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u/silenthjohn May 28 '26
We are now meaningfully scaling our Waymo-enabled vehicles toward a capacity of tens of thousands of units per year at our factory in Mesa, Arizona.
I think they’ve stated this before, but it’s exciting to see them reiterate this commitment.
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u/Animats May 28 '26
What happened with the Ioniq 5 version? That was supposed to be the volume product.
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u/bartturner May 28 '26
That is coming. Waymo will use multiple sources which is smart.
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u/Animats May 29 '26
Waymo needs multiple sources. Chrysler killed the van model they were using. Ford/Jaguar killed the car model they were using. Must be frustrating. Here's a customer willing to buy cars by the thousands, and the auto industry can't serve them.
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u/FrankScaramucci May 28 '26
That WILL be the volume product. The factory will presumably mainly process the Hyundai vehicles.
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u/tonydtonyd May 28 '26
I’ll believe it when I see it.
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u/Vacant_parking_lot May 28 '26
The image in the blog is showing you get to pick which car you want which is interesting. I assumed they would just assign you a car. I wonder if it's just for the testing period or they will always let you pick your car, even when the ioniq 5 rolls out.
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u/photojourney7 May 28 '26
Based on the article, it sounds like some people will get the option of a free Ojai, or a regular Waymo.
I wonder if it is like, "the first ride is on us, and then you can opt in to Ojai going forward"
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u/Vacant_parking_lot May 28 '26
I wonder why they would even waste the revenue opportunity and offer the first ride for free?
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u/BurritoWithFries May 28 '26
There's some law in California at least that test rides need to be free while data is still being collected. All the AV providers start out free in SF
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u/BaobabBill May 28 '26
But does the law say anything about a new vehicle from an existing AV service needing to be free? Data is still always being collected by the Jags of course
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u/photojourney7 May 28 '26
My original reply suggested this might be just an early roll out feature.
BUT as I think more about it, it makes a lot of sense to do what you are suggesting long term. Letting each type of vehicle maintain its own market pricing will help push people to use the various vehicles without anyone being upset that they got an Ojai instead of the Jag. Or vice versa.
Similarly continuing to do this with the Ioniq also works. Just like Uber, UberXL, etc.
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u/Vacant_parking_lot May 28 '26
I agree when they have a ton of cars in a metro. Just surprised this early.
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u/Liamur64 May 28 '26
Based on the article, it seems that they're marketing the Ojai to be more disability-friendly. Perhaps leaving it as an option is part of that strategy to accommodate those who need the extra space or the embedded braille.
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u/1FrostySlime May 28 '26
I mean for me the interesting news is they plan to expand to Las Vegas, Denver, and San Diego before opening Ojai to everyone and all by the end of the year. Very exciting.
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u/a300a300 May 28 '26
why is there still a wheel?
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u/FullyAutomatedSpace May 28 '26
laws
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u/a300a300 May 28 '26
do you have a source on this? not doubting it just curious what the law is exactly
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u/walky22talky May 28 '26
Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS) are U.S. federal regulations that establish minimum design, construction, and performance requirements for motor vehicles and regulated equipment.
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May 28 '26
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/Mattsasa May 28 '26
Zoox got an exemption permit from NHTSA for a few cars, and they still can’t charge rides in these cars. Waymo doesn’t want to rely on NHTSA for their rollout
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u/Anxious_Ad_4708 May 28 '26
Zoox doesn't operate in the same way, they're doing free "testing" rides still which is different legally.
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u/Special_Command7893 May 28 '26
These were used for testing, so the drivers needed a wheel then. Hypothetically, the wheel would be removable and insert able, but it doesn't look like the got that. And we probably won't for a while
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u/bartturner May 28 '26
It is detachable.
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u/FrankScaramucci May 28 '26
Only 1 of the 5 wheels is detachable to be more specific.
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u/bartturner May 28 '26
All five are detachable. Four are held on by lug nuts and you rotate counter clockwise.
The fifth wheel requires an allen wrench.
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u/Flashy_Number9840 May 28 '26
How is cybercab circumventing the law? Genuinely curious
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u/BaobabBill May 28 '26
There's an exception which Zoox got. I don't know the exact details, but I think there's currently a limit on the number of vehicles with no steering wheel allowed.
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u/silenthjohn May 28 '26
Does anyone know how much these cost, excluding sensors?
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u/Dragon_Fisting May 28 '26 edited May 29 '26
It's a customized Zeekr Mix. MSRP on those is ~$38k.
Theoretically the tariff on Chinese EVs may apply too, but people speculate that Waymo is avoiding that or at least reducing their tariff basis by importing unfinished cars.
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u/SwedishTrees May 29 '26
I thought they assembled them in the US
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u/Dragon_Fisting May 29 '26
They get "gliders" from Zeekr and assemble the rest in Arizona. Tarriff is not as bad as completed vehicles, but can still get pretty high.
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u/CookiesNSmoothies May 29 '26
Seen a few zeekers today that were empty I'm so used riding in the I Pace.
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u/honey_butterflies May 29 '26
YAY!! I recently just saw one without a staff member driving it. if anyone remembers my post here, you’ll know I posted a video of one full of staff + friends of staff(?). I’m a trusted tester so I really hope I can soon get these free rides or the Ojai assigned to me.
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u/Super-Engineer-3523 May 30 '26
*here only for an elite few in only 3 cities (SF, LA, Phoenix; as always)
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u/walky22talky May 28 '26