Trade News

Daimler's Ola Kallenius is making a dramatic move to win over investors who have knocked the automaker for keeping its luxury-car and commercial-vehicle operations under one roof.

The Mercedes-Benz maker plans to distribute a majority of its Daimler Truck unit to shareholders by year-end, expecting it will quickly qualify for Germany's benchmark stock index. Its most iconic brand also will become the name of the auto company, a move that underscores the CEO's desire for a clear separation of the two businesses.

For Kallenius, it's a split in more ways than one.

The decision to fundamentally change the company's structure marks a major break from his predecessor, Dieter Zetsche, who was pressured in the wake of Daimler's divorce from Chrysler to make deeper changes.

Zetsche rejected the car-truck separation idea, arguing that a broader industrial presence would offer more protection against swings in individual market segments.

Kallenius ma…

CDK Global Inc. has acquired Square Root, an Austin, Texas, company that specializes in data insights for automotive field management.

Dealership management system giant CDK, of Hoffman Estates, Ill., said it completed the deal this week. Financial terms were not disclosed.

CDK Global last week introduced Neuron, an intelligent data platform that will link with its Fortellis open network development platform. The company says Neuron will use artificial intelligence and machine learning to generate predictive data insights that can help dealers and original equipment manufacturers customize consumer experiences.

Square Root started in 2006 and uses data to help automakers' field managers identify opportunities for retailers, according to CDK, adding that Square Root technology will help CDK produce insights based on data coming from CDK's DMS, customer relationship management system and other software.

"The acquisition of …

Lithia Motors Inc. reported record revenue and profits for the fourth quarter of 2020 as it also announced plans to more than double last year's pace of dealership acquisitions.

Lithia, the third-largest new-vehicle retailer in the U.S., said Wednesday that it posted net income of $187.6 million for the fourth quarter, more than 2.5 times the $68 million it earned in the fourth quarter of 2019. Revenue rose 21 percent to $3.94 billion.

The earnings news comes mere days after reports of Lithia's plans to acquire southeast Michigan's Suburban Collection, one of the nation's largest privately owned dealership groups. Executives for the Medford, Ore., company declined to comment on the reported Suburban deal but said Wednesday that Lithia in 2021 is likely to acquire dealerships representing more than $7 billion in additional annual revenue.

New- and used-vehicle sales and finance and insurance profit per vehicle increased by double-digit percentages in the …

Groups representing automakers, suppliers, tech companies and other stakeholders are calling on Congress to support bipartisan legislation that will foster the development and safe deployment of automated vehicles in the U.S.

In a letter sent Wednesday to congressional leaders, the Coalition for Future Mobility stressed the critical need for a federal framework for AVs that provides "clarity that affirms existing roles and maintains the balance of responsibilities between federal-state-local levels of government, modernizes federal regulatory processes and ensures rigorous safety standards for the continued development and safe deployment of AV technologies."

"Put simply, the investments and policies being made today by our organizations toward a safer, more environmentally friendly, accessible and equitable U.S. transportation future depends on a thoughtful federal legislative approach and regulatory framework for AVs," the groups said in the letter.

Th…

WASHINGTON -- U.S. lawmakers will question President Joe Biden’s pick to lead the nation’s top environmental regulator on Wednesday with a focus on how he will execute the administration's goal of decarbonizing the country's vehicles and power plants.

Michael Regan, 44, would be the first Black man to lead the Environmental Protection Agency if confirmed by the Senate, and would take the reins at a time the agency has been weakened by Trump-era budget and staff cuts and bitter partisan dispute over Biden's climate agenda.

"Taking the helm of EPA would be a monumental task under the best of circumstances, but it’s hard to imagine a more difficult moment than right now," said Sen. Tom Carper, the top Democrat on the Senate environment committee.

Regan was formerly head of North Carolina’s environmental regulator, where he earned a reputation as a bipartisan consensus builder, and last year oversaw a settlement with Duke Energy Corp. for the nation’s larges…

Toyota Motor Corp. profiles Paraolympian Jessica Long in an emotional 60-second Super Bowl ad.

Long was adopted by an American couple from a Russian orphanage. The spot, called “Upstream,” depicts how the couple received the news that Long’s legs would need to be amputated due to a rare condition. “It might not be easy, but it will be amazing,” her future mother says.

The story is told by showing scenes of Long swimming through each scene, including as a child. The ad ends by plugging Toyota’s Olympic sponsorship. The ad comes from Saatchi & Saatchi and was directed by Tarsem Singh.

“’Upstream’ highlights Toyota’s mission to shine a light on athletes like Jessica who work tirelessly every day to pursue their passion and inspire people around the world to reach their full potential,” Lisa Materazzo, group vice president of marketing at Toyota Motor North America, said in a statement. “We are grateful to Jessica and her family for their willingness t…

DETROIT — Look out, Norway.

General Motors — with a little help from actor Will Ferrell — wants to bring the electric vehicle crown to the U.S.

But, first, Ferrell wants to give the Nordic country a piece of his mind in GM's Super Bowl spot, which touts the sleek, electric Cadillac Lyriq crossover, the hulking GMC Hummer EV and the automaker's Ultium battery platform that will power its electrified future.

Ferrell begins the ad in shock that Norway "sells way more electric cars per capita than the U.S."

That part isn't a joke.

All-electric models made up 54 percent of all new cars sold in Norway in 2020, and the country plans to become the first nation to end the sale of gasoline and diesel vehicles by 2025. Some forecast that EVs could account for 65 percent of Norway's new-vehicle market in 2021.

Armed with this knowledge, Ferrell begins his trek to Norway, saying GM is going to crush them with its Ultium batteries. Along the way…

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.

Motormindz CEO Jeff Van Dongen discusses the venture capital and consulting firm's efforts to help auto retailers transform and redefine the digital retail experience.

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Ree Automotive, an electric-vehicle technology startup, has agreed to go public through a merger a special-purpose acquisition company. with blank-check company.

The transaction with 10X Capital Venture Acquisition Corp. includes a $300 million private investment in public equity and gives the combined entity an enterprise value of about $3.1 billion, according to a statement confirming an earlier report by Bloomberg News. Ree’s existing investors will own more than 80 percent of the combined company.

Ree, a Tel Aviv-based company led by co-founder Daniel Barel, makes technology to integrate all drive components into the arch of the wheel and flat, modular chassis for autonomous delivery trucks, shuttles and robotaxis. The company says its platform can be used for battery or fuel cell-powered vehicles.

“Merging with a SPAC and becoming public is an important gateway that gives us the ability to scale up and meet demand,” Barel said in an interview.…

TOKYO -- Mazda Motor Corp. is considering cutting its global output by a 34,000 vehicles over the next two months due to a chip shortage, two sources familiar with the matter told Reuters on Wednesday.

Last week, Mazda was considering cutting output of models that include its CX-5 and CX-30 crossovers, as well as the Mazda 3 sedan, due to a shortage in supplies of chips used for brake systems and safety components, said the sources, who declined to be identified.

The company plans to reduce its domestic output of the CX-5 by around 3,900 vehicles this month, they said. As of last week, it was considering reducing production of the crossover by about 6,000 vehicles in March, the sources said.

The semiconductor shortage, which in some cases has been exacerbated by the former U.S. administration's actions against chip factories in China, is now causing global automakers to curtail production and shut assembly lines.

Mazda is also considering an outpu…

TOKYO -- Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. plans record high global production of 9.2 million vehicles this year, up about 2 percent from 2019's pre-coronavirus output, the Nikkei newspaper reported Friday.

The automaker has informed its main suppliers of the plan, which reflects sales momentum in China and demand recovery in North America and Japan, the Nikkei said, without citing sources.

Toyota is expecting solid sales around the globe this year thanks to the release of coronavirus vaccines, the newspaper added.

A spokesperson for the company was not immediately available for comment.

Several states are reducing barriers to the adoption of electric vehicles by planning for charging infrastructure, offering vehicle-purchase incentives and setting lower electric rates during preferred charging times, according to a report issued Wednesday by the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy.

California is the nation's leader in enabling the use of EVs, earning 91 out of 100 possible points, according to the nonpartisan group's State Transportation Electrification Scorecard.

By 2035, California — the nation's largest auto market and the world's fifth-largest economy — will require all new passenger cars and trucks sold in the state be zero-emission vehicles in an effort to transition away from fossil fuels and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, Gov. Gavin Newsom said in September.

According to the council's report, California is the only state to set deadlines for electrifying transit buses, heavy trucks and commer…