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For more than 20 years, Teton Motors, nestled in the scenic mountain city of Jackson, Wyo., has offered an unusual employee benefit that has become increasingly critical to retain and attract talent: housing.

The dealership group, which operates Chevrolet and Subaru stores, first began offering on-site housing to employees in 1998. Today, Teton Motors owns 12 housing units that it rents to workers at below-market rates in the pricey tourist town — a perk that has attracted new employees and helped the dealerships keep existing staffers.

"It definitely has helped with retention, because everybody knows what the market is like and they do appreciate what we offer them," said Dave Auge, Teton Motors president. "It's a win-win."

Back in 1998, the group was leasing a plot of land in Jackson as a used-vehicle lot to complement its Chevrolet store, Auge recalled. When the land's owner died, Teton Motors bought the parcel and made plans to build an office for t…

Tucked beneath the floor of most electric vehicles today is a nickel manganese cobalt battery, a type of lithium ion battery. The chemistry has had a dominant run as EVs have proliferated because of its ability to hold an ample charge.

But nickel manganese cobalt, called NMC, is being challenged, experts say, as lithium iron phosphate, known as LFP, batteries provide a cheaper alternative, although they trade some range.

"LFP, from a manufacturer standpoint, is a great compromise," said Conrad Layson, senior alternative propulsion analyst at AutoForecast Solutions, a global consultancy and forecasting firm.

"From a user standpoint, it might be too much of a compromise. We won't know that yet until it really propagates out here in the Western market."

LFP batteries, which also fall under the lithium ion umbrella, are already powering a substantial number of EVs in China. But they have not reached the U.S. in any appreciable volume, said Dan Blond…

Toyota is adding special editions and trim levels to its car and light-truck lineup for the 2023 model year, including two which mark significant anniversaries of vehicles in the U.S.

4Runner: The brand plans a run of 4,040 special editions of the midsize off-roader to mark the 4Runner's 40th anniversary in the U.S. The vehicles will be 4x4s equipped with bronze alloy wheels and will feature yellow/orange/red striping. The cabin will get special badging and floor mats.

Sienna: Toyota will mark the 25th anniversary of its minivan with a run of 2,525 Silver Anniversary editions in Celestial Silver or Wind Chill Pearl. Based on the XSE trim, these will have special badging along with features normally requiring a higher Limited trim level, including heated and vented seats trimmed in black leather.

Tundra SX: This new trim level slotted between the SR5 and Limited features dark gray 18-inch alloy wheels and black instead of body-co…

Call this a reality check: At less than a month old, Volkswagen's nascent Scout brand doesn't have employees, offices, executives, a factory or even a publicly disclosed product plan.

What it does have is a purchased semi-famous name, a rough sideview sketch of a planned battery-electric SUV and pickup, and a commitment from the head of the world's second-largest automaker to make it all happen in the United States at lightning speed.

That commitment, from Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess and unaccompanied by deeper details, has been enough to roil hundreds of U.S. dealers of the automaker's eponymous brand over the last few weeks like nothing since the German automaker's costly diesel emissions scandal.

Diess this week was in Davos, Switzerland, committing to have a site chosen by the end of this year for a multibillion-dollar U.S. assembly plant and likely an accompanying battery plant. At the same time, his VW dealers in the U.S. and their allies …

Bob Brockman's continuation at the top of dealership management system giant Reynolds and Reynolds Co. after his lawyers raised concerns about cognitive impairment contributed to a federal judge's ruling that the former auto software titan is competent to stand trial on tax evasion charges.

The way that Brockman, who turns 81 this month, presented himself in professional settings was at odds with how he presented to his doctors and on cognitive testing, U.S. District Judge George Hanks Jr. wrote in a 42-page ruling this week. The opinion sided with prosecutors who contended that Brockman was faking his symptoms to avoid prosecution.

Hanks said those prosecutors met the burden of proof necessary to find Brockman competent.

Evidence showed "Brockman is also an extremely intelligent person with both a high cognitive reserve and history of malingering for secondary gain," Hanks wrote in his opinion.

The ruling, which came six months after an eight-d…

Kellen Walker gives you the top headlines and Rivian parts ways with its manufacturing chief, Carvana gets another chance in Illinois, and VW is shopping for sites to build Scout EVs in the U.S. And a look at whether F&I offices are shifting away from digital services.

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DETROIT-- General Motors' next vice president of global workplace safety will rejoin the automaker after 18 months at Amazon.

Marcos Purty will take on the role, effective June 1, replacing Jim Glynn, who will retire after more than 40 years with GM, effective Sept. 1, GM said in a statement Friday.

For the past 18 months, Purty has been vice president of North America Fulfillment for Amazon Robotics Sortable Operations. He spent the first 25 years of his career with GM.

In his last post with GM, from January to October 2020, Purty was executive director of global manufacturing strategy and planning. Purty "directed GM Manufacturing's footprint in cost and profitability, spearheaded new product allocation to increase manufacturing utilization, built a total utilization plan and footprint for GM's all-electric future, and implemented environmentally sustainable choices for the future," GM said in the statement.

Purty will report directly to GM CEO…

A federal judge has determined that former Reynolds and Reynolds Co. CEO Bob Brockman is competent to stand trial on multiple criminal charges related to allegations of tax evasion.

Brockman, 80, was charged in October 2020 with 39 counts, including tax evasion, wire fraud, money laundering and evidence tampering in what federal prosecutors say was a complex scheme to evade taxes on $2 billion in income.

His lawyers sought a competency hearing, which was held over eight days in November 2021 in a Houston courtroom, to determine whether Brockman could assist in his defense. Brockman's lawyers said he had been diagnosed with symptoms indicative of Parkinson's disease or Lewy body dementia that made it difficult for him to process or retain information. Prosecutors, however, argued that Brockman had faked his symptoms to avoid prosecution.

To help readers follow the developments in the case, we've compiled our ongoing coverage of the proceedings in one orga…

State-owned automaker China FAW Group Co. is considering acquiring a significant stake in the troubled ride-hailing giant Didi Global Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.

The Chinese carmaker has reached out to Didi’s top executives and expressed interest in becoming a major shareholder in the firm, said the people, who asked not to be identified as the information is private. FAW pledged to help Didi resolve issues related to data security, paving the way for a Hong Kong listing, the people said.

Discussions are at an early stage and might not lead to any transaction, the people said. Representatives for Didi and FAW didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Didi became a symbol of China’s crackdown on technology companies after the ride-hailing firm proceeded with its $4.4 billion U.S. IPO despite Beijing’s objections, erasing more than $70 billion in market value since China placed it under a cybersecurity probe.

FAW is…

TOKYO -- Toyota Motor Corp. cut its global production plan for June for the second time this week and signaled its full-year output estimate could be lowered, highlighting the pain from the supply-chain crunch and China lockdown.

Global automakers' production has been hit by the microchip shortage and also by China's COVID-19 lockdowns.

The reduction by Toyota -- broadly seen as a bellwether for Japan's auto industry -- comes a day after data showed that passenger car sales in China, Europe and the United States remained weak.

The automaker said it now expected to produce about 50,000 fewer vehicles in June, for a total of about 800,000, due to the lockdown in Shanghai. It had already cut its plan for the same month by 100,000 vehicles on Tuesday, citing the chip shortage.

Toyota said there was "a possibility" that it could lower its full-year production plan of 9.7 million vehicles.

"It is very difficult to estimate the current…

Lucid Group CEO Peter Rawlinson reveals some key engineering secrets that allow its midsize Air sedan to compete with full-size rivals for interior space — while housing enough battery modules to travel more than 500 miles on a single charge — in a new video presentation.

Silicon Valley-based Lucid, which is ramping up production of the Air EV at its Arizona factory, released the "Lucid Space Concept" presentation Thursday on YouTube. In it, Rawlinson walks through the development of the body structure to accommodate the EV's 1,000-horsepower mechanicals while providing seating for five full-size adults.

Lucid, which has highlighted its proprietary technology and in-house manufacturing in promotional material, has achieved a series of industry firsts. They include the longest-range EV ever tested in the U.S. and the biggest front-trunk, or "frunk."

The latest video is the second in a 10-part series led by Lucid executives and experts. In the debut March…

Two quickly expanding dealership groups added to their store counts in the first and second quarters, while two other groups made single-store acquisitions in March and May.

Here's a look at deals involving domestic, luxury and import dealerships and stores in Illinois, Nevada, New York and West Virginia.

Lou Fusz Automotive Network acquired its second Ford dealership with a purchase this month.

Lou Fusz Automotive Network, of St. Louis, on May 10 bought Tri Ford Inc. in Highland, Ill., from Monica Rehkemper.

The dealership was renamed Lou Fusz Ford of Highland. Highland is northeast of St. Louis.

Randy Fusz, the group's CEO, said the Ford acquisition follows the group buying a powersports store, also in Illinois, about six months ago.

It had been more than 20 years since the group's last new-vehicle dealership acquisition, Fusz estimated. But the group, which Fusz runs with his four siblings, is looking to expand.

The group…