Automakers: Page 210


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    Kia Sportage Makes U.S. Debut

    Updated exterior and interior styling, revised suspensions and engines retuned for better fuel economy and mid-range torque are key changes to the small CUV.

    Nov. 18, 2015
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    Toyota Aiming for 30% Increase in Prius Sales

    Average midsize-sedan buyers could be wooed by the latest generation of Toyota’s dedicated hybrid, which uses a lithium-ion battery in five of its six grades.

    Nov. 18, 2015
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    Trendline

    Artificial Intelligence

    Automakers and dealers alike are increasingly seeing the use case for AI within their operations. Explore some use cases in this trendline.

    By WardsAuto staff
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    Fiata? Fiat Revives 124 Spider With Help From Mazda

    Fiat resurrects the beloved 124 Spider, unveiling it at the Los Angeles auto show prior to a summer 2016 introduction to the U.S. market. The ’17 124 Spider is built on a Mazda MX-5 chassis but features Fiat’s 1.4L turbocharged engine.

    By Nov. 18, 2015
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    ‘17 Ford Escape Debuts at Los Angeles Auto Show

    Ford’s redesigned ’17 Escape CUV makes its world debut at the Los Angeles auto show, featuring two new turbo engines, updated interior and Ford-first SYNC Connect cloud-based vehicle information and control system.

    By Nov. 17, 2015
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    VW Emissions Scandal Echoes GM India Controversy

    Despite evidence that VW misrepresented emissions data to Indian authorities, the automaker need look no farther than a similar case involving General Motors India to see its actions might not carry a severe penalty.

    By Sudhakar Shah • Nov. 16, 2015
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    Open Oz Roads to Self-Driving Cars, Volvo Exec Says

    “I am confident that within three or four years we can have cars with autonomous-drive features being driven on prescribed roads if state governments change their laws to accommodate them,” Volvo Australian chief Kevin McCann says.

    By Alan Harman • Nov. 16, 2015
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    Volkswagen’s Skoda Subsidiary Puts New Model on Hold

    It is not clear whether suspension of development of the second-generation Roomster is connected to Volkswagen’s diesel-engine-emissions scandal.

    By Peter Homola • Nov. 13, 2015
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    Hyundai Optimistic About Thai Economic Recovery

    With Hyundai’s Bangkok assembly plant having closed due to low sales, the automaker’s presence in Thailand involves only the marketing of imports such as the H1 minivan, Elantra sedan and Santa Fe multipurpose vehicle.

    By Alan Harman • Nov. 13, 2015
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    CX-3 Adds Fuel to Mazda’s Fire in Thailand

    The new model puts the automaker in the subcompact CUV space for the first time, a hot segment that has doubled its share of the Thailand market in the past year.

    By Edd Ellison • Nov. 12, 2015
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    Honda Taps Into Culture of Silicon Valley Innovation

    Nick Sugimoto, the Honda lab’s senior program director, compares high-tech innovators’ entrepreneurial spirit with that of Honda founder Soichiro Honda, whose vision saw his fledgling auto-parts supply company grow into the global automaker it is today.

    By Erik Derr 1 • Nov. 12, 2015
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    Test Facility Puts Honda on Track to Boost Thai R&D

    Honda’s second automobile test course outside Japan will feature a range of tracks to allow the automaker to test vehicles in situations that simulate road conditions and terrain in different parts of the world.

    By Alan Harman • Nov. 11, 2015
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    Fiat Chrysler Rethinking India Product Strategy

    Not satisfied to coast on profits from engine building, Fiat India is revisiting its India car-building and -marketing strategies to match the qualities offered by competitors’ products, President and Managing Director Kevin Flynn says.

    By Sudhakar Shah • Nov. 11, 2015
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    U.K. Car-Sharing Club Growing Renault Zoe EV Fleet

    The club says it chose the Zoe over other EVs because the 5-door hatchback is easy to use and ideal for members who have not driven an electric car before.

    By Alan Harman • Nov. 10, 2015
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    Cadillac XT5 Storms Dubai

    The XT5 is a key element in a $12.5 billion product investment by GM into Cadillac over the next few years and shifts the CUV to a new platform designated “Chi.”

    By James M. Amend • Nov. 9, 2015
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    Toyota Sees Even Split Between Prius Batteries

    Production will be divided evenly between Li-ion and the NiMH batteries Toyota has used nearly exclusively until now. Sales of cars with the two battery types will be further split 50-50 in North America and Japan.

    By Roger Schreffler • Nov. 9, 2015
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    Nissan Hopes for 20% Take Rate With New Altima SR

    Sport grades are important in the midsize segment because they typically attract a younger buyer, some of them 10 years younger than those of traditional midsize-sedan grades, and buyers who also may be new to the model.

    Nov. 6, 2015
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    Mazda’s ‘Driving Matters: Garage’ Top TV Ad For Fourth Week

    Overall, automakers spent an estimated $128 million on TV ads for the week. NFL Football was the most popular choice for the week’s automotive advertisers, with over $43 million spent among the various games.

    By WardsAuto Staff • Nov. 5, 2015
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    Ford Cuts Russian Output as Sales Retreat Continues

    Annual production capacity at Vsevolozhsk is 160,000 units, but Ford built just 30,000 cars there in 2014, laying off 700 employees as a consequence. Output for full-year 2015 is estimated at only 15,000 units.

    By Eugene Gerden • Nov. 5, 2015
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    Hyundai’s Genesis Brand Puts Bentley Designer at Helm

    The charismatic and feisty designer who slammed the Lincoln Continental as an apparent Bentley knockoff, Luc Donckerwolke also was responsible for the Audi R8 Le Mans and Lamborghini Murcielago.

    By Vince Courtenay • Nov. 4, 2015
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    Embracing Diversity Can Turn Automakers Into Mobility Leaders

    The distinctive profile of the automotive executive may well be a factor in the industry’s success to date. Yet there are elements in this profile that may hinder – rather than enable – fundamental transformation. Today’s “car guys” need to evolve.

    By Juncal Garrido • Nov. 4, 2015
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    Lincoln Looks to MKX, Continental for Growth

    The new MKX CUV is arriving in showrooms as dealers sell down the old model. Next year, Ford’s luxury brand will bring back the Continental nameplate based on a sedan concept that was well-received at auto shows in New York and Shanghai.

    Nov. 4, 2015
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    New-Gen Nissan Navara Reflects Better Times in Spain

    The Navara hits European showrooms this month and Middle Eastern markets in mid-2016. Production of Mercedes and Renault versions launch later. Nissan Europe executive Colin Lawther says the Navara platform will account for 120,000 of the 200,000 units of production scheduled for 2017.

    By Jorge Palacios • Nov. 4, 2015
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    Hyundai Reportedly Plans Premium Brand

    The South Korean automaker for years has discussed the possibility of its own luxury marque, telling media in 2008 the cost of such a venture was a prohibitive-at-the-time $2.5 billion.

    Nov. 3, 2015
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    New EPA Discovery Further Dents VW’s Credibility

    The latest round of vehicles uncovered during recently heightened federal test activity of VW vehicles would add thousands of units to an expected recall by the automaker.

    By James M. Amend • Nov. 2, 2015
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    North American Automakers to Reach 100% 12-Month Utilization in 2016

    There still will be some significant plant shutdowns for retooling during the next nine months, including factories at General Motors and FCA US.

    By Haig Stoddard • Nov. 2, 2015