Ford and Volkswagen cosied up last year, cementing their relationship in an automotive alliance announced earlier this year, but could the same thing happen with Fiat Chrysler and France’s resurgent PSA Group?

PSA, which plans to sell Peugeots in North America by 2026, is reportedly hunting for a partner, and FCA Mike Manley isn’t ruling out the possibility. (Read More…)

We’re a long way from the days when the United Kingdom not only hosted a slew of independent automakers, it owned some of them. For decades, brands fell away as most of the remaining automakers found new parents living on the wrong side of the English Channel. Jaguar, Land Rover, Rolls-Royce, Bentley, Mini, Lotus, and now Morgan.

Known for its famed 3-Wheeler and persistence in retaining wood construction elements and running boards, the 110-year-old automaker just handed a majority stake to an Italian investment firm. The sound you hear might be Union Jacks being lowered in Malvern Link. (Read More…)

It might not be your author’s cup of tea, but Mitsubishi’s Engelberg Tourer — a crossover show vehicle whose name sounds like that of a nagged German child — is the face the resurgent brand wants to put forward.

It’s also a good hint at what we can expect from the next-generation Outlander, once Mitsu gets around to revamping its largest model. (Read More…)

Fiat Chrysler’s reputation as an automaker that scoffs at fuel economy mandates is slowly being chipped away. Never mind the much-loathed Fiat 500e; it was the Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid that really got the ball rolling, with eTorque-engined Ram 1500s upping the company’s green cred for 2019.

At this week’s Geneva Motor Show, the high-flying Jeep brand revealed the next salvo in its bid to lower corporate emissions while wooing eco-conscious (or heavily taxed) overseas buyers: Two crossovers, each bearing a plug-in hybrid drivetrain. (Read More…)

As promised, Mazda threw the sheets off its mystery vehicle at the Geneva Motor Show, revealing a small crossover that’s not too small.

The brand’s CX-3 often earns gripes for its diminutive size and limited interior volume, not to mention its middling ground clearance, but until today there was nothing to bridge the gap between CX-3 and the automaker’s wildly popular CX-5 (unless you live in China, which has exclusive access to the CX-4). With its new CX-30, Mazda enters the middle ground between compact and subcompact. (Read More…)

In the auto realm, the term “bailout” doesn’t normally refer to the actual granting of bail, but Renault and alliance partner Nissan wasn’t in need of outside assistance — their former boss was.

After multiple attempts to secure release from a Tokyo detention center met with failure, Carlos Ghosn, arrested on suspicion of financial misconduct on Nov. 19, could gain limited freedom as early as Wednesday. Late Monday, word came that a Tokyo court finally granted bail to the former Renault CEO and Nissan chairman.

The high-flying industry titan who once rented the palace of Versailles for his wedding (using company funds, since paid back) has been behind bars for over 100 days. (Read More…)

Two fatal Tesla crashes in Florida last week, one of which bears a striking similarity to an earlier 2016 crash, have the NHTSA and NTSB on their toes.

While both federal safety agencies are looking into Friday’s West Delray, Florida collision, which involved a Model 3 and transport truck, only the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is probing the previous Sunday’s Davie, Florida crash. Both groups want to know if Autopilot was turned on at the time of impact. (Read More…)

In jurisdictions that allow motorists some semblance of freedom (*cough* not future Europe *cough*), speed limiters aren’t a common topic of conversation. But they do exist, and many an American pickup owner has hit the governor while passing motorists in open territory.

Volvo Cars isn’t concerned about your gross vehicle weight rating, tire speed rating, or any of that stuff. In the interest of safety, the automaker plans to introduce a speed ceiling for all of its vehicles, even if it means pissing off Germans. (Read More…)

Hoping to start this week in better form than last week, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to Twitter Sunday to generate buzz ahead of the Model Y’s debut. The upcoming crossover, based on the Model 3 sedan, will see the light of day on March 14th at the company’s L.A. design studio, Musk said.

As for when customers can expect to see one, that’s a matter for the bookies. (Read More…)

Much like in the pre-1985 era and a short spell from 2006-2007, every last one of you woke up this morning in a world without the Ford Taurus. The historic nameplate met its end on Friday at Ford’s Chicago assembly plant, with the automaker choosing to honor the model’s service through a media release.

At the same time, workers at General Motors’ Lordstown Assembly marked a much more solemn occasion. The last Chevrolet Cruze made its way through the plant’s body shop Friday afternoon, and with its completion comes the idling of a plant opened in 1966. (Read More…)

Just how much the polar vortex and a chillier than normal February weighed on U.S. vehicle sales is up for debate, but Ford Motor Company felt the buying public’s cold shoulder last month. Actually, make that just the Ford brand. The Blue Oval division saw a 5.1 percent drop in sales, year over year, last month, thought its luxury stablemate continued its strong early 2019 showing.

The good news for Lincoln comes before anyone has a chance to buy what’s widely seen as the brand’s savior: the Aviator midsize crossover. (Read More…)

It already does, in a sense, but you’re only punished for exceeding a posted speed limit if the long arm of the law catches you in the act.

Flashing lights in the rear-view or a photo radar ticket in the mailbox can ruin our day, but the relative absence of cops and cameras on most roadways means most of us can still “make good time” on our journeys. However, with pedestrian fatalities on the rise (and governments across the country looking for easy fixes), some lawmakers might find inspiration from Europe.

Just the other day, Ronnie told us of the decision by European Parliament to mandate speed limiters on all cars. Are you willing to drive Miss Daisy, all the time, to help your fellow man? (Read More…)

After roaring out of the recession with revamped offerings and soaring sales, Hyundai and its Kia sister brand now face a seemingly endless slew of recalls. The latest involve a trio of popular crossovers, with the automaker warning of potential engine damage if the matter goes unaddressed. (Read More…)

Is the long-awaited, stripped-down $35,000 Tesla Model 3 profitable? Company CEO Elon Musk won’t say, brushing off the question during a late Thursday conference call.

“Yeah, we’re not going to talk about that. Next question,” said Musk, who last fall warned that releasing the lower-priced car prematurely could sink the company. The nearly three-year wait period for the 220-mile electric sedan saw a constantly evolving end date, though the anticipated March deliveries jibes with Musk’s October prediction of four to six months.

What doesn’t jibe is Musk’s Thursday admittance that, after two profitable quarters, his company will likely sink back into the red. (Read More…)

Ford’s Fusion sedan has found itself in the headlines for illicit cross-border shipments before, and you know what they say about history repeating.

Regarded as the delivery vehicle of choice after caches of Mexican marijuana were found in U.S.-market models built at Ford’s Hermosillo plant, the sedan’s unlikely double life continues apace. Cartel operatives continue using the model in their smuggling operation, recently shipping a different type of drug to a country with absolutely no use for extra marijuana. (Read More…)