News

Jeep, a brand known for pushing adventures in the wilderness, is getting an assist from the weather as it pushes the new Wrangler 4xe plug-in hybrid.

The brand, trying to get acquainted with the electric vehicle crowd, is displaying Wrangler 4xe ads on the screens of Volta charging stations in San Francisco and Los Angeles that change with the weather. Jeep is the first company to run a campaign using Volta's weather technology.

The Volta stations have 55-inch screens that show the Wrangler with the top and doors off when the weather is sunny, with the slogan, "Embracing nature has never felt more natural." When it's cloudy, the doors and roof are on and the slogan says, "Charge ahead and take on the elements," while lightning bolts flash in the background.

The campaign, which began this month and runs throughout July, shows how Jeep is adapting its messaging to appeal to a more environmentally conscious audience as the brand ext…

Some of the hottest new vehicles revealed by automakers lately — including significant new electric vehicles — have mostly remained online. Only a few industry insiders and journalists have been able to see them up close.

That changes this week with the Chicago Auto Show, which will feature highly anticipated vehicles such as the Ford F-150 Lightning, the burly Bronco and the Kia EV6. Ford also will mark global debuts of two interactive displays with road courses for its off-road vehicles and its new electric models.

While smaller auto shows have been returning for months as the pandemic eases, some of the newly revealed models have been absent. Recent shows also have come with restrictions that limited their appeal. Masks, social distancing and reduced automaker participation meant smaller crowds.

The Chicago show is not a complete return to the pre-pandemic era, but it will be close.

For starters, there will be a me…

TOKYO — Mazda's plans to resurrect its trademark rotary engine as a part of an electrified range extender is now on the back burner.

The rotary range extender had been expected next year as part of the company's multiple-solution approach to electrification. Mazda Motor Corp. still plans to resurrect the rotary — but first as a power-assist technology for series and plug-in hybrid offerings.

"We are still considering using rotary engine as a range extender, but the timing of its introduction is undecided," spokesman Masahiro Sakata said.

Mazda's commitment, however, may be shaky. Japanese media reports say Mazda has scrapped plans for using the rotary range extender in the MX-30. Mazda ditched the rotary range extender partly because it required a bigger battery that would make the vehicle too expensive, Japan's Nikkei business daily and Nikkan Jidosha Shimbun reported.

Mazda declined to comment. The rotary range-extender version of the MX-30 was…

Ford Motor Co. on Friday said it amended its bylaws to adopt gender-neutral language in an effort to build a more inclusive workplace.

The automaker said it would use the title "chair" in place of "chairman."

This comes amid fierce debates over what it means to be a man or a woman, and how language and institutions need to be more inclusive.

Earlier this year, White House added gender-neutral pronouns that people could select when contacting the U.S. government, while professional networking site LinkedIn announced plans to let users add their preferred gender pronouns to accounts in certain countries.

Mitsubishi Motors' last halo vehicle was a turbocharged, all-wheel-drive sedan with 303 hp that exited the market as the 2015 Lancer Evolution Final Edition, selling for about $40,000 with shipping. The shine was off the aging "Evo" by the time it was discontinued, but dealers fondly remember the excitement it brought the brand.

The automaker's newest halo vehicle is a three-row crossover that also draws $40,000 transaction prices and is once again bringing energy back to the Mitsubishi name — along with a wealthier clientele more concerned with fresh product than distressed pricing.

Mitsubishi dealers are breathing a sigh of relief since the April arrival of the 2022 Outlander after years of discounting mature products, such as the outgoing Outlander compact and the decade-old Outlander Sport subcompact. The new Outlander is based on the redesigned Nissan Rogue, which doesn't offer a third row of seating.

The launch also coincid…

The University of Washington and its Urban Freight Lab have collaborated with the Seattle Department of Transportation to launch a neighborhood "microhub," a central spot where consumers can pick up goods and companies can make zero-emissions last-mile deliveries.

The Seattle Neighborhood Delivery Hub is operating as a pilot project in a parking lot in the city's Uptown neighborhood to test new vehicles, business models and technologies aimed at reducing overall emissions in delivery services.

"Our members wanted to come together and collaborate on a space that would allow them to test and evaluate ... novel last-mile delivery services ... outside of the lab in an independent way," explained Anne Goodchild, professor of Civil Environmental Engineering at the University of Washington and founder of the Urban Freight Lab, a public-private research group that helps develop strategies for managing goods deliveries in urban areas.

The…

Companies that provide Internet vehicle listings are looking beyond generating traditional leads to help consumers transact online.

The capabilities that listings sites such as CarGurus and TrueCar are adding to their platforms expand on their original auto classifieds businesses. They range from integrating with digital retailing software providers to allowing consumers to build deals that incorporate vehicle financing and protection products.

The shift follows a broader industry trend toward e-commerce that had been slow to evolve until the coronavirus pandemic sped it forward. Executives of the listings companies and observers of the segment say allowing consumers to complete more purchase steps on third-party websites before passing them on to a dealership will generate deeper leads from more-serious buyers.

Someone who acts beyond simply requesting a quote, such as seeking a trade-in value or applying for credit, signals to a dealership that "this…

Companies that provide Internet vehicle listings are looking beyond generating traditional leads to help consumers transact online.

The capabilities that listings sites such as CarGurus and TrueCar are adding to their platforms expand on their original auto classifieds businesses. They range from integrating with digital retailing software providers to allowing consumers to build deals that incorporate vehicle financing and protection products.

The shift follows a broader industry trend toward e-commerce that had been slow to evolve until the coronavirus pandemic sped it forward. Executives of the listings companies and observers of the segment say allowing consumers to complete more purchase steps on third-party websites before passing them on to a dealership will generate deeper leads from more-serious buyers.

Someone who acts beyond simply requesting a quote, such as seeking a trade-in value or applying for credit, signals to a dealership that "this…

A 2019 Chevrolet Bolt EV owned by Vermont Rep. Timothy Briglin, a supporter of EVs in the state legislature, recently caught fire while charging in his driveway.

The vehicle is a part of a November recall of more than 50,000 2017-2019 model year Bolts in the U.S. due to fire concerns. GM confirmed five instances of fire at the time of the recall. There were nearly 69,000 vehicles recalled globally.

"Fortunately, there were no injuries as a result of this incident. We have reached out to the customer and are actively investigating the incident and gathering additional information to understand the specific circumstances," GM said in a statement.

GM later announced a remedy to owners of the recalled EV, which was able to identify potential battery anomalies. The remedy calls for replacing battery module assemblies in the vehicles as well as installing advanced onboard diagnostic software to detect potential issues in the battery.

Owners of 2019 mo…

As the second quarter came to a close, one dealership group expanded while another transaction involved a first-time dealer.

Here's a quick look at the transactions involving domestic- and import-brand stores.

Oregon acquisition

Time Auto Group acquired its first Subaru and Honda dealerships on June 30 when it bought Klamath Falls Subaru and Klamath Falls Honda, in Oregon, from Underriner Motors.

The growing Time Auto of Portland, Ore., also owns Volvo Cars of Bend, in Oregon, as well as Beaverton Nissan and Gladstone Mitsubishi in suburban Portland. The group also includes D&C Motor Co., a used-vehicle dealership in Portland that specializes in European luxury brands. Klamath Falls is in southern Oregon.

"We're looking to expand, especially in Oregon," Time Auto CEO Daniel Crainic told Automotive News. "It's close enough to us where it gives us a dynamic footprint."

Time Auto's two-store Klamath Falls acquisition follows its pu…

FRANKFURT -- Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess received a contract extension under which he will lead the automaker until October 2025.

Diess will remain in his post until his 67th birthday, VW said in a statement on Friday.

Diess and his management team "have worked with employee representatives to successfully advance the transformation of the group over the last few years," VW Group Chairman Hans Dieter Pötsch said in the statement.

Under the leadership of Diess "conditions will be optimal for the continued successful development of the entire company in the coming years as well," Pötsch said.

Diess's contract extension was made possible by the recent departure of labor leader Bernd Osterloh. The pair had frequently clashed over strategy.

The extension marks a victory for the former BMW AG executive who twice last year was unsuccessful in seeking an early extension to his contract. Internal tensions were defused in December with a broad…

General Motors is recalling 410,019 pickup trucks from the 2015 and 2016 model years because the roof-rail airbag inflator end cap in them could detach from the inflator, or the inflator sidewall could rupture.

According to a safety recall report filed with NHTSA, corrosion caused by moisture introduced during the supplier manufacturing process could occur inside the inflator vessel.

If the end cap separates from the roof-rail airbag inflator or a sidewall rupture occurs, compressed gas could escape and the end cap could be propelled into the vehicle, potentially injuring the driver or passengers.

GM says the supplier at the time of assembly was Key Safety Systems, now known as Joyson Safety Systems.

The recall covers a range of pickup models: the 2015-16 GMC Sierra 1500, 2500 and 3500; and the 2015-16 Chevrolet Silverado 1500, 2500 and 3500.

GM reports roof-rail airbag inflators ruptured in three unoccupied 2015 Silverado vehicles in mid…