- VW chief questions merits of diesel subsidies – FT: The chief executive of Volkswagen questioned the merits of German government subsidies for diesel technology, saying it would make more sense for public money to instead be directed towards the transition to electric cars. It is a significant statement…
- VW reforms compliance system to avoid another scandal – Automotive News: Instead of 25 standalone systems for the group’s different brands and companies – which include luxury marques such as Porsche, Audi and Bentley and the mass-market VW, Skoda and Seat brands – VW Group will have one central investigation office….
- Lamborghini’s first SUV brings big price at auction – Yahoo: At lot of publicity is understandably being generated by Lamborghini’s new Urus performance SUV, but it’s not the first venture into the world of SUVs by the Italian supercar manufacturer. In fact, its first foray into the high-riding vehicle world was…
- Porsche Mission E: several variants due to satisfy surging electrified car sales – Autocar: The full-electric Mission E will be Porsche’s first electric production model. The first tests of Porsche’s first pure electric car are complete; the four-door sports car will be Porsche’s fifth model line
- 429bhp Mercedes-AMG CLS 53: first sighting ahead of Detroit reveal – Autocar: The next-generation CLS had only been seen testing in non-AMG guise before now New hybrids will sit beneath 63 models; CLS to share its six-cylinder-based powertrain with other models
- Rethinking Electric Power, Prompted by Politics and Disaster – New York Times: Tesla, the electric vehicle and energy company based in Palo Alto, Calif., created and installed a project using solar generation and battery electricity storage for a children’s hospital in San Juan in October, and recently announced plans for six…
- Hyundai’s projected production losses dim outlook – FT: Hyundai Motor is facing some Won1tn ($916m) in production losses this year as union members at the South Korean carmaker continue the spate of partial labour strikes, compounding the company’s sales woes in big markets. Hyundai workers have held…
- BMW Group increases sales in November – Bmw: BMW Group deliveries up 5.2% to 220,649 units +++ BMW sales +4.8% to 186,346 vehicles +++ MINI brand sales climb 7.6% to 33,993 cars +++ New BMW 5 Series sedan segment leader for third consecutive month +++ BMW i3 sales YTD November higher than whole…
- Ford’s November China vehicle sales drop 8 pct y/y – Reuters: Ford Motor Co’s sales in China fell 8 percent in November from a year ago, following a 5 percent decline in October, the U.S. automaker said on Monday. The firm’s sales in the first 11 months of the year totaled 1.06 million vehicles, down 6 percent…
- Next-Gen Toyota Avalon Debuting at Detroit Auto Show – Detroit Bureau: Toyota Motor Corp. is going to have a full schedule at next month’s North American International Auto Show as the automaker revealed it will have a second major product debut in Detroit. The Japanese automaker will premiere its all-new 2019 Avalon…
- Macron Aims to Keep Paris Climate Deal Alive – Bloomberg: They’ll gather at the Ile Seguin, south west of Paris on the site of a former Renault SA car factory. Bank of England Governor Mark Carney is due to speak about efforts to get companies to make better disclosures of climate-related risks. AXA, which…
- Uber Deal Is Cold Comfort for Singapore’s Fading Taxis: Gadfly – Washington Post: The deal gives Comfort, the city-state’s largest taxi operator, access to a fleet of 12,450 private-hire vehicles at a 10 percent discount to their net asset value, according to Nomura Holdings Inc. … Andy Mukherjee is a Bloomberg Gadfly columnist…
- Breakingviews – Uber’s taxi U-turn sets better Southeast Asia path – Reuters: Uber’s entire business has been predicated on flooring it right at the establishment. Co-founder Travis Kalanick once said his company was in a campaign where the incumbent is an asshole called taxi. New boss Dara Khosrowshahi just pulled a U-turn in …
- Costs sink Sommer, but ZF committed to autonomous – Automotive News: Rival Bosch has formed a technology alliance with Mercedes, while Autoliv is collaborating with Volvo. Denso is working with Toyota, and Delphi, Magna and Continental are in partnership with BMW. As the alliances introduce self-driving vehicles onto…
- GM-Lyft relationship? It’s complicated – Automotive News: GM, meanwhile, has announced several initiatives that could assist but also compete against Lyft, including the acquisition of Cruise Automation as an autonomous vehicle development company, the plans announced with Cruise last month to deploy…
- The last Oldsmobile heads to auction – Automotive News: General Motors and GM Financial will sell the 2004 Oldsmobile Alero at State Line Auto Auction in Waverly, N.Y., on Friday, Dec. 15. … who built it – rolled off the Lansing, Mich., assembly line, it went to the R.E. Olds Transportation Museum in…
- Aston: How will Lagonda shape up? – Automotive News: As if plotting to challenge Ferrari in the midengine supercar arena wasn’t difficult enough, Aston Martin also is brainstorming how best to break the stranglehold Rolls-Royce and Bentley have on the ultraluxury sedan market. The two Lagonda models…
- Porsche crossovers may go EV, coupe route – Automotive News: Porsche will make a final decision next year whether to build full battery-electric and coupe versions of its Cayenne and Macan crossovers. Porsche CEO Oliver Blume told Automotive News at an auto show event here last week that the company will…
- Marketplace showcases GM’s remote update capability – Automotive News: General Motors’ introduction of an in-vehicle e-commerce app called Marketplace last week was also a discreet demonstration of its new ability to add functionality to millions of Wi-Fi-equipped vehicles already on the road. The Marketplace app allows…
- Only Musk can get away with this – Automotive News: I respect the innovations and accomplishments of Elon Musk (“Musk must ask for help with Tesla – before it’s too late,” Nov. 27). While I’m not privy to where all of his business holdings are located, his companies employ many Americans, and that’s…
- GM making big changes to lighten pickups – Automotive News: The truck beds could mark GM’s first use of carbon fiber-reinforced thermoplastic, a product the automaker announced it was co-developing with Japan-based Teijin Ltd. in 2011. “This is a long-term bet for keeping the pickup truck relevant,” said Dave…
- Obayashi shares sink after reports of bid-rigging investigation – FT: Japan’s manufacturers have been thrust into the spotlight after an admission in September by Nissan that technicians had been conducting final inspections for which they were not authorised to conduct. This was followed up by Kobe Steel revealing it…
- BMW says autonomous cars mustn’t sideline drivers – Autocar: Even if it’s not required for the operation of the vehicle, a steering wheel will still be a part of BMWs cars
- Japan big manufacturers’ mood improves in October-December: government – Reuters: Large Japanese manufacturers turned more optimistic about economic conditions in the October-December quarter, a government survey showed on Monday, in another upbeat sign for an economy on a record run of growth. A worker is seen at an assembly line…
- Killing the Electric Car Credit – WSJ: The House bill nixes the credit for plug-in vehicles, which can run up to $7,500 a car, while the Senate bill preserves the status quo. The credit is essentially an indulgence for affluent Americans who have been buying $70,000 Teslas. But even Tesla…
- BMW allegedly working on M5 hybrid – Autocar:
- Volkswagen Chief Suggests Ending Subsidies for Diesel Cars – New York Times: The chief executive of Volkswagen said on Sunday that the German government should consider phasing out the subsidies that encourage Europeans to buy diesel cars, a startling change of position by the company largely responsible for diesel’s popularity…
- Italian fund denies seeking to raise stake in Aston Martin – Reuters: Aston Martin said last month it was on course to post its first annual pre-tax profit since 2010 helped by strong demand for the luxury automaker’s DB11 sports car. There were no discussions on ownership structure at the moment, the spokesman added,…
- VW, Peugeot, Seat propel compact SUV sector toward new record – Automotive News: Strong demand for new compact SUVs from Volkswagen, Peugeot and Seat combined with the successful refresh of the Ford Kuga have helped to increase European sales in the sector by more than a quarter in the first nine months. The pace of growth means…
- Uber Mideast Rival Says Ride-Hailing Spend Beats Road Investment – Bloomberg: We’re looking at it and have partnered with a company out of the Bay Area making self-driving electric pods,” Sheikha said, referring to Next Future Transportation Inc. The idea is to build eight-seat pods that could collect people from urban areas,…