Auto News 5

The head of the UK distribution arm of SsangYong tells Dave Leggett that he expects the Korean brand to double its UK sales in 2015, boosted by the impact of the upcoming small SUV, Tivoli.

Magna Closures designs, engineers and manufactures a range of vehicle closure modules, systems and components for the automotive industry. In this interview, Matthew Beecham spoke to David O'Connell, Vice President - Global Engineering and R&D, Magna Mirrors & Magna Closures about the company's SmartLatch, PureView sliding window and how it strikes a balance between providing a door which improves side-crash safety yet reduces overall vehicle weight.

Michelin will nearly double the proportion of budget tires in its global sales mix to as much as 30 percent to counter the huge rise in Chinese imports sold in Europe and the U.S., CEO Jean-Dominique Senard told Automotive News Europe.

Michelin will nearly double the proportion of budget tires in its global sales mix to as much as 30 percent to counter the huge rise in Chinese imports sold in Europe and the U.S., CEO Jean-Dominique Senard told Automotive News Europe.

A severe slump in Russian car demand is making it harder for Skoda to meet its 2018 vehicle sales target. Skoda also must decide whether to reduce its investment budget for the country to protect overall profitability, a top executive said.

Mercedes owners in China are likely successful and wealthy entrepreneurs, a brand study of eight major luxury carmakers found. China will probably overtake the U.S. as the biggest premium auto market in 2016, analysts predict.

Mexico's relationship with German car production began nearly 50 years ago with output of VW's mass-market Beetle. Now it's becoming a place where luxury BMW, Audi and Mercedes cars roll out of billion-dollar factories.

Mexico's booming automobile industry is generating more export dollars than oil, building more cars than Brazil and giving a job to Esmeralda Velazquez. What it isn't doing is raising her living standards.

Hyundai Motor Group President Peter Schreyer gave Kia a fresh, familywide look after being hired from Volkswagen Group in 2006. Now he's doing the same for Hyundai, for which he took design responsibility in 2012.

The latest issue of the Automotive News Europe monthly e-magazine goes live on Monday, Dec. 1. This month's edition looks at how German premium automakers plan to profit from plug-in hybrids.

Michelin will nearly double the proportion of budget tires in its global sales mix to as much as 30 percent to counter the huge rise in Chinese imports sold in Europe and the U.S., CEO Jean-Dominique Senard told Automotive News Europe.

Drivers of new vehicles from Jaguar Land Rover soon will be able to get a restaurant tip using voice-recognition instead of opening an app on the dashboard.

A severe slump in Russian car demand is making it harder for Skoda to meet its 2018 vehicle sales target. Skoda also must decide whether to reduce its investment budget for the country to protect overall profitability, a top executive said.

Audi randd boss Ulrich Hackenberg provided a concise answer when asked why the carmaker's fuel cell also needs plug-in hybrid technology.

Allegations of rampant bribery at China FAW Group Corp.'s joint venture with VW should provide an urgent wake-up call to the government to abandon the country's JV rule for foreign automakers.

ZF, which agreed to buy TRW, expects the combined company's sales of driver-assist safety systems to grow by up to 25 percent a year. The technology will be the "major" part of the combined firm's $2.1 billion randd budget, ZF CEO Stefan Sommer said.

Audi is dipping its toe into car sharing, but with a premium twist. The automaker has started two pilot programs in Europe -- one in Stockholm and another in Berlin.

The European Commission next month will outline progress on future emission targets for new cars sold in the EU, giving automakers a clearer look at the billions of euros in investment that will be needed to meet tougher goals.

Takata's airbag crisis linked to five fatal auto accidents threatens to shake confidence in Japanese manufacturing and the country's auto industry, the nation's transport minister said.

From GMM

Jean-Eric Vergne says he was a contender to replace the Ferrari-bound Sebastian Vettel at Red Bull.

But the Frenchman, who has instead been dropped from the energy drink company's F1 roster altogether, explained that circumstances simply conspired against him in 2014.

When Mark Webber retired at the end of 2013, 24-year-old Vergne was disappointed to lose out on the seat to his Toro Rosso teammate Daniel Ricciardo.

A similar story unfolded this year: when Vettel made his shock decision to go to Ferrari for 2015, Red Bull once again chose Vergne's Toro Rosso teammate - now the Russian rookie Daniil Kvyat - as the successor.

Daniil Kvyat and Jean-Eric Vergne, Toro Rosso. (Photo: WRi2)

Jean-Eric Vergne, who now appears likely to rescue his F1 career with the Williams reserve role next year, told the French broadcaster Canal Plus: "What really didn't help me is that Red Bull had no idea that Vettel was going to go.

"They had had to sign and announce (Max) Verstappen very quickly, so obviously they were going to replace him with the older driver, because it made no sense to replace Daniil Kvyat after just half a season at Toro Rosso," he explained.

"Although the people at Red Bull had told me that if Vettel left the team it would be me who would replace him, I think it was difficult to reverse a decision that was made in August when they said I would not be with Toro Rosso or Red Bull in 2015.

"But at that time they had no idea that Vettel was going," Jean-Eric Vergne added.