Model3 (Tesla)

Tesla will pause part of new Model Y production at Gigafactory Shanghai for 3 weeks to upgrade the lines, with the shutdown extending beyond the regular Chinese New Year. 

According to a new report from there, Tesla plans to shut down part of its new Model Y production lines from around January 22 to February 14, considerably longer than the Model 3 production line shutdown from January 26 to February 3.

As Tesla has only recently started production of the updated version of the Model Y, the report suggests that the company will take advantage of the extended Lunar New Year shutdown to upgrade areas of the production line to improve them to ramp up production capacity.

While running pilot builds, Tesla is expected to have found ways to optimize production during that time and now will implement it during this extended shutdown.

Reports have claimed that Tesla has received over 50,000 orders for the updated vehicle version in the first 24 hours of the unveiling.

(multiple sources on January 15, 2025)

On January 15, DesRosiers Automotive Consultants reported that new light vehicle sales performance in 2024 was positive with the market up 8.2%. At the model level, however, the market saw significant shifts. 

Top Five Passenger Cars
1.    Honda Civic
2.    Toyota Corolla
3.    Hyundai Elantra
4.    Tesla Model 3
5.    Volkswagen Jetta

Among passenger cars, the Honda Civic reclaimed the top spot with a 14.3% sales increase to 31,774 units. The Toyota Corolla claimed second place, while the Volkswagen Jetta saw a significant increase of 44.4% propel it into fifth position, followed very closely by the Nissan Sentra which ended up in sixth.

Top Five Light Trucks
1.    Ford F-Series
2.    Toyota RAV4
3.    GMC Sierra
4.    RAM Pickup
5.    Honda CR-V

For light trucks, the Ford F-Series continued as the top contender, with 8.6% sales increase to 133,857 units. The Toyota RAV4 claimed second place with a 3.8% increase in sales over the previous year, ahead of both the GMC Sierra and RAM Pickup. Double-digit sales increases pushed the Nissan Rogue up into eighth place, the Ford Escape into ninth, and the Hyundai Kona into tenth, with their sales rising 22.8%, 58.8%, and 33.8% respectively. 

(from DesRosiers Automotive Consultants on January 15, 2025)

On January 7, ADAC (Allgemeiner Deutscher Automobil-Club), Germany announced that it has conducted ADAC Ecotest 2024, where it has evaluated 84 cars for direct and indirect emissions, including carbon dioxide from electricity generation. Fully electric vehicles dominated the top eight spots, all earning 5 stars.

Peugeot e-208 led the ranking with 105 points, consuming 16.0 kWh/100 km (i.e. 80 g CO2/km). Then, Opel Corsa Electric followed closely with 103 points, consuming 16.5 kWh/100 km and Peugeot e-308 also scored 103 points, consuming 16.3 kWh/100 km (i.e. 82 g CO2/km).

Tesla Model 3 ranked fourth, scoring 100 points with a consumption of 17.2 kWh/100 km (i.e. 86 g CO2/km). Toyota Prius Plug-in was the only gasoline-powered vehicle in the top ten, excelling with 17.7 kWh/100 km in electric mode. Peugeot e-2008 takes sixth place in the ranking.

VW Passat variant with 2.0 TDI was the best diesel in 38th place receiving with a four-star rating. It impressed with low fuel consumption (5.0 L/100 km) and efficient exhaust gas purification, earning top pollutant control points.

Based on ADAC and Stellantis press release