3.2 Suv 3.2l Cd Electronically Controlled All-wheel Drive System 8 Speakers on 2040-cars

Auto blog

Geely chairman is now the single biggest investor in Daimler

Li Shufu, the chairman and main owner of Chinese carmaker Geely, has built a stake of 9.69 percent in Daimler AG, the German carmaker said in a regulatory filing on Friday. The stake, worth nearly $9 billion at the current valuation for Daimler shares, makes Li the biggest single shareholder in the maker of Mercedes-Benz cars, trucks and vans headquartered in the German city of Stuttgart. A Daimler spokesman called the stake purchase a private investment by Li. "We are delighted, with Li Shufu, to have won over another long-term investor who is convinced of Daimler's innovative prowess, strategy and future potential," the spokesman said in response to a request for comment. "Daimler knows and respects Li Shufu as a Chinese entrepreneur of particular competence and forward thinking." Li's stake purchase makes him the top shareholder in Daimler ahead of the Kuwait Investment Authority, which owned 6.8 percent as of Sept. 30, according to Thomson Reuters data. Earlier this month, the German newspaper Bild am Sonntag reported that the Chinese industry giant was seeking to become Daimler's biggest shareholder, likely exceeding the 6.8-percent stake of the Kuwait Investment Authority. The paper said Daimler had reportedly turned down Geely's $4.5 billion offer for a 5-percent stake via a discounted share placement, saying that Geely could buy shares in the open market. Institutional investors currently own 70.7 percent of Daimler, and the company already has strong ties to Chinese automakers BAIC and BYD. Bild am Sonntag said the move was intended as a strategic alliance against Apple, Google and Amazon on autonomous and connected cars. And Reuters reported that Daimler wants to have bespoke "robo taxis" on the road quicker than Google's Waymo, and views Geely as a strong partner for that. Geely conversely is interested in Daimler's electric car battery technology, and sources quoted by the German paper say there are plans to establish joint electric car manufacturing in Wuhan, China, to meet China's smog-reducing quotas. Geely is developing the Lynk & Co. brand of electric and hybrid cars. Geely owns Volvo, which has enjoyed a renaissance under the arrangement, as well as the maker of London's black cabs. In December, it bought a stake in AB Volvo, the maker of Volvo trucks.

Geely's new EV plant in China will build premium Polestar cars

BEIJING/SHANGHAI — An electric vehicle factory planned by China's Geely will produce cars under the premium Polestar marque, two people with direct knowledge of the matter told Reuters on Monday. Zhejiang Geely Holding Group plans to build a plant with annual manufacturing capacity of 30,000 premium EVs in the western city of Chongqing, run by a wholly owned, newly registered company, according to documents on its website. Geely and Polestar declined to comment. The plan comes as foreign automakers including BMW AG and Tesla expand EV production in the worldÂ’s biggest market, sourcing major EV components such as batteries locally and often even exporting a portion of the vehicles it builds. Hangzhou-based Geely is ChinaÂ’s most internationally known automaker. It owns Volvo Cars and Lotus, almost half of Proton and 9.7% of Daimler AG. Through wholly owned company Polestar, it builds low-volume Polestar 1 hybrid performance cars in the western city of Chengdu and Polestar 2 volume sedans in Taizhou in the east. It also plans to begin production of the Precept sedan, displayed at this yearÂ’s China auto show. Polestar aims to eventually offer bigger, more sporty vehicles at its showrooms, which currently span nine countries and whose number it plans to raise to 45 from 23 by year-end. Polestar Chief Executive Thomas Ingenlath told Reuters the firm is scouting markets in Asia-Pacific and the Middle East. Geely is also building a factory in China to make sport-utility vehicles under the Lotus marque, Reuters reported.  

Driveable Volvo V70 wagon built from 400,000 Lego pieces

We've seen life-size Lego vehicles before, but a Swedish man has created the ultimate brick-built car. That's because David Gustafsson's 1:1 scale Volvo wagon actually drives. Volvo recently shared some photos from the Ecar Expo in Gothenburg, Sweden, where the Lego car was on display. One would think that to undertake such a project it would be easiest to re-create an older Volvo, like a 240 or 740 wagon. After all, those were so boxy they earned the nickname Turbo Bricks as a term of endearment from enthusiasts. Instead, Gustafsson chose to replicate his own V70 wagon, a third-generation model built from 2008-16, which has no shortage of complex curves to replicate. Most life-size Lego replicas are static displays, never meant to move. Most don't even have interiors. Gustafsson's Volvo, on the other hand, not only features a full interior, but has doors that swing open, a gear selector that clicks into various positions, and climate control knobs that turn.  The fun doesn't end there. The Lego V70 has side mirrors that pivot, just like the real thing, as well as active headlights that swivel along with the front wheels when the steering wheel turns. The piece de resistance is the fact that this Volvo actually drives, thanks to an electric motor and battery pack. Speeds must be kept low, of course, but it can start, move, steer and brake via a remote control. The Volvo's only non-Lego parts are the wheels and tires, powertrain and a metal frame. It took Gustafsson over a year and over 400,000 pieces to build the car. He was a winner of the Lego Masters competition in 2020, through which he won the majority of the pieces. According to Klyker, the combined weight of the bricks tipped the scales at 1.2 tons, but the win gave Gustafsson the ability to fulfill a lifelong dream of building a full-size car out of Lego. With the help of Volvo Cars, Gustafsson's re-creation will soon begin a tour across Sweden. It will visit various events across the country from February 22 to August 4.