Rolls-Royce Motor Cars The Rolls-Royce Phantom 102EX.In which we bring you motoring news from around the Web:
• It sounds like something from an elaborate April Fools’ joke: an electric Rolls-Royce. The Rolls-Royce Phantom 102EX has not done so well in the market since its 2011 release. Torsten Muller-Otvos, the company’s chief executive, told Edmunds on Monday that Rolls-Royce customers just didn’t bite. He admitted that they tended to be very conservative, preferring little change in the cars they drive over the years. It appears that for now, even as other automakers move toward electric, hybrid and other more efficient means of propulsion, Rolls-Royce will stick with its venerable V-12 for a while longer. (Edmunds)
• General Motors became an unexpected history maker on Wednesday, becoming the first auto manufacturer to sign a call for climate change action. A coalition of businesses interested in eco-friendly practices drafted the Climate Declaration, attracting the support of companies including Starbucks, Ben & Jerry’s and the North Face. G.M. said it already had been making an effort to be more environmentally conscious by cutting energy use in its facilities. (Green Car Reports)
• In other G.M. news, the company acted quickly to pull down a television ad some in China considered racist. The ad featured music from Parov Stelar’s jazzy “Booty Swing,” which includes the lyrics, “Now, in the land of Fu Manchu, The girls all now do the Suzie-Q, Clap their hands in the center of the floor, Saying, “Ching, ching, chop-suey, swing some more!” The South China Morning Post picked up on the lyrics, taking G.M. to task for it. Digging a little deeper, “Booty Swing” may not have been the best choice of songs, because it samples heavily from Lil Hardin Armstrong’s 1930s-vintage “Oriental Swing.” (Wheels.ca)
• Although recent surveys show that American car buyers favor more fuel efficient vehicles and tighter fuel efficiency standards, full-size pickup truck sales are booming, up 27 percent industry-wide last month. Accordingly, the Ford Motor Company announced plans to add a third shift to the Kansas City assembly line that builds F-150s. The increase in production at the factory will create about 2,000 jobs. Ford had promised the United Auto Workers union in 2011 that it would create 12,000 American jobs by 2015. Ford says this new, truck-spurred boost will put the company at the 9,000 mark. (USA Today)
• The fact that Toyota is the world’s largest carmaker is thanks in no small part to its Camry, which has been an American best seller for more than a decade. But as Toyota struggles to keep the staid family sedan in the number one spot for the 12th consecutive year, Honda is making tracks to the top with its Accord. Honda sold 33,538 Accords to Toyota’s 31,710 Camrys last month, amid a slight decline in sales among other Toyota brands. April was the second straight month the Camry has been unseated by another brand. In March, it was outsold by the Nissan Altima. (Bloomberg)
• Nissan cut prices on seven of its vehicles sold in America, in hopes that the models will appear in more Internet searches. For example, the company’s top-selling Altima midsize sedan will receive a 2.7 percent cut – about $600 – as it competes with the Toyota Camry and Honda Accord for best-seller status in the United States. General Motors said it would follow suit, reducing the price of its Chevrolet Malibu by up to $770. (Yahoo Finance)
• Apple may be trying to get into the heart of car manufacturing; the part that seems to matter most to consumers, at any rate. Some sleuthing done by 9to5Mac uncovered a possible plot by the computer company to begin working directly with auto manufacturers in creating vehicles’ infotainment systems. According to the company Web site, Apple posted job listings for “in-car” engineers and software managers. Unlike Volkswagen’s iBeetle, which incorporates an iPhone into the car’s infotainment system though third-party apps, 9to5Mac’s sources indicated that in conjunction with Siri, the iPhone’s display screens would be integrated with the car’s onboard display. It could be something, or not. Either way, it seems that the people who make decisions about such things are thinking about it. (9to5Mac)
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