Trade News

American Motors Corp. announces on Aug. 22, 1967, plans to introduce the 1968 Javelin, joining Detroit's pony car wars dominated by the Ford Mustang and Chevrolet Camaro.

The Javelin and its short-wheelbase, two-seat offshoot, the AMX, were designed by Richard Teague using underpinnings from AMC's compact Rambler American car. The vehicle was created to help AMC shed its reputation as a commuter-car maker.

It went on sale Sept. 26, 1967, in standard and SST trims, with a starting price of $2,743 and multiple engine options, ranging from the standard 232 inline-six up to a 280-hp 343 Typhoon V-8. A 390 V-8 that produced 315 hp became available midway through the 1968 model year.

Convertible sales were dropping and AMC lacked financial and engineering resources to design separate fastback and notchback hardtops that were available on the Mustang and Plymouth Barracuda. Instead, Teague and his design team created a single body style with a smooth semi-fastb…

DETROIT -- Ford Motor Co. has doubled its production target for the F-150 Lightning because of strong early demand for the full-sized electric pickup truck ahead of its 2022 launch and plans to spend an additional $850 million to meet that target, several people and suppliers familiar with the plans said.

The No. 2 U.S. automaker is targeting annual production of more than 80,000 in 2024, up from its prior target of more than 40,000, according to the people, who asked not to be identified.

"They were pleasantly surprised by the demand for the Lightning," one of the people said of Ford officials.

Industry observers have questioned whether individual buyers will give up their gas-powered pickups for electric models, but commercial customers are pushing for electric trucks and vans to reduce their carbon footprints.

The ramp to the new production target includes plans to build about 15,000 next year after the electric truck's spring launch and 55,0…

In June 2017, months after General Motors beat Tesla Inc. to market with an affordable, long-range electric vehicle, it took out full-page newspaper ads touting how long its Chevrolet Bolt could travel between charges. The tagline: “Begin a long-distance relationship, now.”

Four years later, the long-distance relationship between GM and its battery partner, LG Energy Solution, is being tested like never before. At issue: who will pick up a roughly $1 billion tab.

GM last week recalled Bolt EVs for the third time in nine months because of risk their batteries could catch fire. The Detroit-based company will replace modules in more than 73,000 additional vehicles and said it’s trying to get LG to pay for the fix. LG, headquartered some 6,600 miles away in Seoul, said the expense will be divvied up depending on the results from a joint investigation into the root cause of the problem.

At stake is what has looked like one of the most promising partnerships…

BorgWarner Inc. has taken a minority stake in a Tennessee-based company that converts plastic waste into thermal energy.

The supplier of turbochargers and electric motors announced Monday the $10 million investment in Enexor BioEnergy LLC as part of its plan to achieve carbon neutrality by 2035 and as it gradually reconfigures its business around automotive electrification.

Investing in the eco-friendly company, founded in 2015, was a "natural extension" of BorgWarner's technology portfolio, Joseph Fadool, vice president of BorgWarner, said in a news release. Enexor's marquee product, the Bio-CHP system, is powered by BorgWarner components.

"We see immense opportunity for our collaboration with Enexor and are excited to see the impact its solutions, and our investment, will have on the future of renewable power generation and the Earth's carbon footprint," Fadool said.

The companies declined to say what ownership percentage came with the investm…

Carl Beck, the founder of a group of five new-car dealerships in Florida, died on Aug. 11 while hospitalized for complications from COVID-19. He was 81.

Beck founded Beck Automotive Group in Palatka, Fla., in 1978.The group's stores, located throughout the Putnam County region, sell Buick, Chevrolet, Chrysler, Dodge, Jeep and Nissan vehicles.

Beck was fully vaccinated before he contracted COVID-19.

He was born in 1940 in Indianapolis to Marie Eckstein Beck and Carl Beck Sr. He attended elementary school and high school in the city and later attended Xavier University in Cincinnati, where he studied science, business, management and marketing. He also served for a short time in the U.S. Navy.

According to his official obituary, Beck was predeceased by his parents; his life partner, Daryl Younker; and by his nephew and godson, David Beck Jr.

He has three surviving siblings: a sister, Janice, and two brothers, …

As the auto industry eyes an electrified and digitized future, Guggenheim Securities' John Casesa says companies must shift their business models to remain relevant.

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Volkswagen's freshened 2022 Jetta sedan will feature a slightly larger engine, more standard equipment, an additional trim level and modest styling changes intended to keep the brand's entry-level vehicle attractive to newcomers to VW.

Due in U.S. dealerships by the end of the year, the latest Jetta gets new front and rear fascias and a new grille to differentiate it from the outgoing model. It receives interior upgrades as well, including a standard 8-inch digital cockpit instrument cluster, heated side mirrors and Wi-Fi capability, along with VW's Car-Net infotainment software suite.

Under the hood, the previous standard 1.4-liter base engine has been replaced with a 1.5-liter turbocharged engine that makes 158 hp, up 11 hp from the previous model. The engine is mated to either a six-speed manual gearbox or an eight-speed dual-clutch automatic transmission, giving the Jetta more torque at lower rpms than the current engine.

The sporty Jetta GLI …

KAR Global has agreed to buy Carwave, an online dealer-to-dealer marketplace, in an all-cash transaction valued at $450 million.

KAR, which owns auction giant ADESA, said in a release Monday that the purchase will build on the company's growth in the dealer-to-dealer segment, enhance its position in the highly fragmented wholesale used-vehicle market and accelerate the firm's transformation to a digital marketplace company.

Carwave has a network of franchised and independent dealers in Arizona, Nevada, Oregon, Texas and California, where it was founded in 2009. The online platform allows dealers to wholesale and buy vehicles from anywhere. It's described in KAR's release as "displacing the $100 billion traditional brick-and-mortar wholesale automobile auction industry with its innovative, Internet-based business model."

The transaction, subject to typical regulatory approvals, is expected to close before the end of the year. After closing, Carwave's co-f…