Auto Industry News: Frankfurt Motor Show Reveals Industry Signs of Decline, 23 States Sue Trump Administration, and Jeep Faces Some NHTSA Heat

As the Frankfurt Motor Show wraps up, some worrying truths about the auto industry become apparent. Jeep faces some NHTSA heat. And we get our latest round of the knock-down, drag-out battle between California and the EPA, as 23 states sue the Trump administration in this never-ending emissions battle.

Frankfurt Motor Show Decline

While many are excited about the cleaner, electric future of the auto industry put on display at this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show, others saw the event as the death rattle of an industry about to spiral into uncertainty. True, this year’s gathering had no shortage of EV innovation from brands like Volkswagen, Honda, SmartEQ, Mini, and even Porsche. But it was also one surrounded by both external and internal drama.

The number of exhibitors fell from 994 to 830—a nearly 20% dip—with rumors swirling that even big domestic brands like Daimler and Volkswagen Group considered pulling out in the lead-up to the show. Additionally, Bernhard Mattes, the chief of the German Auto Lobby (who hosts the show) unexpectedly announced his resignation on opening day—an auto show inauguration that was disrupted by angry environmentalists, protesting the event outside and from the tops of display vehicles.

Other big-name brands like Ferrari, Toyota, Volvo, and Fiat Chrysler were among those who didn’t attend this year’s Frankfurt Motor Show. And many of the automakers who did show up, cut down the size of their displays, choosing to save those marketing dollars for more creative and innovative consumer interactions. (Think: Goodwood Festival of Speed.)

And, to put it bluntly, people around the show noticed an overall difference from previous years. 

Jens Wagner, a merchandise salesman who’s attended the show for 20 years, told The Washington Post that he misses the days of roaring engines and tightly-packed crowds. “If you look around, you’ll see for yourself what’s happening,” said Wagner, 47. “Less people, less exhibitors, less everything.”

Other big names in the automotive industry expressed their disappointment in this year’s show, as well. “The IAA2019 is a huge fail,” tweeted former Opel CEO Karl-Thomas Neumann. “It’s a sad shadow of what it used to be.”

While the fewer exhibitors, lower attendance, and push towards electric vehicles might appear to be troubling news for the show, it’s more of an indication as to where the future of the auto industry lies.

Automakers around the world are being forced to push EVs onto the market to keep up with Europe’s newer, heightened emissions standards. (Standards that, when fudged, have gotten certain German automakers into very hot water.) This is amid dipping car sales and economic uncertainties like Brexit, the U.S.-China trade war, and Germany’s powerhouse economy faltering.

In short, we don’t think this is a Frankfurt Motor Show problem in and of itself. It’s more of an indication of the rough and bumpy road the auto industry faces, as it tries to shift from fossil fuels to electric power—and do so in a way that still appeals to a wide range of consumers.

States Sue Trump Administration Over Emissions Ruling

Who’s ready for California vs. EPA Part 4?! Well for those that have been lapping up the drama, you’re in luck. On the heels of the Trump administration ruling that federal law prevents states from setting their own emissions standards, California is back and ready to fight—and this time it brought along some friends. A group of 23 states including New York, Michigan, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, and Massachusetts is seeking a court order to block the determination by the Transportation Department and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.

California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement the decision was an attempt by the Transportation Department to unlawfully misread federal law and ignore the intent of Congress to keep the state of California in line. “The administration insists on attacking the authority of California and other states to tackle air pollution and protect public health,” he said.

California will have a lot of work to do in court because the Trump Administration has gotten its shots in as well. 

As was predicted, last week the EPA rolled back the waiver given to the state of California under the Clean Air Act allowing states to set and maintain their own standards. For some perspective on how unheard of this is, the ruling marks the first time in 50 years that the EPA wouldn’t allow a state to set its own rules.

While the overturn won’t take effect until late November, giving California a few months to fight the ruling, it’s still a major blow to its chances of winning this battle. A battle that (as we’ve been saying) is now for sure destined for court. We fully expect this saga to drag on for a long time—so, keep coming here for updates.

NHTSA Investigates Jeep Amid Steering, Frame Complaints

The NHTSA has opened an investigation into roughly 270,000 frame welds and steering issues reported in the 2018-2019 Jeep Wrangler SUVs.

A complaint from a single JL owner in 2018 eventually mushroomed to include more than 3,000 owners citing issues of a wobbling, shimmying, or loose steering. Car and Driver reports: “At issue, according to NHTSA, are welds with holes, welds with improper penetration, too much slag (a coating, like a scab, that forms on top of welds), and splash (bits of the weld material splattering onto the metal) that can be found ‘at a variety of locations on the frame assembly.'”

While the investigation found that late-model Jeep Wrangler SUVs have welding defects in their frames that could pose a potential safety risk, no accidents or injuries have been attributed to it and, so far, there’s been no recall. Additionally, FCA has committed to repairing the issue free of cost to consumers who feel their vehicles possesses steering issues. 

While this isn’t a disaster for Jeep, it’s not a great look. The brand recalled over 18,000 JL Wranglers in September 2018 for faulty welding on front track bar brackets. And the top-selling JT Gladiator is currently on a stop-sale, thanks to a possible driveshaft joint manufacturing defect. With competition like Ford’s new-and-improved 2021 Bronco coming into the market—whose patent filing shows it will have removable doors—Jeep doesn’t need the NHTSA breathing down its neck.

Around the Circuit

Formula 1

To say it was a great weekend for Sebastian Vettel and Ferrari would be a major understatement after race results in the Singapore. Vettel finished ahead of teammate Charles Leclerc in second, Max Verstappen in third, and Lewis Hamilton in fourth, gifting Vettel his fifth Singapore Grand Prix victory, and 53rd career victory.

This marked Ferrari as the first team to ever score a 1-2 finish at this track. It also scored the team’s third three-race win streak in more than a decade. After the historic win for both driver and team, Vettel was congratulatory of his crew for a race well run. 

“First of all, big congratulations to the team – the start of the season has been difficult for us then we started to come alive and I’m really proud of everyone’s work back home. I really want to thank the fans over the last couple of weeks.” Vettel said. “We haven’t been the best and it’s happy to get so many letters and nice messages, and it gives me lots of strength and belief and I put it all into the car today.”

Team Ferrari will be gunning for their fourth straight win when drivers head to Sochi for the Russain Grand Prix on September 29.

NASCAR

Monster Energy Series

Martin Truex Jr. continued his dominance over the field with a fantastic performance at Richmond this weekend. 

Rallying to come back from a spin-out with 25 laps to go, Truex finished ahead of Kyle Busch and Denny Hamlin for a milestone win. This is Truex’s first time winning back-to-back races and what a time to do it. The victory marks Truex’s sixth win of the season and 25th of his Cup career, giving him the sweep at Richmond this year. 

“This is just freaking unbelievable,” he gushed to reporters. “So we came here to get bonus points and damn sure we did that. Had a heck of a race with Kyle and Denny all night long, really, and we just kept plugging away at it, kept plugging away at it, as we always do. We just keep digging and we never quit.”

Truex will look to keep that victory pace next week when drivers compete in the final Round of 16 race in the Bank of America Roval 400 at Charlotte Motor Speedway on September 29.

XFinity Series

Christoper Bell swept away the competition this weekend in his hunt to add a championship to his ever-growing resume. In what could be his final season in the XFinity series, Bell took one step closer to the win by finishing ahead of Austin Cindric and Cole Custer. Finishing a full 1.700 seconds ahead of Cindric thanks to his car’s dominance, this was a cakewalk victory for Bell. 

“That one was pretty special,” said Bell, who passed pole winner Austin Cindric for the lead on Lap 86 and never trailed after that. “Going 92 laps straight there (on the final green-flag run) was really difficult. We were sliding all around.”

Bell will try to keep his winning ways going, thanks to his automatic birth into the next playoff round, where drivers will look to lock in a win at the Drive For The Cure 200 on September 28 at Charlotte Motor Speedway.