Trade News

French Poet Antoine de Saint-Exupéry’s famous quote that “a goal without a plan is just a wish” perfectly describes the federal government’s hope to get consumers purchasing only zero-emission vehicles by 2035.

I’ve heard Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s blueprint called many things, such as a goal, target, vision, ambition and mandate. What I have yet to hear it called is a law.

Ottawa hasn’t yet passed legislation banning the sale of vehicles powered by the internal-combustion engine.

On June 29, the federal government said its goal is now to have 100 per cent of new light-duty vehicle sales be of the zero-emissions variety five years earlier than the original target of 2040.

When I caught wind of the planned announcement, I immediately told my colleagues it was shaping up to be big news. By the time three Cabinet ministers finished speaking, I told those colleagues the news conference was a dud.

Basically, government officials tossed an…

BEIJING -- Renault is looking to revive business in China by forming a joint venture with Geely Holding Group for hybrid vehicles.

The two companies have signed a framework agreement to set up the JV, which will build and sell Renault-branded gasoline-electric hybrid cars in China using Geely's technologies, supply chains and manufacturing facilities.

Renault will focus on sales and marketing.

As part of the partnership, announced Monday, the two automakers also agreed to explore a joint localization of Geely's Lynk & CO hybrid vehicles in South Korea, where Renault has been manufacturing and selling cars for more than two decades.

The venture would focus on China and South Korea initially but would likely be expanded to cover fast-growing Asian markets.

Geely and Renault are also looking at developing full-electric cars for the venture, one source familiar with the matter said.

The new venture is modeled on an EV-focused ve…

Silicon Valley automated trucking company Plus recently completed a driverless demonstration of its autonomous trucking technology. No human was aboard the company's big rig as it trundled along a 20-mile stretch of China's Wufengshan highway in regular traffic conditions near the Yangtze River delta.

Up in the sky above southern Norway, it's not a bird, a plane or even Superman. It was a Ford Explorer plug-in hybrid perched 154 feet off the ground.

A 21-year-old climber, Leo Ketil Boe, won a two-year lease from Ford Motor Co. by getting to the Explorer faster than 13 other competitors.

It took him 3 minutes and 33 seconds to scale the Over tower in Lillesand and win the Explore New Heights challenge.

In addition to the lease, Boe received a 3D-printed, 1/100-scale replica of the structure, which opened in June as the world's tallest free-standing climbing tower.

Ford said engineers and architects spent six months planning the stunt to make sure the tower could support the Explorer. A crane placed it on a specially built platform installed above the observation deck.

Although the Explorer itself is already spoken for, it will remain on top of the tower through Aug. 27, and Ford is giving anyone who reaches…

Here's the best look yet at the upcoming Mercedes-Benz EQS SUV, the brand's first battery-electric SUV for the U.S. Like with the EQS sedan, Mercedes designers focused on aerodynamics — important for range between charges on a high-riding vehicle — by steeply raking the windshield and blending the headlights, grille and hood into smooth shapes. The EQS SUV shares its underpinnings with the sedan and will be the second vehicle on Mercedes' dedicated electric vehicle architecture. It will be aimed at the Tesla Model Y, Jaguar I-Pace and Audi E-tron and is expected to debut next year as a 2023 model.

New cuts in vehicle production schedules due to the global shortage of microchips appeared to abate around the industry last week, although the number of lost units continued to rise, according to the latest report by AutoForecast Solutions, which has been tracking the crisis all year.

AFS raised its estimate for the toll of vehicles that have been cut from worldwide production plans to date to 5.8 million. It now forecasts that as many as 7.1 million vehicles eventually could be eliminated because of the supply problem.

Source: AutoForecast Solutions Inc. autoforecastsolutions.com

Today's vehicles are more connected than ever. Whether it's in-vehicle Internet access, gesture-controlled entertainment systems, or high-tech cameras designed to recognize the vehicle's surroundings, we are witnessing the power of data-driven connected car services unfolding before our eyes.

Looking to the future of autonomous automotive technology, as well as overall auto safety, much of what's possible for the development of next-generation vehicles will rely on the strategic application of data, the bulk of which will be generated while the vehicle is in motion.

Despite the growing interconnectedness of our real and digital lives, consumer unwillingness to share personal data remains a significant roadblock, with most apprehensive about who may have access to their information.

Research also indicates that many consumers are unaware of how much data they're sharing, and they are reticent to enroll in services that leverage da…