Trade News

The newest all-electric Mercedes model — the EQB compact crossover — arrived in the U.S. this summer.

The electric version of the GLB is similar to its internal combustion sibling and can be equipped as a three-row, seven-seater.

It is available in a pair of four-wheel-drive versions: The EQB 300 4matic, with peak output of 168 hp and 390 Newton-meters of torque; and the 350 4matic, with output of 215 hp and 520 Nm of torque (57,988 euros).

A less-expensive two-wheel-drive version is expected later.

Competitors include the Audi Q4 e-tron and e-tron Sportback; the Volvo XC40 Recharge and the coming Genesis GV60.

We've rounded up some early reviews from the automotive press.

"Despite running on a standard front-wheel-drive platform, this compact SUV feels like it was designed to be an EV from the get-go.

It's largely the same as the regular GLB, with the long display housing two 12-…

The Porsche Panamera could switch to electric power as the sports car maker aims for 80 percent of its global vehicle sales to be fully electric by 2030.

Over the next several years, all Porsche nameplates — except for the flagship 911 — are expected to be battery-powered.

Porsche is also expanding its lineup with a flagship electric three-row crossover.

"We are pushing ahead with our electric offensive: By the middle of the decade, we want to offer our 718 midengine sports car exclusively in an all-electric form," Porsche CEO Oliver Blume said this summer.

The Panamera could go electric in the second half of the decade, timed with the arrival of the next-generation Taycan electric vehicle.

According to an Autocar report, the new EVs will feature a sporty version of Volkswagen Group's Scalable Systems Platform.

The report said the "SSP Sport" platform features a low cabin floor and rear footwells similar to the Tayc…

Spy photographers captured undisguised shots of the next-generation Volkswagen Tiguan as the crossover was testing in the Austrian Alps, showing the redesigned version of the German brand's top seller due to arrive in the U.S. in 2025.

Photos indicate the third-generation Tiguan — likely to be the last generation powered by an internal combustion engine — will receive a new front fascia and lighting while retaining much of its shape and dimensions, along with more rounded styling.

No images of the test model's interior are available, but VW has been attempting to move the Tiguan upmarket, especially after the introduction of the Taos in 2021 in the same segment. That means the next-generation Tiguan is likely to feature the brand's top-of-the-line driver-assist, infotainment and safety technology.

Through the first half of the year, Tiguan remains VW's top-selling nameplate in the U.S. despite a 41 percent sales decline to 38,728 units behind supply con…

Harman International acquired Israeli startup Caaresys for its car-occupant monitoring system.

Caaresys' technology uses low-emission radar to monitor adults and children in a vehicle cabin, marking the locations of passengers and measuring their vital signs, such as respiration and heart rate.

Harman said the company is working with major automakers to provide a production-ready system that detects pets left in vehicles, as well.

The Caaresys technology consists of small-millimeter radar sensors using signal-processing algorithms that can be integrated into a vehicle cabin.

"The low-emission radar transmits power at levels similar to and often lower than Bluetooth, much like headphones and other smart devices," Caaresys co-founder and CEO Ilya Sloushch told Automotive News.

Unlike in-car cameras, Sloushch said a primary benefit of the system is that seats, passengers and other objects do not block the radar signals.

The technology i…

Mazda Financial Services President and Toyota Financial Services private label Group Vice President Pete Carey will retire Sept. 30 after nearly 30 years with Toyota.

He will be succeeded by Toyota Financial Savings Bank COO Brock Bayles, who was named Toyota Financial vice president of private label on Aug. 29. Bayles has been handling Carey's private label role and helming Mazda Financial, though Carey, who is working on special projects the rest of his tenure, retains his titles.

Bayles also has served as vice president of sales for Mazda Financial. Toyota spokesman Vincent Bray called him "instrumental" in establishing the captive finance company.

Carey created the Toyota Financial private label finance company business, which serves Bass Pro Shops as well as Mazda. In 2019, he and Toyota Financial marketing Group Vice President Karen Ideno won Mazda's captive finance business away from JPMorgan Chase. Two and a half years later, Mazda Financial's pe…

Electric vehicle owners are turning to retail chains to play the role gasoline stations have long fulfilled for drivers — a place to recharge the car and the body.

Both Starbucks and Ikea recently announced deals with charging networks to install banks of chargers. They are looking to attract customers who need something to do while their vehicles recharge.

"Get a little coffee, hang out, listen to music," said Gary Silberg, KPMG's global automotive sector leader. "If you can charge your car at the same time, why not?"

Tesla pioneered the trend by locating much of its proprietary Supercharger network near chain restaurants and retail centers. But as the number of EV owners from other brands grows, drivers are looking for charging stations that work with their vehicles.

Charging infrastructure is among the most significant issues facing the burgeoning EV sector, a pair of studies from J.D. Power and CDK Global Inc. recently found. Not only are cha…

Subaru's New England distributor "unreasonably withheld consent of the sale" of Prime Subaru Manchester to Group 1 Automotive Inc. last year, New Hampshire's Motor Vehicle Industry Board has ruled.

The fate of the store — the lone dealership left in the once-sprawling Prime Automotive Group owned by troubled alternative asset management firm GPB Capital Holdings — has been in limbo for nearly a year. Despite the board's Aug. 12 ruling, a conclusion doesn't appear imminent. Distributor Subaru of New England, which is blocking the sale over what it calls poor performance by Group 1 at another Subaru dealership, plans to appeal the decision. Most of Prime's dealerships were sold to Group 1 last November.

In the order siding with Prime Subaru, the board wrote it believes Subaru of New England "preferred another buyer for Prime" over Group 1, rejecting the distributor's rationale that an existing Group 1-owned Subaru store, Ira Subaru in Danvers, Ma…

Nearly every autonomous driving developer envisions transporting food or other goods in its deployment plans. Despite being a subsidiary of Amazon, Zoox has only one thought: carrying passengers.

"We're really focused on moving people around cities," Zoox co-founder Jesse Levinson told Automotive News. Package delivery is "not in the immediate roadmap," he said.

While they establish ride-hailing plans, competitors such as Cruise, Argo AI and Waymo all have deals to deliver groceries and other goods for Walmart. Motional will do food delivery for Uber Eats.

Zoox's technology would work for automated delivery, but Levinson said ride-hailing offers a faster return on investment.

"People pay more to move themselves around cities than to move packages," he said.

Zoox is running autonomous vehicle pilots in San Francisco, Las Vegas, Seattle and near its headquarters in Foster City, Calif. The company has said it plans to launch a robotaxi servi…

Honda's 2023 Civic Type R will be the second-ever Type R sold in the U.S., and it's bringing more power to the game.

The latest Type R's turbocharged 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine will crank out 315 hp and 310 pound-feet of torque, Honda said, an improvement of 9 hp and 15 pound-feet over the previous edition.

When paired with a six-speed manual transmission and rev-matching system for smoother gear shifts, it will be the most powerful Honda vehicle ever released in the U.S. and one of the most powerful models ever under the brand.

To add to the sense of power, an active exhaust valve will open at higher rpms, allowing for a more enhanced engine sound.

With more power comes a bigger vehicle, and nearly every facet of the Civic Type R has grown over the previous edition. The wheelbase has been extended by 1.4 inches, becoming the longest wheelbase in its class, according to Honda.

It is also 0.8 inch longer, 0.5 inch lowe…

Storm clouds gathering for auto lenders?

Things continue to be sunny for auto lending — at least for now.

Despite a few storm clouds on the horizon, it's not time to put away the sunglasses yet. Lenders and F&I offices have shown they can be resilient. They weathered the pandemic so far and are managing inflation in labor and parts and rising interest rates. While the occasional bad publicity may amplify calls for more government oversight, the consequences thus far have been minimal.

For the second quarter, all six publicly traded car dealers reported double-digit increases in revenue from car loans and finance-and-insurance products compared with a year ago. And five of the six topped $2,000 gross profit per vehicle. And younger buyers who are concerned about sustainability could be good candidates for service contracts.

There are concerns, however, about some proposed changes to how lenders and F&I offices currently operate and how th…