Pit stops proved to be an influential factor, with Toyota gaining prized seconds at tire changes.
Toyota GAZOO Racing started the 2019-2020 FIA World Endurance Championship (WEC) season with a one-two victory in an eventful 4 Hours of Silverstone. Home favorite Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and José María López took victory from pole position in the #7 TS050 Hybrid to register the sixth consecutive win for the reigning World Champions. Toyota won despite its cars now carrying 99kg more weight than their nearest rivals under updated regulations.
The #8 TS050 HYBRID of Sébastien Buemi, Kazuki Nakajima and Brendon Hartley earned second place, less than two seconds behind its sister car, in front of a weekend crowd of 49,600 who saw a race conducted in changing weather conditions. The #3 Rebellion car of Berthon, Derani, Duval finished third.
As the race approached the 90-minute mark, an intense rain shower-soaked Silverstone. A lengthy Safety Car period allowed cars to switch back to slicks as the track dried, and the #97 crew found themselves hunting down the leaders in the closing stages, with Martin proving he had the pace to challenge for victory. In the end he was only denied his chance to fight for the win by a slow back marker and a rebellious prototype. Continue reading →
Ford Motor Company is issuing a safety recall on 2017 Ford Explorer vehicles for an improperly coined seat-frame edge that cuts users hands. Affected Explorers are equipped with power seats and may have seat frames with sharp edges. Customers could come in contact with the sharp edges when reaching between the power front seat and center console, presenting the risk of injury.
August Global Light Vehicle Sales Drop -3.9%
Trump’s economic whims are the cause of the prolonged US-China trade conflict, and a slowing economy continues to present a major risk to the automotive market.
Global Light Vehicle (LV) sales fell 3.9% in year-on-year (YoY) terms in August, but the selling rate accelerated to 94.9 mn units/year, from 90.9 mn units/year in July, according to the LMC* consultancy. However, in a whistling past the graveyard qualifier, LMC notes that “the selling rate was the strongest since August 2018’s WLTP-distorted result, though additional WLTP requirements may have contributed to the surge in Europe’s selling rate in August 2019 as well.” (WLTP How Does It Work? Will it Work?)
Elsewhere, selling rates in the USA and China appear stabilized. “However, in YoY terms, China is still firmly in negative territory, while the US comparison was positive, helped by calendar effects. Meanwhile, August brought some renewed weakness in South America, too.” (AutoInformed: July Global Vehicles Sales Drop More Than 3M) Continue reading →