Auto Industry News: Holiday Racing, R&D Data Breach, Angry Canadians, and EV Updates

Very busy week around the industry as we close in on the New Year, with EVs headlining the drama. Volvo grapples with a cyber security breach to its R&D data, foreshadowing some possible impacts to the company’s EV battery development plans. Meanwhile, Ford closed reservations for its F-150 Lightning, GM might be building a new battery factory in Michigan, Lexus plans to go all-electric in only 10 years, and Canada is not happy about some provisions in the U.S.’s recent EV initiatives.

But first, on the enthusiast front, two big events – Sonoma Drift Winter Jam and Dash at Daytona – ramp up racetrack excitement one last time before 2022.

Drifting Into A New Year

The year might be nearly wrapped, but a couple of exciting events are still dotting the calendar before 2022 comes rolling in. Over the weekend, the 2021 Sonoma Raceway & Sonoma Drift Winter Jam took place in Northern California, with two full days of action and six courses running simultaneously. The race touts the title as the largest drift event in NorCal.

Like previous years, the event featured courses for every skill level. Two main courses were in the raceway’s main paddock, as well as courses at Turns 2-4, Turn 7, through the Esses of Turn 8, and just past the hairpin at Turn 11. Saturday’s schedule featured races first thing in the morning and a team drifting competition in the afternoon. Sunday featured a full day’s schedule of tandem matches for the Winter Jam Formula Drift Pro-Am Shoot-Out that kicked off around 9 a.m. and ran until 5 p.m.

Kart Fun

Upcoming on the enthusiast calendar is Ignite Dash at Daytona, Dec. 27-30 at Daytona International Speedway. Ignite Dash is a fun, all-inclusive race since it offers both a bring-your-own or arrive-and-drive option. (Kart drivers get to bring their own kart or snag one once they get to the track supplied by Ignite.)

The race features three different classes: Junior (12-15 years), Senior (15 plus), and Masters (35 plus), so all ages can get in on the pint-sized track action. The Tuesday schedule is practice for all three classes, while Wednesday and Thursday run races for all three classes both days. Learn more here!

Volvo Suffers R&D Data Breach

Volvo announced on Dec. 10 that it suffered a cyber security breach that included the theft of some of its R&D data. The automaker was scant on details of what sort of information had been stolen, but said the breach might cause “an impact on the company’s operation.”

Despite the cause for concern on an operations level, the company said it didn’t see any impact on customer security or data. That’s better news than Volkswagen shared over the summer when they revealed sensitive information for roughly 90,000 buyers was compromised after a cybersecurity breach at a VW vendor.

New Tech, New Problems

Recent speculation suggests breaches like VW’s aren’t as typical as stealing personal information and demanding a ransom. In a recent report by Tech HQ, Aaron Raj pointed out that the increasingly competitive electric vehicle and battery market makes R&D extremely valuable information that hackers could hold ransom for a steep price.

Notably, a recent joint partnership Volvo announced with battery maker Northvolt could be impacted by this breach. The two companies originally announced plans in June to develop EV batteries. More recently, they agreed to open an R&D center in Sweden as part of a $3 billion investment in ramping up EV battery development and production.

Chris Clark, Senior Manager at Synopsys Software Integrity Group, told TechHQ the attack demonstrated that manufacturers need to rethink how they protect internal data for future attacks, since these breaches can have a ripple effect through the entire supply chain. Such protection “reaches past traditional methods like penetration testing, silicon, and software life cycle management systems,” he said. “Developers and their peers in the testing teams must be aware of their role in protecting software and data.”

Buyer Beware

On the consumer end, these types of attacks raise the question of how secure over-the-air software upgrades are. The feature lets drivers download upgrades for their vehicle, similar to how a cellphone upgrades its apps and operating system. Automakers see big money in the prospect. Both Stellantis and GM project more than $20 billion in revenue by 2030 just from software upgrades.

But downloading horsepower and wirelessly purchasing more payload capacity may be a harder sell than automakers imagined, Automotive News points out. Many buyer budgets are already stretched to their max, thanks to soaring transaction prices. To capitalize on high-margin software upgrades, OEMs will be looking to cut some manufacturing costs.

EV Fever

Ford F-150 Lightning Reservations Capped

Ford is having a much better week than Volvo, evidenced by the continued demand for its F-150 Lightning all-electric pickup. The company recently announced it stopped taking reservations for the truck because it was “oversubscribed.”

Even though deliveries aren’t scheduled until mid-January, the F-150 Lightning generated quite a lot of buzz with the initial announcement in May 2021. At that point, the company racked up more than 20,000 reservations in less than 12 hours. Ford CEO Jim Farley said the automaker capped the F-150 reservations at 200,000, curiously adding that “everyone loves the electric version” even though they haven’t driven it yet.

Right now, reservations outweigh the automaker’s capacity, and that’s probably a chief reason why it pumped the breaks. Right now, the automaker’s expecting to produce between 70,000-80,000 pickups initially.

Lexus Goes All-Electric

Electric vehicle buzz is in the air across the board, judging from Toyota’s news on its Lexus lineup. The company recently announced plans for a fully-electric lineup by 2030 as part of its carbon neutrality goals.

Early last week, Akio Toyoda, global president of Toyota Motor Corporation, shared details on the initiatives during a media briefing. Along with developing hybrids, plug-in hybrids, and fuel-cell electric vehicles, Toyoda said the automaker would expand its offering of battery electric vehicles. That lineup includes sedans, SUVs, K-Cars, commercial vehicles, and other segments. Along with developing an all-electric lineup of 30 vehicles, the automaker projected it will reach 3.5 million EV annual sales by 2030.

“By 2030, Lexus aims to realize a full lineup of BEVs in all vehicle segments and to have BEVs account for 100% of vehicle sales in North America, Europe, and China,” the company said.

Ambitious, indeed!

GM Builds Batteries

Always neck-and-neck with Ford’s EV plans, there’s speculation GM is planning to build a battery plant in Lansing, Michigan, to expand its existing assembly factory in the city. The company also reported plans to convert another nearby plant into an Ultium EV factory “for SUVs or pickup trucks.”

Investments are estimated to cost around $2.5 billion, create 750 full-time jobs by 2025, and eventually grow to 1,700 jobs. That’s all according to an application for a tax-exempt “renaissance zone” filed by Ultium Cells LLC. The LLC is a joint venture between GM and LG Energy Solution of Michigan.

We wouldn’t be surprised if this rumor turns out to be an official business deal since GM has been roaring ahead with its EV initiatives. The company already committed to a $35 billion investment in electric and autonomous vehicles, with plans to launch more than 30 EVs worldwide by 2025.

Kentucky Tornado Sparks Fire and Halts Production at Chevy Plant

Last week, Chevrolet announced a pause in production of Corvettes at its Bowling Green, Kentucky plant after substantial fire damage. The fire resulted from a tornado that swept through the area, damaging the plant’s roof and one of the entryways. Six midwestern and southern states suffered multiple devasting tornadoes, responsible for widespread destruction and more than 77 deaths (as of Friday) in Kentucky alone. The storms also destroyed an estimated 1,100 homes in the state.

At the Chevy plant, aerial footage showed damage to the facility and the adjacent motorsports park. Chevy hopes to resume production on Dec. 20.

Ripple Effect

Along with the human toll and property damage, massive weather events like this complicate manufacturers’ already-strained supply chain. Automakers were primarily spared in this incident, including Toyota, whose Kentucky plant was not in an affected county. Even still, auto plants require workers. And while a production facility may escape unscathed, an autoworker’s home may not. Other weather events similarly impacted the auto industry, like the Texas blackouts sparked by a winter freeze earlier this year.

Building contingency plans for weather events also puts a significant responsibility on companies since there’s the issue of worker safety. Amazon, for example, is under heavy scrutiny after one of its warehouses in Edwardsville, Illinois, collapsed during the recent tornado barrage, killing six workers and injuring 45 others. According to some accounts, Amazon wouldn’t let the employees evacuate ahead of tornado warnings, sparking media uproar. While retail and manufacturing are different sectors, automakers will undoubtedly have to keep worker safety top of mind, especially those with facilities in extreme weather hotspots.

Canada Threatens Tariffs on U.S. Goods Over EV Tax Credit

A proposed $4,500 tax incentive for union-built U.S. EVs has garnered the interest of multiple U.S. automakers like Ford, GM, and Stellantis. But it is also stoking the ire of non-union manufacturers like Tesla and Toyota, who say the measure shuts out competition, impacts profits, and hurts the overall goal of building a fully-electric lineup across the industry. In fact, Toyota launched an entire media campaign lambasting the proposal.

Now, that tax proposal looks to be making more enemies, this time up north. In a recent letter to the U.S. Senate, Canadian Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and Trade Minister Mary Ng said our friendly neighbor is prepared to launch a dispute settlement under the USMCA trade deal.

Canada said it worries the tax credit will undermine Ontario electric vehicle manufacturing. The province is Canada’s leading manufacturing hub and is home to roughly half of the country’s manufacturing workforce. Like Toyota, Canadian officials argue the tax credit would hurt the overall North American auto industry.

If the matter is not resolved, the ministers said Canada would consider tariffs on American exports in a manner that will impact American workers in the auto sector and several other sectors of the U.S. economy. In tandem with tariffs, the Canadian government said it potentially would suspend dairy quotas for U.S. farmers initially agreed to under the USMCA.

In the same breath and in a very Canadian fashion, the letter stressed that Prime Minister Trudeau’s administration “did not want a confrontation.”

While Canada’s rhetoric is strong, it appears there is still time for the U.S. and its neighbor to the north to come to an agreement before retaliatory tariffs start ramping up.

Speaking of green legislation…

Back here in the states, there are other new measures underway to incentivize green-friendly engines. The California Air Resources Board (CARB) recently approved a measure requiring most newly manufactured small off-road engines (like those in lawnmowers, leaf blowers, and similar equipment) to be zero-emission in 2024. CARB also said portable generators, including those in RVs, would need to meet more stringent standards by 2024 and eventually meet zero emissions by 2028.

To incentivize the move, the state legislature earmarked $30 million for “sole proprietors and other small landscaping businesses” in California to buy zero-emissions equipment. This move looks to follow CARB’s announcement back in November when it proposed the idea. According to the board’s emissions studies, running a leaf blower for one hour is equivalent to driving a car for 1,100 miles.

Musk Named Time’s Person of the Year

One quick thing before we go—you may or may not have already heard the news that Tesla CEO Elon Musk was named the Time 2021 Person of the Year. The announcement drew a wide range of reactions; some delighted, and others disgusted. Sen. Elizabeth Warren tweeted her discomfort with the choice, while peers in the tech world congratulated Musk. Some argued the distinction should have gone to frontline workers or police who protected the Capitol on Jan. 6.

It’s worth noting though that the magazine lists its criteria for Person of the Year as “the person or persons who most affected the news and our lives, for good or ill, and embodied what was important about the year, for better or for worse.” (That’s why historical bad guys like Stalin and the Ayatollah have graced the cover in previous decades.)

Say what you want about Elon Musk, but his accomplishments for the year are undeniable. In October 2021, Tesla surpassed a $1 trillion market value. The automaker held more than half the domestic market share of EVs as Ford and GM worked to catch up. Plus, Musk’s SpaceX program was the first-ever all-civilian mission to space. Whether these accomplishments are “for good or ill,” they certainly dominated headlines and Twitter feeds.

The Engine Block is your one-stop source for any and all auto industry news. Keep an eye on our weekly round-up of enthusiast coverage, product reviews, vehicle spotlights, auto show/expo features, and more. Be sure to tune in Friday for a list of top driving apps to get you through those holiday road trips!