Ford lauds 'fantastic' effort at damaged BorgWarner plant, expects no impact on F-150

The automaker scrambled a team that was on the ground 12 hours after the tornado struck, helping BorgWarner fix the plant and reach the point where it expects to resume limited production next week.

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Ford says work-from-home could continue into July

The process of reopening plants and offices will take several months, culminating with salaried employees returning by late June or early July. When vehicle production will resume remains unclear, but plant workers won't have access to cafeterias or fitness centers during breaks.

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Visteon near break-even in Q1 despite pandemic hit

Visteon said it launched 13 products in the first quarter and is expecting future launches to stay on track in 2020.

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U.S. consumers willing to pay auto bills in quarantine, TransUnion finds

A survey of nearly 3,000 U.S. consumers conducted by TransUnion reveals that those affected financially by COVID-19 closures were about twice as likely to default on a mortgage than an auto payment, sticking to previous trends of ranking transportation needs above other credit products.

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Nissan holds off UK plant restart until June

The automaker, which is reopening its UK factory later than some other companies, said it has spent recent weeks carrying out extensive risk assessments and benchmarking with other manufacturers around the world to put in place safety measures.

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CONGRESS CONVERSATIONS: Former Ford CEO sees gradual ramp-up, pent-up demand, consolidation

Hear Mark Fields’ views on the industry’s return to normalcy. He also looks at the future of retailing, manufacturing, electrification and investments in autonomous driving.

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BMW plans to resume S.C. operations on Monday

BMW's restart next week will be gradual — the plant will operate at about 50 percent capacity — as the automaker assesses customer demand and supply chain capacity.

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Dana Q1 sales, profits fall amid 'unprecedented challenges'

The supplier said weaker demand in the heavy-vehicle market and production halts as a result of the coronavirus pandemic impacted first-quarter results, with sales falling nearly 11 percent.

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Continental postpones Vitesco spinoff

The German supplier, citing ongoing economic uncertainty, said the planned listing of its powertrain unit won't happen this year.

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Fiat Chrysler's Italian dealerships to reopen

Italy is joining Germany and France in allowing dealerships to resume car sales after they were closed because of measures to restrict the spread of the coronavirus.

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Denso halves global output on coronavirus as profit hits 11-year low

The Japanese supplier posted an 81 percent drop in operating profit for its fiscal year and said its supply chain could be affected in the coming months if the outbreak is prolonged. 

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Gale Halderman, designer behind first Ford Mustang, dies

Halderman was a fairly young designer whose sketch of the Mustang emerged the winner among a competition during a secret project to create what became the first so-called pony car. He was 87.

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Musk calls coronavirus shelter-in-place orders 'fascist'

Tesla Inc. CEO Elon Musk Wednesday called statewide shelter-in-place orders that have shuttered his Fremont, Calif., factory and prevented a first quarter delivery record "fascist," dropping multiple expletives and railing against what he called an infringement on individual freedoms.

Musk, on the company's first quarter earnings call wtih journalists, unloaded on his state's current order for people to remain in homes to halt the spread of the coronavirus, which has killed more than 61,000 people nationwide.

"Frankly, I would call it forcibly imprisoning people in their homes against all their constitutional rights, in my opinion," he said. "Breaking peoples' freedoms in ways that are horrible and wrong and not why people came to America or built this country. What the f---?"

Musk argued people shouldn't be told to remain in their homes.

"This is fascist," he said. "This isn't democratic. This isn't freedom. Give people back their g------- freedom."

Earlier in the day, Musk tweeted "FREE AMERICA NOW."

The billionaire, who could be eligible for stock option payouts approaching $750 million if the company's stock continues to perform well, briefly defied state orders last month to close his plant as the number of infected patients rose significantly.

Despite the early resistance, Tesla's U.S. manufacturing operations — the Fremont plant and a New York solar roof tile factory — have been idled since March 24. The automaker began informing employees in early April that it would furlough without pay all nonessential workers and cut salaries during the shutdown.

Tesla is working toward bringing workers back to the Fremont plant next week after backing off plans to recall some workers the last week of April.

Suppliers to Tesla face similar conflicts ramping up in time to supply the Fremont assembly line with parts and components despite stay-at-home orders in states such as Michigan.

As the virus spread throughout the country in early March, Musk tweeted that "the coronavirus panic is dumb."

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Tesla posts 3rd straight quarterly profit as EV credit income jumps

The electric vehicle maker posted net income of $16 million for the first three months of 2020, with the help of $354 million in emissions credits sold to competitors.

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Automakers negotiating for Brazilian bailouts, report says

Brazil is South America's largest auto producer and a major base of operations for General Motors, Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, Volkswagen Group and Ford Motor Co., which are requesting a bailout for their local units.

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Hertz talks with banks, Treasury in push to avoid bankruptcy

CEO Kathryn Marinello said the car rental giant is seeing the support lenders and banks and is making the case for government aid.

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Tesla posts third straight quarterly profit as income from EV credits jumps

The electric vehicle maker posted net income of $16 million for the first three months of 2020, with the help of $354 million in emissions credits sold to competitors.

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Hertz skips lender payments amid talks to reduce obligations

Hertz's lenders negotiations underscore the amount of pressure the broader rental-car industry is under. Avis Budget Group's revenue has plummeted by about 80 percent this month

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VW pauses U.S. restart indefinitely; Toyota delays a week to May 11

Volkswagen of America cited its suppliers and the state of the market as reasons for extending the shutdown of its Chattanooga Assembly plant. Toyota Motor North America said it plans a slow ramp-up. 

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Lyft to cut 17% of work force, reduce salaries

The ride-hailing company also will furlough about 5 percent of its staff who handle operations that have been suspended during the pandemic.

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VW pauses May 3 production restart, citing suppliers, market

Volkswagen of America has indefinitely paused its plan to bring its Chattanooga Assembly plant back on line Sunday, May 3, citing its suppliers and the state of the market. Employees there are to remain furloughed.

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AutoNation names Cannon to new customer experience position

Marc Cannon adds technology oversight to his responsibilities at the largest U.S. dealership group. He will continue to lead brand, advertising, marketing, e-commerce, customer relations and communications.

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GM delays Hummer EV reveal

GM planned the debut for May 20 at a GMC dealer meeting in Las Vegas, but the event has been canceled. GM is looking at other options, including a virtual event.

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Sonic reduces headcount by a third, reports Q1 net loss

The dealership group wrote down the value of its franchised business by $268 million during the first quarter because of the impact of the coronavirus crisis on its market value. Adjusted earnings from continuing operations rose 4.9 percent to $17.6 million and the company's shares surged in early trading.

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BorgWarner to start limited production at damaged S.C. plant in early May

BorgWarner is planning to resume limited production in early May at its Seneca, S.C., facility that was severely damaged by a tornado earlier this month.

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