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Can vehicle communications keep the pace?

The quest to speed things up in the auto industry even includes the movement of electrons that carry the data for vehicle functions and communications.

At TE Connectivity, engineers know that their electronic hardware can only work as fast as data can pass from point A to point B to be processed and acted on.

In the future, says TE Connectivity President Sameer Pagnis, "it will be very important that the car is connected to infrastructure, that cars are talking with each other, that the cars have architecture which can collect data, transport it back and forth, and can create insights about the data."

The keys to supporting the complex vehicle architectures that make features such as advanced driver-assistance systems possible are fast-moving data and fast processing.

"Truly high-speed data networks in a car have become more of a necessity for building the future architecture of the car," Pagnis said. "To simplify thi…

Marelli, DHL aim to move parts quicker

A new partnership between a global Tier 1 auto supplier and a logistics company demonstrates how critical the push for greater supply chain efficiency is as manufacturers try to speed up the movement of parts and materials to customers.

Marelli — the Japanese-Italian supplier of electronics, lighting, advanced driver-assist systems and powertrain solutions — has signed a five-year service agreement with logistics provider DHL Supply Chain in a project to accelerate the movement of its materials and finished products.

Seeking to drive efficiency at a lower cost, Marelli believes it will reduce its customer delivery times by introducing new visibility tools, real-time inventory tracking and tracing for customers from DHL, said Bharat Vennapusa, head of transformation for Marelli North America.

"When we look at the complexity, to bring everything under one supply chain organization, it has become a top priority for us, especially und…

Ford proves to itself that it can hurry up

DETROIT — Ford Motor Co. slashed an eye-opening 20 months off the product development time of the 2022 Maverick compact pickup not because it could — but because it had to.

An aging lineup and a bureaucratic corporate hierarchy had weakened what former CEO Jim Hackett called Ford's "competitive fitness." Almost immediately after becoming CEO in May 2017, Hackett promised faster decision-making, new ways of working focused on what he coined "human-centered design" and a reduction in the number of vehicle architectures to a flexible few, which would cut engineering costs and improve speed to market.

Designers and engineers got their first chance to turn Hackett's press release promises into reality when Ford in 2018 announced a plan to drop all sedans in North America. Suddenly, there was room in its lineup for an affordable vehicle — but to fill the space and avoid losing entry-level customers, the project would need to move quickly.

But more importantly…

Nissan positions redesigned Frontier to take back some ground

SUNDANCE, Utah — Nissan helped birth the smaller pickup segment in the U.S. in the 1970s and '80s and doubled down on it with the introduction of the midsize Frontier in 1997.

But then an odd thing happened: Nissan allowed its bread-and-butter pickup to go from 2004 until now without a redesign.

During that time, Nissan's Detroit competitors Ford and General Motors exited midsize pickups, and then returned, while Nissan watched its segment share shrivel from a peak of 29.3 percent in 2014 to 6.1 percent last year.

Nissan now wants back in the ring.

A new-generation Frontier, which arrives at dealerships in early September as a 2022 model, is ready to rumble, with larger proportions and a rugged design aimed at the heart of the lifestyle pickup segment.

Dealers are relieved to get a competitive pickup in the showroom.

"The Frontier has gotten long in the tooth, and people just buy them because…

Stellantis late to the EV game? Not necessarily

DETROIT — Fiat Chrysler Automobiles wasn't an early contender in the electric vehicle race, leaving its successor, Stellantis, to play catch-up. But given the slow development of the EV market, dealers and analysts say the automaker's timing could turn out to be just right.

It wasn't long ago when FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne was questioning the business case of battery-electric models, while making Alfa Romeo, Jeep and Maserati the center of the company's EV strategy in a five-year plan introduced just weeks before his 2018 death. Marchionne declared that the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid demonstrated how the company could electrifyits portfolio, with such plug-in hybrids being the focus and fully electrified options becoming part of the mix for Jeep and Maserati by 2022.

Marchionne was preparing to conservatively ramp up FCA's electric presence as competitors pursued more aggressive plans. After FCA merged with PSA group to form Stellantis in Januar…

Rivian engaged in early talks for U.K. factory, report says

Rivian Automotive Inc., the EV startup backed by Amazon.com Inc. and Ford Motor Co., is in talks with the U.K. government on building its first manufacturing plant outside the U.S. near the English city of Bristol, Sky News reported.

The investment would probably include a large state-support package, but the U.K. faces competition from Germany and the Netherlands for the site, Sky cited industry sources as saying. Talks with the U.K. government are at an early stage, and an investment could be worth more than 1 billion pounds ($1.4 billion), it said.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has taken a keen interest in the progress of the talks, although they are not yet at an advanced stage, Sky reported. Attracting environmentally friendly investment in the U.K. is a key part of Johnson’s plan for post-Brexit Britain and his climate agenda.

Gravity, a 616-acre campus near Bristol, southwest England, has been identified by Rivian as a possible location for the new…

Rogue, Outlander shine as alliance heroes

TOKYO — The redesigned Nissan Rogue and Mitsubishi Outlander, hot-selling crossover stablemates recently rolled out by the Japanese partners, are helping the two troubled automakers bounce back to profitability with improved brand positioning and brighter financial outlooks.

Nissan Motor Co. and Mitsubishi Motors Corp. each jumped back into the black in the latest quarter, erasing year-earlier operating losses as the hero nameplates buoyed U.S. sales.

The new offerings, which share substantial platform and drivetrain elements, saw booming demand in the companies' fiscal first quarter ended June 30. Surging sales helped the brands, both known for their down-market positioning in recent years, rein in incentives and boost value.

U.S. sales of the Rogue, introduced late last year, more than doubled in the April-June quarter, while deliveries of the Outlander, released in April, also more than doubled in the period.

The upsw…

Hyundai’s feat: Speedier battery charging

LOS ANGELES — When Hyundai Motor Group was developing the E-GMP architecture for its new generation of electric vehicles, the automaker was thinking well beyond EV competitors such as Volkswagen and Ford, or even Tesla.

The new Hyundai Ioniq 5 crossover needed to offer clear superiority over electric rivals in fast-charge capabilities, while closing ground on the refueling king of them all: internal combustion engines.

That is an extremely heavy lift. EVs may be quieter, quicker and more environmentally friendly than comparable ICE vehicles, but nothing beats liquid fuels such as gasoline for adding range very, very fast.

"If you compare us to a Tesla Model Y or an electric SUV in our segment, we're going to dominate them on miles of range added," said Ryan Miller, manager of electrified powertrain development at the Hyundai Kia America Technical Center in Chino, Calif. But he added: "Our ultimate goal is not competitor EVs — it's i…

Sonic ponders EchoPark future

Sonic Automotive Inc.'s strategic review of its EchoPark used-vehicle operation reveals just how much potential the retailer's leaders think the business has.

Growth projections provided by Sonic executives for EchoPark last week would put the size of that unit at 2 million vehicles sold annually a decade from now. That's more than twice the volume that used-car megaretailer CarMax sells now. One analyst covering Sonic speculated that the EchoPark review could be the precursor to a spinoff of the rapidly growing business.

Sonic launched EchoPark in 2014 as a used-vehicle store in the Denver market, and the business has since expanded to 29 locations nationwide. EchoPark sold 40,931 vehicles in the first half of 2021. The unit lost money in the second quarter but has broken even or turned a profit in some previous quarters starting with the first quarter of 2019.

Sonic, the nation's seventh-largest new-vehicle retailer, announced la…

Axle suppliers see boosted net profits and revenues in Q2

Dana Inc. and American Axle & Manufacturing Holdings Inc., two of the world's largest axle suppliers, reported on Friday multiple gains in the second quarter as the industry continues the long haul of recovering from the COVID-19 pandemic.

Dana said its performance in the second quarter benefited from ongoing strong demand across its three business segments.

The company posted revenue of $2.21 billion, up nearly 105 percent from $1.08 billion in the same period last year.

The Maumee, Ohio-based axle and transmission producer swung to net income of $53 million in the quarter from a net loss of $173 million in the year-earlier period.

"We continue to actively manage through a challenging supply-chain environment, and our team has done an excellent job proactively responding to the regional impacts of COVID-19," Dana CEO James Kamsickas said in a statement.

Dana's adjusted earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization st…