Detroit. That these are strange days indeed for the U.S. automobile industry is no secret. Looming, nonsensical tariffs, a severely faltering economy and a giant black cloud hovering over consumer confidence are adding up to be the most ominous list of negative factors facing the industry since The Great Recession. My informal polling of local dealers around here suggest that they’re scared. There is simply no better descriptor of their mood.
All of that is a lot, but the news that BYD in China launched a BEV charging system that fully charges one of its EVs in five minutes sent shock waves through the industry last week. (You can watch a video
here -WG)
Even though we knew this day was coming – I, frankly, thought it was years away – it is indeed sobering news. Between being able to recharge in the time it takes to fill up a gas tank and the next-gen, long-range, solid state batteries that are on the way, the pace of BEV development in China (Japan and Korea too) is staggering. That this is pivotal for the future of the automobile industry is undeniable, and it will have repercussions here and around the world.
But the most sobering news is that I don't see the U.S. manufacturers being able to compete with this accelerated BEV development that’s going on in China, at all. They’re just not there. Yes, they have made huge strides in a short amount of time, but nothing approaching the pace of what’s happening in China.
You only have to juxtapose this latest BEV news out of China with the latest BEV news from Cadillac to begin to understand what I’m talking about. GM’s luxury division just launched the gigantic Escalade IQ (priced from $127,700 to $148,200), the all-wheel-drive, four-wheel steering, 750HP, 10,000 lb. behemoth that will define the brand going forward. The range for Cadillac’s super luxury land yacht is said to be 460 miles on a charge, with the ability to charge at up to 350 kW from DC fast chargers, which is around 100 miles of range in 10 minutes.
This is clearly Cadillac’s – and GM’s – technical tour de force, with more advanced technology than GM has ever put in a vehicle. But with it comes a philosophical disconnect too. I get the fact that Cadillac was eager to project the clear dominance of the Escalade’s brand image into the BEV space, but at what cost? And no, I’m not talking about the retail prices for it either, because the Escalade’s pricing strategy is consistent with its dominant position in the luxury market. I’m talking about the fact that GM’s apparent focus on specific segments of the market, instead of advancing BEV technology overall, will eventually cost the automaker dearly.
GM’s giant lineup of beefy, 9,000-lb.+ BEVs is formidable, but for all the wrong reasons. The Escalade IQ, GMC Hummer EV pickup and SUV, Chevrolet Silverado EV and GMC Sierra EV Denali are all massive in size and scope, but they are niche vehicles aimed at niche segments, which is fine, at least up to a point. The reality for the automaker, however, is that these vehicles are ultimately not advancing GM’s projection into the BEV space.
I’m sure GM operatives would argue that the company is covering all segments and markets as it has always done, and besides that, it already has the Chevy Blazer and Equinox EVs in-market as well, so, what’s my point?
My point is that the technological game when it comes to BEVs is changing at such a rapid rate that GM – and other automakers operating in this market – are not keeping up. In fact, they’re not even in the game. Coming out with the Escalade IQ is laudatory, but only to a degree. Unless GM gets in the mass market BEV game with class-leading vehicles, it isn’t in the game at all.
Yes, we have yet to see the next-gen Chevrolet Bolt EV from GM, but as I’ve already stated before, if it is anything short of ground breaking in terms of price and overall BEV performance (range, charging, etc.), it will be a massive disappointment.
What’s going on right now is more than a cautionary tale for U.S.-based automakers. It is a warning that the center of the global automobile industry has fundamentally shifted to China. Yes, this has been discussed – and warned about – many times before, but the new and ugly reality brought on by the scorching pace of BEV development is that the U.S. automakers are officially Sideshow Bobs in the overall scheme of things.
Will GM, Ford and Stellantis be left to produce a smattering of BEVs while churning out a wide range of ICE vehicles to keep their fortunes alive? That remains a giant “we’ll see,” but, needless to say, these companies are no longer dictating the tempo, and it can be argued that they haven’t been for a long, long time.
The High-Octane Truth is that the U.S. automakers have never truly been in the EV game, or at least not with a vision to truly gain meaningful market share. They have always been too obsessed with "vanity" projects rather than focusing on mainstream offerings. Just imagine if GM had, instead of abandoning the EV1 (they built it from 1996-1999), continued to research and develop EV propulsion on a continuous basis in the ensuing 30 years. I would bet that the EV landscape in this country would look completely different, and dramatically so, I might add.
I have said repeatedly that the day you can pull off the highway and recharge your EV in the same time it takes to fill up a gas-powered vehicle, is the day that the EV “thing” will have well and truly arrived.
Well, that day is here.
It’s just not here.
And that’s the High-Octane Truth for this week.