Automotive News

GM battery materials investment in Quebec to top $1 billionGM battery materials investment in Quebec to top $1 billion

June 4, 2023| 9:55 pm

General Motors and South Korea’s Posco Future M said they will invest more to expand the production capacity at their chemical battery materials facility in Canada, taking their estimated total investment in the plant to over US$1 billion. The companies said on June 2 the new investment in their Ultium CAM plant, expected to start operating in 2025, will be used to set up additional facilities for local on-site processing of critical minerals used in electric vehicle (EV) batteries. The announcement comes less than a week after the two initially said it would be a C$600-million facility in Becancour, Que.… [...]

How it stacks up against GM and FordHow it stacks up against GM and Ford

June 4, 2023| 2:47 pm

There are very few women at the wheels of Tesla. Detailed data about the demographics of Tesla’s workforce released for the first time this week shows men vastly outnumber women at the upper levels of billionaire Elon Musk’s electric car manufacturer. Men held 8 out of 10 executive jobs and nearly 7 out of 10 management jobs at Tesla in 2021, the most recent data available. Those figures were comparable to other major car manufacturers, according to a USA TODAY analysis. At Ford, 74% of executives were men and at General Motors, 79%. Women of color were the least represented… [...]

Canadian partners buy VW car dealership in the USCanadian partners buy VW car dealership in the US

June 3, 2023| 9:50 pm

Hewitt — an experienced used-car manager — is focusing on the store’s sales department, while Alalouf oversees fixed operations, accounting and finance. The partners each have three decades of automotive managerial experience. They met 25 years ago at what was then the Cowell Auto Group near Vancouver, British Columbia, then later worked for Canada’s Foundation Automotive Corp. in the US After they decided last year to launch their own business, Alalouf and Hewitt sold their Vancouver homes to raise cash. They said they chose a US location because Canadian dealerships were either too expensive or too remote. If all goes… [...]

May sales up 13%, but remain well below pre-pandemic numbersMay sales up 13%, but remain well below pre-pandemic numbers

June 2, 2023| 9:42 pm

May marked just the second month of this year in which sales were up over 2021 totals, which were higher than 2022 totals in all but November and December of last year. DAC said that historically, May was more often than not the strongest sales month of the year over the previous decade. It took the sales crown eight times between 2010 and 2019. “The last three years have seen very different sales patterns, however, with the first the pandemic and then the semiconductor shortage, meaning that the traditional spring selling season failed to materialize,” the consultancy said in a… [...]

US judge throws out lawsuit against Elon Musk over TwitterUS judge throws out lawsuit against Elon Musk over Twitter

May 31, 2023| 9:09 pm

A judge dismissed a proposed class-action lawsuit against Elon Musk that claimed he cheated Twitter shareholders several times last year in the course of buying the social media company for $44 billion. In a decision on Monday, US District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco said plaintiff William Heresniak lacked standing to sue because he challenged “wrongs associated with” Musk’s buyout, not the fairness of the buyout itself. Breyer said Heresniak did not show harm from Musk’s belated disclosure of a 9.2 percent Twitter stake, which the suit said let him buy more shares at lower prices before the buyout… [...]

The UK expects a deal on EU ‘rules of origin’ for EVsThe UK expects a deal on EU ‘rules of origin’ for EVs

May 30, 2023| 9:08 pm

The UK and the European Union will “soon” announce a solution on post-Brexit trading rules that automakers warn could lead to factory closures, Business and Trade Secretary Kemi Badenoch said. “This is not a UK problem, it is an EU-UK problem. It works both ways,” Badenoch told Bloomberg on Tuesday on the sidelines of the Qatar Economic Forum in Doha. “We should see an answer soon.” Stellantis this month warned that British car plants would close with the loss of thousands of jobs if the issue was not addressed. Ford called for post-Brexit EU trade requirements on rules of origin… [...]

Plante Moran study: Auto suppliers in dark on EV plansPlante Moran study: Auto suppliers in dark on EV plans

May 29, 2023| 8:57 pm

The study captures North American automaker-supplier relations as parts makers navigate financial pressures stemming from inflation, unstable automaker production schedules, the shortage of microchips and rising interest rates. Those pressures, which began in late 2019 with the onset of COVID-19 and the UAW’s strike at GM, have tested relations between suppliers and their customers. Suppliers said there needs to be greater and more timely communication and transparency on short-term supply chain disruptions and on any changes in forecasting, Plante Moran reported. And it was found that many parts companies are frustrated by what they see as a disconnect between what… [...]

CarGurus COO: CarOffer digital wholesale platform remains solidCarGurus COO: CarOffer digital wholesale platform remains solid

May 28, 2023| 8:36 pm

Editor’s note: CarGurus said it has the right to buy the rest of CarOffer but has not made a final decision to do so. An earlier version of this story said the company planned to move ahead with that transaction. CarGurus Inc., which acquired a majority stake in CarOffer in 2021, might proceed with plans to buy the rest of the wholesale digital trading platform, a move that could be a show of confidence for the struggling division. And CarGurus COO Sam Zales said CarOffer is poised to break even or become profitable in the second quarter because of the… [...]

Auto industry, partners, researchers join the EV charging consortiumAuto industry, partners, researchers join the EV charging consortium

May 27, 2023| 8:11 pm

The National Charging Experience Consortium has more industry involvement than other government-led consortia, Smart said. The industry has struggled with charging consistency and reliability for a number of reasons, including a lack of data sharing as automakers and charging companies are reluctant to share data with competitors. The national labs will keep members’ data confidential and provide an independent review of data from all participants, Smart said. Industry participation is critical to scaling and validating EV charging infrastructure, Smart said. “Our goal is to produce solutions that the industry buys into and can immediately implement to overcome barriers to charge… [...]

Ford, reversing course, to keep AM radio on all modelsFord, reversing course, to keep AM radio on all models

May 26, 2023| 8:09 pm

Ford Motor Co. will keep AM radio in all 2024 Ford and Lincoln models and restore it on two electric vehicles via a software update, according to CEO Jim Farley. In a tweetFarley said the decision was made “after speaking with [U.S.] policy leaders about the importance of AM broadcast radio as a part of the emergency alert system.” The company removed AM radio from the Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning and planned to discontinue it on all products moving forward. Farley said the company would look for other ways to deliver emergency alerts in the future. “Customers can currently… [...]

Category: Automotive News