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United States drivers buying fewer Mexican-made cars

Crossovers and pickup trucks are not only growing in market share, they're also more profitable than cars. A crossover on the same platform as a sedan retails for thousands more, despite similar components. It's one of the reasons we've seen automakers rapidly shifting production of their sedans and hatchbacks to Mexico, where cheap labor preserves the thin profit margins on these inexpensive vehicles. But as the market continues to shift in the United States, Mexico is getting burned by its lack of product diversity. The country's auto exports, which are heavy on cars, suffered a 16-percent drop last month, Automotive News reports. In total, year-over-year exports fell from 233,515 to 197,020 last month, while year-to-date exports are down by 7.4 percent, from 922,029 to 854,118. The number one culprit? America – which usually accounts for 75 percent of Mexico's exports – and its appetite for crossovers and pickup trucks bolstered by cheap gas prices. While Mexico does build some light truck models – AN specifically calls out the Ram 2500, Honda HR-V, GMC Sierra, and Toyota Tacoma as export leaders – the vast majority of vehicles rolling out of its factories are sedans and hatchbacks. In fact, the three biggest drops in Mexican exports came from companies whose south of the border factories only build cars – Ford (Fusion/Lincoln MKZ and Fiesta), Mazda (Mazda3), and Volkswagen (Golf and Jetta). Mexican Automotive Industry Association President Eduardo Solis told AN the export shortfall will likely be sorted out sooner rather than later, thanks to a pair of new factories – a Kia car factory and an Audi SUV plant – that are coming online by year's end. The two facilities will add around 100,000 vehicles to the country's export totals, which Solis said should leave the industry on the verge of breaking another export record in 2016. But how sustainable will these record-breaking years be? Slapping an "Hecho en Mexico" sticker on a new German SUV won't be enough to change the fact that Mexico's product mix is tilted too heavily towards body styles that are not growing in volume. Mexico's record-breaking export years probably aren't at an end, but we'd argue they're certainly under threat. News Source: Automotive News - sub. req.Image Credit: Omar Torres / AFP / Getty Images Plants/Manufacturing Ford GMC Honda Mazda RAM Volkswagen Truck Crossover SUV Mexico

GM announces four new recalls, 507k vehicles affected

428,211 of these vehicles are located in the United States, 57,706 are in Canada, and 20,956 are in other markets. In its seemingly never-ending string of recalls, General Motors today announced four new campaigns covering some 506,873 vehicles. 428,211 of these vehicles are located in the United States, 57,706 are in Canada, and 20,956 are in other markets. First up is the 2013-14 Chevrolet Cruze, which is being recalled because "the inflator in the driver's front airbag may rupture and/or the airbag may not inflate during airbag deployment," according to GM. This could shoot metal pieces of the inflator into the cabin, injuring occupants during a crash. What's more, GM says that if the airbag does not inflate, this could, obviously, increase the risk of injury to the driver. A total of 29,019 Cruzes are affected in the United States, with an additional 4,066 units being recalled in Canada. The largest of the four recall campaigns involves four-wheel-drive versions of the 2014-15 Chevrolet Silverado and GMC Sierra, as well as the 2015 Chevy Tahoe, Suburban, GMC Yukon and Yukon XL. A grand total of 392,459 vehicles are affected in the US, with 53,607 more found in Canada, and an additional 20,874 in other markets. Here, the transfer case "may electronically switch to neutral without input from the driver," GM states. The automaker adds that if this occurs while the vehicle is moving, power will not be sent to the wheels. On top of that, if the vehicle is parked, it may roll away unexpectedly if the parking brake has not been set. In smaller recall news, 4,794 2013-14 Chevy Caprice police cars and SS sedans are being recalled in the US. According to GM, "If the motor gear teeth become stripped, the wipers may not operate" in these models. Lastly, 1,939 2014 Chevy Corvettes fitted with the FE1 or FE3 suspension are being recalled in the US "to repair a possible insufficient weld in the rear shocks that could lead to a fracture and/or reduce the shocks' service life." In Canada, 33 additional vehicles are affected, as are 82 more 'Vettes that were exported to other markets. General Motors is aware of one injury regarding the Cruze recall, and is not aware of any crashes or injuries in the other three recalls. Scroll down for the automaker's official release. GM Announces Four Vehicle Recalls DETROIT – General Motors (GM: NYSE) today announced four safety recalls covering 428,211 vehicles in the United States.

Hummer EV SUV official range announced: 3X truck tops 350 miles

The first run of GMC Hummer EVs were in one single specification: pickup truck in Edition 1 with all the off-road goodies. The most pertinent of those off-road upgrades to electric range being the 18-inch wheels with mud-terrain tires. And it was rated for 329 miles. But now, there are more Hummer variants. The pickup truck is now available with a 3X trim that comes standard with more efficient all-terrain tires wrapped around 22-inch wheels, and there's the SUV with both trims and both types of tires, not to mention a smaller battery pack. And now we have the official range estimates for them. We'll start with the Hummer EV SUV, since all of the official range ratings are new to us. The tires are the key factor, with the all-terrain equipped Edition 1 and 3X both managing 314 miles of range. Yes, this is less than even the mud-terrain-equipped truck, but that's mainly because the shorter length of the SUV means it has fewer battery cells and capacity. It has about 170 kWh of capacity versus the truck's 200+. Adding the Extreme Off-Road Package and its more aggressive tires drops range to 298 miles. The Four-Wheel-Steer system lets the 2022 GMC HUMMER EV Pickup m View 17 Photos As with the SUVs, the Hummer EV truck gets a solid range boost to 355 miles when it's not equipped with the off-road package. There's another benefit to the regular all-terrains on the Hummer EV truck: towing capacity. At 8,500 pounds, it can tow an extra 1,000 pounds over the models with the off-road package. GMC also notes that another potential benefit to the all-terrain-equipped trucks is a suspension tuned for better on-road handling. And our experience has shown that even Hummer with the off-road package isn't too shabby on pavement. Of course, skipping the off-road package will also save you some money, as will opting for the 3X trims. So unless you're really going off-road seriously, and would make regular use of the extra skid plates, under-truck camera and chunky tires, the standard suspension and tire setup really is the way to go. Related video: