Two years after the launch of a campaign to donate 100 electric vehicle charging stations in and near to national parks throughout the United States, BMW Group has announced successful completion of this project, which was completed in partnership with the National Park Foundation, National Park Service, and Department of Energy. So far, 90 of the charging stations have been installed, with the remaining stations on schedule to open this month.
“We can’t think of a better way to enjoy the summer than visiting one of America’s beautiful national parks. In making electric vehicle charging more widely available for everyone, this joint effort serves to make America’s national parks more accessible to drivers of electric and plug-in hybrid electric vehicles,” said Bernhard Kuhnt, president and CEO, BMW of North America.
The parks leadership said the effort will help boost travel to our national parks by electric vehicle drivers.
“Thanks to public-private partnership, electric vehicle drivers can enjoy a quintessential national park road trip,” said Will Shafroth, president of the National Park Foundation. “Not only will drivers benefit, but also the businesses and communities at the doorstep of our treasured national parks.”
FCA has released a statement following the passing of auto executive Lee Iacocca, the man whose bold moves — including the introduction of the first minivans — helped lead the company through a period of crisis.
The statement reads as follows:
"The Company is saddened by the news of Lee Iacocca's passing. He played a historic role in steering Chrysler through crisis and making it a true competitive force. He was one of the great leaders of our company and the auto industry as a whole. He also played a profound and tireless role on the national stage as a business statesman and philanthropist.
Lee gave us a mindset that still drives us today – one that is characterized by hard work, dedication and grit. We are committed to ensuring that Chrysler, now FCA, is such a company, an example of commitment and respect, known for excellence as well as for its contribution to society. His legacy is the resiliency and unshakeable faith in the future that live on in the men and women of FCA who strive every day to live up to the high standards he set."
Iacocca spent nearly five decades in the industry, including stints about both Ford and FCA, and is arguably the most recognized auto executive of the past 50 years.
CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA — After a successful decade of developing and producing the Ford Mustang RTR—as well as RTR’s line of aftermarket parts that compliment Mustang owners who want to stand out from the crowd—the new Ford F-150 RTR becomes RTR’s second publicly available vehicle model outfitted with RTR’s signature modern-aggressive design and enhanced performance that is available to consumers from RTR Vehicles. The F-150 RTR package is now available at select Ford dealers in regions where the F-150 is sold. The F-150 RTR launch follows the soon to be released collaboration with Ford performance, ‘The Series 1 Ford Mustang RTR Powered by Ford Performance’.
Inspired by the incredibly popular F-150 Ultimate Fun-Haver and the award-winning F-150 RTR Muscle Truck, the F-150 RTR joins the RTR Vehicles lineup for 2019. Available for all F-150 trim levels (excluding the Ford Raptor), the F-150 RTR increases the functionality and enhances the overall design; offering capability both on and off the road; having fun or making the daily commute.
“Ford’s Iconic F-150 has evolved into so much more than just a pickup truck, with diverse capability on and off road, great technology integration, serious towing capability and an interior that makes any travel with friends and family very comfortable,” said RTR Vehicles’ President and RTR’s resident Professional Fun-Haver, Vaughn Gittin Jr. “RTR felt the time was right for us to bring all the things our Mustang RTR owners have grown to love into the truck market. I cannot wait for my fellow truck lovers everywhere to see just how capable and fun the F-150 RTR is whether you are road tripping with the family, carrying supplies or shopping bags, doing some towing, enjoying the trails and roads less traveled, or spraying roost during some off-road excursions. The goal was to take the already impressive capabilities of the F-150 and enhance the owner and driving experience whether on or off-road.”
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles has announced plans to invest a total of $4.5 billion in five of its existing Michigan plants, and to work with the city of Detroit and state of Michigan on building a new assembly plant within city limits. The move would increase capacity to meet growing demand for its Jeep and Ram brands, including production of two new Jeep-branded white space products, as well as electrified models. The proposed projects would create nearly 6,500 new jobs.
The plant actions detailed in the announcement represent the next steps in a U.S. manufacturing realignment that FCA began in 2016. In response to a shift in consumer demand toward SUVs and trucks, the Company discontinued compact car production and retooled plants in Illinois, Ohio and Michigan to make full use of available capacity to expand the Jeep and Ram brands. Those actions have resulted in the recent launches of the award-winning all-new Jeep Wrangler and all-new Ram 1500, and the introduction of the newest member of the Jeep family, the all-new Jeep Gladiator, at the 2018 Los Angeles Auto Show.
“Three years ago, FCA set a course to grow our profitability based on the strength of the Jeep and Ram brands by realigning our U.S. manufacturing operations,” said Mike Manley, Chief Executive Officer, FCA N.V. “Today’s announcement represents the next step in that strategy. It allows Jeep to enter two white space segments that offer significant margin opportunities and will enable new electrified Jeep products, including at least four plug-in hybrid vehicles and the flexibility to produce fully battery-electric vehicles.”The city of Detroit has 60 days to meet the terms of a Memorandum of Understanding, which requires the acquisition of property critical to the execution of the Mack project. The additional investments are subject to the successful negotiation and final approval of development packages with the state and other local governments.
Audi of America has won four Vincentric “Best Value in America” awards, including an overall brand award in the Luxury Car Brand category. This is the second time Audi has received this honor. Vincentric also awarded Audi three model-specific “Best Value in America Awards.” The 2019 Audi A7 was named winner in the Premium Luxury Large Sedan segment for the third time, while the Audi A6 was named winner in the Premium Luxury Mid-Size Sedan segment, and the 2019 Audi A5 Cabriolet received the award in the Luxury Convertible segment.
In its 15th year, the Vincentric “Best Value in America Awards” determine value by measuring cost-of-ownership using eight different cost factors: depreciation, fees & taxes, financing, fuel, insurance, maintenance, opportunity cost and repairs. Using a statistical model, Vincentric identified the Best Value in America winners by measuring which vehicles had lower than expected ownership costs given their market segment and price. More than 3,000 vehicle configurations were evaluated in all 50 states plus D.C. using a range of annual mileage intervals and insurance profiles.
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