Trade News

Mercedes-Benz is expanding its electric vehicle lineup with a new high-performance model.

Early next year, the German luxury marque will bring the AMG treatment to its planned EQE midsize sedan.

The 677-hp Mercedes-AMG EQE is equipped with a 90.6-kilowatt-hour next-generation battery that can deliver an estimated 320 miles, based on European testing standards.

Mercedes-Benz is taking a dual-pronged strategy to electrify the performance subbrand — with plug-in hybrids and all-electric models — as the luxury automaker targets lower emissions.

"These are based on AMG.EA, our new, completely in-house-developed platform," Mercedes-AMG global boss Philipp Schiemer noted.

The EQE will be the first of up to four Mercedes EV nameplates planned for the U.S. in 2022 as the automaker looks to undercut Tesla's lead while challenging traditional rivals that are also rapidly electrifying.

The AMG EQE is powered by a next-generation battery that…

Fisker Inc. on Tuesday said it was opening reservations for its second product, a five-passenger EV aimed at younger consumers, with the price starting at $29,900.

The Pear, or the Personal Electric Automotive Revolution, will begin deliveries in 2024, Fisker said.

The company's first vehicle, Ocean crossover, is expected to start production in November 2022 and is said to have higher driving ranges than rival Tesla Inc's Model Y vehicles.

EV makers and legacy automakers are rushing to bring to market new launches and ramp up production as they try to cement a spot in the fast-growing EV space and take on industry leader Tesla.

Fisker said it has partnered with Foxconn to produce Pear and will be manufactured in Ohio with a minimum initial production of 250,000 units per year.

Asbury Automotive Group Inc. CEO David Hult, whose company's net income soared to a fourth-quarter record, expects a seasonally adjusted annual U.S. rate of sales of 15.5 million to 16 million vehicles this year.

"We are excited about 2022," Hult told analysts on an earnings call on Tuesday, calling the year an opportunity for Asbury.

Hult said he expected consumer demand for vehicles would outpace supply "for most of the year" and not truly settle until 2023. He said Asbury expected lower inventory and higher margins in the first half of 2022 and growing vehicle supply and shrinking margins in the final six months.

Asbury had just an eight-day supply of new vehicles at the end the fourth quarter, down from 12 at the end of September and 40 at the end of 2020. Its stores held 34 days' supply of used vehicles on Dec. 31, up from 28 on Sept. 30 and 31 at the end of 2020.

But its average same-store gross profit per new vehicle more than doubled to $6…

WASHINGTON — NHTSA on Tuesday said it has finalized a rule allowing automakers to install adaptive driving beam headlights on new vehicles in response to a 2013 petition by Toyota Motor North America.

The rule — signed Feb. 1 by Deputy Administrator Steven Cliff — satisfies a requirement in the bipartisan infrastructure law passed by Congress last year.

The law directs the agency to issue a final rule within two years amending Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard 108, which regulates automotive lighting, signaling and reflective devices, by including performance-based standards for vehicle headlight systems and allowing adaptive driving beam headlights.

Toyota had asked the agency for a rule-making to amend the standard by giving automakers the option of equipping vehicles with the more advanced systems. The automaker did not immediately have comment.

"NHTSA prioritizes the safety of everyone on our nation's roads, whether they are inside or outs…

Hozon New Energy Automobile Co., a startup that makes affordable electric vehicles, has picked banks including China International Capital Corp. and Citic Securities Co. for an initial public offering in Hong Kong, according to people familiar with the matter.

The Chinese EV firm is also working with Morgan Stanley and UBS Group AG on the first-time share sale, which could take place as soon as this year, the people said. The IPO could raise about $1 billion, the people said, asking not to be identified as the information is private.

Deliberations are ongoing, details such as the fundraising amount and timing could still change and other banks may be added to the lineup, the people said.

A representative for Hozon said the company would disclose as soon as there’s any update, and declined to comment further. Representatives for Citic Securities, CICC and UBS declined to comment, while Morgan Stanley couldn’t immediately respond.

The Zhejiang-based…

BorgWarner Inc. plans to buy the electric motor business of Santroll Electric Auto in a deal valued at more than $220 million as the supplier plugs away at electrifying its portfolio though mergers and acquisitions.

The deal was announced Tuesday as the company reported new EV program wins, such as bus batteries to be produced in Hazel Park, and fourth-quarter financial results that fell short of the same period last year but nonetheless exceeded expectations.

BorgWarner's fourth-quarter revenue fell 7 percent from a year ago to $3.65 billion, while adjusted operating income plunged 16 percent to $375 million. The sales and earnings slide were not as dramatic as they could have been given the ongoing production volatility and supply chain issues, and $16 million in net commodity headwinds, CFO Kevin Nowlan said during an earnings call Tuesday morning.

"We delivered another quarter of strong outperformance in the face of challenging end market environment…

DETROIT — General Motors said Tuesday it plans to restart Chevrolet Bolt production in Michigan on April 4 following the longest-known safety-related assembly halt in company history.

Production of the electric vehicle has been idled for nearly six months because of a sweeping fire-risk recall.

Orion Assembly, which builds the Bolt EV hatchback and larger Bolt EUV crossover, has been idled since August, aside from two weeks of limited production in early November to provide vehicles for customers during recall repairs.

GM recalled some Bolts in November 2020 and then issued a second recall in July. In August, the automaker expanded the recall to include more than 140,000 vehicles — every Bolt EV and EUV that GM has built since 2016. Late last year, GM launched a software diagnostics tool to identify battery-module issues and began replacements of impacted modules.

Production at the plant in Orion Township has been idled so GM could prioritize mod…

The Ford Escape, redesigned for the 2020 model year, offers a new flavor for 2021 in the form of a plug-in hybrid.

Ford's compact crossover joins the Hyundai Tucson, Toyota RAV4 and forthcoming 2023 Kia Sportage with PHEV variants.

The launch was delayed so Ford could determine the cause of battery fires in similar vehicles built in Europe.

The front-wheel-drive, gasoline-electric Escape plug-in hybrid pairs a 2.5-liter four-cylinder engine with an electrified continuously variable automatic transmission that generates 220 combined hp and 155 pound-feet of torque. If offers 37 miles of electric range.

The plug-in hybrid market, somewhat overshadowed by electric vehicles, includes not just compact crossovers, but also the Jeep Wrangler 4xe, the Subaru Crosstrek and some luxury models from BMW, Volvo and even Ferrari.

We've collected some reviews from U.S. and Canadian media.

"As in other PHEVs,…

Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens has declared a state of emergency in an effort to keep trade flowing freely at the Ambassador Bridge on the U.S.-Canada border.

For six days, protestors, demanding an end to vaccine and mask mandates — with some calling for the ouster of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau — blocked access to the key international trade route the North American auto industry so heavily depends on. 

The final handful of demonstrators were removed — or arrested — Sunday afternoon. The bridge quietly opened late Sunday night. 

Traffic was flowing with no delay Monday. Still, Dilkens signed the order later Monday afternoon.

The temporary order includes the closure of seven intersections with Huron Church Road and connecting east-west side streets. The move effectively turned the main six-lane road leading to the bridge into a corral from Highway 401, eliminating access from either side.

“It will allow us to …

Electric-vehicle startup Canoo Inc. has lost several key executives in recent weeks, deepening a talent drain as it faces an investigation by securities regulators.

Among the recent departures is Mike de Jung, an early employee and close associate of Canoo’s chief designer; Nicolas Leblanc, vehicle program lead; and Richard Walker, who oversaw software controls, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified. Steven Offutt, one of Canoo’s earliest employees and the head of powertrain and battery manufacturing engineering, is also stepping down, the people said.

“When you have smart, talented people, this sometimes happens,” a Canoo spokesperson said in a statement that didn’t directly address the departures. De Jung and Offutt didn’t respond to requests for comment, while Walker declined to comment. Leblanc confirmed his exit in a LinkedIn message.

The losses complicate Canoo’s efforts to start manufacturing commercially focu…

Volvo-backed Polestar's ad taking a potshot at rivals Tesla and Volkswagen topped the list of the most popular commercials during Super Bowl LVI, new data on Monday showed.

The 30-second ad by the electric-car maker performed roughly 23 times better than other commercials aired during the game, according to consumer search data firm EDO, with its message of "no epic voiceovers," "no empty promises," and "no hidden agendas" aiming squarely at the idea of conquering Mars as well as the Volkswagen Dieselgate.

Five of the top 20 Super Bowl commercials that were the most searched online during and after the event were EV-focused and were made by Polestar, Kia, Nissan, Chevrolet and BMW, EDO said, highlighting the rising popularity of battery-powered vehicles in the U.S. market.

The number of EV-related TV ads have quadrupled in recent years to 33,000 in 2021 from 8,100 in 2019 and are on pace for another significant increase this year, according to the data…

A New York Chevrolet-Cadillac dealership settled with a former employee who filed a lawsuit claiming that her sexual harassment complaints were improperly handled by store management.

Terms of the settlement were not disclosed. Bloomberg Law first reported the settlement last month.

The U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York on Jan. 28 dismissed the complaint by Christine Domingues against Barton Chevrolet-Cadillac of Newburgh, N.Y., because a settlement was reached one day before a trial was set to begin.

Dealer Ronald Barton did not return multiple requests for comment.

Domingues' lawyer Michael Ranis told Automotive News, "We were pleased it could be resolved." He noted that the discovery period in the lawsuit, which was filed in August 2018, had faced delays because of the coronavirus pandemic.

According to the complaint, Domingues, who had worked at the store since 2016 as a parts cashier, said she was groped by a co…