smartFUTURE PRODUCTS -- EUROPE Smart plans ForTwo successor in 2014 12:01 am U.S. ET | Aug. 6, 2012 Smart's sales have been rising since Mercedes-Benz took over the brand more than a year ago, but not fast enough. So the minicar brand will continue to tinker with new trims, wraps and accessories until its new vehicles begin to arrive in 2014.... Read More »
BMW counts on Web to help recoup spending on EVsJuly 27, 2012 06:01 CET  BMW will sell cars over the Web for the first time as the world's largest maker of luxury vehicles seeks an inexpensive way to reach more buyers to recoup spending on its electric models.... Read More »
Daimler Q2 profit falls on costs to add compact carsJuly 25, 2012 08:34 CET  Daimler reported a 13 percent decline in second-quarter profit as spending to expand the lineup of Mercedes-Benz compact cars offset higher deliveries. Earnings before interest and taxes fell to 2.24 billion euros ($2.7 billion) from 2.58 billion euros a year earlier, the company said in a statement today.... Read More »
Q2 ANE/PWC SHAREHOLDER VALUE INDEX Carmakers, suppliers hit by big declines in shareholder valueJuly 25, 2012 06:01 CET  Any hope that this year's robust first-quarter recovery in shareholder value for Europe's automakers and parts suppliers would be extended evaporated in the second quarter. Automakers saw their average value, as measured by the Automotive News Europe/PricewaterhouseCoopers Transaction Services Shareholder Value Index, fall 12.0 percent. This followed an exceptional 27.3 percent gain in Q1. Partsmakers experienced a similar decline, relinquishing 7.... Read More »
Daimler profit warning looms; PSA's woes don't make sense, analyst saysJuly 11, 2012 14:00 CET Daimler is “moments away from a profit warning” and things should not be as bad as they are at PSA. Those were some of the views shared by Bernstein Research analyst Max Warburton during his presentation at the Automotive News Europe Congress.... Read More »
Mercedes' June sales growth slowest this yearJuly 4, 2012 13:10 CET Global sales of Mercedes-Benz luxury cars grew at the slowest monthly rate so far this year in June, rising 0.9 percent to 121,542, the automaker said on Wednesday.... Read More »
Renault will use Twizy to challenge Peugeot, others for car-sharing customersJune 15, 2012 06:01 CET  Renault is counting on its quirky battery-powered Twizy to help win share from Peugeot, Smart, BMW and Volkswagen in Europe's fast-growing car-sharing sector. Renault plans to launch its so-called “Twizy Way” car-sharing program around France later this year and expand the program into big European metropolitan areas starting in 2013.... Read More »
GREEN CARS Daimler starts output of electric Smart, beating BMW into EV nicheJune 12, 2012 08:49 CET  Daimler started sales and production of its first mass-market electric car today, beating rival BMW with the introduction of an emission-free model. Deliveries of the battery-powered ForTwo will start later this year. Munich-based BMW plans to introduce the full-electric i3 next year.... Read More »
U.S. rescues Mercedes in May as China, Europe car sales disappointJune 5, 2012 14:21 CET  Strong demand in the United States helped Mercedes-Benz post record car sales in May despite a slowdown in its European home market and a slowdown in China.... Read More »
Mercedes taken by U.S. soldiers in World War II belongs to heirs, court says 12:01 am U.S. ET | June 2, 2012  A court in Germany ruled this week that the grandchildren of a German industrialist have a valid claim to a classic Mercedes car worth about $4 million that was taken by American soldiers during World War II.... Read More »
With sales rising, Smart plans TV ad assault 12:01 am U.S. ET | May 21, 2012  Hoping to build on its newfound momentum, Smart USA plans to launch a rare TV advertising campaign next month. It will be just the second TV campaign for the Mercedes-owned minicar brand since Smart debuted here in 2008. Smart also has extended its low lease rates for the 2013 ForTwo models that were launched last week.... Read More »
Daimler, BMW vie for car-sharing lead in German capitalMay 12, 2012 06:01 CET  Daimler is flooding Berlin with Smart cars to claim a greater share of Europe's burgeoning rent-by-the-minute urban auto market. The maker of Mercedes-Benz cars installed the largest fleet of its Car2go short-term rental service in the German capital last month, overwhelming BMW's DriveNow offerings two-to-one.... Read More »
BMW on track for record full-year car sales after April gainsMay 8, 2012 14:38 CET  BMW Group marked a new sales record for April, increasing volumes by 6.1 percent. Sales were driven by strong demand for BMW's core brand, which rose 7.4 percent.... Read More »
Daimler extends Bernhard's contract until 2018April 27, 2012 12:16 CET  Daimler said it had extended the contract of Mercedes-Benz Cars production boss Wolfgang Bernhard by a further five years until 2018, in a move that was widely expected.... Read More »
Daimler quarterly earnings unexpectedly rise on Mercedes demandApril 27, 2012 08:19 CET  Daimler reported an unexpected increase in quarterly earnings as the company delivered a record number of Mercedes cars. Earnings before interest and taxes rose 4.9 percent to 2.13 billion euros ($2.81 billion) from 2.03 billion euros a year ago.... Read More »
Marchionne blasts German carmakers for rejecting EU help on excess capacityApril 5, 2012 11:59 CET  Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne criticized German automakers for rejecting EU intervention that would help the region's automakers reduce excess production capacity. German automakers continue to sell record numbers of cars globally, boosted largely by demand for their Germany-built models in markets such as China and the United States.... Read More »
Smart aims for flat 2012 sales despite Europe troubles, product droughtMarch 8, 2012 12:12 CET  Daimler's Smart subsidiary wants its 2012 sales to match those of 2011 despite Europe's overall new-car sales slump and the small-car brand's lack of new product. “The global Smart team is working unbelievably hard to sell more than 100,000 units again in 2012,” Annette Winkler, Smart's global head, told Automotive News Europe on the sidelines of the Geneva auto show Wednesday.... Read More »
Mercedes sales rise 20% in February on China, U.S., Germany demandMarch 5, 2012 17:22 CET  Daimler said sales of its Mercedes-Benz cars rose 20.3 percent to 95,647 units in February compared to last year, putting it on track to meet its target of record unit sales in the first quarter of this year.... Read More »
U.S. calls for ban on in-car Facebook, Twitter while drivingFeb. 17, 2012 10:23 CET  The U.S. Transportation Department asked automakers to design devices allowing drivers access to social networks such as Facebook and Twitter so they can't be used while a car is moving.... Read More »
Dealers at Smart want a 4-seater 12:01 am U.S. ET | Feb. 6, 2012  U.S. Smart dealers, trying to rebound from their poorest sales year yet, want a four-seat car to add to their product offerings. In 2011 those dealers sold just 5,208 copies of the Smart ForTwo, a two-seat microcar and the brand's only entry. That was down 12 percent from 2010 and just a fraction of Smart's peak of 24,622 sales in 2008, the brand's first year in the United States.... Read More »
Smart dealers count on marketing support, new product 2:00 pm U.S. ET | Feb. 5, 2012  U.S. Smart dealers had their worst sales year in 2011, selling just 5,208 of the microcars. The challenges continue, but prospects are looking up for the Smart retailers who stuck with the brand through last year's transition of distribution rights from Penske Automotive Group to Mercedes-Benz USA. Joseph Agresta Jr., outgoing chairman of the Mercedes-Benz Dealer Board's Smart subcommittee, spoke with Staff Reporter Amy Wilson.... Read More »
Ghosn says Renault will work with Mercedes on high-end modelFeb. 3, 2012 13:00 CET  Renault is counting its strategic partnership with Daimler to help overcome its chronic troubles selling high-end cars. Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn said the French automaker would collaborate with Daimler subsidiary Mercedes-Benz on a new high-end model.... Read More »
Mercedes reports record January sales on U.S., German demandFeb. 3, 2012 14:31 CET  Global sales of Mercedes brand cars rose 5.1 percent to a record 86,921 vehicles in January, helped by strong growth in the U.S. and Germany and the continued success of its new B- and C-class models.... Read More »
Mini dashes hopes of a return to its smaller roots with RocketmanJan. 25, 2012 10:58 CET  Mini says it will not produce the Rocketman due to the lack of an available platform and forecast low profits from the model.... Read More »
NORTH AMERICAN INTERNATIONAL AUTO SHOW Smart trims monthly lease to $99 12:01 am U.S. ET | Jan. 16, 2012 Smart USA launched a $99-a-month lease offer last week in an effort to boost sales of the microcar brand. Prior lease rates were $159 to $169 a month. The 36-month, $99 lease requires the same $999 down payment as the previous lease deal. Mercedes-Benz, which owns Smart, has been trying to give the brand a higher profile since taking over U.S. distribution in July from Penske Automotive Group.... Read More »
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