Uber approaches Grubhub with takeover offer, report says

Uber Technologies Inc. has made an offer to acquire food-delivery company Grubhub Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.

The companies are in talks about a deal and could reach an agreement as soon as this month, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter isn’t public.

Deliberations are ongoing and talks could still fall through, the people said. A representative for Grubhub couldn’t immediately comment, while a spokesperson for Uber couldn’t immediately be reached.

Grubhub shares climbed as much as 37 percent in New York trading after being temporarily halted, valuing the company at $5.6 billion. Uber, with a market value of about $57 billion, rose as much as 6.1 percent.

Uber is shuttering its own food-delivery unit, Uber Eats, in seven countries where the service has proven unpopular, it said last week. Those markets represented 1 percent of Uber Eats gross bookings and 4 percent of the b…

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Digital shift could include selling cars from home

I was a remote worker before COVID-19. A few days a week, for several months, I'd cut down a commute that could last two hours each way and log on from home.

The coronavirus has turned my home office setup into a regular routine. For me and likely millions of others.

Dealerships have had to navigate this, too, while showrooms are closed.

For an industry that has long relied on getting people in the door to seal a deal in person — and one that has taken its share of criticism for being slow to adapt to e-commerce — the transition to remote work is not a natural one.

Yet it's an extension of a larger shift toward online vehicle sales and remote deliveries that the pandemic has accelerated. For dealerships that can sell cars only virtually right now, there isn't much need for a full staff of sales associates.

There are, however, opportunities for home-based Internet sales and business development center employees to respond to leads and help c…

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Lamborghini adds rwd variant to Huracan Evo Spyder

Since the Lamborghini Huracan was freshened for the 2020 model year and given the Evo moniker, the automaker has quickly rolled out additional variants of the sports car.

The rear-wheel-drive Huracan Evo Spyder is the latest to join the mix with an online debut last week. Like the rwd coupe introduced this year, power is supplied by a V-10 engine with 610 hp and 413 pound-feet of torque.

Just as important, the convertible gets the new performance traction-control system that debuted in the coupe. Lamborghini says the system delivers torque when the vehicle is realigning after drifting or side-slipping.

"With rear-wheel drive that means basically [you] go back to your instincts, go back to your senses, be yourself and experience the purest technology and excitement of rear-wheel drive with an advanced traction-control system that allows the driver to have a lot of fun," Alessandro Farmeschi, CEO of Automobili Lamborghini America, said in an interview. Read more

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How minicars will survive by electrifying, evolving

European car buyers still want minicars, for their ease of parking, low cost and fuel efficiency. But automakers say new emissions rules that require costly modifications are making them economically unfeasible.

So, how can the key entry-level segment be saved?

In some cases, automakers are offering electric versions of existing models. In others, they are blurring the line between minicars and models one size up. A few players, including some new entrants, believe that limited-range electric quadricycles are the answer.

Minicars -- also known as city cars or A-segment cars -- were Europe's fifth-largest segment in 2019, with more than 1.1 million sales, according to data from JATO Dynamics. Sales fell 3.9 percent from 2018, representing a decline of about 45,000 units.

"It's one of the very few stable car segments," said Felipe Munoz, lead automotive analyst at JATO Dynamics. "It's lost a bit of share because overall sales have grown slightly in E…

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Bentley gains from China’s ‘astonishing’ virus rebound

Bentley CEO Adrian Hallmark says China's rebound from coronavirus-induced lockdowns has been "astonishing," resulting in a surge in demand for ultraluxury models from the automaker

“In one week in April the order intake for us was greater than any individual month in the six months leading up to it," Hallmark told BBC Radio 4 on Monday. "It’s fair to say the rebound in China is quite astonishing.”

The Volkswagen Group subsidiary restarted production at its factory in Crewe, England, on May 11. It is building cars at half the rate prior to the plant's shutdown in March as it tries to balance protecting the health of its workers against keeping pace with demand.

Like most automakers Bentley temporarily halted output in Europe in March to help slow an outbreak of the virus.

Bentley started the year with 8,000 orders after it had finally overcome delays in launching the new Continental GT coupe and convertible, and the Flying Spur sedan. Hallmark said …

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New Audi infotainment system opens up digital offerings

Audi will roll out an advanced, more powerful infotainment system for the 2021 model year across most of its cars and crossovers, broadening the vehicles' ability to deliver satellite radio and Internet connectivity as well as enabling consumers to purchase digital upgrades.

The modular MIB 3 system, which will debut on the 2021 Audi A4 and A5, is Linux-based and comes with a processor that is exponentially faster than the MIB 2 system, the German premium brand says. It will eventually migrate across most of the Audi lineup.

The system's internal modem is capable of download speeds of up to 1Gbps and will be capable of serving up dual-band Wi-Fi to passengers, the brand says. The integrated satellite radio will be equipped with 360L service from SiriusXM, expanding the number of available channels and opening up personalization options as well as on-demand audio.

Audi said the MIB 3 system will also allow it to offer digital upgra…

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Ford, JLR supplier Arlington appoints administrators for UK business

LONDON -- Arlington Automotive is laying off employees after the coronavirus outbreak forced the supplier to appoint administrators in the U.K. to restructure the company.

Arlington's operations include making bespoke thermostats and the assembly of vehicle systems. The company supplies Jaguar Land Rover, Ford and Nissan.

The company did not specify how many staff are being laid off. It employs around 600 people at several locations in Britain.

"The financial issues faced by the group have been compounded by coronavirus," said joint administrator Allan Graham in a statement. "New-car registrations have fallen dramatically and the complexity of supply chains in the sector have led to a sudden halt to manufacturing."

Restructuring acquisitions, including a German business bought last year, and uncertainty around Brexit and tariffs have also contributed to problems, according to joint administrators Duff & Phelps.

Other subsidiaries of Arl…

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DAILY DRIVE PODCAST: May 11, 2020 | How Bentley is beating expectations amid outbreak

Join Automotive News Publisher Jason Stein for a daily podcast series about the coronavirus crisis. He’ll speak with industry experts, insiders and Automotive News reporters about how the virus is impacting and reshaping the automotive industry.

Christophe Georges, Bentley's CEO of the Americas, says the ultraluxury brand's U.S. sales have risen 62 percent this year. Why the company is uniquely positioned and will continue to invest in physical product showcases.

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JM&A Group expands free virtual learning offerings

Deerfield Beach, Fla., May 11, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Following the successful launch of its initial free virtual training courses, the Performance Development Center, JM&A Group’s in-house educational and training facility, has expanded its offerings for dealers throughout the industry. With the overwhelmingly positive response to the online, live training courses, four new sessions were created and will be available through the end of the month. The limited-time offering ends June 1.

“Within the first month of rolling out our new virtual learning service, more than 2,500 people have registered for courses in the areas of leadership, service, sales and F&I,” said Chris May, director of the Performance Development Center. “Early acceptance being what it was, we are confident that the demand for additional topics will also be high. We are pleased to provide this valuable service, allowing dealership teams across the country to gain new perspectives, enhanced …

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Auto/Mate adds remote signing capability to eDEAL signature capture

Albany, N.Y. – May 11, 2020 – Auto/Mate, a business unit of DealerSocket, has added a remote signing feature to its eDEAL™ Signature Capture digital contracting tool. The new feature is being offered to Auto/Mate’s current eDEAL customers as a free trial, helping them to overcome adverse sales conditions and close more deals while COVID-19 shelter-in-place mandates are still enforced state by state. “We’ve recognized the importance of embracing digital retailing over the past few years,” said Mike Esposito, president of Auto/Mate. “And given the present circumstances, this type of technology has now become more important than ever. We challenged our developers to quickly step up to the plate and provide a solution to a serious problem impacting dealers, and they exceeded all expectations.” When a car buyer agrees to purchase a vehicle over the phone, the dealership representative sends the F&I documents via email. The customer clicks on the link in the email to…

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Toyota to cut N.A. output by 29% through October, report says

TOKYO -- Toyota Motor Corp plans to slash production in North America by nearly a third through October due to the coronavirus crisis and expects it will take some time for output to return to normal, a person familiar with the matter said.

Toyota will build about 800,000 vehicles, including its RAV4 crossovers and Camry sedans, at plants in the United States, Canada and Mexico from April through to the end of October, the person told Reuters.

That's down 29 percent from the Japanese automaker's output in the same seven months of 2019 and 32 percent lower than its forecast in January for production during the period.

The source declined to be identified because the information is not public.

A Toyota spokeswoman declined to comment on production plans.

The drop in Toyota's production highlights the pain for automakers around the world due to the fallout from the virus. Besides weak demand, problems with procurement and social…

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Tesla’s German plant will not face major delays over coronavirus, minister says

BERLIN -- German Economy Minister Peter Altmaier said on Monday that he did not expect any major delays to the construction of Tesla's factory near Berlin due to the coronavirus pandemic.

The U.S. automaker said last November it would build a factory in Gruenheide in the eastern state of Brandenburg, creating up to 12,000 jobs and assembling as many as 500,000 vehicles annually.

The factory, which is due to open in 2021, has faced moves by environmentalists to stop local deforestation in addition to the problems surrounding the pandemic.

Tesla is moving into Germany's heartland to vie with Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz as the country targets a massive increase in electric-car sales.

Tesla plans to build several models at the new plant starting with the Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover, with more cars to follow.

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