DAILY: Honda's Mendel lashes out at inaccurate fuel-economy claims | Automakers set pace on safety advances | Toyota settles Utah sudden acceleration suit

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DAILY NEWSLETTER January 16, 2013 Follow Us:

2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS Honda's Mendel lashes out at inaccurate fuel-economy claims American Honda's top sales executive chided automakers caught by federal regulators for overstating their fuel economy numbers. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 11:40 am U.S. Eastern time / UPDATED: 1/16/13 1:21 pm ET - adds Kia, Hyundai responses 2013 DETROIT AUTO SHOW Automakers set pace on safety advances As they did with electronic stability control and air bags, automakers are rolling out what they see as the cutting edge of safety technology years before regulators require it or standards are set. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 12:56 pm U.S. Eastern time Toyota settles Utah sudden acceleration suit, attorney says Toyota agreed to settle a sudden-acceleration lawsuit stemming from a 2010 fatal crash in Utah that was scheduled to go to trial in February, an attorney for the plaintiffs said. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 2:04 pm U.S. Eastern time GM in talks with Facebook about return to paid ads General Motors and Facebook are discussing the return of the automaker as a paid advertiser about eight months after GM said it would stop running ads on the social networking website, a top GM executive said. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 11:31 am U.S. Eastern time GM defends Opel plan based on new models, steady cuts General Motors will stick with an Opel recovery plan that combines ambitious model rollouts with a "series of incremental things" to cut costs over time, the automaker said. Earlier this week, GM was forced to deny reports it was preparing to offload the European unit on partner PSA. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 4:24 am U.S. Eastern time [REG] GM sees global profits rising 'modestly' with 2013 models GM, on the verge of reporting a 12th straight quarterly profit, forecast 2013 profit rising "modestly" as new models meet expanding global demand. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 5:04 pm U.S. Eastern time / UPDATED: 1/16/13 4:32 p.m. ET -- adds closing share price   Automotive News Blogs For Bill Ford, Lincoln is personal BRADFORD WERNLE: For most members of the Ford Motor management team, the resurrection of the Lincoln brand is a critical component of Ford's strategy to be a complete global car company and a sound business plan. ...  Read the blog  Published: Jan 16 12:01 am U.S. Eastern time / UPDATED: 1/16/13 4:26 p.m. ET   DUSTIN WALSH Did Nissan's show marketing make scents?  Read the blog    JESSE SNYDER Debt ceiling standoff is an auto sales time bomb  Read the blog    AMY WILSON Dealers like Detroit show, prospects for year  Read the blog      » 1/17 - Mobile Savvy Car Buyers by MAX Systems » 1/22 - Operations Case Study by Microsoft » 1/24 - Online Reputation by Auto News

» Jan. 15-17 - World Congress » March 15 - Best Dealerships entry deadline » April 15 - PACE Awards » May 14 - Marketing Seminar - Los Angeles       Automotive News' top 5 news stories of the week 1. Ford Atlas concept signals next F series, fuel-economy advances 2. Marchionne pushes to end production bottlenecks 3. ELR gives Cadillac green halo 4. Fiat-Chrysler CEO says Alfa Romeo needs a 'wop engine' 5. Cadenza is Kia's new U.S. flagship     2013 DETROIT AUTO SHOW Cadillac may double lineup, report says Cadillac may double its product lineup over the next four years as part of General Motors' strategy to turn the U.S. luxury brand into a global power, starting late this year with the ELR plug-in hybrid, the upscale sibling of the Chevrolet Volt. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 4:38 pm U.S. Eastern time   Ford says U.S. may change hybrid fuel-economy test procedures Ford, facing criticism for the fuel-economy performance of some of its models, said the Environmental Protection Agency may change its procedures for testing the mileage of hybrids. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 9:27 pm U.S. Eastern time / UPDATED: 1/16/13 1:11 pm ET - clarifies comment in 2nd graf   Backup camera rule for cars in U.S. still alive, Strickland says The delayed rule that would require backup cameras in new cars remains "very much" on the table, National Highway Traffic Safety Administrator David Strickland said. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 8:51 pm U.S. Eastern time   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS Audi shoots for 200,000 U.S. sales 'sooner rather than later' Audi should hit its goal of selling 200,000 vehicles in the United States “sooner rather than later,” Audi of America President Scott Keogh told the Automotive News World Congress today. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 2:45 pm U.S. Eastern time / UPDATED: 1/16/13 4:41 p.m. ET   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS Chrysler's Bigland: Dealers' 'methodical' response to online leads is boosting sales A sharp focus on responding to Internet leads has allowed Chrysler Group to dramatically decrease both the number of lost leads as well as the time the average customer waits for a response, the automaker's head of United States and Canadian sales said. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 10:56 am U.S. Eastern time   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS M&A opportunities abound as industry strengthens, Penske says Publicly-owned automotive retailers with the financial muscle to buy new stores now have the perfect opportunity to do so, both in the United States and abroad. That's what Roger Penske, 75, told industry leaders in his keynote address at the Automotive News World Congress Tuesday evening. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 9:11 pm U.S. Eastern time / UPDATED: 1/15/13 10:44 pm ET - adds detail, photo   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS A Detroit legend roils Russian vehicle making Bo Andersson was one of the most powerful and feared men in the Detroit a few years ago. Now he is a hero of the Russian auto industry. He might still be a little feared, he admits. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 10:03 pm U.S. Eastern time   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS De Nysschen: Infiniti will add four new vehicles Over the next four years, Infiniti will add at least four additional vehicles with new engines and transmissions, on top of renewing every existing nameplate in its United States lineup, says the company's top executive. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 6:09 pm U.S. Eastern time   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS Analyst sees housing, credit improvements releasing pent-up demand Light-vehicle sales will rise to 17 million units in the United States by 2015, from 2012's 14.9 million, Morgan Stanley Managing Director Adam Jonas told the Automotive News World Congress. Pent-up demand will fuel that rise, he said. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 8:32 pm U.S. Eastern time   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS More production means more cooperation with suppliers Rising production in North America has forced automakers to collaborate more closely with their suppliers. And suppliers, in turn, are reaching outside the auto industry to get help. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 4:09 pm U.S. Eastern time   2013 AUTOMOTIVE NEWS WORLD CONGRESS Panel sees autonomous driving, in select situations, by 2025 Autonomous driving in some situations will be a reality by 2025 but a fleet of fully autonomous cars on American roads is unlikely, a panel of auto industry executives said at the Automotive News World Congress. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 6:32 pm U.S. Eastern time   Magna expects emerging markets to boost 2013 sales Diversified auto parts supplier Magna International forecast stronger 2013 sales and profit margins, reflecting gains from fast-growth markets such as China and Brazil. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 2:16 pm U.S. Eastern time   VW's Mexican expansion leads push to boost N.A. sales Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn opened an engine factory in Mexico to drive forward the automaker's North American offensive. The plant will produce up to 330,000 engines a year. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 4:34 am U.S. Eastern time   Tesla readies first China store Tesla Motors plans to open a dealership in Beijing -- its first store in China -- this spring to establish a niche for its Tesla Model S electric sedan. George Blankenship, the company's vice president of worldwide sales, said the store will house an 8,000-square-foot facility, much larger than its U.S. ... >> story  Published: Jan 15 5:50 pm U.S. Eastern time   2013 DETROIT AUTO SHOW Tesla nimbly updates Model S over the air As a start-up company building a new vehicle in a new plant with many employees new to car assembly, Tesla Motors faces its share of challenges. But Tesla's small size has meant that running changes and product updates have occurred quickly, said Jerome Guillen, the company's director of Model S programs. ... >> story  Published: Jan 16 3:02 pm U.S. Eastern time

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