Manufacturing

Gentex Q1 net income up 14 percent despite production glitch
April 23Gentex said its first-quarter net income surged 14 percent from a year earlier as the mirror and electronics supplier managed to boost mirror deliveries despite a production glitch.

GM Korea, union reach tentative wage deal to avert bankruptcy
April 23GM's South Korean unit said that it has reached a tentative wage deal with its labor union, meeting a key condition laid down by the automaker to prevent it filing for bankruptcy.

VW's internal handling of emissions scandal 'unsatisfactory,' U.S. monitor finds
April 23VW's independent monitor, former Deputy Attorney General Larry Thompson, has criticized the automaker's internal response to its emissions scandal, a German newspaper report said.

No thanks, Ford says to 9-speed offered by GM
April 23Ford has elected not to use GM's nine-speed transmission out of the box, opting instead for two new eight-speed transmissions on vehicles such as the Ford Edge, Ford Transit Connect and Lincoln Nautilus.

Don't bet on widespread breakups of JVs in China
April 23A complete separation will be hard for some global brands that manufacture in China, and it may not be desirable for major global automakers such as General Motors.

Tesla subcontractor's busted jaw triggered safety probe
April 20Days before Tesla defended its safety record this week, California began inspecting an incident involving a subcontractor who was hospitalized after a piece of factory equipment broke his jaw.
Infiniti plots more local production in China
April 23Infiniti wants to triple its sales in China in five years by ramping up local production of five new nameplates.
Magna makes progress on Ford carbon fiber subframe prototype
April 21Magna International Inc. has delivered a carbon fiber subframe prototype to Ford it says will reduce weight and tooling costs and hopes to rule on mass production by year end.

GM Korea, union fail to reach wage deal
April 20GM's South Korean unit and its labor union failed to reach a wage deal after another round of talks that sought to avert a bankruptcy filing for the unprofitable operation. Talks will continue over the weekend.

PSA's Tavares faces toughest opponent yet in German union
April 20PSA boss Carlos Tavares, who is no stranger to thrashing out difficult labor deals, is now taking on Germany's powerful IG Metall union, which has been the undoing of many a cost cutter.
Ford joins VW on a bold path into the future
April 23Give Ford Motor Co., and its European head of engineering, Joe Bakaj, credit for recognizing the virtues of Volkswagen Group's global platform strategy.

Toyota powertrain boss feeling the pressure
April 21Hirohisa Kishi says he's tackling one of his biggest challenges yet — how to keep internal combustion engines competitive in the age of electric vehicles.