May 17, 2013
- This week's McLaren-Honda announcement is likely to have consequences way beyond the racetrack The news that Honda is coming back to Formula 1 in 2015 is interesting in that it confirms that the new Formula 1 rules are attractive to the automobile industry — as was intended.It means while the unambitious Formula 1 teams will be trying to do deals with the existing manufacturers and Honda, the more imaginative will be chasing around the world banging on the doors of the motor companies that have...
- Buying into a new, fledgling automaker is always a big risk - the early-adopter upside has the potential to be great, but the downside can look like the mother of all hangovers. Unsurprisingly, that's the unpleasant financial reality facing Fisker Karma owners as they look to unload their extended-range electric sedans while the company's future bleakens. We've been keeping tabs on used Karma prices on eBay Motors and other websites for some time now, and there's been a steady stream of the...
May 16, 2013
- A new supercomputing data center and a fledgling shift to bring software development in-house should help General Motors limit the size of future safety recalls, a top company official said.
May 14, 2013
- Tesla Motors is on quite a roll: Not only did the small electric car maker sell 4,750 Model S sedans in the first quarter of 2013 (eclipsing the Chevrolet Volt and Nissan LEAF), but it outsold the Mercedes-Benz S-Class (3,077 units), BMW 7 Series (2,338 units), and Audi A8 (1,462 units) as well. Equally impressive is the fact that Consumer Reports has awarded the Model S 99 out of 100 points, and said it's the best car the magazine has tested since 2007. Wait, there's more: On May 10th, the...
- Can future business leaders really learn to act ethically? Professor Kenneth Lord says it’s not hopeless, despite the pressures to cheat.
May 11, 2013
- As consumers find new ways to avoid commercials and advertisements, companies are constantly trying to find new ways of marketing to them. Other than radio commercials, it's hard to think of a way for ads to show up in our cars, but Reuters is reporting that General Motors is considering selling ads show inside its in-car infotainment systems. In the article, GM CEO Dan Akerson talked about the possibility of in-car ads with the example being a "brought to you by Alltstate" message showing up...
May 10, 2013
- Pros and Cons* Pros When it comes to functionality, the Mercedes-Benz 2013 E-Class Coupe won't be ceding its place at the top of the toybox any time soon. We especially like its passenger cabin, full range equipment, power-adjustable seating as well as its individually-adjustable sport seating in the back. Future buyers will also enjoy the chassis balance as well as access to the latest technology. Cons The car, however, lacks perky sportiness when it comes to road handling and, when options...
- It has not been a good year for the electric-car industry, considering the bankruptcy of little Coda and the all-but-certain collapse of the once-promising Fisker Automotive. Even well-established carmakers such as General Motors and Nissan have been struggling to entice buyers (though Nissan’s Leaf battery car has begun to develop a little bit of momentum after missing its sales target for the second year in a row).So it is perhaps no surprise that 42% of the shares in Tesla Motors, a...
May 6, 2013
- Car and Driver asked the head of BMW M, Friedrich Nitschke, a few questions about what the go-fast division had in mind for the future, and was rewarded with some enlightening answers. The best news to purist ears is that Nitschke said customers don't want all-wheel drive on their M cars, so it's the rear wheels alone that will propel new product into the future. If you want both an M badge and four driven wheels, it's the X5 M, X6 M and M Performance models you're looking for in the catalog...
May 3, 2013
- It's becoming harder for car companies to justify their current Canadian production strategies. The increasing strength of the dollar over the past 10 years has put companies like General Motors and Chrysler in a difficult position when it comes to evaluating the future of plants located in Southern Ontario, which …
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