Rear View Back Up Camera Moonroof Clean Title Alloy Wheels Clean Title on 2040-cars

Auto blog

France tries to dodge blame for blowing up FCA-Renault merger deal

PARIS — France sought to fend off a hail of criticism on Thursday after it was blamed for scuppering a $35 billion-plus merger between carmakers Fiat-Chrysler and Renault only 10 days after it was officially announced. Shares in Italian-American FCA and France's Renault fell sharply in early trading after FCA pulled out of talks, saying "the political conditions in France do not currently exist for such a combination to proceed successfully." French finance minister Bruno Le Maire said the government, which has a 15% stake in Renault, had engaged constructively, but had not been prepared to back a deal without the endorsement of Renault's current alliance partner Nissan. Nissan had said it would abstain at a Renault board meeting to vote on the merger proposal. However, a source close to FCA played down the significance of Nissan's stance in the discussions, believing French President Emmanuel Macron was looking for a way out of the deal after coming under pressure at home. Context The FCA-Renault talks were conducted against the backdrop of a French public outcry over 1,044 layoffs at a General Electric factory. The U.S. company had promised to safeguard jobs there when it acquired France's Alstom in 2015. The collapse of the deal, which would have created the world's third-biggest carmaker behind Japan's Toyota and Germany's Volkswagen, revives questions about how both FCA and Renault will meet the challenges of costly investments in electric and self-driving cars on their own. The merger had aimed to achieve 5 billion euros ($5.6 billion) in annual synergies, with FCA gaining access to Renault's and Nissan's superior electric drive technology and the French firm getting a share of FCA's lucrative Jeep and Ram brands. FCA has long been looking for a merger partner, and some analysts say its search for a deal is becoming more urgent as it is ill-prepared for tougher new regulations on emissions. It previously held unsuccessful talks with Peugeot maker PSA Group, in which the French state also owns a stake. French budget minister Gerald Darmanin said the door should not be closed on the possibility of a deal with Renault, adding Paris would be happy to re-examine any new proposal from FCA. "Talks could resume at some time in the future," he told FranceInfo radio.

Mercedes and Infiniti confirm joint production in Mexico [w/video]

It's official, folks: After initial reports last week indicated that Mercedes-Benz was preparing to begin assembly at the Nissan plant in Aguascalientes, Mexico, the two parent companies have announced just that. Only instead of using the existing Nissan plant at the site (in operation since 1992), Daimler and the Renault-Nissan Alliance have announced a joint venture to build a new one alongside it.
The latest stage in the growing French-German-Japanese collaboration is part of a new collaboration that will see Infiniti and Mercedes jointly develop and build a line of compact premium vehicles, with the first Infiniti models set to roll off the assembly line in 2017 and the first Benzes to follow a year later. Neither party announced exactly which models that would encompass, but Mercedes already has a robust line of small vehicles (including the A-Class, B-Class, CLA and GLA), and Infiniti has long been toying with the idea of slotting in something smaller below the Q50.
The billion-euro project, split evenly between the two industrial giants, is set to create 5,700 new jobs in Mexico. In addition to the Aguascalientes project, Infiniti and Mercedes are also undertaking joint production of four-cylinder engines (initially for the C-Class and Q50) in Decherd, Tennessee, from which they will be exported around the world. By the time the new factory in Mexico reaches full capacity in 2021, it will have the capability to produce 300,000 vehicles annually. That's on top of the 850,000 vehicles the existing facility is capable of handling.

Arrest warrant for Ghosn's wife a 'pathetic' move by Japan, spokeswoman says

BEIRUT — A decision by Japanese prosecutors to issue an arrest warrant for Carlos Ghosn's wife shortly before the fugitive car boss was due to speak publicly about his case was "pathetic," a spokeswoman for Ghosn told Reuters on Tuesday. The ousted Nissan Motor and Renault chairman fled to Lebanon, his childhood home, in late December from Japan, where he faced trial for alleged financial misconduct. Ghosn is expected to speak on Wednesday at a news conference in Beirut and detail some of the claims he has made against Nissan since his arrest in November 2018. He has alleged there was a Japanese government-backed coup to oust him. It's his first such appearance since his arrest in November 2018. "Last time Carlos Ghosn announced a press conference and got re-arrested. This time, the day before he is announced to speak out freely for the first time, they issued an arrest warrant for his wife Carole Ghosn," the spokeswoman said. Japanese prosecutors issued the warrant for Ghosn's wife Carole for perjury, Japanese media reported. The spokeswoman said Carole Ghosn voluntarily went back to Japan nine months ago to answer prosecutors' questions and was free to go without any charges. "The issuance of this warrant is pathetic," she said. Japan is looking for a way to extradite Ghosn, but Lebanon and Japan have no extradition agreement and Lebanon does not normally extradite its own citizens. The perjury arrest warrant accuses Carole Ghosn of falsely claiming not to know, or to have met, people connected to a company that received payments from Nissan Motor, part of which it subsequently transferred to a firm owned by Ghosn. Separately, a senior Ministry of Justice official said staff were poring over Lebanese laws to find a way to return Ghosn and that Japan "will do whatever it can" to have him face trial.   Naming names at Nissan Ghosn is expected to detail some of the claims he has made against Nissan since his arrest. Citing an interview with Ghosn, Fox Business reported that he said he has "actual evidence" and documents to show there was a Japanese government-backed coup to "take him out." He plans to identify those he believes responsible, the broadcaster said.