News

A former Oklahoma Kia and Mitsubishi dealer has pleaded guilty to two counts of tampering with his auto lender fraud case, authorities said last month. A third charge will be dropped as part of a plea deal.

Former Big Red Dealerships owner Bobby Mayes admitted he encouraged and provided funds for his fraud co-defendant Courtney Wells' flight to Mexico while both awaited sentencing in that case, the Western District of Oklahoma U.S. Attorney's Office said June 26.

Mayes also told the court he sent it an anonymous email in October 2022, "which contained false allegations of an alleged meeting and evidence as part of an effort to obtain a new trial in the proceeding."

This appeared to be a reference to an Oct. 5, 2022, email Mayes' counsel said described prosecutors speaking to and receiving more than 300 pages of text messages from a witness — exchanges allegedly not disclosed to the defense. Authorities called this email, which had …

Another man tied to telemarketing that deceptively pitched "extended automobile warranties" has agreed to permanent bans from both industries and a $6.5 million judgment, the Federal Trade Commission said July 6.

The June settlement with Daniel Kole and his Kole Consulting Group wraps up the agency's case against the American Vehicle Protection service contract telemarketing operation, the agency said. According to the FTC, the scheme bilked consumers out of more than $6 million.

Kole provided startup funds for American Vehicle Protection and reviewed and revised its telemarketing scripts, the FTC said in a February 2022 complaint.

"Kole and AVP blasted consumers with illegal calls and made bogus claims about bumper-to-bumper warranties," FTC Bureau of Consumer Protection Director Samuel Levine said in a July 6 statement.

Kole and Kole Consulting are permanently barred from telemarketing anything and forbidden to promote…

The U.S. EV market is growing, but not fast enough during the latest quarter to prevent unsold EVs from stacking up at some automakers' dealerships or to allow Tesla to avoid new price cuts, according to analysts and industry data.

Rising inventories and price-cutting could represent only a short-term pause in EV market growth. But they could be signals that boosting U.S. EV sales above the current 7 percent market share level will be more costly and difficult than expected, even with federal and state subsidies.

Automakers in North America have billions of dollars in EV-related investments riding on how the next several quarters play out. If production of EVs continues to outpace demand, automakers will have to choose between slashing prices and profit margins, or slowing assembly lines. 

More than 90 new EV models are expected to hit the U.S. market through 2026, according to AutoForecast Solutions. Many will struggle to reach profitable sales vo…

Toyota affiliate Denso Corp. said it has signed a memorandum of understanding to negotiate a transfer of certain internal combustion engine-related businesses to fellow Japanese auto supplier Niterra Co.

If negotiations go to plan, Denso said it will transfer business operations for its spark plug and exhaust gas sensor products to Niterra. The transfer would have to be approved by competition law authorities in all countries and regions concerned, and the two companies are still negotiating a purchase price.

Transferring some internal combustion engine operations will allow the two companies to combine technologies and manufacturing capabilities to improve ICE products. Meanwhile, Denso hopes to accelerate the development of electric vehicle products, according to a release.

Niterra, formerly NGK Spark Plug, "expects the continued demand for internal combustion engines parts. The entire industry requires responses corresponding to short, medium, and l…

Learn how the tactics and strategies of today’s forward-thinking dealers can help you personalize and streamline the consumer experience. Download The Forward-Thinking Dealership guide to learn how today’s top dealers:  Use data to create personalized communications Provide consumers with search filters and other tools Leverage data to recommend after-market products Use behavior insights to make marketing decisions Get the guide to learn how adopting future-forward sales and marketing strategies can lead to major gains.

The UAW rejects the tradition of union leaders shaking hands with automaker executives to open negotiations. More automakers oppose theBiden administration’s proposed emissions rules. Toyota prepares to make fuel cells in Kentucky for hydrogen-powered trucks.

How do I subscribe?

Can't wait to hear the next episode of "Daily Drive"? Subscribe through a podcast app to receive episodes days in advance. If you don't have a podcast app already, here are some options. 

iPhone / iPad

Android

Spotify

In the last two months, I stepped into my consumer shoes and cautiously shopped for a new car.

I say "cautiously" because the notion of buying a vehicle — widely known as the second-biggest purchase a consumer can make in a lifetime, after a house — has for a long time prompted in this budget-conscious-Gen-Z-buyer thoughts of "What all might go wrong?" instead of the thrill often depicted in car commercials.

I won't divulge all the details of my shopping process, but I will note how retail technology made it easier to navigate and get closer to a potential purchase.

My process was a hybrid one. I began by narrowing down to a local dealership, checking its website to see prices and which vehicle models and trims it listed as available and submitting an online form for more information.

One of the dealership's Internet sales specialists contacted me very shortly after that. Via a series of back-and-forth texts, she informed me the vehicle trim I wan…

For the ultra wealthy and A-listers pining for an ultra green saloon from the finest purveyor of automobiles, Rolls-Royce, the wait has been about a decade since the famed brand started mulling modern electrification.

The brand is long synonymous with W12 motors that hum along like a mobile bank vault.

But Henry Royce, one of the first electrical engineers, and Charles Rolls, also had profound obsessions with all things electric years before they hatched a famed car company in 1906.

Royce's first company, F.H. Royce & Co, founded in 1884, initially made small electrical appliances such as doorbells, lamps, fuses and switches. Business boomed, and Royce was soon producing larger, more complex things that included dynamos, electric motors and winches. In 1902, Royce supplied electric motors for Pritchett & Gold, a London battery maker that had diversified into producing electric cars.

Rolls, while an engineering st…

Dealer Abraham Razick died July 8 when a plane he was in crashed in dense fog short of the runway at French Valley Airport in Riverside County, Calif. He and his wife, Alma Razick, 51, were among the six passengers on board the Cessna C550 business jet. There were no survivors.

Razick, 46, was a partner in Hyundai of Yuma and Kia of Yuma, both in southwest Arizona, and sole owner of Fullerton Ford Orange County, in southern California, which he bought in August 2021. The staffs at Razick's three dealerships put out a statement on Instagram shortly after the crash.

"Our owner Abraham Razick tragically passed away yesterday," the post read. "He was a loving husband, father, brother, and proud United States Marine. His spirit and passion for life will not be forgotten along with his commitment to making his community a better place. Honor, courage, and commitment are values he learned serving in the Marine Corps and values he lived by everyday. Rest easy, Abe. You…

General Motors said on Wednesday it could face compliance challenges under the EPA's proposed vehicle emissions rules and other state and federal regulations, as it cited requirements on EVs.

The largest U.S. automaker said in comments submitted to the EPA that there are six state and federal regulations that "could require each automaker to exceed 50 percent EVs in at least a dozen vehicle averaging sets in the approximate 2030 timeframe."

GM said it is "concerned that either a potential lack of clarity or a lack of coordination across the agencies may hinder an automaker’s ability to remain in compliance, year-after-year, across each of these regulatory programs even while meeting EPA’s overall EV targets."

GM, which in 2021 vowed to halt the sale of new gasoline-powered vehicles by 2035, said on Wednesday that it was confident "in its approach to transition to 50 percent EVs by 2030, and towards 100 percent in 2035, but our ability to meet …

Stellantis and Toyota Motor Corp. blasted a Biden administration plan to squelch auto pollution, saying it would compel aggressive and unrealistic sales of EVs that strain critical mineral supplies.  

In comments filed with the federal government, the automakers warned that proposed emission curbs for cars and light trucks are overly optimistic and discriminate against plug-in hybrid vehicles. 

The administration’s proposal “underestimates key challenges, including the scarcity of minerals to make batteries, the fact that these minerals are not mined or refined in the U.S., the inadequate infrastructure and the high cost of battery-electric vehicles,” Toyota said. 

The comments come as automakers grapple with what would be the most ambitious U.S. tailpipe emission limits ever, applying in model years 2027 and beyond. To meet the limits on carbon dioxide, soot and smog-forming pollution, the EPA envisions automakers will have to massi…

The UAW is abandoning its longtime tradition of starting contract negotiations by coming together with top executives from the Detroit 3 for ceremonial handshakes.

Instead, union leaders are planning this week to visit assembly plants around Detroit to meet with members and hear their concerns ahead of bargaining. The union said negotiations with Stellantis will begin Thursday, followed by Ford on Friday and General Motors on July 18.

"The members come first," UAW President Shawn Fain said Monday in a statement. "I'll shake hands with the CEOs when they come to the table with a deal that reflects the needs of the workers who make this industry run. When the 150,000 autoworkers at Ford, GM, and Stellantis receive the respect they are due for their sacrifice in generating the historic profits of the past decade, then we can proceed with a handshake."

GM, in a statement, said it is "committed to providing jobs that support American workers, their families…