- US: Strong economic growth to underpin auto sales: OESA – Just-auto: Original Equipment Suppliers Association (OESA), estimates what many are predicting will be US economic growth of 3% next year will sustain the current strong revival in American automotive sales.
- BELGIUM: EU car sales recovery continued in August – Just-auto: The EU area’s car market recovery continued in August with sales up 2.1% on last year, according to data released by ACEA.
- GERMANY: Uber wins temporary reprieve from ban – Just-auto: Ride sharing service Uber has won a reprieve from a ban on operating in Germany.
- US: Third shift announced for GM’s Missouri factory – Just-auto: General Motors is adding a third shift at its Wentzville plant in Missouri creating around 750 new jobs.
- JAPAN: Mitsubishi to build car plant in Indonesia – Just-auto: Mitsubishi Motors has confirmed plans to build a new vehicle assembly plant in Indonesia as it looks to strengthen its position in south-east Asia’s largest and most promising vehicle market.
- Chinese Owner Taking Hands-Off Approach, Volvo Exec Says – Wards: The Volvo CEO says the automaker is learning about the Chinese market from China-based owner Zhejiang Geely.
- Tesla Motors Inc (TSLA)’s Win in Massachusetts Prepares Path for Future Direct Sales – Via Google News: The case came into light when the Massachusetts State Automobile … The court further stated different ways in which a car company can handle …
- European car sales rise with rebounds in markets hit by debt crisis – Via Google News: New car sales climbed in Europe during the past two months, led by a rebound in the auto markets in nations at the centre of the …
- Europe new car registrations rise 1.8 percent in August: ACEA – Reuters: Car sales in Europe rose 1.8 percent in August with volume makers Volkswagen , Ford and Opel benefiting from improved demand in Spain, Portugal and Ireland, while premium makers lost ground due to a drop in sales in Germany.
- Three-Quarters of Chinese Car Owners Plan to Switch Brands, Boston Consulting Group Research … – Via Google News: China’s automobile market is entering a new pivotal phase in which the fortunes of both domestic …
- Report Criticizes Auto-Safety Regulator in GM Ignition Case – WSJ: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration should have known a faulty General Motors ignition switch was cutting off power to air bags in its vehicles as early as 2007 but either overlooked evidence or failed to grasp it, according to a congressional report.
- GM Slashes Jobs and Output in Russia – WSJ: General Motors is slashing jobs and car production in Russia in the latest sign that weakening sales in the once-hot market now threaten the auto maker’s turnaround in Europe.
- Senators Take Auto Agency to Task Over G.M. Recall – NY Times: The top official from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration faced withering criticism over the agency’s failure to detect a deadly ignition defect in G.M. cars.
- In China, hybrids to beat electric cars for now, says BYD chief – Via Google News: A recent UBS Securities report says that rapid growth in the new-energy car market will not offset BYD’s decline in the traditional-auto business.
- NHTSA chief, before blistering Senate panel, admits ‘we need to improve’ – Automotive News: The head of the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today insisted that his agency lacked enough information to force a recall of faulty General Motors ignition switches before this year, but under heavy criticism from members of a Senate…
- Report: Federal auto regulators ignored early information on ignition switch failure – Washington Post: Federal auto-safety regulators came under double-barrel attack on Capitol Hill on Tuesday, as a House report and members at a Senate hearing excoriated them for failing for years to grasp the severity of an ignition-switch defect in General Motors small cars linked to at least 19 deaths.
- New style and tech for facelifted Ford C-Max – Autocar: Ford promises better interior quality and better handling for its updated C-Max, which will make its debut at the Paris motor show next month.
- New Honda Jazz to go on sale next summer – Autocar:Improved refinement and increased load-lugging capacity among the key changes for the third-generation supermini, due to reach the UK in July 2015Honda has released the first details of its new Jazz ahead of a planned debut at the Paris motor show next month.
- Captives likely to get CFPB oversight – Automotive News: The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected to issue an important new rule on Thursday defining which nonbank lenders — including captive finance companies — will be considered ‘larger participants’ and thus subject to CFPB…
- NHTSA faces harsh criticism in Senate hearing – DetN: The highest-ranking official at the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration came under withering criticism Tuesday from senators of both parties, but refused to accept blame for failing to discover defects in now-recalled General Motors cars that h
- GM’s Opel scales back Russian production as car market shrinks – DetN: General Motors Co.’s European division Opel is cutting jobs in Russia as the country’s car market shrinks amid political turmoil and a weakening currency.
- U.S. auto regulators defend role in GM recall after report – Reuters: Federal auto safety regulators came under scrutiny in a Senate hearing on Tuesday for their role in General Motors’ failure to promptly report and recall cars with defective parts that led to at least 19 deaths.
- Google’s vision of driverless future at odds with automakers – DetN: Google Inc., with its vision for a future where cars drive themselves, is putting itself at odds with an auto industry that shares its desire for safer, less-congested roads — yet won’t abide the ‘driverless’ part.
- Toyota FT-1 gets the souped-up ‘Gran Turismo’ treatment for video game – Automotive News: Toyota has joined the ‘Gran Turismo’ parade of video game racers with a beefier version of its FT-1 concept.
- U.S. working to fill NHTSA chief job quickly – DetN: U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx said in a Detroit News interview the White House is getting closer to naming a new chief to run the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
- At Sputtering Ferrari, Shake-Up at the Top Could Change Tradition – NY Times: Ferrari’s tradition of selling road cars to support the racing operations could change after an upheaval among the top management of the iconic Italian company last week.