Trade News

OYAMA, Japan — Japanese premium leader Lexus is rolling out some of its most fetching automotive designs, luxurious amenities and impressive technologies these days.

Just consider the rugged good looks of the GX utility vehicle, the regal splendor of the LM people mover and the futuristic steer-by-wire system for updates of the sleek RZ electric crossover.

But Lexus' newly appointed global boss says an even bigger transformation is on the way from 2026 as the brand leaps into next-generation electric vehicles. The road forward will be previewed next month when Lexus unwraps the first concept for those EVs at the Japan Mobility Show.

Takashi Watanabe, who took the helm as president of Lexus International in April, said full electric drive will open a new world of opportunities for Lexus to burnish its brand persona. Lexus will spearhead Toyota Motor Corp.'s next-generation EVs on its way to offering an electrified option for every vehicle in 2030, before…

BANGKOK — China's electric vehicle giant BYD has been on a tear in Southeast Asia, shooting past rivals including Tesla to take more than a quarter of the share of EVs sold in the region.

Along with attractive prices, BYD's early success is based on a pattern of distribution partnerships with large, local conglomerates that have allowed the carmaker to expand reach, test consumer preferences and navigate complex government regulations in the region, officials from three partners and analysts said.

The partnership model, similar to that pursued by Japanese automakers in some Southeast Asian countries decades ago, is helping BYD to build market share rapidly and contrasts with Tesla's go-it-alone distribution — though it comes at a cost.

"At present, BYD's primary focus is on brand proliferation rather than optimizing profit margins," said Soumen Mandal, a senior analyst at Counterpoint Research.

"By providing local dealers with more lucrative…

About 600 workers at two suppliers located on site at the Stellantis Jeep plant in Ohio where assembly workers went on strike last week will get $500 in weekly pay even though their employers aren't on strike.

The suppliers are KUKA Toledo Production Operations, which produces the bodies-in-white for Jeep Wranglers and Gladiators, and chassis maker Mobis.

The Toledo Assembly Complex is one of three plants the UAW chose last week for the first round of its "stand-up strike" against the Detroit 3 after the union was unable to agree on new contracts with the companies. General Motors' Wentzville Assembly plant in Missouri and Ford Motor Co.'s Michigan Assembly Plant near Detroit also are on strike.

Like Stellantis' striking workers in Toledo, employees of KUKA and Mobis are represented by UAW Local 12. The two companies aren't the only suppliers that have been affected by the Toledo strike, but they're unique because of their location within the plant co…

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety slapped each of the four minivans in the U.S. market with less than acceptable ratings in its new moderate front overlap crash test, which places a higher emphasis on back seat safety.

The Chrysler Pacifica, Kia Carnival and Toyota Sienna received IIHS' "marginal" rating; the Honda Odyssey was rated "poor."

The unfavorable ratings stem from adopting improved airbags and advanced seat belts in front seats while overlooking the second row, creating a "safety gap," Joe Young, a spokesperson for IIHS, told Automotive News.

IIHS found that newer, advanced airbags and restraints are "rarely available" in the back.

"Back seat safety is important for all vehicles, but it's especially vital for those, like minivans, that customers are choosing specifically to transport their families," IIHS President David Harkey said in a statement.

While safety has improved in the front seats, there has been a comparativ…

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The UAW will expand its strike against the Detroit 3 on Friday if negotiations this week stall, President Shawn Fain said.

"If we don't make serious progress by noon on Friday, Sept. 22, more locals will be called on to stand up and join the strike," Fain said in a video posted by the union Monday evening. "Autoworkers have waited long enough to make things right at the Big 3. We're not waiting around and we're not messing around."

Fain didn't say how many additional plants would join the work stoppage, which began Friday. His comments suggested that the UAW could decide not to add plants even without deals in place by Friday, so long as the union is satisfied that the talks are productive.

About 13,000 workers at three plants — one each from General Motors, Ford Motor Co. and Stellantis — are currently on strike and would become eligible for strike pay from the union on the day of Fain's next announcement.

After the strike began, Ford laid off…

The launch of self-driving truck startup Stack AV represents more than the return of Argo AI's co-founders to the autonomous driving realm.

It might be a bellwether for the broader industry's burgeoning health, said Reilly Brennan, general partner at Trucks Venture Capital.

"That investment announcement was probably one of the most significant things to happen to the automotive technology space in the past 12 months," he said last week at the Automotive News Congress in Detroit.

Stack was founded with a $1 billion investment from SoftBank Group Corp., according to Crunchbase records. The startup's executives revealed their intentions to enter the choppy self-driving truck industry this month.

The company is helmed by Bryan Salesky, Pete Rander and Brett Browning. If the names sound familiar, it's because all three were senior executives at Argo AI, the self-driving startup funded by Ford Motor Co. and Volkswagen that closed last October.

Read more

Ford Blue President Kumar Galhotra talks about the company’s hopes for hybrids. UAW President Shawn Fain says ‘progress is slow’ in talks as the union’s strike enters its fourth day. And Lithia agrees to buy Pendragon's UK dealerships.

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Photographers have captured images of the redesigned Buick Enclave large crossover during road testing.

The Enclave, shown under heavy camouflage, appears to share some features with the brand's Wildcat electric vehicle design concept, including the outline of checkmark-style headlights found on other Buick vehicles.

The design of the side mirrors also appears to more closely resemble other recently debuted Buick vehicles, such as the Envista subcompact crossover.

Buick said it will reveal and launch the redesigned Enclave next year but declined to comment further on future product.

The General Motors brand has said it has two more launches remaining out of five total new, updated and redesigned models in an 18-month span.

Since February, Buick has revealed the all-new Envista nameplate, as well as updates to the Encore GX subcompact crossover and the Envision compact crossover. One of the launches next y…

Nikola Corp. has hired a new chief operating officer to lead the company's engineering, product and manufacturing teams, among others, the company said Monday.

Mary Chan will start her new role Oct. 9. She's a former president of the global connected consumer group at General Motors and a former senior vice president at Dell.

"My career has been dedicated to pioneering smart transportation and wireless communications across automotive, telecommunications and high-tech industries," Chan said in a written statement. "Joining Nikola represents the culmination of this journey, and I'm excited to be part of the team that will drive trucking to a zero-emissions future, encompassing trucking products, customer solutions and the corresponding energy infrastructure."

At GM, Chan led the automaker's launch of 4G LTE connectivity across brands in the U.S., China, Europe and Mexico. She has been named the "Top Woman in Wireless" by Fierce Wireless, an industry ne…

A contract manufacturing supplier is planning to lay off 293 employees in Shiawassee and Lapeer counties, about 60 miles north of Detroit, due to the United Auto Workers strike against the Detroit 3 automakers, signaling the first supplier to detail its layoff plans to the state since the union walkout began Friday.

CIE Newcor, a subsidiary of Spain-based CIE Automotive, said it tentatively anticipates a one-month layoff starting Oct. 2, according to a WARN notice filed with the state Thursday, just hours ahead of the UAW calling a strike at a trio of auto plants.

The impacted jobs include mostly machine operators at four company plants: CIE Newcorp and Machine Tool and Gear Inc. Plant 1 in Corunna, as well as Machine Tool and Gear Inc. Plant 2 in Owosso. Each is about 90 miles Northwest of Detroit. Rochester Gear in Clifford, about 80 miles North of Detroit, is also impacted.

The plants could close indefinitely depending on how long the strike lasts…