Category Archives: manufacturing

Ford Carhartt Partnership on Products, Workforce Expansion

Posted on 13 January 2026 by Ken Zino

“The multi-year strategic partnership is designed to create long-term impact in three critical areas for the Essential Economy: workforce development, community building and durable products that help strengthen and support the skilled trades,” said Jim Farley, Ford Motor Company CEO, and Linda Hubbard, Carhartt CEO. Continue reading →

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Park Outside – 2025 Volvo EX30 Battery Fires

Posted on 12 January 2026 by Ken Zino

“The recall population is determined by the first and last vehicles that were produced with a high voltage battery from the Shandong Geely Sunwoda Power Battery Company in China. The start of production with these cell variants began on September 6th, 2024, and ended on October 25th, 2025. Vehicles produced after October 25, 2025, do not have the high voltage battery cell deviation. This recall affects certain model year 2025 EX30 vehicles,” Volvo said in the mandatory safety defect filing made public by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration this morning. Continue reading →

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Rolls-Royce – 2025 Trends, Innovations, and Achievements

Posted on 12 January 2026 by Ken Zino

“Our clients’ increasing interest and engagement in more ambitious commissions are realized in our joint pursuit of perfection. Every motor car is a singular expression of its owner’s vision, and together they reflect the spirit of innovation, craft, and cultural fluency that defines Rolls-Royce today,” said Chris Brownridge, Chief Executive, Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. Continue reading →

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BMW Group Sales Barely Increase in 2025

Posted on 9 January 2026 by Ken Zino

The BMW Group said today that vehicle sales grew in 2025 to 2,463,715(+0.5%) with resilient performance particularly in Europe and the US, and with electrified models. Electrified vehicles accounted for 26% of total BMW Group sales worldwide in 2025, with fully-electric vehicles representing ~18%. [The questions for 2026 are whether taxpayer subsidized EVs are salable without money on the hood so to speak in the U.S. How increased low-cost Chinese EVs in Europe affect premium brand sales, and the whim or dementia of the moment of the Trump Administration tax and tariff policies affect Global trade – AutoCrat?] Continue reading →

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Chinese RoboVan Maker Neolix Debuts Next Gen Products

Posted on 7 January 2026 by Ken Zino

Neolix, a maker of autonomous logistics products (RoboVan), today announced the debut of its next-generation AI-powered autonomous logistics products at CES 2026. Its full  RoboVan lineup is said to enable large-scale, end-to-end urban logistics. Neolix thinks that autonomous is the cornerstone of the future urban infrastructure.

“Autonomous logistics has reached a critical tipping point, transitioning from experimental pilots to true commercial scale,” said YU Enyuan, Founder and CEO of Neolix. “2025 was a milestone year where we achieved mass deployment, refined our mapless technology, and expanded our global footprint. At CES 2026, we are presenting the global market with our fully integrated autonomous solution in action, showcasing a new generation of urban infrastructure that is always-on, highly efficient, and ready for global growth.” Continue reading →

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UK New Car Registrations at 2M during 2025

Posted on 6 January 2026 by Ken Zino

The UK new car market grew for the third year in a row in 2025, passing the two million mark for the first time since the pandemic, with 2,020,520 new car registrations, according to the latest figures published today by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT).* Internal combustion engines remain the biggest selling powertrain but there remains growing demand for electrified cars with one in four buyers choosing electric vehicles. [There also continues industry lobbying demands to delay and use taxpayer subsidies to support the sales of EVs. -AutoCrat] Continue reading →

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Audi Recalls Seat Belts for Child Seat Retention Failures

Posted on 5 January 2026 by Ken Zino

Audi (Volkswagen Group of America) is recalling more than 27,700 model year 2025 SQ6 E-Tron, SQ6 Sportback E-Tron, Q6 Sportback E-Tron, A6, A5, A6 Sportback E-Tron, Q6 E-Tron, S5, and S6 Sportback E-Tron vehicles. The automatic locking retractor [from Joyson Safety Systems in Poland – AutoCrat] may fail to engage when a child seat is installed using the seat belt. These vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard (FMVSS) numbers 208, “Occupant Crash Protection” and 209, “Seat Belt Assemblies.” Continue reading →

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Porsche Recalls More Than 173,000 Vehicles for Rear Visibility

Posted on 5 January 2026 by Ken Zino

“A rear-view camera image that does not display decreases the driver’s rearward visibility, increasing the potential risk of an incident,” Porsche said. “While the exact root cause is unknown, transient signal noise between the control unit and the Surround View cameras can, in certain rare instances, interrupt the signal from the rear-view camera. …If this occurs, the driver will notice the rear-view camera image is not displayed when the vehicle is placed in Reverse.” Porsche said. Continue reading →

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BMW Group Adds Alpina Brand

Posted on 5 January 2026 by Ken Zino

The BMW Group acquired the Alpina trademark rights on 1 January 2026. The Bavarian-based specialty tuner of performance versions of BMW models, now is BMW ALPINA as an exclusive standalone brand under the BMW Group. Alpena will continue produce performance cars at BMW Group assembly plants. [One wonders if this isn’t the pre-cursor to a BMW Formula One team ala Audi buying Sauber? – Autocrat. Read AutoInformed.com on Milestones – Audi F1 at Munich Brand Experience Center] Continue reading →

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Milestones – 50 Years of the VW Golf GTI

Posted on 2 January 2026 by Ken Zino

The Volkswagen Golf GTI (VWAGY) turns 50 this year. More than 2.5 million units have been produced to date, according to Volkswagen, In The anniversary s will be celebrated with a variety of national and international events,  and of course an exclusive anniversary model Golf GTI EDITION 50 [footnote 1 below. There will also be world premiere of the first all-electric GTI. But it will be smaller than compact- size versions of a sporty car – AutoCrat]. Continue reading →

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Ford Recalls Mavericks, Escapes, Mach Es, Transits, Broncos

Posted on 29 December 2025 by Ken Zino

Ford Motor Company (NYSE: F) is recalling more then ~52,000 vehicles for a variety of quality problems according to mandatory safety defect recall filings  made public the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) this morning. Ford is operating under a consent order from NHTSA because of its previous handing of recalls.

The largest recall announced today involves 2025-2026 Mustang Mach E vehicles. The Chinese-made [Zhe Jiang Keboda Industry Corp – AutoCrat] Light Driver Control Module B (LDCMB) may fail, preventing the turn signals, daytime running lights, low beam, and high beam headlights from illuminating. As such, these vehicles fail to comply with the requirements of Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standard number 108, “Lamps, Reflective Devices, and Associated Equipment.” Continue reading →

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December U.S. Vehicle Sales Forecast Down. Global Sales Up

Posted on 29 December 2025 by Ken Zino

U.S. new-vehicle sales for December 2025, including retail and non-retail transactions, are projected to reach 1,454,000, a 7.5% decrease year over year, according to a joint forecast from J.D. Power and GlobalData released today. December 2025 has 26 selling days, one more than December 2024. Comparing the same sales volume without adjusting for the number of selling days shows a decrease of 3.8% from 2024. The seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) for total U.S. new-vehicle sales is forecast at 15.9 million units, down 1.1 million units from December 2024 as the Trump slump continues.

“December caps a year marked by volatility, as the industry continues to deal with the consequences of import tariffs and changes to electric vehicle legislation. To say it’s been a sales roller coaster of a year would be an understatement,” said Thomas King, president of OEM solutions at J.D. Power. “Fears of future tariff-related price hikes caused sales to jump by 173,000 vehicles between March and April, followed by a sales slowdown in subsequent months. Another sales jump occurred between August and September as 304,200 electric vehicle shoppers made purchases before the September 30th expiration of federal EV tax credits, followed by another sales slowdown whose effects are still being felt in December.”
Continue reading →

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Mazda Axes Advance, Production and Design Modeling Studios

Posted on 29 December 2025 by Ken Zino

Mazda Motor Corporation (MMC 7261.T) announced on 26 December organizational changes that eliminates its traditional Advance, Production and Design Modeling Studios, among other moves, that are effective 1 January 2026. This is part of the so-called Mazda 2030 Vision, an ongoing business recovery strategy. Results so far are slight. Consider the disastrous financial results for the first half of the Japanese fiscal year ending March 31, 2026 (April 1, 2025 through September 30, 2025). Global sales volume was 609,000 units, down 3% year-over-year. The operating loss was ¥53.9 billion. The net loss attributable to owners of the parent company was ¥45.3 billion.

“The timing of the Japan-US auto tariff reduction was later than initially expected, which had an impact of ¥10.3 billion. As a result, although we aimed for break-even in the second quarter, we posted an operating loss of ¥7.8 billion. We see the second quarter result establishing a foundation for turnaround in the second half of the year,” MMC said. Continue reading →

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Detroit Auto Show 2026 – Winners of HS Poster Contest

Posted on 26 December 2025 by Ken Zino

The Detroit Auto Show (DAS) just before Christmas announced the winners of its 2026 High School Poster Contest, a statewide competition looking at the next generation of creative talent. The winners will be formally recognized during a special on-stage ceremony at the 2026 Detroit Auto Show on Sunday, January 18, at Huntington Place.*

“Open to high school students across Michigan, the contest invited young artists to submit original poster designs inspired by the Detroit Auto Show and the future of the automotive industry. The winning artwork reflects a wide range of perspectives, creativity, and technical skill, reinforcing Detroit’s role as both the automotive capital of the world and a hub for design innovation. The Detroit Auto Show received 208 entries from 47 high schools,” DAS said. Continue reading →

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ACEA – EU November Car Sales Flat. Tesla Wilts

Posted on 23 December 2025 by Ken Zino

During November 2025 year-to-date (YTD), new EU car registrations increased by a mere1.4% compared to the same period last year, according to data published today by the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association. [aka ACEA at AutoInformed after its original French name]. Tesla during November dropped -34.2% at 12,130 units continuing its flat spin downward. YTD at 129,024 Tesla is off -38.8%.

“Despite the recent positive momentum, overall volumes remain well below pre-pandemic levels,” ACEA said in a release. “The battery-electric car market share reached 16.9% YTD, in line with projections for the year, yet a level that still leaves room for growth to stay on track with the transition.”

“Hybrid-electric vehicles lead as the most popular power type choice among buyers, with plug-in hybrids continuing to gain momentum,” ACEA , the lobbying group of 16 major European automakers, maintained. Continue reading →

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