cbtnews
Automakers and parts suppliers worldwide are scrambling to secure rare-earth magnets after China tightened its export controls, sparking fears of widespread factory shutdowns. Frank Eckard, CEO of German magnet maker Magnosphere, said automakers have warned that their plants could be idled by mid-July without alternative magnet supplies.
China dominates the global rare-earth magnet market, controlling up to 70% of mining, 85% of refining capacity, and roughly 90% of magnet production. These magnets are essential for both electric vehicles (EVs) and internal combustion engine cars, used in components such as motors for side mirrors, oil pumps, windshield wipers, and various sensors. The average EV requires about one pound of rare-earth elements, double that of a fossil-fuel vehicle. More
Huh. Well Team Hillary. Loral ect ect ect.
OK, motorheads, if you were asked for a realistic suggestion for an older vehicle (auto or pickup) with minimal gadgetry, minimal pollution stuff, all analog everything, and that could still be maintained at a reasonable cost, what would you say?
I’d like to have a base Hilux but our wonderful and beneficent govt says I can’t have one. So, whatever you come up with has to be legal in the U.S.
I’d like to have my dad’s 69 Buick Wildcat.
Rode good, not a squeak or rattle and would pass everything but a gas station. (430 4bbl)
I can afford anything I desire to drive. I drive a truck old enough to vote. By choice. Try and find Tuckers video when he discovers his nice shiny GMC Yukon is down loading his driving habits to his insurance company. By the way, my 2006 LBZ runs like a bat out of hell. Nothing can catch it.
I’d like to have a Fiat 124 sedan or wagon from the early 70s, or its Russian equivalent. The Soviets bought all the tooling from Fiat and built them for years as Ladas. It was the most dependable car I ever drove. How the Italians designed a car with a quintessentially Russian soul is one of life’s great mysteries.
Thirdtwin. The Lads Niva is still being built. Other than updated interior and a few minor details is still the same car as when first introduced in 1977. Less than $12k for a well equipped one. Of course you need to be in Russia to buy.
Lada.
Niobium anyone? Interconnectedness of the markets? The invisible hand requires a very visible steel glove in which to reside. Remember kids, violence solves everything.
Skip electrics & Hybrids, gain simplicity, and carry on with LESS MAINTENANCE & REPAIR. (esp after a simple bumper bender)
What will happen to all of the Chinese battery plants that just build here?