Apple entering the space would benefit consumers, but if Apple can't deliver a simple power mat (Airpower), it is hard to believe that they would be able to develop a car. Doug Field left Tesla probably because he couldn't scale the manufacturing plant for them. Apple doesn't build the hardware themselves but hires third-parties to do it, like Foxconn. It would be hard to imagine a company designing cars and letting third-parties build for them
Actually, it's more common than you think for a major brand to design a car and outsource the building to a third party or even to outsource the whole design and development of a model entirely.
For example, Magna Steyr builds the E-Pace for Jaguar, the Countryman for Mini and the G-Wagon for Daimler in Graz, Austria.
It also developed several cars on behalf of manufacturers such as the Audi TT, Fiat Bravo and Peugeot RCZ[1].
There were even rumors in Graz that execs from Cupertino have flown here to discuss the possibility of Magna building a car for Apple.
> It would be hard to imagine a company designing cars and letting third-parties build for them
TFA said they have (or speculatively have, don't remember?) a partnership with VW so it wouldn't be too far fetched for an Apple branded VW robocar in the works. Extra props for it being on the microbus platform[0].
I imagine there are multiple companies would be more than willing to build cars for Apple at the right price. Companies that really know what they’re doing.
I bet Honda, Toyota, or maybe forward would be happy to do it for the right price. As long as they don’t think Apple is too big of a competitor it seems like a win-win. And since we all know Apple is going to be focusing on the high-end/luxury segment it might be worth their while.
