Trade News

ATLANTA — Frederick Schwab, a Detroiter who helped bring Porsche back from collapse in the early 1990s, died July 9 following a brief battle with cancer. He was 81.

Schwab was CEO of Porsche Cars North America for more than a decade, during which he steered the fabled sports car brand out of the pits of the early 1990's recession, when sales fell to a fraction of what they had been in the status-conscious '80s and when many dealers dropped the franchise.

He steered a management overhaul by hiring former Toyota managers to instill the Japanese automaker's vaunted lean operating methods and help improve Porsche product quality.

Under his watch, Porsche introduced key new models in North America, including the midengine Boxster roadster, which gave new buyers a sub-$40,000 MSRP entry to the brand, as well as the Cayenne, Porsche's daring entry in the SUV and crossover segment.

The product expansion fueled a new era of sales for Porsche, with volume …

Compliance experts believe the Federal Trade Commission's handling of a New York dealership case, in which the store agreed to pay $1.5 million for a slew of illegal and unethical practices in the finance and insurance office, may have far-reaching implications. Federal regulators in particular cited dealership-arranged financing, also called indirect financing, as a business practice considered deceptive by nature.

In May, Bronx Honda settled FTC charges that it discriminated against African American and Hispanic car buyers. The store was accused of charging well above the legal cap on document fees and adding fees and markups. The FTC also alleged Bronx Honda management instructed employees to target these groups "due to their limited education" but not attempt the same practices with white customers.

FTC Commissioners Rebecca Kelly Slaughter and Rohit Chopra argued that the commission should exercise its rule-making authority to crack down o…

SEOUL --  Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk said Tuesday that the company is open to licensing software and supplying powertrains and batteries.

Tesla had previously supplied batteries to Mercedes and Toyota Motor under separate partnership deals. Battery manufacturing is an area that analysts and industry officials say the U.S. electric car maker has a competitive edge compared with legacy automakers.

"Tesla is open to licensing software and supplying powertrains & batteries. We’re just trying to accelerate sustainable energy, not crush competitors!" Musk said in a tweet. 

Tesla currently runs a battery joint venture with Panasonic Corp and also sources batteries from China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology and South Korea's LG Chem .

Tesla is also planning to expand its own battery facility at its Fremont, Calif., plant.

Batteries are the most expensive and important component of electric vehicles.

"The supply could lower th…

DETROIT — General Motors reported a $758 million second-quarter loss as the coronavirus pandemic sharply cut production and revenue by more than half.

GM said cost cutting and strong pricing allowed the automaker to nearly break even in North America despite its plants being closed for eight weeks.

GM lost $101 million in North America, compared with a gain of $3 billion in the second quarter of 2019.

"These results illustrate the resiliency and earnings power of the business as we make the critical investments necessary for our future," CFO Dhivya Suryadevara said in a statement Wednesday.

Global revenue fell 53 percent to $16.8 billion, and its adjusted loss before interest and taxes was $536 million, compared with $3 billion a year earlier. The company burned through $8 billion in automotive operating cash but said it still had "strong" liquidity of $30.6 billion after borrowing $16 billion in March to help weather the crisis.

GM's inter…

Honda's Odyssey minivan is getting a mild freshening for 2021 with a restyled grille and front bumper along with additional standard safety equipment.

Also new is a rear-seat reminder that can be paired with an optional camera system for checking the back seats from the infotainment screen.

While the segment continues to shrink, Honda and select remaining brands view minivans as key vehicles to draw and retain customers, notably young families, even as prices for some high-end models near $50,000.

The Odyssey was the No. 2 seller among minivans in 2019, behind the Dodge Grand Caravan and ahead of the Chrysler Pacifica and Toyota Sienna. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is dropping the Grand Caravan, which launched the segment in the early 1980s, while Toyota has overhauled the Sienna for 2021.

The updated Odyssey, which goes on sale Monday, now is equipped with second-row seats that fold nearly flat, which creates more cargo space and makes removing the…

SEOUL -- South Korea said it is investigating suspected safety issues with vehicles made by Tesla Inc., which competes strongly with Hyundai Motor Co. in the country's electric vehicle market.

Braking and steering systems including the Autopilot function are part of the investigation, a transport ministry official said Wednesday.

The ministry declined to elaborate but South Korean media said Tesla's Model 3 was under investigation, and the probe might take anywhere from six months to a year.

Tesla would cooperate with the investigation, an official at its South Korean unit said.

In the  U.S. the National Transportation Safety Board last year cited driver errors and Tesla’s Autopilot design as the probable cause of a January 2018 crash of a Model S in California.

In South Korea, Tesla had its best month in June with its Model 3 beating Hyundai’s Kona EV, as well as premium models from BMW and Audi.

CES will go all-digital in 2021, the Consumer Technology Association said Tuesday. 

“Amid the pandemic and growing global health concerns about the spread of COVID-19, it’s just not possible to safely convene tens of thousands of people in Las Vegas in early January 2021 to meet and do business in person,” CTA CEO Gary Shapiro said in a statement on the company’s website.

The show is usually a key fixture in the technology calender, with major manufacturers showing off their latest innovations to a heaving Las Vegas crowd.

CES has become an important venue for for automotive brands to prove to consumers, and each other, that they are embracing the future of mobility.

The organization said it will return to Las Vegas in 2022, combining the best elements of both formats.

Automotive News contributed to this report.

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.

He's a roboticist, professor, self-driving car guru and Toyota's newest board member. Chief Digital Officer James Kuffner is aiming to merge 'excellent' hardware and software to help the company safely move people, goods and information in an autonomous future.

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It had been rumored for months, if not years. On July 27, 2005, Porsche made it official: The German sports car brand famed for performance planned a four-door car, just years after launching its first utility vehicle.

The Panamera became Porsche's fourth nameplate, after the 911, Boxster and Cayenne. The name came from the historic La Carrera Panamericana endurance race.

The Panamera, with four seats and a swooping, coupelike profile, featured a front-mounted engine that drove the rear wheels. It went on sale in 2009 with two engine choices: a 4.8-liter, 400-hp V-8 and a twin-turbocharged, 500-hp, 4.8-liter V-8.

The car was engineered and designed on an all-new architecture and built solely by Porsche. The Cayenne utility vehicle was created in cooperation with Volkswagen.

"The Panamera is a perfect fit for Porsche," said Wendelin Wiedeking, then-CEO of Porsche."It has all the typical DNA characteristics of a genuine sp…

Chevrolet is giving U.S. consumers another crossover choice at the small end of the market with the 2021 Trailblazer. Larger than the Trax, which is too small for some buyers, the Trailblazer gives Chevy a roomier option with more conventional styling. And unlike the Trax, it was designed from the ground up with U.S. consumers top of mind. It is equipped with either a 1.2-liter or 1.3-liter turbo engine, delivering up to 155 hp. Both engines are mated to a continuously variable transmission with stop-start, though a nine-speed automatic is available on models equipped with the 1.3-liter engine and all-wheel drive. We've rounded up a few reviews from select media.

"Chevy's 1.3-liter I3 is surprisingly perky. Sure, it only makes 155 horsepower, but it's the 174 pound-feet of torque that really helps with acceleration. It comes on early at 1,600 rpm and stays flat until 4,000 rpm, making highway merging almost effortless. The nine-speed automatic transmission…

General Motors has reversed its plan to temporarily cut the third shift at its midsize pickup plant in Wentzville, Mo., possibly opting to transfer laid-off workers from other states to the plant instead.

GM confirmed plans to cut the third shift on July 11 because of worker absenteeism as cases of COVID-19 in Missouri increased.

GM told Automotive News at the time that there was enough demand for three shifts. The automaker was working on a staffing plan to resume a three-shift schedule as soon as possible.

More than two weeks later, cases of the coronavirus in Missouri continue to climb, reaching 37,375 as of July 26, according to Johns Hopkins.

"Transfers from other GM locations along with the strategic use of temporary employees could be part of the Wentzville staff plan," spokesman Dan Flores told Automotive News on Tuesday.

CNBC on Thursday reported GM's decision to keep the third shift.

The decision to lay off about 1,250 wor…

SEOUL -- Hyundai, an early backer of fuel cell cars, has watched the electric rise of Tesla, including on its home turf. Now's it's going on the offensive in the battery-powered market led by its U.S. rival.

The South Korean company plans to introduce two production lines dedicated to electrics vehicles, one next year and another in 2024, according to an internal union newsletter seen by Reuters.

Euisun Chung, leader of the Hyundai Motor Group that also includes Kia, has also held a series of meetings since May with his counterparts at Samsung, LG and SK Group, which make batteries and electronic parts.

The purpose of the talks, which were publicly announced, was for Hyundai to try to secure batteries at a time of tight supply as the race for EVs intensifies, according to several industry sources.

Those manufacturers also supply automakers including Tesla Inc., Volkswagen Group and General Motors.

Hyundai told Reuters it was collaborating w…