Category Archives: news analysis

Recycling – Hyundai N 2025 Vision Gran Turismo at 2022 Automobility LA

Consider the  N vision 2025 that first appeared in an earlier life as we recall at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show. Then it was a prototype-build as the Vision Gran Turismo project to commemorate Hyundai’s 50th anniversary coming in 2017. Continue reading

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EU Commercial Vehicle Registrations -8.5% in October

In a demonstration of  the murky answer to the question “is the ongoing European-recession glass half-empty or half-full?”, ACEA* said today that the EU market for new commercial vehicles continued to scuffle, declining for the sixteenth month in a row at -8.5% vehicles.

However, year-to-date registrations of new commercial vehicles across the European Union contracted by 16.8% to 1.3 million units. So things are improving somewhat since the rate of decline is decreasing. Moreover, the truck and bus segments performed better than in October 2021. Continue reading

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Stellantis Overhauling European Dealer Network in 2023

In essence, electrification is a challenge facing all global automakers. Currently in the US Ford Motor is facing a major dealer revolt over its proposed electrification model. At Stellantis – the mega merger of FCA and PSA companies – the problem is acute – with its Abarth, Alfa Romeo, Chrysler, Citroën, Dodge, DS Automobiles, Fiat, Jeep®, Lancia, Maserati, Opel, Peugeot, Ram, Vauxhall automotive brands, as well as Free2move and Leasys services – the multi-brand distribution network is, well, complex. Continue reading

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Death of the Diesel – CARB Tightens Off-Road Equipment Regs

The amendments will require fleets to phase-out use of the oldest and highest polluting off-road diesel vehicles in California; prohibit the addition of high-emitting vehicles to a fleet; and require the use of R99 or R100 renewable diesel in off-road diesel vehicles. These vehicles are the second largest mobile source of NOx in California, only exceeded by trucks on roads and highways, aka on-road trucks. Continue reading

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GM Raises 2022 Earnings, Offers 2023-25 Performance Goals

General Motors Co. (NYSE: GM) at its annual investors’ meeting in New York City significantly raised its 2022 financial results predictions. GM now projects full-year 2022 adjusted automotive free cash flow will increase to $10-11 billion from its previous guidance of $7-9 billion. GM now projects 2022 EBIT-adjusted for the full year will be in a range of $13.5-14.5 billion, compared to its previous guidance of $13-15 billion. Continue reading

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Chinese Government Intelligence Officer Sentenced to Prison

Yanjun Xu, 42, was sentenced to 20 years in prison. According to court documents, Xu targeted American aviation companies, recruited employees to travel to China, and solicited their proprietary information, all on behalf of the government of the People’s Republic of China (PRC). The Justice Department and the FBI of course are involved in other grave national security matters that if indictments come won’t require extradition of the alleged offender and co-conspirators from Mir-a-Lago. Continue reading

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President Biden at COP 27 Pledges US Leadership on Solving the Climate Crisis

The bold initiatives ended a week when the Climate Change and Election Denying Republican party , the GOPe-nope-dopes, were thumped in US mid-term elections that they and their propaganda outlets falsely predicted would be a red tsunami.  Continue reading

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Honda Posts a Profit of ¥453.4B for First Half FY Results

“This was due primarily to increased pricing, a reduction of incentives, an increase in motorcycle sales and favorable currency effects,” Honda said. Continue reading

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CARB – Discounted ZEV Landscape Equipment Offered

Qualified small business landscape professionals starting today can purchase discounted zero-emission lawn mowers, blowers and other landscape equipment through a new category of funding offered through the California Air Resources Board’s Clean Off-Road Equipment Voucher Incentive Project (CORE).* Administered by … Continue reading

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Recharged Heritage to offer MINI EV Conversion

MINI Recharged offers a WLTP range of 103 miles. Continue reading

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Mixed Economic Signals in October US Vehicle Sales

Nonetheless, automaker discounts persist at record lows. Average incentive spending per unit per Power is forecast to total $882, which is down 44.7% from October 2021. This is the sixth straight month below $1000. The question is when do vehicles become un-affordable as the Federal Reserve is deliberately sending the economy into a recession to fight inflation, which the Fed caused by years of of cheap monetary policy that mostly benefited the rich. In a mass market for automobiles, the rich can’t buy all the vehicles as production resumes to pre-pandemic rates that were running at 17 million vehicles annually.  Continue reading

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US October Light Vehicle Sales Grow 11.4% to 1.2 Million

The market viewed by automaker shows that Mercedes-Benz enjoyed the strongest YoY growth in October, with a 53.0% YoY gain. Among higher-volume manufacturers, General Motors showed the strongest growth, up by 51.2% YoY. GM also led the market, with a 17.2% share, 0.9 percentage points (pp) ahead of Toyota Group. Honda Group’s struggles continue with sales down by 16.0% YoY. Stellantis and Ford Motor also saw YoY declines, of 14.0% and 10.2%, respectively. Continue reading

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Ford Motor US Sales Drop 10% during October 2022

A look at the sales by model reveals that Ford is now essentially a truck and SUV maker with dwindling car sales of ~41,000 year-to-date. Lincoln sold no cars at all ytd. Mercedes Benz posted a huge increase in sales of  more than 50%. The difficulty in analyzing what the data mean comes from what sales were from previously placed orders, and when the US will return to a normal sales environment, which might be undefinable at this time. Ford no longer holds sales calls for media and analysts. Continue reading

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GAC-FCA JV to File for Bankruptcy

Stellantis, the mega-merger between FCA and PSA, said last July that the “lack of progress in the previously announced plan for Stellantis to take a majority share in their joint venture” has resulted in the GAC Group and Stellantis to start figure out how to terminate the joint-venture that produces and distributes Jeep products in China. Continue reading

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