Honda confirms it has a new CEO

Honda has a new CEO, Kia starts its Carnival ramp-up and Renault. All this and much more in Morning change for February 19, 2021.

First step: Honda confirms it has a new CEO

This one it was just wednesday this week when sources told Reuters that the head of research and development Honda will become its CEO, news that Honda denied. Except now, the head of research and development Honda has become its new CEO, the company confirmed through a press conference and everything.

This is apparently an attempt to keep up with Teslas.

from Reuters:

Japan’s second-largest automaker, Honda Motor Co., said on Friday that chief executive Takahiro Hachigo will step down and be replaced by Toshihiro Mibe, its head of research and development, on April 1st.

Mibe, 59, who worked with Hachigo to promote structural reforms, has been president of the research and development unit since 2019, after periods of engine development and car train activity after joining the company. in 1987.

“We would consider using external perspectives or potential alliances between other actions to make decisions without hesitation,” Mibe told a news conference calling for “the major transformation of Honda at high speed.”

His appointment, first reported by Reuters this week, comes as Honda competes in the field of all-electric cars and faces competition from new entrants and tech giants such as Tesla, Apple and Amazon.

“He looked to the future in a direction that Honda should take,” Hachigo told the conference, attributing Mibe’s expertise in environmental technology and energy and his focus on change as reasons for choice.

Honda is in a weird midpoint, where in many ways it does very well, but I could catch it with a flat foot in five years if the transformation into electric cars really takes place and it remains that Honda Insight. ”

Equipment 2: Kia Carnival is coming!

The artist formerly known as the Kia Sedona It’s not a minivan, fool. Is a “multifunctional vehicle,” a term that has existed for some time, but which always upsets me. Are all vehicles multifunctional?

Anyway, Kia has started accelerating.

from Car news:

The carnival will be unveiled on February 23 and will be the first vehicle in the US to feature the new Kia logo and badge.

Kia said the MPV at the Carnival will push “the boundaries of design and innovation to become a multilateral and unexpected partner.”

Based on a preview image released by Kia, it will offer three rows of seats, space for seven or eight passengers and a “bold and boxy” style that resembles the brand’s latest commercial vehicles such as Telluride, Sorento and Seltos.

The changes are designed to remain viable in a market that is moving away from traditional minivans and accepting crossovers and SUVs. While the minivan segment continues to shrink, it remains a key entry point for some brands for buyers, especially families, who want more functionality (think of more cup holders and storage baskets), more flexible seats and easier entry and exit in a vehicle.

An “unexpected companion” is my favorite description of a new minivan, probably forever.

Third step: Renault has a record loss

For most carmakers, this would be considered bad news. Indeed, it’s for Renault too. Only this Renault is the kind of company – partly owned by France itself – which I feel I want persist through thick and thin and always be with us.

All that means is we probably shouldn’t worry too much that Renault is forecasting very bad things for 2021.

from Financial Times:

Renault suffered a record loss of 8 billion euros in 2020 and warned of a difficult year due to slow demand and the global shortage of microchips that shook the industry.

The carmaker and its alliance partner Nissan, which contributes to the French group’s revenues, were severely affected in the first half of last year as the pandemic hit demand across Europe.

The net loss was less than the 7.8 billion euros predicted by analysts, but performance has improved since July, with Renault describing 2020 as the “year of contrasts”.

The operating margin was 3.5% in the second half of the year, and Renault generated a positive operating cash flow for cars, although the company still suffered a net loss of EUR 660 million.

It was really a year of contrasts. I still can’t believe it Twingo is dead.

4th gear: Daimler is not in love with its Chinese electric car brand

China is moving fairly quickly towards electric vehicles, but somehow Daimler’s EV brand, Denza, is not doing so well. Bloomberg say that Daimler is now putting the brand “at hand.”

Daimler AG CEO Ola Kallenius said the success of the latest Denza crossover will determine the future prospects of the Chinese electric car brand with partner BYD Co. Ltd., after years of poor sales.

“Cash investment is behind us” for the model, Kallenius told reporters on Thursday. “Now we look at how Denza is developing and then we will make decisions.”

Warm demand for Denza electric vehicles has raised concerns as carmaker Mercedes-Benz is working to increase profitability. BYD declined to comment.

Daimler and BYD set up the brand a decade ago to achieve growth in the Chinese new energy vehicle market. While sales have taken off, fierce competition in price-sensitive volume segments is a challenge for profitability.

Speed ​​5: Uber is bad

Title on this Reuters story it’s so simple it’s almost shocking. “Uber drivers have the right to workers’ rights, the top courts in the UK are against the business model.” As now, Uber’s entire business model is exploiting its workers.

A group of Uber drivers are entitled to workers’ rights, such as the minimum wage, the UK Supreme Court ruled on Friday a blow to the travel service that has ramifications for millions of others in the giant’s economy.

In a case led by two former Uber drivers, an employment tribunal in London ruled in 2016 that they were due rights that included paid leave and rest breaks.

Uber drivers are currently treated as self-employed, which means that the law only gives them minimal protections, a status that the Silicon Valley company has sought to maintain in the long run.

“The Supreme Court unanimously rejects Uber’s appeal,” Judge George Leggatt said Friday.

[…]

It could take a few more months for details of Friday’s decision to be worked on at a new hearing in the employment tribunal to resolve practical issues on the amounts owed to drivers, according to lawyers.

Law firm Leigh Day says eligible drivers could be entitled to an average compensation of £ 12,000 ($ 16,780). Represents over 2,000 potential applicants.

Uber simply cannot be defended.

Reverse: John Paul Jr.

It’s late in the race car driver’s day. He had a strange life.