News about auto manufacturing

Rivian delivered 19,248 vehicles in the third quarter, up about 46% year over year and 58% sequentially, while production reached 19,751 vehicles, up about 57%. The company said reservation-to-order conversion for the roughly $58,000 R2 Launch Edition was meaningfully higher than expected, though it did not disclose the percentage. CEO RJ Scaringe said the factory is ahead of its suppliers, which are constraining the ramp-up. The article compares this with Tesla, whose Model 3 gross margin exceeded 20% one quarter after turning slightly positive, and whose stock climbed about 1,364% between September 28, 2018 and September 30, 2021. It argues Rivian's automotive margins may not improve much in the third quarter because launch costs and added labor still weigh on profitability, so the milestones to watch are the fourth quarter and 2027.

Ford and Rivian are expanding 3D printing in manufacturing to cut costs and shorten production times. Rivian has spent more than $5 million on 3D-printing machines, with annual material costs of about $1.7 million, and says the machines typically pay for themselves within a year by lowering supplier tooling costs and cutting part production times from weeks to days, if not hours. The company is adding machines that print flexible silicone parts and installing a bay of machines at its Normal, Illinois plant so employees can print parts on demand. Ford operates additive manufacturing departments at many plants, has a vending machine for 3D-printed parts for F-150 production near its Dearborn, Michigan headquarters, and expects 3D labs at more than 23 plants by the end of this year, with over 200 machines in its program. GM also uses 3D-printed parts for low-volume products and R&D, and has recently expanded its use of industrial Stratasys printers.

Audi CEO Gernot Doellner stood alongside President Donald Trump at a rally in Georgia as Trump announced that Audi, part of Volkswagen Group, plans a $4 billion plant there to assemble 200,000 SUVs a year. Doellner said the decision followed months of planning, but a final decision requires approval from Volkswagen's supervisory board. German union IG Metall called Doellner's move 'hard to understand' and called for clearly defined prospects for workers at all sites, especially in Germany. Audi says the investment will create about 4,500 jobs, with construction starting next year and production in the early 2030s. Audi also said US tariffs on autos, steel, aluminum and parts cost it around €1.2 billion ($1.4 billion) last year.