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UAW calls on US State Department to help with Nissan plant

The United Auto Workers is calling for reinforcements in its ongoing battle with Nissan at the manufacturer's Canton, MS factory, where the Altima, Armada, Titan and NV (and eventually, the next Murano) are built. The union has been attempting to organize the employees at the factory for several years, but it's been largely unsuccessful.
Now, Reuters is reporting that the UAW is teaming with the IndustriALL Global Union and requesting intervention by the US State Department, with both groups accusing Nissan of using "threats, intimidation and fear" to keep the 5,600 workers at the facility from organizing. The two unions say this violates the guidelines of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, an international organization dedicated to stimulating economic growth.
The UAW and IndustriALL are asking the State Department's National Contact Point to serve as mediator with Nissan, to make sure things play out fairly. Speaking to Reuters, though, there's at least one Michigan-based labor adviser that's skeptical of the move.

Recharge Wrap-up: Indianapolis to switch 425 fleet vehicles to EVs, Chevy Corvette provides bat habitats

Indianapolis will deploy 425 battery electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles as part of its municipal fleet by 2016. The fleet will include such cars as the Nissan Leaf, Chevrolet Volt and Ford Fusion Energi. The city will also reduce its overall fleet by 100 vehicles. In all, the revised group - called the "Freedom Fleet" - will save $8.7 million and 2.2 million gallons of gasoline over 10 years. Read more at Hybrid Cars. EVs with longer range would make vehicle-to-home and vehicle-to-grid energy management systems more practical for the US. The idea of using EVs as energy storage for emergencies or times of high grid demand is currently being tested in Japan with Nissan's Leaf-to-Home system. The US is also interested in such capabilities, but the higher average energy use of American households would make larger batteries in EVs ideal for grid storage applications. Read more at Green Car Reports. LG Chem has broken ground on its EV battery plant in Nanjing, China. The factory, when constructed, will have a capacity of producing batteries for 100,000 cars per year according to the Korean company. The plant will supply batteries for Chinese automakers such as SAIC and Qoros. Construction is expected to be finished by the end of 2015 and LG Chem expects revenue of more than $933 million by 2020. Read more in the press release below. General Motors is using adhesive used in the Chevrolet Corvette Stingray to create habitat for threatened bat species. Artificial bat caves could help alleviate white-nose fungus that leads to diminished bat populations. Leftover adhesive is used to create stalactites in the artificial caves, allowing them more structure to hang from. GM has also provided Volt battery covers to create nesting habitats for bats, which eat harmful insects and help pollinate plants. See the videos and read more in the press release below. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. LG Chem officially breaks ground for China EV battery plant Seoul, Korea - Oct 30, 2014 – LG Chem, Korea's leading manufacturer of advanced batteries, held a ground breaking ceremony for the construction of electric-car battery plant in Nanjing, China, to meet growing demand in the world's biggest car market.

2016 Nissan Titan coming to 2015 Detroit Auto Show

The Titan has continued to sit in a corner of Nissan's front yard, taken out on occasion but largely unloved, the same way you see a project truck in a neighbor's driveway that makes you wonder, "Are they ever going to do anything with that?" The fullsize pickup made the news about six months ago when reports surfaced that the next generation would offer a Cummins diesel engine that had originally been meant for Ram, then it returned to the shadows.
According to a report from Edmunds, the Titan will return to the spotlight in about a year, with the unveil of the 2016 model planned for next year's Detroit Auto Show. Along with that oil-burner, it will bring a gasoline V6 engine, a complete redesign and a regular cab configuration to finally give it a fighting chance against the thick end of the light-duty truck market. Toyota gets pressed for the molasses-like sales of the Tundra, but that fullsize entrant sold 7,890 units in January and 10,988 in December 2013. Nissan sold 887 Titans in January, 1,284 in December 2013 and broke 2,400 US sales in a single month just once in four years. (The segment-leading Ford F-150, for reference, sold 46,536 units in January.)
An entry-level model and a regular cab option should give the Titan a welcome and overdue sales boost. Better power numbers and fuel economy for the V8 would probably go a long way, too. We expect to start getting glimpses of its future later this year.