Kia Shows Hints of Nine Future Electric Cars and Concepts
We’ve seen Kia’s new logo, and now we’ve learned a more about the brand’s future plans, including seven all-electric models and three battery-powered concepts by 2027. Kia’s intent is to stake out a leading position in the EV market, and it teased five of those future production models in silhouette.
The models will be known as EV1 through EV9, part of a model-name reorganization we’ll touch on in a bit. We don’t know which models get which numbers, so we’ll use Kia’s own descriptions (and please don’t accuse of egregious use of marketing-speak; we’re just parroting here).
First up is what Kia calls “a powerful and dynamic crossover”:
A “fun and practical commuter”:
A “strong and bold SUV”:
An “agile and dynamic machine” (which they hinted would be a serious performer, perhaps an electric Stinger):
Lastly, a “long and elegant sedan” (hidden, for reasons we can’t even guess at, behind the agile and dynamic machine):
All of the products will use the company’s Electric Global Modular Platform, a dedicated EV architecture that Kia and partner Hyundai have chosen to refer to by the rather unfortunate acronym E-GMP. The first car will debut in the upcoming weeks, and it will likely be a close mechanical relative of Hyundai’s stylistically differentiated Ioniq 5.
Kia also teased three mobility concept vehicles, which they refer to as PBVs, or Purpose Built Vehicles. They, too, were revealed in silhouette. First is what Kia calls “a micro autonomous pod”:
An “individual urban transporter”:
A “midsize commuter”:
And a “large logistic companion” (is that a fancy way of saying delivery drone?):
All these changes are part of a corporate marketing reinvention. The company officially known as Kia Motors Corporation will formally adopt the name everyone else uses: Kia. The brand’s new slogan is “Movement That Inspires” and it has even adopted new brand colors, with black and white as the primary hues and yellow, green, and gray also in use. Kia’s plan is to move away from a manufacturing-driven model and expand into other business areas that it terms “innovative mobility services.”
Meanwhile, some model names will change as well. Kia recently renamed the Optima as the K5, and it says other sedans will follow suit, adopting the alphanumeric names used in other markets. However, SUVs like the Sportage and Telluride will retain their long-form names.
Could Kia come to dominate the electric-vehicle segment? Twenty-nine years ago, when they came to the US with a cheap-but-rugged SUV called the Sportage, few thought the South Korean automaker would ever become a serious player. Look how that turned out. Ten years ago we didn’t think Kia would ever built a proper driver’s car, and look how that turned out. If Kia has set the goal of becoming a major EV player, its competitors should take notice.
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Is REE Automotive’s Skateboard Chassis the Future of Commercial EVs?
Sure, you could always buy a prefab skateboard from Element or Zero, but the cool kids pick their ideal size deck and then select custom trucks and wheels to suit. Tel-Aviv-based REE Automotive reckons it should be just as easy to build your electric mobility as a service (MaaS) shuttle or delivery van. At CES 2021, the company showed off its electric skateboard chassis concept comprised of its patented REEboards and REEcorners.
REEboards—Backbone of the Electric Skateboard Chassis
REEboards are way larger but only slightly more complicated than the bent plywood of an analog skateboard. In addition to providing the structural basis for the finished vehicle, the board houses a battery sized for its intended duty cycle, along with most power electronics and the wiring needed to distribute the power, as well as the steer-, brake-, and accelerate-by-wire commands, to the corners.
REEcorners: The Trucks and Wheels of the REEboard
REEcorners mount to the REEboard and house the motor, brake, spring, damper, wheel, and tire all within the envelope of the modest-sized wheel well. The design of these corners can vary with the fitment, but examples displayed include angled coil-over-shock designs, typical disc brakes (with electric actuation), and the option of an electric motor. Obviously, any corner can be driven or not as desired, and naturally, the size and strength of the motor, brakes, springs, and shocks can be tailored to suit a range of different projected gross-vehicle weights. The suspensions are all completely mechanical, as air or hydraulic connections unnecessarily complicate the REEboard design.
Obviously, these fully plug-and-play REEcorners can be operated by a computer or by a person manning controls, so REE Automotive’s e-chassis solution is ready for all levels of autonomy, from level 2 assist to full-on robotaxi or delivery pod. Benefits REE claims for its platform include: complete freedom of body design, fast launch cycles, highest load capacity in the smallest footprint, battery capability ranging from 48 to 800 volts, minimal downtime for maintenance, and over-the-air updates with artificial intelligence providing preventive maintenance.
Ready for Commercial Use
The REEcorners strike this tech-watcher as exceptionally good at being compact, modular, easily assembled, and cost-effective. They do NOT strike me as the ideal way to suspend a sports car, luxury sedan, or SUV. REE Automotive knows this, which is why it is primarily targeting commercial uses.
“We strive to be the blank canvas on top of which partners and customers can build EVs [and] AVs tailored to their exact needs while on the road [toward] a zero-emissions future,” Daniel Barel, REE’s chief executive officer and co-founder, said. Late last year, the game-changing nature of REE’s product was recognized with a BloombergNEF Pioneer award.
Toyota’s heavy-truck division, Hino, showed off its FlatFormer delivery concept truck based on the REE platform at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show. Additionally, REE Automotive signed a memorandum of understanding in late 2020 with Mahindra that aims to produce 250,000 electric commercial vehicles on REE platforms. Furthermore, the company has inked strategic partnerships with Tier 1 companies such as American Axle, NSK, Musashi, Tenneco, KYB, and Iochpe-Maxion. Leaning on this network of partners and customers, REE Automotive tells us to expect the first products rolling on its electric skateboard chassis to appear in 2023.
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The Stellantis Era Dawns: FCA Is Dead, Brands Like Chrysler May Not Survive
Another milestone in the tumultuous history of the company originally known as just Chrysler: On Saturday, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and PSA Group will merge to create Stellantis, the fourth-largest automaker in the world by volume. Stellantis will be listed on the New York, Milan, and Paris stock exchanges next week.
There will be repercussions. Stellantis will start life with seven FCA brands and another four from PSA. That seems unmanageable. Every merger creates duplication and results in the death of products, brands, positions, plants, and plans. PSA Group CEO Carlos Tavares, who becomes CEO of Stellantis, has a history of turning brands and companies around with tough cost targets and the discipline to axe where necessary.
Fate of FCA Brands
On the FCA side, Jeep and Ram are the profitable powerhouses and, quite frankly, the reason the automaker was an attractive dance partner in the first place. Jeep will only grow in stature with a greater international presence. Ram will remain mostly centered on the North American market but could increase its market reach, especially with commercial vehicles. FCA CEO Mike Manley will oversee the Americas for Stellantis and will be a champion for these brands.
It is the oldest, truly heritage, brands, that are most vulnerable: Chrysler and Dodge. Chrysler sold just over 110,000 vehicles in the U.S., its biggest market, in 2020. It is a brand that now only consists of the Chrysler Pacifica minivan and the aging Chrysler 300 fullsize sedan.
Dodge is healthier with about 267,000 sales in the U.S. last year, but with the discontinuation of the Journey crossover and the Grand Caravan minivan, it is reduced to the Dodge Durango SUV and the Dodge Charger and Dodge Challenger muscle cars.
Then there are the Italian brands: Alfa Romeo, Fiat, and Maserati that have failed to meet lofty expectations in North America. Fiat’s dismal sales resulting in the discontinuation of the Fiat 500, 500L and 124 roadster, leaving only the Fiat 500X small crossover.
The PSA Group brings Peugeot, Citroen, DS Autos, and Opel which the group bought from General Motors in 2017.
Peugeot’s U.S. Return Uncertain
Before the creation of Stellantis, there were plans to sell a PSA Group brand in the U.S. by 2026 and Tavares later identified the brand as Peugeot. A small group of executives have been in place in the U.S. to oversee the return of the brand that left North America in 1991. Peugeot CEO Jean-Philippe Imparato now says plans to re-enter the U.S. by 2026 may be reconsidered, according to an Automotive News Europe report.
Chrysler’s Storied (and Checkered) History May Not Save It
Chrysler dates back to 1925, founded by Walter Chrysler, and it is still referred to as part of the Big Three or Detroit Three, referring to General Motors, Ford, and Chrysler.
The automaker has teetered many times on the edge of a financial cliff. It was on the verge of bankruptcy in the late 1970s and was saved by government loan guarantees worth $1.5 billion that bought time until the release of a surprising savior in secret development: the minivan.
DaimlerChrysler ‘Merger of Equals’ … Wasn’t
In 1998, in a deal worth $36 billion, Chrysler was acquired by Daimler-Benz of Germany, and the so-called alliance or “merger of equals” was named DaimlerChrysler. It was not a good fit, as the two cultures never really merged—though Daimler-sourced platforms helped make vehicles like the Chrysler 300C, Dodge Charger and Challenger, and Jeep Grand Cherokee much better than their predecessors. Daimler sold Chrysler in 2007 to Cerberus, a private equity firm in the U.S., for just $7.4 billion.
The financial crisis in 2008 proved devastating for Detroit automakers. Chrysler laid off thousands of white-collar workers. Plant closures, shift eliminations, job cuts, and model line rationalizations were all planned. Work on future products was mostly curtailed. The few remaining resources were diverted to development of the next-generation Chrysler 300 full-size sedan and the new Jeep Cherokee.
Chrysler Files for Bankruptcy
On April 30, 2009, Chrysler filed for bankruptcy. General Motors filed for bankruptcy June 1, and while the government deemed GM too big to fail, officials were divided as to whether to use government money to save the smaller Chrysler.
In the end, government loans totaling more than $10 billion were provided, and when Chrysler exited bankruptcy, it had a patchwork of owners including the U.S. and Canadian governments, the United Auto Workers pension fund, and Fiat S.p.A. which agreed to supply some of its powertrains and other tech, and also share its CEO, Sergio Marchionne.
FCA Gains Full Ownership
By 2014, Fiat had acquired 100 percent of Chrysler, which became a full subsidiary of the Italian automaker. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles was formed; Marchionne remained CEO of the cross-Atlantic empire until he died in 2018.
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‘Ferrari’s Ass Is Mine’ Shelby Cobra Once Owned By Paul Walker Up For Sale
A Shelby Cobra is a Shelby Cobra is a Shelby Cobra—except when it isn’t. Shelby managed to complete just over 1,000 original Cobras between 1961 and 1968; add another zero and triple, maybe quadruple, that to account for all the Cobra replicas shaking windows and terrorizing tire shops around the world. Carroll Shelby’s drawn-out fight with RepliCobra peddlers was perhaps his toughest and highest-profile battle since he brought the fight to Ferrari at Le Mans back in the mid-1960s.
Finally, after numerous lawsuits and chest-high columns of cease-and-desist letters, Shelby acquiesced and reached an agreement with a dossier of manufacturers including Superformance, Factory 5, Kirkham Motorsports, and even AC Cars, who held the rights to the AC Ace and AC Cobra shape to begin with. Eventually, limited production of official Shelby-licensed Cobras resumed in the late 1990s, when even Shelby himself got in on the RepliCobra fun.
Shelby, of course, wouldn’t be pleased with some slipshod fiberglass facsimile. In the late 1990s, the former Texan chicken farmer commissioned AC Cars to build a run of 14 CSX1000 Cobras, all shaped from hand-rolled aluminum like the originals. Ten of these CSX1000 cars were to be outfitted in “Ferrari’s Ass is Mine” specification per Shelby, recalling his famous pledge when the Shelby team lost the 1964 World Manufacturers Championship allegedly on a technicality. As sensationalized in the blockbuster film “Ford v. Ferrari,” Shelby returned with the financial and technical backing of Ford with the GT40, taking home the laurels in 1966 and 1967.
Only two of the ten planned FAM Cobras were built by AC, making the gorgeous FAM Cobra that’s headed to Mecum’s Glendale sale later this spring one of the rarest serialized RepliCobras to ever wear the official Shelby crest. As part of the jab toward that legendary Italian automaker, this FAM Cobra is coated in a gorgeous shade of Ferrari’s own Rosso Corsa red, accentuated by a Ferrari-aping tan interior.
As this is a 427 Cobra, there’s enough power under that curved front hood to kick-start the Hoover Dam’s generators. A Shelby-built 468-cid (7.6-liter) big-block V-8 churns out 550 hp, a whacky amount of gumption for such a light car and with so short a wheelbase. A Tremec five-speed manages all that spin, as does four-wheel independent suspension and a set of powerful Wilwood brakes. All in, it’s a tidy package; unsurprising, considering one of the previous owners was none other than late Fast and Furious superstar and all-around car nut Paul Walker.
For the Shelby diehard, this is a rare chance at a serious piece of the brand’s modern history, and one of the finest continuation Cobras ever to lay elevens onto tarmac. Register to bid on this Ferrari-baiting roadster before it crosses the auction block in March.
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Dax Shepard Is Building an LT4-Swapped Chevy 454 SS Pickup
Actor, automotive enthusiast, and co-host of the MotorTrend App’s new Top Gear America, Dax Shepard is building a Chevrolet 454 SS pickup with a supercharged LT4 engine and six-speed automatic transmission. HOT ROD Garage co-host Lucky Costa is doing the work at his personal shop and invited us to check in on his progress.
It’s a pretty well-known fact that Dax is a dyed-in-the-wool gearhead. He hails from Detroit and grew up in the industry. We’ve featured some of his cars, like his hot-rodded Lincoln Continental and LS-swapped 1996 Buick Roadmaster wagon. He recently purchased this low-mileage 454 SS, and it’s really clean.
We drove it around the block and were impressed with its tight feel and ride quality. The throttle-body-injected (TBI) 454 definitely makes more torque and accelerates with more aplomb than Project Jake, the in-house, small-block-powered OBS (old body style) 1993 GMC C1500 from our sister publication HOT ROD. Still, an 8:1 compression big-block with peanut-port cylinder heads, a tiny cam, and hard-to-tune, airflow-limited induction and fuel-delivery systems doesn’t compare very favorably with even the standard engines in today’s pickups.
Say what you will about taking out the big-block in a 454 SS and replacing it with an LS or (in this case) LT engine, it’s hard to argue with the logic. Lucky told us he and Dax discussed several options on how to build the existing big-block for more power, but Dax decided on the LT4 E-Rod crate engine from Chevrolet Performance in an attempt to keep the pickup emissions-compliant. This engine package received an executive order (E.O.) number from the California Air Resources Board (CARB) allowing it to be installed in 1995 and older passenger cars and trucks up to 5,725 pounds GVRW.
The LT4 originally appeared in the C7 Corvette Z06 and is rated at 640 horsepower and 630 lb-ft of torque thanks to its 6.2 liters of displacement and a 1.7L Eaton R1740 TVS supercharger that generates a conservative 10 psi of boost. Even with the extra weight of the supercharger, the all-aluminum engine will be lighter than the 454, which Lucky has set aside in case Dax decides to put his pickup back to stock someday.
Is the LT4 Engine a Small-Block?
Although people refer to the LS and LT family of engines as small-blocks, the LT4 takes up a considerable amount of real estate, thanks to its extensive supercharger and accessory drive pulleys. Lucky removed the hood, grille, and front bumper assemblies because it would be much easier to perform the engine change that way.
Elevated Concepts, Inc. is a company that specializes in LS and LT engine swaps for the ’88 to ’98 Chevy and GMC pickups and SUVs. Owner Derek Parker sells LT-swap motor mounts that position the engine at an ideal location within the engine compartment. Lucky drilled access holes to reach the inside of the fasteners on the frame stands. They are otherwise inaccessible without removing the lower control arms.
As is often the case with engine swaps, the accessories can sometimes get in the way of the frame in older cars. Other accessory drive systems are available, but Lucky prefers Holley’s LS and LT systems for their high-quality fit, finish, and reliability. Unique to the LT4 because of its supercharger drive and throttle body location, the LT4 accessory drive kit puts the alternator low and on the right side of the engine. Lucky notched and reinforced the frame to clear the alternator, leaving enough room around it in case it ever needs to be removed in the future. We’ve seen frame modifications like this done on dozens of cars with no evidence of compromised structural integrity.
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Dax chose the Supermatic 8L90-E eight speed automatic transmission from Chevrolet Performance to act as intermediary between the LT4 and the 12-bolt axle in the 454 SS. It’s rated to handle 650 lb-ft of torque and is offered with a choice of a 2,400-rpm or 3,000-rpm stall converter. First gear is a steep 4.02:1, and sixth is a low 0.67:1, so Dax will experience the delicious contrast of neck-snapping launches (providing he has sufficient traction) and sedate highway cruising once he lets off the gas. This thing will probably get pretty decent mileage, all things considered.
The stock transmission crossmember in these pickups is basically a stamped piece of sheetmetal that’s so straight it could double as an ironing board. The lack of complexity makes it easy to accommodate the new transmission, which seems like it takes a standard GM mount. Lucky just needed to move the crossmember back a couple of inches to its new mounting position. Stay tuned for more as work progresses, and be sure to check out the new Top Gear America when it debuts on January 29, 2021 on the MotorTrend App.
Sources
Chevrolet Performance, chevrolet.com/performance-parts
Elevated Concepts, Inc., elevatedconceptsinc.com
Holley, 270-781-9741, holley.com
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