Nexperia, the EU-based automotive chipmaker at the centre of a geopolitical dispute, has suspended supplies to its Chinese factory, stepping up a trade war that threatens to halt production at carmakers around the world. The company wrote to customers this week informing them all supplies to a Chinese plant had been suspended. In September, the Netherlands used national security laws to take control of the chipmaker, citing concerns that its Chinese owner, Wingtech Technologies, was planning to shift intellectual property to another company it owned. The Dutch government said that…
Tag: Motoring
EU carmakers ‘days away’ from factories halting work in chip war with China
Industry body says reserves of Nexperia semiconductors are dwindling after Beijing bans exports of key components Carmakers in the EU are “days away” from closing production lines, the industry has warned as a crisis over computer chip supplies from China escalates. The European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA) issued an urgent warning on Wednesday saying its members, which include Volkswagen, Fiat, Peugeot and BMW, were now working on “reserve stocks but supplies are dwindling”. Continue reading… The Guardian
The Guardian view on hybrid cars: profitable for carmakers but not very green | Editorial
“Why the future is hybrid,” chirruped the Economist in 2004. While electric vehicles (EVs) looked like science fiction, that prediction looked prescient. Fast‑forward 20 years and battery technology has improved dramatically; EVs are affordable. Last week it emerged that plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) aren’t very green. The sales pitch had been that motorists could use “clean” battery power for city jaunts and dirty petrol for longer trips. This promised sustainable travel without the anxiety of a limited range. But real‑world tests, by the European non-profit Transport and Environment, show that…
BYD launches cheapest UK model in bid to overtake Tesla as biggest electric carmaker
The Chinese manufacturer BYD has launched its cheapest model in the UK, in the latest stage of its efforts to overtake Tesla as the world’s biggest electric carmaker. The Dolphin Surf will start at £18,650, a price that puts it among the cheapest new vehicles on sale in Britain. BYD is vying with American rival Tesla, run by Elon Musk, for the crown of world’s biggest battery carmaker, although BYD already beats Tesla when including figures for hybrid cars, which combine a battery with a petrol engine. The Chinese carmaker…
Sing when you’re winning: how karaoke in cars heralds the triumph of Chinese firms
If Chinese carmakers are to be believed, a lot of people really love karaoke. Those people love karaoke so much that they want it in their family car. This was not something the European mind could comprehend a few years ago, according to Volkswagen’s chief financial officer, Arno Antlitz. Yet the technology, included in electric cars sold by China’s BYD and Xpeng, is just one example of the lessons that Volkswagen and its European counterparts have had to learn as they scramble to keep up with Chinese rivals on track…
‘Source of data’: are electric cars vulnerable to cyber spies and hackers?
Mobile phones and desktop computers are longstanding targets for cyber spies – but how vulnerable are electric cars? On Monday the i newspaper claimed that British defence firms working for the UK government have warned staff against connecting or pairing their phones with Chinese-made electric cars, due to fears that Beijing could extract sensitive data from the devices. Here we look at whether there are problems with electric cars and security. Could an electric car snoop on you? Security experts spoken to by the Guardian say electric cars – the…
Honda and Nissan join forces on electric car technology to chase Chinese rivals
Honda and Nissan have put aside the “traditional approach” of fierce rivalry to join forces and work together on electric vehicle technology as Japan’s carmakers try to catch up with Chinese competitors. The Japanese manufacturers will work together on technology for EVs, including components and software, after signing a memorandum of understanding on Friday. Honda and Nissan, respectively the country’s second- and third-largest carmakers behind Toyota, aim to cut costs by combining resources. Traditional manufacturers are struggling to compete profitably with upstart rivals as the electric vehicle sector grows rapidly,…
Post-Brexit watchdog ‘ready’ to investigate flood of cheaper Chinese electric cars
The head of Britain’s post-Brexit trade watchdog has said it is ready to follow Brussels in launching an investigation into Chinese companies flooding the market for electric cars, but the government has not asked it to do so. Oliver Griffiths, the chief executive of the UK’s Trade Remedies Authority (TRA), which advises the government on trade defence, said it was keeping lines of communication open with ministers and had been in close contact with the car industry. “We’ll be ready to go if anyone does come to us,” he told…
The east German town at the centre of the new ‘gold rush’ … for lithium
It has been called the new gold rush – a rush to catch up with China in producing and refining the materials needed in everything from computers to cars: but has it come too late to save Europe’s car industry? Deep inside a former East German town lies the first fruits of the EU’s grand plan to “de-risk” and wean itself off dependency on imports for the green revolution. In Bitterfeld-Wolfen, 140km south-west of Berlin, an Amsterdam-listed company is scrambling to complete construction of a vast factory that will be…
China’s share of Europe’s electric car market accelerates as UK leads sales
China’s share of the European electric car market has more than doubled in less than two years as the world’s second largest economy tries to take the lead in the transition away from petrol and diesel cars. The UK is the largest market in Europe for Chinese electric car brands, accounting for almost a third of sales in 2023 so far, according to data from Schmidt Automotive Research on the 18 largest European car markets. About 5% of all new car sales in the UK were from Chinese brands in…