Trade News

HEALDSBURG, Calif. — Audi officials say they have learned a lot from the 2019 launch of the brand's first electric vehicle, the E-tron. Refashioned for 2024 as the Q8 E-tron and Q8 Sportback E-tron, the second-generation EV is available in Premium, Premium Plus and Prestige trims. The base price increases by $3,600 over the outgoing model, but the vehicle offers more range and Level 2 adaptive cruise control. Here are some features that stood out on the 2024 Audi Q8 E-tron previewed during a media drive here in May.

Audi's four famed rings, which have made up the brand's corporate badge for decades, have been reworked from chrome into black and white and are being introduced on the Q8 E-tron. Audi designer Andre Georgi calls the look the "new chrome," with each of the four white rings floated in a black one. "The new two-dimensional look gives our rings a significantly more modern and even more graphic makeover, although their geometry is almost identical to the for…

Fiat has all but faded away in the U.S., but it has a new North American leader whom parent company Stellantis has charged with "providing cool mobility solutions for all."

Fiat could use that cool factor when it reenters the U.S. electric vehicle race in 2024 with the 500e, a model that analysts say can open a pathway to success for a brand that has struggled with lackluster sales in the country for years.

The stage is set for Aamir Ahmed, a former Fiat Chrysler Automobiles marketer appointed to head Fiat's North American operations last month. Ahmed left FCA in 2017 to work for Harman International and Amazon. Ahmed succeeds Larry Dominique, who had been leading Fiat in addition to his role as senior vice president for Alfa Romeo in North America.

There's a tough job ahead.

Although the brand has been a major player globally, it hasn't been able to find its footing in the U.S. market, where it sells only the 500X. F…

A veteran automotive retail executive has teamed up with a recognized Kia dealership manager to buy their first stores: three franchised dealerships, plus a used-car lot, in rural Texas.

Chuck Kramer, former COO of Foundation Automotive Corp., formed a partnership in February with Kimberly Eakin, general manager of Dennis Eakin Kia in Killeen, Texas.

On Feb. 27, Kramer Automotive purchased Premier Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram and Premier Chevrolet-Buick-GMC in Livingston, and a used-car store in Porter, while Kimberly Eakin Automotive purchased Premier Kia in Lufkin. Karl Williams of Elm Creek Auto Group was the seller of all stores.

Livingston, Lufkin and Porter all are north of Houston.

The Livingston dealerships have been renamed Kramer Autoplex and include Kramer Chevrolet-GMC and Kramer Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram, while the Lufkin store was renamed Kimberly Eakin Kia.

The partners accepted a buyout from General …

Leasing of new General Motors vehicles has picked up after hitting a low point last year, but the automaker's captive finance company said there are no plans for a significant boost while incentives remain low.

The percentage of GM's sales that were leases rose slightly to 16.5 percent in the first quarter from a low of 13.9 percent for the last half of 2022, according to GM Financial data. Yet that remains down from 24 percent at the end of 2019.

Leasing has "historically been a highly incentivized product; without the need for incentives to drive sales, leasing mix is going to be where it's at," GM Financial CEO Dan Berce told Automotive News.

"I think the trough we hit in lease sales mix in mid-'22 is the low point," he said. "I think you will see it go up from here, but I wouldn't expect it to reach historical levels anytime in '23."

GM Financial's outlook on leasing largely aligns with experts' view of the broader…

HUNTINGTON BEACH, Calif. — As Volkswagen plans to launch the ID Buzz electric bus tailored specifically for North America in the third quarter next year, regional CEO Pablo Di Si is making one thing clear: He does not want dealers gouging customers.

Discussions with Volkswagen dealers on the three-row ID Buzz's retail plan — including how customer orders will be handled if demand proves overwhelming — are ongoing, Di Si said last week during a media roundtable here to discuss the launch strategy.

"We need to find a fair way ... for the consumer and the dealer — there's no overpricing, that the system doesn't crash," he said. "We have, I would say, another three to five months to figure it out. We don't have the solution yet."

Anecdotal reports on social media and web message boards complained that some dealers were tacking on "market adjustment fees" that added thousands of dollars to the sticker price of the VW ID4 electric crossover, which starts at $…

A sharp rise in incentives at some brands amid the industry's ongoing inventory recovery fueled a jump in U.S. light-vehicle sales last month.

Deliveries rose 21 percent to around 720,000 vehicles for the seven automakers that report monthly figures. American Honda was among the big winners, notching a 58 percent gain, while Subaru of America posted a 28 percent increase.

May marked the industry's 10th consecutive monthly sales increase, according to LMC Automotive, as it continues to bounce back from supply chain challenges that dogged automakers last year.

The latest results were helped by favorable year-earlier comparisons, when the inventory shortage was at its worst. Retail inventory entered June at around 1.3 million vehicles, up 48 percent from a year earlier, according to estimates from J.D. Power and LMC Automotive.

"Vehicle shoppers now have a much better chance of finding something that fits their needs," C…

In Levi Tillemann’s book, The Great Race: The Global Quest for the Car of the Future, he tells a story of Ford’s then-chief technology officer hearing an investment pitch in 2007 for an improved internal combustion engine. Afterward, the executive told the young inventor that Ford’s powertrain road map had been written and it “will end up in battery land in about 15 years.”

Fifteen years later, based on the amount of attention and investment received by electric vehicles compared with internal combustion vehicles in the industry and some symbolic events favoring EVs, the former Ford chief technology officer may not be off by much. By the end of 2022, the U.S. government passed favorable legislation to promote EVs under the Inflation Reduction Act.

Ahead on the transition curve, China phased out its 10-year-old nationwide subsidy program to manufacturers as EVs are now deemed competitive with internal combustion vehicles in total cost of ownership and desirabil…

General Motors sees the biggest revenue opportunities from software and services that go beyond what vehicles offer today, rather than charging for features such as heated seats that customers already expect, CEO Mary Barra said Friday.

Such software and services represent a major growth opportunity for GM, particularly as they extend beyond a vehicle's first owner, Barra said at a Bernstein investor conference Friday. She said the automaker has learned from its OnStar safety and connectivity service what consumers are willing to pay for and what they expect to be in the vehicle.

GM has seen a willingness for "something that's above and beyond," Barra said, citing examples such as safety and security services, in-vehicle wireless hotspot capability or vehicle customization.

"If I buy my vehicle today and two years from now, there's something that's been invented that's new, or a new service or a new feature, people are willing to pay for that. And so I …

China is poised to extend incentives for electric-vehicle purchases as part of broader efforts to shake off a sluggish post-pandemic period.

The foundation for China’s economic recovery is not yet solid, the nation’s state radio reported late Friday, citing a State Council meeting chaired by Premier Li Qiang. China will therefore extend and optimize new-energy vehicle sales tax exemptions, the report said, without giving more detail.

People familiar with the matter said earlier on Friday an extension was being considered for some clean vehicles for another four years. One of those measures may be extending the sales tax break for EVs and plug-in hybrids that cost less than 300,000 yuan ($42,400), one of the people said, asking not to be identified because the details are private.

Cars over that amount are broadly classed as luxury vehicles in China, so making it easier for people to buy more affordable clean cars would boost the nation’s EV adoption rate…

Franchise Equity Partners invested $55 million in Parks Automotive Group of Kernersville, N.C., to acquire a minority stake in the auto retailer, the firm said Thursday.

The financial stake detail follows Parks Automotive partnering with the New York private investment firm to purchase two Stellantis stores near Charlotte, N.C., on Jan. 18. The investment amount was not revealed when that acquisition was announced.

"We took a minority, permanent stake in Parks Automotive Group," Franchise Equity Partners Co-Managing Partner Scott Romanoff told Automotive News.

Romanoff would not disclose the percentage stake that Franchise Equity Partners has in Parks Automotive. He said Parks Automotive CEO Adam Parks has a "long-term strategic plan to grow his operations anchored in North Carolina," and Franchise Equity Partners will provide support for that plan.

"We remain a passive partner," Romanoff said. "Adam and team continue to fully run operations, bu…

WASHINGTON — The nation's top auto safety regulator is failing to complete defect investigations and upload related documents in a timely manner, potentially limiting its ability to address "rapidly evolving and severe" risks to motorists, a government audit found.

In a report released Wednesday by the U.S. Transportation Department's Office of Inspector General, auditors reviewed a sample of investigations conducted in 2018, 2019 and 2021 to determine whether the agency has adequate tools, processes and resources to probe and identify safety defects. The audit was conducted between May 2021 and March 2023.

Despite efforts to restructure its office, modernize its data systems and enhance its investigative processes, NHTSA's Office of Defects Investigation does not meet its internal deadlines for investigations and relies on legacy information systems that impede its ability to conduct defect analysis, according to the report.

Additionally, the agency "d…

Tesla CEO Elon Musk's decision to host the presidential announcement of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis on Twitter was marred by technical glitches and relatively few listeners for the audio-only format. Analysts suggested it was bad for DeSantis, bad for Twitter and bad for Musk.

But it may have been good for Tesla.

Musk's widely covered public embrace of DeSantis, a conservative Republican, is part of a larger strategy to better position Tesla in red states where car buyers have been reluctant to consider the EV brand, one longtime industry analyst said. Blue-state California has by far been Tesla's most important market since its founding.

"No matter how altruistic Elon seems at any moment, he is first and foremost a businessman, and he will do things that will benefit him financially first and foremost," said Karl Brauer, executive analyst at iSeeCars and a former analyst at Cox Automotive and Edmunds.

Musk hosted the Twitter political event with D…