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<!--*/ */ /*-->*/ 8 automakers improve EV fire guidance

Eight automakers have improved their emergency response guides for EVs and incorporated vehicle-specific details on extinguishing lithium ion battery fires following a recommendation last year by a federal safety agency.

The National Transportation Safety Board on Wednesday said Honda, Hyundai, Mitsubishi, Porsche, Volkswagen and Volvo — along with electric commercial vehicle maker Proterra and electric bus maker Van Hool — have completed the actions asked for in the recommendation issued in January 2021 to 22 vehicle manufacturers.

The agency asked those manufacturers to model their emergency response guides on international safety standards and to include vehicle-specific information on extinguishing electric vehicle battery fires as well as mitigating thermal runaway and the risk of battery reignition.

Twelve automakers, including Ford, General Motors, Tesla and Toyota, are making…

Toyota will introduce the fifth generation of its innovative hybrid technology in the 2023 Toyota Corolla Cross, giving the all-wheel-drive subcompact crossover an extra 25 hp while delivering a 23 percent boost in combined fuel economy over the model that went on sale last year.

The Corolla Cross Hybrid, equipped with a standard electronic awd system, will go on sale late this year with a hybridized 2.0-liter engine delivering 194 hp and boasting an estimated 37 mpg combined in fuel economy, Toyota says. That compares with the crossover's standard 2.0 liter engine that delivers 169 hp and is rated at 30 mpg combined in awd form.

Like the nonhybrid version, the Corolla Cross Hybrid will come standard with Toyota's new touch screen-based infotainment system as well as Toyota Safety Sense 3.0, which includes dynamic cruise control, lane-keeping, blind-spot monitors, rear cross-traffic alert and automated headlights. It will be available in five tr…

Kellen Walker gives you the top headlines. Ford makes a big investment in Midwest manufacturing. Stellantis locks down a lithium supply. Panasonic is going all-in on EV batteries in North America.  Plus, Automotive News' Hannah Lutz talks with Buick & GMC Global Vice President Duncan Aldred about the decision to go all-electric by the end of the decade.

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WASHINGTON/NEW YORK -- The Justice Department on Thursday charged the U.S. business of Stellantis with criminal conspiracy in its multi-year emissions fraud probe surrounding vehicles with diesel engines.

Reuters reported last week FCA US, now part of Stellantis, had agreed to plead guilty to a criminal conspiracy charge arising from its efforts to evade emissions requirements for more than 100,000 older Ram pickup trucks and Jeep SUVs in its U.S. lineup and would pay roughly $300 million in penalties.

U.S. District Judge Nancy G. Edmunds in Detroit set a plea hearing for FCA US for 1:30 p.m. Friday.

The government's criminal information charges FCA US with conspiracy to defraud the U.S. to violate the Clean Air Act and to commit wire fraud, said the automaker deceived U.S. regulators and sold the vehicles "knowing that those vehicles did not meet U.S. emissions standards" and also deceived customers "by making false and misleading representations." Read more

A 2022 Jeep Wrangler four-door tipped over on its passenger side during a driver-side small overlap crash test, receiving a "marginal" rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety said Thursday.

The news comes after the 2019 Wrangler also tipped onto its passenger side during an audit for the test and also received a "marginal" rating. According to a statement from IIHS, Stellantis made modifications to the 2022 model to try to address the issue.

IIHS said tipping on the passenger side "presents an additional injury risk beyond what the standard criteria are intended to measure" since the institute does not conduct the test with a dummy in the passenger seat.

"There are other things that sometimes happen during crash tests that sort of fall outside of the normal metrics that we use to assign a rating," IIHS spokesperson Joe Young told Automotive News. "Obviously, rolling onto the side could present additional risk to a person that would be seated…

Jeremie Papin has spent the past 24 months orchestrating sweeping change over Nissan Motor Co.'s Americas business.

As the region's top boss, the Frenchman is transforming Nissan's product lineup, sales strategy and organizational culture.

"We are different to what we were," said Papin, 48. "We speak about the products, we speak about the brand — we don't speak about the deal. We're focused on the customer experience."

That's a bold about-face for a brand that historically has pumped out vehicles and built a business on selling the deal.

But the Japanese automaker's "Nissan Next" strategy is beginning to pay dividends. A freshened product portfolio has revived consumer interest in the brand and raised dealer profitability and sentiment.

The brand's U.S. sales rose 12 percent last year, an optimistic reversal from 2020, when the automaker suffered its largest annual percentage decline.

Meanwhile, 22 percent of retailers in Kerrigan …

Stellantis said it secured lithium essential for its electric vehicle production in North America from a project in California, as carmakers worldwide scramble to secure supply of the battery metal key to the electric vehicle revolution.

Controlled Thermal Resources Ltd. (CTR) will supply the owner of Jeep and Peugeot with up to 25,000 metric tons per year of lithium hydroxide over the 10-year term of the agreement, Stellantis said Thursday.

CTR, which operates in California's Salton Sea, is also developing a geothermal lithium brine project to meet General Motors' lithium needs.

Lithium demand has soared of late as automakers boost production of electric vehicles that use lithium-ion batteries, driving a global supply shortage of the metal.

Stellantis, formed in 2021 through the merger between France's PSA and Fiat Chrysler, said in March it would have 75 EV models on the market and sell 5 million EVs a year by 2030.

The company has also…

Ford Motor Co. said it will invest $3.7 billion and create 6,200 UAW jobs across manufacturing hubs in three Midwest states as it looks to increase production of both internal combustion and electric vehicles.

The majority of the investment — $2 billion supporting 3,200 new jobs — will come in Michigan at Ford's Flat Rock Assembly Plant, Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, Michigan Assembly Plant, nearby parts factories and a new packaging facility coming to Monroe.

Ford said Thursday the investments would go toward producing the next-generation Mustang coupe at Flat Rock Assembly and the next-generation Ranger midsize pickup at Michigan Assembly, and boosting F-150 Lightning output at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center to 150,000 pickups per year. Ford set Lightning production goals in January but until now had not announced any additional jobs or investments related to that planned production increase.

Ford also plans to spend $1.5 billion and create 1,800…

China’s electric vehicle startups reported stronger sales for May and forecast continued gains for June as supply chains and output begin to recover from the disruption of COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai and other cities.

Li Auto Inc. reported a May sales gain of 166 percent from a year earlier to 11,496 vehicles on Wednesday. Xpeng Inc. posted a gain of 78 percent with 10,125 deliveries. Nio Inc. delivered 7,024 EVs, up 5 percent from a year earlier.

All three companies cautioned that output had not yet fully recovered, constrained by parts supply issues. Shanghai, a key production hub, ended a two-month lockdown for most residents on Wednesday.

Industry-wide sales data for May, including for the EV leaders in China, BYD and Tesla, are expected by next week.

China has announced a range of measures to support auto sales and the sputtering economy, including a halving of the tax on purchases of small-engine vehicles with sticker prices of up to abou…

An LMP Automotive Holdings Inc. shareholder has filed a lawsuit seeking class-action status against the fledgling auto retailer after the company disclosed last month that it would have to restate financial statements for three quarters of 2021.

Chris Nguyen filed the lawsuit Friday in U.S. District Court in Florida, alleging violations of federal securities laws and that the company made false or misleading statements and failed to disclose adverse facts about LMP's business. LMP CEO Samer Tawfik and CFO Robert Bellaflores also were named as defendants.

"As a result of defendants' wrongful acts and omissions, and the precipitous decline in the market value of the company's securities, plaintiff and other class members have suffered significant losses and damages," the complaint states.

Tawfik did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.

LMP's stock price has plummeted in the past year. In 2021, the stock had traded above $…

J.D. Power has purchased finance and insurance menu and reporting programs from the auto retail software company Tail Light.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed in J.D. Power's Thursday announcement of the acquisition.

"The pace of digital transformation in auto dealerships has been staggering, and the F&I department has been leading that charge with growing demand for digital menu solutions that clearly and consistently display financing details and special offers to consumers whether they are in the showroom or buying online," Phil Battista, J.D. Power's dealership technologies president, said in a statement.

"Similarly, demand has grown for analytics and reporting solutions that allow dealers to optimize their F&I offerings. By augmenting our rapidly growing suite of dealer-focused F&I solutions with Tail Light's F&I technology and resources, we are solidifying our role as an end-to-end data analytics and software solutions provider t…

Bill Sheahan from Spectrum Reach Automotive discusses the opportunities that strategic data driven-digital advertising provides dealers and how to reach audiences in today's fragmented media landscape.