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<!--*/ */ /*-->*/ Stark statistics bring speeding epidemic into sharper focus

Traffic deaths have surged during the pandemic. The latest numbers from federal officials show a 10.5 percent increase during the first quarter of 2021 over the previous year, a rise that comes even as the overall number of vehicle miles driven has fallen.

Speeding motorists have been identified as a prime culprit of that increase. Motorists started speeding at new levels during the pandemic, and haven't slowed down even as traffic approaches pre-pandemic levels.

New data from traffic-analytics company Arity brings that driver behavior into sharper focus: the company says that today, nearly 1 in every 20 miles driven occurs at speeds greater than 80 mph. Time spent over 80 mph remains approximately 10 percent higher than in 2019. Forty-two percent of the miles driven at speeds faster than 80 mph occur at night, according to the Arity report, entitled "Life In The Fast …

DETROIT — General Motors said it is extending downtime at several crossover assembly plants in North America as the global microchip shortage drags on, but production at plants that make its lucrative full-size pickups and SUVs will continue.

"These most recent scheduling adjustments are being driven by the continued parts shortages caused by semiconductor supply constraints from international markets experiencing COVID-related restrictions," the automaker said in a statement Thursday. "Although the situation remains complex and very fluid, GM continues to prioritize full-size truck production which remains in high demand."

Seven of GM's plants in North America will be running next week: its full-size pickup plants in Flint, Mich., Fort Wayne, Ind., and Silao, Mexico; its full-size SUV plant in Arlington, Texas; its Chevrolet Corvette plant in Bowling Green, Ky.; its GMC Acadia, Cadillac XT5 and XT6 plant in Spring Hill, Tenn.; and Fairfax Assembly in Kan…

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. said Thursday that it will spend an additional $250 million and add 450 new jobs in southeast Michigan to double production of its upcoming F-150 Lightning EV pickup.

Ford said the investment and jobs will be spread across its Rouge Electric Vehicle Center, Van Dyke Electric Powertrain Center and Rawsonville Components Plant. The added investment will help Ford build 80,000 electric trucks per year, up from an original plan to build 40,000 annually.

Executives say they boosted the planned production based on strong demand. Ford has received more than 150,000 reservations for the electric pickup, in the form of refundable deposits, which is scheduled to go on sale by the middle of next year.

"We knew the F-150 Lightning was special, but the interest from the public has surpassed our highest expectations and changed the conversation around electric vehicles. So we are doubling down, adding jobs and investment to increase productio…

SHANGHAI -- A slew of foreign automakers downsized their China operations in recent years.

More of them plan to do so: Mazda Motor Corp. will merge its two joint ventures into one while Stellantis has decided to close one of the two local plants for the Jeep brand.

And next year, international players will be allowed to operate wholly owned subsidiaries in China’s auto industry.

But let’s be clear: This does not mean the Chinese auto industry is on the verge of an imminent shakeup – even as the government this week began to signal interest in seeing consolidation, particularly in the electric vehicle market.

The primary factor that has pushed several global automakers to pare local production is competition.

The world’s largest auto market is also the world’s most crowded market, where many foreign and domestic Chinese brands have long been competing neck-and-neck for market share.

Unable to fend off the competition, several global …

SEOUL -- Key automotive battery supplier SK Innovation Co. said on Thursday its shareholders approved the company's proposal to separate its battery business into a new company.

The decision paves the way for the battery unit -- a key supplier for Ford Motor Co., Hyundai Motor Co. and other automakers -- to potentially raise funds and go public to finance its high-cost production capacity expansion.

The unit, to be launched on Oct. 1, will initially be a wholly-owned subsidiary of SK Innovation, tentatively named "SK Battery Co. Ltd."

More than 80 percentr of SK Innovation shareholders voted in favor of the plan, SK Innovation said in a statement.

"It's crucial to secure timely financial resources for further quantitative and qualitative expansions in the future," SK Innovation CEO Kim Jun told shareholders.

"With the split-off of the battery business, we plan to evaluate various ways to secure resources, such as establishing joint venture…

Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group and four domestic venture capital firms have jointly invested more than $300 million in DeepRoute, an autonomous driving technology developer based in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen.

DeepRoute said this week it will tap the investment to expand its team, ramp up R&D, and scale up collaboration with automakers and fleets.

The company didn't disclose the size of Alibaba's investment. The four venture capital firms are Jeneration Capital, Fosun RZ Capital, Yunqi Partners and Glory Ventures.

Established in 2019, DeepRoute aims to develop Level 4 autonomous driving robotaxis and medium-duty trucks for freight delivery in urban areas. 

The startup has launched trial robotaxis in three domestic cities – Shenzhen, Wuhan and Hangzhou. 

The robotaxis were adapted from cars purchased by DeepRoute itself as well as vehicles supplied by domestic automakers such as Dongfeng Motor Group and…

Cepton CEO Jun Pei discusses how the lidar company will supply General Motors and the importance of balancing performance and reliability in driver-assist technology.

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DETROIT — General Motors' defense arm said it has won a $36.4 million contract to build 10 heavy-duty armored Suburban SUVs for the U.S. Department of State.

GM Defense said Wednesday it plans to deliver the purpose-built Suburbans over the next two years as part of a development contract for the department's Diplomatic Security Service.

In 2023, the GM subsidiary expects to commit to another contract that includes annual production of 200 heavy-duty Suburbans for nine years. GM Defense did not disclose the funding amount for the production contract.

The heavy-duty Suburban is being developed for a unique protection mission, GM Defense said, which requires armoring and other performance enhancements. The 10 initial SUVs, plus two test vehicles, will be built at GM's proving ground in Milford, Mich.

The Suburban also will feature a new body-on-frame chassis and suspension designed to support government vehicle performance requirements with a highe…

General Motors urged some owners of Chevrolet Bolt electric cars to park and store the vehicles at least 50 feet away from other cars to reduce the risk that a spontaneous fire could spread.

The Detroit automaker has recalled all of the roughly 142,000 Bolts sold since 2016 because the battery can catch on fire. GM has taken a $1.8 billion charge so far for the cost of the recall and has been buying cars back from some disgruntled owners. The company expects to recoup much of the cost from battery supplier LG Corp.

The new advice is likely to rankle owners who are already limiting their use of the Bolt to avoid overheating the battery and risking a fire. The parking guidance -- recommending a distance of 50 feet from other parked cars -- is especially difficult for owners in urban areas. GM has confirmed 10 fires.

The Bolt normally can go 259 miles on a charge, but that has been limited by GM’s guidance to avoid a fire. The automaker told Bolt owners t…

The IRS filed tax liens of more than $1.4 billion against former Reynolds and Reynolds Co. CEO Bob Brockman in two Colorado counties, both individually and involving properties the government says are affiliated with him, according to a newspaper report.

The Aspen Times reported the liens this week. They cover 12 years — 2004 through 2007, 2010 and 2012 through 2018 — and include unpaid balances as high as $302.2 million in 2004, according to the report. Additional tax liens list separate entities as taxpayers, each of which the IRS wrote in the liens is considered an "alter-ego" of Brockman, according to the newspaper.

Brockman, 80, has been charged with 39 federal counts, including tax evasion, wire fraud, money laundering and evidence-tampering in what federal prosecutors say was a scheme lasting two decades to evade taxes on $2 billion in income. Brockman has pleaded not guilty. A federal judge this week agreed to delay a competency hearing until November t…

BEIJING -- Xpeng Heitech, a flying car startup backed by electric vehicle maker Xpeng Inc., said on Wednesday that it would deliver electric flying cars to customers in 2024.

The startup, founded in 2013 and funded by Xpeng and Xpeng's CEO He Xiaopeng, now employs 400 people and will expand its work force to 700 by the end of this year, company founder Zhao Deli told the World New Energy Vehicle Congress.

Xpeng Heitech's model will be able to drive on roads, Zhao said. The electric flying car will be able to travel over 600 kilometers (370 miles) on the ground on a single charge, but Zhao did not say how far it can fly on one charge.

Other automakers that are developing flying cars in China include Geely's Terrafugia, which is building a factory in the central city of Wuhan. Volkswagen AG is also studying the industry in China.

Regulators in China, however, have yet to roll out detailed rules on flying vehicles.

Rivian, the Amazon.com Inc.-backed electric vehicle maker that registered last month for a stock market debut, is aiming to raise between $5 billion and $8 billion with the listing, making it one of the largest U.S. initial public offerings of recent years, according to people familiar with the matter.

Rivian, which counts Ford Motor Co. and T. Rowe Price among its investors, registered the IPO confidentially with U.S. regulators last month. It is seeking a valuation of about $80 billion in the listing, which is expected to land in late October or November, the sources said.

Rivian declined to comment.

If Rivian raises $8 billion in the IPO, that would rank as the fourth biggest of the past decade in the United States. Only three other companies have raised more than $8 billion in IPOs since 2011, according to Dealogic: Alibaba, which raised a world-record $25 billion in 2014; Facebook, which raised $16 billion in 2012; and Uber, which raised $8.1 billi…