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By Nick Carey, European Autos Correspondent 

Greetings from London, where unlike Joe White, many of us have not been riveted by the travails of the Detroit Tigers but have instead been following the Women’s World Cup and watching as heavyweight after heavyweight has fallen by the wayside – including the vaunted U.S. team. 

None of the teams left in the Women’s World Cup has ever won it all, so whatever happens now, a new champion will be crowned at the end of the final next Sunday.  

Only England, which won last year’s European championships, and Sweden have ever made it this far in the tournament. So are we going to see newcomers Spain or Australia – which has a public holiday at stake here, people – manage to take it all, or face the reality check and flame out under the high pressure that comes with semi-finals and finals? 

Reality checks and newcomers… wait, that couldn’t possibly be a blindingly obvious setup for today’s Auto File, could it? Perish the thought. 

Here’s what’s new in the autos world today: 

• • Stellantis to UAW: let’s get real
  • Fresh trouble for Nikola 
  • Weak yen lifts Japan’s carmakers 

Stellantis, in search of real conversation

Facing tough contract talks with the United Auto Workers, the world No. 3 carmaker fiercely criticized  the union’s demands in a letter to U.S. employees on Friday, saying that a “focus on reality” was needed from everyone involved. 

North America Chief Operating Officer Mark Stewart told employees that Stellantis is committed to concluding a contract with the UAW that is “based on economic realism.”

A month away from the expiration of the current four-year contract, Chrysler parent Stellantis and the union remain far apart. The UAW wants pay raises of more than 40% over four years, significant additional time off, and a restoration of defined-benefit pensions, while the carmaker wants to reduce absenteeism and cut pension, healthcare and other costs. 

Last week, UAW President Shawn Fain theatrically tossed Stellantis’ contract proposals in the trash, deriding them as a “slap in the face.” 

In his letter to employees, Stewart wrote that the UAW’s demands could threaten job security and called for a commonsense approach to contract talks instead of “theatrics and personal insults.”  

A fresh headache for Nikola

EV startup Nikola has hit fresh problems, announcing late Friday it was recalling all the pure electric trucks it has delivered to date and suspending sales because an independent probe found that a coolant leak inside a battery pack was the cause of recent truck fires.  

The startup’s shares fell after the news and were down more than 12% in premarket trading on Monday. 

Recalls are a part of life for automakers. Some are massively expensive and damaging, such as General Motors’ defective ignition switch crisis less than a decade ago. But where legacy giants like GM have money and people that they can throw at major recall headaches, the likes of Nikola do not. 

Apparently, a single component is to blame for Nikola truck fires, but for a company short on cash and struggling with supply chain issues this could hardly come at a worse time.  

Just last week, Nikola appointed its fourth CEO  in as many years and reiterated “significant doubts” about its ability to continue as a going concern for the next 12 months.

Getting a lift from a weak yen

The weak yen has provided a temporary respite  for Japan’s automakers, as it masks their sales problems in China, where the shift to electric has left them stuck in the slow lane. 

Japan’s automakers are struggling with a made-in-China sales crisis, as a rapid shift to electric vehicles has upended the world’s largest auto market and led to a plunge in purchases of gasoline-powered cars. 

The Japanese giants have been slow to react. Nissan’s China sales to retail customers slumped 46% during the second quarter, while Honda’s were down 5%. While Toyota’s sales rose during the quarter, they were down almost 3% in the first half of the year. 

But even though there is no immediate fix on the horizon for Japan’s automakers, the weak yen has allowed them to post better-than-expected profits. For now. 

Tesla said on Monday it has cut prices in China for its Model Y long-range and performance versions.

Changan Ford Motor plans an electric passenger car  joint venture with state-owned Chongqing Changan Automobile, a document published by China’s market regulator on Friday showed. 

While reporting results on Monday Foxconn, the world’s largest contract electronics maker which has bet on a growing EV contract manufacturing market, said it is very likely to mass produce EV batteries at its troubled site in Wisconsin. 

Indonesia’s capital will force drivers to have their vehicles undergo emission tests and consider ordering half of its civil servants to work from home amid deteriorating air quality that has made Jakarta one of the world’s most polluted cities. 

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