- China auto market growth set to slow to 3 percent in 2018: industry body – Reuters: This year, industry-wide vehicle sales are likely to climb 3.5 percent, undershooting a target of 5 percent, Xu Haidong also told state-run TV. That compares with 13.7 percent growth in 2016 as local and global automakers grapple with a major shift…
- Used car pile-up signals a diversion in the auto trade – FT: Car industry specialist Cox Automotive, owner of vehicle auction company Manheim, knows plenty about used cars. Yet spokesman Philip Nothard has his doubts about the future of used car leasing. First, as yet the UK used-car market shows no sign of…
- China impedes foreign carmakers’ autonomous tests – FT: Chinese authorities’ fear that foreign self-driving cars could be used for spying may see regulators favour exclusively domestic technology in the world’s largest car market. Foreign carmakers say they face restrictions in China on the roll out of the…
- Ford to shift midsize sedan production out of Mexico: sources – Reuters: Ford said last month it would invest more than 750 million euros ($887 million) in Valencia to produce a new generation of its Kuga sport utility vehicle. Recent Ford documents shared with suppliers show the automaker plans to shift some Focus and…
- Ford says it has no plans to ship China-built Fusions to US – Freep: Ford Motor Co. on Wednesday denied a report that it planned to build the next-generation Fusion sedan in China and ship it to North America. Reuters reported Wednesday that the automaker was to consolidate global production of midsize sedans in China…
- Exclusive: Ford to base Fusion production in China, ship to US – sources – Reuters: Ford Motor Co plans to consolidate global production of midsize sedans in China in 2020 and ship them to the United States and Europe, … production to Chongqing, to a joint-venture plant operated with Ford’s Chinese partner Changan Automobile Co,…
- Ford denies Mondeo to be imported into Europe from China – Automotive News: Ford currently builds the Mondeo in China for that market as part of its joint venture with Changan Ford. The Fusion is built in Hermosillo, Mexico. It’s unclear what vehicle would take the Fusion’s place there. Ford also builds the Lincoln MKZ, which…
- Howes: GM”s ‘purse and purpose” past get radical re-do – Detroitnews: No. 1 automaker can”t afford to be all things to all people as it faces hard choices, uncertain mobility…
- Former UAW Official Exits GM’s Board Amid Probe – WSJ: A former United Auto Workers bargaining official resigned from General Motors Co.’s board of directors amid a broad federal investigation into training-center funds jointly overseen by domestic auto makers and the union. GM on Wednesday disclosed the…
- Geely Should Dump Daimler for Hyundai – Bloomberg: With its shares cresting at around two-and-a-half times the level at which they started the year and a new premium brand set to take China’s domestic market by storm, 2017’s best-performing automotive stock appears gripped with worry. Last month Geely…
- Has Land Rover made the right decision with the new Defender? – Autocar: The new Defender in its natural terrain – off road Land Rover is taking a big gamble in resurrecting the Defender, but it looks like it’s been given the right tools for the job
- Porsche to announce further EV and SUV plans in 2018 – Autocar: Porsche CEO, Oliver Blume, told Automotive News that both the Macan and Cayenne could be adapted into coupe forms to rival BMW’s X6 and the Mercedes-Benz GLE Coupe. If the Cayenne coupe is approved, it could arrive by 2019. A Macan would take slightly…
- European car sales rise 6%, helped by extra selling day – Automotive News: Sales by PSA soared 83 percent, as registrations of the newly acquired Opel-Vauxhall division were not included in year-earlier records. Peugeot brand sales jumped 20 percent, boosted by demand for its new 3008 and 5008 SUVs while volume at Citroen,…
- European Car Sales Rise as Growing Economy Helps Peugeot, Toyota – Bloomberg: That’s encouraged consumers and businesses to spend more on purchasing roomier sport utility vehicles. Demand for the rugged models has prompted mass-market manufacturers including Volkswagen AG as well as luxury-vehicle producers such as Rolls-Royce…
- GM says former UAW Vice President Joe Ashton to resign from board – Reuters: General Motors Co said on Wednesday Joseph Ashton, a former United Auto Workers vice president who led the union’s GM department, has resigned from the company’s board. Ashton was nominated to his GM board seat by the UAW Retiree Medical Benefits…
- US solar installations to fall more than expected in 2017 – Reuters: The residential market has suffered this year due to a pullback by top installer SolarCity after its acquisition by Tesla Inc last year. Residential solar installations are expected to be down 13 percent for the year, the market’s first-ever annual…
- Famed Short-Seller Jim Chanos Says Tesla Headed for ‘Brick Wall’ – Bloomberg: Last September, when Tesla was merging with SolarCity Corp., he called Elon Musk’s automaker a “walking insolvency.” He recently reiterated the critique on Bloomberg Television, describing Tesla as “structurally unprofitable” with a “way too leveraged”…
- Suzuki says EV battery supply deal possible with Toyota-Panasonic – Reuters: Suzuki says EV battery supply deal possible with Toyota-Panasonic. Reuters Staff. 2 Min Read. TOKYO (Reuters) – Suzuki Motor Corp’s (7269.T) president said the Japanese … The logo of Suzuki Motor Corp. is pictured at the 45th Tokyo Motor Show in…
- Ride-Hailing Careem Eyes Pakistan Expansion Across 30 New Cities – Bloomberg: The app, which competes against Uber Technologies Inc. offering car, motorcycle and rickshaw rides in South Asia’s second-largest economy, will seek to grow from its current presence in 10 Pakistani cities over the next three years, Junaid Iqbal,…
- How Uber and Its Rivals Are Beating the Middle East’s Most Notorious Traffic – Bloomberg: “It was like the traffic jam didn’t exist,” said the 19-year-old, whose trip took a fraction of the usual time at half the price of a car. … “If you can keep innovating and coming up with different methods to get more people in fewer vehicles and get…
- Uber Investor Sues Over Self-Driving Car Firm Acquisition – Bloomberg: Uber’s board recklessly approved the purchase of a company owned by former Google engineer Anthony Levandowski, who has been accused of stealing seven years of research material about self-driving cars from his former employer, according to an…
- Polestar 1 performance hybrid to be limited to 500 units per year – Autocar: Sleek GT to be Volvo-owned firm”s flagship; Polestar sales online by subscription only; valued at about £116,000