Trade News

Nikola Corp., the troubled electric-truck startup, lost a key member of its executive team with the departure of the former head of its fuel cell development program.

The company said Jesse Schneider, executive vice president of technology, hydrogen and fuel cells, left the company as of April 1. He had led its engineering teams working on fuel cell systems, a planned hydrogen fueling station network and storage technology.

“Jesse Schneider departed on April 1 on very good terms and we wish him well,” Colleen Robar, a Nikola spokeswoman, said Wednesday in a text message.

Hydrogen-powered vehicles and the fueling network to support them is at the core of the Phoenix, Arizona-based company’s business model after it abandoned a planned pickup project with General Motors and development of powersports vehicles.

Shares of Nikola fell 7 percent to close at $12.29 Wednesday in New York.

Nikola is one of a number of companies looking…

Industry inventory shortages are wreaking havoc on new- and used-vehicle auto finance trends, which show the average cost of vehicles dropped last month even while the average interest charged on auto loans rose.

The rise in the average interest rate on new vehicles amid declining monthly payments is explained by the inventory constraints hampering truck and SUV sales, said Edmunds senior analyst Ivan Drury. March sales favored Asian automakers, whose product mix tends to transact at lower price points than those of the Detroit 3.

"With the mix changing so drastically year over year, it's not too surprising," Drury told Automotive News. "Because of the shortage, we've seen a reduction in what's out there for consumers, even though credit's cheap."

The average interest rate charged on new-vehicle loans last month rose slightly to 4.6 percent, though it remained down from March 2020's average of 5.8 percent, according to Edmunds. The …

Uber Technologies Inc. said U.S. drivers on their ride-hail platforms should take advantage of pay hikes as trip demand temporarily outstrips driver supply, but warned the windfall will not last.

Uber on Wednesday said it would invest an additional $250 million to further boost driver earnings and offer payment guarantees in an effort to incentivize new and existing drivers.

Dennis Cinelli, Uber's vice president of U.S. & Canada mobility, in a blog post told drivers to take advantage of higher earnings before pay returns to pre-COVID-19 levels as more drivers return to the platform.

Lyft Inc. on Tuesday also said drivers in the company's top-25 markets were earning an average of $36 per hour compared to $20 per hour pre-pandemic. Those numbers include tips, but Lyft did not disclose the share of tips in earnings. Lyft is also offering additional incentives and promotions in select markets.

Uber said drivers spending 20 hours online per week in…

Assurant Inc., one of the leading finance-and-insurance providers, is rolling out electric and hybrid vehicle products in the U.S. The introduction of these new products indicates the company's growing faith in EV adoption in North America.

Unlike some competitors, Assurant hasn't formally introduced F&I products specific to EVs until now. Some EV protections are included in Assurant's service contract products, said Martin Jenns, senior vice president of global transformation for the global insurance company.

"We felt the timing was appropriate, given the pivot we've seen in the market," Jenns said. "While the global distribution of electric vehicles as a percentage of the overall market today is relatively small, we think the timing is good and aligned to the core values of Assurant and our [environmental, social and corporate governance] initiatives."

Assurant launched its electric vehicle product, Assurant EV One, in the U.K.…

The growing movement to impose 36 percent interest rate caps on retail installment loans received a rousing endorsement last week from the National Association of Loan Sharks, "the preeminent trade association for illegal moneylenders."

Though an April Fools' Day joke orchestrated by the American Financial Services Association, the April 1 press release reflects serious industry concerns that interest rate caps restrict financing opportunities for customers on the lower end of the credit spectrum at a vulnerable economic time.

The tongue-in-cheek release highlights how a slate of rate cap legislation could expand opportunities for the fake loan shark association's members.

"These proposals are awful for consumers but great for our business model, ensuring tens of thousands of consumers will not have access to ethical and reliable traditional installment loans, and are now forced to turn to us," a supposed spokesperson said in the rel…

Vinay Shahani, vice president of N.A. marketing, says an onslaught of products will propel the luxury brand.

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Shares of lidar sensor startup Innoviz rose on Tuesday, its first day trading as a public company.

The Tel Aviv, Israel-based firm is developing the sensors, which help self-driving vehicles gain a 3D view of the road. The company has a partnership with BMW to sell the automaker its first generation of sensors, which cost around $1,000. Innoviz is working on a second-generation sensor which it hopes to sell for less than $500.

The shares rose 11 percent to close at $10.79 on the Nasdaq stock market in New York.

Innoviz became public on Tuesday after completing a merger with publicly listed blank-check firm Collective Growth Corp. that raised $371 million. Four other lidar firms - Velodyne Lidar Inc., Luminar Technologies Inc., Aeva Technologies Inc. and Ouster Inc. - have all become public in recent months. Rival AEye Inc. also plans to become public via a merger with CF Acquisition III Corp.

"What we need to [do…

WASHINGTON -- The Biden administration is on track to propose by the end of July new limits on the emission of greenhouse gases from automobiles that are strong enough to meet “the urgency of the climate crisis,” according to EPA Administrator Michael Regan.

“We need to go as far as we can to meet the demands of the day,” Regan said in an exclusive interview Tuesday with Bloomberg News. “The science indicates we have a short window in time to reverse the path that we’re on and mitigate against certain climate impacts.”

The EPA is now rewriting a Trump-era regulation that relaxed limits on greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles through the 2026 model year. The issue is shaping up to be an early test of President Joe Biden’s commitment to fighting climate change through ambitious greenhouse-gas controls, even when opposed by industry.

In the interview, Regan also highlighted California’s unique role in fighting pollution, the return of the U.S. to the Pari…

DETROIT – The Mustang Mach-E, by nearly all accounts, has been a home run in what Ford CEO Jim Farley has called the "first inning of electrification" as the automaker tries to wedge itself into a conversation dominated so far by Tesla, General Motors and Volkswagen.

Farley has referred to the vehicle as the "first credible mass-market competitor to Tesla" and in many respects, he's right. The Mach-E is plenty capable (a prerequisite for Bill Ford to let product planners use the iconic pony logo), has impressive range and features a slew of cool new features. Plus, it's not built in a tent.

But Tesla has a clear advantage when it comes to charging infrastructure, and that's not going to change any time soon.

I recently received a Mach-E to evaluate and experienced firsthand the small inconveniences of relying on third-party chargers.

Ford has gone to great lengths to partner with a number of companies to offer what i…

Silicon Valley self-driving startup Gatik and Isuzu North America Corp. on Tuesday said they will work together to build autonomous delivery trucks that Gatik will use to serve its retailer customers.

Gatik, which works with Walmart Inc. in Arkansas and Louisiana and Loblaw Cos. in Canada to deliver goods to stores from warehouses using autonomous trucks with safety drivers, has seen a boom in business as the pandemic has boosted sales at grocery stores.

"What I can share is our revenue is in the millions. So this is not a free service that we offer," said co-founder and CEO Gautam Narang. He said Gatik's business model for now is to be a delivery service provider for retailers using self-driving technology rather than selling the technology to automakers.

Self-driving truck companies, especially those supplying big rigs that transport goods from warehouse to warehouse and drive along highways, have been gaining a lot of traction with investors keen…

DETROIT — General Motors plans to build a battery-powered version of its top-selling U.S. nameplate — the Chevrolet Silverado — at an electric vehicle plant in Detroit.

The pickup -- designed and engineered as an EV from the ground up -- will be powered by the automaker's Ultium batteries with a GM-estimated range of more than 400 miles on a full charge, the company said Tuesday. It will face a slew of upcoming electric pickups, including a battery-powered version of the Ford F-150 and Rivian's R1T.

GM declined to provide production timing at the Detroit plant, known as Factory Zero, but forecasting company AutoForecast Solutions expects output to start in late 2022. The company expects GM to build 38,000 electric Silverados annually starting in 2023.

GM also confirmed that it plans to make the 2024 GMC Hummer EV SUV, which debuted last week, at the Detroit plant. By 2024, AutoForecast Solutions expects GM to build 23,000 Hummer SUVs per year.<…