It’s sometimes hard to write about the Chinese car industry without highlighting comments that can sound a little Sinophobic. China has long since replaced Russia as the only comparable military and economic power in the world, but it’s also a major trading partner. Western automakers made billions of dollars selling cars in China and now, faced with the threat of Chinese automakers selling cars outside of China, are begging for tariffs and restrictions.
The Morning Dump is going to be a little more focused on this issue today, as Chinese President Xi Jinping is coming to Washington, D.C. soon and will potentially be bringing leaders from Chinese companies like BYD and Xioami, which are both essentially banned from selling cars in the US. The reasons for concern are real, of course, whether it’s about security, labor, or unfair pricing. Both former military leaders and current executives are expressing their desire to see Chinese automakers not sell cars here, even if President Trump seems open to the idea of Chinese car factories in America.
Congress may soon pass a bipartisan bill that heavily restricts which companies can sell in the US, though the automotive bill that passed first is actually about AM radio.
Xi Reportedly Might Bring BYD, CATL, And Xioami To The US
I’ve gone for a drive with BYD Chairman and founder Wang Chuanfu and found him to be a very personable and extremely intelligent guy. Chinese President Xi Jinping bringing him along on a trip to another country in order to represent the country’s manufacturing industry makes a lot of sense to me. I haven’t taken a drive with the heads of Xioami or CATL, though I assume they’re also pretty chill company.
However, I’m not sure that I’d bring them to the United States given all the concern, and proposed legislation, to keep Chinese companies out of the country. Reuters has multiple sources saying that Xi might be planning to do exactly that:
Washington and Beijing are finalising a group of Chinese business leaders to join President Xi Jinping’s upcoming visit to Washington, three sources familiar with the matter said, potentially including companies facing US regulatory scrutiny as they seek greater market access.
Final invitations will go out to companies in the coming days, the sources said. The State Department is expected to green-light US visas for the delegation, one of them added.
Leading Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD, opens new tab, smartphone maker Xiaomi, which has also expanded into EVs, battery giants CATL, and Gotion, consumer electronics manufacturer Hisense, automotive parts supplier Wanxiang Group and state-owned Bank of China, and agriculture conglomerate COFCO Group are among companies under consideration, two of the sources and five other people briefed on the matter said.
President Trump has already said that he’s open to the idea of Chinese car companies building plants in the United States, which puts him at odds with most of his party. Americans are also not as interested in Chinese brands, though once they drive one their tune often changes.
When Trump went to Beijing he brought with him leaders of businesses that the Chinese government has issues with, so maybe this is just tit-for-tat. If that’s all this is, it’s completely reasonable in the course of diplomacy to have conversations, even with potential adversaries. Open dialogues are better than closed fists.
Whether you see it as a weakness or a strength, Trump has a flexibility when it comes to his positions, and has historically been persuadable. There is a growing concern that President Trump might be convinced that the jobs that Chinese automakers bring outweighs the risks. Leaders of car companies have been notably hesitant to critique the President, so it’ll be interesting to see their reactions to the White House embracing Chinese carmakers.
[Ed Note: Maybe we force a joint-venture system like China did to western automakers? -DT].
Generals: ‘There Cannot Be A Defense Industrial Base Without A Commercial Industrial Base’
A bipartisan group in the US Congress is close to getting through the Connected Vehicle Security Act, which would make it much harder for Chinese-owned companies or Chinese-built cars to be sold here.
SAFE is a nonpartisan group of former military and business leaders operating a lobbying group focused on “transportation, energy, and supply chain policies” in the United States. They’ve got a letter out in support of the bill, writing that “There cannot be a defense industrial base without a commercial industrial base.”
Modern vehicles are increasingly software defined, collecting large volumes of information through cameras, sensors, internet-connected components, and onboard software. Chinese companies are subject to PRC laws requiring cooperation with intelligence authorities, creating a risk that the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) could gain access to geolocation histories, travel patterns, driver information, and information about surrounding critical infrastructure.
The legislation would also help preserve the commercial manufacturing capacity on which military readiness depends. U.S. industrial supply chains have been eroded for decades by state-backed Chinese competitors, undermining essential defense production capabilities. Domestic auto manufacturing creates critical domestic demand for steel, aluminum, batteries, semiconductors, and other advanced components—supply chains and capabilities the U.S. military cannot sustain alone
That’s the ex-military view, what about current business leaders?
Hyundai CEO Jose Munoz: Tariffs For Thee, But Not For Me
Talking to a Retuers reporter, Hyundai CEO Jose Munoz warned that not imposing trade barriers on Chinese companies was extremely risky:
Munoz said Chinese vehicles are 30 percent to 40 percent cheaper than rival models in some markets, including Italy, Spain and France. That’s despite trade barriers including tariffs or minimum pricing commitments that the European Union imposed on Chinese-built electric vehicles after concluding they benefited from unfair state subsidies.
Britain, which left the bloc in 2020, has not introduced similar tariffs. “The U.K., which in the past was a very profitable, very strong market, has become like China,” he said in San Jose, California. “All the top sellers are Chinese because there are no barriers.”
“So, I think we could expect similar things to happen in the U.S., at different levels, unless there are certain conditions,” he said, referring to measures such as the EU’s tariffs and other market-access requirements.
This is the other type of argument against Chinese automakers that’s fairly common, which is that they receive unfair state subsidies and therefore can charge unreasonably low prices and disrupt any markets they enter.
The House Of Representatives Passes A Bill To Save AM Radio
There’s been a move to discontinue AM radios in cars, which has drawn the ire of legislators. A bill passed on Tuesday would require all automakers to keep AM radio in their vehicles.
“Tens of millions of Americans tune into broadcast AM radio every day,” House Energy & Commence Committee Chairman Brett Guthrie said on the House floor, according to a press release. “Farmers use AM radio for weather forecasts, local information, and crop reports, while older Americans rely on it for local news and programming.
“AM radio is a critical tool for emergency communications. When a disaster hits and a broadband network goes dark, AM radio can continue providing critical emergency information to communities,” said Guthrie, a Kentucky representative.
If this passes the Senate and is signed into law, it would impact automakers like Tesla and Rivian, which don’t offer AM radio across all their vehicles.
What I’m Listening To While Writing TMD
I think you could do worse than a dive on Vine, but “Hollywood” by Marina and the Diamonds is a bop.
The Big Question
What do you listen to in your car? Or are you like David and just listen to silence?
Top photo:
What happens if he rolls out the red carpet?? Well, his hand picked board of directors will ensure his name is used as the brand marque – not his decision – the board chose on their own, of course.
The models will be the Melania, the Baron, the Ivanka, the Don, and the Eric (which for some reason keeps failing it’s crash tests).
Let’s see. We already have Trump Mobile, what if we could also get Trump Mobiles? Solid gold (painted) cars! Maybe he can hire some brainiacs from Trump University to get his car company off the ground. Who needs China?
If there is ever a disaster so bad that they only way I can receive information is AM radio, i think I would prefer to not receive any information at all.
I connect my phone and listen to music/podcasts/news that way.
Wow, I can’t even remember the last time I listened to actual radio.
Which is one of the things that keeps either side from starting a shooting war. Something to think about as we pursue an increasingly isolationist policy…
Replace “state subsidies” with “venture capital subsidies” and you have the business plan of every “disruptive” tech company in the past decade. Uber did it. Netflix did it. AI is doing it. They start out suspiciously cheap, and then once they have a stranglehold on the market suddenly prices double or triple. To hell with all of them, IMHO.
Which may sound contradictory to my first point above, but I think the takeaway here is that this stuff is complicated and there’s no single, absolute truth you can follow. It’s going to require shrewd political maneuvering to navigate this mess.
*looks around at…everything*
Well, we’re @#$%ed.
I’m a NPR “sustainer”, so that’s on a lot, even on the AM-side sometimes. Of course it depends on the car as well. If it’s the ’66 Biscayne, it’s my Pandora selections through ye olde BT-speaker up on the dash. The Volt has a few ancient CD’s in the console I’ll toss in once in a while. I think the current selection is Puffy: PRMX, a couple of random Pimsleur Portuguese cds, and I think Pimsleur’s French lesson 9-10 is sitting in the deck. I didn’t get too far with that before going to Le Mans earlier this year.
I have literally never in my life listened to AM radio; I’ve only even heard it when I accidentally hit the AM FM button. I even predate MP3 and podcasts.
TBQ: Bluetooth and Pandora is the primary source of tunes (because the ads can be skipped very easily), but cassettes are the backup when the app is down or I’m in a bad reception area.
Since the Fiata doesn’t have any way to play physical media (CD player was depopulated for more console space), a cassette player with an aux cord does the job
At the start of the war on Iran, China had 1.4 billion barrels of oil in their strategic reserve and are largely responsible for keeping the price of oil below $150 a barrel. So Xi has some leverage.
I used to listen to AM all the time but couldn’t tell you of my last two cars have even had it. I’m pretty sure they have FM but have honestly never bothered. I just use Bluetooth and Android Auto.
Podcasts. XM radio. Spotify from my phone. FM radio but only for 102.7 WEQX (independent alternative station I’d recommend to anybody). I would still listen to CDs if that was an option (still have a player in the Forester though).
I cannot remember a time I tuned into AM radio. It’s probably been a few decades.
I feel like this article about not letting Chinese automakers in is directly related to the other article about GM thinking hybrids are dumb. Maybe not though. I could be wrong
Is anyone depending on the AM radio in their car to stay informed? Uh-oh, it’s getting pretty dark out there, I better hop in the car and listen to the AM radio. Because you can’t buy a portable am/fm home radio and, of course, AM has a monopoly on important information.
Will Slate trucks be getting radios now? If so, I hope it is an AM-only, manual tuning, pushbutton type with one speaker in the center of the dash.
Letting the Chinese build cars in the US with restrictions on software is the best way forward. It’s not unprecedented in anyway and works out to benefit everyone except the people that don’t need any more benefits the MBA class of people that need to be pushed out of everything.
I keep a local playlist of files on my phone. That I play via vlc on Android auto or bt if no screen but I put cheap Chinese android auto head units in most of cars and truck or adapter boxes.
“What Happens If The President Rolls Out The Red Carpet To Chinese Automakers?”
I’ll tell you what it will do… US domestic automakers and their leadership teams who STUPIDLY thought Trump was their friend (Looking at you Elon Musk AND Jim Farley) will get screwed.
Screwing friends is what Trump does. He demands loyalty and gives the opposite in return.
And I have absolutely no sympathy for any Trump supporter who gets screwed.
“What do you listen to in your car?”
I’ve ripped my entire CD collection onto a USB that I listen to in the car.
Sometimes I will listen to songs it picks randomly. But when it gets to the Pink Floyd stuff meant to be listened to in a specific order (because the songs flow into one another) it can be jarring.
For example… the song The Happiest Days of Our Lives which ends in a musical peak with the Roger Waters Scream and is SUPPOSED TO lead into Another Bring In the Wall Part 2, can be very jarring when it ends with the Roger Waters Scream… and then it switches into a song by Madonna (have several of her albums), Mozart or the Titanic soundtrack.
But other times the random songs played back to back can be really good.
And sometimes I’ll listen to whole albums in their proper order… like a lot of stuff from Pink Floyd, Jethro Tull’s Thick As a Brick or Madonna’s You Can Dance (particularly the B-side where it starts with Over And Over, goes to the Shep Pettibone remix of Into The Groove and then Where’s the Party).
Sounds like we have similar tastes in music, at least to some extent. Throw in some Iron Maiden, Metallica, Disturbed, etc. and we’re there.
I’ve also got AC/DC, Led Zepplin, The Rolling Stones, The Doors, The Greatful Dead, Kiss, Lynyrd Skynyrd, Rush, The Who and The Guess Who as well.
Re: Random – paid Spotify lets you set albums like Animals & Days of Future Passed to play in order. That doesnt help your usb stick but if you’re already paying to stream roll with it
Not subscribed to any streaming… just a USB and my own CDs that I ripped for personal use.
When I’m alone on the car, that is all I do: play whole albums, not skipping a single song, as they were meant to be played (allegedly), from my iPod.
With the wife on a trip, we will sometimes listen to a few “Conan O’Brien Needs a Friend” podcasts. Truly funny shit.
TBQ: I’ve still got a sub to the evil audio empire Spotify. It’s kinda hard to kick that habit, when you’ve gotten used to saying “oh, THAT classic album I never managed to hear? Think I’ll slap it on now!”
So if I’m listening to anything in the car that ain’t NPR, probably that, via Android Auto.
A pesky point, but that USA Toady article is well nigh unopenable, even after jumping through all the hoops to allow pop-ups.
I have no idea if this was intentional, but I love it either way. 🙂
Oh it was, it was.
Hey, it’s nicer than what we used to call it: “McPaper.”
They will probably also be bringing their big ass checks for trump and next thing you know, he will go on truth social and talk about how great the chinese cars are, and how good of friends that he is with Xi and his buddies.
They won’t even need checks. All they really have to do is fawn all over him, telling him how brilliant and wonderful he is. (And probably that they will do some sort of joint venture with him after he leaves office.) He will try to give them everything they want. The executive orders will fly off his desk. Hopefully then some of his fellow party members will suddenly find their backbones. But even then, an unfortunately large component of the voting public will still believe everything he says even afterwards.
yea, you’re probably right. that or he will flip flop like a dying fish on the deck of a boat and decide 150% tariff add-ons unless someone kisses his ass and makes him feel good about himself for another 2 months. Meanwhile touting that diesel prices are the lowest it’s ever been even though we all see it north of $6 a gallon (and here in socal it’s actually over $8 a gallon this past weekend even in red ass Orange county).
I wouldnt mind Chinese cars coming into the states but I also live in Michigan and I love my state, all the people I know work in the auto industry either with OEMs or Suppliers, or factories that are automotive related. If they could come here and stablish supply chains, welcome.
TBQ. If I’m driving on my own, I listen to Audible. I listen to a dozen books a year and hardly anything else.
If my wife is in the car, she can’t stand listening to Audible. In general, we don’t listen to the radio together and end up chatting.
“What do you listen to in your car?”
These days, as the world gets more dystopian on a daily basis, I’ve only been listening to classical music (91.5FM in LA) with the AC on and the windows up. I drive on Vine all the time, and like much of Hollywood, it’s crowded and parts of it are a little dirty, despite all the tourists milling about taking selfies next to various celebrities’ stars (on the Walk of Fame). At least Vine is a North/South street, so there’s usually some shade to be had.
Hollywood/Sunset/Santa Monica are all East/West streets, so depending on your destination and the time of day, you’ll be staring into the blinding sun (feels a lot closer than 93 million miles IMO) in addition to the traffic, dirt, and careless drivers.
When I do listen to music in the car, it’s generally SoCal Sound (88.5) or KXLU (88.9). They’re both good stations.
PS: yesterday, we had our 5th or 6th multi-hour power outage in two weeks. So, per usual, I sat out behind the house with neighbors, drinking wine and cranking my little emergency radio.
Personally, I don’t think cars ought to be sold without AM radios. A little blackout (about 450 homes) is all it takes for most people to have no phone or internet at all (kudos to T-Mobile cell service which worked yesterday). No phone or net or TV (nobody seems to use OTA TV anymore, not even me) means no info. Had the blackout been related to some potential disaster (a fire, a flood, an earthquake, etc…) it’d have been very hard to learn about it. AFAIK, there’s no news, let alone local news on any FM station in LA. Thus, an AM radio in the car might, for some, be the only way to stay informed.
I use a plex server to stream through my phone on my BT equipped vehicles. My black supra has the original 1980s tape deck with EQ which has a CCR greatest hits tape that was in there when I bought the car. The tape deck has auto reverse, but its way to keen to reverse, so it just switches from side A to side B randomly. I’m kind of used to it though
I tried terrestrial radio after I moved here, but there are too many overlapping signals in my area and most aren’t consistent. The local heavy metal station is ok, but they play a lot of stuff I don’t care for (my problem, not theirs). I used to run Amazon Prime Music with Android Auto, but then I realized it wasn’t worth paying for because I really don’t drive that much, so I pretty much listen to the sounds of the drive – the car, the road, etc.
I am a public radio listener, sometimes I play music from my phone. I cannot audiobook as I actually pay attention when driving and cannot follow the audiobook. It does not matter, if I am reading from a page or listening to an audiobook I read to memorize (often unintentionally) so I cannot listen and drive.
Listen to local NPR music (not news) stations, Red Sox games, and if there’s none of that available… cassette tapes and CDs. Or nothing if I’m listening for problems. Yeah, the fleet is pretty old…