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Farley reacts as UAW expands strike against Ford, GM

Members of the United Auto Worker union walk out of the Chicago Ford Assembly Plant as Lance Williams from Lansing, Ill., waves the UAW flag Friday. (AP)   As the United Auto Workers walk off the job at an additional Ford and General Motors plant, Ford CEO Jim Farley addressed investors and members of the media Friday, pleading the case for the company's latest overture to the union and addressing both public and investor concerns regarding the core issues facing American manufacturing.  Farley made a public case for Ford's efforts to resolve the dispute, expressing frustration with the ongoing stalemate and noting both the concessions Ford offered before the strike began and the signing of a contract with Canada's Unifor. Farley also acknowledged UAW President Shawn Fain's success in getting the union's message out, quipping: "Shawn has been on TV more than Jake from State Farm at this point." The first-ever simultaneous strike against the Detroit Three automakers enters its third week with threats of continued expansion, but little in the way of obvious concrete progress.  "If the UAW’s goal is a record contract, they have already achieved this," Farley said. "It is grossly irresponsible to escalate these strikes and hurt thousands of families." Farley also lamented the fact that EVs have become the subject of partisan conflict, with the company's recently announced battery production facilities taking heat from both pundits and investors as Ford was forced to press pause on the venture while negotiations continue. Former President Donald Trump dropped in to Michigan this week to declare EVs the enemy of blue-collar jobs. "They've become a political football, and that's a shame," he said. Friday saw an expansion of the UAW strike to Ford's Chicago assembly plant and GM's Lansing, Delta Township, Michigan, assembly plant, covering about 7,000 workers, Fain said in an announcement, bringing the total number of workers on the picket lines to 25,000. The strike will not include any additional members at Stellantis, where talks have reportedly been more productive. The Ford and GM plants went on strike at noon Eastern today (Friday). Ford builds the Explorer and Lincoln Aviator in Chicago. GM's Delta Township plant builds Chevy Traverse and Buick Enclave. "Despite our willingness to bargain, Ford and GM have refused to make meaningful progress," Fain said in a video address Friday morning.

BMW, Hyundai score big in JD Power's first Tech Experience Index

While automakers are quick to brag about winning a JD Power Initial Quality Study award, the reality, as we've pointed out before, is that these ratings are somewhat misleading, since IQS doesn't necessarily distinguish genuine quality issues. JD Power's new Tech Experience Index aims to solve that problem. The new metric takes the same 90-day approach as IQS but focuses exclusively on technology – collision protection, comfort and convenience, driving assistance, entertainment and connectivity, navigation, and smartphone mirroring. It splits the industry up into just seven segments, based loosely on size, which is why the Chevrolet Camaro is in the same division (mid-size) as Kia Sorento and the Mercedes-Benz GLE-Class is in the same segment as the Hyundai Genesis (mid-size premium). It makes for some screwy bedfellows, to be sure. Still, splitting tech experience away from initial quality should allow customers to make more informed and intelligent decisions when buying new vehicles. In the inaugural study, respondents listed BMW and Hyundai as the big winners, with two segment awards – the 2 Series for small premium and the 4 Series for compact premium, and the Genesis for mid-size premium and Tucson for small segment. The Chevrolet Camaro (midsize), Kia Forte (compact), and Nissan Maxima (large) scored individual wins. Ford also had a surprising hit with the Lincoln MKC, which ranked third in the compact premium segment behind the 4 Series and Lexus IS. This is a coup for the Blue Oval, whose woeful MyFord Touch systems made the brand a victim of the IQS' flaws in the early 2010s. But Ford and other automakers might not want to celebrate just yet. According to JD Power, there's still a lot of room for improvement – navigation systems were the lowest-rated piece of tech in the study. Instead, customers repeatedly saluted collision-avoidance and safety systems, giving the category the best marks of the study and listing blind-spot monitoring and backup cameras as two must-have features – 96 percent of respondents said they wanted those two systems in their next vehicle. But this isn't really a surprise. Implementation of safety systems from brand to brand is similar, and they don't require any input from users, unlike navigation and infotainment systems which are frustratingly deep.

GM is training more first responders for EV emergencies in the U.S. and Canada

GM is training more first responders to be able to handle emergencies involving electric vehicles. The automaker is "significantly expanding" its EV First Responder Training program in the United States and Canada as electric vehicle sales continue to grow. Its initiative will primarily focus on training firefighters and equipping them with the necessary knowledge about full electric vehicle technologies. GM says it's hoping to dispel misconceptions when it comes to handling EVs in emergency situations. One of those misconceptions is that water is dangerous around EV batteries — turns out the recommended way to put out lithium-ion battery fires is by using copious amounts of water.  Andrew Klock, a senior manager of education and development at the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA), said: "The best way for the public and private vehicle fleet owners to rapidly adopt EVs is to train firefighters and emergency responders on how to handle incidents involving battery powered vehicles. The fire service has had more than 100 years to gain the knowledge needed to respond to internal combustion engine fires, and it is critical that they are now educated on EV safety." The NFPA held trainings of its own that had benefited 300,000 first responders, but it believes more than 800,000 members of the community still need further training.   GM previously piloted the program in southeast Michigan, but now it's conducting training events across Michigan and in Fort Worth, Texas, as well. Later this summer, it's bringing the program to metro New York City and Southern California. Participants will have to attend four-hour sessions, with up to two per day, held in various venues, such as fire houses and dealerships. Interested first and second responders can register through the program's dedicated website and earn a certificate from the Illinois Fire Service Institute if they score higher than 70 percent on the learning assessment by the end of their training.  The automaker already has a few EV models on the market, including the Chevy Bolts, the GMC Hummer EV and the Cadillac Lyriq. It has huge electrification plans for the future, though, and training responders could help make potential customers more receptive to the idea of switching to electric vehicles. GM aims to launch 30 EV models by 2025 and to exclusively sell EVs ten years after that. Related video: Green Cadillac Chevrolet GM GMC Safety Electric