Europe

The Mercedes-Benz EQS full-electric sedan is so packed with technology that much of the automaker’s 70-page press release on the car is devoted to explaining it. But there is one feature that the EQS surprisingly doesn’t have: A rear-view camera system that replaces traditional mirrors. To solve the problem of blind spots – made worse

With the Q4 e-tron, Audi is aiming at buyers in the upper end of the compact segment for full-electric cars. The Q4 e-tron, which was unveiled on Wednesday, adds an entry-level EV to the brand’s expanding lineup of battery-powered cars. It’s the first Audi based on parent Volkswagen Group’s MEB electric-only platform that also underpins

MADRID — Renault has started negotiations with unions to extend the partial idling of three of its four factories in Spain until the end of September as a preemptive measure in case a global semiconductor shortage lingers. Automakers around the world have been impacted by the shortage of chips used in engine management and driver-assistance

DETROIT — Volvo Cars will use a new generation of high-powered chips from Nvidia to enable more autonomous driving functions in future vehicles, starting next year. Volvo is among a crowd of new and established automakers putting digital processing power ahead of horsepower as they try to catch up with Tesla. Tesla has taken the

South Korean battery makers LG Energy Solution and SK Innovation said on Sunday they have agreed to settle a trade secrets dispute over electric vehicle battery technologies, avoiding a potential setback for U.S. EV ambitions. The last-minute settlement ends a bitter U.S. trade dispute, sparing President Joe Biden from choosing between undermining intellectual property rights

Volvo Cars has promoted its head of Europe, Bjorn Annwall, to chief financial officer. Annwall, 45, who joined the automaker’s executive management team in 2015, will succeed Carla De Geyseleer effective April 19. De Geyseleer, who has served as CFO since 2019, will step down for personal reasons, the automaker said. Annwall has been Volvo’s

MADRID — The Spanish government approved a plan to spend up to 800 million euros ($950 million) until 2023 to encourage electric car sales. Private buyers would be entitled to subsidies of up to 7,000 euros per car, while authorities in small towns and companies buying fleets to use as taxis could get more. Buyers

Panasonic is betting that close to a century of experience making car batteries has prepared it to manufacture a difficult-to-produce next-generation battery championed by Tesla as the key to unlocking cheaper and more ubiquitous electric vehicles. Tesla CEO Elon Musk first unveiled the 4680 battery at Tesla’s Battery Day in September as a “massive breakthrough”

German new-car sales increased 36 percent in March compared with the same month in 2020. Registrations totaled 292,349, according to data released on Tuesday the KBA motor vehicle authority. The sales result was inflated because dealerships were closed in March 2020 during the country’s first lockdown to curb the spread of the coronavirus. “In reality,

BERLIN — Germany’s auto industry picked up speed in March, a survey published by the Ifo economic institute showed on Tuesday, although automotive executives also become less optimistic about the outlook for the coming months. The survey’s indicator for the current business situation rose to 7.9 points in March from minus 0.4 in February, as

LOS ANGELES — When Hyundai unveiled its angular “45” concept vehicle at the Frankfurt auto show in fall 2019, its mix of futuristic styling cues and 1970s nostalgia struck observers as a daring design exercise rather than an upcoming production model. But 18 months later, the Ioniq 5 compact crossover is headed into production with

With Europe expected to lead the world in electric-car sales for a second straight year, a rush to build a battery-supply chain from scratch is playing out across the region. After years of ceding the EV battery business to foreign companies, Europe wants in. Prospective manufacturers are popping up in the Nordic region, Germany, France,

Argo AI, the self-driving startup backed by Ford Motor and Volkswagen Group, is considering going public as soon as this year, according to people familiar with its plans. Bryan Salesky, Argo’s co-founder, told employees in an all-hands meeting April 1 the company is looking to boost its funding as it comes closer to commercializing its

Tesla posted record deliveries for the January to March quarter, beating Wall Street estimates, as solid demand offset the impact of a global shortage of parts. “We are encouraged by the strong reception of the Model Y in China and are quickly progressing to full production capacity,” Tesla said in a statement on Friday. “The

BEIJING — A Volkswagen joint venture in China has agreed to buy green car credits from Tesla to help meet local environmental rules, three people briefed on the matter told Reuters. The deal, the first of its kind to be reported between the two companies in China, highlights the scale of the task Volkswagen faces

PARIS — Peugeot said it will offer a full-electric version of the 308 compact hatchback by 2023, a previously unannounced powertrain configuration that could compete with the Volkswagen ID3. The new-generation Astra from sister brand Opel/Vauxhall will also have a full-electric version, according to news reports.  The new 308 was introduced earlier this month, with sales set to

WASHINGTON — Volkswagen Group’s U.S. unit issued a false news release Tuesday claiming it would rename its U.S. operations as “Voltswagen of America” in a marketing stunt designed to call attention to its electric vehicle efforts. The news release, posted on its website and accompanied by tweets, was reported by Automotive News, Reuters and other

Volkswagen Group’s Skoda unit will lead a fresh push into some emerging markets where the group has so far trailed behind Asian rivals. VW’s most profitable mass-market brand is freeing up funds for investments in India or Southeast Asia as well as shifting its lineup toward electric cars, CEO Thomas Schaefer said in a phone

BERLIN — Volkswagen Group has issued a recall for premium subsidiary Audi that affects more than 150,000 A3s in the United States on concerns that their passenger airbags might not activate, according to a filing to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). The recall is expected to affect 153,152 units of the compact car

Honda has agreed to sell its UK car plant to logistics giant Panattoni, a company spokesman said. The Japanese automaker builds about a tenth of the 1.5 million car output in Britain. It announced its intention to cease production at its plant in Swindon in southern England two years ago. The plant closure is expected

Seeking to bolster its electrification, advanced driver-assistance systems and electronics businesses, Marelli is making four appointments to its leadership team, all effective April 1. The Japanese-Italian powertrain and electronics supplier said Friday that Joachim Fetzer will be appointed to the new position of chief technology and innovation officer. Fetzer most recently was executive vice president,

MILAN — Stellantis is studying a plan that would involve the closure of one of two production lines at its Melfi plant in southern Italy, the head of the FIM CISL union said. The Jeep Renegade and Compass, and the Fiat 500X SUVs, are built at Melfi, which is considered the most efficient Stellantis plant

UK car dealer Pendragon said pandemic challenges and a global chip shortage would lead to vehicle supply issues in the near term, even as a tighter control on costs and a digital push helped it to cut its losses at the start the year. Automakers and dealers have been dealt a blow as a global

Renault will build five new hybrid SUV models at its Spanish plants in 2022-24 as part of a new labor agreement with unions, CEO Luca de Meo said. De Meo visited Renault’s factory in Palencia, which builds the Captur small SUV, with King Felipe of Spain and Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez on Tuesday to announce

BEIJING — China’s Great Wall Motor will launch a new standalone brand for its off-road vehicles, chairman Wei Jianjun said, as automakers pursue new segments when sales in the world’s biggest car market pick up. Wei said Great Wall, the country’s top pickup maker, plans to launch the “Tank” brand during the Shanghai auto show in

MG Motor plans to double the number of its dealerships in mainland Europe to more than 200 this year as the brand looks to increase its presence in the region on the back of new electric model launches. The brand will be selling its cars in 13 European countries besides its UK main market, by

Tata Motors said former Daimler manager Marc Llistosella will not be joining the company as its next CEO as previously announced because he is unable to relocate to India for “personal reasons.” Guenter Butschek will continue as CEO and managing director of Tata Motors, the parent company of Jaguar Land Rover, until June 30, Tata

FRANKFURT — Porsche is open to the idea of a potential stock market listing, with finance chief Lutz Meschke saying the advantages of such a move had been laid out. “The decision has to be made by the Volkswagen management and supervisory board. We have largely discussed the advantages of such an initial public offering

Tesla customers in the UK will have to pay more for Model 3s after the country lowered a cap determining which electric vehicles qualify for subsidies. UK transport authorities on Thursday cut a purchasing bonus for electric cars, vans and trucks to 2,500 pounds ($3,491) from 3,000 pounds and lowered the sticker price of models

STOCKHOLM — Volvo Cars will temporarily stop or adjust production in China and the United States for parts of March due to a global shortage of semiconductor chips. “We expect the situation to become critical during the second quarter and have therefore decided to take measures to minimize the impact on production while working daily