What kind of car is the 2022 Mercedes-Benz EQS? What does it compare to? Mercedes swings big with the EQS electric vehicle that’s billed as the eventual successor to the ultra-posh S-Class sedan, with a fully electric powertrain and a futuristic interior. Rivals at this level of electric luxury (and price) are few, and include
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A Ferrari SF90 Stradale prototype was destroyed over the weekend in a crash. The incident happened near Hoffenheim, Germany, and footage taken after the crash shows that this wasn’t a production SF90 as its exterior was clad in black and white camouflage. A look inside the cabin also reveals heaps of testing equipment and additional
In this article BMW3-FF BMW Concept XM BMW BMW on Monday evening unveiled a new high-performance concept vehicle that previews an electrified crossover expected to begin production late next year in South Carolina. The new production car, called the BMW XM, will be available exclusively as a plug-in hybrid electric vehicle under the company’s “M”
BMW is preparing to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the M1 mid-engine sports car, but it’s going to do it with a crossover SUV. On Monday, at Art Basel’s 2021 Miami Beach show, the BMW Concept XM was unveiled with a plug-in hybrid powertrain and eye-grabbing design. It’s a preview of the production XM planned
For Roadkill month, we’re celebrating two of the best builds on Roadkill Garage, and they just so happen to both be 1970 Dodge Challengers. First, it’s the birth of Vanishing Paint: a 1970 Challenger that had been dormant since 1989. Then, Freiburger and Dulcich take an old ’70 Challenger offroading, Mad Max style. #MotorTrend #Roadkill
What can’t be seen can hurt you. That’s the thinking behind a range of fluidic, compressed-air, ultrasonic and aerodynamic cleaning gear and hydrophobic coatings for the sensors. They are a vital part of automated driving systems. A clean windshield and healthy wipers help with driver vision and sensor capability. But only if the sensors, like
General Motors plans to reestablish its presence in Europe with a mobility startup business, and it has tapped Mahmoud Samara, Cadillac’s North America chief who has led much of the transition to electric vehicles this year, to run it. Samara, 44, becomes president and managing director of GM Europe on Dec. 1. He will report
ZF Friedrichshafen said it is moving its business, production and industrial processes onto the cloud as it expands its partnership with Microsoft. The German auto supplier on Tuesday said it will digitalize all of its processes on the Microsoft Azure cloud platform — a move that ZF expects will generate far-reaching benefits across its business.
A partnership between ZF Friedrichshafen and Microsoft will allow the German parts supplier to create new capabilities for its autonomous shuttle systems, the company said. ZF said this week that it expanded its partnership with Microsoft to move all of its business, production and industrial processes onto the tech company’s Azure cloud platform. It’s a
MIMASAKA, Japan — Toyota was the darling of environmental consumers not so long ago, barely able to produce enough lean-burning, pioneering Prius hybrids to accommodate the growing legions of ecologically motivated buyers. Suddenly, the Japanese giant has become a scourge in some corners, with critics from the Sierra Club to Greenpeace deriding the automaker for
Schaeffler is mapping out a future in which steering wheels are no longer needed. It is doing so by enhancing a product called Space Drive, which was originally developed to help people with disabilities regain their mobility. Through its joint venture, Schaeffler Paravan Technologie, the German supplier is turning Space Drive into a key part
Electric vehicle owners in New York City, many of whom don’t have a driveway or garage where they can plug in, in June got a new place to charge their cars. Revel, the startup best known for its moped-sharing service, opened a charging depot in a former Pfizer building in Brooklyn. The Superhub, as Revel
Elon Musk’s influence is spreading to Oak Ranch, a sprawling development of manufactured homes about five miles south of the Tesla Gigafactory going up outside Austin. New lots line freshly paved roads, each with a patch of gravel ready for a new house. It’s part of a boom in lower-cost housing alternatives such as trailer
The recent partnership between German supplier ZF Friedrichshafen and Microsoft underscores how the relationship among tech companies, suppliers and automakers is changing in the era of advanced-technology vehicles. Most major suppliers no longer see themselves as simply providers of the hardware and physical components automakers put in their vehicles. Many now see an opportunity to
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this story misstated the name of the electric pickup concept Nissan has developed. TOKYO – Nissan Motor Co. will invest 2 trillion yen ($17.65 billion) in the next five years to amp up an electrified vehicle push with 23 new entries worldwide by the end of the decade, the
Automakers held back on further production schedule cuts last week in their ongoing adjustment to global microchip shortages. AutoForecast Solutions said that as of midweek last week, the Thanksgiving break left schedules unchanged from a week earlier. “It’s very hard to be optimistic about any of this,” said Sam Fiorani, vice president for global vehicle
Between the Los Angeles Auto Show and the Guangzhou auto show in China, this month has seen dozens of vehicle debuts — but many came from companies the U.S. industry barely knows. Not yet, anyway. Unfamiliar brands are emerging for a shot at global automaking, hoping that consumers have a new willingness to look at
In an automotive retail landscape in the midst of a fast-paced era of consolidation, one group and one executive are operating at a different level: Lithia Motors Inc. and its CEO, Bryan DeBoer. The longtime head of what is now the nation’s second-largest dealership group has been the guiding force in the transformation of Lithia
It’s been a good year financially for retailers and automakers, despite the pandemic and microchip shortage. The same can’t be said for many parts suppliers, however. Average dealership profits have soared this year and have broken annual records. Automakers such as General Motors and Ford Motor Co. brought in billions of dollars in third-quarter profit,
HOUSTON — A hearing to determine whether former Reynolds and Reynolds Co. CEO Bob Brockman is competent to stand trial on tax evasion charges continued last week in a Houston courtroom. Lawyers for Brockman, 80, say he has dementia that is both progressive and incurable and has left him unable to assist in his defense
With the holiday season underway, it’s time for another late-year tradition: the unveiling of the Automotive News All-Stars. In 2021, the U.S. automotive landscape was reshaped by dealership consolidation. There was a flurry of buy-sell activity as many retailers cashed in on high dealership values. Leading the acquisition boom was Bryan DeBoer. Usually, our top
The Volkswagen Group has hired two prominent battery specialists from Apple and BMW as it looks to boost its expertise in next-generation cell technologies. Soonho Ahn, former head of global battery developments at Apple, started as chief technical officer at VW Group’s battery division this month, according to his LinkedIn profile. Joerg Hoffmann, the former
Tesla will forgo 1.14 billion euros ($1.3 billion) of state aid for the factory it’s building in Germany because it has decided to try to produce a new type of battery cell at scale in Texas first, a person familiar with the matter said. The electric-vehicle maker has been working on so-called 4680 battery cells
PARIS — Valeo, Continental, Velodyne, Luminar and a host of other companies are preparing for huge growth in demand for lidar sensors, which are seen as a building block for safe, accurate self-driving cars. The market is expected to surge starting around 2025, said Geoffrey Bouquot, chief technology officer of Valeo, which this month introduced
TOKYO – Nissan will invest 2 trillion yen ($17.65 billion) in the next five years to accelerate an electrified vehicle push with 23 new entries worldwide by the end of the decade, along with the breakthrough development of solid-state batteries. Nissan CEO Makoto Uchida outlined the targets on Monday while unveiling the Japanese automaker’s new
TOKYO — Nissan is teasing a full-electric pickup truck as part of its next-generation product plan, in a possible riposte to off-road offerings being pitched by everyone from Ford to Tesla. The Surf-Out concept is a funky, outdoorsy activity vehicle with what looks like an open cabin-back for easy access to the pickup bed. The
Infineon Technologies Chief Operating Officer Jochen Hanebeck will become CEO of the semiconductor maker on April 1, 2022, succeeding Reinhard Ploss, who has led the company since 2012. The succession plan was approved last week by Infineon’s supervisory board, who gave Hanebeck a five-year contract, until March 31, 2027. Infineon said in a news release
BERLIN — Stellantis has signed a preliminary deal with lithium developer Vulcan Energy Resources for the supply of climate-friendly lithium from Germany, the automaker said on Monday. Stellantis is the latest automaker to sign a deal with the German-Australian start-up to lock down supplies of the battery metal ahead of an expected surge in global
BERLIN — Audi’s joint venture to build electric vehicles in China with state-owned FAW Group is behind schedule due to a delay in approval by the relevant authorities, Audi said. Building work would be initiated as soon as possible, the automaker’s spokesperson said on Monday, without giving a start date for either the construction of
BERLIN — Audi plans to build its recently launched Q4 e-tron full-electric SUV at its plant in Brussels. Production could start there as early as next November, Automotive News Europe sister publication Automobilwoche reported. Audi is adding overflow Q4 e-tron production in Brussels due to high demand for the SUV, company sources said. The Q4