This week's snippets of automotive news include news on Byton, Bullitt Mustang sales, FCA boss on concepts and Skoda Vision X.
Byton’s being taken seriously:
There’s a year to go before electric car start-up Byton releases its SUV, but CEO Carsten Breitfeld says the industry is already taking his company, and the M-Byte, seriously. “Two years ago, most people would have told you this is crazy. Today, I’m having conversations with Daimler executives; I’m getting more feedback that Byton is seen as a real competitor.”
Sales of the Bullitt Mustang won’t be limited in the UK, although Ford boss Andy Barratt hopes to strike the balance of “selling one less car than there is demand for” in order to preserve interest and develop its status as a collectors’ item. “It’s an emotional vehicle that can change people’s view of who we are as a company,” he said.
Fiat Chrysler Boss Sergio Marchionne has warned car enthusiasts “not to fall in love with everything they see”, cautioning that a lot of the concepts being created as visions of the future may never become reality, especially electrified ones. “There’s so much excitement around electric cars, yet they are still bought by less than 1% of car buyers,” he added.
Skoda’s Vision X production model, which will be revealed in early 2019, will not outsell the brand’s other SUVs despite it launching in the fastest-growing segment in Europe, according to sales boss Alain Favey.
He added that the Skoda Karoq would be its biggest-selling SUV, with the Skoda Kodiaq and the Vision X expected to have a similar level of sales. Last year,100,000 Kodiaqs were sold globally.
Read more
Skoda Kodiaq review
Ford Mustang review
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