Chinese automaker BYD is set to open its North American headquarters in Los Angeles today. The company says that the office will add around 150 jobs to the area, including engineering and management positions. In addition, the manufacturer has announced a partnership with Hertz that will see BYD electric shuttles transport rental car customers to and from their vehicles at the Los Angeles International Airport. BYD is hoping to position itself as an EV specialist here in the States, but Edmunds Auto Observer reports that the automaker has seen its fair share of problems over the past year.
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Word has it that Volvo is once again aiming for top-tier status. Automotive News China is reporting that the Swedish automaker has outlined a slew of new goals that include hitting annual sales of around 800,000 units, becoming the best employer worldwide and doing battle with the likes of BMW, Audi and Mercedes-Benz. If that’s not ambitious enough for you, the brand wants to make it all happen by 2020. The news came courtesy of Freeman Shen, Volvo senior vice president, who made the comments in a speech about the company’s future.
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Porsche plans on doubling its sales totals to 200,000 units by 2018, and utility vehicles will be a big part of that volume push. In fact, the Cayenne is already the best-selling Porsche, and that likely won’t change any time soon. Read More »

Chinese automaker BYD raised a less-than-stellar 1.42 billion yuan ($219 million U.S. at the current exchange rate) in its initial public offering in Shenzhen, China late last week. Analysts say that BYD’s IPO was weighed down by weak investor sentiment and worries over the automaker’s poor performance.
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If there’s been a single reason for hope among auto executives during the past few lean years, it’s been spelled C-H-I-N-A. Despite being a difficult regulatory environment with many hoops for automakers to jump through, the People’s Republic has shone as the industry’s brightest and biggest hope for big volumes and bigger profits. Certainly, the nation has delivered massive sales increases as it has developed into a global superpower, and its population and growing wealth suggests it should be good for many more millions of sales per year. Thing is, recent sales haven’t supported this trend, and the Chinese government is reportedly stepping in to try and remedy the problem. Read More »

As much if (not more) than any other automaker, BMW has been carefully cultivating the Chinese market. And the M3 is a big part of that. The Bavarian automaker has already launched two special editions exclusive to China in the M3 Matte Edition and M3 Tiger Edition, and is now offering a third.

Called the M3 Carbon Edition, the car is defined by – anybody? Bueller? – that’s right, carbon fiber. The techy material covers the roof, the front splitter, the rear wing, the hood vents and much of the interior, which is decked out in high-contrast white and black. As is the exterior, with black stripes running over white paint, up the front fenders and across the upper flank to the tail, along with Carbon Edition decals on the lower edge of the doors and blacked-out 19-inch alloys.
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From the outside, China’s upcoming Besturn B30 looks like an appropriately modern, cheap, and cheerful econocar. Under the modern skin, though, lurks the skeleton of the second-generation Volkswagen Jetta. That’s right, China’s newest widely-affordable small sedan is little more than a rebodied 30-year-old German sedan.
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