Industry

At the start of this year, Tesla founder and CEO Elon Musk made the bold promise his company would eventually launch a network of fast-charging systems to allow owners of electric cars to extend their driving range with a level of convenience at least approaching that of conventional combustion...

Yesterday we told you that Porsche would be reducing both production and spending in 2013, as it projected zero growth over 2012 sales. Now comes word from Mercedes-Benz that it, too, is facing challenges related to the cooling global economy. As Automotive News Europe (subscription required)...

If you know your world history, you know that China and Japan have a long history of not getting along well with one another. While relations between the two have generally been cordial as of late, a recent dispute over the uninhabited Senkaku Islands has stirred-up strong anti-Japanese sentiment...

Is the global luxury auto market cooling? Despite bold predictions for worldwide sales growth from most luxury automakers throughout much of 2012, Porsche may be among the first to admit that 2013 sales probably won’t exceed 2012 numbers. To maintain its expected levels of profitability...

It's not widely known amongst the general public, but Porsche frequently contracts out its actual production. In the past, Porsche relied on Finnish independent vehicle manufacturer Valmet to build its Boxster and Cayman models, though for the latest generation Porsche decided to move production...

BMW has finally taken the wraps off its new three-cylinder engine family, which is expected to debut in the production version of the recently revealed Concept Active Tourer, and even reach the U.S. where it will be offered in the third-generation MINI Cooper. Eventually, it’s likely that...

Luc Donckerwolke, the man credited with the designs of the Murcielago and Gallardo supercars from Lamborghini, as well as the original Audi A2 mini, will soon be setting up shop in Crewe, England, where he’ll be heading the design team at Bentley. He will be replacing Dirk van Braeckel, who...

In 2008, Ford sold its under-performing luxury SUV brand, Land Rover, to Indian auto giant Tata Motors for an estimated $2.3 billion, less than half of what Ford had paid for the company in 2000. At the time, few expected the neglected brand to survive, let alone prosper. After all, the global...

For the first time since December of 2010, Toyota’s luxury brand, Lexus, sold more cars in the U.S. last month than German rivals BMW and Mercedes-Benz. Lexus delivered 24,237 vehicles in August, compared to 16,835 from BMW (excluding MINI) and 22,686 from Mercedes-Benz (excluding Smart)...

If you work for Bentley Motors in its United States corporate offices, here’s some free advice: you may want to consider renting a house instead of buying one, given the luxury automaker’s recent history of relocation. In 2008, Bentley moved its North American corporate headquarters...

Cadillac will offer a regular XTS, as well as an XTS stretch limo and even a hearse for the livery market.

Following its announcement in June to acquire the remaining assets of bankrupt Swedish automaker Saab, as well as the assets of subsidiary firms Saab Powertrain and Saab Tools, National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS) has confirmed today it has finalized the acquisition process. One key asset NEVS...

Currently there are just two vehicles based on GM’s rear-wheel drive Zeta platform, which was originally developed in Australia by Holden for the VE Commodore (and its long-wheelbase variants) launched back in 2006. The two vehicles include the original VE Commodore, which is soon to be...

In a symbolic transfer of leadership at Bentley, outgoing chief Wolfgang Dürheimer has handed over the keys for Bentley founder W.O. Bentley’s original company car to Wolfgang Schreiber, who takes up the leadership role at the British automaker on September 1. Dürheimer headed...

The official tuner for Ford in Australia, Ford Performance Vehicles (FPV), will be moved completely in house now that major shareholder Prodrive has decided to sell its stake to the automaker. FPV was operating under a joint venture agreement between Prodrive, which owned a 51 percent stake, and...

The Mercedes-Benz M-Class and GL-Class SUVs have always been built in a single plant located in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. That’s about to change, as final assembly of Asian-market M and GL-Class vehicles will soon shift to plants in India, Thailand and Indonesia. That doesn’t mean that the...

Ferrari chairman Luca Cordero di Montezemolo is predicting another record year for the Italian supercar manufacturer, despite the poor economic situation in Europe, the possibility of slower growth in China, and heavy investment in Formula 1. Last year Ferrari sold a record 7,195 cars, including a...

Lincoln may be almost a century old but the brand is barely recognized outside of North America. This is something Lincoln is keen to change, so today it is taking the first key step towards establishing itself as a global luxury automotive brand by announcing its entry into the Chinese market. But...

In June of this year Dany Bahar was fired from his role as CEO of Lotus following the results of an investigation made by the board of Lotus’ parent company, DRB-Hicom. Now Bahar has hit back by filing a claim against DRB-Hicom for wrongful dismissal in a Malaysian court. As part of the...

Sports car manufacturer Spyker, the parent company of bankrupt automaker Saab, has announced today it has formed a new alliance with Youngman, the Chinese automaker whose attempted purchase of Saab late last year was blocked by General Motors. Under the new alliance deal, which won’t be...