Category Archives: news analysis

Large Pickups Good in Side Impacts. Back Seat Safety Lacking

The Ram 1500 crew cab, Ford F-150 crew cab and Toyota Tundra crew cab, all 2023 models, earn good ratings in the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety’s updated side crash test, while the 2023 Chevrolet Silverado 1500 crew cab is rated acceptable, IIHS said today. However, in the updated moderate overlap front crash test, which now emphasizes back seat safety, only the Tundra manages a marginal rating. The F-150, Ram 1500 and Silverado are rated poor. Continue reading

Posted in engineering, insurance, news analysis, safety | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Unifor Sweep! Stellantis Workers Ratify New Contracts

“Unifor members at Stellantis will receive the same significant wage increases, pension improvements and electric vehicle (EV) transition income security measures as Unifor members at Ford and General Motors,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne late this afternoon. “This contract also confirms investment and product commitments for Windsor, Brampton and Etobicoke, including the retooling of Brampton Assembly to build future EVs.” Continue reading

Posted in news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Unifor and Stellantis Contract Ratification in Process

Unifor said its bargaining team met all of its priorities in negotiations and obtained an historic wage package, stronger pensions, protections for autoworkers in the EV transition, and secured investments to lock in a pattern agreement for all Canadian autoworkers. Continue reading

Posted in labor issues, manufacturing, milestones, news analysis, shows and events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Voters Blame Oil and Gas Companies for High Energy Prices

New polling from Data for Progress, Climate Power, and Fossil Free Media finds that voters strongly blame high energy prices on large oil companies and their CEOs.* They think, and believe these companies have too much power in government. Yet, voters remain optimistic about a transition away from fossil fuels and toward clean energy. This shall we say “awakened attitude” should be a warning to the fossil fuel dependent Republican party since it is bipartisan. Continue reading

Posted in economy, news analysis, prices, transportation | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Mixed Signals in October US Transportation Employment

The unemployment rate* in the U.S. transportation sector was 4.8% (not seasonally adjusted) in October 2023 according to Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS). In October 2023, the transportation sector unemployment rate rose 1.1 percentage points from 3.7% in October 2022 and was above the pre-pandemic October 2019 level of 2.7% but still below the October 2020 and October 2021 rates. Unemployment in the transportation sector reached its highest level during the COVID-19 pandemic (15.7%) in May 2020 and July 2020. Continue reading

Posted in economy, news analysis, transportation | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

China Vehicle Dependability Same in 2023 as 2022

“Although manufacturers regard quality above everything else, some do not pay enough attention to quality after the warranty period,” said Elvis Yang, general manager of auto product practice at J.D. Power China. “However, such problems directly affect owners’ concerns about the long-term dependability and durable quality of their vehicle. Manufacturers need to pay more attention to long-term quality and improve quality management standards.” Continue reading

Posted in auto news, customer satisfaction, engineering, manufacturing, news analysis, quality | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Toyota Posts FY2024 Q2 Net Income of $18.4 Billion

“We are grateful for the support of many stakeholders, from production to logistics, sales, and services, including suppliers. As a result of selling each car meticulously at prices that match the product appeal refined through Toyota’s ‘making ever-better cars’ initiative, operating income increased from the same period of the previous fiscal year,” Toyota said. Continue reading

Posted in auto news, blog, financial results, manufacturing, marketing, mobility company, news analysis, results | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Chinese Vehicle Market Sales Strong in September

“We expect sales to remain strong in the coming years. This month we have again increased our full-year 2023 forecast, this time by 300,000 units, bringing the full-year forecast to 28.9 million units, a year- on-year increase of 8%. However, it should be noted that near-term downside risks exist, mainly from the liquidity crisis in the real estate sector – said to directly and indirectly account for 25% of GDP-  declining exports, and high youth unemployment,” said the GlobalData Forecast Team. Continue reading

Posted in blog, manufacturing, news analysis, sales | Tagged , , , , , , | Leave a comment

BMW Recalls 2023-24 Driver Assist Systems

BMW of North America is recalling 2023-2024 740i, 740i xDrive, 760i xDrive, i7 eDrive50, i7 xDrive60, i7 M70, 2024 750e xDrive, 530i, 530i xDrive, i5 eDrive40, and i5 M60 vehicles. During assembly by the supplier Autoliv Romania the ground connection to the steering wheel may not have been attached according to specifications. This could affect the functionality of the hands-on detection system due to the possibility of misreading the electrical capacitance in that location, which means the emergency braking mode of the driver assist system won’t work. Continue reading

Posted in news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Stellantis Posts Q3 Sales Up 37%. Pre-Tax Profit €3B

Stellantis* today posted a pre-tax operating profit of €3 billion. The company that is partly comprised of Jeep, Dodge Jeep and Ram said the strikes cost it around €750 million. However the strikes – characterized as “work stoppages”- resulted in … Continue reading

Posted in economy, financial results, manufacturing, marketing, news analysis, results | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

UAW October Sweep – GM and UAW Tentative Agreement

“GM is pleased to have reached a tentative agreement with the UAW that reflects the contributions of the team while enabling us to continue to invest in our future and provide good jobs in the US,” said GM Chair and CEO Mary Barra, just minutes ago. Continue reading

Posted in customer satisfaction, labor issues, manufacturing, milestones, news analysis, shows and events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Unifor Stellantis Agreement Good for All Workers in Transition

“After a short strike throughout the night Unifor has reached now a tentative agreement with Stellantis. The deal came about around 7:00 AM this morning, after bargaining throughout the night. And yes, as you can tell all of those here are tired, but also very, very proud of the work that we’ve done for Canadian auto workers. ” said Unifor National President Lana Payne said late this afternoon at a hotel in Toronto. Continue reading

Posted in auto news, AutoInformed Editorial, customer satisfaction, economy, environment, labor issues, manufacturing, milestones, mobility company, news analysis, people, transportation | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Ford EV Charging Network Grows by 25%

Ford Motor said today that customers can now access three new charging providers – Francis Energy, Blink and Red E across the US. and Canada with embedded charger routing and simple payment options via FordPass. The three new companies bring more than 10,000 new chargers to the network, including more than 550 new DC fast chargers. Blink, Francis Energy and Red E join the existing BlueOval Charge Network providers: Shell Recharge Solutions, Electrify America, EVgo, ChargePoint, FLO, EV Connect, and Electric Circuit for a total of ~106,000 charging stations. Continue reading

Posted in connected vehicles, customer satisfaction, electric vehicles, environment, global warming, marketing, mobility company, news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Unifor and Stellantis Have Tentative Contract in Canada

“I am proud of our members at every Stellantis facility for their quick and decisive action during this brief and effective strike action,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “This agreement will considerably improve the living standards of every Unifor member at Stellantis.” Continue reading

Posted in economy, labor issues, manufacturing, milestones, mobility company, news analysis | Tagged , , , , , , , | Leave a comment

Stellantis Invests in Chinese Leapmotor to Expand EV Sales

“As consolidation unfolds among the capable electric vehicles start-ups in China, it becomes increasingly apparent that a handful of efficient and agile new generation EV players, like Leapmotor, will come to dominate the mainstream segments in China,” said Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares. Continue reading

Posted in electric vehicles, manufacturing, milestones, news analysis, shows and events | Tagged , , , , , , , , , | Leave a comment