William Maley

Mazda confirmed last year that the CX-5 crossover would be arriving with the option of a diesel engine sometime in the second half of this year. We're three months into the second half of 2017 and nothing has popped up. Mazda has also been keeping quiet on the CX-5 diesel. So low and behold our surprise when Car and Driver caught a prototype running around Michigan. How do we know its the diesel? The tachometer has a redline of 5,500 rpm and there is single tailpipe - the standard CX-5 comes with dual exhaust tips. As Car and Driver notes, this test vehicle has a Bosch sticker on the windshield. This likely hints that Bosch is doing some testing for Mazda. They're known for having a fleet of test vehicles running around Southeast Michigan. When reached for comment, a Mazda spokesperson said the company is working with the EPA and California Air Resources Board toward final emissions certification. No details were given on timing. Source: Car and Driver View full article

California is considering joining France and Great Britain in banning the sale of gas and diesel-powered vehicles. Governor Jerry Brown has been expressing an interest in banning the sale of internal-combustion engines according to Mary Nichols, chariman of the California Air Resources Board. “I’ve gotten messages from the governor asking, ‘Why haven’t we done something already?’ The governor has certainly indicated an interest in why China can do this and not California,” she said to Bloomberg. As we reported earlier this month, China is also considering a ban on internal combustion engines. California has set an ambitious goal reducing carbon dioxide emissions by 80 percent from 1990 levels by 2050. “To reach the ambitious levels of reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, we have to pretty much replace all combustion with some form of renewable energy by 2040 or 2050. We’re looking at that as a method of moving this discussion forward,” said Nichols. If California was to go forward with this, it would send massive shockwaves in the automotive industry due to the size of state's auto market. Last year, more than 2 million new passenger vehicles were registered, topping countries like France and Spain. Automakers would be under new pressure on making EVs the standard. But that doesn't mean California will have an easy time with this. While the state has the authority of writing its own pollution rules thanks to the 1970 Clean Air Act, they cannot be enacted with getting waivers from the EPA. With the Trump administration going on record that it would challenge California on any new environmental act, the state is looking for alternative ways to get what they want. “We certainly wouldn’t expect to get a waiver for that from EPA. I think we would be looking at using some of our other authorities to get to that result,” said Nichols. Nichols did say it will be a long time before something like this is implemented. “There are people who believe, including who work for me, that you could stop all sales of new internal-combustion cars by 2030. Some people say 2035, some people say 2040. It’s awfully hard to predict any of that with precision, but it doesn’t appear to be out of the question.” Source: Bloomberg View full article

Luxury automakers are going smaller to try and attract more buyers to their showroom. Already, Audi, BMW, Infiniti, and Mercedes-Benz have sort of vehicle and others are planning to launch one in the future. One brand you will not see join this crowd is Genesis. “I don’t want to comment on the moves of the others. We have a pretty clear strategy planned out with what we want to do. Therefore the sedan line-up is pretty complete with the G90, G80 and G70 (pictured above),” said Manfred Fitzgerald, Genesis’ senior vice president to CarAdvice. “Now going lower than that, like the others are – I don’t think that is in our playbook. Other brands, due to their history and where they’re going from where they are, they might think otherwise. We have so much still to accomplish, and so many white spots still on the map, if you will, so there is enough room for us to play it in the conventional way.” But that doesn't Genesis could see something added to their passenger car lineup down the road. Fitzgerald has said previously that a sleek grand tourer could happen. Source: CarAdvice View full article

Doubt that as Geely has a majority stake in Lotus. http://www.evo.co.uk/lotus/19108/geely-acquires-majority-stake-of-lotus-in-deal-with-proton

Jaguar Land Rover has been on a bit of a roll ever since being taken in by Indian company Tata Group. But the British automaker is considering possibly acquiring another brand. Various sources have told Bloomberg that internal discussions have been taking place about buying up another brand, specifically one that fits in with their current lineup. Senior officials at Tata believe Jaguar Land Rover "needs to bulk up to stay competitive, and the Indian conglomerate is willing to provide financial support for potential acquisitions if needed, one of the people said." Jaguar Land Rover play a significant role in Tata Group's revenues. According to Bloomberg data, 78 percent of Tata's revenue comes from the luxury brands. It is unclear which brands could be under consideration for JLR. Bloomberg does mention Alfa Romeo and Maserati, which was rumored to be possibly spun off from FCA. The report also notes that JLR is considering purchasing tech companies that would boost their efforts on autonomous vehicles and electric powertrains. Source: Bloomberg View full article

Last Sunday night, workers at General Motors' CAMI Assembly plant in Ingersoll, Ontario went on strike due to the automaker and Unifor Local 88 being unable to reach a tentative agreement. The plant where the majority of the Chevrolet Equinoxes are built has been shut down since. Now the side effects are the strike are beginning to be felt. At least 255 workers at GM's St. Catharines, Ontario plant have been given temporary layoff notices that begin tomorrow. St. Catharines is where the transmissions for the Equinox are built. According to Automotive News, workers spent the week stockpiling transmissions. "We supply about 90 per cent of (CAMI's) transmissions, so it's related to that. Even though they were down, we ran all week ... We have a lot of transmissions stockpiled now because we didn't know if they were going to resolve it this week or not. It doesn't look like they're going to," said Tim McKinnon, chairman of Unifor Local 199 that represents St. Catharines. “We’re off until they get it settled. Every time they sneeze, we catch a cold. If they pick up more volume, we pick up more volume.” GM announced late last week that it is making production adjustments at St. Catharines, Spring Hill, and Flint Engine Operations. Both Spring Hill and Flint provide the engines for the Equinox. Also last week, Canadian supplier Magna International said it would suspend the supply of parts. The top concerns for the two sides are very different. For GM, it is the worry of having enough supply of Equnoxes for the demand. Sales rose 85 percent year-over-year in August. While GM does also build the Equinox in San Luis Potosi and Ramos Arizpe, Mexico, the two plants cannot match the output of CAMI (40,017 for the Mexican plants vs. 132,288 for CAMI). For Unifor, they want assurances that CAMI will remain the lead plant for the Equinox and want another product for the plant to build. Unifor has reached out to GM on Wednesday on possibly restarting negotiations. At this time, no word on whether two have or will meet. Source: Automotive News (Subscription Required), The Canadian Press via CBC View full article

Most new cars and trucks sitting on dealer lots have fuel economy estimates on their window sticker. The only group of vehicles that don't are heavy-duty trucks. This is due to the EPA not requiring automakers to publish estimates on trucks with gross weight ratings that exceed 8,500 pounds. This makes it difficult for folks to compare the heavy-duty trucks with one another or comparing the diesel variants with the light-duty gas versions. Consumer Reports doesn't believe it should be this way and is working on an effort to change this. Consumer Reports recently tested a Chevrolet Silverado 2500HD, Ford F-250 Super Duty, and Ram 2500 equipped with their optional diesel engines to gauge fuel economy and compare it to their light-duty gas counterparts. Their results show the HD trucks were 1 to 2 MPGs lower than their light-duty counterparts. Of course, you might be saying, that's because heavy-duty trucks have more weight to move. Also, most buyers who are going for this type of truck tend to know what they're getting into. Heavy-duty trucks begin to show their advantage when it comes to intense workloads, becoming more efficient than a similarly-equipped gas truck. Still, we think heavy-duty trucks should have fuel economy estimates to help buyers when it comes time to purchase a heavy-duty truck. “Heavy-duty pickup shoppers shouldn't be left in the dark when it comes to fuel economy,” said David Friedman, director of cars and product policy and analysis for Consumers Union, the policy and mobilization arm of Consumer Reports. Source: Consumer Reports, Letter to Congress (PDF) View full article

After September 24th, Tesla will end production of the rear-wheel drive Model S 75. The model is the cheapest way to get into the Model S with a base price of $69,500. After the 24th, the Model S 75D with its dual motor AWD setup will become the entry-level model with a base price $74,500. This will leave the Model 3 as the only Tesla model that is available with RWD. This news was first broke by Electrek back in July, although no official end date was given. We can see a couple of reasons for Tesla dropping the RWD Model S 75. One is to help streamline production line and hopefully get more vehicles out. It also gives further differentiation between the Model 3 and Model S. Source: Roadshow, Electrek View full article

Those who were hoping for a return performance of the Ford Fiesta ST will be disappointed to hear this news. According to CarBuzz, the director of Ford Performance of Europe, Leo Roeks said there isn't enough interest to bring the new model over. “It’s simply a matter of a lack of interest in the B-segment in America. It doesn’t make sense, nor is it possible financially speaking, to import a single trim level, and a niche one at that,” Roeks said. This news isn't that all surprising. Subcompacts have been seeing their sales drop for the past two years, and 2017 isn't looking much better. The Fiesta was one of the hardest hit models, seeing a decline of 24.3 percent in 2016. As we reported in the rumorpile back in July , Ford was considering cutting the Fiesta in either late 2018 or 2019. This was further bolstered by comments made Fiesta program manager Robert Stiller. When reached for comment by Autoblog, Ford issued this statement, "We have introduced the next-generation Fiesta for Europe and Middle East & Africa. We'll have more to say about other markets at a later date. Customer demand for small vehicles continues to grow globally, and Fiesta is an important part of our portfolio." We have two things to say. One, Ford STOP BEING SO CAGEY AND JUST TELL US IF THE FIESTA IS COMING OR GOING! Two, if you have been considering a Fiesta ST, you might want to consider picking one up ASAP. Source: CarBuzz, Autoblog View full article

Or it could be the perfect way to sell the XC40 during the holidays.

Yep. Everything is a four-cylinder with some sort of forced induction or hybrid system.

After years of saying they would produce an electric vehicle and not following through, it seems Infiniti will finally launch one. Speaking with Autocar, Infiniti Executive Design Director Alfonsa Albaisa said the brand would be launching a performance electric vehicle in 2019. The model will be previewed by a concept next year at the Detroit Auto Show. Albaisa said it would not be a derivative of an existing model and will be underpinned by a new platform. The most interesting bit about the vehicle is that it will feature some of the design cues from the Prototype 9 that debuted at Pebble Beach last month. Albaisa said that we would see “parts of the car in a difference context” on the Detroit concept. Infiniti has teased us before with electric concepts. In 2012 at the New York Auto Show, the company introduced the LE sedan concept. Using the running gear from the Leaf EV, Infiniti said a production model would arrive in 2014. However, plans would be pushed back in 2013 and then put on hold in 2015. Source: Autocar View full article

The 2018 Kia Rio will be arriving at dealers next month and will still be one of the cheapest vehicles in the U.S. The base LX will set you back $14,795 for the sedan and $15,095 for the hatchback - prices include a $895 destination charge. The LX fits the definition of being a stripper as you don't get power windows, cruise control, or a center console. You do get steering-wheel audio controls, satellite radio, and a USB port. Next up is the S which begins at $16,995 (sedan) and $17,295 (hatch). It comes with power windows, cruise control, keyless entry, center console, backup camera, Bluetooth, and an additional USB port. The EX rounds out the Rio lineup with prices of $19,295 (sedan) and $19,595 (hatchback). Standard equipment includes 15-inch wheels, 7-inch touchscreen with Apple CarPlay and Android Auto, and automatic emergency braking. All Rios come with a 1.6L four-cylinder with 130 horsepower and 116 pound-feet. Transmission choices include a six-speed manual or automatic. “Value has always been a core tenet for the Kia brand and the all-new Rio sedan and 5-door continue to underscore our commitment to buyers looking for an entry-level vehicle but desire more than what the subcompact segment offers. This fourth-generation Rio makes significant improvements over its predecessor in design, technology and passenger comfort, resulting in an even better value proposition, while raising the bar in the small-car segment,” said Orth Hedrick, vice president of product planning for Kia Motors America. Source: Kia Press Release is on Page 2 Kia Motors America Announces 2018 Rio Pricing Feature-Rich Subcompact Sedan and Hatchback Provide Tremendous Value Coupled with Outstanding Design All-new Kia Rio has lower starting price than outgoing model, yet offers technology typically not found in the subcompact segment Rio delivers value-conscious consumers an eye-catching European-inspired design, fuel efficiency, innovative technology, everyday convenience and fun-to-drive character IRVINE, Calif., September 20, 2017 — Kia Motors America (KMA) today announced pricing for the all-new 2018 Rio sedan and 5-door hatchback. Expected to arrive in Kia retailers beginning early October, the subcompact duo will be offered in three trim levels – LX, S and EX. LX starts at $13,900 (sedan)/ $14,200(5-door) S starts at $16,100 (sedan)/ $16,400 (5-door) EX trim starts at $18,400 (sedan)/ $18,700 (5-door) “Value has always been a core tenet for the Kia brand and the all-new Rio sedan and 5-door continue to underscore our commitment to buyers looking for an entry-level vehicle but desire more than what the subcompact segment offers,” said Orth Hedrick, vice president of product planning, KMA. “This fourth-generation Rio makes significant improvements over its predecessor in design, technology and passenger comfort, resulting in an even better value proposition, while raising the bar in the small-car segment.” Rio offers value-conscious consumers a roster of everyday convenience and technology features coupled with a solid structure. On the tech front, the Rio offers Bluetooth® hands-free functionality3, a six-speaker stereo with satellite radio and a rear-view camera system4. Available only on the top-tier EX trim is a seven-inch floating touchscreen interface, UVO3 voice recognition infotainment system and smartphone integration through Android AutoTM and Apple CarPlayTM as well as Autonomous Emergency Braking (AEB)5. On the safety front, the all-new Rio is targeting the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) Top Safety Pick designation and a 5-star rating from the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA). View full article

Over a year later after Volvo teased us with the 40.1 and 40.2 concepts, they have introduced the first model in the 40-Series family, the 2018 XC40. While the overall design of the XC40 bears a strong resemblance to the XC60 and XC90, Volvo's designer staff wanted to make the XC40 have some design traits of its own. They include an upswept rear side window. a racier take on the 'Thor's Hammer' headlights, plastic cladding running along the bottom of the vehicle, and the choice of a black or white contrasting roof. The 'similar but different' theme continues inside as the XC40 will come with a 12.3-inch display for the instrument cluster and 9-inch touchscreen for the Sensus infotainment system. What you will not see are speakers in the doors. Volvo has removed them to make room for additional storage space. There will be two engines on offer, both 2.0L turbocharged four-cylinders. The T5 pumps out 250 horsepower and 258 pound-feet of torque. A lowered-power T4 will also be available, but Volvo hasn't released power figures on it. Both engines will come with an eight-speed automatic. T4 models will come with FWD, while T5 variants make do with AWD. A hybrid version is expected sometime later. Since we are talking about a Volvo, we would be remiss if we didn't talk about the XC40's safety equipment. All models will get City Safety that can detect vehicles, cyclists, pedestrians, and large animals, and will bring the XC40 to a complete stop. Other safety equipment includes Pilot Assist, Run-off road protection and mitigation, cross traffic alert, and a 360-degree view camera system. Possibly the big news about the XC40 isn't about the vehicle itself. Volvo announced a new program called 'Care by Volvo'. This subscription program allows you to get an XC40 a national, flat-rate monthly fee that includes things such as insurance and maintenance. You also have the ability to upgrade your vehicle after 12 months - much like what you can do smartphones. Volvo will have more details on Care by Volvo for the U.S. at November's L.A. Auto Show. Volvo will launch the XC40 in the U.S. early next year with the T5 model with a base price of $35,200. The T4 will follow in the summer with a base price of $33,200. Source: Volvo Press Release is on Page 2 The New Volvo XC40 Makes a Bold Statement in the Compact SUV Market (ROCKLEIGH, N.J.) Volvo Cars introduces the XC40 SUV, setting a new benchmark for design, technology and safety in the compact SUV market. Award winning technology from the 90 and 60 series cars are standard in the XC40, including safety innovations rarely offered among competitors. The Volvo XC40 will be among the safest, well-equipped compact SUVs available. At launch, the T5 all-wheel drive Momentum trim will start at $35,200. In summer 2018, a T4 front wheel drive will be introduced starting at $33,200. The new XC40 represents Volvo’s third SUV and is focused on a new expression of Scandinavian design. The XC40 is the smallest SUV offered by Volvo, preceded by Volvo’s largest SUV, the XC90, which is the most awarded luxury SUV of the century. The mid-sized XC60 is arriving at US retailers now and has been positively received. With the introduction of the XC40, Volvo completes its SUV range and offers three of the newest vehicles in their respective segments. “The XC40 is our first entry in the small SUV segment, broadening the appeal of the Volvo brand and moving it in a new direction,” said Håkan Samuelsson, president and chief executive. “It represents a fresh, creative and distinctive new member of the Volvo line-up.” The XC40’s bold exterior is available with a range of body colors and color-contrast roof, providing up to 17 combinations. In the front, Volvo’s signature Thor’s hammer daytime running lights compliment a new interpretation of Volvo’s grill. The XC40 has a strong, structured profile for a youthful expression. Large wheels, wheel arches and an 8.3” ride height provide a true SUV feeling. With a clever use of space and interior materials, the XC40 introduces a bold rendition of Scandinavian design and functionality. An available panoramic sunroof allows natural light into the cabin and at night, integrated LED mood lighting can be color adjusted to match the mood or temperature the driver desires. This lighting, combined with unique metal and textile materials, creates a feeling of creativity, energy and youthfulness. Volvo conducted extensive global research into how compact SUVs are used and discovered proper storage is essential. With ample interior space for both passengers and storage, smart daily-use features such as large door pockets, integrated bag hooks and a customizable cargo area help organize the driver’s life while in the car. Wireless QI mobile phone charging and Bluetooth connectivity with the standard 9” Sensus Connect touchscreen helps reduce the clutter of charging cables and connectors. A dedicated cell phone storage space frees up cup holders and other areas commonly used by customers to store their phone. The development of a unique air-ventilated woofer located behind the dashboard allows for more storage in the door panels without sacrificing stereo sound in the cabin. Connectivity is core to the XC40, featuring 4 years of Volvo On Call as standard and the ability to share the car with trusted friends and family via a mobile phone app. Applications such as Spotify, Pandora and Yelp are available via the center touch screen, as well as Volvo’s Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration. With standard City Safety, which includes pedestrian, cyclist, vehicle and large animal detection with emergency autobrake, the XC40 is one of the best-equipped small premium SUVs on the market. Safety and driver assistance features on the XC40 include Pilot Assist, Run-off Road protection and mitigation, Cross Traffic alert with brake support and the 360° Camera that helps drivers maneuver their car into tight parking spaces. Volvo Cars is inventing a new model of car access with the launch of the new Volvo XC40 called “Care by Volvo.” Care by Volvo is an all-inclusive, negotiation-free option that will be offered alongside traditional purchase and lease choices. This will make having a car as transparent, easy and hassle free as having a phone: a national, flat-rate monthly fee, combined with the opportunity to upgrade to a new car as early as 12 months. Care by Volvo in the United States includes almost everything needed to own and operate a car such as maintenance, insurance, wear and tear items and protection services. The new XC40 is the first model on Volvo Cars’ new Compact Modular Architecture (CMA), which will underpin all other upcoming cars in the 40 Series including fully electrified vehicles. From start of production, the XC40 will be available with a T5 four-cylinder Drive-E powertrain with all-wheel drive. Further powertrain options, including a hybridized as well as a pure electric version, will be added later. Production of the new XC40 starts in Volvo Cars’ plant in Ghent, Belgium in November, while order books will open today. Details regarding Care by Volvo will be released at the Los Angeles Auto Show in November. View full article