Former Magna International CEO Belinda Stronach is rejecting claims of mismanagement made by her father, Frank, saying she was instead trying to prevent him from pursuing “idiosyncratic and often unprofitable projects” that threatened the family fortune. Belinda Stronach, a former Canadian lawmaker, is seeking about $25 million from her father, according to a statement of defense
Waymo is looking for a location in the U.S. state of Michigan to install its self-driving systems on vehicles produced by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and Jaguar. Waymo said the facility would be dedicated to mass production of Level 4 autonomous vehicles which can pilot themselves without a human driver under certain conditions. Waymo is partnering
The vacuum cleaner company Dyson has recruited former BMW and Infiniti executive Roland Krueger to head its electric-car business. Dyson aims to bring three electric cars to market with the first model due by 2021. Krueger’s appointment “proves how serious we are about taking this project and this division to the next level,” Dyson CEO
TomTom will sell its Telematics fleet-management business to tire manufacturer Bridgestone for 910 million euros ($1 billion), freeing up resources to battle the likes of Alphabet for access to mapping technology in car dashboards. The sale is a big step in TomTom’s shift to location technology as customers ditch the personal navigation devices that made
DETROIT — Magneti Marelli plans to create 106 jobs and invest $12.6 million at its regional headquarters north of Detroit in Auburn Hills, according to a state economic development agency memo. The Italian company, which specializes in lighting, powertrain and high-tech electronics, is constructing new labs and adding new machinery at the facility as it
SAO PAULO — General Motors’ Brazil unit is in advanced talks with Sao Paulo state to receive tax incentives, the company told public officials and union representatives at a meeting on Tuesday, a few days after telling workers in a memo that it was losing money in the country. GM’s top executives in South America
FRANKFURT — BMW and Daimler will name their combined short-term rental venture “Jurbey,” a source familiar with the matter said. The German automakers last year unveiled plans to combine their short-term rental businesses to compete with rivals such as Uber in the United States and Didi Chuxing in China. Under the terms of their deal,
CREWE, England — Bentley is on track to be profitable this year but a no-deal Brexit puts that at “fundamental risk,” CEO Adrian Hallmark said The possibility of Britain leaving the European Union on March 29 with a deal now seems “fairly low,” Hallmark. Bentley made a 137 million-euro ($156 million) loss in the first
BRUSSELS — The European Union has warned the United States that imposing import tariffs on cars and car parts would harm its own automotive industry and likely lead to countermeasures by its trading partners on $294 billion of U.S. exports. In a 10-page submission to the U.S. Commerce Department sent last Friday, the EU said
Volkswagen and BMW remain open to teaming up with more manufacturers and software providers worldwide to share the huge cost of developing self-driving cars and boost economies of scale for a nascent technology that’s set to play a key role in future mobility. “VW is pursuing the approach of an open platform to include as
DETROIT — Cadillac’s foray into New York City will officially end by April 1. The brand, said Cadillac President Steve Carlisle, has been winding down the operations and will sublet the space or break the agreement and return the space to the landlord. The lease agreement for the space, which Cadillac reportedly spent $12.7 million
DETROIT — Hyundai Motor America isn’t striking a new sponsorship deal with the NFL when its four-year partnership ends after this season, clearing the way for another automaker to take the mantle. Hyundai Motor America CMO Dean Evans confirmed during the Detroit auto show that the automaker doesn’t have any plans to re-engage with the
DETROIT — General Motors extended its run as the top manufacturer to a fourth year in IHS Markit’s Loyalty Awards program, with Ford customers again showing the most loyalty to a specific make. IHS cited GM’s focus on customer experience and a diverse product lineup. “GM has a broad product portfolio that supports the longevity
Editor’s note: All stories on our website are available to nonsubscribers this week. Register here for free subscriber-level access. DETROIT — Chevrolet will stop airing its most recent “Real People, Not Actors” TV ad that claims the brand has better reliability than Toyota, Ford and Honda, among other brands. The commercial has been pulled nationally
Tesla Inc.’s customer referral incentive plan will end on Feb. 1, CEO Elon Musk tweeted on Thursday, citing costs. Musk tweeted that the referral program is ending because “it’s adding too much cost to the cars, especially Model 3”. The billionaire in the past few months has been pushing for cost-cutting initiatives to boost the
Mini USA has released a new ad for the Countryman featuring British singer Labrinth, who sings a new rendition Cole Porter’s classic tune “Don’t Fence Me In” — a new recording the car brand is releasing as a soundtrack for its drivers. Created by Pereira & O’Dell and directed by Marcus Soderlund via Reset, the
ATLANTA — The about-to-launch Mercedes-Benz A-class sedan is about to get an A-class introduction to America. Mercedes’ newest model and hopeful millennial magnet will be the star of the automaker’s Super Bowl commercial. The game is set for Feb. 3 at — appropriately enough — Mercedes-Benz Stadium in Atlanta, also the home of the German
For about three months last year, McKie Ford-Lincoln in Rapid City, S.D., drew a digital fence around a competitor’s Jeep store after registration data showed the rival store was outselling McKie in certain vehicle segments. So McKie turned to geofencing technology to pinpoint shoppers through their mobile device using GPS, Wi-Fi or cellular data or
In simpler times, dealerships sent a broad advertising message through local media. Then they gauged success based on how many people visited the showroom carrying a copy of their local newspaper, said Darin Wade, general manager of Krause Auto Group with two stores in the Atlanta area. If the Internet helped light a fire incinerating
Car hacks are little ways to make your time in a car easier, quicker, smarter, or more convenient. Auto journalists have a few of their own, but we learn a lot of them from readers. Here’s one from Jay Lucas. What follows are his words, lightly edited by The Car Connection for clarity and style.
Many car shoppers don’t realize just how much damage floodwaters do to a vehicle. That represents a problem—not just to the owner of a car or truck that falls victim to a catastrophic flood, but to prospective buyers unaware of the vehicle’s history. The risk of flooded vehicles on the market affects everyone looking for
When Volkswagen unveiled its Bulli concept vehicle last March at the 2011 Geneva Motor Show, the response from the press and the public was fairly unanimous: “Build it!” Now, there are rumors that VW is preparing to do just that, and it could hit the U.S. by 2014. The Bulli was a hit for at
Even though the visually oriented blogging site Tumblr seems poised to cross over to the mainstream, it’s still viewed as a place for trendsetters in fashion and design. So really, it’s no wonder that Volvo is using Tumblr to tease one of its newest fashion-forward rides, the Concept You. Last week, we pointed to a video
Front 3/4 view of 2012 Honda CR-V Concept World debuts for new concept and production models typically happen at premier auto shows, like the North American International Auto Show, the Tokyo Motor Show or even the IAA (more commonly known as the Frankfurt Auto Show). The Orange County International Auto Show, held annually in Anaheim,
Acura fans, we have good news: the automaker is bringing not one, not two, but three all-new vehicles to the 2012 Detroit Auto Show in January. Two of those rides will be concepts, and the third appears to be a working prototype of a 2013 model. The prototype is of the 2013 RDX, Acura’s five-passenger
Honda has given the world a preview of the next-generation Accord midsize sedan with the 2013 Accord Coupe Concept, revealed earlier this week at the Detroit Auto Show. This thinly veiled concept car is nearly production ready. Take away the concept car wheels, though a similar design may make production, and put an interior in
We’ve spilled a lot of virtual ink discussing Generation Y (aka Millennials) and their love/hate relationship with cars. Among the findings in recent years: Understandably, these doom-and-gloom predictions have automakers worried . Some are planning for a future filled with alternative mobility options. Others insist that, no, the kids are all right, just give them
We spend a lot of time dissecting auto ads, trying to figure out what those commercials convey about a particular car brand. But cars themselves — specifically, their design — also help define a company’s brand. A Lamborghini, for example, makes a bold impression. The car’s sharp, aggressive lines imply that the owner is a
The Internet of Everything: to most of us, it refers to machines we can monitor from afar, using computers and smartphones to keep tabs on our thermostats, refrigerators, and cars. But more generally, the Internet of Everything refers to the way in which objects of all kinds are becoming connected to one another and to
Last August, we told you about Chinese entrepreneur Jia Yueting, who had vowed to launch an electric car company that would rival Tesla Motors. In November, we told you that Yueting had made good on at least part of his promise by founding Faraday Future, which was planning a $1 billion manufacturing facility here in the