DETROIT, Sept 12 (Reuters) – Ford (F.N) plans to double production of hybrid F-150 pickup trucks in 2024, accelerating the automaker’s pivot toward gas-electric powertrains as a hedge against reluctance among U.S. truck buyers to go all-electric.

Ford said it is tooling up to equip 20% of the best-selling model-line in the U.S. market with gas-electric powertrains in 2024. For the 2024 model year, the hybrid powertrain will be offered at the same price as a truck equipped with a six-cylinder “EcoBoost” combustion powertrain, the company said. Continue reading “Ford doubles down on hybrid pickup trucks”

WASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) – Korean automakers Hyundai Motor (005380.KS) and Kia Corp (000270.KS) on Tuesday asked a U.S. judge to reject lawsuits filed by 17 cities for failing to install anti-theft technology in millions of their vehicles.

The lawsuits come after thousands of Hyundai and Kia thefts that use a method popularized on TikTok and other social media channels. The cities suing Kia and Hyundai include New York, Cleveland, San Diego, Milwaukee, Columbus and Seattle. Continue reading “Hyundai, Kia urge US court to reject cities TikTok-inspired theft lawsuits”

WASHINGTON, Sept 12 (Reuters) – The White House on Tuesday said it strongly opposes a Republican bill set to be voted on this week by the U.S. House of Representatives that would prevent California from receiving federal waivers to set standards limiting the sale of new gas-powered motor vehicles.

The bill faces long odds of winning approval in the Senate, where Democrats have made boosting electric vehicles a top priority. But it might pick up some Democratic support in the House, and the future of cars could be a potent political issue in the 2024 election for Congress and the White House. Continue reading “White House opposes bill to strip California of vehicle emissions authority”

Sept 12 (Reuters) – A federal committee on Tuesday recommended imposing royalties on U.S. hardrock mining for the first time, a move it said could increase domestic production by providing funds for the agencies in charge of issuing new mining permits.

The proposal was part of a suite of recommendations aimed at increasing supply of the materials like lithium, cobalt and nickel that are needed for a domestic electric vehicle (EV) industry that is key to President Joe Biden’s climate agenda. Continue reading “US committee recommends royalties on minerals for EVs in sweeping reform proposal”

Source : PTI | “Last month saw the highest ever August month sales for passenger vehicles and three-wheelers,” Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) President Vinod Aggarwal said in a statement.

Passenger vehicle wholesales in the country rose 9% year-on-year in August on the back of strong demand for utility models, including SUVs, industry body SIAM said on Monday.

Continue reading “Powered by utility vehicles, PV dispatches to dealers increase 9% in August: SIAM”

NEW DELHI, Sept 12 (Reuters) – India’s road transport minister on Tuesday said he will propose an additional 10% tax on diesel vehicles and warned automakers of even higher levies to come to force them away from diesel-burners and cut fuel emissions and pollution.

Nitin Gadkari made the comments at the Society of Indian Automobile Manufacturers (SIAM) annual conference in New Delhi, where executives of Tata Motors (TAMO.NS), Mahindra and Mahindra (MAHM.NS), Maruti Suzuki (MRTI.NS) and foreign carmakers such as Mercedes (MBGn.DE) and Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) had gathered.

Continue reading “India ‘Say bye to diesel’: India warns automakers of higher taxes in pollution fight”

BERLIN, Sept 12 (Reuters) – Germany’s Renk, which makes gearboxes for tanks, said on Tuesday it planned an initial public offering (IPO) on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange this year to fund expansion of its international operations and gain access to new financing options.

It said the offering would comprise existing shares owned by Renk’s majority owner, private equity group Triton, which bought the company from carmaker Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) three years ago. Continue reading “German gearbox maker Renk plans Frankfurt IPO this year”

Sept 12 (Reuters) – New investments in the United States and Europe aim to challenge China’s stranglehold on a key ingredient used in most electric vehicle batteries – graphite – but industry experts said that will be an uphill battle.

The focus is shifting to a new front: Synthetic graphite, an element developed in the late 19th century, but only redirected toward EVs in the past decade.

Its application is growing quickly. Synthetic graphite could account for nearly two-thirds of the EV battery anode market by 2025, estimates Benchmark Mineral Intelligence. Continue reading “Focus: Synthetic graphite for EV batteries: Can the West crack China’s code?”

Sept 11 (Reuters) – A prolonged coordinated strike by the United Auto Workers (UAW) union against the Detroit Three automakers could cut production by thousands, potentially pushing up vehicle prices and exacerbating supply-chain disruptions, analysts said.

The auto industry is on edge as the current four-year contracts between the UAW and General Motors (GM.N), Ford Motor Co (F.N) and Stellantis (STLAM.MI) for hourly U.S. workers expire on midnight Sept. 14, after which the union’s chief has warned of a possible coordinated strike. Continue reading “Potential UAW strike could cut production, push up vehicle prices, analysts say”

Source : PTI | A well defined payment security mechanism for long-term contracts would help support large-scale rollout of electric buses in the country, according to Ashok Leyland Chairman Dheeraj Hinduja . In an interaction with PTI, he also emphasised on the importance of subsidies in faster adoption of electric mobility in India.

“So I would say two areas, one, the subsidies or whatever benefits that the government can consider for promoting electric vehicles is of course welcome, and then some type of payment security mechanisms are also required. It would help the industry to grow at a faster pace,” Hinduja said. Continue reading “Payment security mechanism, subsidies to help in growth of electric mobility: Chairman, Ashok Leyland”

Source : PTI | The traffic violations in the southern state have come down after the Artificial Intelligence (AI) cameras have become operational, Kerala Transport Minister Antony Raju said on Sunday. After inaugurating a leadership camp organised for the volunteers of the National Service Scheme (NSS), he said the state used to report around 4.5 lakh traffic violations every month, which was reduced to 2.5 lakh after installing the AI cameras.

The minister said Kerala was able to prove that the AI cameras were in fact beneficial for the society as it was able to save the lives of several people. Continue reading “Traffic violations have reduced in Kerala after AI cameras installation: Transport Minister”

Source : PTI | G20 countries on Saturday said they will aim to triple global renewable energy capacity by 2030 and expedite efforts to phase down coal power in line with national circumstances but did not commit to a phase-out of all polluting fossil fuels, including oil and gas. The language on coal aligns with what was agreed upon in the previous G20 Summit in Bali, Indonesia.

The bloc, which represents 85 % of the world’s GDP and contributes 80 % of emissions, however, said it will uphold their 2009 promise made in Pittsburgh to eliminate and rationalise inefficient fossil fuel subsidies. Continue reading “G20 aims to triple renewable energy capacity; no mention of fossil-fuel phase-out”

Sept 11 (Reuters) – Self-driving technology maker Mobileye Global (MBLY.O) named insider Moran Rojansky as its chief financial officer on Monday, succeeding Anat Heller who left the role in June for personal reasons.

Rojansky, 43, has been with the Israel-based company since 2016 and most recently served as its interim finance chief. She has previously worked at PricewaterhouseCoopers, also known as PwC. Continue reading “Mobileye appoints insider Rojansky as CFO”

BEIJING, Sept 11 (Reuters) – Western sanctions against Russia are boosting demand for China-made cars, and this surge could continue as long as these sanctions remain in place, an executive with China’s auto association said on Monday.

Chinese automakers are also seeking to assemble vehicles in Russia and localise production, Xu Haidong, deputy chief engineer at the China Association of Auto Manufacturers (CAAM), told reporters. Continue reading “Western sanctions to sustain surge in China auto exports to Russia-CAAM”

Production: The total production of Passenger Vehicles1 , Three Wheelers, Two Wheelers, and Quadricycle in August 2023 was 23,85,901 units

Domestic Sales:
• Passenger Vehicles2 sales were 3,59,228 units in August 2023.
• Three-wheeler sales were 64,763 units in August 2023
• Two-wheeler sales were 15,66,594 units in August 2023.

1 BMW, Mercedes, JLR, Tata Motors & Volvo Auto data are not available.
2 BMW, Mercedes, JLR & Volvo Auto data are not available. Tata Motors Domestic Sales data included only in this document. Continue reading “Auto Industry Performance of August-2023”

Sept 11 (Reuters) – Tesla’s (TSLA.O) Dojo supercomputer could power a near $600 billion jump in the automaker’s market value by boosting the adoption of robo-taxis and its software services, Morgan Stanley analysts said, sending the electric vehicle maker’s shares up 6% in premarket trading on Monday.

Tesla, already the world’s most valuable automaker, started production of the supercomputer to train artificial intelligence (AI) models for self-driving cars in July and plans to spend more than $1 billion on Dojo through next year. Continue reading “Tesla jumps on prediction supercomputer unit could add $600 bln to mkt value”

LONDON, Sept 11 (Reuters) – BMW (BMWG.DE) said on Monday it will invest 600 million pounds ($750 million) in its UK plants to take its Mini brand all-electric by 2030, giving a fresh boost to Britain’s car industry after years of Brexit-related uncertainty.

From 2026, the German premium carmaker will make two electric models at its Mini plant in Oxford – the Mini Cooper 3-door and the compact crossover Mini Aceman. Continue reading “BMW to invest $750 mln in UK plants to take Mini fully electric”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: India and the US on Friday expressed their support for building a resilient global semiconductor supply chain while reaffirming a pledge to sustain high-level engagements between governments, industries and academic institutions. In a joint statement issued their bilateral talks here, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and US President Joseph Biden called upon the two governments to continue the work of transforming the India-US Strategic Partnership across all dimensions based on trust and mutual understanding.

The meeting was held soon after Biden arrived in New Delhi to participate in the G20 Summit to be chaired by Prime Minister Modi. Continue reading “Modi, Biden express support for building resilient global semiconductor supply chain”

NEW DELHI, Sept 9 (Reuters) – Global leaders announced a multinational rail and ports deal linking the Middle East and South Asia on Saturday on the sidelines of the G20 summit in New Delhi.

The pact comes at a critical time as U.S. President Joe Biden seeks to counter China’s Belt and Road push on global infrastructure by pitching Washington as an alternative partner and investor for developing countries at the G20 grouping. Continue reading “US, India, Saudi, EU unveil rail, ports deal on G20 sidelines”

Sept 8 (Reuters) – A Nikola (NKLA.O) electric semi-truck caught fire near the company’s Phoenix headquarters in Arizona, it said on Friday, the second such incident this week involving the firm’s vehicle.

The company’s shares fell about 15% to 88 cents, and are down nearly 55% since Nikola announced in August a recall of all battery-powered electric trucks it had delivered and paused sales after an investigation into some earlier fires. Continue reading “Nikola semi-truck catches fire in second incident in a week”

Sept 8 (Reuters) – China’s Gotion High-tech Co Ltd (002074.SZ) will set up a $2 billion electric vehicle (EV) lithium battery manufacturing plant in Manteno, Illinois that would create about 2,600 new jobs, the state governor’s office said on Friday.

Global EV battery makers and automakers have been eyeing the North American market for setting up new manufacturing plants as they look to diversify supply chains and attract incentives under the Inflation Reduction Act. Continue reading “China’s Gotion to set up a $2 billion lithium battery plant in Illinois”

Sept 8 (Reuters) – United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain said on Friday the union representing 146,000 workers wants a deal to avoid walkouts at the Detroit Three automakers but expects to go on strike against all of them next week if they do not improve their contract offers.

With contracts set to expire next Thursday at 11:59 p.m. ET (0359 GMT next Friday), Fain said the union had rejected General Motors (GM.N), Ford (F.N) and Chrysler parent company Stellantis North America (STLAM.MI) and remained far apart.

Continue reading “Auto workers reject Detroit Three contract offers, ready to strike”

Source : PTI | Hinduja group flagship Ashok Leyland on Thursday said its aiming to be among the top 10 global commercial vehicle manufacturers in the near future.

According to company chairman Dheeraj Hinduja, the heavy commercial vehicle maker is looking at exploring newer markets. Top officials of Ashok Leyland were here to mark the 75th anniversary celebrations of the city-headquartered company. Continue reading “Vision is to be among top 10 global CV players: Ashok Leyland”

PRAGUE, Sept 8 (Reuters) – Volkswagen’s (VW) (VOWG_p.DE) Czech car producer Skoda Auto said on Friday it would halt production at its Kvasiny plant for at least a week from Sept. 11 and did not rule out limiting output at its main plant in Mlada Boleslav due to a shortage of parts.

It said the reason for the shortage was flooding at a supplier of parts for combustion engines in Slovenia, which affected the whole VW group. Continue reading “Skoda Auto to halt production at Czech Kvasiny plant due to parts shortage”

Sept 7 (Reuters) – Uber Technologies (UBER.N) is considering buybacks and dividends to shareholders as its cash flow ramps up, CEO Dara Khosrowshahi said at an event on Thursday.

“We are now entering a phase where we are increasingly thinking about returning the capital to shareholders, either through dividends or buybacks, more likely with buybacks,” Khosrowshahi said at the Goldman Sachs Communacopia + Technology conference. Continue reading “Uber increasingly considering buybacks as cash flow ramps up – CEO”

NEW YORK, Sept 7 (Reuters) – General Motors (GM.N) was ordered by a federal appeals court on Thursday to defend against claims by a Black safety supervisor, who said she endured years of racism and sexism at an upstate New York plant where other workers displayed Confederate flags and nooses.

A three-judge panel of the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said a trial judge erred in dismissing Billie Banks’ hostile work environment, disparate treatment and retaliation lawsuit against the automaker. Continue reading “GM employee’s racial bias lawsuit is revived over NY plant where nooses were displayed”

BEIJING/SHANGHAI, Sept 8 (Reuters) – China’s passenger vehicle sales returned to growth in August year-on-year, as deeper discounts and tax breaks for environmentally friendly and electric vehicles boosted consumer sentiment even as economic growth remains weak.

Car sales jumped 2.2% in August from the same month a year ago to 1.94 million units, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed on Friday, the first year-on-year gain since May. Continue reading “China car sales return to growth in Aug, Tesla nearly doubles EV share”

Sept 7 (Reuters) – Founders behind defunct self-driving startup backed by Ford (F.N) and Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) launched a new autonomous trucking firm, Stack AV, on Thursday with investment from Japan’s SoftBank Group.

SoftBank declined to disclose its investment in response to a Reuters inquiry, but Bloomberg News said it will provide more than $1 billion, citing an economic development official in Pittsburgh where the startup will be based. Continue reading “SoftBank backs new autonomous trucking startup from founders of defunct Argo AI”

Sept 7 (Reuters) – General Motors (GM.N) on Thursday made a counterproposal to the union representing its U.S. hourly workers in a bid to avoid a costly strike, but United Auto Workers President Shawn Fain called the offer “insulting.”

The largest U.S. automaker said it offered workers a 10% wage hike and two additional 3% annual lump sum payments over four years in its offer to the union ahead of the Sept. 14 contract expiration. Continue reading “GM offers 10% wage hike in contract talks that UAW calls ‘insulting’”

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DETROIT, Sept 7 (Reuters) – Ford Motor Co (F.N) said about 8,000 U.S. workers represented by the United Auto Workers union will get an average $4.33 an hour in additional pay under provisions of the current contract agreed in 2019.

Ford announced the pay increases as talks with the UAW for a new contract are headed for a Sept. 14 strike deadline. Continue reading “Ford raises pay for 8,000 UAW workers in line with 2019 contract”

MILAN, Sept 7 (Reuters) – Carmaker Stellantis (STLAM.MI) believes internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicles could be on the road until 2050, making it necessary to contain their carbon emissions until they’re finally replaced by fully electric ones.

The world’s third-largest carmaker by sales, whose brands include Fiat, Peugeot and Jeep, said this week tests it ran with Saudi oil giant Aramco (2222.SE) showed 24 types of internal combustion engines in European vehicles it produced since 2014 can use advanced e-fuels without modification. Continue reading “Stellantis sees long road ahead for internal combustion engine cars”

Source : PTI | New Delhi: State-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corporation (ONGC) will infuse about INR 15,000 crore in OPaL as part of a financial restructuring exercise that will see gas utility GAIL being edged out of the petrochemical firm. ONGC currently holds 49.36% stake in ONGC Petro-additions Ltd (OPaL), which operates a mega petrochemical plant at Dahej in Gujarat. GAIL (India) Ltd has 49.21% interest and Gujarat State Petrochemical Corp (GSPC) has the remaining 1.43%.

The ONGC board last week approved a financial restructuring of the petchem firm which had been making losses due to its high debt. Continue reading “ONGC to infuse INR 15,000 cr in OPaL, edge out GAIL to take control of petchem firm”

Sept 7 (Reuters) – J.P.Morgan on Thursday said supply chain disruptions from a potential United Auto Workers (UAW) union strike would cut new vehicle production, drive up used car prices and put pressure on margins in the personal auto insurance business.

UAW is currently in talks with the Detroit Three automakers – Ford Motor (F.N), Chrysler parent company Stellantis (STLAM.MI) and General Motors (GM.N) – ahead of the expiration on Sept. 14 of the current four-year labor agreements covering 146,000 workers. Continue reading “Potential UAW strike presents a near-term headwind for auto insurers – JPM”

TOKYO, Sept 7 (Reuters) – James Kuffner, the chief executive of Toyota Motor’s (7203.T) autonomous driving technology unit Woven by Toyota, will step down from his post effective Oct. 1, the subsidiary said in a statement on Thursday.

Kuffner will be appointed a senior fellow at a new unit that Toyota Motor will establish in October to drive software-related business and development, the world’s biggest automaker by sales said in a separate statement. Continue reading “Toyota mobility tech unit CEO Kuffner to leave post”

WASHINGTON, Sept 6 (Reuters) – U.S. President Joe Biden’s strategy of backing politically crucial unions while avoiding strikes that cripple the economy has hit a bump in Detroit.

During a summer of labor unrest, Biden has touted his pro-labor policies by speaking out for unions, while his administration behind the scenes tries to smooth the way for deals with employers to avoid costly walkouts, union leaders and administration officials said. Continue reading “Detroit UAW workers strike threat tests Biden’s plan to win union votes”

Sept 6 (Reuters) – The United Auto Workers (UAW) union on Wednesday made a labor contract counterproposal on economic issues to Ford Motor (F.N), while Chrysler parent company Stellantis (STLAM.MI) planned its counteroffer this week.

Talks are heating up ahead of the expiration on Sept. 14 of the current four-year labor agreements covering 146,000 workers at the Detroit Three automakers. The UAW has said 97% of members voted in favor of authorizing a strike if agreement is not reached. Continue reading “UAW makes contract counteroffer to Ford; Stellantis to make offer”

MEXICO CITY, Sept 6 (Reuters) – Tesla (TSLA.O) is eyeing 2026 or 2027 to potentially begin production at a major new factory planned for Mexico, according to a report published in Mexican daily Reforma on Wednesday.

The report cited an anonymous Chinese supplier saying that they and several other Chinese companies may delay plans to launch operations near the still un-built Tesla factory, set for the northern state of Nuevo Leon, after learning of Tesla’s slower-than-expected plans. Continue reading “Tesla suppliers say carmaker expects 2026 or 2027 Mexico production start, Reforma reports”

Summary

• Tesla required company shirts during union drive at factories
• Labor board said no ‘special circumstances’ justified policy
• Appeals judges noted that Tesla allowed union stickers, other items

Sept 6 (Reuters) – A U.S. appeals court panel on Wednesday seemed open to reversing a labor board’s ruling that Tesla Inc violated the rights of factory workers by barring them from wearing t-shirts supporting a union campaign. Continue reading “Tesla pushes US appeals court to uphold ban on workers’ union t-shirts”

MUNICH, Sept 6 (Reuters) – German carmakers are determined to tackle the problems they face in producing competitive electric vehicles, an executive at Chinese EV maker Xpeng said on Wednesday, as China’s carmakers put pressure on European rivals in the race to electrify.

German carmakers have shown their “strongest determination ever to change” to try and catch up and address their challenges, Xpeng (9868.HK) president Brian Gu said in an interview on the sidelines of Munich’s IAA car show. Continue reading “China’s Xpeng says German carmakers ready to tackle crisis in EV race”