A biweekly roundup of automotive news, good, bad and just plain weird.
Aston Martin to build luxury submarine
As a company that’s been underwater for much of its existence – periodically sinking entirely – it is perfectly in character for Aston Martin to build a really fancy submersible. Announced as a partnership with Triton Submarines, a builder of commercial craft, the new luxury machine will be called Project Neptune.
As you’d expect, Project Neptune looks like something that could be driven by either James Bond or Ernst Blofeld. Or, alternatively, stolen from Ernst Blofeld by James Bond. It’s got leather seating for three, is finished with carbon-fibre construction, and can dive to 500 metres. Top speed is around six knots, or slower than a really out-of-shape grouper.
Cadillac to end ATS production
With Ford canceling most of its sedans, looking to move production into the more profitable crossover market, it should be no surprise to learn that luxury marques are poised to follow suit. Cadillac, which has long struggled to break BMW’s stranglehold on the sport sedan market, has now confirmed that the ATS sedan will end production at the end of the 2018 model year.
On one hand, the ATS never really got the engine it deserved. Perhaps, if GM had fitted it with a stout V-8, it would have had an ace in the hole against its German rivals. With fuel prices low in the United States, proper eight-cylinder performance might have brought consumers back into Cadillac showrooms.
As it stands, Lincoln is poised to launch the Aviator, a mid-sized crossover that closely resembles the hot-selling Navigator, while Cadillac needs to update their Escalade, and slot in a smaller model downrange. It’s something of a role-reversal, as Cadillac has been making the headlines for the past few years while Lincoln wallows in the doldrums.
Never mind how the companies do, the real losers here are consumers provided with less choice in the market. When fuel prices rise – and they will, based on historical precedent – people will be looking to go small again. Although perhaps not in a Cadillac.
Kia Niro EV released with 450 km range
If efficiency seems to be going out of fashion, not to worry. While crossovers are probably the immediate future of motoring, their very construction allows for the extra space needed to haul batteries around. Perhaps the average vehicle is going to get larger and bulkier, but it’s also slightly more likely to be electric.
Thus the Kia Niro EV arrives at just the right time. Already available as a hybrid vehicle, the Niro looks nimble enough, and should handle city traffic nicely. The electric version will have plenty of torque, around 200 h.p., and an entirely useful range of 400 kilometres.
With an electric version of the Hyundai Kona on the way, Korean manufacturers are poised to hit the sweet spot in the market at just the right time.
Tesla posts losses, celebrates
Covering Tesla as a company is like trying to report on Willy Wonka’s factory for Chocolate Bar Industry Weekly. You’re aware of what normally works for a company – sell stuff, make profits – but a certain amount of wacky nonsense always seems to be pushing things along.
This quarter, Tesla reported a $710 million loss, which would normally be bad. If I lost $710 million dollars, I’d be a bit sad.
However, because Tesla analysts had been expecting even more of a loss, and because production of the Model 3 hit 2,270 in the last week of April, no one seemed particularly bothered.
Then, during a conference call a week ago Wednesday, Elon Musk refused to answer a couple of questions on the company’s capital requirements, calling them “boring.” The stock price promptly dropped, and again there seemed to be plenty of otherwise rational people who didn’t see a problem.
At this point, we are about two months away from Oompa Loompas showing up to build the Model 3. Or something weirder.
Royal couple gifted with 3,000 pound baby
According to the interwebs, all the tabloids are obsessed with the upcoming nuptials of Prince Harry and Meghan Markle. Your humble author adds his congratulations, and advises that neither expect to become King and Queen any time soon, as Elizabeth II looks set to live into her late 300s at least.
Mini, being a sort of British company with German roots (cough House of Hanover cough) has prepared a lovely gift for the happy couple in the form of a car neither one of them would ever drive: a Mini Cooper with a blended Union Jack and US Flag on the roof. It also projects “Just Married” onto the ground when you open the doors which is a bit ... Essex.
Anyway, the Mini will be auctioned off immediately after the royal wedding, with the proceeds going to a children’s charity. Nobby obliged or however you say it. I’m faintly reminded that Princess Di was given a basic Ford Escort by ol’ Big Ears (to make her relatable to the commoners, you know), but then she swapped it for an Escort RS Turbo. Handbrake turns on Buckingham’s front lawn, innit?
Watch this space for all the week’s best and worst of automotive news, or submit your own auto oddities to mcaleer.nsnews@gmail.com.
