The California company’s market valuation exceeded Ford’s in its first day a public company Wednesday. Its shares rose 10% at the opening bell Thursday pushing its valuation over $90 billion.
Using tax incentives , an EV commission and membership in a regional network promoting EV infrastructure, the Holcomb administration is looking to increase EV manufacturing statewide.
The recall and others raise questions about lithium ion batteries, which now are used in nearly all electric vehicles. Ford, BMW and Hyundai all have recalled batteries recently.
The Senate dust-up Tuesday reflects long-standing disagreements on Capitol Hill over the benefits of financial incentives to spur the transition to electric vehicles, which make up about 2% of U.S. sales.
Declaring the United States must “move fast” to win the world’s automaking future, President Joe Biden on Thursday announced a commitment from the auto industry to produce electric vehicles for as much as half of nationwide sales by the end of the decade.
The shutdowns have affected plants in Michigan, Kentucky, Kansas, Mexico, Canada and Germany.
The company plans to invest $47 billion in battery-driven vehicles between 2022 and 2080. It says it also intends to work with partners on setting up eight factories producing battery cells.
Automakers have developed EVs that go farther per charge and fill up faster. Problem is, most public charging stations fill cars much too slowly, requiring hours—not minutes—to provide enough electricity for an extended trip.
The auto company said Wednesday that Carmel will be the first city in the world where the software—which was developed in-house at Volkswagen—will be used to gather traffic and intersection data.
Ford is taking a significant risk by sinking so much capital into an electric version of a pickup that commands a huge and loyal following. In a typical year, Ford sells about 900,000 F-series trucks. It has been America’s top-selling vehicle for nearly four decades.
The demand is sending used-car costs soaring. The Manheim Index, which measures prices at wholesale auctions, shows that they’re 52% higher than they were a year ago.
Production of two new electric vehicles—one branded Toyota and the other in the Lexus line—is expected to begin in mid- to late 2023 at the plant in Princeton.
The stalling recall covers Crosstrek SUVs from 2018 and 2019 and Impreza cars from 2017 through 2019. The suspension recall covers 2018 and 2019 Crosstreks and 2019 Foresters.
The shutdowns likely will crimp dealer inventory of vehicles made at the plants, but GM says it has managed to keep factories humming that make hot-selling and very profitable full-size pickup trucks and SUVs.
Automakers sold more than 3.9 million vehicles during the first three months of the year, with several major companies reporting March sales that were nearly double from the same month a year earlier.
The fake press release could land Volkswagen in trouble with U.S. securities regulators because its stock price rose nearly 5% on Tuesday, the day the bogus statement was officially issued.
Volkswagen plans to change its brand name in the United States as its shifts its production increasingly toward electric vehicles and tries to distance itself from an emissions cheating scandal.
A Toyota spokesman would not answer questions about whether the SUVs should be parked outdoors until the matter is resolved, but said the company is cooperating in the probe.
For workers at GM and other automakers, the future could be perilous. The more environmentally focused plants of the future will need significantly fewer workers, mainly because electric vehicles contain 30% to 40% fewer moving parts than petroleum-run vehicles.
The electric-vehicle industry has grown exponentially in the past decade but still represents less than 2% of automobiles sold in the United States.
