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Car dealers, factories and ports close in the path of Hurricane Florence

Hurricane Florence has caused CarMax to close four stores in North Carolina, South Carolina and Virginia. The closed locations are in Myrtle Beach, Charleston, Winterville and Virginia Beach. It is possible for the company to close more stores, reports Automotive News. Daimler and Volvo have also shuttered their manufacturing facilities in the region to prepare for Florence. The storm is expected to reach North Carolina and South Carolina today or tomorrow. Automotive News says every coastal car dealer it reached on Tuesday was closing, and others not in the projected landfall area were monitoring the situation. There are approximately nine million vehicles in operation in the area that Florence is expected to hit, with a vehicle density of 162 vehicles per square mile. It is likely that not as many vehicles will be lost as during hurricanes Harvey and Irma, as population is less dense; areas affected by those storms had over 300 vehicles per square mile. The chief economist of Cox Automotive told Automotive News that some 20,000 to 40,000 vehicles could end up flooded if Florence keeps its path; however, recent reports have indicated Florence has weakened to a category 2 hurricane on Thursday. Tesla has again unlocked more range for some of its older models to make evacuation easier; the same was done a year ago in preparation for Hurricane Irma. As well as automotive manufacturers and dealers, automotive transport providers are readying for the storm and clearing cargo away. The container and auto terminals at Port Charleston will be closed from Thursday to Saturday, affecting part shipments to the BMW manufacturing facility in Spartanburg; BMW's spokespersons have said no production disruption is expected. Parts are delivered via railroad to Spartanburg by Norfolk Southern, which is also suspending operations for the time being. Vehicle hauler United Road has moved its rigs to safer regions and suspended deliveries, and car carrier vessels are trying to make it away from the storm's path in time. Related Video: News Source: Automotive NewsImage Credit: NASA via Reuters Auto News Plants/Manufacturing BMW Mercedes-Benz Volvo Car Buying

Mercedes-Benz C-Class 'bleeding seat' problem resurfaces [UPDATE]

UPDATE: We received the following statement from Mercedes-Benz: "In rare instances, we incorrectly ordered some of the replacement parts for the seating surfaces. The approved replacement parts will not demonstrate the previous symptoms." It appears Mercedes-Benz has another problem with "bleeding seats" in 2015 C-Class sedans. As we reported in January, an oily residue has been appearing on some versions of the C-Class with man-made MB Tex upholstery, making it look as though the seats were grimy or "bleeding." Mercedes issued a technical service bulletin to its dealers to remedy the problem, but now we're hearing the fix isn't complete. Small parts of the seats – the rear bolsters and a piece below the center armrest – weren't replaced during service and then developed the oily reside again, a source tells us. This occurred within a few days of their service appointment. The dealer followed Mercedes' instructions, our source said, and their C-Class appears to have been one of the first cars fixed. "I'm absolutely flabbergasted at this point ... The new C-Class is such a good car. This is just a shame," they told Autoblog. The bleeding seat issue appears to affect US-built C-Class models with the MB Tex vinyl and possibly other interiors. The bleeding often occurs when a car has been sitting in the cold and then heats up quickly. The number of cars affected is unclear, though the C-Class owners have been vocal in the MBWorld.org forum. At the time of our original report, Daimler AG, parent of Mercedes-Benz USA, said it was aware of the issue and that no injuries had been reported. The residue usually washes off with soap and water. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration had no recalls, complaints or investigations recorded about the issue as of Wednesday. The fix at the dealer involves changing out the headrest and seat covers, except for a part of the passenger seat that needs to be calibrated by the factory, according to the bulletin. The C-Class is a critical car for Mercedes as it battles BMW, Lexus and others for supremacy in the ultra-competitive luxury segment. The C-Class, which launched last fall, is moving upmarket as Mercedes reshuffles its lineup with the addition of the CLA sedan. The C-Class was the company's best-selling model in January with volume of 6,236 units.

Lewis Hamilton takes pole position at German GP as Ferrari falters

HOCKENHEIM, Germany — Lewis Hamilton took pole position for the German Grand Prix on Saturday, while Sebastian Vettel's miserable form continued for Ferrari as he was unable to even set a time and will start from the back. It got even worse for Ferrari as Vettel's teammate Charles Leclerc was unable to start the last part of qualifying, known as Q3, and is set to begin from 10th place on the grid on Sunday. "I don't know really how we did it today. I'm not quite sure what happened to the Ferraris," Hamilton said. "I think if Leclerc had done a lap at the end, it would have been close between us." Ferrari is winless in 10 races this season and that terrible run looks to continue, while Hamilton is aiming for a sixth win in seven. It was a record-extending 87th pole for the five-time world champion, who is 11 wins shy of Michael Schumacher's record of 91. Hamilton starts on the front row alongside Red Bull's Max Verstappen, who knocked Hamilton's Mercedes teammate Valtteri Bottas into third place. Red Bull's Pierre Gasly goes from fourth. "A bit disappointed with qualifying and I just struggled," said Bottas, who is level with Hamilton on four poles this season. "Ferrari (were) extremely quick and we knew it would be difficult to beat them ... We've been a bit lucky." Vettel, who crashed at last year's German GP despite leading from pole, looked visibly upset as he climbed out of his car in the team garage. The incident happened during the first part of qualifying, making him one of five drivers eliminated from Q1. The issue appeared to be related to a turbo problem, even more surprising given Ferrari had topped all three practice sessions heading into qualifying. Worried faces in the Ferrari garage turned to sheer horror as mechanics then detected a problem on Leclerc's car, ruling him out of the top-10 shootout in Q3. "Mine was a fuel system problem. It is a shame but we will be trying to understand what happened and not to reproduce it. The car felt great today so it's a shame it ended like this," Leclerc said. "I feel for the whole team. I will give absolutely everything to make everyone smile again tomorrow." Television footage showed a Ferrari fan in the stands sinking his face into his hands in disbelief. Mercedes head of motorsport Toto Wolff was sympathetic when commenting on Ferrari's latest setback. "It is a shame for Ferrari and for Sebastian at his home GP," Wolff told broadcaster Sky Sports, adding.