Recap of Detroit auto show, Automotive News Congress and Battery Show

It's been a busy week in the heart of the U.S. automotive world. Three major events — the North American International Detroit Auto Show and the Automotive News Congress, both in Detroit, and the Battery Show in the suburb of Novi -- brought industry leaders to the area. The Automotive News Congress featured keynote sessions with General Motors President Mark Reuss, Ford Blue President Kumar Galhotra and Hyundai Motor Co. President and Global COO Jose Muñoz. While the Detroit auto show was light on unveilings, Ford, GMC, Jeep and Cadillac showed key models with signficant updates. The Battery zoomed in on pressing issues such as battery plant timelines, regulations and recycling. Here's a recap of the week: The Battery Show is moving to downtown Detroit next yearThu, Sep 14, 2:57 pmThe Battery Show is moving to a new date and a bigger space next year. The show will run from Oct. 7-10 at Huntington Place in Detroit, home of the Detroit auto show. This yearâ€™s Battery Show, at the Suburban Collection Showplace in Novi, featured more than 800 suppliers, 200 speakers and 15,000 attendees.Hannah LutzFirst Shift: 2023 Detroit auto showThu, Sep 14, 2:20 pmThe Battery Show food sceneWed, Sep 13, 5:04 pmWalking through the cavernous Suburban Collection Showplace, where around 800 vendors are showing their EV wares is massive sensory overload.The companies set up here know that and many offer candy, coffee and snack items free as a way to get passersby to slow down and take a look.Averna, a global supplier of EV testing equipment based in Quebec, is taking a different approach. Averna has two jars of kosher dill pickles and a pair tongs at its display. As of Wednesday, the second day of the battery show, the company had given away dozens of pickles.The ploy works, too, says Avernaâ€™s Jeffrey Urbanski. â€œJust about every person who asked for a pickle has enquired about the company,â€ he said. Averna's testing equipment helps ensure that vehicles leave the production line with all electronic components working properly.Averna did the same thing at last yearâ€™s battery show. One of the first things Maximillian Schultz heard at this yearâ€™s show was â€œHey, Itâ€™s the pickle guys,â€ from an attendee who got one last year.Richard TruettItâ€™s go time for Our Next EnergyWed, Sep 13, 4:59 pmItâ€™s go time for Our Next Energy, the suburban Detroit battery maker working to bring its LFP or lithium iron phosphate cells to market.The company is now ramping up production in preparation for its first deliveries to fleet operators. Mujeeb Ijaz, Oneâ€™s CEO, says the company is adding a second shift to production line at its plant at a Piston Automotive facility. The company, Ijaz says is also on schedule to begin manufacturing cells by the end of year at its Van Buren Township plant. Manufacturing equipment for the 20,000 square foot dry room is being installed this month.The company is making batteries for EVs and for stationary storage.Richard TruettHonda Accord, BMW 5 Series, Toyota Prius, Ford Mustang, Chevy Corvette E-Ray, Blazer EV among models in running for NACTOY honorsWed, Sep 13, 4:59 pmSome of the auto industry's most venerable nameplates are among the latest finalists named for 2024 North American Car of the Year. And it could be a Chevy sweep when winners are named early next year.Full storyJeep Gladiator gets new grille, bigger touchscreen for 2024Wed, Sep 13, 4:00 pmThe Gladiator pickup gets many of the same updates that already were made this year to the Wrangler on which it's based, including UConnect 5 with a 12.3-inch screen.Full storyGMC Acadia gets bigger again for 2024Wed, Sep 13, 3:59 pmGMC redesigned the Acadia to be more than 10 inches longer and 3 inches taller, making the three-row crossover more spacious as the segment gets increasingly competitive.Full storyCadillac CT5 targets younger clientele with updated look, techWed, Sep 13, 1:48 pmCT5 buyers are older than the average Cadillac customer, and the brand aims to change that with new styling and a customizable 33-inch touchscreen.Full storyFord adds new base engine, new tailgate, design updates to 2024 F-150Wed, Sep 13, 12:19 amFord's top-selling truck will be marketed and sold with 90 percent fewer build combinations for the 2024 model year, vs. the current pickup, to simplify manufacturing, with a hybrid variant expected to grab a greater shares of sales.Full storyFrom Congress: Jose MuÃ±oz says Hyundai in â€˜crisis mode,' boosting investmentTue, Sep 12, 11:12 pmThe Hyundai brand has catapulted ahead of rivals in the U.S. sales rankings in three short years, but North America CEO Jose MuÃ±oz says the company is in "crisis mode" as it ramps up investment to expand its domestic footprint and turbocharge U.S. growth.Full storyFrom Congress: Autonomous driving legal landscape 'a hot mess'Tue, Sep 12, 11:11 pm Automakers and suppliers have already spent tens of billions developing driver assistance and autonomous driving capabilities, but the legal landscape surrounding those technologies is at best problematic â€” and at worst, "a hot mess," according to panelists Tuesday at the Automotive News Congress.Full storyFrom Congress: GM's Reuss says company has laid groundwork for profitable EVsTue, Sep 12, 8:46 pm General Motors is working to build out its supply chain for electric vehicles and unlock profitability as it achieves efficiency and scale, company President Mark Reuss said Tuesday.That comes as the automaker aims to make 100,000 electric vehicles in the second half of this year, building on the 50,000 EVs produced in North America in the first half of this year, he said.Full storyFrom Congress: Ford's Galhotra predicts F-150 could become top-selling hybridTue, Sep 12, 8:13 pmFord Motor Co. believes that its F-150 pickup could soon become the top-selling hybrid model.Kumar Galhotra, president of Ford Blue, made the prediction Tuesday at the Automotive News Congress.Full storyFrom Congress: Industry needs Treasury guidance on Inflation Reduction Act's EV sourcing rulesTue, Sep 12, 8:12 pmThe auto industry urgently needs guidance from the U.S. Treasury Department on which cars will be eligible for electric vehicle tax credits under the Inflation Reduction Act's "foreign entity of concern" rules, executives said.Full storyFrom the Battery Show: Safety takes center stageTue, Sep 12, 6:50 pmYou might think kilowatts per hour, fast charging times and more range on a single charge would be the highlights of The Battery Show.Theyâ€™re not.You can walk down any aisle at The Battery Show and see the words â€œthermal managementâ€ on signs and displays.Although battery fires in EVs are rare, just about every company in the EV food chain has made preventing fires a top priority, whether that means keeping batteries cool, preventing a fire from spreading, coming up with ways to remove heat from battery packs and so on.Increasing global regulations coming into effect that include puncture standards for battery packs and the amount of time drivers and passengers can safely exit a burning EV are driving some of the investment in fire mitigation. But talk to just about anyone of the show floor and youâ€™ll get impression that the whole EV era could get upended quickly if battery electric vehicles get a reputation as being unsafe.â€œI would say batteries are maybe several orders of magnitude safer now than what there were even two or three years ago, said David Miller, technical lead at Boyd Corp, a company that manufactures heat mitigation systems for battery packs. â€œThe industry is rapidly coming up with solutions to make them safer and safer. Everyone wants the safest battery.â€-Richard TruettFrom Congress: Dealers caught in middle of EV transitionTue, Sep 12, 5:51 pmLegislators 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.Full storyFrom Congress: Money for startups tighter, but still room for quality investmentsTue, Sep 12, 5:12 pmSeed funding for automotive startups is harder to come by right now, and investor appetite for risk has been pared back, according to a panel of venture capitalists. But there is still money available for promising technologies with good founders and the right business plans.Full storyDuPont's approach to containing battery firesTue, Sep 12, 5:03 pmAlthough battery fires are rare in EVs, they present many complex problems. They are more intense that fires in ICE vehicles. And battery fires are difficult to extinguish and keep out, for example.A number of companies at The Battery Show are displaying strategies to mitigate fires. DuPont is taking several approaches to contain runaway cells. The company showed cells embedded in a fire-retardant material designed to prevent one defective cell from igniting others.Another strategy Dupont is working on is to use an adhesive to bind cells together with cooling channels placed in the center of the cells. You can see them in the photo. They are the green stripes.Both of these fire mitigation systems are designed to be sold as systems to automakers that build their own packs. The safety system production equipment would be installed right on the same line as where the cells are assembled into packs.-Richard TruettFrom the Battery Show: Wheel-hub motor maker Elaphe moving on from LordstownTue, Sep 12, 5:02 pmFor Elaphe Propulsion Technologies, the Slovenian company that built the wheel-hub motors for the ill-fated Lordstown Endurance, the truck's failure is not the end of the road.Full storyFrom Congress: Venture capital more limited but still availableTue, Sep 12, 3:46 pmVenture Capital panel at #ANCongress: money is tighter, risk appetite is more limited, but still money out there for promising technologies. pic.twitter.com/ZhPoTN6owNâ€” Larry P. Vellequette (@LarryVellequett) September 12, 2023From the Battery Show: Cosworth's electrifying displayTue, Sep 12, 3:46 pmThe Battery Show in Novi, Mich., has around 800 vendors from all over the world showing nearly every imaginable component for EVs. There are new companies, old companies and many in-between.The absolute last company I expected to see here is Cosworth, the legendary British engineering firm whose high-performance engines are so renowned that automakers have branded complete cars with the Cosworth name. Ford RS200 and the 1974-75 Chevrolet Cosworth Vega, for example.But you wonâ€™t find anything to do with a gasoline engine at Cosworthâ€™s display. The company is marketing a line of compact battery pack modules designed to assist engineers at automakers quickly test EVs. The modules are designed for quick installation and changes, and can be connected together or daisy chained, said Mark Durrant, Cosworthâ€™s commercial director.â€œThis is a module that you can put together and quickly put in the car. One of the issue automakers have is the lead time in design and getting a product to test. This is a quick way to get something up and running,â€ Durrant told Automotive News.The compact modules are not intended to be used in production vehicles. The packs use 21700 cells.-Richard TruettAutomotive News Congress underwayTue, Sep 12, 2:34 pmIndustry leaders are gathering at Crain Communications headquarters in Detroit on Tuesday for the 2023 Automotive News Congress to share ideas, insights and inspiration.This year's theme is "Investing in Innovation" and topics cover venture capital, the future of automotive retail, ADAS and liability, and the Inflation Reduction Act.The keynotes feature Jose MuÃ±oz, global COO of Hyundai Motor Co.; General Motors President Mark Reuss; and Ford Blue President Kumar Galhotra.Some of our 2023 Rising Stars also share the spotlight.Thu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmKumar Galhotra, left, president of Ford Blue, Ford Motor Co.'s gasoline-powered vehicle business, joins a keynote lineup of General Motors President Mark Reuss, center, and Hyundai Motor Co. President Jose MuÃ±oz at the Automotive News Congress on Sept. 12. Thu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmThu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmThu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmThu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmSAVE THE DATE: 2023 Automotive News Congress On September 12Thu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmThu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmThu, Aug 15, 7:27 pmNavigating a future of electrification, infrastructure and sustainabilityFri, Sep 8, 6:03 pm"Full storyDetroit 3 tease reveals, including Ford F-150Fri, Sep 8, 6:01 pmThe 2023 Detroit auto show, while smaller than pre-pandemic events, is expected to showcase at least a handful of reveals from the city's hometown automakers. Ford Motor Co. plans to unveil a freshened F-150, including an updated hybrid variant. General Motors has press conferences scheduled for its GMC and Cadillac brands, while Stellantis has one scheduled, for Jeep.Full storyFlying cars, mobility forum target imaginationFri, Sep 8, 6:00 pmFlying cars, Malcolm Gladwell and Shaggy are coming to this year's Detroit auto show. The show is bringing back its Air Mobility Experience for a second year, featuring displays from two companies developing electric vertical takeoff and landing vehicles.Full storyBattery Show highlights EV tech, supply chain, infrastructureFri, Sep 8, 5:54 pmAs automakers showcase the latest electric models at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, suppliers, engineers, technology companies and policymakers will be 30 miles away at The Battery Show in Novi, Mich., discussing plans to underpin those vehicles.Full story

Recap of Detroit auto show, Automotive News Congress and Battery Show

Featured Stories