Category Archives: manufacturing

Japanese Top Consumer Reports 2026 Automotive Report

“We’re releasing new overall score rankings,” said Jake Fisher, CR’s Senior Director of Automotive Testing. “That’s really who makes the best cars along with new car reliability, used car reliability, which is really looking 5 to 10 year old models that are on out in the road, owner satisfaction, our road test scores, repair costs. … We have all the information for each one of the models on our website. That’s all live right now…. We are very excited that this year. We actually have the most amount of vehicles that we’ve had for a very long time. We’ve made some changes to make the survey easier to complete. … We’ve actually gone from 300,000 vehicles in the survey to 380,000 vehicles in the survey. That’s total.” Continue reading

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Subaru of America November Sales Drop 10%

Subaru of America (Subaru Corp. NASDAQ: FUJHF) today reported 52,081 vehicle sales for November 2025 – a ~10% drop, and year-to-date sales of 586,154, a 3.3% decrease.* In November, Crosstrek remained the top seller for the seventh consecutive month with 16,142 vehicles sold (-4.8%). Forester sales were tolerable with 13,871 vehicles sold (-6.6%), and Outback sold 13,089 vehicles (-6.5%).

“Subaru retailers keep driving exceptional experiences with programs like Subaru Love-Encore™, earning top marks for sales satisfaction. Paired with a standout vehicle lineup and the Share the Love® Event supporting charitable impact nationwide, Subaru is set to finish the year strong,” claimed Troy Poston, Senior Vice President of Sales, Subaru of America. Continue reading

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American Honda Posts November Sales of 102,824

American Honda (NYSE: HMC) said today that sales totaled 102,824 units in November. Year-to-date sales were up a meager 1.8%. An industry-wide semiconductor supply shortage was a factor.

“Both the Honda and Acura brands continue to benefit from strong sales of all-new vehicles with balanced sales across light trucks and passenger cars along with a new annual sales record from electrified models,” American Honda claimed. Continue reading

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BMW Group Increases Its CO2 Reduction Goals

The BMW Group said today that it has defined a new 2035 milestone for cutting CO2e emissions on the road to net zero. The company aims to reduce its CO2e emissions by at least 60 million metric tons compared to 2019 levels, an additional reduction of approximately 20 million tons of CO2e beyond the existing 2030 target.

“The BMW Group has intentionally set itself the additional 2035 milestone to consistently advance its de-carbonization strategy. Global customer demand for electric vehicles alone will not be sufficient to achieve the CO2e targets set for 2030 and 2035. The comprehensive approach to reducing CO2e emissions therefore spans the entire vehicle life cycle, irrespective of the drive variant,” BMW said. Continue reading

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Hyundai Santa Fe Recall for Bad Rear-View Cameras

Hyundai Motor America is recalling more than 143,000 model-year 2024-2025 Santa Fe and Santa Fe Hybrid vehicles. The rear-view camera may not have been installed properly, which can damage the wiring harness and cause the rear-view camera image not to display.

“The camera’s main wire harness was improperly assembled by the supplier, causing increased tension and wear in the cable’s shield line, and resulting in poor terminal contact when connected to the camera,” HMA said in the mandatory recall notification made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning. [Seoyon E-Hwa Alabama is the supplier – AutoCrat] Continue reading

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October UK Car and Commercial Vehicle Production Drops

Car production in the UK fell in October, down -23.8%, according to the latest figures published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT). Only 59,010 vehicles shipped, 18,474 fewer than in the same month last year. [read AutoInformed.com about Britain’s largest auto employer here: Jaguar Land Rover Cyber-Attack Effects Ongoing – AutoCrat]

“The news comes two days after the Budget in which the Chancellor announced a number of welcome competitiveness-boosting measures, including a further £1.5 billion in automotive transformation funding, and the deferral of regulation to end critical employee car ownership schemes into the next parliament – a move the industry had warned could lead to annual losses of £1 billion and put up to 5000 jobs at stake. It also comes after government published a consultation on its proposed British Industrial Competitiveness Scheme (BICS) which should bring down sky-high energy costs for manufacturers,” SMMT said. Continue reading

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U.S. November New Vehicle Sales Forecast Down

November’s new-vehicle sales, when posted next week, are expected to fall in both volume and pace from last year’s levels. The November new-vehicle sales pace, or seasonally adjusted annual rate (SAAR), is forecast today by Cox Automotive to reach 15.7 million. This is up slightly from October’s 15.3 million pace, but significantly down from last year’s 16.5 million level. Through October, the monthly SAAR has averaged 16.2 million.*

“The new-vehicle sales pace had been expected to slow in the fourth quarter, and that’s what we are seeing,” said Cox Automotive Senior Economist Charlie Chesbrough. “The headwinds from higher prices and fewer government subsidies for electric vehicles are finally slowing the market after a surprisingly strong previous six months. Continue reading

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ACEA – EU October Car Sales Flat. Tesla Tumbles

During October 2025 year-to-date (YTD), new EU car registrations increased by 1.4% compared to the same period last year, the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association said today, aka ACEA at AutoInformed after its original French name.* Tesla in particular demonstrated once again how damaged its brand is. [Tesla in October was down -48% at 5647 units compared to 10,867 units in 2024. Market share plummeted from1.3% to 0.6%. For October 2025 YTD, Tesla sales dropped -39.2% at 117,000 (192,439) units for a market share of 1.3% compared to 2.2% in 2024. – AutoCrat]

“This is the fourth consecutive month of modest growth, ACEA said. “Despite this recent positive momentum, overall volumes remain far below pre-pandemic levels. The battery-electric car market share reached 16.4% YTD, yet it is still below the pace needed at this stage of the transition. Hybrid-electric vehicles lead as the most popular power type choice among buyers, with plug-in hybrids continuing to gain momentum.”** Continue reading

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Milestones – Porsche Factory in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen

In 1937, the first sketch for the Porsche factory in Stuttgart-Zuffenhausen was drawn up.

“In the 1930s, the Porsche engineering office at Kronenstrasse 24 developed into an innovative actor in the automotive industry. However, the garages at the Porsche villa on Feuerbacher Weg were still being used to develop the first customer-commissioned vehicles. So in 1937, they decided to build a new factory in Zuffenhausen. Ferry Porsche acquired the land from the Wolff entrepreneur family, and architect Richard Pfob was responsible for the design,” said Matthias Kriegel, writing in the Porsche magazine Christophorus 416. Continue reading

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Magna Expanding EV Powertrain Production in China

Magna (TSX: MG; NYSE: MGA)* said this week that it is increasing its presence in China with a new facility in the Jiujiang Economic Development Zone, Wuhu to support the growing demand of electric drive systems—starting with Chery but ultimately capable of supplying additional automakers in the future.

“This expansion reflects Magna’s commitment to supporting our customers’ electrification strategies and advancing sustainable mobility,” said Diba Ilunga, President Magna Powertrain. “Wuhu offers a strong industrial foundation and an environment conducive to innovation. We are excited to bring our world-class electric drive technologies closer to Chery and other partners in China.” Continue reading

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November U.S. and Global New Vehicle Sales Forecast Down

Total new-vehicle sales for November 2025, including retail and non-retail transactions, are estimated to reach 1,255,900, a 5.2% decrease year over year, according to a joint forecast from J.D. Power and GlobalData released today. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for total new-vehicle sales is expected to be 15.4 million units, down 1.2 million units from November 2024. Global November sales are expected to decrease 3.9% from November 2024. The global selling rate is expected to reach 92.7 million units in November, down from a rate of 95.8 million units in November 2024.

“November’s results reflect another notable—yet anticipated—decline in the [U.S.] new-vehicle sales pace, driven largely by the pull-ahead of electric vehicle (EV) purchases prior to the expiration of federal EV tax credits on Sept. 30. That expiration prompted many shoppers to accelerate buying decisions, resulting in a surge in EV sales that temporarily inflated the overall industry sales pace. Now, two months after the credit expired, the industry continues to feel the effect of those accelerated purchases. In November, EVs are expected to account for just 6.0% of new-vehicle retail sales, consistent with October but well below the 12.9% recorded in September,” said Thomas King, president of OEM solutions at J.D. Power. Continue reading

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UAW Visiting Capitol Hill on 2026 USMCA Renewal

This week, UAW members from the Agricultural Implements sector went to Capitol Hill to talk about “the devastating impact of bad trade deals, and fight layoffs and plant closures across the agricultural implements and construction equipment sector.” “The American taxpayer … Continue reading

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Trump Tariffs – Toyota to Invest ~$10 Billion In U.S. Ops

Toyota Motor Corporation has announced an additional investment of up to $10 billion in the United States during the next five years. This will bring the company’s total U.S. investment to ~$60 billion since beginning operations in the U.S. about … Continue reading

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Tariff Chaos – Honda All-Terrain Factory to Build More Parts

Today Honda announced a $9.658 million investment to modernize its North Carolina Manufacturing (NCM) plant to let build more parts. The new investment is likely to exceed $9.6 million and create 18 new non-union jobs.*

“By equipping Honda North Carolina Manufacturing with important new capabilities to build key parts for our products right here at the facility, we can continue growing our ATV business in North Carolina,” said Lynne Hedrick, site lead at NCM. “We are grateful for the continued support from Alamance County and look forward to the benefits this investment will provide to our associates and the region.”** Continue reading

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Takata Recall Haunts BMW X5 SUVs

BMW of North America (BMW) is recalling more than 5000 model year 2000-2001 X5 SUVs that may be equipped with a sport steering wheel containing a Takata PSDI-4 air bag inflator (TK Global LLC). The inflator may explode during deployment due to propellant degradation occurring after long-term exposure to high absolute humidity, temperature and temperature cycling.

“Certain vehicles may contain a sport steering wheel equipped with a Takata driver’s front air bag module that contains a PSDI-4 inflator that could have been installed as a replacement / spare part. The originally equipped did not contain an inflator with ammonium nitrate,” BMW said in the mandatory safety defect recall filing made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning (NHTSA). Continue reading

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