We are facing a once-in-a-century transformation.

R&D expenditures are an easy scapegoat, but we shouldn't overlook that global car sales will almost certainly crater in the next few years due to cyclical reasons (everybody that wanted a new car after the recession already got one), decreased demand in China (every carmaker has been banking on the Chinese domestic market to expand forever), and a saturated market (there will literally be hundreds of different "crossover" SUV models on sale in the next few years).

But instead of taking a hard look at these factors, it's much more pleasant-sounding to say "we're spending a lot on cool high-tech stuff".