The Intersection 9-17-23

I've heard that there's a term for the anxiety and dread that some people feel before the work week resumes: the "Sunday scaries."

Heading into this next work week, the industry may be feeling a bit more stress and worry than usual as UAW President Shawn Fain threatens to broaden his historic "stand-up strike" against the Detroit 3.

Is it really historic? You bet it is. This is the first time Ford Motor Co. has faced a national strike since 1970. And it appears to be the first strike at Toledo Jeep over a national contract in more than a century of automaking and 90 years of UAW representation.

Auto dealers — especially loyal readers of Automotive News — knew that a work stoppage was a possibility, if not a likelihood. So as the UAW prepared to walk out, they mobilized their own strike plans, stockpiling inventory and replacement parts.

Suppliers were already weakened by the pandemic economy that benefited automakers and dealers, and some of the smaller ones have precious little cushion to absorb the costs of a significant strike. While some may hope for help from the Biden administration, most are weighing when they will need to resort to layoffs themselves.

You can track the latest news as it happens on our live blog.

It's easy to forget that as recently as 1999, the Detroit 3 supplied 68 percent of the U.S. light vehicle market, according to the Automotive News Research & Data Center. It's now at 40 percent. We have pulled together a lot of key statistics, profiles and analysis of key issues on a single webpage about the 2023 UAW-Detroit 3 negotiations.

One of my favorite features is a summary of what each party is offering. Or in the UAW's case "demanding."

The sides are seemingly still far apart. The UAW has lowered its wage-increase demands by 4 percent to 36 percent (or from 46 percent to 41 percent for those of us who insist on compounding), while the automakers are offering 20 percent nominal raises. That seems like a pretty big gap, but one that could negotiated.

The problem is all of the union's other demands.

If UAW President Shawn Fain insists on a return of benefits that sent General Motors and Stellantis into bankruptcy — such as traditional pensions — and borderline fantasies like a four-day workweek, this dispute could drag and be extremely painful for many parties.

I believe that if Fain could surrender some of those non-starters, he could maybe win some more ground on temps or the long grow-in period that is now labeled as a separate "tier" of employment.

He's already gotten offers that include a significant ratification bonus, an extra holiday and parental leave time that could make up an attractive agreement to send to members for a vote.

But in a Sunday morning interview, Fain sounded more inclined to halt work at more factories than to compromise and reach an agreement, saying on MSNBC's "The Sunday Show with Jonathan Capehart": "Progress is slow, and I don't really want to say we're closer."

We'll all see how much closer the sides really are in the coming days. However it breaks, you'll always get the latest news, analysis and commentary in the printed pages of Automotive News and at autonews.com.

— Jamie Butters, executive editor      

Automotive News Editors' Picks:

Breaking a trend in Detroit: Over the last few years, auto show coverage has become fairly consistant, heralding the latest “green” technology or the latest bevy of electric vehicle unveilings. Not so in Detroit, where Ford, GMC, Cadillac and Jeep all displayed upcoming models that had one thing in common: internal combustion. Ford and Jeep showed off their latest pickup offerings: F-150 trim models due next year and the newest updates to its 2025 Gladiator midsize pickup. Cadillac unveiled a freshened CT5 sedan, while GMC debuted a larger Acadia SUV. Gone are the days of 30-plus unveilings, but the show went on last week in Detroit for models that will arrive in dealership showrooms in the next couple of years.

What’s behind the surge this year in EV registrations? Among all brands, EV registrations in the January-July period of 2023 rose a hefty 67 percent over last year to 655,986. U.S. market share for electric vehicles rose to 7.2 percent for the period, and that growth is expected to continue as more EVs become available in mainstream as well as luxury market segments. The leader of the pack is Tesla, but the data shows its EV rivals such as BMW, Mercedes-Benz and Rivian also made significant share gains from last year. Ford, Hyundai and Kia saw new registrations rise, but their market share slipped amid the increasing competition. J.D. Power credits Tesla with driving EV adoption with its aggressive price cuts this year. But it says affordability is really only approaching parity for the luxury sector. Automotive News looks at the projections for the remainder of 2023 and the challenges ahead in sustaining that kind of growth.

Automotive News Congress panelists call liability issues around AV and driver assist systems a ‘hot mess’: Questions abound over who gets held legally accountable for problems involving autonomous vehicles and driver-assist systems. It doesn’t help that most of the litigation in the area has been settled out of court, said panelist Jennifer Dukarski, a Michigan lawyer practicing in the areas of intellectual property, media and technology. “When you look at most of the cases that have arisen, under these driverless vehicles or somewhat autonomous vehicles ... people sued under negligence theory,” Dukarski said. “And let’s be honest — all of them have settled, so we really have no idea where [legal precedent is] ultimately headed.” Automotive News looks at the problems that may lead to litigation and what panelists suggest might be done to create some clarity around who’s held accountable.

Ford, Honda, BMW form vehicle-to-grid company to save EV drivers money: Ford Motor Co., American Honda Motor Co. and BMW last week said they are forming a new company called ChargeScape that will create a single platform to connect electric utilities, automakers and electric vehicle customers and manage energy usage across the U.S. and Canada. The three companies said the platform will allow participating EV customers to potentially save money by charging at grid-friendly times.

Dealers caught in middle of EV transition, panel says: Legislators across the U.S. are pushing for a transition to EVs while most consumers still don’t understand what that will look like day to day. In the middle of it all are dealers, said participants on a Future of Automotive Retail panel at the Automotive News Congress.

Google announces new in-car app integrations, including Zoom and Prime Video: Google is expanding app offerings across its open-source infotainment platform and in cars with built-in Google applications. Drivers will be able to access WebEx and Zoom, Prime Video, the Weather Channel and the Vivaldi web browser in their vehicles, the company said.

Sept. 17, 1854: Date of birth of David Dunbar Buick, an inventor and engineer who formed a tiny auto company in 1903 that grew strong enough to be the cornerstone of General Motors just five years later. In 1940, Automotive News Editor Chris Sinsabaugh, who had covered the industry from its inception, reflected: “Buick was the first real success of the automobile industry and did more to promote the industry’s well-being in terms of public education, engineering advancement and manufacturing progress than perhaps any other company.”