Report

PSA Global Autos / Mobility: Building the Perfect EV Platforms – A Process of Trial and Error

As electric vehicles are set to replace combustion engine cars over time, established automakers need to prove they can remain competitive in this new market. In this context, much attention has been given to battery technology, but the creation of an optimal EV auto platform is just as important. Here, the jury is still out, as we are in the early development days. Analyst Julie Boote discusses how the prefect EV platform should look like and where automakers are currently positioned.
Underlyings
3S Korea

3S Korea is engaged in the manufacture of calorimeters. Co.'s products include calorimeters, environment test equipment and artificial snowfall apparatus.

Alphabet Inc. Class A

Alphabet is a holding company. Through its subsidiaries, the company is engaged in a collection of businesses, which its primary business is Google. The company reports all non-Google businesses collectively as Other Bets. Google's main products and platforms are Android, Chrome, Gmail, Google Drive, Google Maps, Google Play, Search, and YouTube. The company also provides advertisers with tools that help them attribute and measure their advertising campaigns. In addition, Other Bets includes Access, Calico, CapitalG, GV, Verily, Waymo, and X, among others. Other Bets primarily engages in the sales of internet and TV services through Access as well as licensing and research and development services through Verily.

Aptiv PLC

Daimler AG

Daimler provides a range of transportation products, including passenger cars and commercial vehicles, and also financial services. Co. operates in five segments. Mercedes-Benz Cars sells passenger cars and off-road vehicles under the Mercedes-Benz brand and small cars under the smart brand. The Daimler Trucks distributes its trucks (Mercedes-Benz, Freightliner, FUSO, Western Star, Thomas Built Buses and BharatBenz). The vans of the Mercedes-Benz Vans segment are sold under the brand name Mercedes-Benz and Freightliner. Daimler Buses sells completely built-up buses (Mercedes-Benz and Setra). The Daimler Financial Services division supports sales of Co.'s automotive brands.

Geely Automobile Holdings Limited

Geely Automobile Holdings is an investment holding company. Through its subsidiaries, Co. is engaged in the investment holding and export of sedans outside the People's Republic of China (PRC); research, production, marketing and sales of automobile parts and related components and the research and development of electric hybrid engines in the PRC; procurement of automobile parts and components in the PRC; and marketing and sales of sedans in Russia and South America. In addition, through its associated companies, Co. is also engaged in the manufacturing of traffic facilities; provision of webpage design and related technology support services; manufacturing of emission control systems.

Honda Motor Co. Ltd.

Honda Motor is the parent company of a group mainly develop, manufacture and distribute motorcycles, automobiles, power products, and also provide financing for the sale of those products. Principal manufacturing facilities are located in Japan, the United States of America, Canada, Mexico, the United Kingdom, Turkey, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Thailand, Vietnam, Argentina, and Brazil. Co.'s principal business segments are motorcycles, automobiles, financial services, and power products & other business. Co.'s principal automobile products include passenger cars such as "Legend," "Accord," "Inspire," "Civic," "Insight," "City," "Acura RL," "Acura TL," "Acura TSX," and "Acura CSX".

Hyundai Motor Company

Hyundai Motor is engaged in the manufacture and distribution of motor vehicles and parts. Co.'s passenger automobiles include Accent, Elantra, Sonata, Azera, Genesis, XG and Tiburon. Co.'s recreational vehicles include Santa FE, Tucson, Veracruz and Entourage. Co.'s commercial vehicles include H-1 Truck, Mighty II, 5 Ton Cargo, Tractor, Dump Truck, Aero Town, and Aero Queen.

KIA Motors Corporation

KIA MOTORS CORPORATION is a Korea-based company principally engaged in the manufacture and distribution of automobiles. The Company's products include passenger vehicles, recreational vehicles (RVs), taxi, bus, commercial vehicles as well as hybrid vehicles under the brand names of K3, K5, K7, K9, Soul, Sedona, Sorento, Sportage and others. The Company also engaged in the manufacture of automobile components, as well as prevision of rental and maintenance services. The Company distributes its products within domestic market and to overseas markets, such as North America, Europe and other Asian countries, among others.

Nissan Motor Co. Ltd.

Nissan Motor, along with its subsidiaries and associated companies, is engaged in the manufacture and sale of vehicles, marine products and related parts; and the provision of finance services throughout world. Co.'s principal businesses are automobile and sales financing. Automobile segment manufactures electric vehicles, sedans, sport coupes, compact cars, mini vans, SUVs, pick-up trucks, and station wagons. Co.'s principal brand names include "Leaf," "Infiniti," "Murano," "Altima," "Maxima," "Sentra," "Quest," "Cedric," "Days Roox," "e-NV200," "Note e-Power," "Caravan," "Wingroad," "GT-R," "Farilady Z, among others. Sales Financing segment provides sales financing services..

NVIDIA Corporation

NVIDIA engages in graphics processing unit (GPU)-based visual computing and accelerated computing platforms. The company has two segments, GPU and Tegra Processor, which are based on a single underlying architecture. The company's GPU product brands are aimed at markets including GeForce for gamers; Quadro for designers; Tesla and DGX for artificial intelligence data scientists and big data researchers; and GRID for cloud-based visual computing users. The company's Tegra brand integrates an entire computer onto a single chip, and incorporates GPUs and multi-core CPUs to drive supercomputing for autonomous robots, drones, and cars, as well as for game consoles and mobile gaming and entertainment devices.

Renesas Electronics Corporation

Renesas Electronics is a semiconductor solution provider. Co.'s solutions include electronic products and systems for communications, computing and peripherals, consumer electronics, as well as automotive and industrial sectors. Along with its subsidiaries and associated company, Co. operates in four business segments: automotive, industrial, broad-based and other semiconductors. Co.'s principal products are microcontrollers, microprocessors, smart analogs, secure MCUs (Microcontroller Units), embedded systems platform, software, tools, IPDs (Intelligent Power Devices), power MOSFET (Metal-Oxide-Semiconductor Field-Effect Transistors), analog and mixed-signal ICs, and transistors.

RIVIAN AUTOMOTIVE INC

Stellantis N.V.

Suzuki Motor Corp.

Suzuki Motor is engaged in the manufacture and sale of automobiles and motorcycles in Japan and overseas. Co.'s business segments are automobiles, motorcycles, and marine. Automobiles segment manufactures and sells light automobiles, compact automobiles and general automobiles including "Swift," "Solio," "Jimny," "Spacia," and "Hustler." Motorcycles segment manufactures and sells compact two-wheel vehicles, light two-wheel vehicles, motorized bicycles and buggies such as "Hayabusa," "GSX-R1000R ABS," and "Skywave." Specialized Machinery segment manufactures and sells outboard motors, engines for snow vehicles, motorized wheelchairs, among others.

Tata Motors Limited

Tata Motors is an automobile company, engaged in the manufacture and sale of commercial and passenger vehicles primarily in India. Co. provides cars, utility vehicles, trucks, buses, and defense vehicles, as well as develops electric and hybrid vehicles for personal and public transportation. In addition, Co. is engaged in the provision of engineering and automotive applications, as well as machine tools and factory automation applications; construction equipment manufacturing; automotive vehicle components manufacturing, among others. Co. markets its vehicles in Europe, Africa, the Middle East, South East Asia, South Asia, and South America.

Tesla Inc

Tesla designs, develops, manufactures, sells and leases electric vehicles and energy generation and storage systems, and provides services related to its products. The company operates as two reportable segments: automotive, which includes the design, development, manufacturing, sales, and leasing of electric vehicles as well as sales of automotive regulatory credits; and energy generation and storage, which includes the design, manufacture, installation, sales, and leasing of solar energy generation and energy storage products, services related to such products, and sales of solar energy system incentives.

Toyota Motor Corp.

Toyota Motor is an automobile manufacturer. Co. is primarily engaged in the design, manufacture, and sale of sedans, minivans, compact cars, sport-utility vehicles, trucks and related parts and accessories throughout the world. Co. provides financing, vehicle and equipment leasing and certain other financial services primarily to its dealers and their customers to support the sales of vehicles and other products manufactured by Co. Co.'s principal business segments are automotive operations, financial services operations and other operations. Co. sells its vehicles in approximately 190 countries and regions, and markets for its automobiles in Japan, North America, Europe and Asia.

Provider
Pelham Smithers Associates Ltd
Pelham Smithers Associates Ltd

Founded in 2009, Pelham Smithers Associates (PSA) provides market intelligence on Asian technology, focusing in particular on Japan. The industries covered by our team of specialists are: consumer electronics, telecomms, pharmaceuticals, internet, electronic parts and materials, automotive technology, retail and capital goods. 

PSA produces both company and sector reports. The focus of PSA’s research is to identify winners and losers as new technologies impact the top and bottom lines of corporations. Critical to our research is the clear explanation of how these new technologies work and how they impact companies and industries. 

The founding partners have worked closely together for twenty years and the team has more than doubled in size since 2012. 

Analysts
Julie Boote

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