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DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. said on Tuesday it has ordered a dozen ultra-cold freezers that can safely store Pfizer Inc.'s COVID-19 vaccine, a move aimed at ensuring the U.S. automaker's workers have access to vaccines when they are rolled out nationally.

Ford's purchase mirrors efforts by U.S. states and cities to buy equipment to store millions of doses of Pfizer's vaccine at temperatures of minus 70 degrees Celsius (minus 94 degrees Fahrenheit), significantly below the standard for vaccines of 2-8 degrees C (36-46 degrees F).

Health care providers and states are preparing for a new type of vaccines by Pfizer and Moderna Inc. that require lower temperatures for storage.

"We're doing this so that we can make the vaccine available to our employees on a voluntary basis," Ford spokeswoman Kelli Felker said.

Details of how Ford will use the freezers, which are expected to be delivered by year end, are still being worked out, she said.

Assembly w…

One of the most important product redesigns for 2020 is the 14th-generation Ford F-150. The 2021 pickup sports a similar exterior design compared with the outgoing model but now has a wider stance.

One of the biggest changes for the pickup is the addition of a 3.5-liter hybrid V-6, which Ford has named PowerBoost. The powertrain, mated to a 10-speed transmission, includes a 35-kilowatt-hour electric motor near the engine and a 1.5-kWh lithium ion battery in the rear.

We've compiled select F-150 PowerBoost reviews from the automotive media.

"Running on electrons definitely enhances the 2021 F-150 PowerBoost's sense of inner calm, but you needn't be in electric-only mode to understand that this new F-150 feels appreciably quieter than before. Wind and road noise are well controlled, and whether the 3.5-liter EcoBoost V6 is pumping its red-hot fists in the air or not, the cabin of this F-Series is a surprisingly serene place to be. I even made a point to d…

Elon Musk briefed a European battery conference on Tesla's efforts to bring longer-range electric cars to market in the coming years, though he broke little new ground with regard to timing or other specifics.

The factory Tesla is building near Berlin will make cars tailored for European buyers, including smaller models that can park in dense urban environments, Musk said. He hinted earlier this year that the company might engineer a hatchback from Germany.

"In Europe, it would make sense to do a compact car, perhaps a hatchback," Musk said during the event hosted by Germany as part of its European Union Council presidency. "I'm sure there will be others as well."

Tesla will debut improved versions of existing models that approach 700 km (435 miles) of range and has cars under development for the long term that could reach 1,000 km, the CEO said Tuesday. Musk has tweeted before that the revived Roadster model will cross that threshold, but the car is ye…

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.

Dealership buy-sell expert Mark Johnson says the outcome of January's U.S. Senate runoff races in Georgia could accelerate acquisitions and have significant tax implications for retailers. 

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Ford Motor Co. reached outside the auto industry for its next global chief marketing officer, installing former eBay North American CMO Suzy Deering in the position. 

Deering, 51, left eBay in mid-October after five years. She joined the online marketplace after being CEO of Atlanta ad agency Moxie. Before that, she logged time in marketing roles at Home Depot and Verizon. Deering lacks significant experience in automotive, according to her LinkedIn page, making her selection unusual for an industry that tends to hire top marketing leaders from within. 

Her selection signals that Ford wants to continue to bolster its tech chops as it increasingly competes with Silicon Valley companies such as Tesla, Uber and Lyft. In a Tuesday statement, Ford described Deering as “accomplished at using technology, data and analytics to anticipate customer needs and fulfill them with human-centered products and services.”

“Technology will be a powerful part…

BRUSSELS -- The European Union could produce enough automotive batteries by 2025 to power its fast-growing fleet of EVs without relying on imported cells, European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic said on Tuesday.

"I am confident that by 2025, the EU will be able to produce enough battery cells to meet the needs of the European automotive industry, and even to build our export capacity," Sefcovic told the online European Conference on Batteries.

Today, China hosts roughly 80 percent of the world's lithium ion cell production, but Europe's capacity is set to expand fast.

Europe has 15 large-scale battery cell factories under construction, including Swedish company Northvolt's plants in Sweden and Germany, Chinese battery maker CATL's German facility, and South Korean company SK Innovation's second plant in Hungary.

Sefcovic said by 2025 planned European facilities would produce enough cells to power at least 6 million electric vehicles.

WASHINGTON -- General Motors said Monday it is reversing course and will no longer back the Trump administration's effort to bar California from setting its own emissions rules in an ongoing court fight.

GM CEO Mary Barra said in a letter to environmental groups it is "immediately withdrawing from the preemption litigation and inviting other automakers to join us."

The dramatic rejection of Trump came as GM sought to work with President-elect Joe Biden, who has made boosting electric vehicles a top priority. GM has laid out an ambitious strategy to boost EV sales and last week said it will increase spending on EVs and autonomous vehicles by 35 percent from previous disclosed plans.

The announcement reflects corporate America's move to engage quickly with the incoming Democratic administration.

Barra said she believes "the ambitious electrification goals of the president-elect, California, and General Motors are aligned, to address climate change b…

Plug-in hybrid cars emit far more CO2 than advertised, according to tests commissioned by European campaign group Transport and Environment, which on Monday called on governments to end subsidies and tax breaks for such models.

The tests were conducted by Emissions Analytics on three plug-in hybrid SUV models -- BMW's X5, Volvo's XC60 and Mitsubishi's Outlander -- and found that even under optimal conditions they emitted far more CO2 than advertised.

"Plug-in hybrids are fake electric cars, built for lab tests and tax breaks, not real driving," Julia Poliscanova, T&E's senior director for clean vehicles said in a statement. "Governments should stop subsidizing these cars with billions in taxpayers' money."

In response to requests for comment, a Volvo spokesperson in an email said all Volvo cars are certified and fully comply with existing emissions legislation.

Mitsubishi spokeswoman Amanda Gibson said, also by email, that independent tests ca…

McLaren Automotive will call its upcoming plug-in hybrid the Artura, the latest detail to be revealed about the supercar.

The electrified vehicle was previously referred to as the P16, its code-name.

A McLaren spokesman said Artura is a newly created name that "represents the art of design and future technology."

McLaren released an image of the vehicle's name badge, which is placed between the exhaust tips.

The Artura is a pivotal vehicle as McLaren transitions to a 100 percent electrified portfolio. By 2025, McLaren's whole lineup will be hybridized, CEO Mike Flewitt told Automotive News in August.

The Artura will be built on a new architecture, called the McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture, which was specifically developed to accommodate hybrid powertrains.

While McLaren hasn't disclosed the Artura's power output, the British automaker has said it will have a twin-turbo V-6 engine along wi…