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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

Court puts kibosh on apartheid lawsuit against Ford, Daimler

Ford and Daimler have scored a major victory in a long-running lawsuit filed in US federal court by unnamed South African nationals. The suit alleges that both manufacturers and their subsidiaries sold their vehicles to the South African military, despite knowing that they'd be involved in violently putting down anti-apartheid protesters.
According to Reuters, South African plaintiffs filed the case under the 223-year-old Alien Torts Statute, a law which allows foreign nationals to file charges in US courts for perceived breaches of what was originally international law, but now more closely relates to violations of human rights.
And while the case - which also involves computer manufacturer IBM - has been tied up in federal courts for years, a recent case from the Supreme Court struck down a similar suit against Royal Dutch Petroleum (Shell), arguing that the ATS doesn't apply to corporations or to conduct if it occurred outside the US. In short, the law applies to individuals, but not corporations like Ford or Daimler. A US appeals court ruled that the conditions apply in this case, potentially drawing this long-running saga to a close, as the defendants will now be allowed to request that the case be dismissed in district court.

California Man Reunited 33 Years Later With Thunderbird

A California man was at a loss for words when he was reunited with his prized 1964 Ford Thunderbird on Tuesday, 33 years after it was stolen from a bar parking lot. Gary Chartrand could hardly believe how well his old Thunderbird held up in the last three decades. The odometer had only added about 1,000 miles from when he last saw the car back in the 1980s. "A few bumps and bruises but boy, not much changed," Chartrand told KOVR. Chartrand bought the car as a present to himself after finalizing his divorce from his wife of 10 years in 1981. It disappeared one night from the parking lot of a Sacramento bar where he was working. Police found Chartrand's car 750 miles north in Washington State. They have no leads on who might have stolen the classic car. Related Gallery Buying An Older Car: Five Things To Watch Out For