Category Archives: news

GM Ups Bet by $35B in Autonomous, Electric Vehicle Games

The seemingly bottomless pit of capital being consumed in the race to survive the connected, green and autonomous vehicle wars has grown deeper with General Motors saying today it will increase its EV and AV investments from 2020 through 2025 to $35 billion. This is a – gulp – 75% increase from its initial pledge announced prior to the ongoing pandemic. Continue reading

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Toyota Agile Space – Motorized Store or Mobility Company?

Toyota Motor North America R&D has selected digital brand Cuyana as its first tenant. About the only thing AutoInformed sees in common with its vehicle business is that leasing could be involved for customers. Continue reading

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Battery Powered – Mercedes-Benz Trucks to Unveil eActros

It’s been a long time coming, allowing Japanese maker Toyota through Hino to seize the apparent lead. Daimler first showed a concept for a heavy-duty electric truck back in 2016. It took two years to get ten prototypes into testing during 2018. The key of course will be customer adaptation and government incentives to fight climate change that spur purchases and above all retirements of diesels. Continue reading

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Mexican-Built 2022 Ford Maverick Hybrid Shrinks Size, Price

To AutoInformed, it looks like a clever updating and use of the former Mazda-derived Ranger pickup. Ford Motor, of course, once dominated the compact pickup truck market in the U.S. until years of product neglect combined with an assault by Toyota and Nissan pushed it to a footnote in the segment. Continue reading

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US Battery Electric Vehicle Market – Progress or Proliferation? Tesla has a 75% Share. Is the Nissan LEAF a Best Buy?

The Nissan LEAF was the first modern pure EV when it launched in 2010. Since then the US battery electric vehicle market has added roughly 20 different models with prices ranging from ~$21,000 to more than $160,000. The question for consumers is this progress or just proliferation? Well, as always, it depends on what you consider. Continue reading

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The Growing Non-Exclusive Dieselgate Club – Fraud Charges Also in France for Renault on Diesel Emissions Levels

The investigation opened on 12 January 2017 on older generations of diesel vehicles, Renault s.a.s. was placed under examination on 8 June 2021 on the charge of deceit, aka fraud. Investigators accused Renault of “fraudulent strategies” used by top managers for more than 25 years to falsify the emission test results, including its longtime chief Carlos Ghosn. The EU Parliament adopted legislation last November that will allow US-style class action lawsuits against companies accused of wide-scale fraud. Continue reading

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Special Edition 2022 Corvette Stingray Debuts in Detroit

In left-hand drive markets, Chevrolet will release 1,000 of these specially styled Corvettes, which resemble the No. 3 and No. 4 Corvette C8.R race cars. These supercars were designed to commemorate the mid-engine Corvette C8.R’s inaugural season. In 2020, Corvette Racing swept IMSA’s sports car championship series, taking the Manufacturers, Drivers and Team titles.* Continue reading

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Stellantis – Diesel Emissions Probes for Consumer Fraud

The Stellantis Group, which was established in January 2021, also said it will continue its predecessors’ policies and cooperate fully with the justice system in order to resolve this matter expeditiously. It, of course, has no other good options. Stay tuned for the next chapter of Dieselgate, where major automakers used software to cheat on emissions tests. Continue reading

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Former Chrysler Windsor Minivan Plant to Close for All of June

“The semiconductor shortage impacting the automotive industry has left companies and countries scrambling for solutions,” said Carla Bailo, President & CEO at the Center for Automotive Research, aka CAR. Continue reading

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Electrify Home’s Fastest EV Charger Now Available at $649

Customers choosing to have a professional electrician install their new Level 2 charger can choose among three different installation packages offered by a third-party service provider to select the one that best fits their installation needs. Custom installation services are also available via this provider. Installation packages begin at $695. Continue reading

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GM to Up Deliveries by Dropping Stop-Start on Pickups, SUVs

The bad news is GM’s gas mileage increasing stop-start system is being dropped on some models of the 2021 Chevrolet Tahoe and Suburban, GMC Yukon and Yukon XL and Cadillac Escalade and Escalade ESV SUVs. Stop-start will also be dropped for the moment on certain light-duty Chevy Silverado and GMC Sierra pickups. The semiconductor or microchip shortage is expected to last through 2021, and possibly until sometime in 2022. Continue reading

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CARB Revives Incentives for Clean Trucks and Buses

This year HVIP will be fulfilled in waves, allowing the opportunity for more fleets to participate, especially smaller fleets CARB said. Half of the funds will be released immediately. Remaining funds will be made available two months later, at 10 a.m. on Tuesday 10 August 2021. Class 8 trucks performing drayage operations, as well as vehicles purchased by public agencies are exempt from this pause. Continue reading

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State, Local Governments Increase Green Spending

Some specific preservation programs include protection of soil and water resources, including controlling beach erosion, managing dams to prevent floods, educating the public about conservation and generating hydroelectric energy. While expenditures rose, a five-year comparison (from 2016 to 2020) showed a 5.7% decline in part-time employment and a 0.3% decrease in full-time employment. Continue reading

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Toyota NA Expands Parkopedia Use for Payment Services

The new service covers only 60,000 off-street parking locations with more than 6,000 reservable locations across the USA, using Parkopedia’s payment system to manage transactions. The platform enables drivers to register their payment details using a single secure digital account and then pay for their parking within activated locations. The parking reservation information and navigation can then be accessed via the vehicle head unit. Continue reading

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General Motors Expands Access to OnStar Guardian App

OnStar Guardian offers Mobile Crash Response, which uses smartphone sensors to detect crashes and alert an Emergency-Certified OnStar Advisor. Continue reading

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