TTAC News Round-up: Chevy Hot to Sell You a Sedan, Volvo's V90 Peek and Cheap Gas

Aaron Cole
by Aaron Cole

“What do I gotta do to get you to drive out of here in a brand-new 2016 Chevrolet Malibu today?”

That, Ford and Google are moving to the country, Hyundai halts in China and Volvo’s wagon spied in some guy’s garage … after the break!

Chevrolet needs to move these sedans, folks

Automotive News reported that under a new deal between Chevrolet and its dealers, selling more Cruze, Malibu and Silverado models would net higher bonuses from the manufacturer.

The proposed contract would also include a minor penalty for dealers that sell cars with unfinished open recall repair work.

But basically, just get out of the way of all these Equinoxes that are coming in.

Ford, Google deal includes North Carolina robot car ranch

According to The Detroit Bureau ( via Yahoo Autos), the pending partnership between Ford and Google could include a 1,000-acre proving ground in North Carolina where robot cars can run free — the way God intended them to be.

The campus in North Carolina would be roughly 10 times larger than the University of Michigan facility that Ford uses, and could be used for testing and research for the companies, who are allegedly beginning a joint venture to build cars.

The report also details some in-car technology that the partnership could provide, such as geo-targeted advertisements and ad serving (OnStar does that) for drivers.

China weighs heavy on Hyundai, Kia

So far, 2016 hasn’t been a banner year for the Chinese economy ( and ours) but the Wall Street Journal reports that Hyundai and Kia are bracing for another difficult year after the automaker missed its annual target for 2015.

On Monday, the South Korean automaker predicted a meager 1.6-percent increase in 2016, well below the double-digit gains posted only five years ago.

The automaker reported that the slowdown in China, flip-flopping currency values and increased competition was affecting its bottom line.

Volvo V90 breaks cover a little early

AutoGuide has some nifty shots of the wagon based on Volvo’s fancy sedan and, for the most part, it looks like we thought it would.

The wagon will make its bow at the Geneva Auto Show this March, but the better news is that it’ll definitely make its way to the States.

Wagons ho!

Gas is cheap, getting cheaper

According to AAA, gas was cheaper in 2015 than it had been since 2009, and will continue its slide for 2016.

The organization said that, on average, gas was cheaper by about $1 in 2015 than it was the previous year, and most gas stations in the U.S. are hovering around $2 per gallon for the cheap stuff.

AAA estimates that the average price per gallon for 2016 will be between $2.25 and $2.40, lower than the 2015 average of $2.40.

Aaron Cole
Aaron Cole

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  • Moparmann Moparmann on Jan 04, 2016

    So, if the new Malibu is "all that, and a bag of chips" what purpose does the Impala serve? :-)

    • See 3 previous
    • 28-Cars-Later 28-Cars-Later on Jan 04, 2016

      @Hummer I'm gonna go out on a limb and suggest they are both overpriced.

  • Hummer Hummer on Jan 05, 2016

    What happened to the subscribe feature?

    • See 2 previous
    • Corey Lewis Corey Lewis on Jan 05, 2016

      @Hummer That is correct.

  • Redapple2 Love the wheels
  • Redapple2 Good luck to them. They used to make great cars. 510. 240Z, Sentra SE-R. Maxima. Frontier.
  • Joe65688619 Under Ghosn they went through the same short-term bottom-line thinking that GM did in the 80s/90s, and they have not recovered say, to their heyday in the 50s and 60s in terms of market share and innovation. Poor design decisions (a CVT in their front-wheel drive "4-Door Sports Car", model overlap in a poorly performing segment (they never needed the Altima AND the Maxima...what they needed was one vehicle with different drivetrain, including hybrid, to compete with the Accord/Camry, and decontenting their vehicles: My 2012 QX56 (I know, not a Nissan, but the same holds for the Armada) had power rear windows in the cargo area that could vent, a glass hatch on the back door that could be opened separate from the whole liftgate (in such a tall vehicle, kinda essential if you have it in a garage and want to load the trunk without having to open the garage door to make room for the lift gate), a nice driver's side folding armrest, and a few other quality-of-life details absent from my 2018 QX80. In a competitive market this attention to detai is can be the differentiator that sell cars. Now they are caught in the middle of the market, competing more with Hyundai and Kia and selling discounted vehicles near the same price points, but losing money on them. They invested also invested a lot in niche platforms. The Leaf was one of the first full EVs, but never really evolved. They misjudged the market - luxury EVs are selling, small budget models not so much. Variable compression engines offering little in terms of real-world power or tech, let a lot of complexity that is leading to higher failure rates. Aside from the Z and GT-R (low volume models), not much forced induction (whether your a fan or not, look at what Honda did with the CR-V and Acura RDX - same chassis, slap a turbo on it, make it nicer inside, and now you can sell it as a semi-premium brand with higher markup). That said, I do believe they retain the technical and engineering capability to do far better. About time management realized they need to make smarter investments and understand their markets better.
  • Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Off-road fluff on vehicles that should not be off road needs to die.
  • Kwik_Shift_Pro4X Saw this posted on social media; “Just bought a 2023 Tundra with the 14" screen. Let my son borrow it for the afternoon, he connected his phone to listen to his iTunes.The next day my insurance company raised my rates and added my son to my policy. The email said that a private company showed that my son drove the vehicle. He already had his own vehicle that he was insuring.My insurance company demanded he give all his insurance info and some private info for proof. He declined for privacy reasons and my insurance cancelled my policy.These new vehicles with their tech are on condition that we give up our privacy to enter their world. It's not worth it people.”
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