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An expansion of Cadillac's digital showroom came at just the right time — weeks before the pandemic forced many dealerships to temporarily close their doors.

What started as a pilot of Cadillac Live became an effective tool for the brand and its dealers to continue showing customers vehicles remotely and offer personalized incentives throughout the pandemic.

At the end of 2019, Cadillac began a U.S. pilot of the virtual showroom, which operates out of Toronto with live product experts and had been successful in the Canadian market. The tool was designed to help Cadillac understand how customers want to shop, Melissa Grady, chief marketing officer, told Automotive News at the time.

After quick success with the platform, Cadillac began a national rollout four months earlier than planned, to coincide with the launch of the 2021 Escalade.

Since then, the tool has led to more than 3,000 leads and a conversion rate of more th…

TOKYO — Toyota Motor Corp. will officially launch the e-Palette autonomous people mover this summer, about a year behind schedule because of the COVID-19 pandemic.

But when the shuttle finally starts transporting people around Tokyo, Toyota says the operating systems running it will be almost as unique as the all-electric runabout's rolling-box design.

Toyota detailed the software systems last month, saying they rely on two setups that enable practical use of the e-Palette for mobility as a service, the industry buzzterm for businesses that provide on-demand transportation, rather than just selling cars to retail customers.

Toyota calls the first setup the Autonomous Mobility Management System. It is a connectivity system that dispatches e-Palette vehicles when and where they are needed.

The second is the e-Palette Task Assignment Platform. It provides a visual computer interface for workers at a control center to easily monitor the e-Palettes in …

DETROIT — In April 2018, Richard Bazzy, who owns Ford and Lincoln stores in the Pittsburgh area, placed a frantic call to Mark LaNeve, Ford Motor Co.'s head of U.S. marketing, sales and service.

The automaker had just announced it would cut all of its sedans, including the Fusion, which was Ford's fourth most popular nameplate. The way the news was delivered — two sentences toward the bottom of an earnings release — caught many retailers off guard, and some were angry that Ford's dealer council wasn't more involved in the process.

"I didn't think it was a good idea; it scared me," Bazzy recalled last year. "Mark said to me at that moment, 'Relax, it will all be OK.' As I've started to see the plans develop, he was right, it's more than OK."

During his nearly six years with the automaker, LaNeve, 61, who left last week to pursue other opportunities, often served as the chief liaison between Ford's upper management and its retail …

Trade show organizers are swapping face-to-face interactions with computer screens as more high-profile events shift to the Internet because of restrictions on large gatherings intended to slow the spread of COVID-19.

As planners of shows such as CES pivot away from handshakes and event swag during the pandemic, many are tasked with trying to re-create the events virtually — an onerous undertaking with plenty of perils and pluses.

While in-person events offer more possibilities for networking and live demonstrations, virtual shows emphasize the convenience of staying put, lower the barrier to entry and allow more people to participate.

But the accessibility of a virtual format doesn't make planning and preparation any less challenging, said Orlie Gruper, executive director of EcoMotion, a major annual event in Israel that supports the mobility technology ecosystem.

"We went on an adventure," she told Automotive News. …

Toyota Motor Corp. thinks cars that can drive themselves should be able to clean themselves, too.

The automaker filed a U.S. patent application for a system that would allow autonomous vehicles to sense when they're dirty and drive to a car wash. The system determines when the vehicle has traveled on an unpaved road or in bad weather and how long it's been since the last wash.

If the vehicle decides it needs a wash, it then calculates whether it has enough time to get one before the next time it needs to be somewhere. The application notes that the system would be useful for vehicles used in car-sharing services.

It also says such a system could be used with nonautonomous vehicles, though instead of getting a wash itself, the car would notify the driver via a dashboard light or smartphone alert that it's time to get one.

Nearly 2,000 companies will participate in this year's virtual version of CES, the annual technology showcase normally held in Las Vegas. While the likes of General Motors and Mobileye may be the headliners in the auto- tech realm, here's a look at five startups worth keeping an eye on both during this week's event and beyond.

Sono Motors

A year after Sono Motors embarked on a crowdfunding campaign to continue work on its Sion model prototype — and succeeded in raising more than $44 million — the company will unveil its second-generation solar-electric vehicle during CES.

The Sion's liquid-cooled battery has a capacity of 35 kilowatt-hours, which provides a range of 158.4 miles per charge.

That's certainly less than more-established competitors, but the solar-charging capabilities can provide an additional 17 miles of range per day while the car is in use, boosting its daily-driver competency.

"This journey started in a garage with a simpl…

The Toyota Land Cruiser — a global icon for off-roading enthusiasts with a lineage that stretches back to postwar Japan and a small but dedicated customer base — will end its 63-year run in the U.S. after the current model year.

But that doesn't mean the automaker is ceding the luxury large-SUV space. It's just that whatever the Land Cruiser's spiritual successor ends up being, there's a decent chance it's going to crawl and climb with a Lexus badge on its grille.

"The Toyota Land Cruiser has been a legendary name for more than 60 years," Toyota Motor North America said in a statement. "While it will be discontinued in the United States after the 2021 model year, we remain committed to the large-SUV segment and will continue to explore future products that celebrate the Land Cruiser's rich off-road history. We encourage loyal enthusiasts and intrepid adventurers to stay tuned for future developments."

The Land Cruiser — developed in…

For the past several years, the first week of January has been especially important for automakers, suppliers and new industry entrants.

It's typically when the Las Vegas Convention Center and the surrounding area are reconfigured to accommodate the test drives, demonstrations and displays that are synonymous with the annual CES.

Hotels up and down the Las Vegas Strip are booked for that week months in advance. Hundreds of thousands of industry executives, leaders, enthusiasts and media from around the globe swarm to experience the latest developments in automotive technology, alongside other consumer electronics, that will influence the industry for years to come. Showgoers have seen everything from General Motors' OnStar to Toyota's Woven City.

This year, CES has been stripped of those experiences because of the ongoing coronavirus crisis. Instead, the automakers, suppliers and startups that have often revealed innovations in electrification and auto…

The outcome of the pair of tight Georgia Senate runoff elections last week gives the Democratic Party control of the upper chamber by the narrowest of margins for at least the next two years, likely aiding President-elect Joe Biden's ambitious policy plans and fast-tracking progress on legislation affecting the auto industry.

Biden will take office next week with majorities in both houses of Congress, clearing the path for potentially sweeping changes to the auto industry, from environmental policy to consumer finance.

"It means everything for Biden's agenda," said Mark Rom, associate professor of government and public policy at Georgetown University's McCourt School of Public Policy. "Most of the biggest plans that Biden had would require congressional approval because they will cost the government money."

With the balance of power in the Senate split 50-50 following last week's elections of Democratic challengers Jon Ossoff an…

Volkswagen of America is launching its first set of TV commercials for its upcoming ID4 battery-electric compact crossover that aims to drive home the company's message of delivering electric mobility to the millions, instead of just the millionaires.

The spot, which uses a line of zoetropes — a 19th century invention that uses a spinning disc of images to create a moving picture — to illustrate advances in transportation, ends with a woman climbing into the passenger side of an ID4 and riding away. The video plays under growing orchestral music, beginning with a single piano, and contains no narration. It finishes with a written message: "History is made, when it's made for everyone."

The spot will debut Saturday during NFL Wild Card games and was created by Johannes Leonardo.

The VW ID4 will go on sale in March at a starting price of $41,190, including shipping but excluding any federal or state incentives. VW of America accepted thousands of $100 refu…