Nutson's Weekly Auto News Wrap-up July 9-16, 2023

Auto Central July 16, 2023; Every Sunday Larry Nutson, The Chicago Car Guy and Auto Channel Executive Producer, with able assistance from senior editor Thom Cannell from The Auto Channel Michigan Bureau, compile The Auto Channel's "take" on this past week's automotive news, condensed into easy to digest news Nuggets.

LEARN MORE: Complete versions of today's news nuggets, along with thousands of pages of relevant news and opinions, information stored in a million-page library published and indexed on The Auto Channel during the past 25 years. Complete information can be found by copying a headline and inserting it into any Site Search Box.

Here are Larry's picks among the past week's important, relevant, semi-secret, or snappy automotive news, opinions and insider back stories presented as expertly crafted easy-to-understand automotive universe news nuggets.

Nutson's Auto News Weekly Wrap-up July 9-15, 2023. * The average price Americans paid for a new vehicle in June 2023 was 1.6% higher than one year ago, the smallest year-over-year price increase since the start of the global pandemic. According to Kelley Blue Book, a Cox Automotive company, the average transaction price (ATP) of a new vehicle in June was $48,808, a month-over-month increase of 0.3% ($150) from an upwardly revised May reading of $48,658. Compared to the start of the year, however, transaction prices are down 1.7%, or $865, the largest January to June tumble in the past decade. The average price paid for a new, non-luxury vehicle in June was $45,291, up only $17 compared to May. Luxury vehicle prices in June were down more than 2% year over year. The average luxury buyer paid $63,977 last month, up $305 from May. EV prices continue to fall, again led by market leader Tesla. In June, the average EV ATP was $53,438, down from a revised $54,528 in May and down from more than $61,000 in January.

* Bloomberg reports used-car prices in the U.S. fell 4.2% in June from May, the largest drop since the pandemic began, and were down 10.3% from the previous year, as a key measure of inflation eases. The price drop in June was the biggest ever for the month and among the largest in the history of the used-car price index compiled by Manheim, a vehicle auction service. It was the sharpest decline since April 2020, when Manheim's Used-Vehicle Value Index plunged 11.4%.

* Tesla remained the best-selling electric vehicle in the US for the first six months of 2023, Motor Intelligence reports, and Hyundai Motor surpassed General Motors for second place. Tesla sold 336,892 retail and fleet EVs in the first half of the year, followed by Hyundai with 38,457 EVs with GM third at 36,322 vehicles. In fourth place is the VW Groiup and Ford is fifth.

* Joe White writing for Reuters mentions: The EV market situation in the United States has many challenges: EV demand is growing, with help from Tesla’s price chopping. Tesla beat Wall Street’s guesses for quarterly deliveries and Rivian’s second quarter deliveries also outperformed expectations. But EV sales are not growing fast enough to support the sales ambitions of every player. U.S. auto dealers ended June with 100 days’ worth of unsold EVs on their lots, according to WardsAuto. That’s roughly double the levels of inventory Detroit Three executives have said they want in the new, post-COVID, post-supply chain shock world. Detroit executives talk about selling EVs with “no negotiation” and a build-to-order approach. Not with that many vehicles gathering pollen on dealer lots.

* White continues: Second quarter sales reports contained other discouraging data for non-Tesla EV producers. Sales of Ford’s Mustang Mach-E electric SUV fell 21% in the second quarter from a year ago. Sales of the F-150 Lightning electric pickup more than doubled from a year ago – but from a very low base. Ford sold just 4,466 Lightnings between April 1 and June 30 – well short of what’s needed to support the company’s plan to boost Lightning output to 150,000 vehicles a year. GM sold just 1,348 Lyriqs in the United States during Q2 and 47 Hummer EVs – two of the lead products from its Ultium EV architecture. GM’s EV sales champ remained the Chevy Bolt, with 13,959 sold during the latest quarter. But the Bolt and its last-generation tech are headed for the history books at the end of this year.

* US DoE factoid of the week: The highest EPA-rated fuel economy for model year 2023 was 140 miles per gallon equivalent achieved by two electric vehicle models. In model year 2023, the highest-rated EPA combined fuel economy for gasoline vehicles was about 60 miles per gallon (MPG), while two electric vehicle (EV) models – the Hyundai Ioniq 6 and the Lucid Air – achieved 140 mpg-equivalent (MPGe). MPGe is a unit of measure used by the EPA to represent EV fuel economy in a common unit with gas-powered vehicles, where 33.7 kilowatt-hours of electricity are equal to the energy contained in one gallon of gasoline. From MY 2011 (the year modern mass marketed EVs were introduced) to MY 2023, maximum EV fuel economy has grown 37% while gasoline vehicle fuel economy has increased just 19%.

* Since the beginning of 2022, a Shell station in Fulham, England, has removed all of its gas pumps to instead offer rapid electric vehicle (EV) chargers for those who need to recharge, as reported by Bloomberg. The awnings over each charger are equipped with solar panels and can fully charge a Tesla Model 3 in about a half-hour, costing around $39. And this “gas” station is far more luxurious than what most people are used to. Because charging EVs takes longer than pumping gas, the station offers more food and activities for customers while they wait. People charging their cars can get groceries, buy coffee, get their cars washed, or even take a breather in lounge chairs. Shell, the largest gas retailer in the world, has plans to create more EV charging stations across England, as well as in the U.S., with a goal of 500,000 by the end of 2025.

* The upcoming all-electric Spectre is so popular that Rolls-Royce already is weighing the need to increase production, and it wants to stop buyers from flipping the car for profit. Rolls said anyone who flips the car will be blacklisted from buying another one from a dealer. Pricing starts at $422,750, but with bespoke customization many will transact above $500,000. Rolls says 40 percent of those who have ordered a Spectre are new to the brand. The first year of production of 2500 cars is already sold out. Deliveries start in November 2023.

* Bloomberg reports Toyota Motor and Stellantis criticized a proposal by the Biden administration to implement emission curbs on vehicles as unrealistic, including being unfair to plug-in hybrid vehicles. Toyota said the proposal "underestimates key challenges, including the scarcity of minerals to make batteries, the fact that these minerals are not mined or refined in the US, the inadequate infrastructure and the high cost of battery-electric vehicles." The comments come as automakers grapple with what would be the most ambitious US tailpipe emission limits ever, applying in model years 2027 and beyond. To meet the limits on carbon dioxide, soot and smog-forming pollution, the Environmental Protection Agency envisions automakers will have to massively boost electric vehicle penetration so that EVs account for 67% of new light-duty vehicle sales and 46% of new medium-duty vehicle sales in model year 2032. By contrast, battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids represent less than 10% of the market today.

* American muscle cars with high horsepower and a hot rod image rank among the deadliest vehicles on the road, both for their own drivers and for people in other vehicles, recent calculations by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety show. Six of the 21 vehicles with the highest driver death rates for model year 2020 are variants of the Chevrolet Camaro, Dodge Challenger, Dodge Charger and Ford Mustang, while eight others are small cars or minicars. Eighteen of the 23 vehicles with the lowest driver death rates are minivans or SUVs, and 12 are luxury vehicles. IIHS also calculated the best and worst models according to the number of drivers in other vehicles killed in crashes with them.

Using that lens, the story of big and small is partially reversed, illustrating the danger that large vehicles pose to other road users. The differences in behavior among various demographic groups – especially young men vs older people – complicate the analysis of crash data. Details are here:

* Author's comment: The high horspower muscle car image of representing higher danger is not new. Demographics of the driver play a roll. However, in this regard, the general public is not asking for and does not need mainstream battery electric vehicles with extreme acceleration capabilities. Zero to 60 mph acceleration in 4 or 5 seconds is not necessary in a family car

* Happy Birthday to a living legend. Ed Iskenderian born July 10, 1921 celebrated his 102nd birthday this week. "Isky" is famed for developing many performance advancements for racing engines, most notably the famed Isky cams. Isky is the 2023 winner of the Peter Bryant Challenger Award, presented at the Lions Automobilia Foundation Museum in Los Angeles. SEE ALSO:Tribute To Dick "Goldie" Guldstrand And Other Hot Rodders, SoCal Pioneers of Power & Speed; By Steve Ford, The Car Guy®

* In anticipation of the the new "Barbie" blockbuster coming to theaters later this month, Hagerty Media took a look at the value of the cars in her six-decade plus collection. Corvette remains the queen, but other makes are well represented. Have a read and see the total value:

* The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced that Stellantis issued a do-not-drive order for roughly 29,000 2003 Dodge Ram 1500 pickup trucks that are still on the road and have yet to receive repairs to address deadly Takata airbags. The order comes as the result of a death caused by a passenger-side inflator in a 2003 Dodge Ram 1500, the first to occur in this model, and the 26th death directly linked to a faulty Takata airbag. The truck was one of 385,686 Dodge Ram 1500, 2500, and 3500 models first recalled in 2015 over the massive Takata scandal.

* Toyota Motor Co. is recalling certain 2023 model year Toyota Corolla, Corolla Cross, Corolla Cross hybrid, Highlander, Highlander hybrid, Tacoma, Lexus RX and RX hybrid and 2024 model year NX and NX hybrid vehicles. Toyota said about 118,000 vehicles are included, “with approximately 110,000 of those in the U.S.” In affected vehicles, the spiral cable assembly in the steering column may lose electrical connection on the circuit controlling the driver’s airbag. If loss of electrical connection occurs, the airbag warning light will illuminate, and the driver’s airbag may not deploy in a crash.

* The Goodwood Festival of Speed, now in its 30th year, took place at the tail end of this week. It's a mix of new car reveals and bits of automotive history. Car owners and automakers race classics and a few new vehicle up the long, winding driveway of the Goodwood House country estate owned by the Duke of Richmond located south of London, England. Ford's first production-intent off-road electric vehicle, the Mach-E Rally, was unveiled. Porsche took the wraps off the Vision 357 Speedster concept. Designed as a companion to the Vision 357 concept, the latest Speedster concept has a battery-electric powertrain with a motor at each axle.

* Harley-Davidson is celebrating its 120th anniversary this year. This weekend there's a 4-day festival in H-D’s hometown of Milwaukee. The Harley-Davidson Homecoming marks the culmination of a yearlong 120th Anniversary celebration. Featured are live performances by some of the biggest names in music—including headliners Foo Fighters and Green Day.

* Callaway Cars has announced the passing of its founder and CEO, Ely Reeves Callaway III. He died on July 11, at his home in Newport Beach, California, from injuries sustained following a fall at home. Callaway was a car tuner and builder, founding businesses based on his love for speed. Reeves Callaway was 75. Hagerty has more about his life here. HERE

* Erich Bitter, an esteemed race car driver, automobile tuner, importer, designer, and car builder reportedly passed away just before his 90th birthday. Born in central western Germany in 1933, Bitter spent much of his childhood at his parent's bicycle shop. With a four-year career in bicycle racing, he became one of the top German riders and formed a close relationship with NSU. It was this partnership that led Bitter to begin driving for NSU by age 25 and it wasn't long before he started dominating the track. His eleven-year racing career stretched from 1958 to 1969. Bitter subsequently formed a business building his own car and provideing design and engineering services to Volkswagen, among others.

Stay safe. Be Well.