CHATTANOOGA, TN—Volkswagen is thinking about introducing new variants of the Passat and CrossBlue SUV to the North American market, and it could assemble one or more of the vehicles in Chattanooga.
DEARBORN, MI—Two things are missing in the body shop of the revamped Ford Rouge Center, which includes the Dearborn Truck assembly plant making the 2015 F-150 out of aluminum: sparks and noise.
BOWLING GREEN, KY—The GM assembly plant here has met the EPA’s ENERGY STAR Challenge for Industry. The facility is one of 14 GM plants in the world to have met the energy-efficiency challenge and one of only two to have achieved the honor three times.
CHICAGO—The Ford Motor Co. assembly plant here that was part of a $9 million settlement over sexual harassment claims in 2000 is being sued again by four women alleging sexual harassment and sex discrimination.
DETROIT—Tesla Motors Inc. is asking its Michigan-based suppliers to pressure the state’s governor to veto a bill that would bar the California automaker from direct sales to customers in the state. Tesla will procure $170 million in parts and services from suppliers in the state in 2014.
RENO, NV—Tesla Motors has chosen Nevada as the site for a massive, $5 billion factory that will pump out batteries for a new generation of less expensive electric cars. Four other states—California, Texas, Arizona and New Mexico—were vying for the project and the estimated 6,500 jobs it will bring.
SMYRNA, TN—Nissan’s assembly plant here is the top-producing automotive manufacturing plant in the North American industry so far this year. The plant’s two assembly lines have produced more than 334,000 vehicles.
FREMONT, CA—Tesla Motors Inc. has halted production at its assembly plant here for the first time as it adds robots to accelerate production of electric sedans and prepares to build its Model X sport-utility vehicle. The $100 million upgrade will add 25 robots with a goal of boosting production by 25 percent.
FREMONT, CA—Panasonic, along with some Japanese materials suppliers, is reportedly planning to invest some $977 million in a U.S. factory to make lithium-ion car batteries.
CHATTANOOGA, TN—In the wake of Friday’s stunning defeat among Volkswagen’s workers here, the UAW must soberly assess whether it can effectively organize any foreign-owned assembly plant in a region where organized labor has been regarded as an undesirable force for generations.