Inside the Industry

DeltaWing Technologies reveals street-legal four-passenger DeltaWing

(May 28, 2014) BRASELTON, Ga. — DeltaWing Technologies today revealed how the groundbreaking DeltaWing architecture — a highly aerodynamic and lightweight design currently competing in IMSA sports car road races in the form of the DeltaWing race car — could look as a street-legal, four-passenger car.

Bolt family of Dallas buys 50,000th Nissan Leaf in U.S.

(May 28, 2014) DALLAS — It’s fitting that another major milestone for the Nissan Leaf was created by a family — with the last name “Bolt” — that decided to drive electric.

“We needed a fourth car (with) three drivers, so we started doing the math and it just made sense,” said Todd Bolt, a pastor at Gateway Church in Southlake, Texas.

Todd and Lisa Bolt live in Dallas, and their purchase of a Nissan Leaf put the car over the 50,000-sales mark in the U.S.

GM earns spot as top innovator

(May 27, 2014) DETROIT— Dreaming up ideas that benefit drivers is interesting; commercializing those ideas into real product features is when customers take notice. An indicator of General Motors’ commitment to creating customer-driven innovation can be found in the results of two leading studies — the Patent Board and Clean Energy Patent Growth Index. Together they show that GM is a leader in overall patent filings and those focused on clean energy technology.

GM finished first in overall industry patent filings for the 11th consecutive quarter, according to the Patent Board.

Mitsubishi L200 pickup hits 1.1 million sales worldwide

(May 27, 2014) Mitsubishi Motors has announced a significant milestone passing 1,100,000 global sales for the current generation L200 pickup truck since launch in 2005.

“Over the last nine years, 1,148,000 L200s have been sold with Thai domestic sales totaling 263,000 units and export sales 885,000 units,” said Masahiko Ueki, president, Mitsubishi Motors Thailand.

All-new Volvo XC90 officially launched today

(May 27, 2014) GOTEBORG, Sweden — One of Volvo's most anticipated car launches in years — the all-new XC90 — begins today. Volvo Cars has created a launch program that will unveil the car from the inside out, meaning that it will start by disclosing the many new interior features of the car and culminate in the full external reveal in August.

New Ford Transit debuts with industry-first paint technology

(May 27, 2014) CLAYCOMO, MO. — The all-new Ford Transit makes its North American debut with more durable paint, thanks to an industry-first paint technology now in use at Kansas City Assembly Plant. Ford celebrated the start of North American Transit production at Kansas City Assembly Plant on April 30, and vans will be available on U.S. and Canadian dealer lots this summer.

Volvo Trucks triumphs at world's toughest ad contest

(May 26, 2014) LONDON — The Live Test campaign for Volvo Trucks’ new truck range received a Black Pencil and three Yellow Pencil awards at the revered D&AD Awards - the world’s toughest advertising competition. The honors are the latest accolades for the campaign which also received Best in Show at The One Show and The Black Cube award at the ADC Awards advertising competition.

Volkswagen reveals first technical details of all-new Passat

(May 26, 2014) Volkswagen has revealed the first technical details of the all-new European-spec Passat sedan and wagon, ahead of the cars’ unveiling in July and the public premiere at the Paris Motor Show in October. The eighth-generation Passat will bring with it a range of new technologies and features, to ensure that even after 41 years and over 23 million sales worldwide, it remains as competitive as ever.

Snoopy license plate to help fund California museums

(May 25, 2014) SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — The California state legislature unanimously passed a bill this past week with bipartisan support to recognize the essential role that museums have in California as educational institutions. This overwhelming endorsement complements a program underway to put the beloved beagle Snoopy on California license plates and help fund the state's museums at the same time.

All-new 2015 Hyundai Sonata to begin under $22,000

(May 25, 2014) FOUNTAIN VALLEY, Calif. — Hyundai has announced pricing for the all-new 2015 Sonata beginning at $21,960 including destination charge. From the base model 2015 Sonata 2.4-liter to a new range-topping Sport 2.0T Ultimate that offers class-above features such as hands-free Smart Trunk, Smart Cruise Control with stop/start capability, panoramic sunroof, heated and ventilated seats and a heated steering wheel, the 2015 Sonata appeals to a wider range of customers than ever before.