As part of an increasingly close partnership, Mercedes-Benz parent company Daimler is reportedly preparing to increase its stake in Aston Martin by another one percent, bringing the German automaker's shares in the British company up to five percent.
.jpg)
There's always a financial risk with investing in collectibles – and that includes cars. They must be maintained and stored, which costs more money, and ultimately sold (they're investments, right?). On top of that, if they're driven, they can be damaged or just lose value with more miles. But lately, the rate of return from investing in some collectibles – particularly classic cars – has been much higher than that of traditional investments, Damon Lowney
China has reversed a policy that would have nixed incentives for investments from foreign automakers, paving the way for further expansion by General Motors, Volkswagen and others. Legislators had removed automotive manufacturing from the list of industries that would receive government support in the future, but foreign investment fell o
Never fear, Opel fans. General Motors isn't sending the brand out to pasture. The European automaker is set to receive a massive $5.2 billion investment from GM between now and 2016 as part of a larger effort to solidify Opel as GM's design and manufacturing backbone in Europe. Opel plans to return to profitability by the middle of this decade
California dreamin'? Well, for Ohio-based Amp Electric Vehicles, wishes for some much-needed funding came true courtesy of one Golden State private-equity firm. Amp has announced it has received a $7.5 million investment from Orange County, CA-based Kodiak Capital Group. The funds will allow Amp to further expand its EV-fleet production.
The Detroit Three are in much better financial shape than three years ago. General Motors and Ford are now profitable, and Chrysler appears poised to begin making real money soon. That success has lead to plans to spend billions of dollars on North American plants, but Automotive News reports that our friends to the north aren't seeing much of the money.
Volkswagen AG says it will invest €62 billion ($85.5 billion U.S. at the current exchange rate) in innovation and technology projects, primarily in Germany, within five years as it eyes becoming the world's leading automaker.
General Motors says it will invest €20 million ($28.4 million U.S. at the current exchange rate) at its Powertrain Engineering Center in Torino, Italy. This investment comes on top of the €30 million ($42.6 million U.S.) that GM spent to establish the center back in 2005.
Compared to gas and diesel vehicles, electric cars are incredibly efficient. It's a good thing too, since their batteries hold only a small fraction of the energy in a typical gas tank. As with most any technology, though, there is always room to boost efficiency. This is where start-up Transphorm comes in, and perhaps in a big way. Why? Because Transphorm just secured $20 million from backers Google Ventures, Kleiner Perkins Caulfield & Byers, Foundation Capital and Lux Capital. The company
Coda EV Sedan – Click above for high-res image gallery
Hyundai Avante LPI Hybrid - Click for high-res image gallery
The worst secret in the universe is that there's a lot of money in the Middle East and the Gulf states are looking all over the world for places to put it. Abu Dhabi's Aabar investment spent €1.95 billion on a 9.1% stake in Daimler (around $2.5B USD), and now the state of Qatar is eying what could be a double-digit stake in Porsche. Qatar hasn't floated any potential investment sums, but said one sheikh, "we are looking into this issue."
The credit crunch is not only playing havoc with plans at Tesla and other green (or not) car companies. Indeed, the effects of the financial crises are global and so it comes as little surprise that Optimal Energy
Fisker Automotive has been quiet for the past two months since the announcement that the cars would be built in Finland by Valmet. As we know, mass producing cars is an enormously expensive proposition which means any company that wants to get into the business has to raise some serious cash. With that in mind Fisker has just completed its third major fundraising round. The biggest chunk of the new $65
The money continues to roll in for Tesla Motors. They just completed their fourth round of investment funding taking in another $45 Million primarily from venture capital fund Technology Partners and Chairman Elon Musk. The cash will be used to help fund the development work on the WhiteStar sedan, the new assembly plant in New Mexico and the establishment of a chain of retail outlets for Tesla cars.
The ink isn't dry on the contracts and the ownership transfer won't even be complete for another thirty days. However, Kuwaiti firm Investment Dar and its partner Adeem Investment Company are planning to put their stake up for sale. The consortium that purchased Aston was led by Dave Richards, backed by the Middle Eastern firms and American banker John Sinders. Using the best numbers we could find, Aston was sold for 479 million pounds, Investment Dar put up 240 mil
