- Battery makers descend on Australia, Canada cobalt developers – Reuters: Nervous Asian battery makers are turning to early-stage cobalt projects in Australia and Canada to lock in supplies of the critical battery ingredient ahead of expected shortages as demand for electric vehicles revs up.
- A McLaren That’s Comfortable and Convenient? – Bloomberg: I was eager to see how this “lesser” car would compare. Despite being cheaper, with 148 fewer horsepower and admittedly tamer-I’d argue, better-styling, the car was more of a treat to drive than the 720S. A common critique of McLaren is that it makes…
- Skoda expects Citigo EV to counter risk of CO2 emissions fines – Automotive News: The Citigo EV will have a range of 300 km (186 miles) and will be called Citigo E, Alain Favey, Skoda’s sales and marketing chief, told Auto Express magazine in Geneva. After the Citigo EV, future Skoda battery-powered cars will use VW Group’s MEB…
- Why Lotus CEO expects record-breaking results from 3 new models – Automotive News: Lotus CEO Jean-Marc Gales is feeling optimistic. China’s fast-expanding Zhejiang Geely Holding took a majority stake in Lotus last year and recently committed to its first big investment in the British sports-car maker. This will allow Lotus to add…
- 2018 Audi R8: lower-priced 2.9-litre V6 variant to join facelifted range – Autocar: Audi is working on a facelifted version of its R8 Audi is set to introduce a turbocharged V6, shared with the Porsche Panamera in four new performance cars, including a new R8 model
- Mercedes pilots subscription program in Germany – Automotive News: Pilot tests are beginning with two of the biggest Mercedes dealership groups in the Germany, BERESA and LUEG, Mercedes said in a statement. Subscription customers can select and drive up to 12 new vehicles for a year at a fixed monthly rental rate,…
- Relationship goals: Ford tries to improve China ties – Reuters: Relationship goals: Ford tries to improve China ties. 6:30am EDT – 01:46. After 20-odd years of ”marriage” in China, Ford Motor Co is having relationship issues. The U.S. automaker, losing ground in the world’s largest car market, is struggling to…
- Shares slide as US probe Hyundai air bag failures – Reuters: … >> Shares in Hyundai Motor tumbled on Monday after US authorities announced on Saturday they will probe why airbags failed to deploy in some of the company’s vehicles. The investigation follows crashes that reportedly killed four people and injured…
- Hyundai Motor shares slide as US probes air bag failures – Reuters: Hyundai Motor shares slide as U.S. probes air bag failures. Shares in Hyundai Motor tumbled on Monday on news of a U.S. probe into why air bags failed to deploy in some of its Sonata sedans, with investors fretting about potential recall costs for the…
- China playbook is no help in this commodities cycle – FT: Governments, car manufacturers and consumer groups all seem to be pushing full steam ahead towards an all-electric vehicle, lower-carbon future. They are in danger … Start with cobalt. On most published projections for EV fleet growth, demand for…
- Want to buy a Tesla? Better get one while the tax credit lasts – CBS News: But company CEO Elon Musk has complained publicly that the sales cap for U.S. tax credits for electric vehicles are unfairly structured. He notes that many European countries provide far greater subsidies for electric vehicles. Congress could eliminate…
- New Renault Zoe R110 priced from £18,420 – Autocar: 107bhp from a new electric motor gives the 2018 EV more punch without affecting range
- UPS moves to using only electric vehicles in London – FT: Delivery and logistics group UPS said on Monday a technological development meant its entire central London fleet would soon be made up of electric vehicles, and that this marked the “beginning of the end” of the reliance on internal combustion…
- Who’s competing with Uber? – CNBC: Uber has faced fierce competition across the globe, contributing to its loss of billions of dollars.
- Uber, Ola drivers strike in India for higher pay – Reuters: Drivers for app-based cab aggregators Uber and Ola started an indefinite strike across India on Monday, demanding extra pay as a surge in the number of cabs on the two platforms, coupled with cutbacks in incentive payments, have stung drivers.
- Laws Aren’t Stopping Phone Addicts Behind the Wheel – Bloomberg: Its platform only records phone use when the device is actually moving around inside a car, like from your jacket pocket to your hand. An Uber driver who paws away at an iPhone mounted on a dashboard isn’t captured. The only good news to be had from…
- S.Korean stocks slip driven by auto shares; won falters – Reuters: Round-up of South Korean financial markets: ** South Korea’s KOSPI stock index weakened on Monday as major auto shares like Hyundai Motor and Kia Motors marked losses after U.S. regulators opened a probe to look into airbag failure in vehicles from…
- Relationship goals: Ford tries to rebuild trust with China partners – Reuters: After 20-odd years of “marriage” in China, Ford Motor Co is having relationship issues.
- How China’s ride-hailing giant Didi plans to challenge Uber in Mexico – Reuters: Working quietly from a shared office space in one of Mexico City’s trendiest neighborhoods, China’s ride-hailing giant Didi Chuxing is planning to hit its archrival Uber where it hurts.
- Why don’t I have an electric car? – FT: Electric vehicles are on the move. Last year, the number of EVs being driven on the world’s roads increased by almost 50 per cent. According to some analysis electric vehicles will be a crucial transformative force in the global energy market forcing…
- Hyundai and Kia sideswiped by US airbag probe – FT: Shares of Hyundai Motor and affiliate Kia Motors were hit after a US regulator said it was investigating the South Korean automakers over airbags in their vehicles that failed to deploy in frontal collisions linked to four deaths and six injuries. This…
- Ford’s aggressive product plan bears Hackett’s stamp – Automotive News: By 2020, they say 86 percent of U.S. sales for the Ford brand will be pickups, utilities and vans. Its U.S. truck mix already was 77.4 percent last year, according to the Automotive News Data Center, vs. 64.5 percent for the industry. Leaving such a…
- ‘The man’ pays JLR a visit in Geneva – Automotive News: Ratan Tata, the 80-year-old Indian industrialist who swept up Jaguar Land Rover 10 years ago while chairman of Tata Group, strolled through the JLR stand in Geneva this month with a small entourage – and for a while went almost unnoticed. When JLR CEO…
- GT sports car will be Audi’s latest e-tron – Automotive News: Audi will build a four-door electric sports car in Germany starting in 2020, CEO Rupert Stadler confirmed. The e-tron GT, which will be shown in concept form this year, will be the third model in Audi’s range of full-electric cars. The e-tron GT will…
- Ford recalls 1.4 million cars for loose steering wheels – Automotive News: Ford Motor Co. is recalling nearly 1.4 million Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKZ sedans in North America because loose bolts could allow the steering wheel to come off. The automaker said it knows of two accidents and one injury linked to the problem, which…
- Suppliers develop a foam structure – Automotive News: BMW partnered for the Countryman project with interior systems producer International Automotive Components Group and chemical supplier Saudi Basic Industries Corp. “We add value when we are involved upfront and we’re able to influence design, process…
- Japan group’s goal: ‘Hydrogen society’ – Automotive News: Today, Japan has just 101 hydrogen stations for some 2,400 fuel cell vehicles on its roads – exclusively Toyota Mirai and Honda Clarity sedans, the only cars available. Building 80 more stations over the next four years could help Japan catch up to the…
- Auto veteran Jim O’Sullivan joins AI firm’s advisory board – Automotive News: O’Sullivan took the helm at Mazda North America in 2003 and helped steer the company out of its close affiliation with Ford Motor Co. and into its own skin. In 1976, he joined Ford and worked his way up to Lincoln brand manager and franchise and…
- Infiniti zeros in on redesigned QX50, inventories – Automotive News: Mario Murgado, owner of Infiniti Stuart in Florida and chairman of the Infiniti National Dealer Advisory Board, believes that’s a wise move – even though he is eager to start selling the redesigned QX50. An early oversupply “would do none of us any…
- GM Canada on the hunt for tech engineers – Automotive News: General Motors is hiring hundreds of engineers this year for its recently opened fourth Ontario technology campus, the GM Technical Centre, which will specialize in hardware and software for electric, connected, autonomous and shared vehicles. Director…
- Interview: Mitsubishi Motors will not be the third wheel in alliance: CEO – Nikkei:
- Volvo dealers worried about subscription models – Automotive News: … its sibling brand under the Zhejiang Geely Holding Group umbrella, which plans to sell vehicles directly to U.S. consumers in 2019. These developments have created unrest among Volvo’s approximately 300 U.S. dealers, leading to a “painful” first…
- Google aims to transform Toronto from Hogtown to Tech Town – Automotive News: Automakers, technology companies and futurists have been telling people for years that autonomous cars could transform the way they live. A Google-affiliated company wants to put that theory to the test on Toronto’s waterfront. Sidewalk Labs, owned by…
- Suzuki Swift New Zealand’s most popular car – Autocar: Suzuki also captured 7.9 percent of the combined new car and SUV market in February, ranking the brand fourth overall best seller. Meanwhile, the Swift has been named one of the top three finalists for the 2018 World Urban Car category of the World Car…
- Ford Ranger Raptor – Deep Dive – Autocar: Ford’s most powerful and comfortable Ranger yet conceived just strode into town. The Blue Oval is targeting its new Raptor at a very specific audience rather than existing buyers who we think might be happy to stay with their Wildtrak. Ford Performance…
- Hyundai, Kia sales fall 18 pct in China in January – Yonhap: Hyundai Motor Co. and its affiliate Kia Motors Corp. said Monday their combined January sales in China fell 18 percent from a year earlier, amid no discernible signs of a rebound. In January, Hyundai and Kia, which together form the world’s…
- ‘Fast and Furious’ Driverless Cars Aren’t as Crazy as They Sound – Bloomberg: But sending driverless vehicles drifting around curves at high speeds isn’t exactly practical or safe. That’s why Ascent Robotics Inc. is building a virtual simulation that it believes will help create self-driving automobiles capable of handling any…
- Hyundai Motor shares tumble following U.S. probe of air bag failures – Reuters: Shares of Hyundai Motor fell as much as 4.8 percent on Monday after a U.S. regulator said it had opened a probe into why some air bags failed to deploy in Hyundai and Kia vehicles following crashes.
- Middle school students learn engineering skills racing electric cars – Chicago Tribune: Dozens of middle school students worked Saturday to build and race electric cars in an annual competition designed to encourage innovation and creativity. “The competition really allows kids to practice their engineering and design skills,” said…
- New Nissan Z sports car to spawn 475bhp V6 Nismo model – Autocar:
- Truex races to dominating victory at Fontana – Reuters: Ford’s dominance since the season-opening Daytona 500 was finally broken as Toyota won its first race of the season as well. A Chevrolet won at Daytona. Keselowski and Logano were joined by Ryan Blaney as the only Fords to finish in the top 10.