Automotive

Beyond a face-lift and a few techy upgrades, little value has been added to the latest version of Honda’s popular CR-V. So why is it so expensive, ponders Dan Neil.

Renault is planning to slash production capacity by a fifth and cut more than 14,000 jobs around the world, as the French auto giant grapples with a prolonged slump in the global car market.

Volkswagen is raising its share in a Chinese electric-vehicle joint venture and buying 26% stake in a local battery producer.

A woman on staff at the United Auto Workers filed a lawsuit claiming she was sexually harassed by higher-ranking UAW officials and that the union failed to take corrective action when she complained of the alleged incidents.

Nissan recorded a $6.2 billion loss in the year ended in March after it took big write-downs as part of a restructuring plan that aims to make the car maker leaner and more profitable.

The Renault-Nissan alliance said they would divide up their global car business, aiming to cut duplicate spending in order to save billions of dollars a year.

China’s political leaders have championed electric vehicles in hope of turning the country into a world power in next-generation transport, but domestic demand for EVs isn’t living up to expectations.

Germany’s highest civil court ruled against Volkswagen in the first case brought by customers seeking damages in connection with the car maker’s emissions-cheating scandal, a landmark ruling that could herald further litigation against Volkswagen and some competitors.

Brazil’s truck market will shrink at least 30% this year from 2019 as demand slumps amid the coronavirus crisis, says the president of Mercedes-Benz do Brasil.

A shortage of parts from Mexico is hampering GM’s plans to quickly ramp up production of high-profit pickups, underscoring the auto industry’s halting restart after a two-month shutdown from the pandemic.

Today’s Top Supply Chain & Logistics News from WSJ.

Ford stopped assembly lines at its Chicago plant for the second straight day, an early indication of the challenges the auto industry faces as production resumes after a two-month shutdown.

One deal that John Elkann, the scion of Italy’s Agnelli family, sealed has come undone and the other—a merger between Fiat Chrysler and Peugot—is threatened by the fallout from the coronavirus pandemic.

Auto makers have invested heavily in ride-hailing and car-sharing ventures, seeing them as potentially key to the industry’s future. But for now, consumers’ health concerns are helping to support car makers’ core business.

Today’s Top Supply Chain & Logistics News from WSJ.

Volkswagen, the world’s biggest car maker, saw its global sales shrink by almost half in April but—as lockdowns in the U.S. and Europe stunted demand—the reopening of China’s economy offered signs of recovery.

Ford executives tried to reassure investors the auto maker was on track with a plan to lift its beaten-down stock price, as a halting restructuring effort that began nearly two years ago has been complicated by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Tesla chief’s high-profile standoff with California authorities over restarting production comes as the electric-car maker faces steep competitive incentives not to lag behind its Midwest rivals.

Toyota said it believed the worst of the economic impact from the coronavirus pandemic was over, and auto sales could recover by the end of the year in its biggest markets.