The famed McLaren F1 supercar and its designer Gordon Murray will be honored with a special exhibit at the London Classic Car Show in February. Get all the latest auto industry news in the Executive Briefing.
Today’s headlines:
+ Aided by low interest rates and falling gasoline prices, the automakers sold 17.47 million cars in the U.S. in 2015, the greatest volume since 2000. More at the Detroit Free Press.
+ Hyundai announced it will invest $52 million in its Montgomery, Alabama assembly plant to produce the Santa Fe Sport crossover SUV there. More at the Montgomery Advertiser.
+ Volkswagen CEO Matthias Mueller will meet with U.S. environmental regulators next week for the highest-level talks since the automaker admitted to cheating on diesel emissions testing. More at Reuters.
+ The German daily newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung reported that Volkswagen is likely to buy back approximately 115,000 older diesel vehicles in the United States as a result of the emissions scandal. More at CNBC.
+ Racing legend Tyler Alexander, who co-founded Team McLaren with Bruce McLaren in 1963 and was involved with the organization for four decades, has passed away at 75. More at BBC Sport.
+ Chevrolet has priced its 2017 Bolt electric subcompact at $37,500 before rebates or energy incentives, or $30,000 with the current federal tax credit. More at Autoblog.
+ Mitsubishi has given up on finding a takeover candidate for its sole U.S. plant in Normal, Illinois and its 1,000 workers, and will close the facility. More at Business Insider.
+ Ford has revamped its accounting methods for pensions, resulting in a $1.5 billion gain to its 2015 pre-tax profit, or $709 for each of the company’s 52,900 U.S. hourly workers. More at The Detroit News.
+ Former Indy car driver Jon Herb, 45, who started 16 races in the Indy Racing League from 2000 to 2007, was sentenced to 25 years in prison for child sexual abuse. More at ESPN.
+ The General Motors board of directors has elected CEO Mary Barra to also serve as chairman of the board, replacing Tim Solso. More at Crain’s Detroit Business.
+ A spy photographer captured an undisguised 2017 Ford Fusion on the road in Dearborn, Michigan in advance of its North American Auto Show debut next week. More with photos at Motor Trend.
+ Five McLaren F1 road and race cars will be featured in a special tribute to the car and designer Gordon Murray at the London Classic Car Show, February 18-21 at London’s ExCeL Centre. More at Classic Cars.com.
+ Suddenly released as crew chief for driver Carl Edwards at Joe Gibbs Racing, NASCAR veteran Darian Grubb has returned to Hendrick Motorsports in the new position of vehicle production director. More at Fox Sports.
Read the previous Executive Briefing from January 4 here.
Photo courtesy of McLaren F1 MSO Heritage.