Car-Scent Rivals Fight in Trademark Suit
By ANDY NEWMAN
A New York company that makes tree-shaped automotive air fresheners has claimed that an Ohio company has infringed on its design.
Andrew Testa for The New York Times
The Lotus factory in Hethel, England. The company was founded 66 years ago by the engineer and racecar driver Colin Chapman.
Jean-Marc Gales wants to return Lotus to its roots as a boutique maker of lightweight British sports cars.
Kia Motors America
2016 Kia Optima
The car is among the most stylish, regardless of price, and the company has addressed some shortcomings of the previous generation model.
Ford Seeks to Expand S.U.V. Portfolio, Sees Market at 40 Percent by 2020
By REUTERS
The Ford Motor Company is looking at ways to expand its sport utility vehicle portfolio as S.U.V.s grow to 40 percent of the United States light vehicle market by 2020 from about a third today.
Google Driverless Car Is Stopped by California Police for Going Too Slowly
By CHRISTINE HAUSER
The police in Mountain View said the vehicle was driving 24 miles per hour in a 35 m.p.h. zone.
Volkswagen Global Sales Fell 5% in October
By JACK EWING
October was the first full sales month after the company’s admission that it had cheated on diesel emissions. Sales in the United States were flat.
With a Hush, an American Lexus Plant Goes to Work
By AARON M. KESSLER
Starting the new Lexus plant in Georgetown, Ky., meant introducing autoworkers to the brand’s methods, some of which call for a quiet assembly line.
Volkswagen, Offering Amnesty, Asks Workers to Come Forward on Emissions Cheating
By JACK EWING and JULIE CRESWELL
The company, trying to get to the bottom of its emissions cheating scandal, pressured employees to tell what they know.
VW’s Emissions-Test Trickery May Not Be Illegal in Europe
By DANNY HAKIM and CLAIRE BARTHELEMY
Unlike in the United States, automakers have the discretion to change their engines’ performance settings before emissions tests.
Volkswagen Hires Expert in Self-Driving Cars From Apple
By JACK EWING and DANNY HAKIM
The move indicates that the German carmaker will continue to invest in advanced technologies despite the burdens of its emissions cheating crisis.
VW Looks at Cost Cuts and Offers Money to Diesel Car Owners
By JACK EWING and JAD MOUAWAD
The company will meet with worker representatives about how to cut costs following the emissions scandal. VW is also offering up to $1,000 to owners.
U.A.W.’s Tentative Deal With Ford Tops Other Automaker Contracts
By BILL VLASIC
The proposed labor agreement between the United Automobile Workers and Ford Motor is slightly richer than the deals agreed to at General Motors and Fiat Chrysler.
Galvanized by VW Scandal, E.P.A. Expands On-Road Emissions Testing
By DANNY HAKIM and JAD MOUAWAD
Regulators have begun testing all makes and models of diesel vehicles, at random and in real-world conditions, to try to increase the odds of catching automakers seeking to evade emissions standards.
Volkswagen Says Whistle-Blower Pushed It to Admit Broader Cheating
By JACK EWING
Efforts to discover who was responsible for misconduct at the German carmaker have been hampered by a culture of silence and a fear of delivering bad news to superiors.
Volkswagen May Offer Cash to Ease Owners’ Ire
By JACK EWING
In an effort to recover some good will, Volkswagen is expected to offer cash to the owners of diesel cars.
Toyota and Nissan to Drop Takata as Supplier of Airbag Inflaters
By JONATHAN SOBLE and HIROKO TABUCHI
The announcements are another blow to company, whose airbags generate about 40 percent of its sales.
Walter Maria de Silva, VW Chief Designer, to Retire
By JACK EWING
VW portrayed the departure of Walter Maria de Silva as a personal decision unrelated to the company’s emissions scandal.
Toyota Invests $1 Billion in Artificial Intelligence in U.S.
By JOHN MARKOFF
The initiative, the Toyota Research Institute, will create one of the biggest labs in Silicon Valley and will be led by the roboticist Gill Pratt.
VW Reveals It Misstated Emissions of Gas Cars
By JACK EWING and GRAHAM BOWLEY
The company said it had underreported the carbon dioxide emitted by 800,000 diesel- and some gasoline-powered cars, and would set aside $2.2 billion to cover the cost of the problem.
Honda Drops Takata as U.S. Issues Huge Fine Over Airbags
By HIROKO TABUCHI and DANIELLE IVORY
Besides Honda’s decision, United States traffic safety officials fined Takata an amount that could go as high as $200 million.
In Honda’s Rebuke of Takata, a Rare Move for Business Partners in Japan
By JONATHAN SOBLE
Companies in Japan form longstanding relationships that extend down manufacturing supply chains, but such ties can have downsides.
Mercedes-Benz Recalls 126,000 Vehicles Over Problems With Airbags
By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN
The automaker said airbags in 126,000 model-year 2008-10 vehicles might either inflate at improper times or not deploy during a crash.
Elon Musk Says Never Mind the Hiccups, Tesla Is on Track
By JAD MOUAWAD
The electric car maker’s stock is down by a quarter and production and quality issues have made headlines, but the entrepreneurial chief conveys confidence.
U.S. Auto Industry Posts Best October Sales in Decade
By BILL VLASIC
Industry analysts projected that the seasonally adjusted sales rate would exceed 18 million vehicles for the second consecutive month.
Wheels
Car Repairs a Click Away, Without the Fuss and Bother
By ERIC A. TAUB
Technology is helping service departments move into the connected age, employing tools that increase efficiencies and help the consumer feel better about the process.
Wave of New-Car Recalls Raises Questions for Takata Airbags
By DANIELLE IVORY and HIROKO TABUCHI
Honda’s announcement of the recall of 515 CR-Vs from 2016 led Senator Bill Nelson of Florida to ask whether any Takata airbag inflaters were safe.
Ex-Federal Prosecutor Is Named to Monitor G.M.
By REUTERS
Bart M. Schwartz, once chief of the criminal division of the United States attorney’s office in Manhattan, will review practices at the automaker.
Fiat Chrysler Recalls More Vehicles for Airbag Defect
By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN
The automaker recalled 316,000 Jeeps for airbags that could randomly deploy, and another 276,000 Dodge vans for anti-lock brakes that might fail.
Honda to Recall 300,000 Accords for Airbag Problem
By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN
The automaker said the side airbags could deploy without the vehicle being in a crash if the ignition were on and the door was slammed hard.
Fiat Chrysler to Challenge U.S. Rivals With an S.U.V.
By REUTERS
A large sport utility vehicle would take aim at General Motors’ and Ford’s most profitable market.
Volkswagen, Hit by Emissions Scandal, Posts Its First Loss in Years
By JACK EWING
The automaker had a net loss of $1.84 billion in its third quarter, an indicator of how the fallout from its diesel deception could hurt its bottom line.
Ford Profit Soars in 3rd Quarter, Propelled by F-150 Truck Sales
By MARY M. CHAPMAN
The automaker said earnings almost doubled compared with a year ago, helped by a record quarter in North America.
Driven
Video Review: Cadillac’s ATS-V, a Socially Refined Muscle Car
By TOM VOELK
As capable as Mercedes-Benz AMG and BMW M cars, ATS-V is letter-perfect in its driving dynamics. Now, if Cadillac can get enthusiasts to understand that.
Driven
Video Review: With the S600, Mercedes Revives the Maybach
By TOM VOELK
Maybach disappeared a few years ago, but Mercedes has brought it back as an ultraluxury subbrand, with the S600 as an overachieving S-Class.
Driven
Video Review: Audi Q3, a Costly Crossover With Few Compromises
By TOM VOELK
The refreshed crossover is easy to park, surgical through urban traffic and easier on fuel than large S.U.V.s, but it is a bit expensive.
White Collar Watch
The Challenges for Volkswagen’s Internal Investigation
By PETER J. HENNING
An appeal to employees may be something of a last-ditch effort to ferret out information needed for a credible internal investigation.
Wealth Special Section
To Reach the Truly Rich, Television Ads Won’t Do
By EMILY STEEL
The images of wealth and luxury seen in TV commercials are aimed mostly at those who aspire to wealthy lifestyles, not those who actually enjoy them.
The Future Issue
The Dream Life of Driverless Cars
By GEOFF MANAUGH
Autonomous vehicles might remain an expensive novelty, or they might utterly transform society. Either way, they have much to teach us about how to look at the cities we live in.
Beijing Journal
A City Choking on Cars Hopes Commuters Will Return to Two Wheels
By OWEN GUO
Facing pollution and traffic concerns, Beijing is proposing steps to encourage bicycling, re-embracing what has long been an integral part of China’s culture.
George Barris, California King of Customized Cars, Dies at 89
By WILLIAM GRIMES
The man behind the Batmobile, immortalized in a Tom Wolfe essay, was a pioneer and master of car customization.
Wheels
Ride-Sharing Apps Bring Back Car-Pooling
By AMY ZIPKIN
Long the province of suburban parents and shift workers headed to the same factory, car-pooling is getting an urban makeover.
Ex-Im Bank Dispute Threatens G.E. Factory That Obama Praised
By STEVE LOHR
G.E. plans to close an engine factory in Waukesha, Wis., that President Obama visited in 2014 and move hundreds of jobs to Canada because of the bank’s closure.
Lawyers Jostle for Lead Position in Volkswagen Diesel Suits
By BARRY MEIER
To streamline the hundreds of suits filed against Volkswagen, a panel of federal judges is expected to consolidate them in a single court.
Lawyers Say G.M. Might Have Broken Government Deal
By BARRY MEIER
Lawyers for plaintiffs in lawsuits against G.M. said it might have violated an agreement with the government based on statements it made in the suits.
Wheels
Borgward, a Storied German Carmaker, Tries Comeback in China
By PETER SIGAL
For a moment in the 1950s, the second-biggest German automaker, after VW, wasn’t BMW or Mercedes. It was Borgward, and it may start selling cars again.
Cars’ Voice-Activated Systems Distract Drivers, Study Finds
By MATT RICHTEL
The research shows that the technology can be a powerful distraction, and a lingering one.
Essential Part of the Volkswagen Diesel Repair Is the Owner
By CHRISTOPHER JENSEN
For the most part, owners are not required to have repairs made to Volkswagen cars whose emissions systems were modified to cheat federal tests.
Wheels
Tesla Adds High-Speed Autonomous Driving to Its Bag of Tricks
By AARON M. KESSLER
After a $2,500 software download, Model S drivers can let the car take over on the Interstate, the first car sold to consumers with such capabilities.
The Upshot
When Gas Becomes Cheaper, Americans Buy More Expensive Gas
By BINYAMIN APPELBAUM
Researchers also show that consumers use their savings to buy more gasoline, a tendency behavioral economists call “mental accounting.”
Consumer Reports Stops Recommending the Tesla
By JAD MOUAWAD
Consumer Reports dropped its endorsement of the Tesla Model S after owners complained about squeaks, failing door handles and motors in need of replacement.
Volkswagen, in Future Cars, to Adopt New System for Controlling Diesel Emissions
By MELISSA EDDY
The automaker will use a selective catalytic reduction control system on its future diesel engines in Europe and North America, where a scandal erupted last month.
Norway Is a Model for Encouraging Electric Car Sales
By DAVID JOLLY
Skeptics, however, wonder whether the country’s program of government subsidies is cost-effective, or even an efficient way to reduce air pollutants.
Highlights From the New York Auto Show
Press previews began this week at the 2015 New York International Auto Show at the Jacob K. Javits Convention Center. The show opens to the public on Friday.
New Car Reviews
