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Good luck on finding a substitute for NpPr at this stage of today’s electrification, never mind it’s need in high-tech end product.

I personally believe for short term no major Effort will be made to design out NdPr. there are cars shipping that do not use PMM like BMW I8.
The market is pretty immune to price. It is one thing to add USD 100 or 200 a car to a 50,000 car to keep margins on the car. Supply is the problem. if PMM motors cause an assembly line to stop for even a week because of a shortage of PMMs, they will be designed out It may take several years but it will happen. The line shortage does not even need to happen. Just manufacturing companies seeing there is a very real possibility in the future Will poor research $ into alternatives. Lynas current expansion for 7.2 KT NdPr 2018 to 10,5KT 2025 is only a 31 % increase over 6 years. Now look at forecast for increase in PHEVs and BEVs. China is expanding quicker but they will not be able to keep up either. Yes design out can take 5 or more years but many of the charts people love to show as what will propel Lynas growth are very scary for users of PMMs.

Cars will not be first to abandon PMMs. I think wind generators PMGs will probably be first. the advantages of PMGs in size and weight are not as important. Efficiency of 97% Vs 95 % is not as critical as steady production. After that small motors will go to an all coper design. With the same level of controller as PMMs use they can do everything a PMM does.

Right now PMMs are the leader. hands down no doubt. Many of the advances for PMMs are in new ways of designing and building the armature which has no PMs. In controlling the Armature field with new advanced Electronics. All those advances transfer to non PMM easily.