News

U.S. sales at Kia and Genesis rose in September as the auto industry's inventory woes continued to ease, though growing economic challenges threaten what was supposed to be a more robust second-half rebound as the industry enters the fourth quarter.

Volume last month rose 6.4 percent to 56,270 at Kia, setting a September record for the automaker. It was the company's second consecutive monthly gain year over year. The automaker continues to benefit from an expanded crossover linup and new electric vehicles.

“Building upon record September and third-quarter sales, we’re optimistic that Kia will see a strong fourth quarter as well,” Eric Watson, vice president of sales operations at Kia America, said in a statement.

Genesis on Saturday reported September sales of 4,907, a gain of 0.8 percent over 4,867 deliveries a year earlier. Hyundai Group's upstart luxury brand has now posted year-over-year sales growth 22 straight months, with year-to-date deliv…

SAN FRANCISCO -- Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk showed off on Friday a prototype of its humanoid robot "Optimus," predicting the electric vehicle maker would be able to produce millions and sell them for under $20,000 -- less than a third of the price of a Model Y.

Musk said he expected Tesla would be ready to take orders for the robot in three to five years, and described an effort to develop the product over a decade or more, the most detailed vision he has provided to date on a business he has said could be bigger than Tesla's EV revenue.

Tesla's push to design and build mass-market robots that would also be tested by working jobs in its factories sets it apart from other manufacturers that have experimented with humanoid robots.

The eagerly awaited reveal of prototype robots at Tesla's office in Palo Alto, Calif., was also part of what Musk has described as an effort to have Tesla seen as a leader in fields like artificial intelligence, not just a company…

Amid growing buyer concerns over battery costs, some wholesale auction companies are reworking their vehicle condition reports to better disclose battery health on used electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles.

ADESA Inc. is one of the latest to take that step as part of its plan to gear up for the substantial numbers of EVs expected in the wholesale market in the coming years. The auction provider in early September announced a partnership with Recurrent, an EV battery and range analytics company, to add a feature on condition reports that more clearly shows potential buyers an EV's battery status in the form of what ADESA is calling a Range Score.

During the inspection process, Recurrent's software analyzes a vehicle's history and battery data and then generates a battery health score from 0 to 100. That number is displayed on the vehicle's condition report on adesa.com along with a Range Score badge. A potential buyer can click on the badge to see more informat…

HANOVER, Germany — While the auto industry struggles to convince consumers that hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have a place in daily transportation, truckmakers see huge potential for the technology.

It's a matter of chemistry, Andreas Gorbach, Daimler Trucks' technical chief, said at IAA Transportation 2022. No battery chemistry will ever outperform how much energy engineers can store with hydrogen, he said.

"If you take the elements with the biggest difference in electrochemical that gives you the highest energy, the highest voltage and the highest potential energy density cell, you would never come even close to the hydrogen," Gorbach said.

Even with a significant breakthrough, battery chemistry might only reach a 30th of the energy that hydrogen packs.

"There are not elements that can compete with hydrogen," Gorbach said.

To be sure, there are still major obstacles to overcome before hydrogen fuel cell trucks can start to replace diesel t…

DETROIT — Jeep provided a glimpse into its electrification plans during the Detroit auto show with previews of the Wrangler-inspired Recon off-roader and the sleek Wagoneer S that will expand its line of upscale utility options.

These vehicles are part of an ambitious battery-electric vehicle launch schedule looming for Jeep parent Stellantis, the product of a 2021 merger between Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and France's PSA Group.

Stellantis said it aims to have more than 75 EVs globally before the end of the decade, with 25 of them coming to the U.S., and to reach global annual EV sales of 5 million by 2030.

Mark Stewart, the North America COO for Stellantis, said the company has to ensure that its manufacturing work force is ready for this critical transition.

Stewart spoke with Staff Reporter Vince Bond Jr. during the Detroit auto show about preparing workers for EVs, the key challenges he faces daily and how the company has adjusted to the mer…

A package of new- and used-vehicle warranties with new certified pre-owned programs is helping Spitzer Automotive Group of Ohio, Pennsylvania and Florida get customers in the door during a period of low inventory.

Last year, the group introduced its "Spitzer Shield," a suite of benefits that includes a nationwide lifetime powertrain warranty on new vehicles and a 7-year, 100,000-mile nationwide powertrain warranty on vehicles bought through its CPO program.

The group introduced the Shield after it began to reevaluate its stores' value proposition to customers in their markets, COO Andrew Spitzer said. He said the group found it wasn't competitive enough with other dealerships that were offering 20-year, 200,000-mile warranties on new vehicles.

"I saw that and said, 'All right, I respect that. Now let's beat it,'" said Spitzer, a 2022 Automotive News 40 Under 40 honoree.

"We've been in business since 1904, but is that going to be the thing that ma…

Kia presented a Lifetime Dealer Achievement Award to Rita Case, CEO of Rick Case Automotive Group, after the group's top-five performance over the past five years. The award was announced at Kia's annual dealer meeting last month in Las Vegas, an event that also marked the brand's 30th anniversary.

"Thirty years represents a lifetime to us, and the milestone presented a good opportunity to recognize one of our dealers," Russell Wager, Kia's chief marketing officer, told Automotive News.

Case said in a statement that she is honored and "excited about our partnership with the Kia brand as it continues to grow."

In addition to being a high-volume dealer, Case has been active investing in facilities, Wager said.

The group spent $20 million to build a store in Sunrise, Fla., where the group is headquartered. The five-story dealership, which opened in 2015, has 268,000 square feet. The group also has a Kia store in Duluth, Ga…

Owners of Hyundai vehicles that have been targeted by thieves who've demonstrated on social media how to hot wire the company's late-model cars and crossovers will be able to purchase a Compustar anti-theft security kit for $170 starting Oct. 1.

All 820 dealers in Hyundai's U.S. network are authorized to install the kit, the company said Friday. "The dealers have been notified and are currently receiving training bulletins and instructions on how to perform the installation, which will take about 2.5 hours to complete," Ira Gabriel, a spokesperson for Hyundai, told Automotive News.

"The kits are at our distribution centers, which are located around the country, so they'll have it in inventory this week," Gabriel said.

The full cost of the security kit is still unknown. Gabriel says installation cost will vary depending on the dealer location and he did not provide a cost estimate.

The thefts, widely demonstrated on You…

CarMax Inc.'s soft fiscal second-quarter financial results paint a grim picture: Persisting inflation, high retail prices and climbing interest rates are prompting consumers to put off buying used cars and trucks. The challenges have the used-car giant cutting costs to better match sales levels.

The retailer's volume and profit drop stoked fears of a more prolonged demand deterioration in the used-car market. CarMax's share price dropped 25 percent on Thursday, Sept. 29, the day it reported earnings, and stock prices for competitor Carvana Co. and other public retailers also tumbled. It marks a significant reversal from just one year ago, when retailers were reporting sustained high demand and robust profits for used vehicles and enjoying high share prices.

CarMax retailed 457,889 used vehicles in the six months ended Aug. 31, down 8.9 percent from the year-earlier period. Company leaders said vehicle affordability pressure that bubbled up at th…

Florida dealership associations described retailers as relatively unscathed after Hurricane Ian soaked and whipped the state last week, while auto plants and dealerships in the Carolinas closed in anticipation of being the storm's next target.

Volvo's S60 sedan plant near Charleston, S.C., shut down Thursday and Friday, Volvo Cars USA said in a statement. Mercedes idled its Sprinter and Metris van plant about 15 miles closer to the Atlantic coast on Friday. The plants employ about 3,100 people combined.

The storm weakened to a tropical storm as it churned across Florida but regained hurricane strength after reaching the Atlantic Ocean on Thursday. A hurricane warning was issued for nearly 300 miles of coastline from the South Carolina-Georgia border to Cape Fear, N.C. Ian made landfall again at 2:05 p.m. Friday near Georgetown, S.C., as a Category 1 hurricane with 85 mph sustained winds.

North Carolina Automobile Dealers Association President Robert Glas…

Nissan's Nismo racing division has retuned the Z sports car's twin-turbo V-6 engine and optimized the chassis and suspension for track duty, creating the Z GT4 race car.

Nismo engineers added a modest aerodynamics package, including a front splitter with canards and a GT-style strut-supported wing. Specifications will be released during the SEMA Show that runs Nov. 1-4, with deliveries slated to begin in the first half of 2023. No word on pricing, but Nissan says the race car will be "accessible to enthusiast drivers and hard-core professionals."