Daily News: Monday 10/2/2017

Tesla Model 3 Production Falls Behind 

In releasing their third quarter production output, Tesla has revealed what is a surprise to very few people; Model 3 production is going significantly slower than expected. While 1,500 Model 3’s were projected to be produced in the month of August, only 260 copies have been produced as a whole for the line.

Attributing the slow production cycle to unforeseen bottlenecks, the company stated, “Although the vast majority of manufacturing subsystems at both our California car plant and our Nevada Gigafactory are able to operate at high rate, a handful have taken longer to activate than expected.”

Despite these hiccups, the company stressed that there are “no fundamental issues” with the Model 3 production or supply chain, an important distinction considering Model X delays.

While Model 3 production is low, the company did deliver the most cars they ever have, with a total of 26,150 vehicles, including 14,065 Model S sedans, 11,865 Model X SUVs, and 220 Model 3 sedans being delivered, representing a 4.5 percent increase over the same period last year.

By the end of 2017, Tesla expects to have delivered about 100,000 Model S and X vehicles, or a 31 percent increase from 2016.

A Sporty Leaf: Nissan Leaf NISMO Concept Leaked

While we know the new, second-generation Nissan Leaf EV is coming in 2018, it looks like Nissan is set to debut a NISMO Concept variant at this month’s Tokyo auto show, as reported by Autocar magazine in the U.K.. Besides the image above, little is known of the upcoming reveal.

Featuring aggressive-looking wheels, and a new sporty body treatment, the Concept itself is a handsome thing. On top of the visual changes, chassis augmentations are likely planned, to give the Leaf some canyon credibility.

While powertrain upgrades are unlikely, we do know that a longer-range Leaf e+ trim is scheduled to arrive sometime next year with perhaps more than 200 miles of range due to trading the base car’s 40.0-kWh battery pack for a larger, 60.0-kWh unit. If this 60.0-kWh unit is tuned for fun, rather than efficiency–or even given a button to change between ‘Range’ mode and ‘Fun’ mode–than the NISMO Leaf may have something to it.

Volkswagen Keeping Ducati Amid Diesel Cheating Scandal Cost-Cutting Measures

Way back in June, it was reported that the VW group–in particular Audi–was looking at divesting themselves of the Ducati motorcycle company, amid rising costs of the diesel-emissions cheating scandal that rocked the group. Despite these reports, including the one which stated Harley-Davidson was looking at the purchase, Bloomberg reports that VW isn’t going to sell its motorcycle brand.

The $1.67B USD (Valued) company’s CEO Claudio Domenicali told workers Friday that VW had halted the company’s sale due to FIOM CIGL, the Italian metallurgical worker’s union that represents Ducati employees, opposing the sale. According to labor union leader Bruno Papignani, the FIOM CIGL worked with its powerful German counterpart, IG Metall, to oppose Ducati’s sale.

This halt, and all of the now-wasted work leading up to it in preparation for the sale, is potentially worse than it would normally be for Audi, as this news also comes just days after VW reported $3 billion charge related to its buyback of emissions-test-cheating diesel cars in the US.

Subaru Ends Production of Industrial Equipment 

Subaru’s global parent company, Subaru Corporation–formally Fuji Heavy Industries (FHI)–has officially ended the sale and production of its generators, general-purpose engines, and other industrial products. As the company has produced industrial engines–think generators and pumps–since 1951, this departure marks a significant change for the company.

This announcement does not come as a surprise, as FHI announced there intent to do just this when they renamed themselves the Subaru corporation. As Americans bought a record number of its vehicles for an eighth consecutive year in 2016–the company is on pace for another record year in 2017–this is probably a very smart business move.

The company said ongoing, after-sales service will still be provided by its Industrial Products affiliate.