Global car companies count on exports to buoy their bottom line, and many build cars overseas where they sell them. But while some key markets appear to be thriving, outlooks are cautious for others that are forcing lowered expectations....More
Competitive pricing and continued lagging sales are putting pressure on manufacturers to close plants and find other ways to better utilize capacity. And there’s some concern 2013 won’t mark the end to the region’s recession....More
Vehicle sales have stalled this year, compared with their past dizzying double-digit growth. But the world’s largest car market still has considerable potential for growth that should keep it in play for the foreseeable future....More
The nexus of the economic slowdown in Brazil, which at 3.63 million units in 2011 accounted for 69% of South America’s 5.37 million sales, lies in the sovereign-debt crisis gripping Europe....More
GM’s challenge with global product platforms includes building vehicles that meet individual market requirements and maximizing common content, while also paying close attention to the needs of each market....More
Continental’s core competency in tires remains a competitive advantage: A strong market for replacement tires can offset depressed sales of original-equipment parts, and vice versa....More
Jeep still is poised to become Chrysler’s global brand under CEO Sergio Marchionne’s oversight, but the auto maker must find ways around a stumbling European market....More
Ford says it sees increasing demand for world-class vehicles in the APA markets, with the bulk of the growth expected in China, India and the ASEAN region....More
Senior Vice President Johan de Nysschen, who spent nearly two decades with Audi, sees diesels and premium compacts helping Infiniti in Europe, while a production version of the LE concept car should draw a well-heeled demographic worldwide....More
The Piquette plant built 12,000 Model T’s by 1910, and by then the car’s runaway success gave birth to yet another big idea: Ford’s Highland Park plant 4 miles (6.4 km) to the north, a hulking complex 10 times larger than the humble wood and brick Piquette facility that later was used to produce Studebakers....More
If John Wayne were asked to mosey in to a design studio and help create a pickup truck, chances are he'd rustle up something like the Ram 1500 Laramie Longhorn....More
If you wager on where the automotive market is going, look at what will be required by future government regulations, what will be affordable and what will not resemble an economic stimulus for trial lawyers....More
The car has all the makings of a being a futuristic concept only, with its center driving position, compact size, exotic materials and race-car DNA. But enthusiasts are hoping for a small production run just the same....More
The flagship GTS is powered by what the auto maker calls the most potent engine ever fitted to a locally manufactured vehicle: a 6.2L LSA supercharged V-8 making 576 hp and 546 lb.-ft. of torque....More
Given that car ownership indicates high social status, it is a priority to buy a vehicle even for Brazilians with modest annual incomes as low as $15,000, industry experts say, which is why 150 different models are offered in the country....More
The need to move fast drove GM into its alliance with Nissan for its new City Express cargo van, which will offer the same powertrain as the Nissan NV200, but feature exclusive sheet metal up front....More
For the second consecutive month, U.S. light vehicles attained record fuel efficiency even as sales continued to shift toward traditionally less-efficient segments....More
Ford and Nissan are the two biggest reasons industry capacity utilization is running at 100% or more, but they are getting a lot of help from manufacturers with only one or two facilities, nearly all of them on 3-shift/crew schedules....More
WardsAuto/AutomotiveCompass Global Vehicle & Powertrain Forecasts.
Interest in autonomous vehicles continues to grow, but technical, legal, regulatory and cost hurdles remain. When will true driverless cars reach the U.S. market?
“Until cars assume complete responsibility for driving, the critical challenge is to design vehicles so that drivers clearly understand how the car works. Even small design changes can violate drivers’ expectations and confuse them.”...More
Most early connected-vehicle safety technologies making their way into volume vehicles, such as lane departure and forward collision alert, are bundled into expensive option packages....More
If you wager on where the automotive market is going, look at what will be required by future government regulations, what will be affordable and what will not resemble an economic stimulus for trial lawyers....More
Researchers are developing the capability to assess and rate the new technologies’ effectiveness and promote their adoption and uptake in new cars....More
Fully automated driving may come eventually, but in the meantime the technology’s building blocks could be the ultimate answer to distracted-driving concerns....More