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General Motors President Mark Reuss and Hyundai Motor Co. President Jose Muñoz will be keynote speakers at the Automotive News Congress in Detroit on Sept. 12.

The event's theme is "Investing in Innovation," with a focus on navigating the future of electrification, infrastructure and sustainability across the auto industry.

Panelists include ZF North America President Martin Fischer, Fox Motor President Diane Maher and Assembly Ventures cofounder Jessica Robinson.

Automotive News will display the latest game-changing innovations from PACE Award finalists and post pilot pre-commercialized innovations from PACEpilot finalists. Automotive News also will introduce this year's class of Rising Stars.

The Congress takes place on the eve of the North American International Detroit Auto Show, which runs Sept. 13-24.

Register by scanning the QR code here or by visiting autonews.com.

Auto industry elite, performance enthusiasts, and collectors donning pastel linen suits, floral jumpers, fascinators and fedoras gathered on California's central coast for Monterey Car Week to admire both old and new sheet metal exhibitions.

Amid bellowing V-8 engines and eye-watering wafts of tailpipe exhaust, one thing is clear: Americans' love for gasoline-powered autos is alive and well among the wealthy.

But despite the rich history and performance on display, electric vehicles shared an equally bright spotlight at this year's celebration — from exotic hypercars to spaceship-shaped cruisers to boxy kid haulers — taking the storied event into the ultimate collision of past and future.

Lotus EVIJA: The customized Lotus carries a 93 kilowatt-hour battery with an output of 2,011 hp and can go from 0 to 100 mph in under 3 seconds.

Automobili Pininfarina PURA Vision: The design concept shows tri-opening pillarless do…

Paige Hodder has joined Automotive News as a reporter covering auto retail, with a focus on finance and insurance. 

Hodder, 22, covered general automotive industry topics as an intern for Automotive News. Before that, she interned as a general assignment reporter for the Mackinac Island Town Crier in Michigan. 

Hodder is an alumna of the University of Michigan’s College of Literature, Science and the Arts. While there, she was editor in chief of The Michigan Daily college newspaper.

According to a dealer-focused webinar poll cited by AutoSuccess, 36 percent of respondents said they're just getting started with their Safeguards Rule compliance plans, and only 25 percent were close to done.

If you're not yet compliant, you're not alone. That said, the Federal Trade Commission can enforce steep fines of up to $100,000 per violation now that the June 9 deadline has passed; it's critical to put in place your compliance plan now.

Here's why auto dealers should care, and what steps to take to get compliant.

The revised FTC Safeguards Rule put an emphasis on data protection and robust security measures.

To comply, dealerships must strengthen access controls and implement multifactor authentication on accounts with access to customer financial data.

A key part of the Safeguards Rule requirements is a data security program with identity and access management support.

Since nearly …

UAW members at the Detroit 3 have authorized a strike if talks break down. Ultium Cells offers to increase worker’s pay at its Ohio plant. Plus, banners are helping a dealership recognize its technicians for their work.

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Nissan North America is suing a terminated Gallup, N.M., dealership for its continued unauthorized use of the manufacturer's trademarks, service marks and signage.

The trademark infringement, breach of contract and unfair trade practices suit alleges Ed Corley Nissan refused to provide access to the premises to remove signs, and the ex-dealership "purchased used Nissan vehicles and advertised them for sale" at the same location.

The franchise termination took effect in May 2022. However, a Google search showed that Ed Corley Nissan still has LinkedIn, Instagram and Facebook pages. In addition, Corley Nissan LLC is still listed as an active corporation on the New Mexico Department of State website.

The suit seeks an injunction and damages, as well as $763,375 Nissan said the store owes for 25 vehicles it bought in 2021 and another $152,994 it said the ex-dealership owes for parts, tools and services.

According to the complaint, Ed Corley Nissan a…

UAW members at the Detroit 3 agreed to let the union call a strike if contract talks break down with a Sept. 14 deadline looming.

About 97 percent of workers who voted cast their ballot in favor of authorizing a strike, the UAW said Friday. The vote is a routine part of contract negotiations and does not necessarily mean a strike will occur.

"The only way we're ever going to have a better quality of life for ourselves and our families is if we fight for it," UAW President Shawn Fain said Friday morning on a Facebook livestream. "Employers don't give higher wages or better benefits out of the kindness of their hearts. They give it because the union bargains and we make them, and that's exactly what 97 percent of you said you're ready to do."

Fain and other union leaders have been preparing workers for a potential strike since negotiations with Ford, General Motors and Stellantis began last month. Fain said the Sept. 14 expiration of the companies' curren…

The Chrysler 300 was considered the businessman's muscle car when it arrived in 1955 with a blend of style and rear-wheel-drive performance flowing from the early Hemi V-8 engine.

Chrysler went back to that formula nearly 50 years later with a reimagined descendant that became a pop culture icon and rejuvenated the company's image. The automaker sought to create a cool but affordable car that was "unabashedly Am- erican," recalled Stellantis design chief Ralph Gilles, who was design director for the 300 that debuted in 2004.

The 300's run comes to an end in December, when production concludes so Ontario's Brampton Assembly Plant can be retooled for electric vehicles. A relic of the DaimlerChrysler era, the 300 was the lead vehicle on the LX platform that also underpinned the Dodge Charger and the short-lived Dodge Magnum.

A well-kept 2005 model, Gilles said, still looks good on the road after all these years. He said the nostalgia factor of the design …

Two Canadian auto retailers expanded their U.S. portfolios, while two large Midwest retailers expanded in their home states with transactions that closed in the first three quarters of the year.

Here's a look at the deals involving import, luxury and domestic brands and stores in Michigan, Ohio, Texas and New York.

Two transactions involved auto retailers ranked on Automotive News' list of the top 150 dealership groups.

Fox Motors grew its Michigan footprint with the Monday purchase of a Kia dealership.

Fox Motors of Grand Rapids, Mich., said it bought Kia of Grand Rapids North from Liechty Auto Group. The dealership was renamed Fox Kia North.

It marks the second Kia dealership for Fox Motors. In a statement, Fox Motors CEO Daniel DeVos said the group's existing Kia store, also in Grand Rapids, was one of the group's first dealerships.

"The Kia brand has enjoyed significant growth in the U.S. market and our acquisition of Kia North…

Chicago Mayor Brandon Johnson has a plan to help tackle soaring car thefts in the city: Sue the automakers. 

The city has filed a civil suit against Kia Corp. and Hyundai Motor Co. for failing to include engine immobilizers in various models, causing “a steep rise in vehicle thefts, reckless driving, property damage, and a wide array of related violent crimes in Chicago,” according to a statement on Thursday.

Hyundai said in response that it’s committed to helping customers and communities affected by the theft of vehicles not equipped with push-button ignitions and engine immobilizers. Engine immobilizers, meanwhile, are now standard on all Hyundai vehicles produced since November 2021.

Thefts of Kia and Hyundai cars have surged across the country after social media users exposed security flaws, sparking what’s been termed the “Kia Challenge” where people livestream their larceny. At least 20 state attorneys in the U.S. have urged Hyundai and Kia…

A joint venture battery plant said on Thursday it will hike the wages of workers at its Ohio plant by an average of 25 percent after some U.S. senators blasted the company for paying workers as little as $16 an hour.

Ultium Cells, a joint venture of General Motors and LG Energy Solution, said workers must still ratify the interim wage increase that takes effect Aug. 28. The UAW said the increase is worth $3 to $4 an hour for workers.

The interim wage increase will be retroactive to December 2022 and some workers will receive between $3,000 to $7,000, based on hours worked.

"Providing this wage increase is the right thing to do for our team members," Ultium said.

Workers voted in December to join the UAW but have not yet reached a contract. "We continue to bargain in good faith with the UAW to reach a comprehensive contract for our employees, including a final wage scale," Ultium said.

UAW President Shawn Fain said in a statement "after mo…

Electric-first automakers such as Tesla and Nio outshined established brands such as Jaguar Land Rover and Toyota in a new ranking that grades companies on their software skills.

The Digital Automaker Index was created by consultancy Gartner to assess automakers in eight software-centric-areas. Those scores are tabulated to come up with an overall ranking, which this year covers 20 automakers.

The categories include culture and leadership, talent, architectures, connected vehicle, autonomous driving, electrification, smart cockpit and online sales potential.

The core goal of the index is to determine which brands are in the best position to monetize their software capabilities, which will be an essential part of their future success.

Stellantis, for example, plans to generate about 20 billion euros (about $22 billion) by 2030 from software-enabled product offerings and subscriptions. The automaker, however, ranks No. 14 out of 20 in Gartner's ind…