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When Android Automotive goes in the dash, Google wins — and automakers lose data

You've gotta hand it to Google for the way the Silicon Valley tech giant has made indelible inroads into the car on multiple fronts. The most obvious is with its pioneering self-driving car technology that's caused car companies to get their act together on autonomous vehicles — and also collaborate with Google. Google has more directly extended its influence and data-mining capabilities into the car with its Android Auto smartphone-projection platform that most major automakers have adopted along with Apple's CarPlay. And now it's preparing to dig even deeper into dashboards by deploying its open-source operating system, Android Automotive, beginning with Audi and Volvo. Volvo recently announced that its next-generation Sensus infotainment system will run Android Automotive as an OS and include Google's Play Store for cloud-based content, Maps for navigation and Google Assistant for voice recognition, which can even command a car's climate control. By embedding Google in the dash, Volvo says owners will get an improved connected experience. "Bringing Google services into Volvo cars will accelerate innovation in connectivity and boost our development in applications and connected services," Volvo senior vice president of R&D Henrik Green said in a statement. "Soon, Volvo drivers will have direct access to thousands of in-car apps that make daily life easier and the connected in-car experience more enjoyable." Having Android Automotive onboard could benefit drivers — and provide a big win for Google, since it opens a deep and lucrative new data-mining vein for the company. But it's a wave of a white flag for car companies when it comes to delivering their own cloud-based content and services. It also represents a massive data giveaway and, for Audi, a reversal of earlier reservations about letting Google get too much access to car data. Not long after Android Auto and Apple CarPlay were introduced in 2014 and most automakers eagerly embraced the technologies, several German automakers second-guessed their decision when they realized what was at stake: data. At a conference in Berlin in 2015, Audi CEO Rupert Stadler said car owners "want to be in control of their data, and not subject to monitoring." A few months earlier, Stadler stated that "the data that we collect is our data and not Google's.

Reverse-engineering i3 shows BMW profits after 20,000 sales

"This is, without a question of a doubt, the most advanced vehicle on the planet. It's as revolutionary as the Model T was when it came out." That is exceptionally high praise, and it's not even being heaped on one of the million-dollar hybrid hypercars from Ferrari or McLaren. It's not even being attributed to a particularly zealous Tesla fan. Nope, it's coming from a mustachioed man in suburban Detroit, and he's discussing a $42,400 BMW hatchback with Forbes. Of course, said hatchback is the revolutionary i3, and Sandy Munro's statements carry some degree of authority, as his company is tearing apart and analyzing every little nut, washer and bolt on the four-seat EV. Munro's eponymous company performs reverse-engineering analysis, meaning they rip apart brand new cars and sell the information to the world's automakers, saving OEM's both time and money. The most interesting thing it has discovered thus far? That even with the high costs of two of the i3's most important elements – carbon-fiber-reinforced plastic and lithium-ion batteries – his company's analysis shows that BMW need only sell about 20,000 units a year to turn a profit, Forbes reports. While Munro's company is often contracted by automakers, he's gone it alone on the i3 project, dropping about $1 million into in-depth analysis. That's a lot of money, but the company should be able to turn around and sell its findings for about $500,000, with a batch of Chinese automakers already queued up and ready to buy. Analysis of individual i3 components will also be available from a sort of a la carte menu. To see what it is about the i3 that has Munro speaking so highly of it, head over to the Forbes website and check out the feature article and video on the reverse-engineering process. Featured Gallery 2014 BMW i3: First Drive View 33 Photos News Source: ForbesImage Credit: Copyright 2015 Sebastian Blanco / AOL Green BMW Hatchback Electric Sandy Munro

Audi leading rival BMW in worldwide luxury sales race

If you thought competition among the German luxury automakers was hot before, it looks like things are just getting started. For the first two months of the year, Audi has sold more cars than BMW worldwide by just 383 cars.
Audi claims to have sold 242,400 vehicles through February, up 9.3 percent from last year, compared to 242,017 units from BMW, up 8.9 percent, in the same period. While the advantage is tiny, its implications could be huge because Bimmer has been the leader in the premium car segment for the last nine consecutive years. Mercedes-Benz lags behind them somewhat at 229,630 vehicles through February. According to Bloomberg, at this time last year Audi had sold 429 fewer cars than BMW.
The growth is all part of Volkswagen Group's goal to become the world's largest automaker. It currently ranks in second when its heavy truck businesses are considered. The German automotive giant also wants to be the world's leading premium carmaker. "Competition in the premium segment is more intense than ever," said Audi CEO Rupert Stadler to Bloomberg.