Category: Automotive News

Ford Oakville plant’s switch to EVs will start in 2024

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Ford Motor Co. on Tuesday said the previously announced $1.3 billion transformation of its Oakville Assembly Plant for electric vehicle manufacturing will begin in the second quarter of next year and take about six months to complete. During that time some of the 3,000 workers at the Ontario, Canada, the site will be furloughed, although the company expects to retain virtually all of the employees when the plant comes back online at the end of 2024. Ford said the site, which currently builds the gasoline-powered Edge and Lincoln Nautilus crossovers, will be renamed the Oakville Electric Vehicle Complex and include…
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Spain could get Peugeot 208 EV production, reports say

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Governments across Europe are fighting for automaking jobs as the shift to battery power upends the industry. Securing production of a mass-market vehicle like the 208 would be a coup because it’s now Europe’s best-selling car, having ended the 14-year reign of the Volkswagen Golf in 2022. Spain is among countries that have become more competitive for EV manufacturing investment because of favorable tax conditions and relatively low labor and energy costs. The French government is working with Stellantis and its peers to locate as many vehicles as possible in France, a finance ministry official said, declining to elaborate. A…
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Reynolds and Reynolds acquires Canada’s DealerCorp Solutions

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Retail technology company Reynolds and Reynolds has acquired DealerCorp Solutions of Markham, Ont., after a successful test run as a software partner. The deal was announced April 3. Financial terms were not disclosed. DealerCorp Solutions is a software company with a focus on developing cloud applications for the auto industry in Canada. The new deal builds on a partnership that began in August 2021, when DealerCorp allowed Reynolds to become a licensed reseller of DealerCorp’s product, deskit The program is a digital retailing tool allowing dealers to present sales and F&I options on any screen, including wall-mounted screens, kiosks, tablets…
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Geely: All options on the table on Volvo AB stake

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“Anything is possible in the future,” Oscarsson said. “For the time being we have no intention to change our position in the company.” He didn’t exclude Geely taking a more active ownership role such as requesting a board seat or joining the nominee committee. Geely, which owns a web of automotive interests in Europe, controls 8.2 percent of Volvo’s share capital and 16 percent of votes. Swedish investment company Industrivarden AB is the biggest stakeholder with 27.8 percent of votes. Geely bought the stake in Volvo in 2018 from activist investor Cevian Capital AB and has viewed the holding then…
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Are You More Likely To Crack Your Windshield in Arizona?

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Arizona is known for its sunshine and heat. As a result, many vehicles succumb to the extreme temperatures with auto glass damage. In fact, drivers in Arizona are more likely than drivers in any other state to need their windshield repaired. Why does Arizona fall into first place when it comes to windshield damage? Read on to find out why and how you can minimize the impact. Four Reasons Why AZ Windshields Crack 1.The 101 This highway is known for construction and is responsible for many broken windshields in Arizona. During construction, all sorts of debris flies from the road,…
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Ford sales rise 10% in the first quarter as inventory improves

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Ford Motor Co.’s US light-vehicle sales rose 9.9 percent in the first quarter, driven by increasing supplies and strong demand for new products. Sales by the Ford brand jumped 10 percent, making it the bestselling US brand in January through March. Lincoln sales fell 1.1 percent on fewer deliveries of the Corsair compact crossover. In March alone, the company’s sales rose 7.5 percent, with an 8.2 percent gain for the Ford brand and a 6.9 percent decline for Lincoln, according to the Automotive News Research & Data Center. Ford’s electric vehicle sales in the first quarter rose 41 percent from…
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Nikola battles for scarce funding as it launches its first truck

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Like every other startup, Nikola is in search of funds to continue its mission to deliver zero-pollution cargo-moving trucks. Last week, it floated a $100 million stock offering that underwhelmed Wall Street. The company’s cash is being spent in three major areas: building trucks, creating a network of hydrogen fueling stations and developing software for autonomous driving. Any one of those pursuits would be a huge project for a startup. Perfecting all three seems like a moonshot. But Lohscheller has been able to sign up partners to help defray some of the costs. And thanks to the Inflation Reduction Act,…
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Renault’s Alpine Brand Is Developing Two Electric Crossovers for the US

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Alpine Developing Two Crossovers for the USGREG PAJORenault performance sub-brand Alpine is developing two electric crossovers for the United States market, the company’s CEO confirmed Thursday. Alpine boss Laurent Rossi told journalists on a roundtable phone call the “US is the main destination for these cars,” reports Automotive News. The first will be a mid-size electric crossover, followed by a similarly designed full-size version, meant to compete against cars like the Macan and the bigger Cayenne. They’ll be the first Renault-built cars to be officially sold in the US since the early Nineties. The new crossovers are a part…
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