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Carlos Ghosn Arrested Over Allegations Of Financial Misconduct

Carlos Ghosn, chairman of Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi Motors, was arrested Monday in Japan over concerns he had underreported his income and misused company funds.

In a statement, Nissan said it had been conducting an internal investigation over the past several months regarding misconduct involving Ghosn and Representative Director Greg Kelly based on a whistleblower report.

According to the company, the investigation discovered that over many years both Ghosn and Kelly had been reporting their compensation in the Tokyo Stock Exchange securities report as less than what they actually received, the aim being to reduce Ghosn’s disclosed compensation.

Nissan also discovered “numerous other significant acts of misconduct, such as personal use of company assets” related to Ghosn, with “Kelly’s deep involvement  also confirmed”, according to a statement.

The company says it has been providing information to the Japanese Public Prosecutors Office and is fully cooperating with their investigation.

In a dramatic move, the company said CEO Hiroto Saikawa will propose to the company board to promptly remove Ghosn from his positions as Chairman and Representative Director, as well as removing Kelly from his own Representative Director position. The company cited the misconduct’s violation of its board of directors’ duty of care as the reason for the move.

The development heavily tarnishes what was a distinguished career for Ghosn, who helped restore Renault’s profitability in the late 1990s and executed the recovery of Nissan in just one year in the early 2000s.

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High ANCAP Safety Scores For Mercedes-Benz A-Class, Mazda 6 And Lexus ES300h

ANCAP, Australasia’s independent authority on vehicle safety, has commended the safety specification and safety performance of the newly released Mercedes-Benz A-Class, Mazda 6 and Lexus ES300h – all achieving 5 star ANCAP safety ratings.

Assessed against the latest safety standards now in play across both the Australasian and European markets, each of the vehicles achieved strong scores in all key safety areas.

“The new A-Class offers excellent all-round safety performance,” said ANCAP Chief Executive, James Goodwin.

“It has achieved the highest Vulnerable Road User Protection rating to date with a score of 92 per cent, and has equalled the highest Child Occupant Protection rating, scoring 91 per cent.”

“Side chest-protecting airbags also extend to the rear seats as a standard feature on Australasian models, where it is offered as an option to European consumers,” he said.

“The Mazda 6 performed well for its protection of adult and child occupants, however some concerns were noted for smaller occupants seated in the rear, where the pelvis of the dummy slipped beneath the lap section of the seatbelt in the full width test – known as submarining – and a penalty was applied.”

“The autonomous emergency braking capability of the Lexus ES300h was its standout feature with full points scored for its ability to detect and avoid pedestrians in all test scenarios at day and night. Strong performance was also recorded for its cyclist-detection capability,” Goodwin added.

A penalty was also applied to the Lexus for submarining of the rear occupant in the full width frontal test.

Five star ANCAP safety ratings apply to all variants of the Mercedes-Benz A-Class (August 2018 onwards), Mazda 6 (June 2018 onwards) and the Lexus ES300h (September 2018 onwards).

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Phase IV Falcon Breaks Ford Australian Muscle Car Record at Auction

A Ford Falcon GTHO Phase IV has broken the record for a Ford Australian muscle car, selling for A$2 million at auction over the weekend.

The extremely rare, one-of-only-three-in-the-world Ford Falcon GTHO Phase IV achieved A$2 million at Lloyds auction on Saturday night, smashing the previous record price for an Aussie Ford muscle car.

“This was a fantastic result for the classic car market which is growing from strength to strength. The anonymous Australian buyer is extremely excited about owning a piece of iconic Australian history,” said Brett Mudie, Chief Marketing Officer at Lloyds Auctions.

Legendary Bathurst winner Allan Moffat dropped the hammer in a ceremonial event with enthusiastic fans, alongside the auctioneer selling one of Australia’s rarest muscle cars to its new custodian.

“It didn’t surprise me that the car sold for this amount,” continued Mudie. “We were expecting it to smash the last record quite easily, with bidding already at A$1.5 million 3 days before the auction. The Phase IV’s limited number, immaculate condition, celebrity affiliation (with links to Fred Gibson and Allan Moffat) along with its chrome bumper all contributed to the car selling at this price and will underpin its value into the future.

“With the Phase IV and more strong bidding on Phase IIIs over the weekend, it really shows that the market is continuing to strengthen with an opportunity to own an enjoyable investment that seems to be rising in value at a faster rate than property.

“There is a clear trend if you look at the number of records broken over the last six months in particular. The people buying these cars are hard-working Australians looking for a reward but also looking for something to invest in. Cars in original condition, with chrome bumpers, celebrity affiliation or prominent history are the ones that are rising in value first as we have seen again at this auction over the weekend.”

In March this year an A9X Torana SLR 5000 sold for A$365,000, doubling the original record for this type of car. In June Australian cricketer Jeff Thomson’s old Ford Falcon GTHO Phase III was the first of its kind to break A$1 million in a public sale, followed by Peter Brock’s dual Bathurst winner which more recently sold for A$2.1 million.

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Hyundai i30 Fastback N Revealed In Europe

Hyundai has revealed the new 2019 i30 Fastback N in Europe ahead of its official unveiling at the 2018 Paris Motor Show next month.

The five-door Fastback N is the second high-performance model from Hyundai’s N Performance division, following on from its sibling the i30 N hot-hatch, which arrived in Australia in March.

The new i30 Fastback N wraps the high-performance capability and driver appeal of the i30 N in a newly sporty five-door GT coupe shape.

The Hyundai i30 Fastback N incorporates many of the design signatures of its hatchback sibling. The i30 Fastback shape has been merged with the features of the i30 N five-door, such as the dynamic-looking N Grille, and N front and rear bumpers, both highlighted by a red character line. A blacked-out side sill further underscores the model’s sportiness.

The i30 Fastback N’s rear visual features a twin-muffler exhaust and a cohesive rear spoiler that flows neatly into the line of the lift back. A glossy black accent is inserted to highlight the spoiler and further develop the N performance theme.

The centrepiece in the new i30 Fastback N’s crisp, understated interior is the exclusive N steering wheel with characteristic red N stitching, which ties in with red stitching on the gear shifter and seats.

The i30 Fastback N’s high-performance focus does not bring cabin compromise. High practicality and everyday usability are ensured, with a generous with 450-litre cargo area, which expands to hold 1351 litres when the rear seatbacks are folded flat.

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Mercedes-Benz Launches Its First EV – The EQC

Mercedes-Benz has launched its first electric car, the EQC, in Stockholm.

Touted first at the Paris Motor Show in 2016, the new EQ-prefixed models will go into full production in 2019 in Bremen, Germany.

The EQC features an all-new drive system with compact electric drivetrains at each axle. These give the EQC the driving characteristics of an all-wheel drive vehicle.

To reduce power consumption and increase dynamics, the electric drivetrains are configured differently; the front electric motor is optimised for best possible efficiency in the low to medium load range, while the rear one determines dynamics. Together, they generate an output of 300kW and a maximum torque of 765Nm. This allows the vehicle to get to 100km/h from a standing start in 5.1 seconds and reach a governed maximum speed of 180km/h.

The lithium-ion battery, which has an energy content of 80 kWh supplies the vehicle with power, with Mercedes-Benz claiming a range of more than 450km on a full charge under Europe’s old NEDC test cycle. Real-world range is expected to be slightly lower.

Mercedes-Benz says the EQC meets the highest requirements with respect to passive safety. In addition to the usual extensive programme of crash tests, the company says it applies further, particularly-stringent safety standards to the battery and all component parts carrying electrical current. The vehicle structure of the EQC has been adapted to suit the special requirements of the electrical components and battery and is “configured to achieve the usual high safety level”.

Mechanical protection of the battery begins with the installation position of the high-voltage battery beneath the vehicle floor, where it is surrounded by a stable frame that can absorb impact energy. Deformation elements are installed between the frame and the battery, and these are able to absorb additional forces in the event of a severe side impact. A battery guard in the front area is able to prevent the energy storage unit from being pierced by foreign objects. Placement of the heavy battery at the bottom of the car improves the vehicle’s centre of gravity, ensuring a stable and dynamic ride.

Electrical protection of the high-voltage system consists of a multi-stage safety concept that deploys in the event of an accident. The high-voltage system automatically shuts down, reversibly or irreversibly, according to the severity of the accident. There are also shutdown points where emergency teams can deactivate the high-voltage system manually.

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JLR’s Virtual Eyes Look At Trust In Self-Driving Cars

Jaguar Land Rover has fitted ‘virtual eyes’ to intelligent pods to understand how humans will trust self-driving vehicles, as research studies suggest that as many as 63 per cent of pedestrians worry about how safe it will be to cross the road in the future.

The friendly-faced ‘eye pods’ have a vital job: helping work out how much information future self-driving cars should share with users or pedestrians to ensure that people trust the technology.

As part of the engineering project, Jaguar Land Rover has enlisted the help of a team of cognitive psychologists to better understand how vehicle behaviour affects human confidence in new technology. The trust trials form part of Jaguar Land Rover’s government-supported UK Autodrive project.

The intelligent pods, run autonomously on a fabricated street scene in Coventry, while the behaviour of pedestrians is analysed as they wait to cross the road. The ‘eyes’ have been devised by a team of advanced engineers, working in Jaguar Land Rover’s Future Mobility division. The pods seek out the pedestrian – appearing to ‘look’ directly at them – signalling to road users that it has identified them, and intends to take avoiding action.

Engineers record trust levels in the person before and after the pod makes ‘eye contact’ to find out whether it generates sufficient confidence that it would stop for them. Previous studies suggest as many as 63 per cent of pedestrians and cyclists say they’d feel less safe sharing the road with a self-driving vehicle.

Safety remains the number one priority as Jaguar Land Rover invests in self-driving technology, becoming automotive leaders in autonomous, connected, electric and shared mobility. The trial is aligned with the brand’s long-term strategic goals: to make cars safer, free up people’s valuable time and improve mobility for everyone.

Pete Bennett, Future Mobility Research Manager at Jaguar Land Rover, said: “It’s second-nature to glance at the driver of the approaching vehicle before stepping into the road. Understanding how this translates in tomorrow’s more automated world is important.

“We want to know if it is beneficial to provide humans with information about a vehicle’s intentions or whether simply letting a pedestrian know it has been recognised is enough to improve confidence.”

The trials are part of a wider study exploring how future connected and autonomous vehicles can replicate human behaviour and reactions when driving. As part of the study, more than 500 test subjects have been studied interacting with the self-driving pods, designed by UK Autodrive partner Aurrigo.

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Ford Creates Autonomous Vehicles Company

Ford Motor Company has announced the creation of Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC, a new organisation charged with accelerating its autonomous vehicles (AV) business to capitalise on market opportunities.

The new company will include Ford’s self-driving systems integration, AV research and advanced engineering, AV transportation-as-a-service network development, user experience, business strategy and business development teams. The new limited liability company, which is structured to take on third party investment, will be primarily based at Ford’s Corktown campus in Detroit and will hold Ford’s ownership stake in Argo AI, the company’s Pittsburgh-based partner for self-driving system development. Ford expects to invest US$4 billion in its AV efforts through 2023, including its US$1 billion investment in Argo AI.

Sherif Marakby, currently Ford Vice President Autonomous Vehicles and Electrification, will be appointed CEO of Ford Autonomous Vehicles LLC, reporting to a board of directors chaired by Marcy Klevorn, Ford’s Executive Vice President and President, Mobility. Ford says the closer alignment of the self-driving platform and mobility solutions teams will allow faster development of businesses that can thrive in the pre- and post-autonomous vehicle worlds.

“Ford has made tremendous progress across the self-driving value chain – from technology development to business model innovation to user experience,” said Jim Hackett, President and CEO, Ford Motor Company. “Now is the right time to consolidate our autonomous driving platform into one team to best position the business for the opportunities ahead.”

With Marakby’s move, Ted Cannis, Global Director Electrification, will lead Ford’s Team Edison, the team responsible for developing and bringing to market its next-generation of electric vehicles. Team Edison will continue to report to Jim Farley, Executive Vice President and President Global Markets.

Ford’s electric vehicle strategy includes rethinking the ownership experience, including making charging an effortless experience at home and on the road, as well as offering full-vehicle over-the-air software updates to enhance capabilities and features.

In addition, Ford is reorganising its Global Operations division led by Executive Vice President Joe Hinrichs to include Information Technology as well as the company’s global order-to-delivery system, integrating the teams, technologies and processes from both across Ford’s production system. As a result, Jeff Lemmer, Vice President and CIO, will report to Hinrichs.

The realignment will help the company accelerate the integration and application of technology across its industrial system to further streamline manufacturing, speed vehicle delivery times, reduce inventories and improve capital efficiency.

All the changes are effective 1 August.

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GPs Take The Title For Britain’s Most Accident-Prone Drivers

A study by GoCompare Car Insurance (UK) has found GPs are the most likely to make a claim due to an accident that was their fault, as more than one in every eight GPs has made at least one ‘at-fault’ claim in the past year – more than double the national average across all occupations. Interestingly, 11.6 per cent of these claims involved no injuries, with GPs not actually making the top 20 for claims involving persons injured.

The research shows that overall, health and medical professionals are the most likely to cause a collision on the road. Along with GPs, hospital doctors, surgeons, optometrists and speech therapists feature in the top 10 drivers by occupation, who are most likely to be in a no injuries collision that was their fault.

At the other end of the scale, those least likely to make at-fault claims were barmen/barmaids, pickers, packers, carpet cleaners, despatch drivers and car dealers at just three per cent.

“It may seem ironic that those working in the medical profession are those potentially causing the most accidents, but these are all roles which carry a significant degree of stress and usually long hours, potentially leading to a lack of concentration on the road,” said Matt Oliver, spokesperson for GoCompare Car Insurance.

“Further to this, another reason we could be seeing these occupations in the top 10 is because of where these health professionals are driving. Typically, they will be driving for short periods at peak times in highly built-up areas, increasing the risk of an accident.

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Toyota Wins Le Mans 24h With Fernando Alonso

Toyota finally broke its long-standing Le Mans 24 Hours curse by claiming a dominant victory in the 86th running of the event with the #8 car shared by Fernando Alonso, Kazuki Nakajima and Sebastien Buemi.

The two TS050 Hybrids were a class apart from their LMP1 rivals, with the battle for the win quickly boiling down to a two-way battle between the Toyotas.

It was a see saw battle between the #8 machine and the #7 of Mike Conway, Kamui Kobayashi and Jose Maria Lopez for the majority of the distance, with a rapid night stint by Alonso helping to ease the effects of a 60s stop-and-go penalty earned by Buemi for speeding in a slow zone.

Aussie driver Matt Campbell in just his second year of international competition with Porsche, was handed his Le Mans debut with a seat in the Dempsey-Proton 911 RSR alongside Christian Ried and Julien Andlauer. The trio dominated the GTE-Am class for the majority of the race, with their #77 Porsche beating the #53 Ferrari by a little under two minutes.

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Daimler To Recall 238,000 Diesel Vehicle Over Use Of Defeat Devices

The German government has ordered car manufacturer Daimler to recall 238,000 vehicles in Germany after they were found to be fitted with illegal software that masks diesel emissions.

Across Europe a total of 774,000 diesel vehicles could contain ‘defeat devices’ and Daimler said it would recall them all.

In an official statement, the Federal Motor Transport Authority (Kraftfahrt-Bundesamt–(KBA) said it had ordered Mercedes to immediately recall selected Vito, C-Class and GLC models in Germany:

Among the models said to be affected are the Vito 119 CDI, C220d and GLC 220d.

The KBA has not indicated the age of the cars involved, although officials suggest they include latest-generation models with Euro 6 emissions certification.

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