If Hyundai decides to Ditch Apple, and Apple doesn't find another car manufacturer ready to assemble their cars, it will become really tough for Apple. They will have to build their own factories which will further delay the project. Though I wonder why Magna didn't say yes to it. They are basically the Foxconn for car manufacturers. And I am sure Apple must have approached them earlier.
Like you, I think Apple contacted Magna early in the process. Probably one of the first companies Apple contacted. I think 2 things made Magna an unacceptable partner. 1. Location - I really think Apple desires a US assembly location. The infrastructure for manufacturing and assembling their general tech (phones, computers, tablets, etc) is concentrated in Asia. That's not the case for cars, and assembly in the US could even be cheaper. Magna has no N. American plants. It's rumored (again) they're looking to open a N. American plant, but that rumor has surfaced many times over the past couple of decades. 2. Capacity - I've no doubt Magna could handle Apple's initial assembly and volume. Apple's thinking long term. Scale and capacity would be Magna's issue. Magna doesn't have an advantage in ether of those factors that could compete with Hyundai's capacity. Hyundai/Kia has the ability scale their production to meet any capacity Apple may need. Magna doesn't have that ability. They already contract manufacture Jaguar's I-Pace and E-Pace, Toyota's Supra, BMW's 5-Series and Z4, and MB's G-Class.
When this story initially broke, I said Apple was looking for an OEM/contract manufacturer, not a brand partner. Some people are still incorrectly looking at this from a brand partner perspective. Not really sure why. Questions like, "why Hyundai and not BMW, MB, Porsche, or [insert luxury brand here]" still abound. None of those brands would ever consider being an OEM manufacturer. They would have the same concerns that Hyundai is expressing about brand erosion, 'cept their concerns would be magnified because their brands are waaaaaaay more valuable and influential than Hyundai's. That's not a knock on Hyundai. That's just reality.
BMW -did- consider being an OEM partner with Apple. It fell apart as BMW lost their way on EV, giving up on i3, giving up on the electric 3 series prototypes used in SF, and refocusing on gas.
Perhaps the problem might be: What does Apple bring to the table (aside from a highly respected name).
The thrust is towards EVs -- but, if rumors are true, Apple is mostly involved in self driving. From a design as well as a manufacturing basis, the two are unrelated.
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