Detroit, United States | AFP | Volkswagen said Sunday that its namesake brand sold more vehicles worldwide in 2017 than ever before, a sign it is recovering from a bruising emissions-cheating scandal three years ago. “We finished 2017 with the best performance ever for Volkswagen,” Herbert Diess, chairman of the board …
Read More »Volvo Cars races to record sales in 2017
Stockholm, Sweden | AFP | Swedish carmaker Volvo, owned by the Chinese Geely, said Thursday that booming demand in China helped it notch up record sales for the fourth consecutive year in 2017. Volvo Cars said in a statement that it sold a total 571,577 cars worldwide last year, an …
Read More »More than half of Norway’s new cars electrified: data
Oslo, Norway | AFP | Electric or hybrid vehicles accounted for more than half of all new cars sold in Norway last year, official data showed on Wednesday, confirming the country’s pioneering role in carbon-free transport. Zero-emission, mainly all-electric as well as a few hydrogen-powered cars, accounted for 20.9 percent …
Read More »Chinese electric carmaker to open Morocco plant
Casablanca, Morocco | AFP | Chinese electric car manufacturer BYD on Saturday signed an agreement to open a factory near the Moroccan city of Tangiers to build battery-powered vehicles, officials said. BYD will become the third car manufacturer, after Renault and Peugeot of French, to construct cars in the North …
Read More »Mourinho’s secret love
Kampala, Uganda | THE INDEPENDENT | Manchester United manager José Mourinho shocked workers at Jaguar’s Solihull car plant when he turned up to collect his new F-Pace – the 100,000th one to be produced. The Premier League manager visited the plant and appeared on the actual production line as he looked …
Read More »Uber in legal crosshairs over hack cover-up
San Francisco, United States | AFP | Two US states said Wednesday they are investigating Uber’s cover-up of a hack at the ride-sharing giant that compromised the personal information of 57 million users and drivers. Uber purportedly paid data thieves $100,000 to destroy the swiped information — and remained quiet …
Read More »‘Robo-taxis’ hold promise, and perils, for automakers
Paris, France | AFP | It’s November 22, 2028 and Sarah, a young mother, gives her two children a kiss goodbye before buckling them into the driverless car that will bring them to school. Sarah doesn’t have a car and has no plans to buy one. Living in a suburb, she …
Read More »Honda recalls 800,000 minivans over faulty seats
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Honda is recalling about 800,000 of its Odyssey minivans in the United States over faulty parts blamed for 46 minor injuries, the company said, just a month after settling a huge lawsuit on other defects. The recall, which affects the 2011-2017 models sold in the US, …
Read More »Japan’s Subaru recalls 400,000 cars
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Subaru recalled nearly 400,000 vehicles from its domestic market on Thursday due to an inspection scandal — the latest to hit the beleaguered Japanese car industry. The recall concerns nine models, including a sports car that Subaru manufactures for Toyota, but vehicles sold overseas were …
Read More »Nissan says to resume domestic car production after scandal
Tokyo, Japan | AFP | Japanese car giant Nissan said Monday it would resume domestic production which was suspended following an inspection scandal. The firm said it would restart production at all plants except one in Kyoto from Tuesday. “Nissan regrets any inconvenience and concern this has caused to its valued …
Read More »