Trade News

Volvo Cars' biggest product launch since the XC40 in 2017 is hamstrung by an issue many automakers are grappling with in this age of advanced technology vehicles.

Volvo has delayed production of the new electric EX90 crossover to mid-2024 as engineers work to incorporate a key safety technology into the flagship model's new platform. On the company's earnings call Thursday, Volvo Cars CEO Jim Rowan pinned the "five- or six-month" delay on the "complexity of the software code" around the EX90's lidar system.

The remote-sensing lidar technology uses laser light pulses to render precise images of the environment around the vehicle. Volvo said lidar and other sensors on the EX90 create an "invisible shield of safety" that can help reduce accidents that cause serious injuries or death by up to one-fifth.

The EX90 is the first Volvo to incorporate lidar and will offer the technology as standard equipment.

"We're writing a lot of [the] software ourselv…

Mercedes-AMG will debut its first performance hybrid crossover following this spring's redesign of the workhorse GLC model.

The 2024 Mercedes-AMG GLC 43 compact crossover will arrive at U.S. stores in early 2024. The 2025 Mercedes-AMG GLC 63 S E Performance will follow later in the year.

Mercedes delivered 65,531 GLC crossovers in the U.S. last year, up 26 percent from 2021.

The GLC 43 mild hybrid is powered by an AMG hand-built 2.0-liter four-cylinder engine with an electric exhaust gas turbocharger. It produces 416 hp and an extra 13 hp via a starter generator at lower engine speeds. The GLC 43 accelerates from a standstill to 60 mph in 4.7 seconds.

Mercedes said the M139l engine is the only production engine in the world turbocharged with an electric exhaust gas turbocharger. Derived from Formula One technology, the new form of turbocharging "guarantees particularly spontaneous response across the rpm range," the automaker said.

The GL…

A number of forces are disrupting the automotive landscape, making this an especially pivotal time for dealership groups. Seismic industry shifts, driven by the pandemic and subsequent inventory shortages, have altered consumer shopping and buying habits. New offerings — including electric vehicles — are accelerating the changes dealers need to make to operate and position themselves to thrive now and in the future.

Urban Science has created a precise, best-in-class, turnkey solution to help dealership groups make merger and acquisition (M&A) decisions rooted in science, not speculation. It’s a solution that enables you to access Designated Marketing Area (DMA) data never before seen at the dealer level.

WILMINGTON, Del. — Tesla Inc.'s directors agreed to settle a shareholder lawsuit challenging their compensation by returning to the company the value of 3.1 million stock options, worth $735 million, according to a Monday filing in a Delaware court.

The settlement resolves a 2020 lawsuit by a retirement fund which holds Tesla stock and challenged stock options that were granted to Tesla directors starting in June 2017.

The settlement does not impact the $56-billion compensation package of Elon Musk, which is being challenged by shareholders in a separate lawsuit that went to trial last year. A ruling is expected soon in the Musk case.

The directors, including Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison, agreed to return the equivalent value of 3.1 million Tesla stock options, according to a court filing.

Tesla did not respond to a request for comment. The directors acted in good faith and in the best interests of Tesla stockholders but agreed to settle to e…

In an era of rapid technological innovation and growing consumer demand for more advanced vehicles, a robust work force prepared to meet the needs of this evolving market is critical to the success of the U.S. automotive manufacturing industry. New data shows that international automakers are rising to meet this moment, preparing their work forces while supporting a resurgence in U.S. manufacturing and creating thousands of good-paying careers nationwide.

Making up nearly half of our nation's automotive manufacturing production, international automakers are a critical part of the fabric of the U.S. auto industry. Findings from Autos Drive America and the American International Automobile Dealers Association's 2023 Economic Impact Report show that investments from international automakers reached $107 billion last year, up $6 billion from 2021, with total investment increasing by 49 percent over the past nine years. International automakers directly employ more than 15…

Ford Motor Co. on Monday reduced prices for its F-150 Lightning electric pickups by about $6,000 to $10,000, depending on trim, citing lower material costs and higher production capacity.

The price cuts could help the company maintain strong sales when most electric vehicle inventories are rising as production levels outstrip demand. They follow more price cuts by Tesla, which remains the leading EV seller despite increasing competition from Ford, General Motors and others.

Ford on Monday said the cheapest Lightning model, the commercial-focused Pro trim, now will start at $51,990 including shipping. That's still 25 percent more expensive than the truck was when it launched in April 2022.

The highest-priced trim, the extended-range Platinum model, now starts at $93,990 including shipping, down $6,079.

Ford had raised Lightning prices multiple times, most recently in March, before Monday's cuts undid some of those actions.

"Shortly af…

LANSING, Mich. — Chevrolet is loading the next-generation Traverse crossover with its first-ever off-road trim, more standard safety features and larger touchscreens.

The 2024 Traverse, scheduled to go on sale early next year, has an updated design and a new engine with more horsepower and torque, General Motors said Monday. The redesigned three-row crossover will come in four trims — LS, LT, RS and, for the first time, the off-road Z71.

GM did not disclose pricing while revealing the third-generation Traverse at the mid-Michigan plant that will assemble it, though executives said the crossover will be competitive in its segment. The 2023 Traverse starts at $35,915 with shipping.

"Our new Traverse is designed and engineered to act and look more like an SUV," Scott Bell, vice president of global Chevrolet, said in a statement. "Led by the all-new Z71, the 2024 Traverse builds on the success of its predecessor and will undoubtedly enable us to be in more…

FRANKFURT -- Germany's top union IG Metall called for Tesla to improve staffing conditions at its German gigafactory as it prepares to expand, with the carmaker due to publish its expansion plans for feedback from the community later this week.

Tesla's application to double the capacity of its Gruenheide site near Berlin to 1 million cars a year will be made accessible online and to local residents from July 19, according to the environment ministry of Brandenburg, the German state where the plant is based.

Citizens have until mid-September to file objections to the application.

The expansion plans will entail adding more jobs to the 12,000 planned for the first expansion phase of Tesla's first European product hub, of which roughly 11,000 have been hired so far.

"We welcome the creation of jobs in the automotive industry in Germany. Tesla's plans are a clear commitment to Brandenburg as a location," IG Metall's Dirk Schulze said.

"However,…

On her first day working at an auto dealership, Carol Kitts sold four cars.

“I was so excited, so pumped,” Kitts said. Then her general manager, who had recruited her for the job, pulled her aside.

“He took me to the back lot and said, ‘I want to let you know, these guys are going to try to crack you.’ I had to ask what he meant. He said because I’d sold four cars that day and the other salesmen didn’t sell any, that they were threatened. I was the first woman salesperson, and I was only 19. It was hard for me to understand that there would be people who would try to make me fail. And they did try to break me.”

But they did not succeed. This summer, after nearly two decades in the auto industry, Kitts was named general manager of the brand-new Volkswagen of Fairfield, Calif. The dealership is owned by Fairfield Automotive Partners, a partnership between Schomp Automotive Group and Third Set Partners.

Being elevated to a GM position is the latest succe…

Despite surging U.S. sales of electric vehicles, the market is cooling for some of the promising startups and legacy automakers that shot to the top of the EV charts last year, according to new registration data from Experian.

New EV registrations rose by a healthy 68 percent in the January-to-May period to a record 447,514 vehicles. But about half of the increase came from market leader Tesla, the data shows.

Hot EV brands from last year — including Ford, Kia and Lucid — are now cooling as Tesla continues to sell 6 of every 10 EVs in the U.S.

Additionally, those that entered the market with some fanfare, including Cadillac and Porsche, are near the bottom of the 25 brands appearing in the latest registration data.

Overall, EVs rose to a 7 percent share of the U.S. light-vehicle market in the first five months of the year from 4.6 percent a year earlier. But analysts see tougher days ahead as consumers balk at relatively high prices and interest…

Despite surging U.S. sales of electric vehicles, the market is cooling for some of the promising startups and legacy automakers that shot to the top of the EV charts last year, according to new registration data from Experian.

New EV registrations rose by a healthy 68 percent in the January-to-May period to a record 447,514 vehicles. But most of the volume came from market leader Tesla, the data shows.

Hot EV brands from last year — including Ford, Kia and Lucid — are now cooling as Tesla continues to sell 6 of every 10 EVs in the U.S.

Additionally, those that entered the market with some fanfare, including Cadillac and Porsche, are near the bottom of the 25 brands appearing in the latest registration data.

Overall, EVs rose to a 7 percent share of the U.S. light-vehicle market in the first five months of the year from 4.6 percent a year earlier. But analysts see tougher days ahead as consumers balk at relatively high prices and interest rates. Read more

Whether you're a rapidly growing retailer, well-established automaker or scrappy mobility startup, future-proofing your business is tough work. Competition is fierce, technological and regulatory hurdles are high and the market is the final arbiter of success.

This week's issue of Automotive News examines a variety of opportunities and challenges facing noteworthy players in this evolving industry.

Lithia Motors is not content with its recent ascension to the No. 1 dealership group in the U.S. We visited CEO Bryan DeBoer at the company's headquarters in Medford, Ore., to discuss how his company plans to achieve its ambitious goal of $50 billion in annual revenue by the end of 2025. DeBoer's strategy goes beyond acquiring more stores. Lithia is already dabbling in new business lines, and is looking at more verticals. And the company's decentralized business model gives local leaders the autonomy to make decisions that contribute to company growth.

Executi…