Europe

The major trends shaking up the auto industry — electrification, connectivity, autonomous driving — are driving new thinking about the best way to sell cars. The traditional dealer model is being challenged by the so-called “agency model,” in which sales are made directly to the end customer by the automaker. Automakers gain more control over distribution

The humble wire harness, a cheap component that bundles cables together, has become an unlikely scourge of the auto industry. Some predict it could hasten the downfall of combustion-engine cars. Supplies of the part were choked by the war in Ukraine, which is home to a significant amount of the world’s production, with wire harnesses

Stellantis will build a large commercial van for Toyota in its factories in Poland and Italy starting in mid-2024, including a full-electric version. The collaboration will give Toyota a large van to sell in Europe for the first time. Stellantis currently builds compact and midsize vans for Toyota, in both commercial and passenger versions. No

BMW’s $1 billion Mexico assembly plant could become the automaker’s first dedicated electric vehicle production center. A source familiar with BMW’s product plans said the automaker is set to begin manufacturing the next-generation 3 Series electric sedan and iX3 electric crossover starting in 2027 in San Luis Potosi, Mexico. The source said that production of

Maybach has big plans for the maximalist limousines it’s made occasionally for the past 113 years, a line that now includes the Mercedes-Maybach S-Class and Mercedes-Maybach GLS. There is the two-tone Mercedes-Maybach S680 sedan developed by Virgil Abloh, the late head of menswear for Louis Vuitton, which goes on sale globally later this year with a

Almost a decade after playing home to Europe’s first mass-produced electric car, the UK is at risk of becoming a footnote in the global auto industry’s shift to battery-powered vehicles. The UK lacks the battery cell and packaging factories automakers will need to support their transition away from the internal combustion engine. In what could be

SHANGHAI — The Chinese battery giant CATL said it will start supplying cylindrical cells to BMW from 2025 to power its new series of electric vehicles. The battery maker has signed an agreement with BMW in which it is nominated as the supplier of the cylindrical cells for the automaker, CATL said without elaborating. BMW

BERLIN — Germany’s Economy Ministry is refusing to provide Volkswagen with guarantees to cover new investments in China because of concerns over human rights, a German magazine reported. The report in Der Spiegel on Friday quoted a ministry spokesperson as saying that it had “for human rights reasons” rejected four applications from a company. The

TOKYO — Toyota cut its global production plan for June for the second time this week and signaled its full-year output estimate could be lowered, highlighting the pain from the supply-chain crunch and China lockdown. Global automakers’ production has been hit by the microchip shortage and also by China’s COVID-19 lockdowns. The reduction by Toyota –

Rolls-Royce is concerned ongoing supply chain issues could prolong waiting lists that already stretch into the second half of next year for some models. Parent BMW has prioritized feeding semiconductors Rolls-Royce’s way because of the contribution it makes to the group’s profitability, CEO Torsten Mueller-Oetvoes told Bloomberg Television. Recent lockdowns in China have forced the

DAVOS, Switzerland — Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess said he sees “clear improvement” in semiconductor supplies and expects the automaker’s global production can recover during the rest of this year. Diess, speaking on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum conference in Davos, Switzerland, said disruptions to VW’s supply chain in Ukraine are also easing.

MODENA, Italy – The Maserati MC20 Cielo, the roadster version of the MC20 coupe, looks set to help Stellantis’ only luxury brand to return to a healthy profitability level.  The MC20 Cielo will be Stellantis’ most expensive model. In Germany, Europe’s biggest market, it will cost at 260,000 euros ($277,300). The supercar is expected to

PARIS — Renault has received several partnership proposals for the combustion-engine unit it plans to create alongside one dedicated to electric vehicles and software, two sources familiar with the matter said. Renault plans to separate its electric and conventional car businesses, creating two entities to manage the shift towards fossil-free vehicles. “The group has already

Sales of electrified cars – full-electric and plug-in hybrids — doubled globally in 2021 to 6.6 million, but that rapid growth has further stretched supply chains already threatened by the pandemic and Russia’s war in Ukraine, the International Energy Agency said in its annual electric vehicle outlook report. Essential materials such as lithium, nickel and

Vietnamese EV maker VinFast is shifting its headquarters to Singapore as the fledgling company readies for a public listing and the first production run of cars for U.S. and European markets, its CEO, Le Thi Thu Thuy, told Reuters. The three-year-old unit of conglomerate Vingroup JSC will start building its VF8 SUV next week, its

BMW’s production chief said the carmaker will meet its output targets for 2022 even as congestion at Chinese ports, closures in Ukraine and other supply-chain problems continue to weigh on sales. Speaking in an interview, Milan Nedeljkovic said BMW is switching to alternative Chinese ports and modes of transportation to deal with the disruptions caused

Mercedes-Benz will cut 15 to 20 percent of its dealerships in Germany, and about 10 percent globally, as part of broad overhaul of its distribution network, executives said. Mercedes is also moving toward a more direct-sales – or “agency” – model, and is targeting 80 percent of European sales through this method by 2025, with

HAMBURG – Volkswagen Group supervisory board has called on management to present a reworked plan for the automaker’s software division, which forms the backbone of its strategy but has run into problems, two people familiar with the matter said. The board is expecting an update at the last supervisory board meeting before the summer break,