China
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We wish someone were making this up. Maybe then we could explain how so many examples of the still new 2010 Ferrari 458 Italia have been damaged in such a short space of time. If you haven’t been counting, the tally already stands at 10 in the past 9 months--not including one car that was destroyed when the warehouse it was sitting in burned to the ground. The curse of the 458 Italia continues today with yet another damaged car, this time an example engulfed in flames somewhere in China, bringing the tally up to 11. Depressing, disturbing, and just plain sad, the video starts with the car...
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2011 Porsche Cayenne Going To China With Supercharged V-6Porsche is planning to sell its redesigned 2011 Cayenne SUV in China with an entirely different, more modern standard V-6 engine than the Cayenne gets in the U.S. and elsewhere.
Bengt Halvorson -
First Details On Next-Gen Volkswagen Phaeton, U.S. Market CrucialThe Phaeton flagship sedan may have been a major flop for Volkswagen but officials are keen for a launch of a successor. The car was priced similarly to BMWs and Audis but it wore a humble VW badge, and there was nothing particularly exciting or innovative about it either. It had mundane styling...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Bentley Unveils Design Series China Special Edition ModelsBentley is milking the most out of its Continental range, today releasing two more special editions based on the Continental GT and Continental Flying Spur Speed models. The new editions, dubbed the Design Series China, are making their world debut at this week’s 2010 Beijing Auto Show and sadly...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
2011 BMW 5-Series Long-Wheelbase Launched In ChinaDue to demand from Asian markets, where many 5-Series cars are used as chauffeur driven limos, BMW has released a new long-wheelbase version of its popular luxury sedan. The new 2011 BMW 5-Series Long-Wheelbase has been designed and developed exclusively for the Chinese car market and will make its...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
China Overtakes U.S. To Become World’s Biggest Auto Market in 2009China’s rapidly expanding vehicle fleet, increasing manufacturing industry and insatiable demand for new cars has pushed the country to world’s biggest auto market status, outpacing the U.S. for the first time in history. Thanks to government incentives and a range of new models being...
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
One of the biggest hurdles Chinese automakers have in the U.S. is their poor image and reputation for safety.
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Preferred Bidder Geely Planning Up To Three New Models For VolvoWith access to the Chinese market Geely could build and sell up to 200,000 vehicles per year in China alone.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Ford Says Geely Closer to Winning VolvoGlobal industry shift accelerates as China's car industry comes closer to a big prize in Volvo.
Martin Padgett -
HUMMER And Tengzhong Sign Sale AgreementThe news isn't official, but an insider claims Sichuan Tengzhong's purchase of Hummer will be signed soon.
Nelson Ireson -
Ferrari Announces 599 GTB Fiorano HGTE China Limited EditionThe Ferrari 599 GTB Fiorano HGTE China Limited Edition will be built in a highly exclusive run of less than a dozen cars.
Viknesh Vijayenthiran -
Audi and Lamborghini predicting market turnaroundAccurate crystal balls were in short supply a year ago, but this year predictions of recovery are flying. The latest to join the side of the optimists are Audi and Lamborghini, predicting the market to reach its lowest point this year and start recovery in 2010. The Volkswagen Group's luxury and...
Kenneth Hall -
Holding company RHJ International has emerged this week as a strong challenger to Magna International in the bidding war for General Motors' Opel division. The Belgium-based industrial holding firm, which is linked to the U.S. buyout company Ripplewood, confirmed that it was in advanced talks to buy a majority stake in Opel and hopes to reach an agreement with GM by the end of this week. Automotive parts supplier Magna International had long been seen as the front-runner for Opel and had aimed to sign a deal with GM by July 15, but with talks between the two companies suffering a hold up...
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Chinese bureaucrats cause a ruffle by approving Mercedes and BMW cars for government useChina is now the single biggest market in the world for new cars but that doesn’t mean the government is slowing down on the purchase of cars for its official fleets. While this usually would not be worthy of reporting, the fact that the Chinese government has approved luxurious Mercedes Benz...
Kenneth Hall -
China overtakes U.S. as world’s biggest auto market for first half of 2009America’s days as the world’s biggest auto market are coming to an end, with China for the first time ever overtaking the U.S. in vehicle sales for the first of 2009. On the back of strong sales in the month of June, which itself was up 36.5%, China’s total vehicle sales for the...
Jeremy Weber -
Beijing Auto offers $923 million for Opel, but race could already be overThree companies have submitted bids for Opel so far, but another, China's Beijing Automotive Industry Corporation (BAIC), has now joined the fray with an offer of more than $923 million. However, Opel front-runner Magna International's consortium partner Sberbank believes the bidding war is already...
Alex Kaufmann -
Report: Hummer deal on the rocks, China doesn't want gas guzzlersGeneral Motors' deal with China's Tengzhong to buy Hummer was thought to be as good as done in early June, but today reports of chatter on China's state radio casts the sale in a different light. The gas-guzzling SUVs just don't fit with the conservation plans in place in Beijing. So now the AP is...
Ralph Hanson -
Hummer won't stop U.S. production, sale to new owners complete by OctoberPoor sales, growing public concern for the environment and the recession have all added up to weaken General Motors’ chances of finding many buyers for Hummer but the struggling automaker confirmed last week that at least one company was interested in the sale. That company was Chinese...
Ralph Hanson -
In an odd and somewhat comical reversal of the usual state of things, China has today announced the halt of import of four Renault models on the back of 'serious safety risks' and non-compliance with regulations. The models affected include the Laguna, Scenic, Megane and Megane Coupe-Cabriolet - in short, some of Renault's most successful models. The decision was made by the laboriously-named General Administration of Quality Supervision Inspection and Quarantine (AQSIQ), reports Automotive News. "[W]e have repeatedly found batches of passenger vehicles made by the French Renault ... do not...
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Chinese-built Chevrolet Spark, Aveo and Lova could hit U.S. showrooms by 2011Just a few days ago we brought you a story about General Motors considering bringing small cars from China to the U.S. in order to bolster its sales in the segment. Currently, the carmaker is looking to sell around 17,300 Chinese-made vehicles in the U.S. by 2011 and over 50,000 units by 2014...
James Martinez -
MG prepping new lower-cost TF 135 for UKChronicling MG's path through the last decade is tough enough, and delving further back borders on the arcane, but under SAIC's ownership, the line of British-built roadsters has been brought back to life, starting with the currently-available TF LE-500, and soon to be joined by an updated version...
Alex Kaufmann -
GM looking to China to source next-gen affordable cars for U.S.Just a few days ago we told you General Motors would be looking to build more and more cars overseas as part of its restructuring plans, and that China was one of the first places they'd look. Today news that GM will in fact be bringing Chinese cars to the U.S. has begun to trickle out into the...
Ralph Hanson -
Report: GM wants 30% stake in possible joint Opel-Fiat companyThe landscape of the automotive industry is changing, and before things are done, the changes may be massive. Already Fiat and Chrysler are forging an alliance, and Fiat is also going after part of Opel. Now a source says General Motors wants a piece of any merged Fiat-Opel operation that might...
Ralph Hanson -
Geely says Rolls Royce's copy claims are baselessChina's car industry is infamous for its tendency to 'borrow' details from European carmakers, often to the point where the word 'clone' is used with some accuracy. The latest car to catch legal heat for the practice: Geely's GE, a remarkably obvious take on the Rolls Royce Phantom. But Geely...
Kenneth Hall