Toyota has shown another show car for the 2024 SEMA exhibition. The Toyota Ultimate Tailgate Tundra pickup truck was created in honor of cooperation with the American football league NFL and is designed for watching sports matches outdoors and in a large company. A transformable superstructure is installed in the cargo compartment, equipped with five 55-inch TVs, four speakers, a pair of 10-inch subwoofers and a satellite Internet receiver. All this electronic equipment is powered by a built-in generator.
Company Aston Martinreported a loss of $13.4 million for the third quarter of this year. And in just nine months, the British company recorded losses of $509 million. That is, it lost an average of $1.8 million a day! In nine months, it managed to sell only 3,639 supercars compared to 4,398 units in the same period of 2023. The immediate forecasts are also disappointing, because due to disruptions in the supply of components and weakening demand in China, the company's production plan for 2024 has been reduced by 1,000 cars.
Audi management has confirmed the imminent release of the new fuel-powered A7 model, which will replace the Audi A6 (pictured). The premiere will take place in early 2025, and the index change will take place in accordance with the plan to divide the range into electric and fuel-powered cars: the former will get indexes with even numbers, the latter – with odd numbers. The battery-powered Audi A6 e-tron family has already been presented and has entered the market. And in November, the premiere of the new-generation coupe-like Audi Q5 Sportback crossover will take place.
Fordis preparing to revise its employee bonus system. From now on, bonuses will be awarded only upon reaching certain goals, rather than tied to calendar payments. As a result, bonuses for the company's management may be reduced by 65% if the set goals are not met. The head of the Ford concern, Jim Farley, expects to improve employee efficiency and product quality in this way, as well as reduce costs.
Volkswagen has revealed the name of its future budget SUV for the South American markets. The new model, which was announced back in September under the code Projest 246, will be called Volkswagen Tera. This will be the most compact and affordable crossover in the range, it should compete with the Fiat Pulse and Renault Kardian models, and its production will be established at a plant in the Brazilian Taubate. The premiere is scheduled for early 2025.
And the Brazilian pickup Ram RampageThe first modernization took place. Firstly, the most basic Bighorn trim level (pictured) was added to the range, with a more modest exterior design and simplified equipment. And secondly, the 2.0 turbodiesel (170 hp, 380 Nm) was replaced by a more modern 2.2-liter engine (200 hp, 450 Nm). It is combined with a nine-speed automatic and all-wheel drive. In Brazil, the Ram Rampage now costs from 230 thousand reals (40 thousand dollars) instead of 255 thousand reals (44,300 dollars) for the pre-reform car.
SAIC has announced a low-cost van under the brand Wuling, which is designed to deliver small items, convert into mobile coffee shops or compact food trucks. The vehicle, which is only 3,685 mm long and 1,530 mm wide, is equipped electric motor with a capacity of 41 hp, the declared maximum speed is 100 km/h. But the developers promise a very attractive price coupled with low operating costs. The debut will take place before the end of the year.
Today we also talked about Suzuki crossovers e Vitara, Kia Sportage and Soueast S07, Toyota GR86 Rally Legacy coupe, the appearance of the KGM brand in Russia, the prospects of the German auto industry and the PRC's lawsuit against the European Union.