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A select few Toyota and Lexus dealers this month will be pioneers in an expansion of the SmartPath and Monogram digital retailing systems — a strategy that promises to bring to dealer service lanes what the initiative has brought to hundreds of dealers’ sales floors. Toyota’s SmartPath Service and its Lexus counterpart, Monogram Service, aim

In this article F GM The cab to a Ford all-electric F-150 Lightning truck prototype is seen on an automated guided vehicle (AGV) at the Rouge Electric Vehicle Center in Dearborn, Michigan, September 16, 2021. Rebecca Cook | Reuters Detroit’s automakers have brought a surprisingly conservative financial strategy to making EVs the next vehicle of

Jim Butler Auto Group, Faulkner Automotive Group, Horne Auto Group and Coughlin Automotive Group each expanded their dealership portfolios with acquisitions in either late in the fourth quarter of 2021 or early in January 2022. Here’s a look at the deals involving domestic-, import- and luxury-brand dealerships. Missouri growth Jim Butler Auto Group expanded its

At a time when the auto industry is hungrier than ever for technological innovations, new patent awards are on the decline. The number of new U.S. patent grants fell 7 percent in 2021. While there was little change in which automotive companies ranked as the top five for receiving patents last year, all but one

In this article GM 2023 Cadillac Escalade V-Series Cadillac DETROIT – General Motors will offer a new performance version of its flagship Cadillac Escalade SUV, adding to a growing lineup of high-power gasoline vehicles ahead of the brand’s push toward full electrification by 2030. The Detroit automaker on Friday said the 2023 Cadillac Escalade V-Series,

Former Reagor-Dykes Auto Group CFO Shane Smith was sentenced to seven years in prison on Thursday, after pleading guilty for his role in a $50 million wire fraud conspiracy. Smith was one of 16 employees from the Lubbock, Tex.-based auto group to plead guilty to defrauding Ford Motor Credit. Smith was the last employee besides

Online used-vehicle retailer Vroom will return to the Super Bowl this year with an ad that highlights the company’s ability to buy cars from consumers. The ad, called “Flake the Musical,” depicts a consumer who is ready to sell a vehicle through a peer-to-peer transaction, only to have the buyer back out of the deal.

In this article LAZR Austin Russell, Luminar founder and CEO, with Markus Schäfer, Mercedes-Benz AG chief technology officer at Mercedes-Benz’ Sindelfingen, Germany plant. Mercedes-Benz Mercedes-Benz said Thursday it plans to use lidar technology from Luminar in its next-generation of vehicles, driving shares of the tech start-up 13% higher in trading Thursday morning. As part of

Stellantis NV is preparing for a $900 million retooling of its Jefferson North Assembly plant in Detroit, where it plans to build the Dodge Durango and next generation Jeep Grand Cherokee this spring. The investment, announced by the automaker in 2019 with the $1.6 billion construction of Mack Assembly a few blocks north, will include

8:33 AM ET Associated Press Tony Stewart and Ray Evernham will have a boss in the second season of the Superstar Racing Experience, a made-for-CBS all-star summer series coming off a surprisingly strong debut. SRX on Thursday named Don Hawk its first chief executive, a day-to-day role with a job description that covers just about

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety on Thursday released a new rating program for vehicles with partial automation, one which no car on the market can pass without changes. The rating system requires safeguards that vehicles with partial automation should employ to help drivers stay focused and not treat these systems, such as Tesla’s Autopilot

9:37 AM ET McLaren have talked with the Volkswagen Group, whose Audi and Porsche brands have been linked to future Formula One entry, but nothing has been agreed, according to team boss Zak Brown. German newspaper F.A.Z. has reported that Volkswagen’s supervisory board will decide at the end of February whether both Audi and luxury

Ford Motor Co. is recalling nearly 200,000 older-model cars because of a potential separated brake pedal bumper, according to NHTSA documents dated last week. The malfunction could cause the brake lights to illuminate continuously, confusing other drivers on the road, according to NHTSA’s report. Ford is recalling certain Fusion and Lincoln MKZ sedans from the

11:18 AM ET Alain Prost has accused the Alpine F1 Team of having “no respect” after his departure was leaked before being made official. Prost, a four-time Formula One world champion, had been the team’s special adviser since 2017, serving through its rebrand from Renault to Alpine ahead of last season. The F1 website announced

In this article GM TSLA The southwest of England is famed for its dramatic coastline, verdant countryside and fresh seafood. If all goes to plan, another string could be added to the region’s bow over the next few years: lithium extraction. In the county of Cornwall, efforts are underway to tap into the area’s natural

Ford Motor Co. on Tuesday said it expects to book an $8.2 billion gain from its investment in electric vehicle maker Rivian for the fourth quarter of 2021 when it reports earnings Feb. 3. The automaker carried a roughly 12 percent stake in Rivian when it went public in November after investing more than $800

5:36 PM ET McLaren boss Zak Brown has said Formula One should not assume Lewis Hamilton will stay in the sport after the hurt of missing a record eighth title in controversial circumstances. Hamilton, 37, has stayed silent since the 2021 season ended in uproar in Abu Dhabi last month, and his Mercedes team have

WILMINGTON, Del. — Tesla Inc. shareholders urged a judge on Tuesday to find Elon Musk coerced the company’s board into a 2016 deal for SolarCity and asked that the CEO be ordered to pay the EV company one of the largest judgments ever of $13 billion. “This case has always been about whether the acquisition

6:06 AM ET Mercedes will launch the Formula One car it hopes Lewis Hamilton will race in 2022 at a virtual Silverstone event on Feb. 18. Mercedes will unveil the W13E Performance as it bids to continue its recent dominance of F1, having won eight straight Constructors’ Championships coming into this season. However, a major

In this article F A Ford F-150 pickup truck is offered for sale at a dealership on September 6, 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. Scott Olson | Getty Images Online payment processor Stripe has signed up Ford Motor Company as a customer, in a five-year deal aimed at bolstering the automotive giant’s e-commerce strategy. Ford Motor

Vehicle buyers’ satisfaction with the shopping experience dimmed last year as they encountered a shortage of new models and higher sticker prices on dealership lots, but they remain happier with the process overall than before the onset of the pandemic. That’s among the findings of a Cox Automotive consumer survey out this week. Buyers’ satisfaction

12:27 PM ET McLaren boss Zak Brown has called for stronger leadership in Formula One to reduce the power of bigger teams and prevent the pinnacle of motorsport from turning into a “pantomime.” In a piece on the year ahead posted on the McLaren website on Monday, Brown said some rivals were seeking “excuses to

In this article VORB MSFT Wayve CEO and co-founder Alex Kendall. Wayve LONDON — U.K. autonomous driving start-up Wayve has been backed by a host of big name investors including Microsoft, Virgin and Baillie Gifford in a $200 million funding round that brings total investment in the company up to $258 million. Wayve did not

Nikola Corp. former CEO Trevor Milton claims federal prosecutors refused access to company’s vehicles and equipment he says are crucial to his defense against fraud charges. Milton, scheduled to go on trial in April, asked a judge on Friday to allow him to inspect and photograph certain prototypes and other Nikola property and places. He

In this article F Ford Motor Co. CEO Jim Farley walks to speak at a news conference at the Rouge Complex in Dearborn, Michigan, September 17, 2020. Rebecca Cook | Reuters DETROIT – Ford Motor’s market value topped $100 billion for the first time ever as the automaker’s stock hit a new 52-week high in

Tesla’s upward trajectory among premium brands is ready for a fresh boost with the start of production at its nearly finished plant in Austin, Texas. But the electric auto maker may have already snatched the U.S. luxury crown from BMW. While the traditional top three luxury marques have posted their final U.S. sales for 2021,

In this article NVDA A sign is posted in front of the Nvidia headquarters on May 10, 2018 in Santa Clara, California. Justin Sullivan | Getty Images Several Chinese electric carmakers are turning to U.S. chip giant Nvidia to power their semi-autonomous driving systems, as they ramp up competition with Tesla in the world’s largest

A partnership between publicly traded conglomerate Graham Holdings Co. and Chris Ourisman of Ourisman Automotive Group has expanded to four dealerships since early 2019, and the executives behind the pairing aim to continue the growth. Last month, Graham and Chris Ourisman bought a Ford dealership in Manassas, Va., marking Graham Ourisman Automotive’s fourth dealership in

5:20 AM ET Seven-times MotoGP motorcycle world champion Valentino Rossi said he will return to the track to compete in car racing in the GT World Challenge Europe, joining Belgian outfit WRT. Rossi, who called time on an illustrious motorcycling career spanning more than two decades in 2021, had previously spoken of a desire to

In this article TSLA LAC-CA PLL The United States has a lithium supply problem. Nearly every major automaker has announced a transition to electric vehicles, Tesla delivered almost one million cars in 2021, and a handful of new electric vehicle companies like Rivian and Lucid are rolling new models off the line. In order to