Automobile Industry

Industry Roundup

Electric & Hybrid Vehicles

US battery recycling capacity must increase to 300,000 tonnes/year from current 60,000 tonnes/year to meet EV-driven demand, says Call2Recycle’s managing director of operations & compliance; refuse trucks are good candidates for lower energy batteries
Waste360 (03/20)

US-made lithium faces volatile pricing and limited supply, pressuring electric vehicle makers to quickly secure volumes; American Inflation Reduction Act includes boost for US lithium mining, as vehicle makers currently import most of their supply
Grit Daily (03/20)

Light Vehicles

Honda moving production of Accord to 1.3 million square-foot Greensburg, Indiana, facility from Marysville, Ohio, plant by 2025 as it prepares Marysville to make EVs, EV components; Greensburg plant currently makes Civic Hatchback, CR-V, Insight Hybrid
Courier-Times, The (New Castle, IN) (03/20)

Executive Perspective: Ford EVP of Sustainability defends automaker’s ESG policies, saying ESG guidelines provide stability and a way to enforce standards at Ford suppliers; ESG policies are coming under fire from conservative lawmakers in US
Ward's Auto World (03/20)

Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs)

Ford recalls 1,651 2021-2022 Bronco SUVs equipped with eight-inch SYNC infotainment screens because rearview camera image may continue to display after vehicle stops backing; software to be updated over the air or by dealer free of charge
Contify Automotive News (03/17)

Crash tests show that rear passengers in many mid-sized crossover SUVs are not as well protected as front passengers reports the IIHS; of 13 tested SUVs, only Ford Explorer and Mustang Mach-E, Subaru Ascent, Tesla Model Y earned 'Good' results in tests
CBS - 12 WJTV (Jackson, MS) (03/17)

Heavy Trucks / Commercial Vehicles

FedEx to invest US$3M to build 7,324-sq-m. service station in Jalisco, Mexico, to increase productivity, facilitate connection between the State of Jalisco and Bajio region; 136 jobs to be generated, 106 vehicles and 87 routes to be added for logistics
CE Noticias Financieras (03/20)

Abbotsford, British Columbia, man awarded C$137,000 for 2015 collision with logging truck; he had sought C$1M from Pacific International Log Trading and the truck driver, but pre-existing medical conditions muddied the waters for his claim
Chilliwack Progress (BC) (03/17)

All-Terrain / Off-Highway Vehicles (ATVs / OHVs)

Tennessee Dept. of Agriculture bars off-road vehicles in Franklin State Forest until July 8 for assessment of damage caused by 'excessive use and extreme overuse of off-road vehicles'
Chattanooga Times Free Press (TN) (03/14)

Dana announces new drivetrain offerings for North American construction, off-highway electric vehicles; products include Spicer Electrified eSP502 e-Transmission, modular Spicer drivetrain solution for telehandlers with 12k lifting capacities
Dana Holding Corp. (03/14)

Pickup Trucks

Ford, Ram ranked last in J.D. Power 2023 US Customer Service Index study of truck brands; survey ranks customer service experience based on service quality, service advisor, vehicle pick-up, service facility, service initiation
24/7 Wall St. (03/20)

Ford recalls 1.3 million 2013-2018 Ford Fusion and Lincoln MKX vehicles so dealers can replace front brake hoses that may rupture, leak brake fluid; Ford also recalls 222,000 F-150 pickup trucks because windshield wiper arms can break
Associated Press (03/17)

Auto Interior

Kia recalls about 189,000 K5 sedans from model years 2021-2023 in US because side airbags may not properly deploy; Kia to notify owners April 7, dealers to inspect, reinstall side airbags correctly if necessary at no charge
CBS - 12 WJTV (03/15)

Honda recalls 500,000 vehicles in US, Canada because surface coating on front seat belt buckles can deteriorate over time, cause button to shrink and not latch properly; dealers to replace front seat buckle release buttons or buckle assemblies if needed
Alabama Media Group (03/15)

Automotive Care

Tesla being sued by two California residents who allege Tesla violates antitrust laws by monopolizing repair services, replacement parts and forces customers to use company-approved service centers, Tesla spare parts
CBS - 12 WJTV (Jackson, MS) (03/17)

Motorcar Parts of America reports it has added over 100 new late model vehicle part number applications in past four months that cover over 40 million vehicles; parts are available to professional installer market
ENP Newswire (03/16)

Automotive Use

Neural Propulsion Systems Secures Series B Strategic Investment from Raytheon Technologies
Contify Aviation News (03/20)

Eastman parters with High Performance Optics on launch of High Energy Visible Light filtering window film for use in transportation industry; Eastman to launch LLumar AIR BLB and LLumar ATR BLB window films using HPO’s patented technology
Business Wire (03/16)

Auto Parts & Accessories

Ford recalls 2,716 2023 Maverick EV pickup trucks because trailer taillights may not illuminate when using vehicle trailer tow electrical connector; dealers to install missing electric circuit in engine bay wiring harness free of charge
Contify Automotive News (03/17)

US automotive aftermarket 2022 sales revenue up 7% from a year ago despite 7% decline in unit demand as retail aftermarket prices increased 13% from 2021, 32% from 2019; maintenance/repair, fluids, replacement tires drive growth: Circana
The NPD Group Inc. (03/16)

Tires

Lanxess to showcase new products and solutions for tire production at Tire Technology Expo 2023 in Hanover, Germany, March 21-23
ENP Newswire (03/17)

Siemens to equip Continental tire factories with automation technology
Siemens AG (03/16)

Batteries

Thatcham Research calls for creation of ‘sustainable repair framework” in UK to deal with rise in EVs at salvage yards due to difficulty to repair EV batteries, lack of battery recycling plants in UK
Proactive Investors (03/20)

Electra Battery Materials successfully recovers lithium from recycling black mass at its refinery near Toronto; company to sell all recovered materials to third-party companies for additional processing, to be reused in several applications like batteries
Waste360 (03/17)

Car Dealers

Genesis expands availability of its EVs to 15 states; vehicles now available in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Louisiana, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Jersey, New York, Texas, Utah, Virginia, Washington, Wisconsin
PR Newswire (03/20)

Subaru ranks #1 for customer satisfaction with dealer service in J.D. Power 2023 US. Customer Service Index; survey based on responses from 64,248 verified registered owners and lessees of 2020-2022 model-year vehicles
Subaru Corp. (03/15)

Autonomous Transportation Technology

TuSimple reports its autonomous trucks have driven over 10 million cumulative miles through testing, research and cargo delivery; company has recorded one at-fault incident, which is below average yearly accidents for traditional fleets according to study
PR Newswire (03/16)

Gatik to double workforce to over 250 workers from 120 by year-end, following announcement of deal to move Kroger's goods within Dallas network, according to executive; company plans to deepen current presence and expand to 15 new states over five years
International Business Times (03/15)

Electric Vehicle Charging

PG&E helping Burlingame get more fast EV chargers
San Mateo Daily Journal, The (CA) (03/20)

Tesco reports now having EV charging points installed at 600 stores; to date, the charging points have provided 43,218kWh of energy, enough to power more than 4,000 homes for a day, company says
Tesco PLC (03/17)

Ride-Sharing / Mobility Services

SK to sell complete share in Turo, a peer-to-peer vehicle car-sharing company, for US$67.5M; sale to complete in H1
Auto Business News (03/16)

Automotive & Driving

Kia reportedly entering Chinese EV market in August with imported EV6 model, with Chinese-built EV5 debuting in November
CnEVPost (China) (03/20)

Honda to launch electric scooter based on the Activa in India, with concept reportedly coming by the end of the month
Auto Business News (03/20)

Hyundai launching all-new Verna worldwide on March 21; vehicle features 160 horsepower, 1.5-liter turbo gasoline engine or 115 horsepower naturally aspirated engine, six-speed manual gearbox or CVT and DCT transmission options
Auto Business News (03/20)

Auto Parts & Accessories

Ronal Group making first light-alloy wheels made of 100% secondary aluminum for the new all-electric MINI Cooper SE Convertible; using recycled material cuts CO2 emissions in production by up to 75%
Contify Automotive News (03/14)

Akebono Brake Corp. expands ProAct Ultra-Premium disc brake pad line with seven new part numbers for Honda, Ford, Lincoln, Toyota; new products increase coverage by over 5 million vehicles
Akebono Brake Industry Co., Ltd. (03/14)

Automotive Use

GM reportedly creating voice-activated, artificial intelligence virtual personal assistant to be powered by Microsoft’s Azure cloud service
Indo-Asian News Service (03/14)

Autonomous Transportation Technology

Study finds 68% of US drivers are apprehensive of fully self-driving technology, up from 55% in 2022, although no vehicle currently exists with the technology; advanced driver assist systems appeal to 60% of drivers: AAA
American Automobile Association (AAA) (03/14)

Batteries

VW’s PowerCo subsidiary to supply Ford in Europe with 1.2 million batteries for Ford vehicles
CE Noticias Financieras (Latin America) (03/17)

VW’s expanded battery gigafactory in Valencia, Spain, to initially produce enough batteries for 500,000 vehicles in 2026 and supply batteries for 800,000 vehicles in future; VW reveals battery recycling plant to be established in Valencia area
CE Noticias Financieras (Latin America) (03/17)

VW's PowerCo gives starting signal for construction of second cell factory in Valencia, Spain, powerred by 100% renewable engery; battery production to begin in 2026 with 40 GWh annual capacity that can increase to 60 GWh in the future
Volkswagen AG (03/17)

Electric & Hybrid Vehicles

FIAT launches six car lines in Algeria; vehicles include the Fiat 500 Hybrid, F500X, Tipo, Doblò, Scudo and Ducato
Stellantis NV (03/19)

Ford Pro Working with Ernst & Young LLP to Help Customers Understand Electric Vehicle Tax Credits
Ford Motor Co. (03/16)

Mercedes-Benz introduces mild-hybrid version of AMG 35; vehicle features 48-volt unit that provides temporary 13bhp boost in power combined with 2.0-liter, turbocharged four-cylinder engine
Auto Express (UK) (03/16)

Electric Vehicle Charging

Blink Charging unveils redesigned 32 amp, freestanding mobile EV charger designed to provide emergency charging for stranded EVs; unit is compatible with all EVs and Level 2 fleet vehicles, including Tesla models
GlobeNewswire (03/15)

Pilot Company and Volvo partner to build charging network open to all medium- and heavy-duty electric trucks at select Pilot, Flying J travel centers; Pilot recently started US$1B ‘New Horizons’ initiative to enable charging networks at its locations
Pilot Travel Centers LLC (03/15)

2024 Hyundai Kona EV to feature 65.4-kWh battery, 214- horsepower front-mounted electric motor, bi-directional charging, 'virtual sounds'; new vehicle to have estimated 260 mile range on single full charge
AutomoBlog (03/14)

Light Vehicles

320 Horsepower Confirmed for Acura Integra Type S; Full Reveal Next Month
Honda Motor Co. Ltd. (03/20)

VW opens vehicle assembly plant with annual capacity of over 5,000 cars and pickup trucks in Ghana’s Tema Free Zone; VW has spent about €8.0M to establish a branch in Ghana
Ghana Online News (03/17)

KIA NIRO IS THE 'SUPREME WINNER' IN 2023 WOMEN’S WORLD CAR OF THE YEAR AWARDS
Kia Motors Corp. (03/16)

Pickup Trucks

GM confirms it has stopped production at its Silao, Mexico, plant that makes GMC Sierra, Chevrolet Silverado pickup trucks due to lack of parts; GM to shut Fort Wayne, Indiana, truck plant for two weeks starting March 27 to control inventory levels
Zack's Commentary (03/16)

Customer satisfaction with OE tires up 5 points from a year ago to 799 on 1,000-point scale, as EV tire satisfaction jumps 62 points; Michelin ranks highest in luxury and truck/utility segments, Pirelli tops passenger car segment: J.D. Power
Business Wire (03/16)

Sport Utility Vehicles (SUVs)

Mazda begins exporting US-assembled CX-50 crossovers to Mexico; vehicle is produced at US$2.3B Mazda Toyota Manufacturing facility in Huntsville, Alabama, and is also exported to Canada, Colombia
Associated Press (03/16)

Audi renames vehicles to distinguish internal combustion engine models from EVs; internal combustion names to have odd numbers and include A3, A5, A7, Q3, Q5, Q7 and EV names to have even numbers and include A4, A6, A8, Q4, Q6, Q8
dpa trends (03/14)

Rivian recalls certain 2022-2023 R1S SUVs because fasteners that secure right and left side curtain air bags may have been secured improperly; dealers to secure or replace air bags as necessary free of charge
Contify Automotive News (03/14)

xAutomobiles & Components group

Canadian government to spend up to C$44.3M to help fund C$302.7M expansion at Michelin tire plant in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia; Michelin employs about 3,600 people at three manufacturing plants in the province
Canadian Press DataFile (03/14)

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