The coronavirus pandemic took a sizable bite out of new car registrations in the European Union last month. Volume was down 51.8 percent in March (including the United Kingdom), according to the European Auto Industry Association. While some of the absent vehicles are potentially waiting on official documents to come through after lockdown measures ease, most can be explained by the general lack of demand. Everyone knew last month would be a tough one, with the nations experiencing worst outbreaks likely see the largest sales disparities.

While no country was left unscathed, Reuters reports that Italy performed quite poorly in comparison to its neighbors. As it was the first European nation to report widespread contagion of COVID-19, that’s hardly surprising, and may indicate that its neighbors are about to find themselves in a similarly undesirable situation.  Read More >

The earnings picture is growing gloomier at Ford, with the automaker now preparing investors for a steep loss in the first quarter of the year. After posting a poor Q4 report for the end of 2019, some of that pre-pandemic weight could carry over onto this report card — where it will mix with U.S. sales that tanked in the middle of March.

If only it was American sales Ford needed to worry about. Read More >

Today’s Rare Ride is just one of the many attempts General Motors made throughout the 1980s and ’90s to chase after those youthful customers who ate dinner after 5:15 p.m.

It’s an aggressive Buick LeSabre T-Type from 1988.

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Years ago, your humble author was in Los Angeles for the auto show, finding his cellphone suddenly dead. He stumbled into a nearby mall while Verizon’s techs worked their magic, then wandered through the Ferrari store, amazed at how much stuff the iconic exotic brand could slap its badging on.

While you almost certainly won’t be able to buy the retail, and certainly you wouldn’t want to acquire one by being a COVID-19 patient, there will be Ferrari-branded respirator valves.

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The shutdown of Nissan’s U.S. manufacturing plants on March 20th was initially expected to last until April 6th. A good-enough timeline, one supposes, as Nissan (like all other automakers) waited to see exactly how bad the surging coronavirus pandemic would get… and how local and state governments would move to combat it.

You know the rest. April 6th came and went, as did all other early production restart dates in the industry, with no returning workers. Minding its constrained funds, Nissan laid off 10,000 U.S. workers on April 7th. Now, there’s a new return date — not actually a specific one, but one the automaker might actually stick to. Read More >

After being understandably cagey about its plans to resume North American production, Fiat Chrysler appears to be ready to get back to work. Well, eventually.

After other automakers cautiously penned new return dates this week, FCA did the same, telling suppliers on Wednesday that its restart will be a multi-phase operation. Sadly for those awaiting the launch of Jeep’s two largest models, March’s industry shutdown has pushed their dream vehicles further into the future. Read More >

Few C-suites undergo renovations quite as often as Ford’s. The automaker’s executive ranks have again seen a revision, with the biggest promotion going to Kumar Galhotra (pictured above), formerly president of Ford’s North American region and ex-boss of the Lincoln brand — a role he earned considerable kudos for.

Elsewhere in the shakeup, which was ordered by recently minted chief operating officer Jim Farley following a 10-week “deep dive,” are promotions and additions designed, among other things, to sharpen “Ford’s focus on product and launch execution.” Among the new hires? A former Israeli intelligence officer.

It seems last year’s botched Explorer/Aviator roll-out continues to make ripples. Read More >

Ford Performance has expanded its catalog, adding tunes for the Mustang and Ranger that should make mashing the right pedal a tad more exciting. While the pony car kit is basically an extension of the staged Power Packs already on sale, just for the 2018-2020 model years, the Ranger package is rather novel — as this is the first factory tune available for the model in North America.

It also happens to offer noteworthy performance gains. Read More >

Volkswagen has decided to waive up to six months of payments for customers who lost their jobs due to the economic complications of the coronavirus pandemic. Of course, there’s a catch. Customers have to qualify for VW’s expansion of its “Community-Driven Promise” and must have recently purchased a new vehicle, though avenues exist to help existing customers who aren’t brazen enough to buy a new car after a viral outbreak.

The manufacturer previously said it would defer payments up to 90 days for existing Volkswagen Credit (VCI) customers affected by the economic crisis. While most automakers are trying to sweeten the pot while demand is down, deals and relief packages have rolled out pretty gradually. By contrast, VW seems to be doing quite a bit all at once — here’s how one goes about getting into those programs.  Read More >

While it remains to be seen whether the revamped 2021 Cadillac Escalade enters production on schedule this summer, other details about General Motors’s loftiest SUV have begun leaking out.

One item concerns the vehicle’s price, while the other tidbit might interest those who have a difficult time separating their eco-consciousness from their economic reality. Read More >

Ford is experimenting with social-distancing wristbands as a way to mitigate the spread of the novel coronavirus once factories reopen. In recent weeks, the company has tested various preventative measures at facilities where it swapped from building cars to producing ventilators and respirators to supply hospitals amid the health crisis. While much of that effort revolved around good hygiene practices and the addition of sanitizing stations near assembly areas, Ford also experimented with some outside-the-box ideas.

Workers are now required to complete daily health questionnaires about how they feel and who they’ve been in contact with. But that’s just the start. Most automotive manufacturers are trying to establish a framework allowing employees to return to work without risking secondary outbreaks. For Ford, that means testing dozens of options while factories remain shuttered so the most-useful strategy can be implemented as things return to normal.

What counts as “normal” in this not-distant future sounds like it will be very different than what would have qualified before the pandemic.  Read More >

Thanks to our friends at J.D. Power, we’ve been able to offer up weekly insights into the greatest disruption to the nation’s auto industry since World War 2. It’s a volatile time, with major changes occurring week to week, rather than over the course of months and years, and the disruption remains highly dependent on region and the legislative proclamations of various states.

Last week’s sales results tell us the great weakening of the U.S. new vehicle market has reached rock bottom, with no signs of further digging. It’s also not as deep a trench as the firm’s analysts predicted. Read More >

The upcoming Ford Bronco and its baby sibling, Bronco Sport, have been inspiring a lot of dreaming around these parts.

We’re even dreaming of a Bronco that dances.

No, that’s not a quarantine-inspired fever dream. It’s inspired by a new report from Motor1 that suggests that the next Bronco will, indeed, be able to two-step. So to speak.

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Acura is trying to get its act together by placing a stronger emphasis on performance in the years ahead. We’ve seen the physical manifestation of that strategy in the Type S Concept. While not intended for production, it foreshadows the next-generation TLX — which is presumed to offer improved powertrain options (as well as returning all-wheel drive) and a sporting variant bearing formerly defunct Type-S badging.

While Acura hasn’t exactly been secretive about its plans regarding performance models, the company has avoided confirming anything for production. But we’re getting closer to that moment. An application filed with the United States Patent and Trademark Office for the name “TLX Type S” on March 25th indicates Honda is readying its luxury division for something special.  Read More >

Honda was one of the first automakers to announce a shutdown of North American vehicle production, with the Detroit Three (and others) quickly following suit after the company’s March 18th proclamation. Initially pegged at an optimistic 6 days, the shutdown saw the automaker’s plants go dark on March 23rd.

Fast-forward a few weeks and the shutdown still has a ways to go, with Mexico now seeing an extension of its idle period. Meanwhile, U.S. employees now can look forward to no pay. Read More >