…losing money on every car. That stings, though it was already known that GM was basically selling the Volt at-cost.
Aston Martin engineering VP moves to Tesla Motors (Digital Trends)
Rumors were traveling at light speed through the Internet’s series of tubes this week about the VP of Engineering for Aston Martin, Chris Porritt, jumping ship and moving to Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA). Now Tesla – by way of Green Car Reports – has confirmed the move. This is a big move for Tesla for it didn’t just acquire a great engineer; it got one of the most innovative in the luxury performance market. In 2009, Porritt lead the engineering charge on the Aston Martin One-77 supercar.
Redesigned Japanese auto brand, Nissan Leaf unveiled (Nigerian Tribune)
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. (ADR) (OTCMKTS:NSANY) said it has given its electric brand, Nissan Leaf a major make-over, with more than 100 significant upgrades. As part of the face-lift, the Japanese car-maker said it has increased its range, improved on its interior and cut its price. The moves, the automaker said come as the second-generation of the zero-emissions car, which can be charged from home socket or from a public on-street charging point prepares for the first time to roll off the production line of Nissan’s Sunderland factory in June. It said the 100-plus changes have been made to make the new Leaf more user-friendly following feedback from pioneering early owners.
April 2013: Prius sales slow, competition grows edition (Autoblog)
Sales of the Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:TM) Prius, still the world’s best-selling hybrid, continued to plateau in popularity, as all four of its variants had declining year-over-year sales. Combined, the Prius models moved 19,889 units, down 21 percent from April 2012. The Prius Plug-in Hybrid was hit particularly hard, with sales plunging 64 percent from a year earlier to 599 vehicles. While Lexus hybrid sales climbed 27 percent from a year earlier and the newer Avalon Hybrid moved 1,423 units, Camry Hybrid sales fell 26 percent to 3,257 vehicles. As a whole, Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:TM) sold 28,279 vehicles in April 2013, down 13 percent from the same month in 2012.
Chevy Volt Outsold By Nissan Leaf, Most Likely Tesla Model S – Low Gas Prices to Blame? (Eagle’s Rant)
The Chevrolet Volt had something of a rocky road to traverse last month, having found itself chalking up less sales than not only the pocket-friendly Nissan Leaf, but perhaps also the Tesla Model S that costs at least twice as much. With its relatively limited all-electric range of just 38 miles, the Chevy Volt last month suffered a decline in sales year on year of 11%. And for the year to date, sales volumes of the Volt are up a pretty paltry 3%. In figures, the General Motors Company (NYSE:GM)-made Chevy Volt sold to the tune of 1,306 units for the month of April, while the Nissan Leaf took a decisive lead with an impressive 1,937 vehicle sales.
U.S. output of the Prius is on hold (Automotive News)
Once considered a sure bet for U.S. production, the Toyota Motor Corporation (ADR) (NYSE:TM) Prius is now on indefinite hold for assembly here, said Jim Lentz, CEO of Toyota’s North American region. Toyota currently builds enough Priuses in Asia to satisfy global demand, Lentz said in an interview. “If you look at global supply and demand for Prius, and the forecast for future demand, they are in equilibrium,” he said. “It wouldn’t make sense for Prius to be made here because there is not enough incremental demand.” Last year Toyota sold 236,659 units of the Prius family in the United States.
