Archives for August 2018

• Continental issues second financial warning this year – Automotive News: Continental’s disappointing sales in China and Europe forced the car-parts maker to cut its revenue forecast. In addition, spending on new technology is weighing on profitability. Shares plunged the most since 2009. http:
• McLaren 600LT by MSO revealed ahead of Pebble Beach debut – Autocar: McLaren will grace the Pebble Beach Concours d’Elegance with a 600LT upgraded by the McLaren Special Operations division McLaren will be heading to this week”s Pebble Beach Concours d”Elegance with a bespoke version of its new 600LT. Showcasing a raft…
• Jaguar Land Rover Classic expands into North America – Autocar: The preservation and restoration division of the two British brands will open a new facility in Georgia in summer 2019 Jaguar Land Rover”s Classic division is to open a new site in North America, its first outside of Europe. The centre in Savannah,…
• Daimler eyes stake in VW’s used car portal Heycar – Reuters:

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• Subaru axes diesel engines from its model line-up – Autocar: Japanese brand has gone petrol-only in the UK as the deadline to register pre-WLTP cars looms Subaru has removed all of its diesel-engined models from sale in the UK, in a move likely to be caused by the incoming WLTP emissions test regulations. The…
• RPT-Foreign automakers oppose Trump NAFTA plan as U.S-Mexico talks resume – Reuters: Foreign-brand automakers with U.S. plants do not support Trump administration rules to raise the amount of local content in North American-made vehicles, a group representing companies including Toyota Motor Corp , Volkswagen AG and Hyundai Motor Co…
• Norway wealth fund allowed to stay on as investor if Tesla goes private – Reuters: Rules governing Norway’s $1 trillion wealth fund would allow it to stay on as an investor in Tesla if the electric carmaker goes private, its deputy CEO said on Tuesday.
• World’s Biggest Wealth Fund on Tesla: We Like Companies That Make Money – Bloomberg: That country’s $1 trillion fund owned 0.48 percent of Tesla at the end of 2017, according to holdings published on its website once a year. Asked whether the fund, which has a much longer horizon than most investors, views that particular holding as…

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• Nissan Motor plans up to 40 pct production expansion in China -sources – Reuters: Japan’s Nissan Motor Co plans to invest about $900 million to boost vehicle-making capacity in China by 40 percent by …
• Saudi fund also in talks to invest in aspiring Tesla rival Lucid Motors, sources tell Reuters – Automotive News: PIF and Lucid Motors have drawn up a term sheet under which PIF could invest more than $1 billion in Lucid Motors and obtain majority ownership, sources told Reuters. http:
• Tesla Recoil Stacks Up Against Turkey Takedown: Taking Stock – Bloomberg: Tesla will undoubtedly be at the forefront in today’s session, already dipping below $300 per share in pre-market trading after Friday’s plunge …
• Tesla falls below $300, down another 4% in premarket after last week’s slide – CNBC: Elon Musk’s carmaker was under pressure again to start the week.

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• How did Elon Musk come up with the $420 buyout figure? – Automotive News: As some Tesla watchers suspected, CEO Elon Musk had a hidden meaning behind the $420-per-share figure he announced last week for taking Tesla private. http:
• For Tesla, ‘going dark’ might not be as easy as just turning off the lights – CNBC: Going private, which typically happens by way of a merger or a buyout of investors, involves board meetings, shareholder consent and a variety of other corporate governance matters.
• RPT-First crack at Musk could give top Tesla funds an edge – Reuters: Information about Elon Musk’s efforts to take Tesla Inc private is scarce. But some small investors wonder if top funds have an edge.
• How Ford”s high-risk, high-return strategy could work – Freep: Ford aims to leap ahead in its manufacturing flexibility. If it works, the company will have a big advantage.
• Get in Line: Backlog for Big Rigs Stretches to 2019 – WSJ: With freight demand red-hot, truck manufacturers expect to break records for orders this year, and deliveries will reach deep into next year.
• Toyota Avensis taken off sale ahead of Camry reintroduction – Autocar: Sales of Avensis, which has long been predicted for the chop, to end after 21 years The Toyota Avensis is no longer available for order. Production, which takes place in Toyota”s Burnaston plant in Derbyshire, will cease in the coming weeks as the…
• BMW 8 Series Gran Coupe: flagship M850i hits the ‘Ring in new video – Autocar: BMW’s upcoming range flagship coupe will also be sold in four-door guise, and thinly disguised prototypes are already at the Nürburgring BMW’s is bringing back the 8 Series name for a soon-to-be launched flagship coupe, and now the four-door Gran…
• A choked up Elon Musk says his health has suffered and that he believes ‘the worst is yet to come’ – CNBC: Elon Musk, choking up, spoke about how his health has suffered and that, from a personal standpoint, he believes “the worst is yet to come.”
• Sweden’s Granges halts plans for U.S. aluminium joint venture – Reuters: Sweden’s Granges put on ice on Friday plans to form an aluminium manufacturing joint venture in the United States with Japan’s Mitsubishi Aluminum Co, saying that the project was less attractive in “current circumstances”.
• Tearful Elon Musk tells NYT nobody reviewed Tesla funding tweet; SpaceX may help bankroll going-private transaction – Automotive News: Elon Musk said nobody reviewed his tweet about the plan to take Tesla private before he posted it, the New York Times reported, citing an interview in which Musk frequently teared up. http:
• Elon Musk Admits No One Reviewed His Bombshell Tweet About Taking Tesla Private – Fortune: Elon Musk said no one saw or reviewed his tweet about the plan to take the electric-car maker private before he posted it, the New York Times …
• Musk’s SpaceX could help fund take-private deal for Tesla – NYT – Reuters: Elon Musk’s rocket company, SpaceX, could help fund a bid to take electric car company Tesla Inc private, the New York Times reported on Thursday, quoting people familiar with the matter. Musk startled Wall Street last week when he said in a tweet he…
• Toyota to increase production capacity in China by 20 percent: source – Reuters: Japan’s Toyota Motor Corp will build additional capacity at its auto plant in China’s Guangzhou, a company source said, in addition to beefing up production at a factory in Tianjin city by 120,000 vehicles a year.
• Tesla reportedly searching for a No. 2 executive for Elon Musk – CNBC: The New York Times reported that Tesla executives have intensified the search following Musk’s tweets about taking the company private.
• Musk Tells NYT Bombshell Tesla Tweet Not Reviewed by Anyone – Bloomberg: In the interview, Musk revealed the physical and emotional toll of the past year as he sacrificed family milestones in the race to meet Tesla production targets. He told the newspaper that friends are concerned about his well-being and, the New York…
• Tesla’s Musk says no plans to relinquish chairman, CEO roles: NYT – Reuters: Elon Musk has no plans to relinquish his dual role as chairman and chief executive officer of Tesla Inc , he said in an interview with the New York Times on Thursday.
• Volkswagen Touareg – Autocar: The new version of the big 4×4 is now Volkswagen”s flagship model. Is the Touareg up to the task, and can it challenge its luxury rivals? You might have noticed that the Volkswagen Phaeton – one-time vessel of a mighty 6.0-litre W12 engine shared with…
• Insight: What’s up with the UK car market? – Autocar: Jaguar Land Rover”s sales are being hit by the diesel desertion We delve into the stories that are causing eyebrow-raising car stats for the UK in 2018 One statistic jumped out of the UK automotive manufacturing figures for June. The number of cars…
• Elon Musk says past year has been excruciating and ‘worst is yet to come’ – Guardian: In an emotional interview with the New York Times the founder of electric car maker Tesla, also revealed that the pressures of work had caused him to spend his birthday stuck in the Tesla factory and almost miss his brother’s wedding. “This past year…
• Elon Musk: rebel without a clue – FT: Elon Musk is more Kevin than James in the entitled truculence that inspired him to tweet he had “funding secured” for a mooted buyout. Financiers …
• Elon Musk Confronts a Fateful Tweet and an ‘Excruciating’ Year – New York Times: Tesla’s shares soared. Investors, analysts and journalists puzzled over the tweet – published in the middle of the day’s official market trading, an unusual time to release major news – including the price Mr. Musk cited. He said in the interview…
• Uber’s new Brazil center aims to improve safety of cash transactions – Reuters: Ride-hailing company Uber Technologies Inc plans to open a 250 million-reais ($64-million) center in Brazil that will research technology to make it safer for its drivers to accept cash, a key payment method in its rapid expansion in Latin America, the…
• PlayStation creator backs start-up that uses ‘theoretical neuroscience’ for self-driving cars – CNBC: Japanese start-up Ascent Robotics is on a quest to create software for self-driving cars and aims to complete a fully functional artificial intelligence vehicle system by late 2020.
• It’s the All-New Honda Brio – Yahoo: In April 2018, Honda revealed what the next-generation Honda Brio will look like with the Small RS Concept at the 2018 Indonesia International Motor …
• SEC turns up the heat on Tesla, Musk over disclosures – Automotive News: U.S. regulators are pressing Tesla’s directors for details on how much information CEO Elon Musk shared with them before he tweeted about a plan to take the company private, a newspaper reported. http:
• Did Elon Musk order the company to spy on employees at the Gigafactory? – Automotive News: An employee fired from Tesla’s Nevada battery factory filed a whistleblower complaint with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, accusing the company of spying on employees. http:
• Whistleblower accuses Tesla of spying on employees at Gigafactory: attorney – Reuters: An employee fired from Tesla Inc’s Nevada battery factory filed a whistleblower complaint with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, accusing the company of spying on employees and failing to act after learning that a Mexican cartel may be…

• Tesla’s board scrambles to control a chief executive who some directors think is out of control – CNBC: Some members of the board have grown alarmed by what they see as Mr. Musk”s erratic behavior, the New York Times reports.
• Fiat Chrysler-UAW scandal ‘did not begin with Iacobelli,’ his lawyers argue – Freep:
• DealBook Briefing: Tesla’s Board Tries to Calm Its Chaos – New York Times: Good Wednesday. Want this in your inbox every morning? Sign up here. Tesla’s board taps the brakes. The company’s directors are trying to rein in their unpredictable C.E.O. They were clearly blindsided by Elon Musk’s tweeting about his plans to take …
• Saudi Arabia Goes High-Tech in Approach to Investing – WSJ: Crown Prince Mohammed and his sovereign-wealth fund, in talks to take a stake in Tesla, have become a pivotal global investor. But some Saudis worry impulsive bets on future technologies could jeopardizing the wealth of future generations.

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• Tesla forms special committee, has no formal proposal from Musk – Reuters: Tesla Inc’s board has appointed a special committee to evaluate a potential transaction that would take the company private, but has not received a formal proposal from Chief Executive Elon Musk, the company said on Tuesday.
• Facelifted Skoda Fabia priced at £12,840 – Autocar: The Skoda Fabia has been shown at Geneva A new look, no diesel engines and updated equipment lead the comprehensively updated supermini The facelifted Skoda Fabia is priced from £12,840, with the entry-level car getting a 25% bump in power, from 59bhp…
• Ford in fight with Wall Street over dividend – Detroitnews: The debate over Ford”s payout to shareholders is exposing a divide over what needs to be done to fix the ailing carmaker
• Mercedes-AMG GT facelift seen testing ahead of likely LA debut – Autocar: Mercedes” Porsche 911 rival is set to receive a power boost and tech upgrades across the range, with an official reveal at the LA Motor Show in November expected Mercedes-Benz”s AMG performance car division is putting the finishing touches to a…

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