GM

After trying to make BrightDrop work as a standalone brand, GM has decided it will have a happier home among the Silverados and Camaros at Chevy. GM reabsorbed BrightDrop last year, citing “effeciencies,” and now its assigning it to Chevy in order to tap into the brand’s “broad commercial vehicle sales and service dealer network.” Chevy dealers will be able to sell BrightDrop’s 400 and 600 electric vans, as well as the fleet management software and other products.

Emissions from nearly 6 million of its vehicles were about 10 percent higher on average than GM said they were on its greenhouse gas emission compliance reports, an EPA investigation found. GM will retire 50 million metric tons of carbon credits to make up for the excess tailpipe pollution. It’ll also pay $145.8 million in penalties.

Last year, General Motors agreed to cover its electric vehicle battery manufacturing under the United Auto Workers’ master agreement as a precursor to settling the historic 45-day union strike. And today, the UAW announced that it has a tentative agreement with Ultium Cells, the joint venture between GM and LG Energy Solutions. UAW President Shawn Fain, who has expressed concern about how the EV transition will affect workers, said Ultium Cell employees “showed the world what it means to win a just transition.”

The lyrics to Hole’s Malibu, but also a fitting coda for the Chevy Malibu, that is ending production later this year. GM says it will shift resources to EVs, but you know it and I know it, it’s just another sedan sacrificed on the alter of big trucks and SUVs.

Chevy dealers are already catching flack from customers for GM’s decision to remove popular phone-mirroring services Apple CarPlay and Android Auto from their lineup of EVs. Maybe it would have gone down better if their native infotainment software didn’t immediately shit the bed, resulting in a stop-sale order for the Chevy Blazer EV? Just sayin.

New York Times writer Kashmir Hill has another mind-boggling story about GM’s privacy problem. She recently purchased a Chevy Bolt, and later found out her driving data was being provided to third-party brokers without her consent. The root of the problem seems to be sales people rushing customers through a bunch of terms that opt them into the program without explaining what they’re signing up for. Shady stuff.

The automaker was caught by the New York Times providing micro-details about its customers driving habits, including acceleration, braking, and trip length, to insurance companies. Clueless vehicle owners were then left wondering why their insurance premiums were going up. But now GM tells the Times it’s going to stop.

“OnStar Smart Driver customer data is no longer being shared with LexisNexis or Verisk,” a G.M. spokeswoman, Malorie Lucich, said in an emailed statement. “Customer trust is a priority for us, and we are actively evaluating our privacy processes and policies.”

No word yet on Kia, Subaru, and Mitsubishi, which also were reportedly sharing driver data with insurance firms.

A driver’s insurance rate went up based on a 130-page report detailing his Chevy Bolt’s drives over six months, shared by GM with data broker LexisNexis through the OnStar Smart Driver program, reports The New York Times.

According to the Times, Kia, Subaru, and Mitsubishi also contribute to the LexisNexis data portal, while another company, Verisk partners with Ford, Honda, and Hyundai. Subaru says it only shares odometer data when authorized, while Ford says it will share data for usage-based programs based on a customer’s in-car menu confirmation.

Update March 12th, 2024, 2:42PM ET: Added details on the partnerships and what data is shared.

Bloomberg reports that Cruise is preparing to resume service on public roads “in the coming weeks” — possibly in Houston and Dallas, where the company previously operated — but with safety drivers in the seats. Service was suspended in October after one of its autonomous cars struck and dragged a pedestrian in San Francisco.

Cruise spokesman Pat Morrissey said in a statement:

“We have not set a timeline for deployment. Our goal is to relaunch in one city with manually driven vehicles and supervised testing as soon as possible once we have taken steps to rebuild trust with regulators and the public. We are in the process of meeting with officials in select markets to gather information, share updates and rebuild trust.”

Since the SF incident, Cruise’s license to operate in California was suspended, several top executives have left, and the company has let go almost a quarter of its workforce.

Steve Kenner has held safety-related positions at Apple and Uber, as well as autonomous vehicle companies like Aurora, Kodiak Robotics, and Locomation. He’ll be in charge of making sure Cruise adheres to safety standards as it seeks to re-deploy its robotaxis in San Francisco and beyond. The GM-owned company is trying to rebuild its reputation — and get back its operations permit — in the wake of an incident in which a pedestrian was stuck and dragged by one of its autonomous vehicles.

Kevin Kelty was the former battery tech chief at Tesla during the infamous “production hell” Model 3 ramp. He’ll take the role of Vice President of Batteries and will report directly to GM President Mark Reuss. He worked at Tesla for 11 years and Panasonic for 15 years, so safe to say that if he can’t help GM get its stuff together, no one can.

The company has run in numerous hurdles scaling up its EV and battery making operation, including recalls and persistent delays related to automation on its Ultium assembly line. Suffice to say, Kelty will have his work cut out for him.

Case in point: General Motors just inked a deal with South Korea’s LG Chem for $19 billion — yes, billion with a “b” — worth of EV battery material. That’s one of the largest EV supply deals of all time. The money will be spent over a decade and will fund the start of cathode production at the Tennessee plant operated by the two companies’ joint venture.

LG Chem said it will supply GM with half a million tons of cathode materials — nickel, cobalt, manganese, aluminum — which is enough to power over 5 million EVs with 300 miles of range each. Keep that in mind the next time someone tells you that EVs are just a fad.

It sounds promising, after GM CEO Mary Barra said in an earnings call this morning that the automaker would be bringing back plug-in hybrids.

Our forward plans include bringing our plug-in hybrid technology to select vehicles in North America.

Is she responding to the influential GM dealers who urged the company to get back into hybrids after EV sales growth slowed? Or is she an avid Verge reader who loves a convincing blog post written by a handsome editor? I’ll let you decide.

The company has taken a $1.6 billion hit related to unsold electric vehicles as growth across the EV market continues to slow. EV sales reached $2.1 billion in GM’s fourth quarter, up from the $2.0 billion reported last year.

The appeal for GM’s EV offerings is so low that some dealers are even pushing the automotive giant to get back into the hybrid market.