Posted on 09/16/2019 7:28:11 AM PDT by DUMBGRUNT
"The IAA2019 is a huge fail," tweeted former Opel CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann. "It's a sad shadow of what it used to be."
Nearly two-thirds of the world's car producers were absent. And word on the German street is that Daimler and Volkswagen Group seriously considered pulling out of the show months before its opening. When pressured by the German car association, they remained.
But, in the end, an awe-dropping 24 brands were absent and the number of exhibitors fell 20 percent. And to cap it off, the head of the German car lobby, which hosts the show, abruptly resigned.
Even more worrisome: This is Frankfurt. In prior years, the biennial show has been a bellwether for the European industry.
The cloud of electrification, and its acceptance, hangs over Europe.
"There will be a major challenge for next year" concerning electrics, Audi CEO Bram Schot said last week. "You need a consumer willing to pay."
Audi's Schot perhaps said it best: "There will be dancing at a lot of weddings. The question is: What wedding?
(Excerpt) Read more at autonews.com ...
Very interesting. Thanks for posting.
Once this diesel particle ‘crisis’ came up....the car-makers were everyone’s whipping boy. Toss in the fury by the environmental folks to force everyone to dump their gas/diesel cars. Two months ago, various car-makers were saying that the show in Frankfurt would be the last one. The protest movement from the past five days has virtually guaranteed that this show is finished in Frankfurt.
Of the many factors mentioned for the decline, we should also consider the fact that there are few cars out there that are not fugly.
Really.
A game I have played for years when going through a parking lot is to ask which cars there would I want to be seen in back in the golden years of Detroit. Yup, we all know the answer.
Yes, the new ones are certainly much improved. But they have the visual appeal of Hillary Clinton.
I have a deposit down on the new 2020 Mid Engine Corvette.
It looks like they are already road testing a Hybrid Gas Electric Model even though the standard Gas powered 2020 Model hasn’t even begun Production yet.
I’m sure an all electric Model is already on the Drawing Board.
It’s the wave of the future. Unfortunately, most of the Rare Earth Minerals needed to make the Batteries come from China.
Not only that, but you need taxpayers willing to pay for massive upgrades to the power generation and distribution infrastructure.
But the biggest problem is Brussels.
The EU needs to be disbanded.
So was/is straight electric railroading, but transmission/distribution/infrastructure still kicks its azz.
Trump evening the tariff playing field with Euro cars has changed everything.
In my opinion, the ugliest car of all time is the 1959 Chevrolet.
I have a deposit down on the new 2020 Mid Engine Corvette.
A looker for sure!
The engine under glass!
The Bedford castings!
GM put some serious effort into this one.
Can’t wait to see one out in the world.
The real problem with the “German” car makers was the amount of Bad parts they had made in Mexico. I unfortunately purchased a Tiguan and before 40,000 miles the AC died, the retractable roof leaked, the plastic bushings on the rocker arms wore out, and it developed rust and a leak around the windshield. I traded it in on an F150. F the “German” car industry.
European politicians and the media are pressuring car manufacturers to switch to electric cars. We are seeing a lot of them now where we live. They would not exist without government subsidies. Why? Because just the electric car battery costs as much as a cheap car, typically weighs over a thousand pounds and most do not store as much energy as contained in a couple of gallons of gas. It is not that hard to understand... batteries are still a very inefficient energy storage medium compared to gasoline or diesel. Electric cars are a non-solution to a problem (global warming) that does not exist.
They will start to disappear as soon as the world enters into an undeniable cyclic cooling trend that by many indications is already starting. I wouldn’t hold my breath however, because we are about to witness who the real “climate deniers” are. A cooling climate has always been a far greater threat to humanity than a warming climate. We will witness early snows, crop failures, and frozen orange groves in Florida for years before the media stops fawning over every string of sunny days in Arizona.
Back in the early 2000’s I read an article on the Hybrid Humvee the Army was looking into as a scout vehicle. very quiet on electric drive, with 4 75 hp motors. I kept thinking if my C4 vette had 300hp at the wheels with mucho torque, this electric drive thing might be worth looking into. few years back I got to drive a friends tesla. I missed the 6 speed transmission, but it took off like a rocket, but just had a whisper of sound. if they come up with a reliable battery system that doesn’t take 4000 gallons of water to put out the battery fire that will surely happen one day, I might be interested.
Not only that, but you need taxpayers willing to pay for massive upgrades to the power generation and distribution infrastructure.
Not even close if ever.
EVs were TWO PERCENT of USA sales last year.
Some projections see 30% in 2040.
Nighttime electric supplies are twice or more of daytime peak demand.
Plenty to go around.
The dumbasses shutting down new gas permits are a much larger problem.
You too can live in an all-electric community!
But sometimes the lines get hot and we need to shut them down. Dark and peaceful!
It’s the wave of the future.
And then there’s the battery problem. There has to a breakthrough in battery technology that hasn’t happened yet. Two or three hours for a fill up isn’t going to go over well.
They would not exist without government subsidies.
Note that the subsides are for the first 200,000 cars.
Both Tesla and GM are phasing out, gone in 2020.
New EVs have a large premium over ICE, but they are gaining.
In Europe, you can purchase a new RAY-NO (Renault) without a battery! Then rent /lease the battery!
For a commuter/city car it’s a good idea, at a lower price point. And prices are declining.
The climate stuff is BS!
The Las Vegas electronic show used to be a really big thing.
The Internet makes trade shows unneccessary.
Eurothugs can make anything unpleasant.
Always look to the next opportunity. Europe is headed for a camel and donkey shortage before they know it.
Do you want to drive a small electric in a highway full of 6,000 pound vehicles driven by technology distracted idiots?
Big vehicles would have to be taxed to extinction to make small electrics a viable choice.
Also mobile technology needs to be disabled in vehicles and busy roads to make electric cars viable.
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