Trade News

A coalition of trade groups representing the nation's automobile dealers has asked President Donald Trump to clarify that certain sales and leasing activities at franchised dealerships are considered essential services during the coronavirus pandemic.

In a letter sent to the White House on Monday, the group — consisting of the National Automobile Dealers Association, American International Automobile Dealers, National Association of Minority Automobile Dealers and American Truck Dealers — expressed its appreciation for federal guidance on March 19 that listed vehicle manufacturing, supply manufacturing, maintenance and repair facilities as essential services.

However, "The guidance made no reference to vehicle sales and lease operations that are typically conducted by franchised new-car and -truck dealers in conjunction with their service and maintenance operations," the letter said. "As a result, some states and other jurisdictions have prohibited vehicle sal…

The current national emergency is not like those the country has managed through before.

The auto industry is rightfully proud of its role in World War II — and even in the wake of 9/11. But this is a different kind of battle against a different kind of enemy. The front lines are in hospitals and clinics, where nurses and doctors and other staffers bravely tend to those who are or may be infected with this deadly, flu-like virus. And many face a shortage of basic gear such as masks and gloves.

Just as it has in other calamities, the auto industry can and will help. General Motors, Ford and others are already preparing to aid in the manufacture of much-needed ventilators vital to keeping alive those suffering the harshest effects from coronavirus infection.

This "Arsenal of Health" response, as some have taken to calling it, harks back to the vital role the American auto industry played in helping the Allies to victory in World War II. Tooling up and spoo…

Lincoln's VisioBlade window-cleaning system is designed to increase safety by preventing ice from forming underneath a vehicle's rubber windshield wiper blades.

That's a technological step forward for an ever-present cold-weather problem. Some vehicles in the past have offered systems that sprayed heated washer fluid on the windshield to quickly clear iced-over glass. Those didn't catch on.

On the Lincoln Aviator SUV with the Elements Package Plus option, VisioBlade takes a new swipe at clearing off the ice and snow with two changes.

First, the blades themselves are heated, which prevents ice from forming under the rubber strips. Lincoln says its blades can reach 86 degrees in about four minutes. Some vehicles need as much as 15 minutes to use hot air blown at the inside of the windshield from the vehicle's HVAC system to defrost the glass.

Second, the design improves the application of washer fluid.

Most…

Automakers will release their U.S. sales results next week. And the entire automotive world will be hungering for information on how the industry fared through the escalating COVID-19 outbreak.

But we won't know. That's because a big chunk of the industry has moved to quarterly sales reports. So when the numbers come out April 1, all we'll get from most of the big players is a combined figure for January, February and March.

Anyone outside the federal government and a few privileged data houses might as well read tea leaves to guess how things went in the most pivotal month this industry has seen since at least 2008.

This started two years ago, when General Motors ended a long-standing practice. Its last monthly report, oddly enough, was a winner: double-digit gains for each brand in March 2018, up 16 percent overall.

"Thirty days is not enough time to separate real sales trends from short-term fluctuations in a very …

Jeff Klei, outgoing president of Continental North America, has seen his fair share of transformations, downfalls and challenges in the auto industry.

After 30 years with the German automotive megasupplier and the American brake company it acquired, ITT Automotive, Klei announced last week that he is retiring.

Klei, 57, will relinquish his title effective April 1 to Robert Lee, CEO of Continental Automotive Korea since 2014.

The change in leadership comes amid a pandemic that is rapidly disrupting the North American industry and its global supply chain. The same day Klei announced his retirement, the Detroit 3 decided to halt production in response to COVID-19 worries, triggering a domino effect among major suppliers, including Continental.

Klei was appointed president of Continental North America in 2008, another moment of industry disruption. In an interview with Automotive News last week, Klei likened the COVID-19 …

General Motors has created a power-sliding center console that can glide back from its normal position by up to 10 inches to create more storage space for a purse or bag of groceries.

Beneath the main bin, a hidden drawer is concealed to serve as a secure storage area.

GMC models will get the console first, and then GM will launch it on Chevy models.

Debuting in the next Yukon Denali, the power-slide console also creates a modular convenience feature when it slides toward the rear, bringing cupholders and surface area 10 inches closer to backseat passengers.

Alex Archer, design release engineer for the console, said GM has gotten a lot of positive feedback for offering extra space near the driver.

Ford Motor Co. officials relied on extensive customer research to create the 2021 Mustang Mach-E electric crossover. As part of that, Ford brought dozens of would-be buyers into its Dearborn, Mich., design studios to test the vehicle's new 15.5-inch touch screen.

What Ford's product team learned was that most customers wanted a physical knob to control radio volume. Ford worked with an unnamed supplier to create a metal knob for the job. Shaped with a hole in the middle, like a ring, the controller is bonded directly to the screen. Touching and turning it has the same effect as touching the screen.

The knob will be used only to control volume. But because of how it's bonded on the screen, Ford plans to give it additional functions in the future through over-the-air software updates.

"It's a very versatile technology and will continue to change," said Darren Palmer, Ford's global product development director for battery electric ve…

Most electric vehicles have a one-speed fixed-gear transmission. The Taycan S is the first EV that uses a two-speed transmission to drive the rear wheels.

Unlike internal-combustion engines, electric motors deliver maximum torque right when acceleration begins, which is how EVs leap to 60 mph so quickly.

The Taycan S features a single speed for the front wheels, with a rear two-speed that provides all-wheel drive and the blistering performance that helps give the Taycan S its supercar credentials. That includes a 0 to 60 sprint in about 2.6 seconds, and a top speed of 162 mph.

In a Taycan S, both transmissions stay in first gear until 60 mph, then the rear transmission shifts into second gear, which allows the rear motor to spin slower, getting it closer to peak torque. The second gear enables longer driving range per charge.

But as with all cars, especially high-performance Porsches, your mileage may vary.

Amid coronavirus and contamination concerns in China, new-vehicle sales volume there dropped more than 80 percent in February. As the virus gains traction in the U.S., genuine concerns arise related to the potential disruption here and what this could mean for dealers.

Having faced some adversity early in my life, my personality type has always been to focus more on the potential opportunity of a given set of circumstances. Operating with a philosophy that "the calvary isn't coming" to save me has always provided me with greater clarity in confusing times.

Even before the rise of the coronavirus, one of the largest risks facing conventional auto dealers has been their ability — or should I say inability — to successfully engage and transact with customers online. The general inaccessibility to fully transact virtually by most dealers has paved the way for providers such as Carvana and Tesla to provide a refreshing alternative buying experience…

Hyundai and Kia say they have developed a predictive shift technology that uses information from navigation software, front-facing cameras and radar to change gears — or even shift into neutral — based on road and traffic conditions ahead of the vehicle, rather than just relying on speed and acceleration data. The result is better mileage and smoother driving.

The automakers are not yet revealing where the technology will appear first.

The company has 40 patent applications stemming from the new system, known as the Information and Communication Technology Connected Shift System. It uses three-dimensional navigation data to determine road elevation, gradient and curvature, along with traffic conditions. Radar information gives speed and distance between vehicles, while cameras provide forward lane information.

"When Hyundai and Kia tested a vehicle with an ICT Connected Shift System on a heavily curved road, the frequency of shift…