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Toyota holds onto crown of World's Largest Automaker

Although there were hints and allegations that the Volkswagen Group might have taken the global sales crown for 2014, the final tally puts Toyota at the top with 10.23 million sales in 2014. We should really say it keeps Toyota at the top, since that makes three years in a row the Japanese company has been No. 1. Volkswagen Group came in second with 10.14 million units sold, General Motors in third with 9.92 million units sold. This the first time for both Toyota and Volkswagen to pass 10 million sales in a single year. Toyota, including its Hino and Daihatsu divisions, did it with a three-percent increase in company-wide sales on the back of strong demand in Japan and the US. Its strength in developed markets might be the reason it loses the title this year, though; Toyota forecasts a two-percent gain in sales outside of Japan, but a nine-percent drop in its home market because of a new consumption tax that encouraged buyers to purchase before the end of last year. On top of that, turmoil in Southeast Asian economies like Thailand and Indonesia depressed sales in 2014 and they're facing more headwinds. The company envisions 10.15 million sales in 2015. Volkswagen, on the other hand, "has a jet engine strapped to its back called 'China,'" where Toyota is out-of-sorts. Volkswagen Group sales fell 2.9 percent in the US last year, while Toyota gained 6.2 percent here. But Volkswagen roped in 3.7 million sales in China, a 12-percent increase. Toyota enjoyed a huge bump of 12.5 percent in China, but that only got it to 1.03 million units, missing its yearly target and leading to trouble with its Chinese dealers over unsold inventory. With Toyota on the Chinese sidelines while Volkswagen guns for No. 1 status and pledges more production capacity in China – sales there are expected to top 25 million units this year – it looks like this could be the year the VW Group takes over the lead. That would be three years ahead of its original target of 2018. An analyst in Japan said Toyota is more focused on "keeping profitability than chasing numbers" – profitability is an issue for VW right now – so Toyota might not be back at the top "for [the] coming years." News Source: Bloomberg, Automotive News - sub. req. Earnings/Financials GM Toyota Volkswagen Car Buying Daihatsu sales volkswagen group

Audi, Fiat squabbling over numbers and letters

There have been rumors and speculation and prognostications about a Nissan Juke- and Mini Cooper-fighting Audi Q2 since 2012. There have been the same for a performance-oriented Q4 since 2011, perhaps previewed by the TT Offroad concept shown last year at the Beijing Motor Show. Turns out that those two alphanumeric combos are the only ones missing from the series Q1 to Q9 in Audi's trademark stable, and the Ingolstadt company wants to get them to make its badge sequence and crossover lineup complete. But Fiat owns them, and rumor is, CEO Sergio Marchionne appears to have no interest in selling them. Fiat has used the Q2 and Q4 like trim badges, identifying whether a company product has two-wheel or all-wheel drive. They did it with the Alfa Romeo 159 sedan, and they do it now on the Maserati Quattroporte S and Ghibli S Q4 sedans. Car magazine says Marchionne "may not be categorically opposed to selling the rights," but he absolutely won't do it to any fiefdom in the Volkswagen empire, which would leave Audi a jilted suitor. Why is Sergio being so serious? VW Group CEO Ferdinand Piech first starting waving torches on the bridge between the two companies when he said Alfa Romeo could sell four times as many cars if Volkswagen owned it, then burned the bridge when it continued to publicize its desire to buy Alfa Romeo. VW followed that up by throwing salt on the land around the destroyed bridge with its aggressive pricing in Europe during the worst of the car sales slump there, which Marchionne said was causing a "bloodbath." VW's final flourish was to set the river itself on fire, when a press officer said Marchionne wasn't qualified to head the European Automotive Manufacturers Association (ACEA) and VW would quit the organization if he did take the top spot. That is why, putting it optimistically, Audi looks to have a grim chance of getting the Q2 and Q4 marques from the Italian. So long as he is in power, at least: Marchionne said he's walking away from the job in 2018. Audi might have a better chance bending the knee to, and generously rewarding, his successor. Featured Gallery Audi TT Offroad Concept: Beijing 2014 View 16 Photos News Source: CarImage Credit: Live images copyright 2015 Chris Paukert / AOL Government/Legal Audi Fiat Volkswagen Crossover Luxury Sergio Marchionne trademark volkswagen group

Recharge Wrap-up: Zero takes electric motorcycles to cop expos, Chevy Volt powers dealership's Internet

Zero Motorcycles will be at three law enforcement conferences this month, including COPSWEST Training and Expo, Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Law Enforcement Vehicle Test and Emergency Vehicle Product Expo and International Association of Chiefs of Police Expo. Zero will display its recently debuted 2015 line of electric motorcycles at the events including the new FXP, a police-duty version of it FX "Stealthfighter." Zero also offers the MMX, SP and DSP for police and military use. Learn more about the events in the press release below. Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn told European regulators that more stringent emissions standards too soon will be a major problem for automakers. He says that such moves could prove "fatal" for an auto industry that is still working to develop cleaner vehicles. "Every gram of CO2 that we save in our European fleet costs our group almost 100 million euros," says Winterkorn, "100 million that we have to invest in advance, without knowing when these investments pay off." He says that already creating emissions targets beyond those set for 2020 could harm European automakers competing globally. Read more at Automotive News Europe. When a Detroit Chevrolet dealership lost its Internet connection, it turned to one of its Chevy Volts for a temporary fix. After the regular connection at Buff Whelan Chevrolet went down, it plugged in a Volt showroom model equipped with 4G LTE, and used its connection to resume business. The car can handle up to seven connected devices, so the team used a Malibu to connect the rest of its computers. When a customer asked why the Volt was on, the team explained the whole situation, leading to one impressed customer. Read more at Automotive News. Zero Motorcycles To Attend Law Enforcement Conferences 2015 Police and Authority Motorcycles to Appear at IACP SANTA CRUZ, Calif., Oct. 2, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Zero Motorcycles, the global leader in the electric motorcycle industry, announced today that it is attending three leading law enforcement conferences in October: - COPSWEST Training and Expo. October 6-9, 2014. Long Beach, California. - Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department Law Enforcement Vehicle Test and Emergency Vehicle Product Expo. October 16, 2014. Fontana, California. - IACP Conference and Expo. October 25-28, 2014. Orlando, Florida. "These events provide a great opportunity to present our patrol motorcycles and accessories.