Latest news with #ParisMotorShow
Japan Today
27-05-2025
- Automotive
- Japan Today
Tesla EU sales slump 52% in April: trade group
The logo of US company Tesla displayed at the Paris Motor Show at Paris Expo Porte de Versailles in Paris on October 16, 2024 By Taimaz SZIRNIKS Sales of cars made by Elon Musk's Tesla slumped by more than half in April as Chinese electric carmakers saw their share surge, the continent's manufacturing association said Tuesday. While sales of electric cars rose overall in the 27 European Union nations, Tesla's share fell dramatically amid the spotlight on Musk's work with U.S. President Donald Trump and the U.S. company's aging range. The European Automobile Manufacturers' Association (ACEA) said Tesla sales in April fell to 5,475 cars, down 52.6 percent from the same month last year. In the first four months of 2025, Tesla sales have fallen 46.1 percent against the same period last year to 41,677 cars. Once the standout leader in electric car sales, Tesla was overtaken in April by 10 rivals including Volkswagen, BMW, Renault and Chinese maker BYD, according to JATO Dynamics consultants. Tesla announced in April that its worldwide sales in the first quarter had fallen 13 percent, increasing pressure on Musk, though the company partly blamed lost production amid an upgrade to its Model Y standard-bearer. Musk has since announced he will reduce his work helping Trump slash U.S. government spending and last week said that Tesla sales are "doing well". Skoda's new Elroq led electric car sales while Tesla's Model Y, the former frontrunner, came ninth. Sales of electric cars overall rose 26.4 percent from last year to take a 15.3 percent share of the market in April, according to the ACEA. The rise is uneven across Europe as different governments and manufacturers give different incentives to buy electric. Germany, Belgium, Italy and Spain have seen a major rise while electric car sales in France have fallen. "The share of battery-electric vehicles is slowly getting momentum, but growth remains incremental and uneven across EU countries," said Sigrid de Vries, ACEA's director general. "In order for battery-electric vehicles to become a mainstream choice, it is essential that governments continue to implement the necessary enabling conditions, such as purchase and fiscal incentives, recharging infrastructure and electricity prices. "The sustained popularity of hybrid vehicles among consumers also shows the merit of keeping a technology-neutral approach," she added. Sales of hybrid cars with a small electric battery still dominate the European market, rising 20.8 percent since the start of the year, while petrol-only cars have fallen 20.6 percent over the same time. The Volkswagen group remains the top brand in Europe, with sales up 2.9 percent in April. But Chinese brands were a major factor in the popularity of electric and hybrid cars, according to JATO and have 7.9 percent of the European market. The BYD, MG, Xpeng and Leapmotor brands saw sales rise 59 percent over the year in electric and hybrid sales, while other manufacturers put on 26 percent. JATO expert Felipe Munoz said it remains to be seen whether the European Union imposes tariffs on Chinese hybrid cars as it has for electric vehicles. © 2025 AFP
Top Gear
20-05-2025
- Automotive
- Top Gear
The Bugatti Veyron was first sketched on a Japanese bullet train with a W18 engine
Supercars Bugatti opens the history books to show us four concepts that paved the way Skip 10 photos in the image carousel and continue reading Around 25 years ago, the late Volkswagen Group chairman Ferdinand Piëch said he wanted to build a car that boasted 1,001PS and would be capable of over 400kmh. They'd figure out to get there along the way, but the targets had been set. Interestingly, the all-conquering Veyron was originally planned to have a W18 engine. Bugatti has released these concept car pics outlining the journey from Piëch's train ride to the fastest car in the world, taking in a few very important concepts. Advertisement - Page continues below It was that original ride on a Japanese Shinkansen – the 'bullet train' – back in 1997 where Piëch sketched out an 18-cylinder powerhaus that'd fuel his dream of 1,001PS and 400kmh+. He asked Italdesign's Giorgetto Giugiaro to deliver him a concept capable of bearing such a thing. The front-engined EB 118 arrived at the 1998 Paris Motor Show as a massive two-door homage to the Type 57CS Atlantic whose long bonnet hid a 6.3-litre naturally aspirated W18 engine with 555PS (547bhp). A long way off his target, but the stage had been set. You might like A year later came the EB 218, also designed by GG, this time taking the form of a lavish front-engined four-door that doffed its considerable cap to both the Type 41 Royale and the earlier EB 112 concept from the Artioli era. Longer than the EB 118, it too was powered by that 547bhp W18 lurking under the nose. It took until September 1999 for Bugatti to shuffle the W18 to the middle with the reveal of the EB 18/3 Chiron. This time, GG's son Fabrizio was in charge of the pencil case, adjusting the shape to accommodate the 547bhp W18 in the middle of the car. It's the point where the Veyron really began to take shape, all cab-forward aggression wrapped up in a two-door coupe. Advertisement - Page continues below A month later, it'd morph again into the EB 18/4 concept penned not by the Giugiaros, but in-house by Jozef Kaban, credited with the final Veyron's design. Named after Bugatti's development and test driver Pierre Veyron – who'd won at Le Mans – the 18/4 originally debuted with the same W18. But, 'the immense challenge of reliably extracting over 1,000PS', as well as managing the heat and complexity of the nat-asp W18 meant in 2000, it was downsized by two cylinders to an 8.0-litre W16. It was also turbocharged to within an inch of its life – four, don't forget – which allowed Bugatti to hit its targets. And lo, the Veyron arrived. (And yes, around the same time, Bugatti's stablemates were toying with their own Veyron-esque creations, in the shape of the 1999 Bentley Hunaudières and 2000 Audi Rosemeyer concepts. Both featured a WR16 layout.) Not a bad motor, that Veyron, by all accounts. Pretty quick. Quite luxurious. Bit expensive. Produced 1,001PS (987bhp) and of course, went on to very much exceed 400kmh in the Super Sport. Job done. Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Look out for your regular round-up of news, reviews and offers in your inbox. Get all the latest news, reviews and exclusives, direct to your inbox.
Daily Mail
29-04-2025
- Automotive
- Daily Mail
Citroen unveils its New C5 Aircross - and promises an electric version with 422 miles of range
Citroen has revealed its new flagship model the C5 Aircross, and it will take on Europe's growing mid-sized SUV market. The second-generation C5 Aircross builds on the concept unveiled at Paris Motor Show last autumn and will come in electrified powertrains versions; a hybrid, a plug-in hybrid, and fully-electric. Citroen says the selection between the C5 Aircross Hybrid 145, the C5 Aircross Plug-in Hybrid 195 and the e-C5 Aircross means buyers are 'free to make their own choices [...] at their own pace in their transition to electrification'. If drivers choose the Extended Range e-C5 option, the French maker promises an impressive 422 miles of range - but we can't tell you whether that's fact or fiction until we test it on the roads. The new Aircross will aim to improve on the outgoing model, and Citroen promises this will be the case across the board. Prices aren't set yet but it's likely to start from under the £30k affordability ceiling. The new C5 Aircross design Citroen's designers have changed the old C5's curvy shapes into sharper, more angular, tauter lines and wider haunches, which fit in with Citroen's new design language. Sitting on the STLA-M platform, the New C5 Aircross is 1.66m high with a simple silhouette which prioritises efficiency, with a plunging nose, sloping roofline and a side edge line that travels from grille to tailgate. As a result, the New C5 Aircross has an improved drag coefficient - improved to 0.75 from the 0.84 SCx of the old model. It's not just aerodynamic improvements though; the New C5 Aircross has a new light Light Wings signature; a horizontal gloss black facade at the rear, gloss black side skirts, chunky cladding and Citroen's new C-shaped headlights. Practicality and interior As a mid-sized SUV, the new C5 Aircross will need to deliver for all family needs in order to compete against the competition. A large part of the upgrade on the old model is tailored towards this; at 2,785mm the wheelbase is 600mm more than the old model (almost all of which Citroen says is available rear legroom), there's an additional 150mm in length (now 4,652mm) and it's 1,902mm wide. This makes it bigger than the Peugeot e-3008, but slightly shorter in length than the Skoda Kodiaq, albeit wider. And even rear passengers will have the same knee room identical to that of the C5 X and 51mm longer than that of the previous C5 Aircross. Tall passengers get 68mm of additional headroom in row two compared to the previous model as well. And the seats can be between 21° and 33°, which makes it far more comfortable for rear passengers. The 651-litre boot is a segment leader, and impressively there's no loss of boot space in the plug-in hybrid or electric versions either. It's significantly bigger than the Peugeot e-3008's 520-litre boot but less than the Skoda Kodiaq's 765 litres. There's additional storage space in a compartment under the boot floor which can be adjusted to two different heights, and there's 40 litres of extra storage throughout the cabin too. The interior- what's new? Citroen's going hard on the innovations the New C5 Aircross interior. It's said to have been designed using the precepts of the Citroen 'C-Zen Lounge' architecture, which is supposed to make driver and passengers feel like (no prizes for guessing) they're in a living room. This includes a 'Sofa Design' dashboard which is 'designed like a piece of living room furniture' and uses a 'high-quality foam fabric' to feel like a 'real cocoon'. We're not sure about you, but to us it looks like a conventional modern-day car interior rather than a lavish living space. The Advanced Comfort seats indeed look very plush. But, while we appreciate that the front seats are 10-way adjustable, heated and ventilated, and come with five different massage functions, and the rear seats are both reclining and heated on higher trims, we're not buying this is any more 'living room' in feel than any other mid-sized mid-priced SUV. But we will give a round of applause for Citroen using 160kg of recycled metals and 47kg of recycled or bio-sourced plastics in the Aircross - and 20 per cent in its tyres. The C5 Aircross also becomes the first car in the world to use vine shoots: the clear plastics in the console and doors are made from 20 per cent vine shoots sourced from organic vineyards in Burgundy. The large 1,069mm by 720mm panoramic roof, which can be opened electronically at the front, provides lots of natural light into the cabin and we think you can't go wrong with a panoramic roof. C5 Aircross tech Citroen's other big interior pull is the new 'Cascade' touchscreen, which is the largest central HD display ever offered by a Stellantis brand (also including the likes of Fiat, Peugeot and Vauxhall). The floating touchscreen has fully customisable and fixed sections for easy function; there's a fixed control bar for car settings, home page and phone, as well as driver's and passenger climate control, but you can also select 16 widgets per page for other functions like infotainment. Using the latest generation of Citroen's infotainment eight drivers can create personalised profiles. There's also wireless Android Auto and Apple CarPlay, a wireless charging pad, as well as 'Hello Citroen; voice recognition and ChatGPT too. Driver's get a 10-inch digital instrument cluster with a 30 per cent larger Head-Up display than on the C5 X which is customisable. Which powertrain options are available? As we've mentioned there are three powertrain options to suit all levels of electric enthusiasm. The C5 Aircross Hybrid 145 has a generous combined range of 559 miles and requires no recharging. It combines a 136hp three-cylinder 1.2-litre turbo engine with a 12hp electric motor, and the 0.9kWh battery is automatically recharged during deceleration. The Hybrid 145 limits its fuel consumption to around 15 per cent less than a non-hybrid petrol model and, thanks also to its aerodynamics, four per cent less than the previous generation C5 Aircross Hybrid 145. The Plug-In Hybrid 195 offers an electric range of 53 miles – a 33 per cent improvement on the old model. In town this should stretch to 62 miles of EV range Citroen says. The PHEV combines a 150bhp four-cylinder 1.6-litre turbo petrol engine with a 125bhp electric motor and a 21kWh battery; the two engines cna operate together or separately depending on what the driver wants or conditions call for. Charging on a 7.4kW charger is completed in two hours and 55 minutes. The all-electric e-C5 Aircross comes in two options: the 210 Standard Range and the 330hp Extended Range. The 210 has a useable 73kWh battery offering 323 miles or range, while the 230 Extended Range has a usebale battery with a range of 422 miles. And both come with three driving modes - Eco, Normal and Sport- as well as three-stage regenerative braking. The e-C5 is also fitted with a heat pump as standard. The 210 Standard Range will charge in six hours 45 minutes from a 7.4kW single-phase AC charger, four hours 30 minutes from an 11kW three-phase AC charger, and 30 minutes on a 160kW DC rapid charger. The 230 Extended Range will take a bit longer, charging in eight hours 55 minutes from a 7.4 kW single-phase AC charger, six hours 30 minutes from an 11kW three-phase AC charger, but just 27 minutes from a 160kW DC rapid charger. From 2026 the e-C5 Aircross will come with Vehicle-to-Load tech too, so you can charge your appliances or house from the car. When's it available and how much will the C5 Aircross cost? We don't know pricing yet, but it is likely the cheapest version will cost less than £30,000 (hopefully). Developed and assembled in France, we do know that the New C5 Aircross will go on sale in the main European markets in the second half of this year.
Yahoo
04-04-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Step Back In Time And Tour The Mercedes Factory Building The First Ever S-Class
People love saying that "they don't make them like they used to," with "them" referring to everything from breakfast cereals to aircraft. Now, you can step inside an old Mercedes factory to explore exactly how they did used to build them, with this particular "them" being the iconic W116 S-Class. The W116 was produced by Mercedes between 1972 and 1980 at its Sindelfingen factory in Germany, which has about 100 years of history building cars for Mercedes-Benz. Back in the 1970s, Mercedes let a film crew onto the factory floor to see how it assembled its first S-Class, and the resulting film is a cacophony of manual labor, controversial fashion choices, and rudimentary car-building robots (since well upgraded) on the factory floor. The film begins with a look into a few stages of the development of the W116. There are technical drawings showing the design of the car, clay models of the finished design, and footage of the W116's V8 engine undergoing tests on a dyno rig. Read more: These Are The Cars Our Readers Wish Would Depreciate Faster Once the development of the car was complete, it was displayed at the Paris Motor Show back in fall 1972, where the W116 made its public debut. After that, Mercedes was ready to kick off mass production of the new flagship. The first stage of the build for the car starts at the press shop, where enormous sheets of steel are cut down to size and stamped to form the body panels of the W116. Huge presses churn out fenders, wheel arches, and other panels that are essential for the cars. The steel chassis of the car is then assembled and the body panels are lined up to be welded into position. At this point, the hood is attached up front and the doors are also bolted into place. All of the welds on the car are then smoothed over and the shell of the car is checked by Mercedes engineers. Once it's signed off, the frame of the S-Class is dipped into a huge tank that's filled with a special liquid to help prevent the steel work from corroding over time. The underside of the car is also sprayed to treat the surfaces, before primer is applied to the bodywork and several layers of paint are sprayed on top. Over the next few stages of production, workers crowd around each frame fitting the dashboard and interior, as well as the lining for the trunk of the car. The wiring is all woven into the car at this stage, and all manner of checks are carried out on the components as they are bolted into place. Trim pieces on the exterior, headlights and taillights are the next to go in, before the gleaming Mercedes grille is fitted up front. Finally, the windows and chrome details are fitted to the car before it is handed off to the next department. While all that is going on, another area of the plant assembles the transmissions and engines that, once complete, are joined together and dropped into place at the front of the S-Class. The axles and other mechanical components are installed, before the wheels can be fitted at each corner and the finished car is handed over to quality control for a full suit of checks. The factory that all this is filmed at is still owned and operated by Mercedes-Benz, and it still builds the S-Class there to this day. The production lines have all been refined and updated over the years -- as has the S-Class itself -- so now the plant churns out more than 200,000 cars every year. At the time that this film was produced, the output was closer to 100,000 units per year. If you want to head inside more old factories to see how things used to be done, head here to see how the weird three-engined DC-10 was built back in the 1960s. Want more like this? Join the Jalopnik newsletter to get the latest auto news sent straight to your inbox... Read the original article on Jalopnik.
Yahoo
18-02-2025
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Shifting gears: VinFast's leadership changes and strategic direction
Founded in 2017 as a subsidiary of the Vietnamese conglomerate Vingroup, VinFast set ambitious goals to establish itself as a global automotive brand. The company made its international debut at the 2018 Paris Motor Show, unveiling the LUX A2.0 and SA2.0 - both rebadged versions of the BMW 5 Series and X5 - rather than launching them domestically in Vietnam. By 2019, VinFast commenced production and sales of its initial line-up, which included the LUX A2.0, SA2.0, and the Fadil, a rebadged Chevrolet Spark. That year, the company sold approximately 8k Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles in Vietnam. VinFast's rapid market entry was facilitated by the acquisition of a General Motors (GM) plant in Vietnam, licensing agreements for rebadged models, and the leadership of its first CEO, James DeLuca, formerly Executive Vice President of Global Manufacturing at GM. Under DeLuca, the company emphasized manufacturing excellence, laying the foundation for its operations. A shift in leadership occurred in mid-2021 when Michael Lohscheller, former CEO of Opel and CFO of Volkswagen and Mitsubishi, assumed the CEO role. His appointment signaled a strategic pivot toward financial expansion, particularly with plans to enter the US market and transition into Battery Electric Vehicles (BEVs). However, Lohscheller's tenure was brief, lasting just five months before Le Thi Thu Thuy, formerly Vingroup's CFO, took over as Global VinFast CEO. With a background in finance from Lehman Brothers, her leadership further underscored VinFast's focus on securing a successful US stock market listing to fund its BEV ambitions. In 2022, the automaker announced that it would cease ICE production by the end of the year to become a BEV company, recognizing the BEV trend and challenges in competing in the conventional powertrain segment globally. The company focused on developed markets like the US and Europe rather than emerging markets. August 2023 marked a significant milestone as VinFast went public on NASDAQ through a special purpose acquisition company (SPAC) merger, just one month after breaking ground on its North Carolina manufacturing plant. However, in January 2024, another leadership transition took place when Pham Nhat Vuong, Vingroup's founder, assumed the role of CEO. Under his leadership, the company revised its strategic priorities, postponing the North Carolina plant's opening from 2025 to 2028 and shifting its market focus toward emerging markets such as the Philippines and Indonesia. VinFast's swift decision-making was particularly evident in Thailand, where the automaker actively pursued government incentives, showcased its models at the Bangkok International Motor Show in March 2024, and planned vehicle deliveries for August 2024. However, by July 2024, VinFast had entirely withdrawn from the Thai market due to unfavorable consumer and dealer feedback. This rapid course correction, likely facilitated by direct oversight from the company's founder, highlights the agility of an owner-led enterprise in mitigating financial risks. The appointment of Pham Nhat Vuong as CEO suggests that VinFast is at a pivotal juncture, requiring strong executive control to navigate the next phase of its expansion. One of the company's key upcoming initiatives is its entry into the Indian market. At the Bharat Mobility Global Expo 2025 in New Delhi, VinFast showcased its VF 6 and VF 7 models, signaling its intent to establish a presence in India. The company plans to begin accepting bookings in the second half of 2025, with production and deliveries targeted for 2026. India, as the world's third-largest Light Vehicle (LV) market, presents significant opportunities for VinFast, particularly given the regulatory barriers that have restricted the entry of Chinese BEV manufacturers. As VinFast continues to recalibrate its global strategy, its leadership choices and market shifts will be critical in shaping its long-term trajectory. Titikorn Lertsirirungsun, Senior Manager, Southeast Asia Forecasting, GlobalData This article was first published on GlobalData's dedicated research platform, the . "Shifting gears: VinFast's leadership changes and strategic direction" was originally created and published by Just Auto, a GlobalData owned brand. The information on this site has been included in good faith for general informational purposes only. It is not intended to amount to advice on which you should rely, and we give no representation, warranty or guarantee, whether express or implied as to its accuracy or completeness. You must obtain professional or specialist advice before taking, or refraining from, any action on the basis of the content on our site. Sign in to access your portfolio
