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Ford names Lincoln chief as North American president following Nair's departure

Ford announced yesterday that its North American president Raj Nair would no longer be working for the company due to "inappropriate behavior." As a result, the company needed fill that gaping vacancy. The new North American president and Ford Group vice president will be Kumar Galhotra, and his term in the new role will start on March 1. Galhotra will remain the group vice president and chief marketing officer for Lincoln through March, meaning he's the head of the luxury brand. He's had this position since 2014. Before that, he was vice president of engineering for all of Ford. With Galhotra's promotion, a number of internal promotions follow. Joy Falotico, current chairman, CEO and group vice president of Ford's credit division will fill Galhotra's position, and Dave McClelland, vice president of marketing for Ford Asia Pacific, will fill her role. Other shuffling at Ford includes Stewart Rawley's promotion to vice president for Ford North America and chief operating officer. He is the current vice president for strategy at Ford. Ford China's chairman and CEO John Lawler will take Rawley's old role, and Cathy O'Callaghan will take over Lawler's job at Ford China, but not until June 1. O'Callaghan is currently vice president, corporate controller and chief financial officer for global markets at Ford. Related Video:

2015 will be the biggest year ever for cars at CES

Like the SEMA Show, major automakers are paying increasing attention to the CES, with 2015 expected to be one of the most auto focused yet. Ford, Volkswagen, Toyota, General Motors, Hyundai, Mazda, Audi, BMW and Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will all be in attendance when CES 2015 kicks off next week, taking up a record-breaking 165,000 square feet of space at the Las Vegas Convention Center. "We've come a long way from a single car on a carpet," Ford's Alan Hall told Bloomberg. Unlike SEMA, or a more traditional auto show, like the upcoming festivities in Detroit, CES doesn't necessarily focus on entire cars or the way they perform, but on the way our technology will interact with vehicles, and in how those vehicles will deliver information to drivers. "CES has become a major launch point for a lot of the big automakers," IHS tech analyst Mark Boyadjis told Bloomberg. "CES is a way for them to get on a global stage for technology." As for what kind of wares automakers will trot out in Las Vegas, we already know that BMW will show off an autonomous i3 electric car that can navigate its way through a multistory car park and can be hailed via a smartwatch app. According to Bloomberg, Hyundai will show off its own smartwatch app for the Genesis sedan, while Audi and Mercedes-Benz will show off autonomous vehicles next week. Automakers won't be the only companies looking to capitalize on CES. Tech firms, like chipmaker Nvidia, are becoming increasingly involved in the automotive game and will be in town showing their wares off to OEMs. "Two years ago, our booth would have been filled with PCs and people playing video games," Danny Shapiro, Nvidia's senior director for automotive business, told Bloomberg. "This year we made a strategic decision to shift the focus of the booth on automotive and de-prioritize some of the other things." Needless to say, you can expect to see a lot of news out of Las Vegas come next week. Stay tuned. News Source: BloombergImage Credit: Julie Jacobson / AP CES Audi BMW Chrysler Fiat Ford GM Hyundai Mazda Toyota Volkswagen Technology CES 2015

Autoblog Minute: Ford Ranger may return to US

Is Ford planning to bring back its midsize Ranger pickup to the US? Autoblog's Adam Morath reports on this edition of Autoblog Minute. Show full video transcript text [00:00:00] Is Ford planning to bring back its midsize Ranger pickup to the U.S? I'm Adam Morath, and this is your Autoblog Minute. The Detroit News reports that Ford is planning to build its Ranger Pickup truck at the Michigan Assembly Plant in 2018, citing unnamed sources with knowledge of Ford's plans during its ongoing negotiations with the UAW. Autoblog reached out to Ford for comment. [00:00:30] Quote: "We will move production of the next-generation Ford Focus and C-MAX, which currently are built at Michigan Assembly Plant, beginning in 2018. We actively are pursuing future vehicle alternatives to produce at Michigan Assembly and will discuss this issue with UAW leadership as part of the upcoming negotiations." The 2011 Ranger was the last model-year available in the U.S., though Ford currently sells its redesigned Ranger overseas, including in Europe, the Middle East, Africa and Asia Pacific. [00:01:00] With pickup sales on the rise, and the recent critical success of GM's Chevy Colorado midsize truck, the time may be right to revive the Ranger, but compact and midsize trucks only make up a small percentage of sales in America. Truck fans out there, let us know what you think: Can the Ford Ranger continue to revive the compact and midsize pickup market in the U.S? Or, will full-size work trucks like the F-150 continue to dominate? Sound off in the comments. For Autoblog, I'm Adam Morath. Autoblog Minute is a short-form video news series reporting on all things automotive. Each segment offers a quick and clear picture of what's happening in the automotive industry from the perspective of Autoblog's expert editorial staff, auto executives, and industry professionals.