GM wants U.S. Treasury to reconsider tax credits for Cadillac Lyriq EV

WASHINGTON, Jan 6 — General Motors said Friday it wants the U.S. Treasury to reconsider classification of GM’s electric Cadillac Lyriq to allow it to qualify for federal tax credits.

The Treasury and Internal Revenue Service did not classify the Lyriq as an SUV, meaning its retail price cannot be above $55,000 to qualify for up to $7,500 in federal tax credits. The Lyriq currently starts at $62,990. SUVs can be priced at up to $80,000 to qualify, while cars, sedans and wagons can only be priced at up to $55,000.

“We are addressing these concerns with Treasury and hope that forthcoming guidance on vehicle classifications will provide the needed clarity to consumers and dealers, as well as regulators and manufacturers,” GM told Reuters Friday.

GM said Treasury should use criteria and processes similar to the Environmental Protection Agency and Energy Department. “This drives consistency across existing federal policy and clarity for consumers.”

GM delivered just 122 U.S. Lyriq vehicles in 2022. A Treasury spokesperson defended the classifications, saying the agency used fuel economy standards “which are pre-existing — and longstanding — EPA regulations that manufacturers are very familiar with. These standards offer clear criteria for delineating between cars and SUVs.”

Legislation approved by Congress in August reformed the EV tax credit and lifted the 200,00-vehicle per manufacturer cap that had made Tesla and GM ineligible for EV tax credits effective Jan. 1.

Tesla Chief Executive Elon Musk tweeted this week the EV tax rules were “messed up.” The five-seat version of the Tesla Model Y is not considered an SUV, while the Model Y seven-seat version is and can qualify for the credit.

The Volkswagen ID.4 is not classified as an SUV, while the all-wheel drive version is, the IRS said. VW declined comment Friday.

Last month, Treasury said it would delay until March releasing proposed guidance on required sourcing of EV batteries. This means some EVs that do not meet the new requirements have a brief window of eligibility for the full $7,500 tax credit before battery rules take effect.

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Kearys Motor Group enters EV charging partnership with Ohme

Kearys Motor Group has struck a new partnership with smart-charging company Ohme, to provide EV chargers to its customers.

The family-owned motor group, in Ireland, will recommend Ohme EV chargers for all of its new and used electrified vehicle sales with an Ohme Home Pro charger in showrooms for customers to view.

“We are delighted to be partnering with Ohme as our preferred EV home charging supplier,” said Brendan Keary, CEO of Kearys Motor Group. “We considered many potential charging partners and it was clear to us that Ohme’s smart charging capability, award-winning products and excellent customer service made it the obvious choice for Kearys. With increasing numbers of customers choosing new and pre-owned electric and hybrid vehicles, we’re looking forward to recommending Ohme’s smart chargers.”

Ohme recently became the official charging provider for the Volkswagen Group and will place charge points in all Volkswagen, Cupra, Skoda and Seat showrooms.

Its smart chargers can connect with the national grid in real time and automatically adjust their charging for drivers to take advantage of all the times of low price charging with off-peak tariffs.

The company also offers drivers the option to charge their car when renewable energy generation on the national grid is at its highest, further lowering their CO2 impact.

Kearys Motor Group represents the likes of BMW, Hyundai, Nissan, Renault and Mini across 12 dealerships throughout Ireland. Kearys also own Carstore, Ireland’s largest used car supermarket with three superstores in Dublin, Cork and Limerick as well as a strong online presence.

Ohme mobility director Peter McDonald discussed the value of connected home charge points to mitigate against electric vehicle (EV) charging costs and demands on the National Grid in AM’s ‘5 Minutes With…’ automotive supplier interview.

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Tesla stock to close out worst year ever with a 65% loss in 2022, wiping out more than $700 billion in market cap

Elon Musk. Carina Johansen/Getty Images
  • Tesla stock is on pace for its worst year on record as trading in 2022 comes to a close. 
  • Shares have lost about 65% from the start of the year. 
  • CEO Elon Musk has faced pressure from investors over his preoccupation with Twitter. 

Tesla stock ticked up Friday, the last trading day of 2022, but is on track to close out its worst year in the company’s history. 

Shares have lost about 65% from the start of the year, amounting to a loss of more than $700 billion in market value.

Investors have sounded the alarm on slowing demand and vehicle production, a sluggish market share in China, Fed rate hikes, and CEO Elon Musk’s takeover of Twitter. 

The Tesla stock sell-off has far outpaced the losses of major indices including the S&P 500 and the tech-heavy Nasdaq, which are down 19% and 33%, respectively, for the year.

But Musk, who has also seen his personal net worth tumble alongside Tesla shares, has tried to shrug off the carnage.

“Don’t be too bothered by stock market craziness. As we demonstrate continued excellent performance, the market will recognize that,” he told Tesla employees in a message earlier this week. 

After touching an all-time high in November 2021, share began trending lower. But he majority of the downturn in the stock has come since Musk completed his takeover of Twitter, where he is also serving as CEO, in October. 

A big shift also occurred that month at Tesla, which walked back expectations that the company would increase production by 50%. 

Investors and analysts have since displayed growing concern that Twitter is taking away Musk’s focus on Tesla with his politicized tweets hurting the EV maker’s brand as well.  

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Tesla stock jumps after poll tells Elon Musk he should step away from Twitter

Tesla shares jumped in anticipation of Elon Musk stepping back from Twitter., the social media company that has distracted him from running the electric-car maker for months.

Tesla’s stock rose as much as 5.3% before the start of regular trading Monday. The shares have plunged 58% since Musk disclosed in early April that he’d taken a stake in Twitter, underperforming the 15% drop in the S&P 500 Index.

Musk, 51, tweeted Sunday that he would abide by the results of a poll asking whether he should step down as head of Twitter. Users cast more than 17.5 million votes, and 57.5% were in favor of him relinquishing the role.

Tesla’s chief executive officer has previously taken his cues from Twitter users on decisions ranging from whether he should trim his stake in the car company, to whether he should reinstate former President Donald Trump’s account. Whereas Musk’s decisions after those polls were relatively straightforward, it’s less clear what he’ll do next with Twitter. Musk has tweeted that it will be difficult to find another CEO and written that the company “has been in the fast lane to bankruptcy since May.”

“No one wants the job who can actually keep Twitter alive,” he said in another post. “There is no successor.”

Tesla closed last week at a two-year low, costing Musk his position atop the Bloomberg Billionaires Index. While its CEO has been preoccupied with Twitter, the carmaker has been cutting prices and production in China and offering incentives for customers to take delivery of vehicles in the US.

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Ford shows the shape of its planned European midsized electric SUV

Moving forward in its plans for an electric future — and further abandoning its stalwart models like the Fiesta and Focus — Ford is teasing a bit more information on a “medium-sized” crossover due to be launched next year in Europe.

No naming official details as yet on what the German-made model might be called, but it is fairly clear that the machine will be constructed on Volkswagen’s MEB platform that also underpins VW’s ID.4 EV.

The shadowy shape posted on Twitter by Peter Zillig, chief of marketing for Ford of Europe, has an upright front end, a slab-sided profile and a lowered roofline compared to the Volkswagen. Range after a single charge is expected to be a bit more than 300 miles.

In an announcement Thursday, Zillig said Ford overseas will promote a new “adventurous spirit” marketing mantra to support its fleet of up to seven new electrics planned for production by 2024.

The Medium model is scheduled to slot above Ford’s planned electric version of the Puma, and below another new SUV, referred to as “Sports Crossover,” and to be based on VW’s ID.5. It will follow the smaller version in 2024, Ford executives said.

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Report: Used car prices are down but still elevated

Car buyers of all sorts have had a bumpy ride over the last couple of years, but things are starting to look up – at least for used car shoppers. Earlier this week, the United States Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS) released its Consumer Price Index (CPI) for November 2022, which showed a slight but promising decline in used car prices.

The BLS found that while the overall CPI climbed by more than 7 percent in November from the same time a year before, used car prices fell by 3.3 percent from 2021. This news comes after reports that wholesale prices for used cars dropped 15.6 percent from January, according to the Manheim Used Vehicle Value Index. That drop should have driven a subsequent decline in used car retail prices, but the fall is unsurprisingly slow. Dealers still have plenty of inventory purchased at higher prices, so it will still take time for used prices to come back to earth.

Unfortunately, for new car buyers, the story is not the same for factory-fresh vehicles. In late October, the average transaction price for a new car reached $48,000, and new models of all types are still selling for thousands more than before the pandemic. New car inventory has shown signs of improving, but again, we’re talking about incremental changes that will take time to make an impact.

All of this turbulence is terrible news for used car retailers. Carvana’s stock has tanked, leading many to speculate that bankruptcy or another significant move is coming. CarMax is selling fewer cars, reporting almost 15,000 fewer vehicle sales this year compared to 2021. The trickle-down effects of the current market impact several other industries, including rental cars and small businesses that rely on fleet vehicles. Many can’t find or buy the new cars they need, leading to delays in business operations and fewer rental options for travelers. And, of course, everything costs more.

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Why electric vehicles are increasingly leaving out AM Radio

When the BMW i3 landed in the States more than 8 years ago, it did so without an AM radio. A year after arrival, hackers had figured out how to tweak the hatchback’s software to restore AM radio and extend range in the i3 REx model. When Green Car Reports asked BMW that same year, 2015, about the lack of an amplitude modulation band, BMW responded, “AM is not offered due to negative performance influences of the electromagnetic interference of the electric drivetrain. Electric motors cause interference on AM which is why BMW decided to remove this option.” Today, the number of EVs and hybrids omitting AM radio has got so large that U.S. Senator Ed Markey is asking carmakers to retain it, noting in a letter that “any phase-out of broadcast AM radio could pose a significant communication problem during emergencies.”

Coverage over the last seven years breaks the issue into a couple of camps and a couple of explanations. European EV makers are the ones noted for having no AM radio, the official line among them tagging electromagnetic (EM) interference as the culprit. However, when Green Car Reports updated its 2015 story in 2017, it noted that Europe was in the process of shutting down analog broadcasts. Radio aficionados on sites like All Access and Radio Survivor covered the trend several years ago, explaining that the cost of maintaining old AM transmitting infrastructure got to be too much to support at the same time as Digital Audio Broadcasting (DAB) transmitted more stations at better quality for much less money. Plenty of AM stations remain in Europe, but they are vastly more popular in Spain, the UK, Ireland, and Greece than anywhere else. 

In a piece on The Drive from this summer, the European automakers queried still cited EM interference between electric motors and AM radio as the reason for not including AM, except for Mercedes, whose EQ vehicles do have AM/FM radios. The Drive again noted the continued decline of AM radio in Europe, and that U.S. legacy automakers do include AM radio — Tesla and Rivian don’t, Fisker and Lucid do — because the band still has enough listeners here to warrant it. That could be about to change; the Ford F-150 Lightning includes AM radio, the New York Times says the pickup won’t have it much longer. And although the old Fiat 500e had an AM radio, we don’t know whether Stellantis’ coming U.S. electric products will include it.     

Ed Markey, a U.S. Senator from Massachusetts, wrote a letter asking all automakers to deal with the EM shielding issues and maintain AM radio. His letter read, in part, “Despite innovations such as the smartphone and social media, AM/FM broadcast radio remains the most dependable, cost-free, and accessible communication mechanism for public officials to communicate with the public during times of emergency … Although the auto industry’s investments in electric vehicles are critical to addressing the climate crisis and reducing greenhouse gas emissions, automakers need not sacrifice the benefits of radio in the process.”

AM radio’s reach into remote areas of the country makes it invaluable for some listeners for everything from niche news to updates on emergency situations. While we figure out whether AM can survive in its old form, many stations are still available via apps and station aggregators like TuneIn.

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Future Classics, Acura Integra Type S and Cadillac Escalade-V | Autoblog Podcast #759

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Associate Editor Byron Hurd. They jump right in with some news that Toyota may revive the Land Cruiser in the U.S., followed by rumors of a Nissan GT-R successor. From there, it’s on to official confirmation of the Acura Integra Type S revival, followed by a partial rundown of Hagerty’s 2023 Bull Market List. After that, it’s time for some road test updates. Greg talks about his time in Autoblog‘s long-term BMW 330e PHEV and contrasts it with the 2023 Cadillac Escalade-V. Byron has been driving a Nissan Rogue, Mazda CX-30 and an Infiniti Q50 — serving as a perfect launch pad for a look back at 2022’s best sport sedans. After that, it’s a preview of Autoblog‘s 2022 Holiday Gift Guide.

Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com.

Autoblog Podcast #759

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Lego gets Fast and Furious with Nissan Skyline GT-R

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Lego has announced its next automotive release, the Nissan Skyline GT-R from “2 Fast 2 Furious.” The 319-piece kit is part of the Speed Champions series, Lego’s line of officially licensed car kits.

Like the car used in the movie, the kit is based on an R34-generation Nissan Skyline, built between 1999 and 2002. Lego’s version does a fairly good job of depicting the actual JDM supercar. It’s instantly recognizable as an R34, especially with its squared-off headlights and iconic stagger-sized afterburner taillights. Overall, it’s one of Lego’s more accurate adaptations to the low-resolution medium of plastic bricks.

In addition to the base car, both the film and the plastic car have six-spoke aftermarket wheels, a body kit, and gigantic wing on the trunk. There’s even a nitrous oxide bottle where the passenger seat should be. The kit also comes with a figure of Paul Walker’s Brian O’Conner, the series’ cop turned street racer turned secret agent protagonist.

Lego has offered other picture car kits, such as James Bond’s Aston Martin DB5, the “Ghostbusters” Ecto-1, and “Back to the Future” DeLorean. They’ve also made the 1969 Dodge Charger from the original “The Fast & the Furious” installment. Many of these have been sold in both smaller kits in the Speed Champions series, and as larger standalone kits.

In 2019 an R35 Nissan GT-R Nismo became the first Japanese car licensed by Lego. They haven’t done much with the Nissan relationship since (Datsun 240Z, anyone?). Though the movie tie-in makes for good marketing, we’d prefer to see a regular Skyline GT-R kit without the Y2K-era graphics. Nevertheless, it makes a good addition to the many Corvettes, McLarens and Lamborghinis they’ve already made. The Skyline GT-R goes on sale in January 2023.

 

Why it’s so hard for Ford to catch up with F-150 Lightning orders

 

The F-150 Lightning production line at Ford’s factory in Dearborn, Michigan. Jeff Kowalsky/AFP/Getty Images
  • Ford had to literally tear down the walls of its factory to cope with demand for the electric F-150.
  • Darren Palmer told Insider that Ford was surprised by the number of orders for the Lightning.
  • He said that meeting customers’ expectations was a “huge piece of work.”

Ford’s F-150 truck looks set to retain its crown as America’s best-selling vehicle for the 41st consecutive year.

After launching an electric version last year, it received nearly 200,000 orders for the Lightning opened and had to close its order book last December in a bid to catch up.

“That surprised us – I think it surprised a lot in the industry, how ready people already were for electric vehicles,” says Darren Palmer, who heads up Ford’s electric vehicle (EV) program.

Darren Palmer speaks with customers in front of a Ford F-150 Lightning with its trunk open.
Darren Palmer speaks with customers in front of a Ford F-150 Lightning. Ford

The level of demand forced Ford to take some drastic action to boost the number of Lightning trucks it can produce in Michigan.

“They’re actually building a factory almost the same size alongside the one that’s producing at the moment,” Palmer told Insider. “We had to cut the walls open again and start again.”

Despite recently committing $50 billion to its EV program over the next four years, the success of an electric F-150 was never certain.

Linda Zhang, the Lightning’s chief engineer, previously told Insider she initially had to convince her colleagues to buy the vehicle. Now it’s winning over customers who never owned an EV, as well as younger drivers who hadn’t previously bought a Ford, said Palmer and Zhang.

Linda Zhang stands in front of a F-150 Lightning.
Linda Zhang led the team behind Ford’s first all-electric version of its F-150. Ford

Coping with the surge in demand has been a “huge piece of work,” Palmer says: “It will take most of this year and some of next year just to convert the reservations – and I trust we haven’t had it open for a year and a half.”

A wave of positive reviews for the Lightning meant even more orders are likely to follow, he adds, but first it has to convert a multitude of existing reservations. Palmer couldn’t confirm when this would happen.

In the meantime, Ford will try to increase production from the existing factory to double its annual output to 150,000 annually.

Supply chain woes

Coping with demand hasn’t been helped by supply chain issues brought on by the pandemic. The Wall Street Journal reported in September that Ford had been forced to halt the delivery of some of its vehicles due to a shortage of the automaker’s famous blue badges.

The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat.
The 2022 Ford F-150 Lightning Lariat. Ford

A bigger issue has been the ongoing shortage of semiconductor chips, although Palmer says Ford is prioritizing supplies for its EVs. Still prices for the trucks have been forced up by a wave of obstacles, increasing the F-150 Lightning Pro by $5,000 last month in the second price rise this year.

Geopolitical factors helped influence the company’s decision to move some production closer to home, coming alongside a massive supply chain restructure after $1 billion of unexpected costs last quarter.

Palmer thinks the Lightning will go down in history as the vehicle that brought EVs into the mainstream in the US. He says there’s more to come, with a renewed focus on in-car technology in the next phase of Ford’s EV program.

“The things we’re going to bring in the next three years are just mind blowing. They’re doing things that vehicles never did before,” he adds.

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