Trade News

MUNICH -- Daimler CEO Ola Kallenius wants the Mercedes-Benz brand to leverage its position at the intersection of luxury and technology to establish a strong foothold in the electric vehicle sector in the U.S.

That is why Mercedes decided to launch its EQS flagship EV sedan first in North America. Kallenius says the move will let Mercedes steadily build momentum in the market's nascent EV segment over the next decade.

"The S-Class is such a symbol for the brand and that will help us create the momentum we need for the decade," he said on the sidelines of the IAA Munich auto show last week. "We start with the flagship and show what a luxury dedicated architecture looks like, and since we are restricted in terms of deliveries anyway, it does not matter from a volume point of view. So, we lead with the EQS, which was the strong wish from the market."

Mercedes can both lead in the luxury segment, and through this strategy, have the required pull effect that…

Lithia Motors Inc. has entered Georgia with the acquisition of a Honda store and separately bought a Chrysler-Dodge-Jeep-Ram-Fiat dealership in Southern California.

Both transactions closed on Monday.

Combined, the two acquisitions will add an expected $320 million to Lithia's annual revenue.

Lithia bought Curry Honda in Chamblee, Ga., northeast of Atlanta, from Bernie Curry. Lithia is keeping the dealership’s name.

DCG Acquisitions, a Dave Cantin Group company, represented Curry in the transaction.

Georgia is the latest Southeast state that Lithia has entered. In July, Lithia bought its first dealership in Alabama and bought its first Mississippi store in June.

Lithia also acquired Orange Coast Chrysler-Jeep-Dodge-Ram-Fiat in Costa Mesa, Calif., in Orange County, from Jon Gray.

Gray, a past chairman of the Stellantis, then known as FCA, National Dealer Council, is staying on as general manager and the dealership's name is sta…

STOCKHOLM -- Automotive tech supplier Veoneer Inc. on Tuesday stuck to its recommendation in favor of Magna International Inc.'s acquisition bid after receiving an updated, non-binding offer from Qualcomm.

The Swedish company has become an attractive takeover target as its expertise in making advanced driver assistance systems fits in the plan for both Qualcomm and Magna in cornering a share in a growing business.

Qualcomm on Monday made a formal $37 per share bid for Veoneer in line with the offer announced last month and above Magna's original $31.25 per share offer.

Qualcomm last month offered $4.6 billion to buy Veoneer, an 18.4 percent premium to a July bid worth around $3.8 billion by Canada's Magna that had already been accepted by Veoneer's board.

Despite the bigger price tag, Veoneer said its merger agreement with Magna remains "in full force and effect" and the company's board has not withdrawn its recommendation favoring a deal with Ma…

Toyota Motor Corp. and Tesla Inc. clashed with Ford Motor Co. and the UAW over a proposal by Democrats in the U.S. House to give union-made, U.S.-built electric vehicles an additional $4,500 tax incentive.

Toyota on Monday said the plan includes “exorbitant” tax breaks for the wealthy.

Toyota is one of several non-unionized automakers complaining about a 10-year plan emerging in Congress to offer incentives of as much as $12,500 for people to buy EVs -- as long as they are built by union-represented workers. Buyers of vehicles from non-union shops such as Toyota, Tesla and Honda Motor Co. would be limited to credits of about $7,500, a structure that would favor traditional manufacturers from Detroit.

The proposal in the House Ways and Means Committee would give large tax credits on vehicles that cost as much as some people’s homes and “electric cars shouldn’t just be for rich people,” the automaker said Monday in a letter to the panel’s leaders. As prop…

A federal judge has delayed a competency hearing, possibly until November, to determine whether former Reynolds and Reynolds Co. CEO Bob Brockman is able to assist with his defense against charges of tax evasion and wire fraud.

U.S. District Judge George Hanks Jr. said Monday during a status conference in the case that he soon would confirm a date but that a competency hearing tentatively could begin Nov. 15. The hearing had been scheduled to begin Monday but was postponed. Hanks instead held the status conference to discuss details of the hearing and address several remaining motions.

The competency hearing could take about a week in total, lawyers for Brockman and the government told the judge Monday.

The question of whether Brockman, 80, is competent to stand trial only involves his ability to understand the case and assist with his defense. It is not used to determine whether he was competent at the time of the alleged offenses.

Brockman was…

DETROIT — Jason Stein, the outgoing publisher of Automotive News, has been named president and corporate development officer of Motormindz automotive consulting firm.

Stein, 49, will be in charge of expanding the company's global presence and launching its venture fund, Motormindz said in statement Monday. He leaves Automotive News on Wednesday after 18 years at the publication, the past eight as publisher.

"Jason Stein brings a wealth of experience to the team and he will play an integral role in driving our own transformation, creating a 2.0 version of ourselves," Jeff Van Dongen, Motormindz founder and CEO, said in the statement.

On Aug. 24, Stein said he was leaving Automotive News to host SiriusXM's "Cars & Culture with Jason Stein," a weekly radio show, and to launch his own global media services and broadcasting platform. The Motormindz positions will come in addition to those roles.

Motormindz, of Troy, Mich., comprises 120 executive-l…

Qualcomm Inc. has made a formal bid to buy automotive technology company Veoneer Inc. for more than $4 billion, beating a previous offer from Magna International Inc., according to people familiar with the matter.

The U.S. semiconductor company has formalized its offer of $37 a share, the people said, asking not to be identified discussing confidential information. Qualcomm is interested in Veoneer’s Arriver software unit, which helps cars perceive and make driving decisions, and would likely later divest the non-Arriver assets to private equity firms or other automotive companies, the people said.

Representatives for Magna, Veoneer and Qualcomm declined to comment.

Crash-avoidance and hands-free driving technologies have become a hotly contested battleground as automakers seek to boost prices and get the edge on rivals. Both global suppliers and chipmakers are positioning for growth in the market for advanced safety features. 

Magna offere…