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PSA shares rise following FCA's breakup with Renault

Shares in Groupe PSA, parent company of automakers Peugeot, Citroen and the DS brand, rose on Thursday as analysts considered the possibility that Fiat Chrysler could turn back to PSA after withdrawing its $35 billion merger offer for Renault. "Both parties have acknowledged the need for scale or [mergers and acquisitions] and may pursue other opportunities. If Nissan was an obstacle (to an FCA-Renault deal) PSA-FCA discussions could resume," wrote brokerage Jefferies. Back in March at the Geneva Motor Show, rumors started swirling that PSA was interested in a potential merger with FCA. Mike Manley, who took over at the helm of Fiat Chrysler following the death of Sergio Marchionne, had indicated a willingness to look into potential partnership options. Of course, that was all before FCA proposed a merger with Renault — with that deal now off the table, attention naturally turns back to PSA, which is also based in France. "We expect both shares to react negatively but see FCA having wider strategic options and Renault shares more downside risk near-term," said Jefferies. According to Reuters, PSA shares were up 1.5% at the time this was published, making it the top-performing stock on France's benchmark CAC-40 Index. Renault saw its shares slump 7%. Shares for FCA fell 3% in early trading on the Milan Stock Exchange. Considering that FCA said in its statement confirming the withdraw of its merger offer with Renault that "political conditions in France do not currently exist for such a combination to proceed successfully," we have to wonder how keen the company is to begin negotiations with another French automaker like PSA. Those thoughts were similarly voiced by Bernstein Research analyst Max Warburton, who said (via Forbes), "Expect PSA to rise on unrealistic hopes it may be FCA's next date." Earnings/Financials Chrysler Fiat Mitsubishi Nissan Citroen Peugeot Renault FCA renault-nissan

2016 Nissan Maxima previewed in With Dad Super Bowl commercial

If you've been paying attention to this year's Super Bowl commercials, something in Nissan's heart-string-pulling "With Dad" ad might've caught your attention. Near the end of the commercial, a shiny, new sedan comes into focus: the 2016 Nissan Maxima. We got our first look at the next-generation Maxima in concept form at the 2014 Detroit Auto Show, and we've spotted it out testing wearing heavy camouflage. The 2016 Maxima is expected to debut early this year – likely at the New York Auto Show – and this Nissan ad is our first real look at the new sedan in its final form. Do we like what we see? That's hard to say. There's no shortage of Nissan's latest design language here on its range-topping sedan, but we can't quite tell if it results in an overall handsome package. Of course, we'll wait to fully dissect the new design when we can see the car for more than a split second. Speaking of TV, according to Automotive News, this ad represents Nissan's return to Super Bowl advertising after an 18-year hiatus. Seems fitting, then, that the company brings a very powerful ad to the small screen. Have a look at Nissan's With Dad spot above, where you can also get a glimpse at the company's highly anticipated, front-engined racecar (0:49 mark), and a second, rear view of the Maxima (1:27 mark). Let us know what you think of the new Maxima – and the ad – in Comments.

Nissan Leaf has outsold Chevy Volt by 50% so far in 2015

We know, we know. The Chevy Volt and Nissan Leaf sales numbers for mid- to late-2015 aren't all that meaningful because of the impending arrival of the next-gen Volt and the expected but not-yet-totally-confirmed debut of the second version of the Leaf. Nonetheless, tracking the sales of the first two major plug-in vehicles is something that remains interesting to us, if for nothing else that the all-electric Leaf remains slightly more popular than the plug-in hybrid Volt after all this time. If we just look at August, the numbers were basically tied in the US. Chevy sold 1,380 Volts while Nissan moved 1,393 Leafs. But when we take a 10,000-foot view, the differences starts to appear. So far in 2015, GM has sold 8,315 Chevy Volts while Nissan has sold 12,383 Leafs. That means that the Nissan has outsold the Chevy by around 50 percent (to be specific, it's 48.92 percent). Since the two vehicles went on sale in the US at roughly the same time at the end of 2010, 81,672 Volts have been sold, compared to 84,705 Leafs. That's a difference of only 3,033 vehicles, so proponents of both powertrains can hold their heads high. Looking just at last month, Volt sales were 45 percent lower compared to August 2014. So far this year, Volt sales are down 36.7 percent. The Leaf didn't fare any better. Month-to-month, Leaf sales were down 43.7 percent in August, while year-to-date, Leaf sales are down 65.3 percent. Those second-gen models can't come soon enough. As always, we'll have our broader wrap-up of monthly green car sales for August up soon. Stay tuned. Green Chevrolet Nissan Electric Hybrid ev sales