Latest news with #ToyotaCorolla
Yahoo
41 minutes ago
- Automotive
- Yahoo
Get Ready To Thank Tariffs For Making Cheap Cars More Expensive
Brace yourself for an alarming statistic. A whopping 92 percent of new vehicles sold in the U.S. priced under $30,000 are imports. The eight percent that aren't do not exactly constitute a rounding error, but you would not be unfairly criticized if you argued that basically all America's cheap cars come from someplace else. The stat comes from and the site's Industry Insights Report for the first half of 2025, which concludes that the Trump administration's tariffs are "disproportionately affecting" the cheap car market. For the record, the only American-made cars that cost less than 30 grand are not domestic models: we're talking about the stalwart Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla. OK, technically speaking these are "American" cars because they're made in U.S. factories, but the ugly truth is that cheap vehicles from Ford and GM are imports from Mexico, China, and South Korea. According to the study, the supply of these inexpensive rides is going to dry up, triggering price increases as tariffs kick in through the second half of the year. You might ask yourself why the U.S. market relies so heavily on imports to stock the under-$30,000 segment. The answer is high labor costs in America, but that isn't the whole story. Cheap cars aren't very profitable, if they're profitable at all. GM, Ford, and Stellantis (owner of the Jeep, Chrysler, Dodge, and RAM brands) would rather sell you a more expensive pickup truck or large SUV than a compact sedan and are happy to make those vehicles in U.S. plants. Read more: These Are Your Favorite Factory Exhaust Designs Why Are All The Cheap Cars Imported? For decades, the manufacturing of small, cheap vehicles has effectively been outsourced to other countries. This has enabled American companies to remain in the segment. Tariffs are upsetting this arrangement. For auto executives, the way forward is mostly bad. Years ago, I covered a briefing at the Detroit Auto Show by then-FCA CEO Sergio Marchionne, and he was completely unflinching in his assessment of the affordable small-car market in the U.S. It was for the foreign carmakers to dominate, as in his view they had figured out how to make an acceptable margin. When interest rates were low, this arrangement actually wasn't a major issue – buyers simply financed their way into more expensive vehicles, and for years the average transaction price on new cars and trucks has been trending up (although lately its been in moderate retreat). But interest rates aren't low anymore. And with tariffs, cheap cars are about to get more expensive. There was a run on new-car sales in early 2025 when tariffs were announced, as consumers sought to snap up vehicles before the import taxes hit and the automakers rolled out incentives to move the metal off dealer lots. That phase now appears to be ending, and the U.S. market is preparing to accept a new normal. The question is whether more domestic manufacturing will come online or whether carmakers will reduce production as prices invariably rise and demand flags. Could The U.S. Market Remake Itself? I don't see a scenario in which cheap vehicles suddenly aren't imported in droves. So if tariffs aren't dialed back, the entry-level tier is set up for a world of hurt. It's depressing to consider this outcome after decades of Americans enjoying the world's most competitive market and having access to all manner of choice when it comes time to purchase a new set of wheels. Supporters of Trump's tariffs will insist that the policy will force automakers to increase U.S. production, build factories here, and ultimately hire more U.S. workers. But students of Trump's actual motives understand that what he and his trade advisors might actually want is to compel exporters to eat the tariffs, effectively paying a substantial toll for access to the U.S. market. That idea relies on prices somehow not going up, and of course Trump has jawboned the car companies to shield consumers from the well-understood economics of tariffs. They might play along. But that would mean they'll lose even more money on inexpensive cars than they are already. The logical response would be to reduce supply. In the near term, we're likely to see fewer sub-$30,000 cars available as tariffs make life far more unpleasant for the segment. 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.
Time of India
17 hours ago
- Time of India
Turquoise alert issued in Arizona to trace mother who fled with her 6-year-old girl from Hawaii
A statewide Turquoise Alert has been issued on Wednesday, July 23, in Arizona for 6-year-old Violet Coultas, a missing girl from Hawaii who was last seen at Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport on July 12, according to the Arizona Department of Public Safety. Authorities say Violet was accompanied by her mother, Sarah Coultas, who does not have legal custody of the child and is wanted for violating a court order. Explore courses from Top Institutes in Please select course: Select a Course Category Data Science CXO Product Management Technology Project Management Data Science MCA Digital Marketing Cybersecurity Others MBA healthcare Finance Leadership Healthcare Management Data Analytics Public Policy others Artificial Intelligence Operations Management Design Thinking Degree PGDM Skills you'll gain: Data Analysis & Interpretation Programming Proficiency Problem-Solving Skills Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence Duration: 24 Months Vellore Institute of Technology VIT MSc in Data Science Starts on Aug 14, 2024 Get Details Skills you'll gain: Strategic Data-Analysis, including Data Mining & Preparation Predictive Modeling & Advanced Clustering Techniques Machine Learning Concepts & Regression Analysis Cutting-edge applications of AI, like NLP & Generative AI Duration: 8 Months IIM Kozhikode Professional Certificate in Data Science and Artificial Intelligence Starts on Jun 26, 2024 Get Details Surveillance footage shows Violet at Sky Harbor around 10 p.m. MST on July 12 with her mother. The Hawai'i Island Police had reported both Violet and Sarah missing on July 19, after the two were last seen together earlier on July 6 in South Kona, Hawaii. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like 20 Pieces of Clothing Older Women should Avoid Learn More Undo Sarah Coultas, 48, is now the subject of an arrest warrant. She previously lived in Pa'auilo, worked in Hilo, and may frequent the Kona and Ka'ū areas. Officials believe the pair may still be in Arizona, and possibly using a silver 2005 or 2006 Toyota Corolla with a faded hood. The license plate number remains unknown. Live Events Description of missing child and suspect Violet is described as a white female, 3 feet 10 inches tall, weighing 43 pounds, with blonde hair and hazel eyes. She was last seen wearing a white shirt, pink jacket, pink sweater, light-colored shorts, and white shoes. Sarah Coultas is described as Caucasian, 5 feet 11 inches tall, 160 pounds, with straight brown hair and hazel eyes. What is a Turquoise alert? Arizona's Turquoise Alert system was created under Emily's Law, passed in May 2025 after the death of Emily Pike, a missing San Carlos Apache teen. The law was designed to address gaps in alert systems for missing persons under 65, particularly at-risk individuals and tribal members. Turquoise Alerts are issued when a person under 65 goes missing under unexplained or suspicious circumstances, and authorities believe they may be in danger or accompanied by someone dangerous. This is the first statewide Turquoise Alert issued since the system was established. How is a Turquoise Alert different from an Amber Alert? A Turquoise Alert differs from an Amber Alert primarily in who it aims to help and the circumstances involved. While Amber Alerts are issued only for children under 18 who are believed to have been abducted and are in immediate danger, Turquoise Alerts apply to missing and endangered people under the age of 65, including tribal members, who have disappeared under suspicious or unexplained circumstances. Importantly, Turquoise Alerts do not require proof of abduction, only that the individual may be in danger or accompanied by someone potentially harmful.
Scoop
21 hours ago
- Business
- Scoop
Dunne's Weekly: A Tale Of Two Ferries
In March this year, Straits Shipping, operators of the Bluebridge Cook Strait ferries, announced the purchase of a new ferry. The nearly 28,000 tonne Livia, built in 2008, was bought to replace the 28 year-old Strait Feronia, in service with Bluebridge since 2015. The Livia arrived in Wellington earlier this month and began service on the Cook Strait run this week. No terminal renovations have been required in either Picton or Wellington to accommodate the Livia, which will carry around 375 passengers and 200 cars. Morgan Stanley Infrastructure, owners of Straits Shipping since 2022, have not disclosed the Livia's purchase price nor how long the purchase negotiations took. In sharp contrast to Bluebridge's apparent time-frame for replacing the Strait Feronia, back in 2018 the then Labour/New Zealand First coalition government launched the IREX project to replace the publicly owned Interislander line's three aging ferries. Three years later, in June 2021, Kiwirail, the operator of the Interislander ferries, signed a contract with Korea's Hyundai Mipo shipyards to build two new rail enabled ferries. They were projected to enter service in 2026. The cost of the project was estimated to be $1.45 billion. But just over two years later, by the time the current National/Act/New Zealand First coalition had taken office, the project's cost had more than doubled to $3.1 billion. There were estimates the cost could even climb as high as $4 billion by the time the ships were delivered. However, the massive explosion in costs was not related to the ships - their cost remained relatively static - but in the costs of upgrading shoreside facilities on both sides of Cook Strait to accommodate the new ferries. It was therefore no real surprise that the new government cancelled the project and went back to the drawing board, looking for a "Toyota Corolla rather than a Rolls Royce solution" as Finance Minister Nicola Willis said at the time. Earlier this year, the government announced a revised programme for building two new rail-enabled ferries to be in service by 2029, with substantially pared back shoreside facilities. As part of the plan, the trouble-plagued 26 year-old Aratere will be withdrawn in a few weeks. Its withdrawal will mean there will be no rail-enabled ferries on Cook Strait, until the new ships arrive in 2029. By that time, the Interislander's two remaining ferries, Kaiārahi and Kaitaki, will be 31 and 34 years old respectively. They will be long overdue for replacement - only the Tamāhine has served longer on the Cook Strait route, from 1925 to 1962. And, in sharp to contrast to Bluebridge, Interislander's ferry replacement programme will have taken just over eleven years, assuming no further delays. Also by 2029, Bluebridge's other ferry, the 500 passenger, 200 car, Connemara, will be coming up for replacement. But even then it will still be younger than Interislander's ferries are today. Bluebridge and the Interislander have an almost equal share of the Cook Strait passenger and vehicle traffic. Together, they are a vital transport link between the North and South Islands. It is in the interests of both the travelling public and the freight and transport industries that they provide a safe and reliable service across Cook Strait. Yet both have had their share of incidents with their ships in recent years, raising concerns about the age and resilience of the ferries. Given this concern, and the lengthy nature of Interislander's current ferry replacement programme, there must inevitably be questions about the durability of the Cook Strait service until the new ferries arrive in 2029. While Bluebridge has future-proofed its operation, at least for the medium-term, by the acquisition of the Livia at the mid-point of its life, the same cannot confidently be said for the Interislander. Kaitaki and Kaiarahi are already old ships, with the prospect of at least four to five years more service, without major incident, ahead of them. That is a bold assumption. Whereas Interislander's keenness to buy new ferries for the first time since the building of Aratere in 1999 is understandable, it stands in sharp contrast to Bluebridge's strategy of purchasing mid-life ships and turning them over every decade or so. With the cost blow-outs associated with the original IREX project and the delays associated with the refocusing of the ferry replacement programme, taxpayers might be forgiven for wondering whether the more short-term approach of Bluebridge has greater merit. Livia's first Cook Strait crossing this week, just a couple of weeks after arriving in New Zealand, and just over four months after its purchase, will add fuel to that question.
The Citizen
a day ago
- The Citizen
Chilling testimony heard in court of horror that led to murder
Proceedings in the trial of the eight murder accused continued today in the Middelburg High Court, with Sibonelo Vilakazi giving his testimony. The group is accused of the alleged murder of Sifiso Thwala and Musa Nene, and the alleged attempted murder of Sthembiso Thwala on August 9, 2020. They are also facing kidnapping charges. The accused are Zenzela Mzikayise Yende (48), Werner Potgieter (48), Moses Dlamini (59), Masodeni Elliot Msongelwa Dlamini (61), Cornelius Lourens Greyling (26), Sikhumbuzo Zikalala Nhlabathi (25), Mzwakhe Dlamini (48), and Nkosinathi Msibi (26). Vilakazi testified that after the use of pliers to assault one of the victims, the gruesome attack on the victims continued, with one of the accused allegedly using the thicker side of a sjambok to assault a victim. He said that Greyling arrived shortly after, and allegedly ordered one of the victims to stand up. The victim allegedly tried to use Greyling's leg to gain balance to stand, and was told, 'You are making me dirty,' and subsequently was shoved by Greyling, who then allegedly proceeded to kick him in the head repeatedly. According to Vilakazi, one of the victims, who was also the driver of the suspicious Toyota Corolla, was asked how long they had been stealing sheep for, to which the driver responded that he didn't know anything about stealing sheep. Vilakazi added that one of the accused instructed the driver to be taken to the car boot to see the sheep, alleged to be stolen by the victims. He testified that he, Siphesihle Mchunu, and another accused helped carry the driver over to the boot, and said the driver was unable to walk due to the nature of his injuries. Upon arrival at the boot, the driver allegedly still insisted that he knew nothing of the sheep and suggested that the sheep were planted there by the accused. One of the accused allegedly said the driver was being stubborn and suggested the driver be put in the boot with the sheep. Vilakazi then added that they pushed the driver's head into the boot, where one of the accused subsequently started assaulting the driver with the boot door, hitting him several times on his back and head. Vilakazi said that at some point, one of the victims begged to be given his phone from the car, so he could contact his mother, as he could tell he was about to be killed. He further testified that a cattle prodder was allegedly used at one point to electrocute the victims. Vilakazi told the court that after the alleged torture of the victims, one of the accused instructed that the victims be taken to a river to get cleaned. He added that they proceeded to put the victims back in their car, and Mchunu drove with the victims to a place called 'Vanhuis', where they were allegedly going to clean them up. Upon arriving at the location, he added that two of the accused carried the victims to a nearby tap and used a wet cloth to wash the blood from their faces. One of the accused allegedly used Vaseline on the victims' faces and said that he wanted them to be 'beautiful when the police came'. He added that he, Siphesihle, Zenzele Coka, and another accused were left behind to guard the victims, and the rest of the accused left the scene. According to Vilakazi, they realised towards the early morning that two of the victims in the car were no longer alive. They called Potgieter, who later arrived, and the other accused also went back to the scene. Police officers were already waiting at the gate for them. Vilakazi told the court that Potgieter pulled them aside and said in Zulu, 'A ngenile amanzi endlini,' meaning 'trouble is here'. He alleges that Potgieter then assured them not to be scared, as he would hire a lawyer, who is famous all over the country, to help them. Vilakazi stated that Potgieter told them that when they give their statements, they should not mention that he and his son, Greyling, were on the scene because there are people who are against them as white people, which will prolong the case. He said that Potgieter told them exactly what to say in their statements to the lawyer. Vilakazi further testified that a few days later, they were taken to a police station, where they were subsequently arrested. From there, they were taken to Piet Retief Magistrate's Court for their appearance, however, Vilakazi said they never appeared in court and were released the same day. • Various photos from the scene of the incident were shown as evidence in court, depicting the gruesome nature of the alleged attack and the extent of injuries suffered by the victims, telling a story of horror. The matter was adjourned for more testimonies. At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
Miami Herald
2 days ago
- Automotive
- Miami Herald
Tariffs Are Making New Cars Even More Unaffordable, Says Study
New cars are expensive, but the latest data indicates that they aren't slowing down any time soon. According to data from Cox Automotive and Kelley Blue Book, the average transaction price for a new car reached $48,907 in June 2025, a 1.2% increase from the same period last year. Though it seems like a high amount, a quick glance at car-buying platforms and automakers' websites shows that there are many models on the market with MSRPs far below that threshold. However, a new study from the research department at Cars Commerce, the company behind shows that a few key factors will keep cars unaffordable. According to new data from Cars Commerce's Industry Insights Report for the first half of 2025, the impact of the Trump administration's tariffs on imported cars, as well as the threat arising from the end of Federal EV Tax Credits, would fuel an affordability crisis that can greatly impact the U.S. car industry. "With price hikes on many imports starting to emerge, the $7,500 federal EV tax credit set to expire in September, and the entry-priced segment now shrinking for three consecutive months, affordability remains the biggest challenge to continued growth," said David Greene, industry analyst at Cars Commerce. "How automakers respond in the second half - through pricing, production, and incentives - will shape the road ahead." Most notably, Cars Commerce found that the inventory of cars priced under $30,000 saw a massive dip. Per their data, cars under $30K made up just 13.6% of new car inventory in the first half of 2025. That number is a considerable loss compared to 2019, when such vehicles made up 38% of the market. In terms of dealer inventory, the segment saw 3.9% growth year over year (YoY); however, it lags behind the 5.6% overall increase for new-car inventory. The segment is the most exposed to tariffs, as about 92% of the cars sold under $30K are actually imported from overseas. Just two cars in that segment, the Honda Civic and Toyota Corolla, are built in the US, though some models are produced in Japan. At the same time, the segment that defined as the "mid-range new car segment;" which consists of cars costing between $30,000 and $49,000, accounted for nearly half of all inventory, though 50% of the vehicles in this price bracket are imported. The data suggests that automakers are adjusting to tariffs, as the share of imported cars within the $70,000-plus price segment increased from 40% in May to 41% in June. The study also shows that dealers increased their inventory by 5.6% during the first half of 2025, as they stocked up before tariffs were imposed in April. Additionally, there was a surge in sales as consumers rushed to secure pre-tariff pricing in March and April, leading to a 3.9% increase in new car sales compared to the first half of 2024. The increase in new vehicle purchases raised the supply of used cars, as many customers traded in their vehicles before the tariffs took effect. Consequently, used car prices dipped slightly in the first quarter of 2025 but rebounded with a 1.6% increase in the second quarter. According to data from more than half of consumers said that the tariffs have influenced their decision to buy American-made cars. Additionally, over 73% of respondents would consider purchasing U.S.-built cars to avoid extra costs. Currently, the supply of pre-tariff new cars is depleting, and as a result, the study predicts that we should expect price increases in the near future. So far this year, the average price of new cars has risen by only $97; however, vehicles from the United Kingdom have become over $10,000 more expensive. In contrast, EU-built cars have seen an average increase of nearly $2,500. Meanwhile, the prices of vehicles from China, Canada, and Korea, as well as American-built cars, have decreased by an average of $200. In addition, Cars Commerce also found that EV buyers will be affected in the latter half of the year, as the federal $7,500 tax credit for new EVs is set to expire after September. In its survey of electric vehicle (EV) buyers, 53% said that the federal tax credits were a primary reason for their purchases, adding that it may be "difficult" to maintain the momentum of 28 consecutive months of new EV inventory growth once the calendar hits October. The Trump administration and some lawmakers say they're trying to make cars more affordable by imposing tariffs, but according to the consulting firm AlixPartners, these tariffs could cost the auto industry about $30 billion by 2026. Although manufacturers like Nissan and Volvo are taking localization concerns seriously with their recent plans to consolidate factories, trim the U.S. lineup, and move production of their top-selling vehicles to factories in the U.S., it should be reiterated that this isn't a simple flip of the switch; Volvo, for instance expects to make the first XC60s in South Carolina by 2026. Until then, those on the buyers' side have all the tools to find out which specific vehicles are "American-made," including the NHTSA's Part 583 American Automobile Labeling Act Reports, which are publicly available on their website. Copyright 2025 The Arena Group, Inc. All Rights Reserved.
