by Joseph Szczesny | Jul 13, 2015
The overall economic impact of the negotiations between the domestic carmakers and the United Auto Workers on wages across the U.S. has waned over the years, but the inherent drama of the talks lives on as the two sides get down to bargaining this year and the stakes...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 10, 2015
By the end of next year, at least three automakers, Honda, Hyundai and Toyota, will be offering U.S. motorists new fuel-cell vehicles running on hydrogen rather than gasoline. They bill the technology as an environmental breakthrough, the first step towards what some...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 10, 2015
After a year of record recalls and a number of well-publicized fatalities, federal regulators and lawmakers alike apparently are ready to commit to what the head of the U.S. Department of Transportation is calling “much more muscular” enforcement. And in a politically...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 10, 2015
Capping a week that already has seen some massive recalls, General Motors has announced a new service action covering 686,000 midsize crossover-utility vehicles because their rear liftgates could fail. The latest recall by GM – which has taken major heat for safety...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 10, 2015
Tired of fixing your old car and then having to pay for the same repair a year or two later? Volvo has an answer for you. The Swedish maker has introduced a new lifetime warranty on repair parts and labor it’s calling the “Pay Once and Never Pay Again” program. The...
by Joseph Szczesny | Jul 10, 2015
Drivers of the next generation Mercedes-Benz E-Class due out next spring will be able to travel at speeds of more than 100 miles per hour, using the car’s automated driving features, according to technical papers released by Daimler AG, which emphasized the the...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 10, 2015
After a bruising internal fight for control of the company, Volkswagen management is putting on a show of solidarity, hoping to calm internal jitters and, it would seem, skeptical analysts and investors. The once-powerful Chairman Ferdinand Piech was pushed to resign...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 9, 2015
(This story has been updated reflecting comments by Ford.) In a surprise announcement, Ford said it will move two key models from a suburban Detroit assembly plant to another factory when they’re redesigned in 2018. There has been widespread news reportage indicating...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 9, 2015
With sales of the all-new Maxima off to a good start, Nissan is weighing options to broaden the sports sedan’s appeal, a senior program executive told TheDetroitBureau.com. While a coupe or some alternative body style isn’t in the works, Nissan is looking at ways to...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 9, 2015
When trade industry officials forecast that the Chinese automotive market would grow by about 7% to 8% this year much of the rest of the industry turned green with envy. But for China, that was a severe retrenchment after years of double-digit growth. Now, it seems,...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Jul 9, 2015
When a 92-year old driver pulled into traffic on a Florida highway last April he was blamed for setting off a chain reaction that resulted in the deaths of three utility workers. The crash was far from the exception. Federal statistics show that an average 15 older...
by Joseph Szczesny | Jul 9, 2015
Brazil’s antitrust agency is looking into whether Japanese auto parts maker Takata Corp., and its Swedish-American competitor Autoliv formed a cartel in the South American country to fix prices on seat belts, airbags and steering wheels. Takata and Autoliv...