Trade News

DETROIT — The 87-acre M1 Concourse, built on General Motors' former Pontiac West factory site, just may be the perfect venue for tinkering with the future of the Detroit auto show.

Next week, about 15 miles north of the Detroit city limits, Motor Bella will be the first major auto show in the region since 2019. It is taking the place of the North American International Auto Show this year and is being produced by the Detroit Auto Dealers Association.

The world, of course, has changed dramatically since the curtain closed on the final winter Detroit show. But even before the pandemic, organizers were moving away from the traditional static displays and toward a more hands-on, experiential event. Test drives were available in the basement of the former Cobo Center; on Belle Isle, an island park east of downtown Detroit; and elsewhere near the show. But those were mostly slow-moving affairs that didn't allow participants to get a great feel for the vehicles.

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Tim Bartz, Internet manager at Long McArthur Ford in Salina, Kan., is something of a Ford whisperer.

When it comes to the nuances of ordering hot new vehicles such as the Maverick, Bronco and F-150 Lightning in the middle of the crushing semiconductor shortage, Bartz is in high demand by customers vying to get their vehicle orders built first.

Bartz, who also goes by the social media moniker #FordVideoGuy, has become a notable influencer on YouTube, Facebook and Reddit forums, providing critical information to buyers of the Maverick in particular as Ford ramps up production that began in early September.

"I noticed on the Maverick that I'm one of the few dealers putting out videos," Bartz said of his YouTube fame. His top Maverick video — a deep dive on the features of the Lariat trim back in June — had generated more than 125,000 views for the Long McArthur YouTube channel as of mid-September. "On the Bronco, there were so many d…

Rather than usher in an era of low-pollution travel, future fleets of all-electric robotaxis could instead deliver unintended environmental consequences.

Despite the emissions problems they might solve, new research suggests electrified self-driving fleets could, at least in some cases, exacerbate pollution problems.

The counterintuitive findings were published in Environmental Research Letters this month, and come from Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard researchers who say low-cost robotaxis could deter riders from pooling rides and entice travelers into taking trips they otherwise would not have.

Both factors contribute to their conclusions that emissions could actually rise in an electric-robotaxi era, even as they acknowledge electric powertrains provide cleaner transportation than vehicles powered by internal combustion engines.

"It's quite significant in terms of overall energy consumption and emissions," Ashley Nunes, the st…

LOS ANGELES — Hyundai Motor North America has promoted longtime legal counsel Jason Erb to the position of chief legal officer and vice president.

Effective Monday, Erb will oversee all matters across the region, including dealer franchise issues, product liability, warranty, cybersecurity and others, Hyundai said Friday. Erb, 50, will report to Hyundai Motor North America CEO Jose Muñoz.

"Jason is a consummate professional and has vast expertise in our business and legal affairs," Muñoz said in a statement. "This expertise will be critical as we navigate the introduction of new mobility products and services and ensure the protection of our business, partners and customers."

Erb joined Hyundai in 2002 as senior counsel and most recently held the post of assistant general counsel and executive director for litigation. Erb is an alumnus of the University of California, Berkeley, and Duke University School of Law, Hyundai said.

Data forecasting firm IHS Markit said global light-vehicle production could be cut by 6.2 percent — about 5 million vehicles — in 2021.

That is the largest single adjustment to its outlook in the last nine months, the firm said Thursday. It follows losses of millions of units of production in the first three quarters of 2021.

The outlook for the fourth quarter continues to worsen among executives and analysts. The pessimism stems from a heightened risk of challenges to the supply chain, such as the global semiconductor chip shortage.

And for 2022, the light-vehicle production forecast was cut by 9.3 percent, or about 8.4 million vehicles. IHS Markit also reduced its 2023 forecast, by 1.1 percent, just over 1 million vehicles.

IHS Markit now estimates output at 75.8 million vehicles this year and 82.6 million in 2022.

The revisions reflect the challenge the auto industry has faced as it grapples with one supply chain issue after another. Read more

A number of automakers, including a couple of EV startups, announced important updates to new and refreshed products. Here's what they said this week:

Mazda freshens CX-5, adds standard awd to crossovers

Rivian's R1T will launch without tank turn feature

Rivian R1T gets a 314 EPA rating for range; R1S comes in at 316

VW's ID4 electric crossovers with awd rated at 240, 249 miles per charge

2022 Toyota Tundra to make auto show debut at Detroit's Motor Bella

Lucid's launch edition of Air EV hits 520 miles of EPA range

Stellantis has added another week of downtime at its minivan plant in Windsor, Ontario, due to the ongoing global shortage of semiconductors.

The plant will be idled the week of Sept. 27. It was already down the week of Sept. 13 and scheduled to be idle the week of Sept. 20. It was previously idled the weeks of Aug. 30 and Sept. 6 for the same reason.

“Stellantis continues to work closely with our suppliers to mitigate the manufacturing impacts caused by the various supply chain issues facing our industry,” the automaker said in a statement to Automotive News Canada.

About 4,500 people, the majority of them Unifor members, build the Chrysler Pacifica, Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid, Chrysler Grand Caravan in Canada and Chrysler Voyager for the U.S. market.

Stellantis resumed regular output at the factory on July 5, after being idle nearly every day since March 29.

The factory resumed operation the week of May 31, but not at full …

<!--*/ */ /*-->*/ Stark statistics bring speeding epidemic into sharper focus

Traffic deaths have surged during the pandemic. The latest numbers from federal officials show a 10.5 percent increase during the first quarter of 2021 over the previous year, a rise that comes even as the overall number of vehicle miles driven has fallen.

Speeding motorists have been identified as a prime culprit of that increase. Motorists started speeding at new levels during the pandemic, and haven't slowed down even as traffic approaches pre-pandemic levels.

New data from traffic-analytics company Arity brings that driver behavior into sharper focus: the company says that today, nearly 1 in every 20 miles driven occurs at speeds greater than 80 mph. Time spent over 80 mph remains approximately 10 percent higher than in 2019. Forty-two percent of the miles driven at speeds faster than 80 mph occur at night, according to the Arity report, entitled "Life In The Fast …

DETROIT — General Motors said it is extending downtime at several crossover assembly plants in North America as the global microchip shortage drags on, but production at plants that make its lucrative full-size pickups and SUVs will continue.

"These most recent scheduling adjustments are being driven by the continued parts shortages caused by semiconductor supply constraints from international markets experiencing COVID-related restrictions," the automaker said in a statement Thursday. "Although the situation remains complex and very fluid, GM continues to prioritize full-size truck production which remains in high demand."

Seven of GM's plants in North America will be running next week: its full-size pickup plants in Flint, Mich., Fort Wayne, Ind., and Silao, Mexico; its full-size SUV plant in Arlington, Texas; its Chevrolet Corvette plant in Bowling Green, Ky.; its GMC Acadia, Cadillac XT5 and XT6 plant in Spring Hill, Tenn.; and Fairfax Assembly in Kan…

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. said Thursday that it will spend an additional $250 million and add 450 new jobs in southeast Michigan to double production of its upcoming F-150 Lightning EV pickup.

Ford said the investment and jobs will be spread across its Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, Van Dyke Electric Powertrain Center and Rawsonville Components Plant. The added investment will help Ford build 80,000 electric trucks per year, up from an original plan to build 40,000 annually.

Executives say they boosted the planned production based on strong demand. Ford has received more than 150,000 reservations for the electric pickup, in the form of refundable deposits, which is scheduled to go on sale by the middle of next year.

"We knew the F-150 Lightning was special, but the interest from the public has surpassed our highest expectations and changed the conversation around electric vehicles. So we are doubling down, adding jobs and investment to increase productio…