- FedEx partners with Walmart, Pizza Hut to test last-mile delivery robot – CNBC: Shippers, retailers and restaurants are experimenting with robots, drones and self-driving cars in a bid to use automation to drive down the high cost of delivering gadgets, groceries and even cups of coffee the “last mile” to consumer doorsteps.
- Hyundai’s 5-year plan: $40 billion on new models, tech – Automotive News: The Korean company joined automakers pledging massive spending in the years ahead to address the industry’s transformation and fend off new competition.
- Volvo unveils Tesla Model 3 rival Polestar 2 – CNBC: Electric performance brand Polestar unveiled its first fully electric vehicle on Wednesday in a bid to steal buyers away from Tesla’s Model 3.
- The Polestar 2 Is Priced to Beat Tesla’s Best-Selling Model 3 – Bloomberg: Pitting the car directly against Tesla, he says, “makes it a bit more … it will still be enabled with Apple CarPlay as well, among other technologies.
- Volvo’s Polestar joins electric car race with rival to Tesla 3 – Reuters: Volvo Cars’ luxury performance brand Polestar unveiled online its first fully electric sedan on Wednesday, with a price and driving range to rival Tesla’s mass market Model 3.
- Volkswagen turns Jetta into standalone brand for China – Autocar: Jetta VA3 Budget brand will target younger buyers, offering a rebadged Volkswagen Jetta saloon and a pair of Seat-derived SUVs Volkswagen has launched a new standalone brand for the Chinese market, named after its long-running Jetta model. The Jetta…
- PSA hopes to make Opel a success in Russia after GM failed – Automotive News: PSA’s Opel brand will return to Russia, a market it abandoned under former owner General Motors.
- New Polestar 2 revealed as sub-£35k Tesla Model 3 rival – Autocar: Polestar”s second production model is an all-electric fastback promising 402bhp and 311-mile range Polestar, the new electric performance brand separated from Volvo, has unveiled its second production car: the Polestar 2. The new model, described as…
- Opel celebrates ‘historic’ profit after decades of losses under GM – Automotive News: Opel’s new owner, PSA, delivered profitability at the German automaker last year, a goal former owner GM had not managed to achieve in the past 20 years.
- Ford, VW continue talking; doubt raised that agreement is near on self-driving car pact – Freep: Any deal on Ford-VW autonomous vehicle work is months away.
- Ford’s China joint venture to lay off ‘thousands’ of workers: New York Times – Reuters: Ford Motor Co’s joint venture in China has “quietly begun” dismissing thousands of its 20000 workers due to weak auto sales in the world’s second-largest …
- Total dependence on Ghosn led to malfeasance, says Nissan CEO – Nikkei:
- Nissan’s Geneva concept could preview next Qashqai – Automotive News: Nissan will show an electrified SUV at the Geneva auto show that could point the way to the next Qashqai compact SUV. The IMq concept was teased …
- Elliott pushes for Hyundai shareholder support after dividend proposals rejected – Reuters: Elliott Management Corp on Wednesday urged shareholders of a Hyundai Motor Group firm to vote for its proposal for higher dividends and new board members, a day after the South Korean conglomerate rejected demands by the U.S. activist investor.
- China Shifts, and Detroit’s Big Bet Goes Sour – New York Times: China Shifts, and Detroit”s Big Bet Goes Sour The New York TimesChrysler, Ford and General Motors saw a booming Chinese driving culture and cheap labor. Now the market is slowing, competition is rising and the Trump …
- Honda’s urban EV chases ‘Apple-style’ X-factor – Autocar: Honda”s e prototype is taller than a Mini, shorter than a Jazz Honda expects its new four-seat electric city car to command inherent added-value appeal, like an Apple product The production version of the Honda e prototype electric city car will go on…
- Hyundai Plans $40 Billion in Spending as Car Industry Transforms – Bloomberg: Hyundai Motor Co. joined automakers pledging massive spending in the years ahead to address the industry’s transformation and fend off new …
- Hyundai Motor says to lift auto operating margin to 7 percent by 2022 – Reuters: Hyundai Motor Co said on Wednesday it plans to boost the core automotive businesses’ operating profit margin to 7 percent by 2022, compared with 2.1 percent …
- Hot-rolled mess: China’s steelmakers hit the skids as car sales slow – Reuters: China’s steel mills may have taken a wrong turn by adding millions of tonnes of new high-end capacity just as the country’s car sector, a key steel consumer, undergoes its first contraction in decades, cutting metal demand.
- Exclusive: 200mph Ginetta supercar revealed – Autocar: Name and ‘under £400k’ price to be confirmed at Geneva motor show Ginetta, the Leeds-based sports and racing car manufacturer, is launching a shock new 200mph, Ferrari-priced supercar in the most spectacular way it can think of – by unveiling a fully…
- Nissan Kicks Surf is the ultimate ally for a surfer’s lifestyle – Nissan-global: Inspired by champion surfers, Nissan today introduced the Nissan Kicks Surf, a concept car designed for those in search of the perfect wave.Based on the award-winning Nissan Kicks compact crossover, the Kicks Surf is e quipped with roof crossbars for…
- The Winners and Losers From Hong Kong’s Budget 2019 – Bloomberg: Good news for electric car owners looking to juice up their vehicles, Hong Kong will spend HK$120 million on expanding electric car charging stations.
- Bahrain Fund Open to IPO of Supercar Maker McLaren – Bloomberg: Aston Martin and Bentley Motors have been making arrangements to do what they can to avoid problems with their supply chains as British Prime …
- How crisis helped VW take on Tesla and tech titans – FT: The likes of Tesla can begin with a clean slate and scale up, while the giants selling millions of vehicles must overhaul existing operations.
- Tesla’s Musk must address SEC contempt bid as he calls agency ‘broken’ – Yahoo: A federal judge on Tuesday ordered Tesla Inc Chief Executive Elon Musk to explain by March 11 why he should not be held in contempt for violating his fraud …
- Tesla’s Elon Musk Strains at SEC Leash With Tweets – WSJ: Tesla CEO Elon Musk has until March 11 to answer federal regulators” claims that tweets he issued last week violated an enforcement settlement he reached last year, a federal judge decided Tuesday.
- Chinese EV maker BYD says 2018 preliminary profit down 31 percent, blames competition – Reuters: Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD Co Ltd reported preliminary net profit for 2018 that was 31.4 percent lower than a year earlier, pinning the blame on intensifying competition in the world’s biggest auto market.
- Hyundai rejects Elliott’s payout call, shares rise ahead of showdown meeting – Reuters: Hyundai Motor Group on Tuesday rejected demands by U.S. activist investor Elliott Management for a combined 7 trillion won ($6.3 billion) dividend payout and new board members, complicating efforts to revamp South Korea’s second-biggest conglomerate.
- SEC’s Tussle With Tesla’s Elon Musk Shows Challenge of Regulating Iconic CEOs – WSJ: The latest legal action between U.S. securities regulators and Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Elon Musk highlights the challenge facing regulators and …
- The McLaren 720S Spider Solves Those Sticky Supercar Problems – Bloomberg: The lines of the car become an interrupted conversation. … only 11 seconds, far faster than the standard 14- to 20-second range on most sports cars.
