Trade News

BEIJING -- General Motors on Monday said continued market recovery from the COVID-19 crisis helped its China vehicle sales jump 12 percent in the July-September period, marking the automaker's first Chinese quarterly sales growth in two years.

The second-biggest foreign automaker in China by units -- after Volkswagen Group -- said it delivered 771,400 vehicles in China in the third quarter. That followed a 5 percent fall in the second quarter, when parts of China were still emerging from virus-busting lockdown measures.

GM has a Shanghai-based joint venture with SAIC Motor Corp. making Buick, Chevrolet and Cadillac vehicles. It has another venture, SGMW, with SAIC and Guangxi Automobile Group, producing no-frills minivans and which has started manufacturing higher-end cars.

Sales rose 26 percent under its mass-market Buick brand in the third quarter versus the same period a year ago, while those of premium brand Cadillac jumped 28 percent, GM said in a …

Hayward Mitsubishi lies just 15 miles northwest of Tesla's electric vehicle factory in Fremont, Calif., in the center of the environmentally friendly San Francisco Bay Area. And although it may sound like a stretch, the modest Mitsubishi dealership is competing with mighty Tesla for green-car buyers in the region, thanks to store owner Ayman Moussa.

Moussa has seven Asian-brand dealerships in and around Silicon Valley. Through social media and other marketing efforts, he aggressively targets environmentally conscious buyers looking at Tesla and other EVs.

And even though many Mitsubishi dealers are longing for new product these days, Moussa is pitching a strong current vehicle to lead his marketing charge: the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV.

"Through our marketing partners, we went after everybody interested in the HOV commuter lane in California and everybody interested in an EV," Moussa told Automotive News. His Facebook and Google ad keywords included "T…

<!--*/ */ /*-->*/ Making sense of less data

We weren't fans when General Motors stopped reporting monthly U.S. auto sales and went quarterly in 2018.

We're in the information business. We'd rather have 12 status reports a year instead of four.

But we couldn't stop the tide.

Before long, other automakers followed GM's lead. Now, only a handful report monthly. And when everyone gets around to issuing their quarterly numbers, it's gotten messy.

Instead of a single reporting day, we now have three or four.

Most still report on Day 1. But Ford's figures come a day after the pack. Mercedes and Jaguar Land Rover are even later.

As a result, we probably force you to wonder if you're seeing double. The seven-column table on pages 38 and 39 of the Oct. 5 issue included every brand but Jaguar, Land Rover and Mercedes.

In Monday's edition, you'll see a nearly identical table. But it adds lines for those brands as well a…

Nakul Duggal, senior vice president and GM of automotive at Qualcomm, discusses the rollout of 5G across the auto landscape, the latest on V2X communications and the company’s efforts in powering vehicle cockpits of the present and future.

How do I subscribe?

Apple Podcasts: “Shift: A podcast about mobility” is available on the iTunes Store and through the ‘Podcast’ app pre-installed on all iOS devices. Click here to subscribe.

Spotify: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" can be streamed through Spotify on your desktop, tablet or mobile device. Click here to subscribe.

Google Play: "Shift: A podcast about mobility" is available on Android devices through the Google Play store. Click here to subscribe.

When drivers start up the 2021 Chrysler Pacifica and Dodge Durango this fall, they'll be introduced to the next-generation version of Fiat Chrysler Automobiles' heralded Uconnect infotainment system.

The latest iteration, Uconnect 5, runs on an Android-based operating system and has processing speeds five times faster than those of its predecessor. It enables two Bluetooth phones to connect simultaneously, aiding those who carry multiple phones and allowing passengers to interact with the system in addition to the driver.

Getting the system ready in time for vehicle launches became a tougher task than expected after the coronavirus pandemic forced designers to rearrange their working conditions on the fly. And the experience could leave a lasting imprint on how designers go about their duties in the future.

The crew of about 30 employees had to finish tuning Uconnect 5, which was far along in its development, using standalone pro…

As Rolls-Royce's lineup has expanded via new models and redesigns, the evolving British ultraluxury brand is attracting more and younger customers.

A stately sedan to be chauffeured in? Yes, Rolls-Royce still offers the flagship Phantom, a posh behemoth that costs about half a million dollars.

But the rest of Rolls-Royce's lineup — the Ghost sedan, Wraith coupe, Dawn convertible and Cullinan crossover — not only increased the brand's global sales in the past decade, it has sparked a generational shift, attracting super-rich millennials.

"That's been the biggest change," said Kelly Wolf, CEO of IndiGO Auto Group, which includes Rolls-Royce Rancho Mirage in California and Rolls-Royce North Houston. Customers now are "a little more youthful, a little more exciting."

"The old kind of Grey Poupon stereotype is gone," he said, referring to the mustard commercials from the 1980s which depicted two wealthy gentlemen, each rid…

TOKYO — From his glass-walled office high above central Tokyo, James Kuffner keeps a running computer file of "crazy ideas" for whenever a moment of genius strikes.

Toyota's newest board member and resident robotics wizard gets lots of bolts from the blue.

One of his latest: a high-rise rooftop landing pad for flying cars that can pop up and open like a parasol, saving a lot of space compared with traditional heliports with their big painted "H."

"When the vehicle wanted to land, you could land on it. And when it's not being used, it could actually fold up and store away, maybe even underground," Kuffner said with an inventor's twinkle in his eye. "That's one idea I thought was good. Some people said that's crazy. But it's trying to think about the future of mobility and see what kinds of ideas we can bring to bear."

Just in case, Kuffner made sure to apply for a patent.

Even more visionary is Kuffner's big idea for transforming Toyota Mo…

As if it hasn't been hard enough recruiting work forces over the past couple of years, with booming sales and low unemployment, before the coronavirus pandemic.

Now, as business slowly creeps back to normal, automotive companies face a new challenge: Amazon.

The online marketplace plans to recruit 100,000 hourly U.S. and Canadian workers at a starting wage of $15. That is about 20 percent more than auto parts plants typically pay to start.

It's making auto-sector expansion a bit tougher than normal.

"Not just Amazon, but all of the employers who have done well through the pandemic while the auto industry was stalled," said Dietmar Ostermann, U.S. automotive advisory leader for PwC, "like Home Depot, food companies, grocery chains and medical-sector companies."

Automotive manufacturers are increasingly competing for hourly labor with these major corporations and large gig economy employers — just one of many factors in the auto industry's …

LOS ANGELES — A year ago, the mantra being pushed by Honda executives was that "cars matter" — a compelling message for a brand that derived almost half its volume from sedans and hatchbacks at the time.

But as the market continues its relentless shift toward crossovers and pickups, it turns out that trucks matter more — even at Honda.

The brand is now implementing a major change in strategy to emphasize the rugged, off-road capability of its light trucks to pick up more market share.

Honda estimates the overall U.S. auto market this year has shifted to 76 percent light trucks and 24 percent passenger cars. Honda itself has a mix of 56 percent light trucks to 44 percent cars through the third quarter. So for Honda, light trucks clearly are a big opportunity.

"As the market approaches 80 percent trucks, we have to make sure we play in that pond," said Art St. Cyr, vice president of automobile operations at American Honda Motor Co.

Doing th…

More customers are buying cars using a computer today, but one of a dealership's most critical tools — if not the most vital — dates back more than a century.

The telephone.

Some dealers have invested in or expanded the use of products that help shoppers do more of the transaction online — e-commerce platforms, chatbots, video tools, e-contracting — during a pandemic in which close human contact is discouraged.

Yet the phone is a technological sales tool at dealerships' disposal. Phone calls became more important during the coronavirus outbreak, especially while physical showrooms in some states were closed to walk-in and appointment traffic this spring, several dealership phone services providers told Automotive News. And they remain an indication of how serious a vehicle shopper is about buying.

Vendors can record phone calls, offer training and coaching, track conversations and alert dealerships to follow up with customers when calls aren't p…

Nissan is shifting strategy on commercial vehicle sales now that it is pulling the plug on work vans.

The automaker confirmed Friday that it will end production of full-size NV cargo and passenger vans in Canton, Miss., and the compact NV200 van in Cuernavaca, Mexico, next summer. Automotive News reported those plans in June.

With the end of van sales in the U.S. and Canada, Nissan says it will continue pursuing commercial vehicle deliveries by pitching sedans and crossovers to fleet buyers and small businesses.

Jennifer Moser, Nissan North America's director of fleet sales, said the small-business market is an opportunity to drive additional sales and bring new customers to the Nissan brand.

"We want to attract small businesses to our dealer showrooms so they consider Nissan as part of their vehicle acquisitions," Moser said.

On Oct. 16, Nissan will launch a Business Advantage Program, marketing the brand…

McLaren Automotive's upcoming plug-in hybrid supercar, the pivotal vehicle in the brand's transition to a 100 percent electrified portfolio, will feature the British exotic's first V-6 engine.

McLaren revealed in August that the unnamed model, code-named P16, will be built on a new architecture specifically developed to accommodate hybrid powertrains. The automaker has since named it the McLaren Carbon Lightweight Architecture.

While the new model is not the automaker's first hybrid — the P16 will follow the P1 and Speedtail hybrid hypercars— it will be the first McLaren with a V-6 engine. McLaren has relied solely on V-8 engines, with the exception of the iconic F1 from the 1990s, which featured a BMW-sourced V-12.

McLaren has yet to release details such as power output or an official range for the car, but CEO Mike Flewitt told Automotive News in August that the vehicle will have an electric range of roughly 19 miles, with a charge time of three to fo…