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You meant New Process Gear ?

Automotive News / January 9, 2017 Fiat Chrysler has dramatically altered its product course and will now bring its new Jeep Grand Wagoneer back to life as a body-on-frame SUV, after nearly two years of claiming that it would be unibody like almost all other luxury nameplates. In comments to reporters at the Detroit auto show, FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne confirmed Monday that the company now plans to build both a Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer as body-on-frame vehicles. The new SUVs will be built at a retooled Warren Truck Assembly plant in suburban Detroit, which now builds the current-generation Ram 1500. The abrupt switch in product plans is likely to mean that the automaker’s dream of a $140,000 Grand Wagoneer to compete against the Range Rover, as laid out in November by Jeep brand boss Mike Manley, won’t happen. Instead, a much less expensive luxury Jeep is likely aimed at General Motors’ profitable Chevy Tahoe family of body-on-frame SUVs. Marchionne has previously said that he coveted the profits GM generates from its large SUVs. The switch is likely good news for FCA dealers, who faced the prospect of having a very expensive vehicle in their inventory without a natural customer base in that price range. Right now, the highest-priced Jeep -- the unibody 2017 Grand Cherokee SRT -- starts at $67,890, including shipping. A body-on-frame three-row Grand Wagoneer is more likely to stay closer to the brand’s initial price estimates of $100,000 and sell in higher volumes, at least in the U.S. Jeep’s leadership has been pushing for a luxury line above the Grand Cherokee, and included plans for it in its 2014 five-year business plan. As recently as June, Manley said that “the Wagoneer name represents historically the pinnacle of premium for the Jeep world. But in the same way as you may have an Overland and a Summit, you have different trim levels, so you could imagine the use of Wagoneer to denote a really premium vehicle, and Grand Wagoneer takes it to the very next level. So if you were to use that as your naming strategy, that’s exactly how I would use the trims.” .

What is left. What is right? What is a "lib"? The terms I use are right......and wrong. I myself expect the leader of our country to exemplify the ethics, morals and values that make our country the greatest in the world. Be it a company head or country leader, in order to achieve success, one must be a uniter of people. Because we can't move ahead unless we work together as a team. Mick Jagger was right, in that everyone can't always get what they want. But a leader of people can still win broad support while explaining in a professional manner commensurate with their position that we must strike a balance. A leader is a person that the vast majority of the country wants to rally behind (e.g. Franklin Delano Roosevelt). A leader doesn't sling muck at an actress who criticizes him. He/she instead stays focused. As president, there will always be people who disagree with you. Are you going to spend half your time on twitter ridiculing these American's freedom of expression, or rise above the noise and focus on being president? If one focuses on being a leader, and does an exemplary job, criticism will be minimal and accolades many,

The Washington Post / January 9, 2017 Grace Packer became a foster child at age 3. At age 14, she suffered a slow and painful death — raped, drugged and left to die in a sweltering attic. When those actions didn’t result in her death, she was strangled. Then her body was packed in cat litter and left in the same attic for months. Police would later find her dismembered remains in rural Pennsylvania. Officials say her gruesome death was carried out by a 41-year-old woman she had known as her mother, who adopted the teenager and her younger brother, and the mother’s boyfriend. Sara Packer and Jacob Sullivan were charged Sunday with several crimes, including homicide, kidnapping, endangering the welfare of a child and abuse of corpse. Sullivan who, police say, raped Grace in the attic, is facing additional sexual assault charges. Bucks County District Attorney Matthew Weintraub said the teen’s brutal killing was the result of a months-long plan — “a rape-murder fantasy” shared by her adoptive mother and her boyfriend. “Unfortunately, Grace Packer was a disposable child to these people,” Weintraub said. “Who will now speak for Grace Packer? We will.” About a week before they were arrested on Saturday, Packer and Sullivan were rushed to the hospital after they tried to kill themselves by overdosing on pills. A probable cause affidavit said the two had taken a suicide pact. The arrests and charges come after Sullivan confessed, in detail, to hospital staff about the teenager’s death. Sullivan told hospital employees and investigators that he and Packer began plotting the teen’s murder in fall 2015 and carried it out on July 8, 2016, in their house in Quakertown, Pa., a borough in Bucks County about 40 miles north of Philadelphia. Sullivan struck Grace several times in the face, splitting her lip, and then he and Packer took the teen to the attic on the third floor. There, Sullivan raped Grace while her adoptive mother watched. The 44-year-old man admitted sexually assaulting the teen on two prior occasions. At some point, Packer left to get some medicine to sedate Grace, Sullivan told investigators. The two later tied and gagged the teen and left her in a cedar closet, believing she would eventually die from the effects of the assault, the drugs and the excessive heat in the attic. At about 3 a.m. the next morning — more than 12 hours later — they checked on Grace and found that she was still alive and conscious. That’s when Sullivan strangled her to death, admitting to investigators that it was “more physical and took much longer than he expected.”. Prosecutors said the two packed the teen’s remains in cat litter to mask the odor. For the next three months, Grace’s body would remain in the attic. Packer is also accused of lying to police about her daughter’s whereabouts. A few days after the teen was believed to have been killed, on July 11, Packer told police that Grace had stolen $300 from her and had run away from home. She claimed that they had a fight the night of July 8 because she didn’t allow the teen to go to a friend’s house. Grace was gone when she checked on her the following morning, Packer told police, adding that her daughter has been gone for “days at a time” before. But investigators found inconsistencies in Packer’s statements. For instance, in September, Packer told a detective investigating the missing persons report that she had notified relatives about her daughter’s disappearance. But a North Carolina relative, who was Grace’s caretaker when she stayed there in 2015, said she didn’t know the teen was missing. Other family members told investigators that they weren’t told about Grace’s disappearance until later. Investigators also noticed oddities in Packer’s behavior. In the months after Packer filed a missing person’s report, detectives were largely unable to get a hold of her. A frequent Facebook user with a habit of posting about insignificant incidents, such as having a headache, Packer never once posted anything about her daughter’s disappearance. After detectives visited the Quakertown home in mid-October for a follow-up investigation, Packer and Sullivan became concerned that investigators would discover Grace’s body, which was still in the attic. They dismembered the teen and drove to a remote area where they dumped the remains. Later that month, Pennsylvania State Police troopers responded to a call about human remains found in rural Bear Creek Township in Luzerne County, about 70 miles from the couple’s home. After searching the house, detectives found a receipt for a bow saw and two blades believed to have been used to dismember Grace’s body. A surveillance video showed Packer buying the items at a local tractor supply store. Records of Packer’s debit card purchases also revealed that she had bought Diphenhydramine tablets and Tylenol capsules at a local Target store on July 8, the same day that Grace was believed to have been raped and drugged. On Dec. 30, authorities said, Packer and Sullivan tried to commit suicide by overdosing on pills. Police said they believed that the two had agreed to kill themselves. At that time, they had moved to an apartment in a neighboring town. A woman who had been living with the couple called 911. “I don’t know if you have watched the news lately … our … someone we were involved with was recently … It’s a big mess, it’s a big mess, and I don’t really know how to explain it…but…oh my God,” Katherine Albright told the dispatcher. Police also said they found a suicide note in which Sullivan appears to try to explain his innocence to his children. It read: “I love you all so much. You are the only people that I have always been able to count on. I’m sorry that I am taking the coward’s way out, but I don’t have any strength left in me. People want to judge and lie and break me down. They have. I can’t exist with Sara in jail and those f—— lying pigs and the whore media have made it impossible for us to live. They don’t care how many lives or laws they break. I know you will always know that we had nothing to do with this no mater what lies they tell. I’m sorry to leave you. Remember all I’ve taught you. Be brave, stand tall and do your best to be stronger than I was.” But about a week later, investigators were told that Sullivan had confessed to hospital staff and to his family that he had killed Grace and that Packer was his accomplice. Sullivan was arrested on Saturday, and Packer was arrested about three hours later. The two were arraigned separately on Sunday. A district judge denied them bail. “I’m sorry for what I did,” Sullivan told reporters as he was led into the courthouse. Weintraub, the district attorney, called the crimes “heinous” and “depraved.” After Packer’s arraignment, Weintraub said the teen’s death “shakes one’s belief in the goodness of humanity.” “The question is: How could any mother do this to a child?” he told the paper. “I’m bereft. I don’t have an answer.” Grace’s 12-year-old biological brother is with other family members. Packer and Sullivan are scheduled for a preliminary hearing on January 20. .

Trump tariffs threaten Fiat Chrysler’s Mexico plants The Financial Times / January 9, 2017 Marchionne warns of possible closures after announcing $1bn US investment Fiat Chrysler Automobile (FCA) would have to close its Mexican car plants if Donald Trump follows through on campaign promises to impose stringent tariffs on vehicles coming into the US, chief executive Sergio Marchionne said on Monday. “It’s possible that if economic tariffs are imposed . . . and are sufficiently large, it will make production of anything in Mexico uneconomical and we would have to withdraw,” Mr Marchionne said at the annual Detroit auto show. “It’s quite possible.” His comments came only hours after his company drew an approving tweet from the US president-elect by announcing a fresh $1bn investment into the US, creating 2,000 jobs. “Fiat Chrysler just announced plans to invest $1BILLION in Michigan and Ohio plants, adding 2000 jobs. This after Ford said last week that it will expand in Michigan and U.S. instead of building a BILLION dollar plant in Mexico. Thank you Ford & Fiat C!” Mr Trump wrote. Fiat’s two separate comments reflect the difficult line that carmakers are having to walk when dealing with the incoming US president, who has repeatedly criticised companies that manufacture cars for the US market in Mexico and threatened to impose 35 per cent tariffs on imported cars. Fiat Chrysler produces 503,000 vehicles in Mexico a year at two sites in Saltillo and Toluca and exported 86 percent of them to the US or Canada in 2015. Between 21 percent and 52 percent of parts used in FCA’s Mexican vehicles come from US suppliers, so a decision to shutter plants there could hit them as well. Marchionne said FCA was waiting to see what Trump and the Republican Congress would do before making decisions about its Mexican presence. “We want clarity, we all want clarity,” he said. “If they get changed, we have no choice.” He also insisted that the new US investment did not involve jobs that would otherwise have gone to Mexico. “This wasn’t a pre-emptive strike,” he said. The FCA group, which also includes the Jeep, Ram, Dodge, Alfa Romeo and Maserati brands, makes 1.8 million cars a year in the US. Mexico’s car industry has blossomed under the North American Free Trade Agreement, with the industry making 3.4 million cars a year but it is heavily reliant on access to the US and Canadian markets, which account for 82 percent of the country’s 2.7 million exported vehicles. “The reality is the Mexican auto industry has been tooled up to try and deal with the US market,” Marchionne said. “If the US market were not to be there, then the reasons for its existence are on the line.” Some carmakers, such as Nissan and Volkswagen, use Mexico as a base to export to Europe or Latin America. But Marchionne said it would be too expensive to repurpose FCA’s existing Mexican site to export all over the world. “That transition would be costly and it would be very, very uncertain. There is no easy transition; those plants were designed built and purposed at a time when NAFTA was alive and well,” he said.

VW top management ‘authorized concealment’ of emissions cheating The Financial Times / January 10, 2017 Executives briefed about defeat devices in July 2015, say unsealed criminal charges Volkswagen’s senior management was briefed in the summer of 2015 on the cheating software at the centre of the company’s diesel emissions scandal, and ordered its continued concealment, according to criminal charges unsealed by US prosecutors on Monday. VW employees briefed “executive management” in July 2015 at the German carmaker’s headquarters in Wolfsburg, Germany, about the use of software-based defeat devices to understate emissions in official tests, says a criminal complaint about the company’s former head of compliance in the US. “Rather than advocate for disclosure of the defeat device to US regulators, VW executive management authorised its continued concealment,” adds the complaint. The VW employees involved in the briefing included Oliver Schmidt, a VW veteran who was head of compliance in the US in 2012 and 2015. He was temporarily detained pending a detention hearing scheduled for Thursday in Miami, where he is due to be arraigned on Monday. The conduct outlined in the criminal complaint raises the likelihood that some more senior VW executives in Germany and the US could face charges, said one Department of Justice official. It comes at a time when VW is seeking to finalise a criminal settlement with the US authorities over the emissions scandal. Such a deal would be a milestone in VW’s efforts to draw a line under the affair, which has become the worst crisis in the company’s history. Schmidt is accused of conspiring for nearly a decade to conceal from US regulators the existence of defeat devices in VW diesel cars, according to the criminal complaint filed in federal court in Detroit. He is also accused of defrauding the US by impairing the Environmental Protection Agency’s emissions control program, cheating VW customers, and violating the Clean Air Act. For several weeks before VW admitted to US regulators in September 2015 that its diesel cars had cheated emissions tests, employees worried about the danger of criminal penalties for their actions, says the criminal complaint. VW’s “executive management” in Wolfsburg requested a briefing on the US situation, which took place on July 27 2015, says the criminal complaint. For that briefing, Schmidt and several colleagues prepared a slide on the potential outcomes of a meeting with California regulators scheduled for the following week. A “positive” meeting would result in the needed certification to sell VW cars in the US. But a “negative” outcome raised the question “Indictment?”, according to the criminal complaint. Schmidt’s arrest by the FBI marks the latest development in a scandal dating back more than a decade. In 2006, VW engineers realized that a new diesel engine they had designed would not be powerful enough to satisfy car owners and not green enough to pass muster with regulators. The new engine was the centerpiece of an ambitious strategy to boost VW sales in the US market. Rather than admit defeat, the company wrote software called a defeat device to cheat emissions tests. The device was programmed to recognize when a diesel car was undergoing the government’s standard laboratory tests and operate in accordance with EPA limits. But when driven on the road, the software allowed the cars to spew up to 40 times the allowable levels of nitrogen oxide. “VW employees knew that if they had told the truth and disclosed the existence of the defeat device, VW could not have sold any of its diesel vehicles in the United States,” says the criminal complaint. VW’s scheme began unravelling in early 2014 when a study ordered by the International Council on Clean Transportation, a non-profit organisation, detected the higher readings on the road emissions by VW diesel cars. In April 2014, after learning of the study’s findings, Schmidt emailed a colleague about the issue: “It should first be decided whether we are honest. If we are not honest, everything stays as it is.” VW formed an ad hoc engineering task force to handle regulators’ questions. “VW employees determined not to disclose to US regulators that the tested vehicle models operated with a defeat device,” says the criminal complaint. “Instead, VW employees pursued a strategy of concealing the defeat device in responding to questions from US regulators, while appearing to co-operate.” By the summer of 2015, Schmidt was directly involved in efforts to deal with regulators’ increasingly pointed questions. James Robert Liang, a VW engineer, in September became the first person to plead guilty to criminal charges, including conspiring to defraud US customers and regulators. He agreed to cooperate with US government investigators in return for leniency. Prosecutors also are getting help from two other VW insiders, who worked in the company’s engine development department, says the criminal complaint. They are cooperating in return for assurances that they will not be prosecuted in the US. From 2012 to 2015, Schmidt was general manager of VW’s environmental engineering office in Michigan, which was responsible for dealing with US regulatory agencies such as the EPA and the California Air Resources Board. In March 2015, he was promoted to the post of principal deputy to the head of engine development in Wolfsburg.

Retired Republican Congressman Ron Paul, formerly the U.S. Representative for Texas' 14th and 22nd congressional districts. .

Auto executives, with eye on Trump, highlight U.S. investments Reuters / January 9, 2017 Global auto executives at the Detroit auto show are highlighting their investments in the United States, mindful of President-elect Donald Trump's attacks on automakers for building vehicles in Mexico. Fiat Chrysler Automobiles CEO Sergio Marchionne said on Monday that uncertainty over Trump's trade and tax policies could lead automakers to delay investments in Mexico, and he confirmed plans to create 2,000 jobs at Fiat Chrysler's U.S. factories. "The reality is the Mexican automotive industry has now for a number of years been tooled-up to try and deal with the U.S. market. If the U.S. market were not to be there, the reasons for its existence are on the line," said Marchionne. FCA announced on Sunday it would spend $1 billion to retool factories in Ohio and Michigan to build new Jeep sport utility vehicles, as well as a pickup truck, and potentially move production of a Ram heavy-duty pickup truck to Michigan from Mexico. On Monday, Ford confirmed it would build a new Ranger pickup and a new SUV under the storied Bronco name in Wayne, Michigan (replacing Focus/C-Max production that is shifting to Hermosillo, Mexico). During the 2016 presidential campaign, Trump criticized Ford's announcement last year that it would move Focus production to Mexico. Last week, Ford scrapped plans to build a new $1.6-billion Focus plant in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, and said it would invest $700 million at its Flat Rock plant in Michigan. Executives at Ford, Fiat Chrysler and other automakers at the auto show all claimed their investment decisions were driven by business considerations, not Trump's comments. Most major automakers in the U.S. market have substantial vehicle-making operations in Mexico, as well as complex networks of parts makers that supply their factories in the United States and support jobs and investment in states such as Ohio and Michigan. Trump praised Ford and Fiat Chrysler's latest announcements on his Twitter account on Monday. "It's finally happening - Fiat Chrysler just announced plans to invest $1BILLION in Michigan and Ohio plants, adding 2000 jobs," Trump said. He added: "Ford said last week that it will expand in Michigan and U.S. instead of building a BILLION dollar plant in Mexico. Thank you Ford & Fiat Chrysler." INVESTING IN THE UNITED STATES Trump's focus on U.S. automotive jobs, and uncertainty over what policies he may introduce, have been central topics of discussions among industry officials at the annual auto show. Companies ranging from General Motors to Honda to Daimler used the show to highlight new U.S. investments. Toyota will invest $10 billion in the United States over the next five years, the same as in the previous five years, North America Chief Executive Jim Lentz said Monday. Honda will build a new hybrid model that does not have a gasoline counterpart in its lineup. The hybrid will be made in the United States in 2018 at an existing plant, and Honda said it would boost investment at its transmission plant in Georgia. Daimler CEO Dieter Zetsche said Sunday the German automaker planned to invest another $1.3 billion to expand SUV production at its Alabama plant. Volkswagen plans to invest $7 billion in the United States between 2015 and 2019. It is weighing whether to build an electric SUV in the United States or Mexico, said North America Region CEO Hinrich Woebcken on Sunday. Volkswagen has had a plant in Mexico for 50 years and it is not shifting any jobs to Mexico from the United States. "We do not make our investment decisions based on administrative cycles," Woebcken said. FCA's Marchionne said Monday his company's decision to invest in expanded truck production in the United States "was in the works and has been in the works for a long period of time." Marchionne wanted to get out the news about adding jobs and investment in the United States in case the company encountered more criticism from Trump. Marchionne said he has not made a decision on whether to move production of certain Ram heavy-duty pickups from Mexico to the United States, in part because of uncertainty about tariffs. "There's no commitment to move the heavy-duty. If tomorrow morning President-elect Trump decides to impose a border tax on anything that comes up from Mexico, then we’ll have to adjust." Also on Monday, Toyota's Lentz warned that a "border adjustability tax," could add $1,000 to the cost of a Kentucky-built Camry sedan, because it has foreign-made parts. Ford Chairman Bill Ford Jr and General Motors CEO Mary Barra have, separately, spoken with Trump in recent days. Ford said he has been "in relatively frequent contact with him." He said he was encouraged that overhauling the corporate tax code was high on Trump's agenda. Barra on Sunday said tax reform and "streamlining regulations ... are just two areas that would be extremely beneficial" for Trump to address. Trump has criticized GM for building cars in Mexico while laying off workers in the United States. Barra, who is on an advisory committee to Trump, said decisions about where to build specific vehicles are made "two, three four years ago." Overall, she said of Trump, "we have much more in common" than areas of disagreement. Marchionne said he had not spoken with Trump or anyone on the presidential transition team.

Bill Ford: Scrapping Mexico Plant Is a Business Decision Bloomberg / January 10, 2017 Ford Chairman Bill Ford discusses the Detroit auto industry, Donald Trump’s trade policies, the president-elect’s nomination of Elaine Chao for Transportation secretary and the company’s decision to scrap plans for a new plant in Mexico. He speaks with David Westin on “Bloomberg Markets” from the North American International Auto Show in Detroit, Michigan. Video - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/videos/2017-01-09/bill-ford-scrapping-mexico-plant-is-a-business-decision

This video gives me the impression that Trump indeed imitated the handicapped Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter (Serge F. Kovaleski), who suffers from arthrogryposis (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Arthrogryposis). That Mr. Trump would deny the event is troubling, and his action beneath the dignity of the presidency. Leading the world's greatest country, I myself do hold our presidents to a higher standard. Trump's action was not indicative of the mature behavior reasonably expected from a presidential hopeful.

If the Bronco is merely a rebadged Ford Everest, I'll be first in line. However, if it is a Bronco-like body on the global Ranger platform, I'll likely pass. "Bronco" is a signature Ford product that the automaker indeed should bring back. But the Bronco and Everest are two different flavors.

A mid-sized van means the Transit Custom (windowless cargo version) and Transit Tourneo (passenger version) are finally coming to the US market. I mentioned this superb product here................http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/47453-new-man-tge-and-volkswagen-crafter-launched-at-iaa-2016/#comment-350078 New for 2012, the mid-sized Transit is produced by Ford Otosan in Turkey. There are actually four size vans in the Transit range, the smallest being the Transit Courier...........http://www.ford.co.uk/CommercialVehicles/Transit-Courier

I have an idea what's going on with the D16. At any rate, this is what Volvo announced within the last 12 months. Production of upgraded D11 and D16 engines begins in January, while a D13 with turbo compounding begins production in mid-2017. http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/45838-volvo-trucks-north-america-press-conference-shippensburg-pa/#comment-337812 The 2017 Mack MP8 will be available for order in April 2016, while the 2017 MP7 and MP10* engines will be available for order in July 2016. The Mack MP8 with turbo compounding will be available for order in October 2016. http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/44945-new-mack-engines/#comment-331766 Long noted that no major changes are being made to the 2017 D16 model compared its previous 2014 iteration, with the D16 maintaining its iron-zeolite catalyst, eliminating the need for sulfur regeneration. Production for the tweaked 2017 D16 model begins in January 2017. http://www.bigmacktrucks.com/topic/44540-volvo-trucks-announces-us-market-common-rail-other-powertrain-enhancements/#comment-328779

FBI Arrests Volkswagen Executive on Conspiracy Charges in Emissions Scandal The New York Times / January 9, 2017 The Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) has arrested a Volkswagen executive who faces charges of conspiracy to defraud the United States, marking an escalation of the criminal investigation into the automaker’s diesel emissions cheating scandal. Oliver Schmidt, who led Volkswagen’s regulatory compliance office in the United States from 2014 to March 2015, was arrested on Saturday by investigators in Florida and is expected to be arraigned on Monday in Detroit. Lawsuits filed against Volkswagen by the New York and Massachusetts state attorneys general accused Schmidt of playing an important role in Volkswagen’s efforts to conceal its emissions cheating from United States regulators. Starting in late 2014, Schmidt and other Volkswagen officials repeatedly cited false technical explanations for the high emissions levels from Volkswagen vehicles, the state attorneys general said. In 2015, Schmidt acknowledged the existence of a so-called defeat device that allowed Volkswagen cars to cheat emissions tests. Volkswagen eventually said that it had fitted 11 million diesel cars worldwide with illegal software that made the vehicles capable of defeating pollution tests. The software enabled the cars to sense when they were being tested for emissions and turn on pollution-control systems to curb emissions at the cost of engine performance. But those controls were not fully deployed on the road, where cars spewed nitrogen oxide at up to 40 times the levels allowed under the Clean Air Act. James Liang, a former Volkswagen engineer who worked for the company in California, pleaded guilty in September to charges that included conspiracy to defraud the federal government and violating the Clean Air Act. But Schmidt’s arrest brings the investigation into the executive ranks. The arrest came as Volkswagen and the Justice Department neared a deal to pay more than $2 billion to resolve the criminal investigation into the emissions cheating. The company or one of its corporate entities is expected to plead guilty as part of the deal. The settlement could come as early as next week. American prosecutors had traveled to Germany in recent months to interview Volkswagen executives, according to German prosecutors. The criminal case against Volkswagen, and the potential guilty plea, set it apart from other recent auto industry investigations. In settlements with General Motors and Toyota over their handling of safety defects, for example, the companies agreed to pay large fines, but did not plead guilty. Prosecutors are also mulling criminal charges against Takata, the Japanese manufacturer under criminal investigation for its defective airbags. Volkswagen has already agreed to pay up to nearly $16 billion to resolve civil claims in what has become one of the largest consumer class-action settlements ever in the United States, involving half a million cars. Under the settlement, most car owners have the option of either selling their vehicles back to Volkswagen, or getting them fixed, provided the automaker could propose a fix that satisfied regulators.

Big Rigs / January 9, 2017 The five most famous Hollywood trucks turned up to small fleet owner Brad Wike's farm in September last year, in North Carolina over in the States. From Rubber Duck's 1977 Mack to the big bad Peterbilt 281 that started it all in the hit movie Duel. .

Stage 5 Results MAZ Trucks Press Release / January 7, 2017 The fifth stage of the rally-raid Dakar 2017 is already behind. Local landscapes are striking in their beauty, while the local climate brings about changes in the Dakar’s route. The managerial staff of the rally-raid decided to shorten the stage 5 with finish at the first special stage, that was the 219th km of the route. The competitors did not negotiate the second part of the special stage after the neutralization zone, as the tracks on the way to Oruro were blurred. According to Marc Coma, Dakar sporting director, it was a difficult decision, but in such a race like Dakar you should always be on the alert. So the stage 5 Tupiza – Oruro allowed our crews to enter top-10 thus taking higher positions in general ranking. Siarhei Viazovich's crew no. 511 (S.Viazovich/P.Haranin/A.Zhihulin) – 5th place (17:43 time gap) at the stage; 17th position (03:24:37 time gap) in general ranking. Alexander Vasilevski's crew no. 522 (A.Vasileuski/D. Vikhrenka/A. Zaparoshchanka) – 6 th place (18:21 time gap) at the stage; 11th position (01:13:23 time gap) in general ranking. Alexey Vishneuski's crew no.533 (А.Vishneuski/М.Novikau/А.Neviarovich) – 8th place (22:18 time gap) at the stage; 19th position (04:35:44 time gap) in general ranking. .

Stage 4 Results MAZ Trucks Press Release / January 6, 2017 The fourth stage of the rally-race Dakar-2017 has finished. The total lenght of the stage was 521 km with a special in 416 km. Dakar competitors started in Argentinian city San Salvador de Jujuy while their finish was in Bolivian Tupiza as well as the major part of the 4th stage took place in Bolivian territory. The competitiors faced lack of roads and dunes along this route. Siarhei Viazovich's crew no. 511 finished in the 36th place. Now they occupy the 21st position in the general ranking. Alexander Vasilevski's crew no. 522 finished in 16th place and is at 15th position in the general ranking. Alexey Vishneuski's crew no.533 finished in 37th place and is at 26th position in the general ranking. Ahead is the next stage from Tupiza to Oruro. .

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Organizers Cancel All Competition Due to Inclement Weather. Teams Drive to La Paz on a Liaison Route, Concluding the First Half of the Rally. On January 7, Stage6 Oruro (Bolivia) - La Paz (Bolivia) Liaison: 227km Total: 227km At 10 pm, Jan. 6, organizers announced that they will be canceling all competition for Jan. 7. This was due to the fact that many racers were arriving late at the bivouac because of inclement weather, and road surfaces on the SS scheduled for Jan. 7 had become too rough due to the ongoing rain. All vehicles were redirected to a liaison route that took them directly to La Paz. This meant that competition for the first half of the rally concluded on Jan. 6. Tomorrow, on Jan. 8, team crews will have a day of rest, and prepare for the second half beginning on Jan. 9. La Paz, the capital city of Bolivia, is situated in a bowl-shaped basin at an elevation of 3200 to 3600m. This having been the first time for the Dakar Rally to make a stop in La Paz, the sides of the liaison route were packed with hundreds of thousands of La Pazians who came to get a glimpse of vehicles competing in the rally. A podium had also been set up in the city center. It was around 6 pm when the HINO500 Series trucks arrived at the bivouac which was set up on a military camp near the bottom of the basin. In the drizzling rain, mechanics were quick to begin servicing the trucks with a focus on fully refreshing the trucks in preparation for the second half of the rally. This intervening day of rest is actually a very busy one for mechanics. Yoshimasa Sugawara: We got bogged in the SS on Jan. 6 and it took us two hours to free the truck. I was feeling symptoms of altitude sickness, perhaps because we worked too hard to break loose, but I'm feeling better now after breathing oxygen and resting at the bivouac. I will get my physical condition up to speed during the rest day tomorrow. Mitsugu Takahashi: There were quite a few areas where navigation was challenging and we got lost a couple of times. The first half of the rally is already over, so time certainly does zip by. Teruhito Sugawara: Given this weather, there wasn't much the organizers could do but to cancel the SS. This consequently made the first half shorter, but the second half will continue to meet us with challenging segments and we are highly motivated to keep going. I think our performance up to this point has partly been the result of upgrades that we made to the truck, but I also think that the increased level of navigation difficulty has been an advantage for the more experienced teams, including ourselves. Hiroyuki Sugiura: It seems like I'm also having some mild symptoms of altitude sickness. I'm eager to race and I can't wait for the second half to begin. .

Car 2 Joins the Top 10 Group in the SS for the First Time This Year. Organizers Cancel the Latter Half of the Day Due to Rain. On January 6, Stage5 Tupiza (Bolivia) - Oruro (Bolivia) Liaison: 54km, SS: 219km, Liaison: 320km Total: 593km The itinerary for Jan. 6 took contestants from Tupiza to Oruro, both in Bolivia, where teams raced a 219km SS in the intermountain areas near Uyuni. While the original plan called for two SSs―with a neutral zone near the town of Uyuni in between―for a total SS distance of 438km, organizers were forced to cancel the second half as the terrain was seriously affected by rain that had been falling for the last few days. As a result, all contestants headed for the bivouac in Oruro on a liaison route. After climbing to 4000m altitudes in the first half of the day, contestants raced in some areas that featured farm fields and field ridges built of sand. The terrain was generally moist due to the rain and there were many slippery areas. HINO TEAM SUGAWARA's Teruhito Sugawara and Hiroyuki Sugiura duo continued to maintain their cool as they took on this SS. They drove error-free in areas that were particularly challenging for navigation, and finished at 9th place overall―joining the top ten groups for the first time in this year's rally. Car 1 piloted by Yoshimasa Sugawara and Mitsugu Takahashi delivered a solid performance and finished 38th overall in the SS. As of this writing at 9:30 pm, Car 1 is still on its way to the bivouac on the liaison route. Based on these results, Car 2 boosted its accumulated ranking as of Jan. 6 to 12th place (preliminary), and Car 2 was at 32nd. The team continues to maintain its 1-2 standing in the Under 10-litre Class. The bivouac in Oruro was set at an elevation of 3500m. Heavy downpours began later in the afternoon, turning the ground into a mud field. Numerous vehicles were bogged and struggling to break free. With these factors combined with the severe cold, mechanics had to work under extreme conditions servicing the trucks. Organizers announced that they will be shortening the stage for tomorrow, Jan. 7, again due to the rain. Start times will be pushed back by two hours and the start line will be moved to the 21.35km point. CP4 will be the new finish line for the day, and from there contestants will take a paved liaison route to La Paz. Teruhito Sugawara: This was a risky SS as the rain made the surfaces quite slippery. I think our good performance comes from a combination of two factors: We are driving a better truck, and navigation is more difficult this year. Hiroyuki Sugiura: There are waypoints along the way that you won't be able to check unless you followed the road book to the tee. I'm happy that we were able to check all of these. Our truck is doing just fine. .

Car 2 Delivers Stunning Performance in the Full-Blown Highland Stage, Finishing the SS at 13th Place. Car 1 Finishes Day-5 in 34th Spot. On January 5, Stage4 San Salvador de Jujuy (Argentina) - Tupiza (Bolivia) Liaison: 103km, SS(A): 286km, Neutral Zone: 1km, SS(B): 130km, Liaison: 2km Total: 522km On Jan. 5, contestants started off from Jujuy before crossing the border into Bolivia. After driving a 103km liaison segment, they raced SSs that traversed the border for a total SS distance of 416km. This was a full-blown highland stage set at altitudes of between 3000m and 4000m+ where contestants faced mountain crossings and numerous off-piste areas, as well as dunes in hilly sandy terrain with grassy outcrops. Car 2 was the 21st truck to start the SS and delivered a great run which propelled it to 8th place by the first checkpoint (CP1). The truck subsequently maintained its position in 12th place, finishing in high rankings at 13th overall and top in the Under 10-litre Class. Competing neck and neck with the leading group of larger trucks in the overall category, this performance brought Car 2’s accumulated standings as of Jan. 5 to 14th overall and first in the Class in an amazing display of the HINO500 Series truck's potential. Meanwhile, Car 1 lost some time at one point in the race searching for a waypoint, finishing the SS at 8:22 pm at 34th place overall. The clock was past 9:00 pm by the time the truck arrived at the bivouac. The itinerary for Jan. 6 will take contestants through highlands from Tupiza to Oruro where they are scheduled to race a total of 438km of SS. Yoshimasa Sugawara: Rain started to pour down when we were at the bottom of a dry river bed, and we were taken off guard when we saw a large river of water flowing our way. While we made some course errors, we maintained our pre-planned pace to make a solid finish. Mitsugu Takahashi: It was difficult to find the hidden GPS waypoints that the organizers introduced this year, and we lost some time there. It would be a great help if we could start a bit earlier. Teruhito Sugawara: Although I think luck had a little bit to do with our 13th place finish in the SS, the truck has been delivering the performance that we were expecting it to. The course for the day was quite tough and the sands were really soft. Tomorrow, we will give it our best again to give the leading group a run for their money. Hiroyuki Sugiura: Navigation was quite difficult in the off-piste sections early in the day. We also had to run our oxygen enricher as we faced higher altitudes. There were a lot of trucks stopped on the course for one problem or another, perhaps due to the thin oxygen. Seiichi Suzuki: Last night, we replaced the water pump on Car 1, and the belt tensioner on Car 2. The trucks are doing very well and we haven't had to use our welder so far. Nakamura Masaki: I'm sure the mechanics' experience in the Silk Way Rally has been a great help, but I'm also sure that getting used to these conditions―including the intense heat on the first day and freezing cold of the highlands at night―is easier said than done. So I commend them for doing a great job. .

Mack Evaluating Wrightspeed Electric Powertrain for Refuse Industry Volvo Group Press Release / January 5, 2017 The Wrightspeed Route is a range-extended electric vehicle powertrain that helps reduce fuel consumption and vehicle maintenance costs because it uses electricity to deliver 100 percent of the vehicle’s propulsion. “As the clear leader in the refuse industry, Mack consistently seeks opportunities to pioneer new technology,” said Curtis Dorwart, Mack refuse product marketing manager. “We’re currently evaluating Wrightspeed’s powertrain technology to see how it can most benefit Mack’s refuse customers.” The system features an advanced plug-in-capable battery pack that enables a purely electric range of up to 24 miles. When the batteries’ charge is depleted, an 80 kW, fuel agnostic Fulcrum™ Turbine Generator, which can operate on natural gas or diesel fuel, recharges the batteries, enabling Route-equipped vehicles to have unlimited range with refueling. Additional recharging comes from the Route’s 730 kW regenerative braking system, which generates electricity as the vehicle comes to a stop. Regenerative braking helps reduce maintenance costs, as braking force – and subsequent brake wear – is significantly decreased. Electricity from the battery pack powers four Geared Traction Drive™ (GTD) electric motors, enabling the Route powertrain to power vehicles up to 66,000 pounds on grades as steep as 40 percent. With full torque available from zero rpm, the Route provides a driving experience comparable to diesel-powered trucks.

Bloomberg / January 9, 2017 General Motors may test President-elect Donald Trump’s patience with its new GMC Terrain when the SUV heads to U.S. dealers this year from a factory in Mexico. GM currently makes Terrain and its Chevy Equinox stablemate at a plant in Ingersoll, Ontario. Moving Terrain/Equinox production to Mexico instead of the U.S. is partly a response to hyper competition among automakers seeking an edge through lower production costs. The 2015 labor agreement with the United Auto Workers union boosted wages and benefits for thousands of younger U.S. employees who previously made much less than veteran factory hands. Mexican autoworkers earn an average of $8.24 an hour in pay and benefits, compared with $46.35 an hour for those in the U.S. Canadian workers get similar compensation. Duncan Aldred, vice president of global GMC sales and marketing, said GM is using existing plants that can handle the production volume. “We have been planning this for a long time, and we’re using our existing footprint,” he said. GM has a lot riding on the new Equinox and Terrain. Small SUVs are a booming segment of the market and a big moneymaker for the company, so when GM planned the new versions, it decided to increase output from one factory to three -- adding the vehicles at two existing facilities in Mexico, according to a GM spokesman. The move is GM’s bet that more inventory will mean more new buyers, as well as a play to make more on each sale. Some of the added production in Mexico is earmarked for overseas. That’s partly because of Mexico’s 44 free-trade deals with other countries, which allow GM to export vehicles tariff-free to markets where it doesn’t have similar agreements, including Brazil, Colombia and the European Union. In late 2014, GM announced it would invest $5 billion in new plants in Mexico by 2018, creating 5,600 jobs south of the border. The Equinox and Terrain facilities, which also make other models, are roughly $1 billion of that. In 2015, GM said it is investing $5.4 billion in plants in the U.S. That same year, the UAW negotiated a four-year U.S. labor deal that gave veteran workers at GM, Ford and FCA two 3 percent raises and two cash payouts equal to 4 percent of their pay. Entry-level, or so-called Tier 2, workers -- who once started at less than $16 an hour and topped out at $20 -- now start at $17 and grow into the union’s traditional $29. Those at Ford and GM also get the top-flight health insurance of their The Equinox and Terrain could be a bigger deal than the Chevy Cruze. GM delivered 242,000 Equinox models to U.S. buyers in 2016 and 88,000 Terrains -- all from the Canada plant. Those SUVs aren’t cheap. The current Terrain starts at $24,000, and GMC offers an upscale Denali edition that starts at $34,000. GMC is a luxury brand, which Dziczek said makes sense for production in Mexico. “Mexican plants make small cars and luxury vehicles,” she said, “both of which have export potential.” .

Automotive News/Reuters / January 8, 2017 Fiat Chrysler Automobiles will spend a combined $1 billion retooling its decades-old Warren Truck Assembly plant to build Jeep Wagoneers and Grand Wagoneers as well as its Toledo Supplier Park to one day build Wrangler-based Jeep pickups. Both retoolings are expected to be completed by 2020, and will add a combined 2,000 jobs, the automaker said in a statement today. The plant actions were not unexpected, and were first revealed during 2015 negotiations with the UAW and first reported by Automotive News Sept. 1, 2015. However, in its release Sunday, FCA did include one surprise: The automaker claimed that “an added benefit of the investment in Warren is that it will enable the plant to produce the Ram heavy duty truck, which is currently produced in Mexico.” Note: Second generation regular cab (BR) Dodge heavy duty pickups (2500/3500) were built at Warren during the 1990s. A historical footnote, the Sherwood and Hoover Road assembly lines at Warren produced Dodge medium and heavy trucks. That sentence would indicate one of two possibilities. One is that FCA had altered its plans to build the luxury-level Jeep Wagoneer and Grand Wagoneer on the same unibody platform as the next-generation Grand Cherokee and instead plans to build them as truck-based frame vehicles, like the Chevy Suburban. The other possibility is that the money will be used to add a second unibody line to Warren Truck Assembly, which has been building Dodge and later Ram pickups since the 1930s. FCA’s Toledo Assembly Complex currently builds the unibody Jeep Cherokee and the body-on-frame Jeep Wrangler, but on two separate assembly lines. A spokesman for FCA declined to comment. CEO Sergio Marchionne is scheduled to hold a series of private press conferences at the Detroit auto show Monday morning. FCA will display its Chrysler Portal concept minivan -- unveiled last week at CES in Las Vegas -- at the Detroit auto show Monday, but has no scheduled product press conference. In a written statement, Marchionne said “the conversion of our industrial footprint completes this stage of our transformation as we respond to the shift in consumer tastes to trucks and SUVs, and as we continue to reinforce the U.S. as a global manufacturing hub for those vehicles at the heart of the SUV and truck market. “These moves, which have been under discussion with [UAW President] Dennis Williams and the rest of the UAW leadership for some time, expand our capacity in these key segments, enabling us to meet growing demand here in the U.S., but more importantly to increase exports of our mid-size and larger vehicles to international markets. “The expansion of our Jeep lineup has been and continues to be the key pillar of our strategy. Our commitment to internationalize the Jeep brand is unwavering, and with these last moves, we will finally have the capacity to successfully penetrate markets other than the U.S. which have historically been denied product due to capacity constraints. In addition, these all-new products will reach new consumers, as well as those that have been part of the Jeep tradition,” Marchionne said. Trump impact FCA's announcement, meanwhile, upped the ante as automakers respond to threats from President-elect Donald Trump to slap new taxes on imported vehicles. The auto industry has a keen interest in getting relief from tough fuel economy rules enacted by the outgoing Obama administration. Many automakers plan to use the Detroit auto show to tout investments in the U.S. and a commitment to U.S. employment against the backdrop of Trump's criticism of automakers for shipping vehicles into the U.S. from Mexico. Most of the major automakers in the U.S. have substantial vehicle making operations in Mexico, as well as complex networks of parts makers that supply their factories in the U.S. and support jobs and investment in states such as Ohio and Michigan. FCA's investment decisions were not related to Trump's recent attacks Ford Motor Co., General Motors and Toyota Motor Corp. for building cars for the U.S. market in Mexico, people familiar with company's moves said on Sunday. The company had already signaled plans to expand truck and SUV production at its U.S. plants, and discontinued production of small- and medium-sized cars in two U.S. factories. FCA executives did not confer with Trump before making the decision on the new big SUVs and a Jeep pickup truck, according to a person familiar with the company's thinking. The same source said Marchionne wanted to get out the news about adding jobs and investment in the U.S. in case FCA encounters more criticism from Trump. Still, Fiat Chrysler's announcement landed as executives global auto industry executives gathered for the annual auto show in a climate of growing uncertainty about the trade and regulatory policies the new Republican administration will pursue. Trump, who will be inaugurated on Jan. 20, has talked about rolling back environmental regulations, and supporting corporate tax cuts -- moves automakers would welcome. He has just as explicitly warned that he will move to raise the costs of importing vehicles from Mexico, a policy industry executives said could hurt their businesses. U.S. investments Since Trump's election, automakers and other companies have played up their investments in the U.S. Last week, Ford scrapped plans to build a $1.6 billion plant in Mexico and invest $700 million in a factory in Michigan. Ford will still move production of Focus small cars to Mexico, but will instead cut total production of the cars by consolidating their assembly in an existing Mexican plant. Hinrich Woebcken, CEO of the North America Region for German automaker Volkswagen AG, told Reuters on Sunday the automaker plans to invest $7 billion in the U.S. between 2015 and 2019 and will start building its new Atlas SUV in Tennessee later this year. Volkswagen has had a plant in Mexico for 50 years and it is not shifting any jobs to Mexico from the U.S. "We do not make our investment decisions based on administrative cycles. Our business is really an 8-, 12-, 14-year horizon when we look at investments," Woebcken said on the sidelines of the Detroit auto show. .