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REPORT: Chinese automaker SAIC accused of hybrid tech theft by SsangYong

In the beginning of the decade, before SsangYong got into really deep doo-doo, the Korean automaker began work on a hybrid control unit (HCU) with German engineering firm FEV. From 2004 to 2008, as the research continued, the South Korean government provided nearly half of the financial resources for the development of the technology. In 2005, as Ssangyong's stumbles began, Chinese automaker SAIC took a majority stake in the Korean company. A year later, in 2006, SAIC saw the success SsangYong was having with the HCU and allegedly ... Read more →

GM's Liquidation Motors stock reportedly still worth $370M, can't be sold short Jonathon Ramsey

When General Motors entered into Chapter 11 bankruptcy over the summer, its bad assets were moved into a firm called Motors Liquidation Company (MLC). That company was capitalized with more than 600 ...

VIDEO: Seattle earthquake viaduct simulation released; timing politically motivated? Jonathon Ramsey

The Alaskan Way Viaduct (AWV) is an elevated roadway running along the Elliot Bay Waterway in Seattle. An earthquake in 2001 damaged the viaduct, and the structural degradation has only gotten ...

REPORT: Utah DoT admits higher speed limits has worked out to less speeding Jonathon Ramsey

When the Utah DOT raised the speed limit on two pieces of I-15 from 75 mph to 80 mph, it discovered that driving habits didn't change. When the limit was 75 mph, the Utah DoT found that drivers ...

VIDEO: Finnish Him: Nordic authorities' harpoon chase-ender amazingly never approved Jonathon Ramsey

The place is Finland. The car is a Mercedes 300 wagon. The place is Finland. The protrusion, like the figurehead adorning Ahab's Pequod, is a harpoon. Instead of catching whales, however, this ...

Former President Bush asks Obama to exit the car business 27 days ago on Autoblog

When Former President George W. Bush spoke to the Montreal Board of Trade recently, he made a public appeal to the Obama administration to "get out of the private sector," adding "I hope our government gets out of the autos and the financials in which they have a stake." His premise is that it ...

REPORT: Jeep Wrangler safe from CARB "Cool Cars" proposal 28 days ago on Autoblog

Remember California's "Cool Cars" regulation? Coming into force in 2012, the rule requires manufacturers to install windows that prevent 45% of the sun's energy from entering a vehicle by 2014, and 60% by 2016. It's the law that no one thinks is cool at all. In a minor victory against The Golden ...

Shreveport, LA mayor lobbies D.C. to close the HUMMER deal, already 29 days ago on Autoblog

Cedric Glover, the mayor of Shreveport, Louisiana, went to Washington, D.C. to plead his case for the sale of Hummer to Tengzhong. The only thing is, we're not sure why he went. To be more precise, we do know that he wants to protect jobs at GM's Shreveport plant that builds Hummers. The plant ...

Recork the Champagne? China says Hummer paperwork not submitted yet 1 month ago on Autoblog

Last week, it was reported that General Motors had signed a definitive agreement to sell Hummer to Chinese machinery manufacturer Tengzhong. The Chinese company and its partner in the deal, Lumena Resources Corp., would pay $150 million and receive Hummer and its intellectual property, ownership ...

REPORT: Major obstacle cleared as Swedish government to guarantee $615M EIB loan for Saab 1 month ago on Autoblog

A major hurdle in Saab's transfer to the homegrown hands of Sweden's Koenigsegg has been surmounted: the Swedish government has agreed to guarantee a 4.3 billion kroner ($615M U.S.) loan from the European Investment Bank to the Koenigsegg consortium. That represents the final funding the maker ...

NYT straps on its helmet and wades into the brain bucket controversy 1 month ago on Autoblog

There's a bit of controversy going on in the helmet world, and it has a direct impact – pun intended – on every motorcycle rider trying to protect his or her head while looking for the best helmet to buy. All helmets approved for sale in the United States are tested and approved by the ...

Obama administration slaps hefty import tariffs on Chinese-made tires 2 months ago on Autoblog

The aggrieved parties are: the United Steelworkers and the U.S. government on one side, Chinese tire companies and the Chinese government on the other. The issues are, as always, jobs and money. The Steelworkers brought a case against Chinese tire companies for dumping tires on the U.S. market ...

You didn't think the battle for Opel was over, did you? Belgium reportedly asking EU to investigate 2 months ago on Autoblog

When GM decided to hand 55% of Opel to Magna, you didn't think the Belgians were just going to have some waffles and call it quits, did you? Oh no. Belgium's prime minister made a call to the EU president about the deal, and the EU Competition Commissioner Neelie Kroes told a Belgian newspaper, ...

REPORT: 'Old' Chrysler defaulting on loan obligations 2 months ago on Autoblog

Before there was a Motors Liquidation Co, post-bankruptcy GM's hived-off shelter for useless assets, there was Old Carco LLC. That's the company Chrysler built to house its useless assets, and unsurprisingly, it doesn't have good news for unsecured creditors. Old Carco was left with liabilities ...

REPORT: U.S. psyched as China decides to cut auto part tariffs 2 months ago on Autoblog

China joined the World Trade Organization in 2001, at which point it was given five years to adjust to the rules of open trade before any complaints were lodged against it. On schedule, in 2006, the complaints began, lodged by the U.S., Europe, and Canada. In one example of open trade ...

Cash for Clunkers over, dealer deadline for filing extended indefinitely 2 months ago on Autoblog

If you're a car dealer, chances are that you're not visiting Autoblog this morning to see what's going on. No, your head and the head of every single one of your employees is buried in a keyboard right now, frantically refreshing the government's website that handles Cash for Clunkers ...

The tale that wagged the dog: Cerberus' Stephen Feinberg speaks 3 months ago on Autoblog

Now that the crime is over, the verdict issued and the sentencing issued, we can look forward to a few months years of the CSI treatment applied to what really happened at Chrysler. The first exhibit is a New York Times piece with Cerberus co-founder Stephen Feinberg, coming off almost as The ...

Tata gets private-sector loan, doesn't need UK government money 3 months ago on Autoblog

Tata's target was £1 billion ($1.65B U.S.) in loans to keep the JLR group going. And while Tata is in talks with the U.K government about providing a large chunk of that, some of the government's terms -- like veto power over management decisions-- prevented Tata from pulling the trigger. ...

RHJ ups offer for Opel, commits to Vauxhall, has "good chances of winning" 3 months ago on Autoblog

Belgian investment firm RHJ, once considered a back-up bidder for Opel, is now considered a front-runner – at least according to its own CEO. RHJ head Leonhard Fischer has already told U.K. officials that the company is committed to retaining the Vauxhall name, and speaking to German ...

REPORT: GM gets out from under its polluted sites scot-free 3 months ago on Autoblog

Among those clamoring for attention and payouts from Motors Liquidation Co., the company that assumed General Motors' unwanted assets after its Chapter 11 filing, are the environmental and economic redevelopment departments of state governments. According to reports, when GM exited bankruptcy, ...

REPORT: New GM entitled to $16 billion in federal tax breaks courtesy of Old GM 3 months ago on Autoblog

Due to what appears to be a slight (additional) bending of the rules, the "new," post-bankruptcy General Motors has been allowed to carry the $16 billion net operating loss that was created by the "old" GM. That means that New GM will not have to pay taxes on its profits for a while, because the ...

REPORT: Dealers now allowed to kill C4C engines after they get rebate checks 3 months ago on Autoblog

Last week, there were gasps all around as people watched how a Cash-for-Clunkers trade-in meets its smoky end. Even though the program was blessed with a $2B lifeline to continue, there may be fewer silicate glass engine deaths from now on since dealers have been granted the option of waiting to ...

Senators mulling a nationwide ban on texting while driving 3 months ago on Autoblog

Last time we checked in with the issue of texting while driving, the NHTSA practically claimed it was gagged by Congress. Fast forward a week -- after the New York Times report and the results of a Virginia Tech study -- and now a group of Democratic senators is proposing a nationwide ban on ...

Colorado pulling popular cancer awareness license plate over funding controversy? 3 months ago on Autoblog

Colorado's specialty "Committed to a Cure" license plate was rolled out in 2005. According to the women behind it, the goal was to "create broad awareness about the breast cancer crusade," and Coloradans have paid $50 to put the plates on their cars. A recently passed bill in the Colorado ...

REPORT: Cash-For-Clunkers dealers instructed to kill engines with sodium silicate 3 months ago on Autoblog

According to Bloomberg, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration got wind that some cars being turned in under Germany's Cash-For-Clunkers program were being certified as destroyed, but actually being resold. To prevent that scenario from repeating itself in the U.S., land of Honest Abe, ...

REPORT: NHTSA withheld results of studies on cell phone use while driving because of Congress 4 months ago on Autoblog

As always, it ain't the crime, it's the cover-up. In what looks to be Congress protecting its turf, a planned study by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration on driver distraction – specifically, drivers using cell phones – was put on hold. The reason, according to The New ...

REPORT: Government ends warranty programs for GM, Chrysler 4 months ago on Autoblog

On March 30, President Obama announced that the federal government would back the warranties of General Motors and Chrysler in the event of bankruptcy. When the president says the word "backing," he means cold, hard cash, and in this case the total was $641 million. But with both companies out of ...

British government drags its feet, Tata threatens to cancel Indica EV for the UK 4 months ago on Autoblog

In January, the UK government set aside £2.3 billion for loan guarantees to help automakers start producing electric cars on the island. In April, Tata applied for £10 billion from the program to build its Indica Vista EV. Last week the Indian firm was told that it would be another ...

Korean police to storm Ssangyong factory occupied by fired workers? 4 months ago on Autoblog

Earlier this year, when Ssangyong was allowed to continue as a going concern, the company had to let go of around 900 workers. Those workers (above) then effectively said "all your factory are belong to us," and staged a sit-in at the South Korean production facility that subsequently turned ...

Mexican Cash-for-Clunkers program announced, only brands built in country are eligible 4 months ago on Autoblog

Mexican President Felipe Calderon has announced a Cash-for-Clunkers program for buyers wishing to trade their cars in for something locally produced. So far, 500 million pesos ($37M USD) have been set aside for the program, but Calderone has reportedly said the subsidy could be doubled to one ...

NHTSA: Drunk driving is down, but 16.3% of nighttime drivers are on drugs 4 months ago on Autoblog

Recently, the U.K. began to consider a law that would address drivers under the influence of drugs, and was looking at using a device that would act like a breathalyzer for narcotics instead of alcohol. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration might want to make the same recommendation ...

Marchionne confirms Fiat still interested in Opel 4 months ago on Autoblog

Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne, watching the travails of GM, Opel and Magna from his comfy Italian perch, has sent word that his previous offer for Opel is still on the table if anyone is interested. That offer, though, can't be sweetened because he doesn't "believe we could improve Fiat's offer. It's ...

New GM will take on future product liability claims, but not the current ones, against Old GM 4 months ago on Autoblog

A consumer group representing people who currently have product liability claims against GM and Chrysler looks like it won't be getting much, if any, restitution. When GM went into bankruptcy, it still planned to deny any liability claims -- ones that came up today, for instance -- when the new GM ...

GM worried about Magna deal for Opel, sign backup deal with RHJ, Beijing Automotive 4 months ago on Autoblog

When it came to buying Opel, Fiat's Sergio Marchionne told GM and the German government: "If you have a better offer, take it." They both took Magna, along with its Russian partners Sberbank and GAZ, because that consortium offered a better competitive arrangement and fewer job cuts in Germany. The ...

Comcast pulls ad criticizing GM, Chrysler to review claims 4 months ago on Autoblog

A group called the Ad Hoc Committee of Consumer Victims of GM and Chrysler put together a commercial to run on Comcast throughout the weekend. The group numbers 460 people, 300 of whom are plaintiffs against GM, the rest against Chrysler, all of whom claim catastrophic injuries or the deaths of ...

NHTSA introduces new tire labels 5 months ago on Autoblog

You will soon have more ways to choose which tire is right for you: the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has proposed a new tire label that ranks rubber based on fuel efficiency and greenhouse gas rating, safety (wet traction), and durability. According to NHTSA's calculations, ...

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Autoblog Podcast #153: With Phil Berg

Phil Berg puts his reputation on the line and hangs with the podcast crew.

 
 

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