Audi might show its SUV for Lilliputians, the Q3, at the Frankfurt Auto Show in September for a launch later in the year. At least that’s what the buzz in Europe is. (Read More…)

After a less than enthusiastic welcome, Nissan is pulling its Made in Japan Cube from the European market, less than a year after its introduction. Journalists loved the car. But customers hated its shape and high price. (Read More…)

Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat SpA and Chrysler Group, announced plans to bring the hecho en Mexico Fiat 500 to China. According to Gasgoo, Marchionne told reporters during the Detroit Auto Show that half of the 120,000 units built in the Toluca factory is destined for North America. The other half will be exported to China and Brazil. (Read More…)

All Chinese drive bicycles, make that cheap QQs. No, all Chinese drive big Buicks, I mean, all Chinese are chauffeured around in A6s and Mercedes S-Class.

All wrong. So, what do Chinese really drive? (Read More…)

One of the few automakers that are not manufacturing in China yet is Porsche. This could change. Porsche will decide this year whether they will build the new Cajun in China, Porsche CEO Matthias Müller told Focus Magazine. (Read More…)

And here another BYD first: BYD is the first Chinese company to perform a massive dealer cull.  “BYD has admitted its sales network grew too fast and has cut the number of dealerships by 100,” reports People’s Daily. (Read More…)

„The naming of the Chevrolet Volt as the North American Car of the Year at the Detroit Auto Show last week is sparking some controversy,” reports the Chosun Ilbo from Korea. “The main reason for the skepticism is that the Volt has sold only some 300 units since its launch a month ago. It is the first time that a car with such limited sales has won the award.”

The real sales could be less. “A GM source at the motor show admitted that the Volt’s sales were refigured at the last minute for the award,” writes the paper. What really bothers them: (Read More…)

Toyota’s minicar subsidiary Daihatsu is leaving Europe. Daihatsu will end auto sales in Europe on Jan. 31, 2013, The Nikkei [sub] reports. Reason given: “The yen’s strength has made exporting vehicles from Japan next to impossible.” (Read More…)

Europe’s car manufacturer association ACEA finally got around to tallying-up the car sales in all 27 EU states, and while they were at it, those of the EFTA (Iceland, Norway, Switzerland) as well. Overall, the EU market is down 5.5 percent – compared to 2009. In 2009 many EU states had pushed up the market with generous cash for clunker money. Most of these programs came to an end in 2010, just not at the same time everywhere. The picture tells it best. (Read More…)

Here is some good news for all of those who are afraid that China’s ravenous appetite for cars will drive the cost of gasoline to obscene levels. The Chinese government is seriously attacking the infrastructure conundrum that plagues EVs: By 2020, China wants to have at least 10 million car parking spots for electric vehicles. (Read More…)

If you like your appliance-style Toyota (there is statistical proof that you are not alone) then better run and buy it now. The Nikkei [sub] rattles its readers this morning with the news that Toyota “plans to build vehicles that are more eye-catching to counter criticism its cars are too bland,” (Read More…)

“A naked woman on the beach and much more accessible.”

Chrysler Group design chief Ralph Gilles, after having been asked what designers have in mind when they draw the replacement of the Dodge Viper. We’ll show you the clay model of the new Viper. But you have been warned. (Read More…)

Whoa! Is there a doctor in the house? We seem to have a bit of a situation here. UAW’s President Bob King threatened that the union will label anti-union companies as human-rights abusers. (Read More…)

EVs are the darling of the media. In Europe, the Leaf is the COTY. In the U.S. and Canada, the range extended Volt is the COTY. Then why are most big European manufacturers (except Renault) and most Japanese manufacturers (except Nissan) dragging their heels when it comes to wholesale electrification of their fleets? Maybe because they are working on wholesale adoption of hydrogen. As previously reported, there are agreements between automakers and governments in Europe, North America, Korea and Japan to prepare for the mass introduction of fuel cell cars by 2015. Japan is ahead of the game. (Read More…)

Japan is the world’s center of gravity for plug-ins one actually can buy. News from the land of Nippon also illustrate a little detail that prevents EVs from wholesale adoption.

There is an EV conundrum that had been largely overlooked or ignored amongst the hype: So you need a charging station in your garage. What if you don’t have your own garage, because you live in an apartment complex? Range-challenged EVs are targeted at dense cities, and where do people live in dense cities? (Read More…)