Sales of BMW- and Mini-brand vehicles rose 18 percent year-on-year in October to 32,858 units in China, which has eclipsed the United States as BMW AG’s largest market.

Sales jump 24% in October as economy rebounds

China’s passenger-vehicle sales last month climbed the most since January, helped by a recovery in economic growth and rebound in demand for Japanese brands. Wholesale deliveries of cars, MPVs and SUVs rose 24 percent to 1.6 million units in October, according to the state-backed China Association of Automobile Manufacturers.

Italian car show finds new home in Milan for 2014

Italy’s only annual car show will take place in Milan next year, moving from Bologna after this year’s event was cancelled due to a lack of exhibitors in a moribund local market.

Peugeot mulls Faurecia sale with Dongfeng tie-up, report says

French carmaker PSA Peugeot Citroen is preparing for a possible sale of its Faurecia components division to accompany a tie-up with China’s Dongfeng Motor Group, several sources with knowledge of the situation told Reuters.

Skoda sells record number of cars in October

Helped by new models, Skoda set a record for sales for the month of October, shrinking the decline it has seen since the start of the year.

Alfa 4C delivers on promise to offer affordable supercar

Alfa Romeo’s 4C coupe delivers on the brand’s promise to offer a true supercar at a reasonable price. The 53,000 euro 4C combines a downsized engine with a very lightweight body to achieve supercar performance.

Geely volume advances 15% on strong compact sedan, SUV demand

Zhejiang Geely Holding Group Co. says it sold 55,785 vehicles under its own brands last month, up 15 percent from a year earlier. Geely’s Emgrand brand enjoyed strong demand for the EC7 compact sedan; sales surged 36 percent year-on-year to 20,275 units in October. Combined sales of Geely’s two SUVs, the Gleagle GX7 and Englon SX7, jumped 62 percent year-on-year to 7,436 units.

Infiniti targets young Chinese buyers who find BMW, Audi, Mercedes too commonplace

Infiniti is targeting younger customers in China who find Audi, Mercedes or BMW too commonplace as the automaker strives to increase sales in the world’s largest market.

Subaru, Toyota discuss ending production of Camry in Indiana

Subaru and Toyota are in talks to halt production of the Toyota Camry sedan at Subaru’s Indiana assembly plant, likely timed to the introduction of the nameplate’s next generation

Jaguar, Mini top J.D. Power dealership sales satisfaction list

Jaguar ranks first among luxury brands and Mini again topped all nonluxury brands in an annual survey of customer satisfaction with the dealership sales experience, an annual survey released Thursday found.

U.S. may relax rules for automakers installing seat belt devices

U.S. regulators may relax some auto-safety requirements on manufacturers that voluntarily install technology preventing cars from starting unless occupants are wearing seat belts

GM CEO Akerson could exit in 2014; no formal search yet, Reuters says

General Motors CEO Dan Akerson could step down as early as next year though he has not formally notified the board of his plans and an official search for his successor has not yet begun, people close to the matter told Reuters

Johnson Controls opens seat plant in Chengdu to supply Volvo

Johnson Controls says it has opened a factory in the western city of Chengdu to produce seats, headliners and floor consoles for Volvo Car Corp. One hundred employees work at the plant, which is supplying components for the Volvo S60L long-wheelbase sedan, which started rolling off the assembly line last week.

Jaguar Land Rover mulls car plant in Brazil

Jaguar Land Rover says it is studying the possibility of opening an assembly plant in Brazil, adding that it has ambitious plans to expand its manufacturing footprint outside the UK.

Toyota lowers car sales goal in Germany due to hybrid shortages

Toyota says it will not sell as many cars in Germany as it originally hoped this year after failing to keep up with demand for its hybrid cars in the market.

Ghosn: 10 percent of U.S. market won’t be enough for Nissan

Carlos Ghosn’s drive for a 10 percent market share in the United States by early 2017 might seem like a tall order. But the Nissan CEO says he will be asking for more than that.

Subprime binge drives U.S. sales, raises alarms

As the fifth anniversary of the Federal Reserve’s policy of keeping interest rates near zero approaches, the market for subprime borrowing is once again becoming frothy, this time in the car industry. As with mortgages in 2006 and 2007, the central bank’s stimulus is making it easier for U.S

TI Automotive in talks to be acquired by Bain Capital for $2 billion

Bain Capital is in advanced talks to acquire auto parts supplier TI Automotive in a deal approaching $2 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.

Webasto launches sunroof plant in Chongqing

German supplier Webasto opened a 16,000-square-meter plant in Chongqing to produce sunroofs and panoramic roofs for customers within a 500 km radius. The 6.4 million euro (53 million yuan) facility will produce up to 700,000 roofs annually by 2016, the company said.

N.A. auto industry to see big supply chain bottleneck within 5 years, study warns

Within five years, the industry will be almost $6 billion short of tooling capacity — the ability to make the machines and molds automakers and their suppliers use to build auto parts — according to a new study from Harbour Results

Cayenne propels Porsche to 21% sales gain in China

Porsche deliveries in China rose nearly 21 percent last month, helped by robust demand for the brand’s Cayenne SUV.

Japanese brands to embrace the small, the sporty and the futuristic

Japan’s automakers will go futuristic and local at the Tokyo auto show, combining the far-out concept cars the show has been famous for alongside the Japan-only 660cc minicars — some of which are delightfully sporty — that represent a third of the home market

Schaeffler backs 2013 outlook on ‘robust’ third-quarter business

German supplier Schaeffler reaffirmed its full-year forecast of growing group revenue between 1 and 2 percent after the supplier said third-quarter sales rose 2 percent.

Chrysler brand chief Chehab will head Maserati marketing

Saad Chehab, head of the Chrysler and Lancia brands, is Maserati’s new chief marketing officer. The new Chrysler brand boss is Al Gardner, head of Chrysler’s southeast business center in Florida.

Audi chief prefers steady growth to profit-cutting spiffs

Audi has slowly but steadily improved its U.S. market share since 2006, and Chairman Rupert Stadler sees an opportunity to continue to grow — but not by piling on lease deals. “We are taking the necessary time to grow organically,” he said

Audi CEO Stadler sticks to 2 million sales goal

Audi is sticking to its goal of selling 2 million vehicles annually by 2020, CEO Rupert Stadler says. The automaker plans to invest 11 billion euros between 2013 and 2015 in a bid to become the global No. 1 premium brand.

Getrag CEO expects big gains from dual clutches

German transmission maker Getrag foresees massive growth. By 2020, the supplier aims to produce 6.9 million transmissions a year, up from 3.9 million in 2012.

Kia aims for 120-mile driving range for Soul EV

Kia is targeting a 120-mile driving range on a single charge for the electric version of its Soul subcompact arriving next year in the United States.

Manheim economist sees softer used-vehicle prices

Increases in off-lease, retired-rental and repossessed vehicles entering the market are dampening used-vehicles prices, auction company Manheim’s chief economist said, and the trend will continue into 2014