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Hurricane Sandy cost automakers 15,000 vehicles, may have ruined up to 200k

Hurricane Sandy was the largest Atlantic storm in US history, and its total economic impact is just now coming into view. According to Automotive News, Toyota, Chrysler, Nissan and Honda are set to scrap around 15,000 new vehicles ruined by the storm. Nissan alone accounts for about 40 percent of those, with 6,000 Nissan and Infiniti models deeded "un-saleable" due to damage. The company saw 56 dealerships shuttered due to the storm, but 51 of those have since reopened.
Toyota, meanwhile, had some 4,000 vehicles at its Newark port facility, and of those, 3,000 may be scrapped. An additional 825 were dealer inventory when they were ruined. Honda and Acura dealers are reportedly sending 3,440 vehicles to the salvage yard. By comparison, Chrysler weathered the storm fairly well with 825 units destroyed, while Hyundai suffered only 400 lost units and Kia scrapped around 200.
As you may recall, Fisker also suffered some losses, and Automotive News reports the manufacturer saw 320 Karma models damaged beyond repair. Ford and General Motors have yet to come up with estimates, and no automaker has commented on the full cost of replacing the vehicles.

How automakers stand to benefit from Iran

The big global news of late is a deal that sees a number of major powers easing some sanctions on Iran in return for the Middle Eastern nation scaling back its nuclear program. This thawing of relations between Iran and the West could have far-reaching impacts in both the near and long term, particularly on the auto industry.
As Bloomberg points out, foreign manufacturers, especially Kia and Peugeot, stand to win big by this short-term easing of sanctions. But the impact of opening up the Iranian market to larger-scale sales cannot be underestimated - Peugeot, for example, sold 457,900 units to Iran in 2011 as spare parts kits alone. Opening the Iranian market could also have a huge impact on the cost of oil, as the country was one of the largest producers in the OPEC consortium before firmer sanctions took effect in 2012. Still, as David Cohen, US undersecretary for terrorism and financial intelligence said, it's "not open season now for business in Iran."
Bloomberg has an excellent report of all the near-term effects an easing of sanctions has across a number of industries. Hop over and give it a look.

Hyundai Motor Group reveals the E-GMP modular electric platform

Just as Volkswagen has the MEB platform for its ID. line of electric cars, Hyundai Motor Group is launching a modular architecture of its own. It's called E-GMP for "electric-global modular platform," and the motor and battery powertrain is called PE for "power electric." These components will underpin models from Hyundai, Kia, Genesis and the new Ioniq brand. The first to launch with it will be the Ioniq 5. One of the interesting aspects of this platform is that it will be designed with rear-wheel drive in mind. Like VW's and Tesla's EVs, the basic layout will feature a rear-mounted motor powering those back wheels, and the battery pack fits in the floor between the wheels. All-wheel drive will be available on some of these models with the addition of a second, front-mounted motor. That front motor will be able to mechanically disconnect from the front drive axles when not needed, allowing for less mechanical drag and more efficient driving. Hyundai is promising impressive performance from the E-GMP and its batteries and motors. The company claims that a car built on the platform could be capable of 0-62 mph sprints of 3.5 seconds with a top speed of about 162 mph. This will vary depending on motors, and Hyundai Motor Group revealed that there are three outputs of motor in development. Maximum range is expected to be 311 miles on the WLTP cycle. Hyundai didn't give exact power outputs or battery capacity in kWh, though. The battery pack is made up of standardized modules that can be added or subtracted depending on the needs of the vehicle, and the individual cells are pouch-type, similar to what GM is using in its Ultium batteries. The E-GMP cars will also support fast charging up to 800V and 350kW, so an 80% charge from empty could happen in just 18 minutes. Two-way charging will also be supported, so your electric Hyundai or Kia could provide up to 3.5kW of power to various appliances or even to another EV. Hyundai says you could run a "midsize" air conditioner and a 55-inch TV for up to 24 hours with an E-GMP car. Hyundai 45 View 14 Photos We won't have to wait long to see the first car based on this platform. The Ioniq 5, which will take design inspiration from the Hyundai 45 concept, will launch next year. The Ioniq 6, based on the Hyundai Prophecy concept, will come in 2022 and the Ioniq 7 in 2024. The first Kia model will be a crossover revealed next year, and it will have a performance variant.