Watch List

Car and Driver drove the Ferrari Purosangue Handling Speciale and was both impressed with and surprised at the handling improvements that came from software alone:

That’s right: The Purosangue HS achieves its speciale handling with no new parts in the suspension. It even rides on the same Pirelli P Zero summer tires (sized 255/35R-22 in front and 315/30R-23 at the rear) as your blue-collar neighbor’s base Purosangue. Thanks to the Purosangue’s TrueActive Spool Valve (TASV) adaptive dampers—sourced from race shop and occasional Ford GT builders Multimatic—Ferrari is able to sharpen the Handling Speciale’s responses with just a little bit of new software. By spinning a 48-volt electric motor to drive a ball screw in line with each damper, the TASV suspension varies damping force and adjusts ride height at each corner individually 20 times every second. Rewriting the code governing how the TASV dampers behave reduces the Purosangue’s body movement by a claimed 10 percent.

The only hardware that differentiates the Handling Speciale is cosmetic: dark-gray wheels with diamond-cut accents, an interior plaque, carbon-fiber shields, matte-black exhaust tips, and revised badge finishes. The package’s pricing hasn’t been announced, but C/D said it’s rumored to be $50,000.

Some percentage of Ferrari clients will almost certainly pay for this package. People complain about the idea of paying extra for software that changes what the same hardware can do, but as they did with computer and phone apps and subscription services, many may acclimate if they find the experience valuable. Ferrari will be able to charge more without adding much hardware cost, while the rest of the industry can point to an example of how much is being charged for what is mostly a software upgrade.

ProLogium:

Mercedes-Benz AG and ProLogium Holding Inc. have signed a joint testing agreement, giving Mercedes-Benz priority access to test ProLogium’s latest Gen4 battery cells and further building on the companies’ nearly ten-year partnership in advancing next-generation battery technologies for mobility.

China’s State Council, summarizing the country’s new five-year battery-industry plan:

The plan envisions the initial large-scale application of all-solid-state batteries and a cycle life of 15,000 cycles for long-life lithium batteries by 2030.

Two concrete signs of movement toward broader industrialization.

NHTSA:

In accordance with the President’s “Unleashing American Energy” Executive Order and the Secretary’s “Fixing the CAFE Program” Memorandum, NHTSA is publishing a final rule, The Safer Affordable Fuel-Efficient (SAFE) Vehicle Rule III for Model Years 2022 to 2031 Passenger Cars and Light Trucks. The rule resets the maximum feasible fuel economy standards in accordance with the Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975, the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, and other applicable law. The final rulemaking brings the CAFE program into compliance with relevant statutory requirements.

NHTSA is also eliminating the inter-manufacturer credit trading system starting in MY 2028, and amending the light-duty vehicle fleet classification system to allocate vehicles into passenger and non-passenger automobile fleets appropriately, based on their attributes and capabilities, starting in MY 2030. NHTSA projects that the amended standards will correspond to the industry fleetwide average requirement of roughly 34.9 miles per gallon (mpg) in MY 2031.

XPENG launched its flagship SUV in China, will launch it globally in October, and will build it in Europe:

· XPENG announces that the G9L will be launched in 64 global markets, with its global launch set for October 12 at the Paris Motor Show.

· Built and designed for global users, the G9L will become the fourth XPENG model to be produced in Europe, marking four localized models within one year.

Automotive News reports that McLaren is planning to expand its lineup with an SUV, hybrid coupe, and GT:

McLaren Automotive is evolving beyond its traditional two-door sports cars with a major expansion that will broaden its appeal while staying true to its performance roots.

“This brand can be so many more things than it’s been historically,“ CEO Nick Collins told Automotive News in August.

[…]

The expanded product portfolio will be accompanied by a global dealership redesign and new corporate identity as McLaren strives to expand its customer base and build brand engagement.

Reuters, which reported the company will invest £500 million ($675 million) in its UK manufacturing and engineering operations:

McLaren Chief Operating Officer Michael Straughan said the automaker needed growth to lower its material costs and lift its profits, and the way to get there was through expanding its product portfolio starting with the SUV.

McLaren has been loss-making for years, but Straughan said the company's margins could match the top performers in a segment that includes Ferrari, which has the highest profit margins in the auto industry.

Porsche’s and, more recently, Ferrari’s lineup expansions reflected the same reality McLaren is facing: there’s an economic (and sometimes a survival) ceiling as a sports-car company. The challenge—not insignificant—is to expand without losing brand and product identity.

CarNewsChina, citing industry sources reported by Future Cars Daily:

This partnership represents a restructuring of technology, manufacturing, branding, and distribution:

· Huawei: Provides the Harmony Intelligent Mobility Alliance (HIMA) platform, including the intelligent cockpit, Qiankun ADS autonomous driving system, and electric drive technology.

· JAC Motors: Leverages its Maextro super factory to handle vehicle engineering and manufacturing.

· Maserati: Contributes its century-old design language and established global sales channels.

Under a “dual-brand” strategy, the vehicles will be sold under the Maextro brand in China, while retaining the iconic Maserati badge for international markets.

Automotive News:

General Motors is integrating Apple Inc.’s CarPlay in its latest infotainment system, three years after upsetting some consumers by eliminating the popular interface from its electric vehicles.

The new system will allow drivers to use CarPlay or Google’s Android Auto on a split screen that also shows key vehicle gauges such as fuel, tire pressure, Super Cruise hands-free driving and towing information. In addition, the system enables the driver to use vehicle functions and phone apps with less toggling between screens.

There are many reasons to resist CarPlay: control over the experience, integration across the car’s components and subsystems, and control over the customer relationship.

But customers generally expect CarPlay, and only a small number of players have gotten away with not supporting it.

Tesla and Rivian are two of them. The common threads: both brands are significantly differentiated, to the point where a meaningful number of customers will accept the trade-offs, and both have strong, deeply integrated in-house tech stacks.

CarNewsChina:

On August 21, the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) approved a China-led proposal for an international standard covering solid-state traction batteries for electric road vehicles, according to reporting by Chinese state outlet Hunan Today. Titled Secondary lithium-ion cells for the propulsion of electric road vehicles – Application guide, test items, and conditions for solid-state batteries, the proposal is intended to establish common testing and application parameters.

The initiative follows China’s domestic standardisation work on automotive solid-state batteries.