Fiat close to securing financing for Chrysler buyout, report says

April 23, 2013 21:02 CET
Fiat could secure financing by May for a possible buyout of the rest of Chrysler, sources said. CEO Sergio Marchionne wants to merge the carmakers to create the world's seventh-largest auto group, tapping Chrysler's cash flow to offset Fiat's losses in Europe.... Read More »

 

Fiat close to securing financing for Chrysler buyout, report says

3:02 pm U.S. ET | April 23, 2013
Fiat could secure financing by May for a possible buyout of the rest of Chrysler, two people familiar with the matter told Reuters today.... Read More »

 

2013 SHANGHAI AUTO SHOW

Porsche vies with new Maserati as China grabs luxury limelight

April 22, 2013 06:01 CET
Porsche has debuted a revamped version of its Panamera coupe at the Shanghai auto show where it sought to outshine Maserati's all-new Ghibli as both carmakers seek to attract customers in a luxury China market that is predicted to keep growing strongly.... Read More »

 

Fiat will add second shift at Maserati factory, report says

April 19, 2013 09:03 CET
Fiat will add a second shift at the Turin factory where it builds Maserati cars, a source said. Fiat is investing 1.2 billion euros in the luxury marque as it seeks to boost global sales from 6,000 last year to 50,000.... Read More »

 

AUTOMOTIVE NEWS EUROPE E-MAGAZINE

How Alfa Romeo plans to triple sales in 3 years

April 9, 2013 06:01 CET
Skeptics think Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne's aim to triple Alfa Romeo's global sales to more than 300,000 units by 2016 is too ambitious. But Alfa's European boss, Louis-Carl Vignon, is convinced Alfa has enough fresh products to meet -- and possibly exceed -- Marchionne's target.... Read More »

 

SALES

Fiat turns to Germany as Italy sales seen as worst since 1966

April 5, 2013 06:01 CET
Fiat, faced with Italy sales that could fall to their lowest level for 47 years, is seeking to boost sales in Germany by offering steeper discounts than any other automaker there. Plummeting deliveries, hit by political turmoil, are upending Italy's auto industry and will hit Fiat, which makes 56 percent of its sales in the country, especially hard. As a result, hundreds of Italian dealerships are closing and factories are running at half capacity.... Read More »

 

Marchionne being probed in longtime labor rights dispute, Fiat says

March 29, 2013 22:27 CET
Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne is being investigated in Italy over allegations of violation of labor rights in a long-running dispute at a factory near Naples, the automaker said.... Read More »

 

Marchionne being probed in longtime labor rights dispute, Fiat says

4:27 pm U.S. ET | March 29, 2013
Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne is being investigated in Italy over allegations of violation of labor rights in a long-running dispute at a factory near Naples, the automaker said.... Read More »

 

LUCA CIFERRI

BMW needs to adapt its retirement policy to changing times

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 28, 2013
BMW plans to raise the mandatory retirement age for its top management to 62 from 60 but the company isn't going far enough if it wants to keep the expertise of long-serving executives.... Read More »

 

EURO ZONE CRISIS

Chill in car sales spreads to northern Europe

March 27, 2013 11:15 CET
Dealers in northern Europe are feeling the chill after a slump in new-car sales spread to countries such as Germany, the Netherlands and Sweden. The outlook is grim for some markets that had until now escaped the worst of the euro zone debt crisis.... Read More »

 

INDIA

Fiat bets on SUVs and sporty cars in India reboot

March 27, 2013 10:01 CET
Fiat will open a fully-owned dealer network in India almost a year after it ended an unsuccessful partnership with Tata to build and distribute cars in the country. Fiat hopes to crack the world's seventh-largest car market by tapping into fast-growing areas such as SUVs and sporty cars.... Read More »

 

For Chrysler, 300 SRT8 key to luxury inroads, fatter margins

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 24, 2013
Chrysler Group, for all its improved performance lately, doesn't sell a lot of luxury cars to wealthy aficionados of German sports sedans. With the new Chrysler 300 SRT8, the company hopes to change that. If the company is able to make a dent in the luxury market with the latest 300 variant, it would be just one more plank in Chrysler's recovery.... Read More »

 

COMPANY EARNINGS

Fiat says profit to fall as Jeep shortage adds to Europe woes

March 19, 2013 19:34 CET
Fiat warned first-quarter earnings will fall as U.S. delivery snags at Chrysler Group's Jeep brand compound the effects of Europe's sales slump.... Read More »

 

Fiat says profit to fall as Jeep launch compounds Europe woes

1:34 pm U.S. ET | March 19, 2013
Fiat SpA warned first-quarter earnings will fall as U.S. delivery snags at Chrysler Group's Jeep brand compound the effects of Europe's sales slump.... Read More »

 

Ghosn favors incentives to revive Europe car demand

March 18, 2013 06:01 CET
Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn supports scrapping incentives to mitigate falling demand for new cars in Europe, which is headed toward a sixth straight year of decline as austerity measures keep customers out of showrooms.... Read More »

 

Detroit 3 raise alarm as yen weakens, aiding Japanese profits

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 16, 2013
Toyota, which last year overtook GM to become the world's largest automaker even as its profit margins lagged behind the industry, is riding a weakening yen that has Detroit executives concerned. The currency's slide gives Toyota and other Japanese automakers a financial gain on every car, which they can use to cut prices, boost advertising and improve products.... Read More »

 

Winterkorn open to further VW acquisitions

March 15, 2013 06:01 CET
VW Group remains open to making further acquisitions, though the German group has its work cut out integrating its 12 brands, CEO Martin Winterkorn said. "We are currently well positioned with 12 brands, but there are always opportunities that one cannot pass up," Winterkorn said.... Read More »

 

Marchionne bets billions on Alfa, Maserati

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 11, 2013
Sergio Marchionne is betting billions that Alfa Romeo and Maserati will help drive Fiat's money-losing European operations back into the black by 2015-16.... Read More »

 

NEWS ANALYSIS

European auto execs see rebound next year at the earliest

March 11, 2013 06:01 CET
The struggling European auto industry will bounce back next year. Or maybe in 2016. Or maybe later. It depends on whom you talk to among the executives here coping with depressed sales and the uncertain government response to Europe's economic crisis.... Read More »

 

NEWS ANALYSIS

Europe: Just how bad is it?

12:01 am U.S. ET | March 11, 2013
The struggling European auto industry will bounce back next year. Or maybe in 2016. Or maybe later. It depends on whom you talk to among the executives here coping with depressed sales and the uncertain government response to Europe's economic crisis.... Read More »

 

Marchionne's big gamble

March 7, 2013 06:01 CET
Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne is betting billions of euros that Alfa Romeo and Maserati will help drive the automaker's money-losing European operations back into the black by 2015-2016. He's also counting on the underperforming sporty brands to help ignite a production boom that will turn the company's under-used European plants into export champions.... Read More »

 

Automaker chiefs urge end to European austerity

March 6, 2013 09:49 CET
Automakers joined growing opposition to Europe's austerity measures. Renault CEO Carlos Ghosn urged government spending to revive the region's anemic sales, which he forecast won't recover for another three years.... Read More »

 

2013 GENEVA AUTO SHOW

Hyper-hybrid LaFerrari could redefine green cars

March 6, 2013 10:50 CET
The LaFerrari is one of the most electrifying debuts at this year's Geneva show, and not only because of its sleek carbon-fiber body or its top speed of more than 350 km/h. It is one of a new breed of sports cars, combining powerful gasoline engines with electric motors, that are part of a new group of greener hyper-hybrid vehicles.... Read More »

 

Marchionne says Fiat is in talks with banks about Chrysler merger

March 6, 2013 08:19 CET
Fiat- Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne said he is in talks with banks about financing a merger of the two automakers. The deal would involve purchasing the 41.5 percent of Chrysler that Fiat doesn't own.... Read More »

 

2013 GENEVA AUTO SHOW

Ferrari unveils its fastest model to date

March 5, 2013 12:00 CET
Ferrari unveiled the LaFerrari supercar at the Geneva auto show today. The 963-hp hybrid is the fastest, most powerful and most expensive Ferrari model to date. It succeeds the Enzo.... Read More »