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China's auto sales continue to drop

The days of unending growth of carmakers in China look to be over, and some analysts are even forecasting a net drop in volume this year, The Detroit News reports. After falling numbers in June and July, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers tallied total sales, including trucks and buses, in August to 1.7 million, down 3 percent from 2014. There were some tiny specs of good news in China, but there's no turnaround in sight. Total vehicle sales from January to August are actually still up but only 2.6 percent. Like the rest of the world, SUVs are booming with numbers up 45.6 percent from the previous year. Honda managed a very impressive 50.7 percent gain on the strength of the CR-V and Vezel (the HR-V here), according to The Detroit News. Also, the country's domestic automakers, which generally offer less expensive products, posted a 2.5 percent growth in sales. The news continues to look bad for Detroit's automakers, though. Volume from General Motors dropped 4.8 percent in August, and Ford fell 3 percent in August. Both of them have invested significant amounts there in the past years. The vehicle industry in China grew last year, but there was burgeoning evidence of weakness. At the end of 2014, dealers there pushed back against huge inventories pushed by automakers. Even before the big drops began in June, GM saw the writing on the wall and started cutting prices. BMW responded to the slump by cutting back production to deal with the changing demand. News Source: The Detroit NewsImage Credit: Mark Schiefelbein / AP Photo BMW Ford GM Honda Car Buying

BMW and Mini shuffle NA management, McDowell to retire

BMW and Mini recently shuffled top personnel in their design departments, and now BMW of North America will reorganize its management to improve customer relations. Peter Miles (pictured), currently the executive vice president of operations, will take a newly created position, vice president of sales channel development and customer relations, while Jim McDowell, vice president of Mini of the Americas, will retire.
Chris Koenders, president of BMW Group Netherlands, will move take Miles' spot as executive vice president of operations. David Duncan, western region vice president, will take McDowell's job as vice president of Mini of the Americas. Finishing off the management switcharoo is Peter Witt, who will move from his current position as Managing Director of BMW Sweden to take Duncan's job as western region vice president.
"We are intensifying our customer-driven focus and these changes will influence the entire organization to continue improving all phases of the customer journey from prospect to purchase and throughout the ownership cycle," says Ludwig Willisch, president and CEO of BMW NA. For more information on the management reorganization, check out the press release below.

2022 New York Auto Show, and Subaru Solterra driven | Autoblog Podcast #725

In this episode of the Autoblog Podcast, Editor-in-Chief Greg Migliore is joined by Senior Editor, Green, John Beltz Snyder. This week was the return of the New York Auto Show, and it was a busy one. Our editors run down some of the reveals, including the updated Kia Telluride and Hyundai Palisade, the long-wheelbase Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer L, refreshed Subaru Outback, the gorgeous Genesis X Speedium Coupe concept EV, the 2,200-horsepower Deus Vayanne electric hypercar, a new generation of the Kia Niro family, and the updated Nissan Leaf and Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek. Then they discuss the news surrounding Elon Musk's offer to purchase Twitter before diving into reviews of the cars we've been driving, including the new Subaru Solterra, Subaru Forester Wilderness and our long-term BMW 330e xDrive and Hyundai Palisade. Send us your questions for the Mailbag and Spend My Money at: Podcast@Autoblog.com. Autoblog Podcast #725 Get The Podcast Apple Podcasts – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes Spotify – Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast on Spotify RSS – Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator MP3 – Download the MP3 directly Rundown 2022 New York International Auto Show 2023 Kia Telluride revealed at NY Auto Show, adds X-Pro trim 2023 Hyundai Palisade revealed with new styling, features, trim level 2023 Jeep Wagoneer, Grand Wagoneer gain L models, Hurricane I6 power 2023 Subaru Outback gets new cladding and lights, more tech Genesis X Speedium Coupe is an electric shooting brake Deus Vayanne EV hypercar reaches for 2,200 horsepower 2023 Kia Niro Hybrid, PHEV and EV debut 2023 Nissan Leaf debuts a mild refresh 2023 Nissan Pathfinder Rock Creek gets a lift and more power Elon Musk offers to buy Twitter for $43 billion Cars we're driving 2023 Subaru Solterra 2022 Subaru Forester Wilderness Long-term 2022 BMW 330e xDrive Long-term 2021 Hyundai Palisade Feedback Email – Podcast@Autoblog.com Review the show on Apple Podcasts Autoblog is now live on your smart speakers and voice assistants with the audio Autoblog Daily Digest. Say “Hey Google, play the news from Autoblog” or "Alexa, open Autoblog" to get your favorite car website in audio form every day. A narrator will take you through the biggest stories or break down one of our comprehensive test drives. Related video: