Industry
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Putting a luxury face on an automaker in a region where it's known more for affordable commuters than superb sedans is a tough endeavor. Lexus and Cadillac, and more recently Infiniti, are facing that challenge in Europe, and if upmarket Ford brand Lincoln hopes to be around in years to come it too needs to expand sales overseas and become more relevant in a global context. Lincoln is barely acknowledged in markets outside of North America but this may soon change according to recent comments from Ford CEO Alan Mulally. China’s insatiable appetite for luxury cars is proving too...
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Caterham Establishes New Road-Car DivisionSince we first learned that track-car expert Caterham was being sold to Team Lotus Formula 1 and the race team’s associates, there has been suggestion that a handful of new Caterham road-cars would eventually be built. In fact, at the announcement of Caterham’s sale back in April, one...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Mercedes-Benz Facing Class Action Lawsuit Over Alleged AMG V-8 DefectsMercedes-Benz may soon be facing a class action lawsuit over alleged defects in its M156 6.2-liter V-8 engine, used in seven different AMG models.
Kurt Ernst -
Looking For Better Fuel Economy, Volvo Downsizes To Four Cylinder EnginesVolvo is abandoning its traditional five and six cylinder engines in favor of more advanced and fuel-efficient three and four cylinder power plants.
Kurt Ernst -
Saab Bankruptcy Hearing Just Days AwaySaab’s cash crunch is nothing new, but the matter is finally coming to a head. The car maker’s first bankruptcy hearing is scheduled for September 26. In the meantime, it’s business as usual for Saab. Lately, that has been less about turning out autos or paying its workers than it...
Thomas Bey -
Rolls-Royce On Track For Record Sales In 2011The luxury segment has largely flown in the face of the economic downturn of the last several years, picking up steam particularly this year, but few have done as well as Rolls-Royce, which is set to set another sales record in 2011. It's not the first time Rolls-Royce has turned everyone else's...
Nelson Ireson -
Saab is in trouble. That's been clear for a long while now. Just how much trouble has come into focus in the last few weeks. Now, Saab has decided to license its core next-generation sedan architecture to a "special purpose" vehicle company called Swedish Automobile coöperatief U.A. (SPV). The Phoenix architecture is what Saab had been planning to build its next 9-3 on, eventually moving its 9-5 and 9-4X crossover to the platform as well. Even the proposed 9-2 could be built, should Saab survive, on a smaller version of the architecture. Based loosely on GM's Epsilon platform, which is...
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2011 Frankfurt Auto Show CoverageSummer is officially over, and those of us lucky to have had some time off are most likely back at the office now. However, with the end of summer also comes the first major auto show of the new model year, in this case, the 2011 Frankfurt Auto Show, press days for which kick off on Tuesday...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Volkswagen-Porsche Merger Held Up By Legal Issues, AgainOngoing lawsuits are holding up the finalization of the Volkswagen Group's merger with Porsche SE, the latest hurdle in an epic ouroboros that has been underway for several years. The details are eye-glazingly boring, but the effects are very real and potentially harmful to both companies. The...
Nelson Ireson -
Saab Denied Bankruptcy Protection By Swedish Court, Attempting AppealAfter months of failed funding negations and ceased production, Saab, along with its Saab Powertrain and Saab Tools subsidiaries, announced this week that it had filed for voluntary bankruptcy protection with the District Court in Vanersborg, Sweden. However, the court has rejected Saab’s...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
GM Retains Bob Lutz As AdvisorHe may have his detractors, but you can’t deny that the original car czar Bob Lutz has had a major impact on the auto industry. It appears now that Lutz’s influence will last a little while longer, as GM has announced today that its former Vice Chairman will be retained to provide...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
British Coachbuilder CPP Buys Site Of Former Jaguar PlantBritish Coachbuilder Coventry Prototype Panels (CPP) has been very busy of late, having partially acquired Spyker Cars as well as off-road expert Bowler. Not only that, but the company also formed a joint-venture with Italian design house Zagato to help build the Aston Martin V12 Zagato, plus...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
The luxurious Fisker Karma features a humble GM Ecotec engine for its range-extending duties, and in initial reviews there has been mention of the rough sound of the engine seeping into the cabin at times. For its future models, including the U.S.-built Project Nina, Fisker will be going with BMW engines. Fisker has announced the signing of an agreement with BMW that will cover the supply of engines and other components. BMW will initially supply a turbocharged four-cylinder engine for Project Nina, which is scheduled to go into production in the re-commissioned former GM plant in Wilmington...
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Saab Posts $322 Million First Half LossSaab has taken yet another step, this time a major one, towards what’s shaping up to be an inevitable bankruptcy, with news coming out today that the struggling Swedish automaker posted a $322 million loss for the first six months of 2011. The latest figure is four times the amount Saab lost...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Daimler Works To Relaunch Smart In The U.S. MarketDaimler, who took back distribution of Smart in the U.S. from Penske last month, is poised to launch a new media campaign to bring the Smart brand back into the spotlight.
Kurt Ernst -
Volvo Partners With Siemens For Electric Car DevelopmentVolvo has shown a number of ecological concepts and prototypes in the recent past, with everything from biofuels to battery powered electrics and fuel cell range-extenders, and even flywheel technology coming under the spotlight. The last we heard Volvo was about to start leases of its C30 Electric...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
McLaren F1 designer Gordon Murray joins LotusLotus has announced today that famed McLaren F1 designer Gordon Murray will join its advisory board, joining a who’s who of auto industry icons including Bob Lutz, formerly of GM, Tom Purves and Prof. Dr. Burkhard Göschel from BMW, and Frank Tuch, a former VW exec. The purpose of the...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Saab Seeking Bankruptcy Protection: ReportSaab is said to be seeking a court order to protect it from creditors, and will likely enter into a reorganizational bankruptcy according to reports from Swedish public radio.
Kurt Ernst -
Following the reveal of the Venocara supercar from Poland’s Arrinera Automotive back in June, few would have thought that we would be hearing about the company so soon after. We’ll be the first to admit that we were a little skeptical about the credibility of Arrinera and its promise to build and deliver to the world a brand new supercar. However, today we learn that a bigwig in the supercar building business, Lee Noble, has reportedly bought a five percent stake in Arrinera and was one of the key men responsible for its design and development. Lee Noble is the founder of Noble...
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Cadillac Escalade Is Still America’s Most Stolen VehicleToday’s headline probably comes as little surprise considering the Cadillac Escalade luxury SUV and its EXT sibling have been at the top of America’s most stolen vehicle list for the past several years. According to information compiled by the Highway Loss Data Institute (HLDI), an...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Ford And Toyota To Develop Rear-Wheel Drive Hybrids TogetherFord and Toyota, two of the leaders when it comes to hybrid technology, have announced a new alliance to help develop hybrid drive systems for rear-wheel drive applications, specifically, light trucks and SUVs. The move should ensure the future viability of full-size pickups and SUVs in a world of...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Singapore Billionaire Peter Lim Buys Stake In McLarenSingapore billionaire Peter Lim has made a "significant" investment in McLaren Automotive and will join their board of directors effective immediately.
Kurt Ernst -
Zimride Adds Payment System & 1st Public Route For CarpoolersRegular readers will remember Zimride, the carpooling service that works like a social network, matching needy commuters with altruistic drivers. Until recently, Zimride had been a private service, sold to universities and large corporations to help students and employees get where they need to go...
Richard Read -
Toyota CEO Didn't Initially Want To Build 2013 Lexus GSThe Pebble Beach Concours d'Elegance is in full swing. With concept reveals and new product debuts, there is no shortage of news. And although seeing the 2013 Lexus GS 350 unveiled at Pebble Beach didn't surprise us, hearing Akio Toyoda tell the crowd that he was initially opposed to the...
Joel Feder