Global chip shortage is forcing automakers to leave out some high-end features like navigation systems and “intelligent” rearview mirrors from their vehicles
- Automakers cut back on functions to keep production going — Navigation systems, large displays get nixed as crisis worsens Tweets: @tracyalloway and @crtrud Tweets: Tracy Alloway / @tracyalloway : The shortage in semiconductors is forcing carmakers to strip out a bunch of high-tech features including nav systems and intelligent rearview mirrors. https://www.bloomberg.com/... by @gablova @gablova @debbywuintaipei Craig Trudell / @crtrud : Want a nav system in your Nissan, or a Ram with a fancy rearview mirror? Sorry, you're going to have to wait for the chip shortage to ease up. Excellent piece by @gablova, @tarapatelparis and @debbywuintaipei https://www.bloomberg.com/...
Context & Ripple Effects
The shortage that hit Volkswagen, Daimler, GM, and Renault in January — when VW alone planned 100K fewer Q1 cars — has escalated from cutting production volumes to cutting product content. Carmakers including Nissan and Ram are now shipping vehicles without navigation systems, large displays, and 'intelligent' rearview mirrors rather than idle their lines.
Decontenting is the newest lever in a playbook that by September included GM halting six North American plants and industry-wide losses researchers put at 7.7M vehicles and $210B in sales, with chip lead times stretched to 21 weeks.
First-order effects
- Buyers ordering Nissans and Rams right now get vehicles stripped of navigation systems and high-tech rearview mirrors — premium features deferred to whenever chips ease up.
- Automakers keep assembly lines running and revenue flowing by swapping semiconductor-dependent content out of build sheets instead of halting factories outright.
Second-order effects
- Feature deletion becomes a pricing and margin problem: vehicles shipped without promised tech invite buyer pushback, retrofit obligations, or discounting once supply recovers.
- The escalation from volume cuts to content cuts signals to suppliers and rivals alike that no workaround is off-limits — GM's later decision to halt six plants shows both levers being pulled as the shortage deepened.
Third-order effects
- If decontenting becomes routine during shortages, automakers face a structural question about how much vehicle value they tie to semiconductors — pushing design toward fewer, more standardized chips and renegotiated supplier relationships across the industry.
- A shortage cycle measured in months of 21-week lead times forces OEMs to treat chip supply as a strategic input on par with steel or batteries, reshaping sourcing and inventory practice sector-wide.
The trend: The auto industry's chip crisis is progressing through stages — from production cuts to feature deletion to mass plant shutdowns — exposing how deeply modern vehicles depend on semiconductors.