 percent of vehicle owners report that they would recommend the technology to other drivers. The greatest proportion of drivers reported trusting blind spot monitoring systems (84 percent), followed by rear-cross traffic alert (82 percent), lane departure warning (77 percent), lane keeping assist (73 percent), forward collision warning (69 percent) and automatic emergency braking (66 percent). These findings should prompt additional focus on the importance of educating new and used car buyers about how safety technologies work. “The training drivers need to properly use the safety technologies in their vehicles is not currently offered,” added Nelson. “If educating consumers about vehicle technology was as much a priority for the automakers and dealers as making the sale, we would all reap the benefits.” Only about half of the drivers who report purchasing their vehicle from a car dealership recalled being offered a training on the ADAS technology. However, for those who were, nearly 90 percent took advantage of the opportunity and completed the training. For now, drivers are their best safety advocate to ensure that they understand their technology’s features, functions and limitations before leaving the lot. In order to reduce misuse or overreliance on the systems, AAA encourages drivers to: Read up: Read your owner’s manual to learn what systems are installed in your vehicle. See it in action: Insist on an in-vehicle demonstration and test drive to better understand how the systems will engage on the roadway. Ask questions: Ask plenty of questions about the alerts, functions, capabilities and limitations of the vehicle’s safety technologies before leaving the dealership. For example, ask if there are scenarios when a technology will not function properly on the road. View full article

Volvo's Cross Country lineup provides a middle ground between standard wagons and SUVs by combining elements of the two. You get the space and fuel economy of a wagon, while getting the off-road capability of an SUV. We've been waiting for Volvo to introduce a version of their recently unveiled V60 wagon. Today, Volvo did just that. The V60 Cross Country takes the standard V60 and raises ground clearance by 2.95 inches. There is also a set of lower body cladding. The U.S. version will get T5 (turbocharged 2.0L four-cylinder), while European models get the choice of either the T5 or D4. Power goes to all four wheels via an all-wheel drive system. Hill-descent control and an off-road driving mode are standard. Volvo says mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid powertrains will be available at a later date. “With the new V60 Cross Country, we take our Swedish family estate from one natural habitat to another. We invented the Cross Country segment over 20 years ago and with this car, we reinforce our long-standing pedigree in safe, capable and versatile family cars,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars. No word on pricing, but Volvo says that the V60 Cross Country will be available through the Care By Volvo program. We don't have a launch date, but we hope to learn about that sometime in the coming months. Source: Volvo New Volvo V60 Cross Country takes the Swedish family crossover utility off the beaten path Volvo Cars, the premium car maker, today revealed the new Cross Country version of its V60. The rugged V60 Cross Country is the latest addition to the company’s line-up of brand new Volvos that underpins the company’s transformation in recent years. Like its V60 sibling that was launched earlier this year on the driveway of a Stockholm villa, the V60 Cross Country personifies the versatile Swedish family crossover utility vehicle. To that profile, it adds the capability on and off the beaten track that has defined Volvo’s Cross Country range since its introduction in 1997, taking the V60 from the suburb to the skogen (Swedish for forest). “With the new V60 Cross Country, we take our Swedish family estate from one natural habitat to another,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive of Volvo Cars. “We invented the Cross Country segment over 20 years ago and with this car, we reinforce our long-standing pedigree in safe, capable and versatile family cars.” Ground clearance for the V60 Cross Country is up to 75mm higher than the regular V60, thanks to the specially developed Cross Country chassis and suspension that enhance the car’s off-road capability. All-wheel-drive is standard on the new V60 Cross Country, as are Hill Descent Control, Electronic Stability Control, Corner Traction Control and a special Off-Road driving mode. Like its 60 Series and 90 Series stablemates, the new V60 Cross Country benefits from Volvo Cars’ award-winning Scalable Product Architecture (SPA) platform, safety technology and infotainment system. The new V60 Cross Country is also available through Volvo Cars’ premium subscription service Care by Volvo, which offers car access via a monthly flat-fee subscription rather than ownership. “The V60 Cross Country is every bit as refined as the other 60 and 90 Series cars based on our SPA platform,” said Henrik Green, senior vice president of research and development at Volvo Cars. “The added versatility makes it at home in town and country, thanks to a higher seating position, increased ground clearance and dynamic all-wheel-drive capabilities.” Volvo Cars’ award-winning City Safety with Autobrake is fitted as standard and assists the driver in avoiding potential collisions. It is the only system on the market to help recognise pedestrians, cyclists and large animals. The Pilot Assist system supports the driver with steering, acceleration and braking on well-marked roads up to 80 MPH. Run-off Road Mitigation, Oncoming Lane Mitigation and other steering assistance systems are standard. The optional Cross Traffic Alert with autobrake further enhances safety. These and other proven safety technologies make the new V60 Cross Country one of the safest cars on the road. Volvo Cars’ Sensus Connect infotainment system is fully compatible with Apple CarPlay, Android Auto and 4G, and keeps drivers connected regardless of whether they travel in urban areas or across the countryside. The intuitive tablet-style touchscreen control combines car functions, navigation, connected services and in-car entertainment apps. The new V60 Cross Country will be available with a T5 AWD propulsion system. Mild hybrid and plug-in hybrid variants will follow at a later stage. View full article