Trade News

Honda will sell its new HR-V small crossover in Europe only with a full-hybrid drivetrain as the automaker continues to drop diesels and expand its electrified offerings.

The new-generation HR-V will go on sale in Europe later this year as the automaker’s third full-hybrid after the launch of hybrid versions of the CR-V compact crossover in 2019 and the Jazz small hatchback in 2020.

In a statement, Honda said the HR-V expands its electrified line up as the brand moves further toward its goal of electrifying all of its European mainstream models by 2022.

Honda has said it wants two thirds of its vehicles sold in Europe to be electrified by 2025.

The automaker also said an HR-V successor is under development for the U.S.

"This new HR-V will be designed to meet the distinct needs of U.S. customers, and will differ from the Honda Vezel/HR-V that will be introduced in other regions," Honda said in a separate statement. "Honda will have more inf…

Two major French suppliers, Valeo and Faurecia, said their China sales outpaced the country’s light-vehicle production by big margins in 2020.

While China’s auto output shrank 7 percent last year, Valeo said sales to auto manufacturers in the country rose 7 percent to 2.08 billion euros ($2.54 billion). 

The French supplier attributed the growth to a second-half recovery in auto production, during which its sales to automakers rallied 16 percent to top 1.26 billion euros. 

In the fourth quarter, Valeo’s revenue surged 18 percent to 686 million euros on demand for advanced driver-assistance and thermal systems. 

At Faurecia, China sales totaled 2.56 billion euros in 2020, a decline of 1.2 percent from 2019, with second-half revenue rebounding 11 percent, according to the company’s latest financial report.

Hyundai Motor Co.’s commercial vehicle subsidiary in China plans to upgrade a plant in Ziyang in southwest China’s Sichuan province to produce hybrid and electrified vehicles, including fuel cell and all-electric vehicles. 

The subsidiary – Hyundai Truck and Bus China Co. – will invest 2.23 billion yuan ($345 million) to upgrade production facilities and add new equipment at the factory, according to information the Sichuan provincial government disclosed Wednesday. 

After the upgrade, the plant will produce up to 100,000 vehicles a year by 2025. 

Hyundai Truck and Bus China, previously known as Sichuan Hyundai Motor Co., was established in Ziyang in 2012 as a 50-50 joint venture between Hyundai and private Chinese truckmaker Nanjun Automotive Group.

In 2020, it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Hyundai. The Ziyang plant assembles Hyundai-badged heavy-duty and light trucks. Last year, the subsidiary sold around 15,300 tr…

SHANGHAI – More than 60 percent of China’s 14.4 billion residents live in cities. And these days, the country’s sprawling urban areas are becoming more torn between a desire to ease traffic congestion and to promote green vehicles. 

Shanghai, the largest Chinese city, has become the first to craft a solution: Phase out incentives for plug-in hybrids and extended-range EVs, and go all out to popularize EVs. 

That’s part of the plan the Shanghai municipal government released Thursday on how to develop the local new-energy vehicle marketplace over the next five years. 

In Shanghai, a city with 24.2 million people, buyers of EVs and plug-in hybrids have been exempted from paying exorbitant license plate fees, which can exceed 90,000 yuan ($14,000) per vehicle. 

Because of the popular incentive policy, Shanghai has become home to the largest electrified vehicle fleet among Chinese cities. 

In 2020, sales of EVs and plug-…

DETROIT — General Motors has promoted Kristen Siemen to vice president of sustainable workplaces and chief sustainability officer.

She replaces Dane Parker, GM's first-ever sustainability officer, who plans to retire.

In her previous role as executive director of global energy strategy, Siemen, 50, introduced fuel economy improvement technologies along with other initiatives to support GM's zero-emission goals. Siemen also worked closely with Parker to set corporate energy strategies and targets, GM said in a statement Thursday.

Siemen's promotion is effective immediately, but Parker will stay on to help with the transition until May 1, GM said.

Siemen is a 25-year GM veteran and has held senior leadership engineering positions over the past decade.

"As one of the world's largest automakers, we aim to set an example of responsible leadership," Siemen said in the statement. "I am honored and humbled to have the opportunity to help lead GM in…

General Motors is planning to idle production of the hot-selling Corvette sports car next week due to a parts shortage.

Bowling Green Assembly, the automaker's plant in Kentucky, will idle operations from March 1 to March 5. The 2021 Chevrolet Corvette Stingray is produced there.

The downtime is not related to the global semiconductor chip shortage that's proving to be a thorn in automakers' sides.

"Due to a temporary parts supply issue, we can confirm that Bowling Green Assembly will not run production the week of March 1," GM spokesman Dan Flores said in an email. "Our supply chain, manufacturing and engineering teams are working closely with our supply base to mitigate any further impact on production, and we expect the plant to resume normal operations on Monday, March 8."

The automaker did not confirm the specific supply issue.

U.S. deliveries of the new Corvette surged 158 percent to 8,992 during the fourth quarter, GM said. They incr…

Join Automotive News Publisher Jason Stein for a daily podcast series about the coronavirus crisis. He’ll speak with industry experts, insiders and Automotive News reporters about how the virus is impacting and reshaping the automotive industry.

Acura boss Jon Ikeda opens up about the company's ''growing pains'' as it looks to reestablish itself as a performance brand.

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More than half of prospective vehicle buyers or lessees are undecided about choosing a battery-electric vehicle, an inaugural study by J.D. Power shows.

Fifty-nine percent of new-vehicle shoppers are "somewhat likely" or "somewhat unlikely" to consider a BEV for their next purchase or lease, according to J.D. Power's new U.S. Electric Vehicle Consideration Study.

The study, released Thursday, surveyed more than 9,000 U.S. vehicle shoppers from December 2020 to January 2021 who intend to purchase or lease within 12 months.

This consumer indecisiveness is an opportunity for automakers to sell potential buyers on the idea of an EV. But until that happens, it also could create a temporary surplus in EV inventory as the lineup expands, J.D. Power said.

Of survey respondents who have owned or leased a BEV before, 46 percent say they are "very likely" to consider another. Six percent are "very unlikely" to consider one as their next vehicle.

Half …

The effects of the pandemic continue to pummel subprime automotive consumers, who have the lowest origination levels and highest delinquency rates, credit bureau TransUnion and the Federal Reserve Bank of New York said in separate reports last week.

Auto loan delinquencies crept up in the fourth quarter, driven by subprime customers struggling to pay back their loans. As more subprime customers exit forbearance programs, that figure is likely to climb, TransUnion said.

Weak demand may be a stronger factor for low origination levels than lenders tightening standards, says Satyan Merchant, senior vice president and automotive business leader at TransUnion. But those subprime customers who do have auto loans aren't paying them off at the same rate they did before the pandemic, he said.

"It's safe to say lenders were looking at risk in a measured way, but that's just part of the story," Merchant said.

The serious delinquen…

Joby Aviation, the 12-year-old electric air taxi startup partnered with Toyota Motor Corp. and Uber Technologies, will go public in a $6.6 billion reverse merger with blank check company Reinvent Technology Partners, the firms said on Wednesday.

California-based Joby aims to begin a commercial passenger service in 2024, using its electric vertical takeoff and landing (eVTOL) aircraft. Potential air taxi competitors include well-funded German startups Volocopter and Lilium.

Joby is being taken public via a special purpose acquisition company, or SPAC, headed by LinkedIn founder Reid Hoffman, Zynga founder Mark Pincus and longtime investor Michael Thompson.

In an interview, Hoffman said: "We did months of due diligence -- we got the same universal signal. These guys have got everything (to) redefine this new space . . . I think of Joby as Tesla meets Uber in the air."

Joby is the first aerial vehicle startup to go public via the SPAC route. Reuters…

Join Automotive News Publisher Jason Stein for a daily podcast series about the coronavirus crisis. He’ll speak with industry experts, insiders and Automotive News reporters about how the virus is impacting and reshaping the automotive industry.

Penske Automotive Group President Robert Kurnick discusses the dealership group's fourth-quarter profit surge and plans to expand its used-vehicle supercenters.

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