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Apple Reportedly in Talks With Toyota About Apple Car Production Starting 2024
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Apple is alway talking about being a Green company they should look into the pollution from battery making for the EV. What I've read it pretty much a trade off with battery making and ICE cars same amount of pollution just the source is at a different point.
Apple is rumored to be in Asia visiting Toyota as it prepares to lay the supplier groundwork to mass produce a branded car by 2024, according to a new report by DigiTimes.
Apple representatives were said to have met with South Korea's SK Group and LG Electronics last month to discuss Apple Car development, and now Japan's Toyota is being touted as its next potential destination.
Apple has been working on a car-related project since at least 2014, and at one stage it looked as if the company was scaling back to focus on autonomous vehicle software. However, following several changes in management and hiring, Apple is now believed to be focused on building a car for consumers.
But to do that, the company needs to tap into a whole new supply chain. Apple is expected to rely on a manufacturing partner to build the vehicles, and though it wants to make EV batteries in the United States, it may be seeking partnerships with established vehicle makers like Toyota to do so.
Reuters has previously reported that Apple is developing a new battery design that has the potential to "radically" reduce the cost of batteries and increase the vehicle's range.
One person who spoke to Reuters described Apple's "monocle" battery technology as "next level" and said that it's similar to "the first time you saw the iPhone."
Reuters' reporting claimed that Apple is aiming to begin production on an Apple-branded self-driving vehicle starting in 2024, so DigiTimes' focus on that date isn't necessarily a shot in the dark. However, delays caused by the ongoing global health crisis or current chip shortage could always push production to 2025 or beyond.
Article Link: Apple Reportedly in Talks With Toyota About Apple Car Production Starting 2024
What might an Apple Car look like...?
Using anything other than Apple Certified oil, coolant, windshield washer, and other fluids will void the warranty.
All service will have to be performed at Apple stores.
It will have very limited trunk space, though you'll be able to obtain models with expanded trunk space for a premium.
There will be no provision for roof racks. Hacking one on will void your warranty.
There will be no option for a standard trailer hitch. Instead you will be able to order an Apple Car from the factory with an Apple Hitch™, which will mate only with Apple Certified trailer tongues. The trailer lighting connectors will be proprietary, as will the optional Apple Brakes™ trailer breaking system connection.
The electrical charging fitting will be incompatible with existing charging systems.
The wheels will be attached to the hubs with lug nuts requiring a proprietary Apple Wrench™.
The entertainment system will require an iTunes subscription.
It will link only with Apple mobile devices using Apple CarPlay. Android users will be SOL.
It will use Apple Maps for navigation.
There will be no physical car keys. (Those are so last-century.) It will use face I.D. for access.
It will come complete with Apple iBeacon (which they won't mention and over which owners have no control, anyway), to which advertisers may subscribe so they can present targeted billboard messages along roadsides.
For the greater good of society: It will come with driver behavior tracking so as to prevent drivers from endangering the public with unsafe driving practices. It will also come with a built-in breathalyzer so you cannot possibly operate the vehicle whilst intoxicated. You will be required to chip your children as the Apple Car™ will not allow unknown children (determined by size and weight sensors in the doors, cabin, and seats) in the car, lest you are possibly a child-napper. All transgressions will be forwarded to Apple for review and possible forwarding to the appropriate authorities. Insurance companies may subscribe to those notifications for a fee.
For your own safety, and that of any passengers, the vehicle will refuse to operate unless all restraining harnesses are employed.
Actually, all the under-hood components will be welded in place. It won't be possible to replace anything but the glass and tires. Engine dies: Buy a new Apple Car™. There will be Apple Certified Pre-Owned Apple Cars™ for a modest discount and Apple CarCare™ available for a "modest" fee.
Using anything other than Apple Certified oil, coolant, windshield washer, and other fluids will void the warranty.
All service will have to be performed at Apple stores.
It will have very limited trunk space, though you'll be able to obtain models with expanded trunk space for a premium.
There will be no provision for roof racks. Hacking one on will void your warranty.
There will be no option for a standard trailer hitch. Instead you will be able to order an Apple Car from the factory with an Apple Hitch™, which will mate only with Apple Certified trailer tongues. The trailer lighting connectors will be proprietary, as will the optional Apple Brakes™ trailer breaking system connection.
The electrical charging fitting will be incompatible with existing charging systems.
The wheels will be attached to the hubs with lug nuts requiring a proprietary Apple Wrench™.
The entertainment system will require an iTunes subscription.
It will link only with Apple mobile devices using Apple CarPlay. Android users will be SOL.
It will use Apple Maps for navigation.
There will be no physical car keys. (Those are so last-century.) It will use face I.D. for access.
It will come complete with Apple iBeacon (which they won't mention and over which owners have no control, anyway), to which advertisers may subscribe so they can present targeted billboard messages along roadsides.
For the greater good of society: It will come with driver behavior tracking so as to prevent drivers from endangering the public with unsafe driving practices. It will also come with a built-in breathalyzer so you cannot possibly operate the vehicle whilst intoxicated. You will be required to chip your children as the Apple Car™ will not allow unknown children (determined by size and weight sensors in the doors, cabin, and seats) in the car, lest you are possibly a child-napper. All transgressions will be forwarded to Apple for review and possible forwarding to the appropriate authorities. Insurance companies may subscribe to those notifications for a fee.
For your own safety, and that of any passengers, the vehicle will refuse to operate unless all restraining harnesses are employed.
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I’m pretty sure Apple would have a hand in many aspects of the design, and obviously bring their tech/software/UI expertise to the table. If Apple wants to make a car, they need a partnership with a company who makes them.
Nah, Apple would never do anything to help an American Icon.
Those “American icons” barely manufacture any of their cars in America today, which isn’t very helpful to American workers. Toyota and Honda have produced more vehicles in America over the past 10-20 years than Ford or GM.
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Toyota employs over 30,000 American workers.
Exactly. The Toyota Camry has been the best selling sedan in America for years now, and that’s where they’re made.
What do you mean by “beat Tesla”?
If you look at sales figures, Tesla is increasing sales but losing market share especially in Europe. Model 3 is in a relatively narrow segment, and Model Y has a lot of serious competitors (ID.4, Enyaq, Q4 etron, Mach e, Ioniq 5, EV6) in the same segment.
Tesla has been doing a lot in the autonomous driving front — and talking even more. It is somewhere in the middle ground between lidar-based autonomous vehicles and “traditional” camera and radar based systems. However, if we look at the official classification, Tesla is still at SAE Level 2, which is the same as its competitors (with the exception of a few at very restricted Level 3). Level 4 would be great, but apart from grand names such as FSD (which implies Level 5), Tesla is not very close.
Tesla's user interface is the best touch-only user interface in any car. Some competitors are not far behind, but Tesla's is the best. Unfortunately, many consumers prefer physical buttons, and e.g. VW seems to be bringing physical buttons back (upscale Audi Q4 etron has many more buttons than ID.4). Touch-only makes perfect sense if the car is really autonomous, but driving and adjusting settings from a touchscreen at the same time on a bumpy road in bad weather is not very convenient.
Tesla is a great EV manufacturer with powertrain technology second to none. Still, I do not think other manufacturers are trying to "beat Tesla". There will be a lot of competition, and Tesla will be only one of the players. (Please note, the situation in the US is different but Europe and Asia are larger EV markets than the US. If one wants to know what European consumers want to buy, Norway is a good example; Tesla's market share in 2021H1 was around 20 % in registration numbers.)
This is about "in talks" that doesn't mean that they have selected a partner and are moving forward. This is more of a meet and greet. Apple would need to meet with potential partners and evaluate them.
No one is jumping right into a marriage.
Cars are usually manufactured close to consumers, because a) they have high transportation cost (and long transportation time) and b) cars tend to have high customs duties.
Toyota manufactures cars all around the world. It has factories in Japan, China, Russia, Europe, the UK, Indonesia, the US, Canada, Venezuela, etc. And the same applies to most other significant brands. If you buy a Mercedes Benz SUV in Europe, the car is most probably shipped from the US, because the main market for luxury SUVs is in the US. If you buy Tesla Model Y in Europe, you will get a car made in China.
One has to wonder if Tesla’s UI design team has done actual testing in a moving car at highway speeds. Sitting at a desk running a computer simulation is no substitute.
The lack of physical controls could be addressed by:
Heads up display (would also serve as backup for main screen failure).
Ability to add quick access functions to main screen, reducing navigation time.
Ability to call up and navigate through menus using steering wheel buttons.
Subaru is teasing their new EV SUV, called the Solterra. This is design in conjunction with Toyota who has shown a Toyota branded version, bZ4X, at some auto shows. Looking at the design of that, it totally looks like a rebadged Toyota.
Toyota is taking it slow on the launches but they do seem to be working on EVs in the background
No, that was an LG design and manufacturing issue that affected a line of batteries that they supplied to GM, Hyundai, and Kia. Each of those manufacturers are now recalling the affected cars. Some other car manufacturers also source their batteries from LG and are likely watching this process closely. This was absolutely LG's problem. Not all LG batteries have this issue, but any using this design seem to be in trouble.
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You can't really go by sales numbers. By that logic Apple would in need to "catch up" with others.
Its all about the quality and thats why we use macs even if the market shares are small for it. MacOS + the hardware is just win win that no one will be able to beat or even match (now that we are on AS chips).
Same goes for Tesla. Their charging network, efficiency, battery tech, design etc. is years away.
All the "serious Model Y competitors" you mentioned are not very good cars. Sure, they will sell more maybe but that doesn't mean they are better.
The only Tesla's problem is the quality control. Otherwise Tesla sits comfortably on the top and will sit there for a while.
Its all about the quality and thats why we use macs even if the market shares are small for it. MacOS + the hardware is just win win that no one will be able to beat or even match (now that we are on AS chips).
Same goes for Tesla. Their charging network, efficiency, battery tech, design etc. is years away.
All the "serious Model Y competitors" you mentioned are not very good cars. Sure, they will sell more maybe but that doesn't mean they are better.
The only Tesla's problem is the quality control. Otherwise Tesla sits comfortably on the top and will sit there for a while.
I drive a RAV4 Prime. Fantastic car with incredible integration of electric / internal combustion engine. The remote phone app sucks / barely usable. The watch app is even worse and missing features that are advertised. The built in GPS integrates nicely with turn-by-turn instructions on the heads-up display, except the built-in GPS is so bad, it's unusable - sending me to the middle of a lake when going to a park 3 miles away and taking me on local roads / adding an hour to what should have been a 2 hour highway drive (google maps & Waze both confirmed there the highway route was clear). I can't find out how many MPG I'm getting when running on gas if I've been running on EV at all (it gives MPG including the EV so I often see anything from 50mpg to 199mpg)....It's as if everything informational / electronic was an afterthought on this otherwise well designed and well thought out vehicle. Toyota could really use an Apple to kick them in the electronic arse.
Those are mainly oil industry talking points.
Batteries do take additional energy to manufacture, but it only takes about 8000 miles of driving to make up the difference and then the EV is better. This is on a typical electricity supply. Even if you are in one of the few areas with 100% coal, that breakeven point is only 14000 miles.
Electricity is a much better power delivery method than gasoline because electric motors are so much more efficient than gasoline or diesel engines that there are no scenarios where the EV takes more power to run or produces more pollution. At absolute worse case, an EV produces no more greenhouse gases than a 50mpg hybrid.
It is much more efficient and easier to improve power generation at a large centralized power plant than on individual vehicles. As coal and oil plants are decommissioned and as renewables are brought online the power grid gets more efficient and produces less CO2.
Those "Scare points" are put out there by vested interests to sow uncertainty. Don't fall for their tricks.
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Toyota doesn’t care about fast charging or people who live in apartments/condos and have to rely on public charging stations. The Prius Prime and RAV4 Prime come standard with only 3 kW charging. Faster 6 kW charging is only available on the RAV 4 Prime. But it requires the high end XSE model with full options package, bringing it close to the price of a Tesla Model Y.
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