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Episode #1297: The EV world is getting hit from all sides — punishing fee proposals, $50 billion in industry write-downs, and a bold $1.25 billion Uber-Rivian robotaxi bet.

A growing wave of state and federal EV fee proposals would charge electric vehicle owners two to three times what the average gas car driver pays in federal fuel tax.

• House Transportation Committee Chairman Sam Graves introduced a federal $200 annual EV fee — more than double the ~$95 average gas car driver pays in federal fuel tax each year.
• The fee is a flat charge with no connection to actual road usage, meaning a grandmother driving 3,000 miles pays the same as a daily commuter logging 25,000.
• 36 states already impose EV fees that result in EV owners paying more than gas drivers contribute through fuel taxes, with Texas charging $400 upfront plus $200 annually.

Automakers are unwinding EV bets at a combined cost approaching $50 billion, a stark reminder of how aggressively the industry moved, and how quickly the market shifted beneath them.

• Ford leads the charge with roughly $20.9 billion in EV-related write-downs through 2027, including the cancellation of the F-150 Lightning and a pair of three-row electric crossovers.
• Stellantis previewed €22 billion in charges — the largest single write-down — covering canceled vehicle programs, EV supply chain restructuring, and the end of a battery joint venture in Canada.
• GM and Honda round out the list, with GM topping $7 billion in 2025 EV charges and Honda projecting $1.9 billion by March — including winding down the Prologue and Acura ZDX programs.
• As iSeeCars analyst Karl Brauer put it, “There’s just been an overinvestment and, certainly, obviously too aggressive of a timeline”

Uber is betting $1.25 billion on Rivian to power its next robotaxi push, with plans to deploy up to 50,000 autonomous R2s across 25 cities by 2031.

• The deal includes an initial $300 million investment and commitments to purchase 10,000 autonomous R2s, with options for 40,000 more starting in 2030.
• Rivian's R2 robotaxis will launch exclusively on Uber's platform, starting in San Francisco and Miami in 2028, then expanding across the U.S., Canada, and Europe.
• The deal follows Rivian's $5.8 billion Volkswagen software partnership and adds to Uber's growing roster of AV deals with Lucid, Zoox, Stellantis, and Nvidia.
• Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi: "That vertical integration, combined with data from their growing consumer vehicle base and experience managing the complexities of commercial fleets, gives us conviction to set these ambitious but achievable targets."

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Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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Episode #1296: GM and LG retool for energy storage as EV demand cools, VinFast restarts its North Carolina factory with a fraction of the jobs promised, and Nvidia adds four major automakers to its autonomous driving platform.

Show Notes with links:

• GM and LG are retooling their Tennessee Ultium Cells joint venture plant for energy storage batteries, and recalling 700 laid-off workers to make it happen. The facility was originally built to supply EV batteries, but slower-than-expected adoption changed the math.
  • The Ultium Cells joint venture will shift to lithium-iron phosphate battery production starting in Q2, targeting the booming energy storage market.
  • AI data centers are driving massive electricity demand, making grid storage one of the fastest-growing battery opportunities right now.
  • "Right now, the demand exceeds supply tremendously, and it's going to continue to exceed it for the next several years." — Kurt Kelty, GM VP of Battery, Propulsion and Sustainability

• VinFast is restarting construction on its North Carolina factory after a year-long pause, now targeting a 2028 launch. The original vision has shrunk considerably, and the company's finances aren't making the story any easier to tell.
  • The plant's projected workforce dropped from 7,500 to 1,400 jobs, putting $315M in state and local incentives at serious risk.
  • VinFast must either invest $500M or hit 1,750 jobs by end of 2026, or North Carolina can trigger a site repurchase option.
  • Q4 losses widened 15% year-over-year to $1.3B, even as deliveries more than doubled and full-year revenue doubled as well.
  • North American EV sales are forecast to drop 16% this year, adding headwinds to an already uphill U.S. market entry.
  • VinFast said it "remains focused on executing the project responsibly," but declined to comment on the incentive and job-count implications.

• At its GTC conference this week, Nvidia revealed that Hyundai, Nissan, BYD, and Geely are building Level 4-capable autonomous vehicles on its Drive Hyperion platform, joining Mercedes, Toyota, and GM.
  • Drive Hyperion is Nvidia's reference architecture for autonomous vehicles, combining its computing platform with cameras, radar, and lidar so automakers aren't starting from scratch.
  • Level 4 autonomy means the vehicle can drive itself in certain conditions with no human intervention required.
  • Nvidia's GPU dominance in gaming and data centers has quietly made it the backbone of the autonomous vehicle industry as well.

Today’s show is brought to you by HeyGreenlight. HeyGreenlight’s Wingman gives your sales and BDC team live, real-time guidance so they consistently say the right things, at the right time, on every call.

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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Episode #1295: Automotive trade associations nationwide are rallying dealers around FTC advertising compliance and we're joined by Ted Smith of FLADA.

Don Hall and the Virginia Automobile Dealers Association responded to Friday's FTC warning letters with a detailed compliance roadmap. Automotive trade associations across the country are stepping up to help dealers navigate what this means on the ground.

• • From VADA’s compliance roadmap: The core rule is simple: the advertised price must be the total price every consumer pays, processing fees and freight included. State law does not matter here; the FTC Act overrules it.
  • There is no such thing as an "Internet Price" or a "Geographic Price." If it's advertised, it must be available to every customer, every time, and no disclaimer can fix a non-compliant price.
  • Pre-installed add-ons that consumers cannot remove or decline, like paint protection or etching, must be included in the advertised price.
  • MSRP-only listings are a trap: post MSRP, and you'd better be prepared to sell at that price, or advertise the actual dealer total price instead.
  • VADA's bottom line: audit your ads now, update your addendum stickers, and train your sales staff on accurate out-the-door pricing, because a single screenshot of a non-compliant ad is all a regulator needs.

Today’s show is brought to you by HeyGreenlight. HeyGreenlight’s Wingman gives your sales and BDC team live, real-time guidance so they consistently say the right things, at the right time, on every call.

Join Paul J Daly and Kyle Mountsier every morning for the Automotive State of the Union podcast as they connect the dots across car dealerships, retail trends, emerging tech like AI, and cultural shifts—bringing clarity, speed, and people-first insight to automotive leaders navigating a rapidly changing industry.

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JOIN the conversation on LinkedIn at: https://www.linkedin.com/company/asotu/