![]() ![]() The auto industry’s need for semiconductors is expected to explode in coming years because of autonomous driving features and the increasing popularity of electric vehicles, which are more reliant on software than internal combustion engines. The current semiconductor shortage may not be the last. Smaller suppliers tend to die out because they can’t produce parts or materials as cheaply as the big players, leaving the industry dependent on one or two manufacturers of high-pressure fuel lines, for example, or a certain specialized plastic. The economics of the industry are such that only suppliers with the highest volume survive. Källenius recalled an episode when a hurricane struck Puerto Rico and shut down production at a factory that, to his surprise and pretty much everyone else’s, was the only source of a coating essential to some kinds of auto electronics.Īutomobiles have tens of thousands of parts and so many layers of suppliers and sub-suppliers and sub-sub-suppliers that even carmakers have trouble keeping track of every component’s provenance. The auto industry has been paralyzed by supply chain disruptions before. But a factory in Zwickau, Germany, that produces ID.3 sedans and ID.4 S.U.V.s, the vanguard of Volkswagen’s drive to dominate the emerging market for electric cars, has not been affected, according to the company. Most of the 18,500 workers at the plants are furloughed until the end of April, though they will continue to receive government subsidized “short work” pay.Īlong the same lines, Volkswagen has cut production at plants in Germany that make sedans and other internal combustion models, and one in Mexico where the company makes Tiguan S.U.V.s for the American market. The triage prompted Daimler to temporarily shut down factories in Germany that produce lower-priced C-Class sedans. Daimler’s Mercedes unit is allocating scarce chips to its priciest models, like the EQS electric luxury sedan the company unveiled this month, which is expected to start at around $100,000. ![]() In the meantime, automakers are improvising to try to minimize the damage. Delbos of Renault said “the visibility is deteriorating” for determining an end to the chip crisis, “as news is changing by the day.” One big reason automakers can’t find enough chips is that semiconductor manufacturers have given priority to manufacturers of smartphones, video game consoles and other consumer electronics, which tend to be more lucrative customers.Īuto industry consultants at Roland Berger are more pessimistic, saying the shortage could last all year. that can be adjusted 18 different ways, a popular upgrade. ![]() dealers that for several months it won’t be able to deliver high-end seats in the Macan S.U.V. Some buyers may be lucky enough to take home a new car, but it may lack options that use specialized chips. “We’re trying to find an intelligent way to prioritize cars with the higher margins,” Clotilde Delbos, Renault’s deputy chief executive, told analysts on Thursday. Some automakers, such as Renault, have begun to triage their chips, reserving them for more costly models that bring more profit. “We have already a robust demand situation being more held back by the semiconductor issue than anything else,” Ola Källenius, the chief executive of Daimler, said in an interview. The supply of semiconductors is depriving carmakers of a chance to make up sales they lost. Demand for cars has bounced back strongly from the pandemic slump, with consumers ready to spend money they saved over the past year, eager to avoid airplanes by taking road trips. The disruption could not come at a worse time. ![]()
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