2013 Ford Focus St 202a Navi Xenon Sunroof on 2040-cars

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Autoblog Podcast #408

Episode #408 of the Autoblog Podcast is here, and this week, Dan Roth, Steven Ewing, and Brandon Turkus talk about the possibility of France banning diesel, Cadillac putting Porsche in its sights, and the lineup of high-performance Fords potentially coming to the Detroit Auto Show. We start with what's in the garage and finish up with some of your questions, and for those of you who hung with us live on our UStream channel, thanks for taking the time. Check out the rundown below with times for topics, and you can follow along down below with our Q&A. Thanks for listening! Autoblog Podcast #408: The video meant to be presented here is no longer available. Sorry for the inconvenience. Topics: France to ban diesel? Cadillac to go Porsche hunting Ford NAIAS lineup In The Autoblog Garage: 2015 Cadillac ATS Coupe 2015 Audi S3 Long-Term 2014 Jeep Cherokee Hosts: Dan Roth, Steven Ewing, Brandon Turkus Runtime: 01:04:56 Rundown: Intro and Garage - 00:00 France Diesel Ban - 27:13 Cadillac vs. Porsche - 34:32 Ford Performance at NAIAS - 42:23 Q&A - 49:46 Get the podcast: [UStream] Listen live on Mondays at 10 PM Eastern at UStream [iTunes] Subscribe to the Autoblog Podcast in iTunes [RSS] Add the Autoblog Podcast feed to your RSS aggregator [MP3] Download the MP3 directly Feedback: Email: Podcast at Autoblog dot com Review the show in iTunes Podcasts Detroit Auto Show Audi Cadillac Ford Jeep

Weekly Recap: GM posts solid profits, not looking for partners

General Motors is not looking for partners. It's big enough already. So says CEO Mary Barra, who shot down overtures from outspoken Fiat-Chrysler chief Sergio Marchionne this week. Barra said GM will look to find scale within its operations, rather than through outside partners. "We think there's tremendous opportunity for us within the business as we look at efficiency measures, as we look at truly achieving the scale that we should have, because we're already in that top tier of the auto industry among the largest OEMs," she said. Barra added: "We have a very well-articulated plan. We're in the middle of executing that, and we're not going to entertain anything that might distract us from accomplishing that." Her remarks came in the wake of Marchionne's provocative comments in March. He expects a wave of industry consolidation and said he's open to teaming with Ford or GM, calling it "technically feasible." Because of its smaller size, FCA would likely stand to gain more from a partnership than GM or Ford. The Blue Oval isn't interested in teaming with Fiat-Chrysler, either. "We have no other plan or interest then to continue to accelerate our One Ford plan, deliver product excellence and drive innovation in every part of our business," a spokesperson said. GM, the largest US automaker, announced a $945-million first-quarter profit on Thursday and posted its best earnings performance in North America since 2009. Earlier in the week, GM confirmed it had sold 2.4 million vehicles around the world in the quarter, ranking behind Toyota (2.52 million) and Volkswagen (2.49 million). Other News & Notes SUVs, EVs shine at Shanghai Motor Show SUVs and electric vehicles grabbed the spotlight at the Shanghai Motor Show this week as companies vied for attention in the world's largest car market. Notably, Honda's Concept D previewed the company's future flagship SUV that's being developed for China, Mercedes rolled out a BMW X4-fighting GLC Coupe concept and Chinese company Qoros debuted its 2 plug-in SUV concept. Nissan, Volvo and several others also showcased utility vehicles in Shanghai. Automakers are rushing to take advantage of the crossover craze in China. The market for locally-produced SUVs grew 50 percent in the first quarter, according to IHS Automotive research, which called the show a "launch pad" for new utility vehicles. Even though SUVs are popular, IHS predicts their growth rate will slow, and sedans account for more sales volume in China.

Ford running short of F-150 frames

Like most any automaker, Ford is eager to build as many F-150 pickups as it can sell. And considering that the truck has long stood as the top selling vehicle in the United States, that means building (and selling) a lot of them. Further, Ford reports that its factories are finally fully up to speed and ready to build as many F-150s as dealers can sell. Unfortunately another factor is reportedly preventing the new aluminum-bodied pickup from reaching its potential. According to Automotive News and as we've heard before, the Blue Oval automaker has had trouble getting its hands on as many frames as it needs. Though Ford would not confirm the shortage itself, AN cites union sources in reporting that the Metalsa plant in Kentucky, which produces the new F-150's frame for Ford, has been unable to meet the demand for more such frames. "Whenever you have launches, you have issues that you have to deal with in the supply base," is all Ford CFO Bob Shanks would admit. "We're always working closely with suppliers if there's an issue to sort it out. If that were the case, that's what we'd be doing." The reported supply shortage could be why plans for overtime production are reportedly being canceled at both the plants in Kansas City and Dearborn where the F-150s are assembled, despite reaching or nearing full capacity. The shortage could also help explain why, according to AN, sales of the F-Series in the United States fell nearly 10 percent last month, while the rest of the pickup market rose 17 percent. Related Video: