For years and years, Mazda Motor promised to bring a clean, affordable diesel to Canadian and U.S. buyers, only to back away, year after year. Well, the diesel promise is back. Mazda has announced it will offer the SKYACTIV-D 2.2 clean diesel engine in the all-new Mazda CX-5 in the second half of 2017. Mazda’s …
Subaru battles quality issues as sales surge
Subaru is paying the price of surging popularity. Subaru Canada has issued 16 recalls this year. Problems range from Takata airbag issues to Subaru-specific problems that involve windshield wipers, portions of the electrical system, a minor knee guard bracket, hood latches, the turbocharger air intake duct, and steering column components. In the latest Consumer Reports …
Carmakers electrify showrooms while consumers yawn and governments dither
Carmakers are pushing electrified vehicles into showrooms at warp speed, yet consumers yawn and regulators dither. First, a market recap: Chevrolet’s Bolt was just named Motor Trend’s Car of the Year, and justifiably so. The Bolt has seating for four, a 383-kilometre range, and you can have one early next year for $31,434 thanks to …
Fear and dread: Trump brings unpredictability to a car business needing stability
During the presidential campaign, Ford Motor became Donald Trump’s favorite example of what’s wrong with U.S. trade agreements and industrial policy. Indeed, Trump attacked Ford repeatedly for shipping jobs to Mexico, most recently highlighting Ford’s decision to shift all small-car production to lower-cost Mexico. Trump called Ford’s decision “horrible,” telling crowds in Michigan, “We shouldn’t …
November 19, 2016 | Commentary, First on the Grid Like Comments (0) |
Will FCA’s quality woes doom the sexy Stelvio SUV?
We can all celebrate the arrival of an “SUV for the S-curves,” a 505-horsepower, 0-100 km/hour-in-4.1-seconds racy wagon called the Alfa Romeo Stelvio. So three cheers for La meccanica delle emozioni (the mechanics of emotion), and good luck, too. The top-of-the-line Stelvio, the Quadrifoglio, will have the most powerful engine, while the starter versions – …
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