Headlines for Friday, February 22, 2013

U.S. medium & heavy truck sales, January

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XC90 delay irks Volvo CEO

Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson is not happy that the automaker has waited more than a decade to debut a new XC90, which was once the brand's best seller. Global sales of the XC90 fell 21 percent last year. Demand is not expected to rebound until the all-new XC90 goes on sale in early 2015. Read More »

Chrysler revives Cherokee nameplate for Liberty replacement

Chrysler Group is reviving the Cherokee nameplate as part of plans to replace the Liberty SUV in Jeep's lineup. The move was announced Friday. The automaker had hoped to keep the mid-sized SUV -- and its name -- secret until a planned introduction at the New York auto show next month. Read More »

AutoNews Now: Race for urgency at GM

For N.A. boss Mark Reuss, motorsports means revving up product development; loan-bias crackdown; VW boasts 270 mpg. Read More »

Bosch happy to be on battery sidelines – for now

Bosch Chairman Volkmar Denner is happy that the supplier pulled out of its venture to develop and build lithium ion batteries last year. He says the market is over-saturated with too much capacity for lithium ion batteries. Read More »

First Shift: A Mercedes for newbies

CLA aimed at high-end Camry, Accord, Jetta drivers; Obama to keep heat on Japan in trade talks; Fisker drops Sandy suit. Read More »

Volkswagen forecasts unchanged 2013 operating profit on Europe

VW Group forecast 2013 operating profit will match last year's level, as the shrinking auto market in Europe weighs on earnings. VW is targeting earnings in 2013 on the same level as the 11.5 billion euros earned last year. Read More »

Executive pay at bailed-out companies subject of D.C. hearing

A congressional subcommittee plans to hold a hearing Tuesday on executive pay at companies, including General Motors and Ally Financial, that the federal government bailed out about four years ago. Read More »

North America car and truck production - 02/25/2013

This is data compiled by the Automotive News Data Center and requires a Data Center subscription to access. Read More »

U.S. auto sales remain robust despite rising fuel prices, looming budget cuts

U.S. auto sales in February remain strong despite rising fuel prices and the threat of fresh government spending cuts, several forecasters and analysts say. Read More »

Zipcar taps ad agency Campbell Ewald, hires new CMO

Hourly car rental firm Zipcar, in the process of getting a new parent company, has selected Interpublic Group's Campbell Ewald, the former longtime Chevy ad agency, as its new global creative and brand strategy agency, the company said in a statement. Read More »

XC90 delay irks Volvo CEO

Volvo CEO Hakan Samuelsson is not happy that the automaker has waited more than a decade to introduce a new XC90, which was once the brand's best seller. Global sales of the XC90 fell 21 percent last year. Demand is not expected to rebound until the all-new XC90 goes on sale in early 2015. Read More »

VW eyes flat 2013 profits as Europe crisis drags on

Volkswagen AG forecast that 2013 operating profit will match last year's level, falling short of analysts' estimates, as the shrinking auto market in its home region weighs on earnings. Read More »

China is 10 years from fielding global, competitive automakers, report says

Chinese automakers are about a decade away from being globally competitive and will have to increase their spending on research and development to close the gap, according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Read More »

Honda adds clout to North America management, operations

Honda is launching several organizational and management changes in Japan and the United States -- many of them intended to bolster its operations in North America as the region assumes a larger role in shaping Honda's global business. Read More »

Valeo profit falls 11% despite record orders

French parts supplier Valeo said profit dropped 11 percent last year despite record orders for its fuel-saving and safety technologies. Read More »

With stellar detective work, today’s recalls are not like yesterday’s

People in this industry have a love-hate relationship with recalls. Dealers can love them if they ring up service reimbursements from the factory and give people a reason to visit their stores. Read More »

Obama holds ground on opening Japan to Detroit 3

President Obama won't back off demands that Japan ease barriers for U.S. automakers before joining negotiations for a regional Pacific trade agreement when he meets today with Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, White House aides said. Read More »

GM pledges $7.3 billion investment in S. Korea unit

General Motors said it would invest $7.3 billion in its South Korean unit over the next five years -- an amount which will likely help relieve concerns that the U.S. automaker was set to reduce its presence in the country. Read More »

Zetsche aims to lift Mercedes' China sales 50% by 2015

Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche has vowed to raise the Mercedes brand's China sales 50 percent by 2015 after the automaker's deliveries last year rose only 2 percent to 196,211 units. Read More »

Bosch seeks to boost common-parts sales to Japanese carmakers

Bosch is seeking to boost its business with Japanese carmakers and take advantage of their plans to increase the number of common parts across models. Read More »

GM South Korean unit to spend $7.3 billion to expand

GM's South Korean unit plans to invest 8 trillion won ($7.3 billion) over five years to expand in a country where it made four of every 10 Chevrolets sold worldwide last year. Read More »

Former Fiat advisers found guilty of misleading market

Two former Fiat advisers have been handed suspended jail sentences and fines by an Italian appeals court for misleading the market in a 2005 stock transaction that secured the Agnelli family's control of the carmaker. Read More »

Mazda expects the CX-5 to help boost Europe sales by 15%

Mazda expects to boost European sales by 15 percent after better-than-expected sales of its CX-5 crossover, said Jeff Guyton, Mazda's Europe chief. Read More »