Jaguar shows off production XE body in camo

Jaguar turned to Twitter and Facebook to reveal the production form of its coming XE sedan that we'll see for real at the Paris Motor Show. This is the first of a series of show-offs, Jaguar planning to wrap the bodywork in see-through camo that shows off the aluminum monocoque and other internals the company will use to promote the XE over its German rivals. That aluminum structure, which Jaguar calls iQ[Al], will also be used for other Jaguar and Land Rover vehicles.

Underneath that long bonnet and ahead of that terribly short trunk will come a series of Ingenium engines, the 2.0-liter turbocharged four-cylinder engines in diesel and petrol forms that will come in a variety of power options, and the 3.0-liter supercharged V6 that can also be found in the F-Type. Before the XE goes on sale early next year, you can click the image above to get a slightly larger view of what the The Leaping Cat's near future looks like.
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Fiat previews production 500X on Melfi assembly line

The Fiat assembly plant in Melfi, Italy, may not be one that appears on our radar that often. It's been in operation since 1993, but until recently only built the Punto - a model that's been around in its current form with few modifications for the better part of a decade, but hasn't warranted the transatlantic voyage to American showrooms. Fiat recently added to the Punto assembly line in Melfi the production of the new Jeep Renegade, but that's not all.

Soon the Renegade (which you can see being built in the background of the image above) will spawn the 500X, a small crossover based on the same platform but with what you can see will be a more rounded shape. Replacing the Sedici (a.k.a. SX4) that was jointly developed with Suzuki, the 500X will join the Cinquecento family alongside the 500 hatch, 500C convertible and 500L minivan, the latter on whose design we hope the 500X will prove a marked improvement.

Expect the 500X (or so it's expected to be called) to be revealed on July 4, which will mark not only the 238th anniversary of the US Declaration of Independence but also the 57th anniversary of the original 500's debut.
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IHS: Global vehicle production to increase by 21M units by 2021, China to account for half

Filed under: China, Europe, Japan, Plants/Manufacturing, Russia, South Korea

The global automotive market will continue to surge into the start of the next decade, according to a new report from IHS Automotive. The analytical firm is reporting that global annual production will increase by 21 million units by 2021. Global production has already seen a 25-million-unit increase since the dark days of 2009.

Not surprisingly, China will dominate global production, while its neighbors in Japan and South Korea focus on foreign production, rather than building vehicles in their home markets. The North American market, meanwhile, will be kept going with the help of the same foreign investments that are leading to a decline in Japanese and Korean production.

Europe is a different case altogether, as the continent continues its economic recovery. Russia and Turkey will fall back in 2014, although IHS is predicting demand will increase four percent per year from 2015 to 2017. As for production, the percentage of European-built vehicles that are sold in Europe will fall by 2021, from 70 percent to 50 percent. That number could be greater, although IHS is arguing that significant recoveries in the struggling Italian and Spanish markets will help keep sales of Continentally produced vehicles afloat.

Take a look below for the official press release from IHS.

Continue reading IHS: Global vehicle production to increase by 21M units by 2021, China to account for half

IHS: Global vehicle production to increase by 21M units by 2021, China to account for half originally appeared on Autoblog on Mon, 12 May 2014 09:30:00 EST. Please see our terms for use of feeds.

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IHS: Global vehicle production to increase by 21M units by 2021, China to account for half

The global automotive market will continue to surge into the start of the next decade, according to a new report from IHS Automotive. The analytical firm is reporting that global annual production will increase by 21 million units by 2021. Global production has already seen a 25-million-unit increase since the dark days of 2009.

Not surprisingly, China will dominate global production, while its neighbors in Japan and South Korea focus on foreign production, rather than building vehicles in their home markets. The North American market, meanwhile, will be kept going with the help of the same foreign investments that are leading to a decline in Japanese and Korean production.

Europe is a different case altogether, as the continent continues its economic recovery. Russia and Turkey will fall back in 2014, although IHS is predicting demand will increase four percent per year from 2015 to 2017. As for production, the percentage of European-built vehicles that are sold in Europe will fall by 2021, from 70 percent to 50 percent. That number could be greater, although IHS is arguing that significant recoveries in the struggling Italian and Spanish markets will help keep sales of Continentally produced vehicles afloat.


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Lexus IS F Will Likely to Get Axed

One of the legendary japanese luxury+performance cars, the Lexus IS F, could be discontinued from next year.

Being powered by a 416 hp 5.0-liter V8 bolted to an eight-speed automatic gearbox, the luxury performance sedan is a good alternative to the Mercedes C63 AMG or the BMW M3. Unfortunately, it looks like the customers are not that impressed with Lexus trying to reshape its image as a sportier brand, as only 486 units have been sold in US last year.

As a result, Lexus will discontinue the IS F starting from next year. According to a recent rumor, the Japanese carmaker is working on another sport variant derived from the IS, maybe something with less than four doors, that could be better in helping Lexus reshape it’s image.

The Lexus IS F’s fans still have time to buy one until the end of 2013.

 News Source: MotorAuthority

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Genk Protest Ends - Ford Resumes Production

The situation at Ford's plant in Genk, Belgium, where production had been stopped due to workers blocking and cutting the supply of parts, as well as disrupting the plant in other ways. Up until now, they had not built and delivered a car since October 24, when the announcement that the plant would be closing down was made public.

Production should have been restarted earlier this month, but the attempt failed, as the protesters blocked an adjacent supply building.

However, now production has been restarted and this makes Blue Oval officials very happy, according to a company spokesman, Adrian Schmitz, who was quoted by Bloomberg: “We are pleased to be building and shipping vehicles again and are working to get the factory quickly up to full production.”

As a reminder, the Genk plant has a rich tradition, in association with the Ford name, as it is the spiritual home of all Europe-bound large Fords, and currently builds the Mondeo, as well as the S-Max and Galaxy models.

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VW Ads Factory Shift to Boost Golf VII Production

Ford, Opel and basically all the French automakers are closing plants, cutting shifts and firing workers. But Volkswagen is doing just fine. In fact, demand for their latest Golf is more than just fine.

Over 100,000 orders have been received already for this family hatch, proving buyers still have money if it's a question of buying the right car.

As a result of increased demand, VW has been forded to add three Saturday shifts in Wolfsburg for the first quarter of 2013.

"Since the launch of the Mk 7, our dealers have already taken over 100,000 orders for the new Golf," said VW CEO Martin Winterkorn. "Despite the changeover from the Mk 6 to the Mk 7 and the associated production line adjustments, we have once again shipped more than 800,000 units this year. No other European car enjoys such success."

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