The Week in Automotive: Rethinking Cars and Mobility

As cities grow, pollution and traffic problems increase. This has forced cities like London, Madrid and New Delhi to rethink how to address mobility. London is tightening pollution restrictions and since 2003, the city started to charge US$8 to those who drive a car or truck in the city center on weekdays between 7 a.m. and 6 p.m. Meanwhile, Beijing implemented an unusual strategy in 2011 to issue new car license plates using a lottery system. In Mexico City, the government is thinking about new ways to avoid tax evasions and decrease traffic congestions.

NATIONAL

• Mexico City Governor Claudia Sheinbaum announced the authorities will devise a new method to limit tax evasion. The government will investigate drivers who circulate with foreign licenses plates using cars acquired in the city, which represent a leak of more than MX$700 million (US$36.1 million) in taxes.

• Tabasco’s government confirmed an investment of nearly MX$80 million (US$4.1 million) for the acquisition of new license plates for 2020. A vehicle replacement tax will be applied again to some 500,000 cars, which could lead to the collection of more than MX$400 million (US$20.6 million).

• Ford’s Mustang Mach-E will be manufactured in Cuautitlan, State of Mexico, before moving production to China. The price of Mustang Mach-E is currently at US$43,893. Ford would not say how many Mach-Es are expected to be sold annually, but it will be the only model built at the 4.3 million ft2 factory, which currently produces more than 100,000 sub-compact Fiestas per year.

INTERNATIONAL

• Electric cars and SUVs shine at the Los Angeles Auto Show. Debuting on the electric field, Porsche introduced Taycan 4S in the US, a sports sedan that delivers 429kW from 0 to 60 mph in just 3.8s and can charge up to 80 percent of its battery in just 22 minutes.

• Cities worldwide are re-imagining their relationship with cars. Several steps have been taken to reduce tailpipe pollution in cities like New Delhi, such as building a large metro network, a peripheral highway designed to keep freight trucks out of town and restrictions on older and more-polluting vehicles. New Delhi officials also proposed to alternate driving permits for cars with license plates ending in even and odd numbers during the first two weeks of November, which is the city’s peak pollution season.

• The fight between Trump and China has created reluctance among vehicle consumers, indicates BBVA Research. In 2020, the automotive industry will grow by up to 1 percent, although this recovery will depend on the resolution of trade tensions between the US and China, as well as USMCA’s ratification.