A artist’s visual of the Infiniti Q30 to be built by Nissan in Sunderland.
Nissan has applied for permission to expand its factory at Sunderland in north east England, already Britain’s largest car-making plant, where it plans to produce a new premium compact car for its Infiniti brand starting in 2015. Continue reading
Saab’s new owner is seeking to restart production at the automaker’s mothballed factory in Sweden later this year.
The is ‘practically ready’ to begin building the 9-3 mid-sized car, said Mikael Oestlund, a spokesman for National Electric Vehicle Sweden (NEVS).
The company has recruited about 300 people including team leaders to oversee assembly, Oestlund said.
‘It is possible to start production later this year,’ he said.
National Electric Vehicle Sweden, which is owned by a Chinese renewable energy investor, bought Saab out of bankruptcy in August 2012.
Oestlund said the 9-3 that will go into production will be very similar to the 9-3 that Saab stopped building in 2011.
He did not disclose engine details except to say that the gasoline version would be turbo-charged.
An electric version, planned to launch in 2014, would be given a much more comprehensive face-lift, he added.
Oestlund said the 9-3 will be sold in Europe and China initially, with US sales possible later.
‘Saab will again be a global brand, but we will gradually add markets. The US market is important for us and we intend to enter when we see that we have a business case,’ he said.
NEVS also plans to build cars based on the Phoenix architecture developed by Saab before the automaker went bankrupt in 2011.
The platform will have to be modified to remove the 20% of parts sourced from former Saab owner General Motors, Oestlund said.
‘The Phoenix architecture is very flexible, and when fully developed, it will give us the opportunity to design and manufacture several models from smaller to bigger cars. We have not yet decided which models and we have no time plan – that is some years ahead,’ he said.
Oestlund added the 9-3 electric version will use batteries built by sister company Beijing National Battery Technology, which builds batteries for city buses.
NEVS and Beijing National Battery Technology are owned by Hong Kong National Modern Energy Holdings, which is run by Swedish-Chinese green energy entrepreneur Kai Johan Jiang.
NEVS plans to build 120,000 units of the 9-3 a year by 2016. That target would come close to the brand’s 2006 peak of 133,000 autos.
(Source: Automotive News Europe, 21 st August 2013)
FROM THIS Sunday cabotage restrictions will be temporarily relaxed for transporters from other European Union member states carrying complete cars and vans.
According to the UK’s Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders it is estimated that approximately 400,000 new cars and vans are registered in both March and September in the UK. These two months collectively account for more than one third of the UK’s new vehicle registrations.
News that cabotage regulations are to be relaxed next month is particularly welcomed by NVD who currently operate some 30 trucks in the UK.
Under a new policy which has been adopted by UK Ministers, cabotage restrictions will be temporarily relaxed for car transporters carrying complete cars and vans between February 22nd to March 31st and August 25th to September 30th each year.
This revised policy is expected to relieve vehicle logistics capacity shortages during these months by allowing foreign trucks to make unlimited numbers of deliveries
Usual cabotage restrictions limited all Heavy Goods Vehicles (HGVs) to no more than three loaded operations across the UK within seven days of a laden arrival in another EU country. This regulation meant that a truck entering a country carrying goods is permitted to make up to three deliveries within a week of having crossed the border. For the truck to continue performing operations in that country, it would have to cross another border and return again carrying cargo.
According to Ray MacDowell Vehicle Delivery Services’ Chairman of ECM, the UK’s largest privately owned car carrier, the government’s decision is a ‘victory for common sense’.
He commented that sourcing sufficient capacity in the UK alone to cope with the registration peaks was just not feasible, particularly since many British carriers have gone out of business in recent years.
During the short periods of cabotage relaxation, there will be no requirement for the vehicle to enter the UK carrying goods, and no limits on the number of operations that may be undertaken there.
NVD 