The German new car market grew a nice 11.4 percent in March. For the first quarter of 2011, the German market is up by 13.9 percent. This according to monthly registration statistics, released by Germany’s Kraftfahrtbundesamt. The picture above however says more than the 306 words of this article. (Read More…)

In an oddly-timed 2 am (Tokyo time) filing, The Nikkei [sub] writes that “Toyota Motor Corp. has decided to reopen most of its domestic automobile plants as early as next week to start churning out a limited number of models.” (Read More…)

Would you believe that trading in China’s SAIC, joint venture partner of GM and Volkswagen, had been suspended since February now? Trading should resume soon, now that the world knows what the real reason for the monster halt is. It’s a long story. It all starts with the fact that there are two SAICs. (Read More…)

Yesterday,  Spyker CEO Muller said everything is peachy. Saab “is not on the verge of collapse,” Muller said to a rapt audience of reporters, while, as Reuters snidely remarked, “Saab was presenting new vehicles already shown at the Geneva auto show.” Muller promised that “a small glitch does not change the fact that cars are being made,” and that Saab would have the widest and newest range in its history next year. This year? No problem at all. Just that output would be  more weighted towards the second half of the year. Which in itself would be a miracle, and outpacing the competition, because in Europe, auto sales are more weighted towards the first half of the year. This was yesterday. Now is today. (Read More…)

When you have a problem, there usually is no shortage of well-meant advice. When it emerged that power shortage is the biggest problem of the quake- and tsunami-stricken Japanese auto industry, or the Japanese industry as whole, good advice came pouring in. It ranged from “why don’t they just park an aircraft carrier by the dock” to “what’s wrong with using generators?” What’s wrong with them? (Read More…)

Looking at the supply chain and transit times, it was easy to predict that the big American knock-on effect of the Japanese earthquake and tsunami would start to happen around – right now. To nobody’s surprise, The Nikkei [sub] writes this Tuesday morning in Tokyo that Toyota “is highly likely to halt all manufacturing operations at its factories in North America later this month due to parts supply disruptions.” It goes on to say that “the scale and the duration of the expected shutdown have yet to be decided, but all of Toyota’s 14 factories in North America could be affected.”

I could write that and finally go to bed, but my mother had told me to believe nobody. Not even a respected newswire that gave its name to the main Japanese stock index? Not even that. An early call to Toyota HQ reaches spokesman Dion Corbett, who has a completely different story. (Read More…)

The real big deal at BMW’s Innovation Days in Munich is the launch of a new family of engines. Actually what BMW launched was a single cylinder. That single, standardized cylinder becomes the basic building block of a series of in-line engines. They will have six, four, and (gasp) 3 cylinders. They will burn gasoline and oil. They will change the company. And possibly the way the ICE will be built. Gallery (for true pistonheads only) after the jump. (Read More…)

And finally, a car for the working masses. Never seen or sold before in Asia, we present to you: The new BMW 1 Series Coupe and the new BMW 1 Series Convertible. They look cute. And one is shown in the requisite red. Topless Einser gallery after the jump. Right this way .. (Read More…)

Now this is a car where the Chinese will say:”Leave it right here.” If not, it could get impounded for – they’ll find something.  Premiering the BMW 6 Series Coupe in China is a shrewd move. It should sell quite well here. It’s the car for the man or the woman who has everything, including two other chauffeured cars. The slightly cramped rear of a fast coupe is big enough for a few children (the true sign of affluence in China.)

No other stats available, except that it comes with a Heads-Up Display and Bang & Olufsen Surround Sound.  They should bring it in this red. Chinese love red.

Now we are getting from the concept cars to the kind of real ones. BMW electrified its BMW 1 Series Coupe and uses it as a test mule.  “The knowledge gained from field tests with the BMW ActiveE will be fed into the further development of the BMW Group’s future Megacity Vehicle, which will be ready for series production in the year 2013,” says BMW. Guess they had to come to China with a plug-in, even if it will never see production.

Honestly, I have no idea what this is. I googled it and found this great article, written after the concept was shown in Geneva. From what I can see, it’s more than a concept. It’s a vision of a concept. A vision that will most likely give Ray LaHood nights of distraction.  BMW Vision ConnectedDrive concept gallery after the jump. Right this way .. (Read More…)

I had planned to go to the Shanghai Auto Show which will open its doors to the press on April 19^th. Then BMW sent a long distance bomber over Beijing and carpet bombed me with pictures of everything they will show in Shanghai. Now I can save the money for the ticket and the hotel. I have seen all I need to see. Instead, we declare this Monday BMW Day. BMW Concept M5 gallery after the jump. Right this way .. (Read More…)

As a rally driver, you have a navigator in the other seat. What do you need him for? He knows the road ahead and tells you how to drive in the fastest and most efficient manner. As in “you want to take that turn at around 80. When you come out of the turn, stay in low, there’s another sharp right turn right behind that.” Or fewer words to that effect.

When I met Jutta Kleinschmidt, Volkswagen’s Touareg Dakar Rallye driver, she had this lithe Italian woman as a Navigator. “She’s a skinny little thing,” said Frau Kleinschmidt in her usual don’t-mess-with-me style, “but at least she doesn’t weigh much.”

BMW will do one better. Soon, BMW will give you a navigator that weighs just about nothing. As for the skinny little thing – let’s just say that you won’t be interested in the navigator of someone who lists her homepage here. But let’s not get sidetracked. (Read More…)

The Japanese tsunami impacts everything, from cars to toilet paper. Most Japanese car makers were closed since after the catastrophe and will remain closed at least until mid April. Many paper mills are in the affected area, and all paper, from glossy stock to the softer kind, is in short supply. Publishers of Japanese illustrated pulp fiction have canceled the printed version and direct their readers to the Internet instead. Tokyo corporations battle a wave of toilet rolls vanishing from their restrooms, from where they find a way to the toire at home. While these may be temporary outages, the lack of stable electrical power emerges more and more as the biggest impediment to the recovery of the Japanese industry. It will affect you and your car, in one way or the other. (Read More…)

Compared to smothering hugs, ample booze and possibly a little deniable blackmail, suing a media outlet rarely is the best way to perform the skillful art of public relations. This is what Tesla is finding out right now.

Most likely after throwing words of caution by its own PR folk to the wind, Tesla decided to bring a defamation suit against the BBC’s Top Gear. According to Tesla’s own blog, Top Gear perpetrated “serious and damaging lies,” such as claiming that “the Roadster’s true range is only 55 miles per charge. “ Of course, writes Tesla’s Communication VP Ricardo Reyes in the blog, Tesla is “not doing this for money. As the world leader in EV technology, Tesla owes it to the public to stop Top Gear’s disinformation campaign and provide the truth. “ (Read More…)