Lee Jae Won/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images Kim Jong-un, the leader of North Korea, and military leaders at a ceremony last year.In which we bring you motoring news from around the Web:
• Threats from North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong-un, to launch nuclear weapons against the United States and South Korea have apparently ruffled a few feathers at General Motors. G.M.’s chief executive, Dan Akerson, told CNBC that the company is making backup plans for the five factories it runs in South Korea, just in case relations between North and South Korea get worse. G.M. builds 1.5 million vehicles a year in South Korea, 145,000 of them for export to the United States. (Autonews)
• The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration may be considering an enhanced crash test safety rating aimed at older drivers. Taking into consideration things like crash avoidance technology, seat-belt air bags and a technological solution to the perennial problem of unintended acceleration caused by stepping on the wrong pedal are parameters that can potentially be worked into the new “Silver” rating. (Autoblog)
• March car sales are up, but so are selling prices. According to TrueCar, a car pricing site, new car transaction prices are up $339 over a year ago. Volkswagen and Audi vehicles led in high prices, demanding an average of $33,871 a sale. Bringing up the rear were, predictably, value oriented Hyundai and Kia, at $22,646 a sale. New car incentives are down 1.7 percent since last year, but that doesn’t seem to have affected sales prices and volumes. (The Car Connection)
• Is Chevrolet considering bringing the Chevelle nameplate back for the first time since 1977? According to federal trademark application records, it’s a possibility. GM Authority recently uncovered the application, which had been filed at the end of last year. The United States Patent and Trademark Office has yet to grant final approval. At this point, no one knows what sort of car G.M. would offer if it revives the storied nameplate. (Jalopnik)
• Driverless car technology appears to be speeding into the fast lane, so to speak. With Google’s autonomous cars weaving in and out of San Francisco Bay Area traffic and numerous engineering teams working on technologies of their own, the only thing left to do amid the burgeoning gadgetry is to begin figuring out how to deal with the implications of more driverless cars on American roads. N.H.T.S.A. is looking into it, as is the insurance industry. The road ahead will be interesting indeed. (The Kansas City Star)
No comments:
Post a Comment