New-vehicle sales in China spiked 75 percent in March to approach 2.53 million deliveries despite the ongoing microchip shortage, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said Friday. The stronger-than-expected rebound was due to abnormally low volume a year earlier when the coronavirus outbreak severely affected Chinese business activities including auto sales, the industry group said. Last month, deliveries of new light vehicles -- sedans, crossovers, SUVs, multipurpose vehicles and minibuses – surged 77 percent to top 1.87 million. Demand for new commercial vehicles such as trucks and buses also jumped 68 percent to some 651,000 deliveries. In the month, sales of EVs soared 240 percent to around 226,000. The number includes some 190,000 full electric vehicles, 36,000 plug-in hybrids and 59 fuel cell vehicles. For the first quarter, industrywide new-vehicle sales rebounded 76 percent from a year earlier to exceed 6.48 million deliveries.&n…
Hyundai to suspend output at Korea plant over chip shortage
SEOUL -- South Korea's Hyundai Motor Co. said on Friday it has decided to suspend production for two days starting on Monday at its Asan plant because of a chip shortage.
It said the suspension was because of the "supply conditions" for semiconductor parts for powertrain control units.
"We are closely monitoring the situation to take prompt and necessary measures to optimize production in line with the supply conditions," Hyundai said in a statement.
The Asan factory turns out 300,000 vehicles each year, including the Sonata and Grandeur sedans.
Hyundai last week announced it would suspend output at Ulsan, its main South Korean factory, from April 7 to April 14 because of chip and component supply issues.
Underscoring the severity of the global chip shortage crisis, Hyundai has become the latest automaker to halt manufacturing because of the chip shortage.
Hyundai had been able to avoid a hit from the shortage up to now largely …
Annual CAR MBS will be held as hybrid event
The Center for Automotive Research plans to go forward with the annual Management Briefing Seminars as a hybrid event in early August, forgoing the virtual format it used last year because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Ann Arbor, Mich.-based nonprofit research group has seminars scheduled Wednesday, Aug. 4, and Thursday, Aug. 5, 2021.
As always, CAR plans to hold the event at the Grand Traverse Resort near Traverse City, Mich. The resort held in-person conferences in fall 2020 and CAR cited its sanitary protocols as reason to hold live events.
"It will be a hybrid event, so we will be offering both the in-person experience, and for those not comfortable attending in person or are unable to attend in person, there will be a virtual option available," said Katie Ramsburgh, director of community relations and marketing operations at CAR.
Registration will open on Thursday, April 15. Both registration options will be available at that time, Ramsburgh …
Some early Ford Mustang Mach-E owners suffer dead batteries
Early owners of Ford Motor Co.'s newest electric vehicle, the Mustang Mach-E crossover, have experienced a battery problem that leaves their vehicles unable to start after charging, according to a service bulletin filed by Ford with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Ford said a software glitch can cause the EV's smaller 12-volt battery to discharge while the larger high-voltage battery pack is charging.
Owners who have experienced the issue said they are unable to start their vehicles after charging, according to The Verge, which first reported the issue on Thursday.
Ford said only "a small number" of Mach-Es built before Feb. 3 were affected, and dealers are able to correct the issue by reprogramming several of the electronic control modules on the vehicle.
Ford said it sold 6,614 Mach-Es in the first quarter. Tesla, the industry's EV leader, said it delivered a record 184,800 cars worldwide in the quarter.
Bo Andersson steps down from Yazaki
Industry veteran Bo Andersson has stepped down from his leadership positions at Yazaki Corp.
Andersson resigned as CEO of the Japanese family-owned wiring supplier's North and Central American businesses and as president of its European operation on March 31, the company said Thursday.
Andersson, 65, will continue to work at the company in a senior executive advisory role, Yazaki said.
Ryosuke Yazaki, a third-generation family member, succeeded Andersson as CEO of Yazaki North America.
"The automotive industry and technology are both moving faster than ever before," Yazaki, 39, said in the company's statement. "With rapid change comes both tremendous challenges and great opportunities. Yazaki is positioned well and will play a critical role in moving the automotive industry forward."
Hans Lemmens was named CEO of Yazaki Europe. He takes the helm after serving as executive vice president for sales at the company since 2018. He has held …
Ford to skip traditional summer shutdown at many plants amid chip shortage
DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. is forgoing the traditional two-week summer shutdown at most of its U.S. plants because of the ongoing semiconductor shortage, and employees will instead have to schedule their vacation time through their individual locals, the automaker said Thursday.
Additionally, Ford announced new downtime for plants in Illinois, Michigan and Missouri amid the crisis.
The automaker informed the UAW that workers at its Dearborn (Mich.) Truck Plant, Michigan Assembly Plant, Flat Rock (Mich.) Assembly Plant, Kentucky Truck Plant, Ohio Assembly Plant, Chicago Assembly Plant and Kansas City (Mo.) Assembly Plant will be working during the traditional shutdown weeks in late June and early July. John Savona, Ford's vice president of manufacturing and labor affairs, said in a letter that employees at those sites would be able to schedule their typical two-week vacation time through the union. A spokeswoman said timing and other details would vary by plant. Read more
O’Steen Automotive Group adds dealership in Georgia
O'Steen Automotive Group has expanded in Georgia, adding its second location and new vehicle brands in the state.
O'Steen Automotive, based in Jacksonville, Fla., and Valdosta, Ga., on March 31 bought Martin Motors in Nashville, Ga., from Guy Martin.
The dealership, in operation since 1950, has been renamed O'Steen Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram. Terms of the transaction weren't disclosed.
O'Steen President Chip O'Steen said his group was looking to expand in southern Georgia and offer its customers additional product lines.
The group, founded in 1996 by Mark O'Steen and Tom O'Steen, has Volvo and Volkswagen dealerships in Jacksonville and a Volkswagen-Subaru store in Valdosta.
Joey McQuaig represented Martin in the transaction.
Auto groups repeat call for government help on chip shortage at multi-industry forum
Auto industry groups reiterated a call for government intervention to address the global semiconductor shortage during a virtual forum Thursday on supply chain risks that includes remarks from a broad swath of stakeholder industries and analysts.
Executives from the Alliance for Automotive Innovation and the Motor & Equipment Manufacturers Association spoke at the conference, which was held by the U.S. Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security to address policy objectives and concerns over President Joe Biden's executive order on supply chains.
The auto industry's latest call for federal support comes after the alliance submitted comments on Monday to the Commerce Department, urging the government to dedicate a portion of funding under the proposed Chips for America Act to auto sector needs.
"This could be accomplished by, for example, specifying that a particular percentage — that is reasonably based on the projected needs of the au…
New-vehicle sales rebound 67% in March, CAAM estimates
China's new-vehicle sales in March kept rebounding from a year earlier when vehicle demand was curbed by the coronavirus outbreak, surging 67 percent to 2.38 million, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers estimates.
Last month, demand for new light vehicles including sedans, crossovers, SUVs, multipurpose vehicles and minibuses rallied 73 percent.
Sales of new commercial vehicles including trucks and buses jumped 56 percent, according to the preliminary tally the industry body released Thursday.
For the first quarter, new-vehicle deliveries across China shot up 73 percent year on year to exceed 6.34 million.
In the period, the number of new light vehicles delivered advanced 74 percent while the volume of new commercial vehicles rose 71 percent, according to the estimates.
The industry body didn’t break down its estimated sales volumes for light vehicles and commercial vehicles. It is expected to disclose …
NTSB: We’re still waiting for tech that can prevent car crashes
A quarter-century has passed since the National Transportation Safety Board first recommended that collision-avoidance technology be required on all vehicles.
The federal agency hasn't given up hope that someday becomes a reality.
NTSB members unveiled their annual "Most Wanted" list of transportation-related safety improvements Monday, and collision-avoidance tech once again made the Top 10 list, which included measures to address speeding, drunken driving and better protection of vulnerable road users.
At a time when federal regulators estimate traffic fatalities have risen 4.9 percent year over year, the NTSB believes those are key topics that must be addressed. Collision-avoidance systems could offer substantial improvements in safety. A recent study by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety found collision-avoidance tech can prevent half of rear-end…
GM Q1 sales rebound but fall short of pre-COVID level
General Motors and its two joint ventures delivered more than 780,000 vehicles in China in the first quarter, an increase of 69 percent from the year-earlier period when the coronavirus outbreak severely dented auto sales and production.
Driving the sales rebound were the Wuling, Cadillac and Buick brands, according to tallies GM’s China unit released this week.
Deliveries at Wuling, whose main products are minibuses, doubled from a year earlier to exceed 347,000 on strong demand for its first four-door full electric sedan and first pickup model.
Cadillac deliveries soared 114 percent to exceed 57,000 on volume generated by the XT4, XT5 and XT6 crossovers and the CT5 sedan.
Buick sales surged 73 percent to more than 224,000 as demand for the GL8 multipurpose vehicle, the Envision crossover and the LaCrosse sedan remained robust.
Chevrolet deliveries rose 27 percent to top 64,000, led by the Blazer and Equinox crossov…
Lexus, BMW hot on Mercedes’ heels in luxury sales race
In a tightening horse race, Mercedes-Benz returned to the front in luxury segment sales for the first quarter, powered by strong demand for its luxury crossovers.
But its lead has narrowed from a year earlier.
In the first quarter of 2020, Mercedes was in first place with a comfortable 11,400-vehicle distance from the segment's third-place challenger, Lexus. But for the first quarter of 2021, Lexus was within 4,003 sales of Mercedes. And BMW, now No. 3 in the race, was just 2,820 vehicles behind Lexus.
And if last year was any indicator, 2021 could be another dramatic race. Despite that roomy first-quarter position a year ago, Mercedes ended 2020 in third place behind BMW and Lexus.
The luxury vehicle segment is showing no sign of slowing down, despite the lingering economic effects of the pandemic around the nation. Total U.S. luxury sales rose 20 percent to 547,903 cars and light trucks in the first quarter, significantly outperforming the broad…