VW Dieselgate scandal ensnares German supplier, to pay $35M fineDetroit — A German engineering company has agreed to plead guilty in U.S. District Court here to federal conspiracy charges and to pay $35 million for its involvement in Volkswagen AG's diesel emissions-cheating scandal.
Berlin-based IAV GmbH engineers and designs products for powertrain, electronics and vehicle development. It is expected to plead guilty to one count of conspiracy to defraud the United States and VW's U.S. customers and to violate the Clean Air Act as part of its involvement with VW's costly global scandal.
IAV is 50-percent owned by VW, Germany's No. 1 automaker. It is the only European car company scheduled to attend January's 2019 North American International Auto Show in Detroit, the final winter show before moving to June in 2020. IAV did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Justice Department said Tuesday IAV and VW knew the diesel-engine vehicles they engineered did not meet U.S. emissions standards. It “worked collaboratively to design, test, and implement cheating software to cheat the U.S. testing process, and IAV was aware that VW concealed material facts about its cheating from federal and state regulators and U.S. customers.”
IAV will serve probation for two years and will be under an independent corporate compliance monitor which will oversee the company for two years as part of the plea agreement. The company has also agreed to cooperate with the Justice Department in its ongoing investigation of the emission-cheating scheme.
The $35 million fine was the maximum IAV could pay without jeopardizing continued viability, the Justice Department said.
Volkswagen admitted in 2015 to programming its diesel cars to trick emissions testers into believing the engines released far less pollution than they actually did. The so-called “defeat devices” allowed vehicles branded “Clean Diesel” to work properly during laboratory emissions testing. But in normal driving, the cars were found to emit up to 40 times more smog-causing nitrogen oxide than legally allowed.
In July 2016, Volkswagen reached a $14.7 billion civil agreement with the Environmental Protection Agency that calls for the automaker to spend $10 billion to buy back or repair about 475,000 2-liter diesel cars sold between 2009 and 2015. It also agreed to a $1.2 billion settlement with its American dealers.
Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn was indicted in May on federal conspiracy charges to defraud the U.S., to commit wire fraud and to violate the Clean Air Act, dealing a fresh blow to the automaker's credibility and its bid to recover from the costly “Dieselgate” scheme.
The automaker pleaded guilty in March 2017 to three criminal charges related to its decade-long conspiracy to evade U.S. emission standards. The company was fined a record-setting $2.8 billion and faces three years of probation.
nnaughton@detroitnews.com
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Author: Detroit News Online
Ex-UAW official Nancy Adams Johnson sent to prison
Ex-UAW official Nancy Adams Johnson sent to prisonDetroit — A high-ranking United Auto Workers official who implicated President Dennis Williams and others in a corruption investigation involving Fiat Chrysler Automobiles was sentenced to one year and one day in federal prison Tuesday.
Nancy Adams Johnson betrayed the trust of blue-collar workers by accepting thousands of dollars in illegal payments from Fiat Chrysler and spending the money on $1,100 Christian Louboutin shoes, private accommodations, golf resorts and lavish meals, according to the government. She also funneled tens of thousands of dollars of illegal payments from Fiat Chrysler to other senior UAW officials.
Johnson, 58, of Macomb Township is the seventh and final person sentenced in a widespread conspiracy to violate federal labor laws, a conspiracy that has reshuffled the top ranks of the auto industry and the labor union that represents 450,000 workers.
She, along with several others convicted so far, including former Fiat Chrysler Vice President Alphons Iacobelli, are cooperating with investigators and could serve as a bridge to a second round of criminal charges against additional union and auto executives.
Johnson choked back tears while asking U.S. District Judge Paul Borman for mercy and leniency and apologizing for her role in a conspiracy that has raised questions about the sanctity of labor negotiations.
“I hope the membership of the UAW and other labor unions find in their heart to forgive me for any wrongdoing I have done,” Johnson said while dabbing tears from her eyes. “The membership deserves better.”
Johnson's lawyer wanted her to spend no time in prison, pointing to her ongoing cooperation with the government, contrition and health problems that include a brain tumor. Though she could have faced up to 18 months in prison, prosecutors requested a 12-month sentence.
“Instead of helping rank-and-file workers provide food for their families, Ms. Johnson provided a high-flying lifestyle for senior officials and herself,” Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gardey told the judge.
Johnson was sentenced five months after pleading guilty to violating a federal law prohibiting labor officials from receiving cash and valuable items from employers.
In the ensuing months, Johnson has evolved into a key witness for the government in hopes of receiving a reduced sentence, telling investigators that Williams directed subordinates to save the union money by using funds from Detroit’s automakers, funneled through training centers, to pay for union travel, meals and entertainment.
Prosecutors have referenced as many as five unindicted co-conspirators, including Johnson's former boss, UAW Vice President Norwood Jewell, who retired in January after his home was raided by investigators.
Ex-UAW official got Disney tix, trips
While meeting with investigators, Johnson has been diligent, truthful and forthcoming about corruption within the auto industry, Gardey told the judge.
“Ms. Johnson is genuinely a good person,” he said. “Unfortunately, she gave way to temptation.”
In pushing for a 12-month sentence, prosecutors revealed a vignette that portrayed senior UAW officials dining on $15,000 worth of steaks, liquor and cigars paid for by Fiat Chrysler at a time when they were supposed to be negotiating against the automaker for a new contract for rank-and-file autoworkers.
She is continuing to provide insight into what prosecutors call the corrupt senior ranks of the UAW so the U.S. Attorney's Office successfully pushed to delay Adams Johnson's arrival at prison for six months.
Prosecutors last month labeled Jewell, who oversaw the union's Fiat Chrysler department before abruptly resigning in January, an unindicted co-conspirator. They also refer to him in hundreds of pages of criminal filings as a high-ranking union leader who received approximately $50,000 worth of lavish gifts and benefits from Fiat Chrysler executives.
The gifts include a $2,180 Italian shotgun and a $30,000 party that featured strolling models who lit labor leaders' cigars, all paid for with Fiat Chrysler cash that was supposed to be spent training blue-collar workers.
Investigators also have learned Jewell tapped a training fund to pay for more than $10,000 worth of golf resort accommodations in Palm Springs, California, and Disney World tickets, sources told The News.
“Today’s sentence rightfully punishes the unacceptable misconduct of a former UAW official who betrayed our members' trust,” union spokesman Brian Rothenberg said in a statement Tuesday. “The UAW is confident that Ms. Johnson’s misconduct had no effect on the collective bargaining agreement between the UAW and Chrysler — which has numerous checks and balances and requires a vote by the entire membership, among other things.”
Federal prosecutors have labeled the UAW, Fiat Chrysler and the jointly operated UAW-Chrysler National Training Center as co-conspirators. The allegation potentially exposes the automaker and the UAW to criminal charges, fines and governmental oversight, according to a former federal prosecutor.
rsnell@detroitnews.com
(313) 222-2486
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Toyota recalls 70K vehicles over air bag inflators
Toyota recalls 70K vehicles over air bag inflatorsDetroit – Toyota is recalling about 70,000 Toyota and Lexus brand vehicles in North America to replace air bag inflators that could explode and hurl shrapnel at drivers and passengers.
The recall covers the 2003 to 2005 Corolla, the 2002 to 2005 Sequoia, the 2003 to 2005 Tundra and the 2002 to 2005 Lexus SC.
Takata uses the chemical ammonium nitrate to create a small explosion and inflate the bags. But it can deteriorate and burn too fast, blowing apart a metal canister.
The Toyota and Lexus vehicles were recalled previously and the inflators replaced with new ones that still used ammonium nitrate. In the latest recall, Toyota will use inflators made by another company with a safer chemical.
Owners will be notified early next year. Toyota says it has replacement parts available.
About 65,000 of the recalled vehicles are in the U.S.
Toyota says it’s doing the recall a year ahead of a schedule set by the U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
At least 23 people have died worldwide due to the problem caused by inflators made by Takata Corp., resulting in the largest series of auto recalls in U.S. history. They cover 37 million vehicles and about 50 million inflators in the U.S. About 100 million inflators are being recalled worldwide.
The recalls forced Takata of Japan to seek bankruptcy protection.
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Feds: FCA spent $15K on steak dinners for UAW
Feds: FCA spent $15K on steak dinners for UAWDetroit — Senior United Auto Workers leaders launched 2015 UAW contract negotiations with an $8,494 meal at a Detroit steakhouse paid for by Fiat Chrysler Automobiles, according to a new federal court filing.
And once negotiations with Fiat Chrysler appeared to be wrapped, officials book-ended the talks with a second lavish meal paid for by the carmaker at the same restaurant.
After UAW leaders ate, drank and smoked $15,000 worth of filet, liquor and cigars for the two meals paid for by the rival across the negotiating table, rank-and-file union members at Fiat Chrysler voted down the proposed contract.
Federal officials say the meals are examples of corruption surrounding the 2015 Fiat Chrysler-UAW contract negotiations.
U.S. District Attorneys David Gardey and Erin Shaw wrote in a court filing that spending on meals such as those at the London Chop House in downtown Detroit corrupted the bargaining process, and the “freebies” and “lavish entertainment” UAW officials allowed Fiat Chrysler to pay for were “the rule rather than the exception.”
The UAW officials violated the Labor Management Relations Act of 1947 when they let the automaker pay for those meals, the attorneys wrote.
The details emerged as the UAW and Detroit automakers are poised to negotiate new contracts next year at a time when both General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co. are pruning excess white-collar workers, and GM is signaling the possibility of closing U.S. plants.
Prosecutors leveled the allegations Wednesday while urging a judge to sentence one of those high-ranking UAW leaders to federal prison for one year. That official, Nancy Adams Johnson, has emerged as a pivotal participant and witness to a years-long conspiracy involving Fiat Chrysler and the UAW, and she has linked former union President Dennis Williams to the scandal.
UAW spokesman Brian Rothenberg said in a statement that the UAW confronted Johnson when they found out she “had stolen thousands of dollars” from the union's National Training Center.
“The UAW also provided information about Ms. Johnson’s illegal conduct to the federal prosecutors at that time,” Rothenberg said. “The money Ms. Johnson stole and misused belonged to the NTC, not to Chrysler — and the NTC has filed papers with the Judge in Ms. Johnson’s case seeking to recover the money she stole from it. The UAW is confident that Ms. Johnson’s misconduct had no effect on the collective bargaining agreement between the UAW and Chrysler – which has numerous checks and balances and requires a vote by the entire membership, among other things.”
Fiat Chrysler did not immediately respond to request for comment.
No Fiat Chrysler officials were present for either meal, according to court documents filed Wednesday in U.S. District Court, and the meal had “nothing to do with the National Training Center.” The UAW had used a National Training Center credit card to pay for the two meals.
“These corrosive and poisoning circumstances are exactly what the Taft-Hartley Act (Labor Management Relations Act of 1947) was intended to avoid,” Assistant U.S. Attorney David Gardey wrote in the court filing.
“Over 45,000 hourly employees for FCA were represented by the UAW during the period of the conspiracy. These men and women believed that their union leaders were looking out for their best interests and negotiating in good faith, not double dealing them for personal gain.”
Adams Johnson was the UAW's No. 2 official in the union's Fiat Chrysler department, serving as the top administrative assistant to UAW Vice President Norwood Jewell.
Jewell tapped a training fund to pay for more than $10,000 worth of golf resort accommodations in Palm Springs, California, and Disney World tickets, a spending spree that is the focus of the ongoing investigation, sources told The Detroit News.
In July, Adams Johnson entered a guilty plea, telling U.S. District Judge Paul Borman she violated a federal law prohibiting labor officials from receiving cash and valuable items from employers. In this case, she received tens of thousands of dollars in illegal payments and benefits from Fiat Chrysler during the conspiracy, including $1,100 designer shoes, first-class flights to California, resort stays and limousine rides, according to federal prosecutors.
Adams Johnson was the seventh person to plead guilty in the widening scandal.
She could be sentenced to as much as 18 months in prison for her role in a widening corruption scandal involving Fiat Chrysler Automobiles and its contract negotiations with the UAW, according to the filing. Johnson's lawyer, Harold Gurewitz, is requesting a lighter “non-custodial” sentence that is not “greater than necessary.”
Adams Johnson, 58, at the direction of more senior UAW officials “directed tens of thousands of dollars of prohibited payments from Fiat Chrysler for the personal benefit of those senior UAW officials and for the personal benefit of other UAW officials,” according to Wednesday's sentencing memorandum.
Gardey writes that Johnson betrayed thousands of UAW members and their families through her actions in 2015, and the “court needs to deter other union officials from engaging in similar misconduct.”
Gardey also requested Johnson's sentence be delayed six months so that she could continue to cooperate in the ongoing federal investigation into the 2015 UAW contract negotiations federal prosecutors have said Fiat Chrysler and the UAW conspired to corrupt.
ithibodeau@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Ian_Thibodeau
Staff writer Rob Snell contributed.
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Honda’s hybrid Insight is easy on the eyes
Honda’s hybrid Insight is easy on the eyesDoesn’t it seem as if you’re always being told what to do?
When you’re growing up, your parents tell you what to do. So do your teacher, your preacher, your high school coach, your scout leader and any number of authority figures. Then you grow up, only to discover that your boss and spouse tell you what to do. And technology has only made this worse.
Your computer nags you to upgrade it, your mobile phone hounds you to answer it, your email demands that you read it, while Alexa chides you to do your chores. And now, even cars are correcting your behavior by correcting your driving while scolding you with a flurry of flashing lights and annoying beeps.
Even the federal government tells you what to do by insisting automakers build cars that meet hundreds of requirements, and it’s why cars like the new 2019 Honda Insight Hybrid exist: to meet federal fuel economy mandates that dictate that an automakers fleet average 54.5 mpg by 2025. But this is one case where being told what’s good for us is actually good for us.
Slotting between the Civic and Accord, the new Insight doesn’t look dorky or odd like most other hybrids. Its eloquent elegance is striking. It’s not merely the best-looking sedan in the Honda lineup; it’s the best-looking hybrid on the market, wearing a sophistication that was once common to all Hondas.
Similarly, the Insight delivers enough power to tackle the Pokey Parkway Grand Prix, but not so much as to make a Middle Eastern oil minister happy. Honda’s two-motor hybrid system, similar to the one used in the Accord Hybrid, employs a 1.5-liter Atkinson-cycle four-cylinder engine and a pair of electric motors. One motor drives the front wheels while another produces electricity. The result generates 151 horsepower and 197 pound-feet of torque while returning an EPA-rated 55 mpg city, 49 mpg highway, on base LX and mid grade EX models, 51 mpg city, 45 mpg highway on top-level Touring models. In a mix of heavy-footed suburban and highway driving, the Insight returned 43 mpg.
Obviously, your mileage will be better if you listen to the Insight scolding you to drive efficiently.
Uniquely, the Insight doesn’t use a conventional transmission or a continuously variable transmission. Instead, a clutch connects the gas engine and electric generator motor to the electric propulsion motor. This results in power being supplied directly to the front wheels without a conventional transmission, saving weight and space.
As with any electric vehicle, throttle response is strong off the line, feeling sprightly yet delivering a driveline response. But release your inner Andretti, and/or increase your speed, and you’ll find the gas engine starts droning unpleasantly. Once it does, you’ll find the Insight does not like being pushed around; smooth, gradual inputs are rewarded. The regenerative braking, which captures energy during deceleration, is satisfactory, and the amount can be adjusted through paddles mounted on the steering wheel.
The Insight offers selectable driving modes, with Sport providing more punch thanks to extra battery assist, and the throttle seems more responsive. But it doesn’t make the Insight a corner carver. Instead, you’ll find driving it to be akin to a well-engineered mainstream sedan, with a quiet cabin, roomy interior — even in the rear seat — and the usual array of technology.
The roominess is especially notable. Unlike other hybrids, engineers placed the Insight’s hybrid 60-cell lithium ion battery pack under the rear seats rather than in the trunk, allowing for a generous 15.1 cubic feet of cargo space and a folding rear seat back. What’s also notable is the car’s incredibly low seating position, which makes getting in and out of the car a test of core strength.
As you’d expect, the Insight comes with Honda’s suite of driver assistance and safety features, which includes Collision Mitigation Braking, Forward Collision Warning, Lane Keeping Assist System, Road Departure Mitigation, Lane Departure Warning, Adaptive Cruise Control and Traffic Sign Recognition.
Of course, the technology most drivers care about is the infotainment package. The bottom line? If you want the larger eight-inch touchscreen, Android Auto or Apple CarPlay, you’ll need to pop for the EX or Touring. Bluetooth and USB ports are offered on all models. Similar to the system used on the Honda Accord, there’s a power/volume knob but no tuning knob, and while user interface looks more sophisticated, in reality it’s not. And Honda’s infotainment software issues continue, with Apple CarPlay freezing and the car unable to locate my iPhone 8 via Bluetooth; it had to be plugged in.
Is it a deal breaker? It depends your priorities. Nevertheless, the third-generation remains the best one Honda has produced, with handsome styling, a beautiful interior and quiet demeanor that lent it the aura of a car that belies its price.
And that’s something you’d never say about a Toyota Prius.
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Toyota recalls pickups, SUVs to fix air bags, brakes
Toyota recalls pickups, SUVs to fix air bags, brakesDetroit – Toyota is recalling nearly 143,000 SUVs and pickups worldwide to fix air bag and brake problems.
The first recall covers about 96,000 Toyota Land Cruisers and Lexus LX570 SUVs from 2008 through 2019. Toyota says a seat belt tension sensor can malfunction and deactivate the passenger’s front, knee and side air bags. That would increase the injury risk in a crash. The company is developing a fix and will notify owners by mid-February.
The other recall affects about 47,000 Tacoma pickups from 2018 and 2019. A brake master cylinder seal can become damaged and leak brake fluid, reducing front brake performance and increasing stopping distances. Dealers will replace the master cylinder. Owners will be notified in late January.
Toyota wouldn’t say if either problem has caused any crashes or injuries.
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Detention of Nissan’s Ghosn extended through Dec. 20
Detention of Nissan’s Ghosn extended through Dec. 20Tokyo – A Tokyo court ruled Tuesday that Nissan Motor Co.’s former chairman, Carlos Ghosn, and another executive will remain in custody through Dec. 20, more than a month after their arrest. Their detention could continue for months more under the Japanese legal system.
The Tokyo District Court said Tuesday that it had rejected a protest filed by Ghosn’s lawyer against the prolonged detention.
The court decision comes a day after Ghosn, fellow Nissan executive Greg Kelly and Nissan Motor were charged with violating financial laws by underreporting Ghosn’s pay by about 5 billion yen ($44 million) in 2011-2015. They were arrested on Nov. 19 and are being held at a Tokyo detention center.
The extension of their detention is to allow time for investigation into additional allegations prosecutors issued Monday, against Ghosn and Kelly, of underreporting another 4 billion yen ($36 million) in 2016-2018.
The arrest of the man credited with saving Nissan when it was on the verge of bankruptcy two decades ago has stunned many and has raised concerns over the Japanese automaker and the future of its alliance with Renault SA of France.
No trial date has been set, as is routine in Japan. Prosecutors can add more allegations to extend detention, and it remains unclear when Ghosn and Kelly might be released.
The prosecutors say they consider Ghosn and Kelly flight risks.
Ghosn’s legal team has not issued an official statement, but those close to him have said he is asserting innocence. The office of Motonari Ohtsuru, one of the lawyers, declined comment, saying he was not there.
The U.S. lawyer for Kelly, Aubrey Harwell, has said his client insists he is innocent and that Nissan insiders and outside experts had advised him that their financial reporting was proper.
The maximum penalty for violating Japan’s financial laws is 10 years in prison, a 10 million yen ($89,000) fine, or both. The conviction rate in Japan is over 99 percent.
Nissan has said an internal investigation found three types of misconduct: underreporting income to financial authorities, using investment funds for personal gain and illicit use of company expenses.
Nissan, as a legal entity, was also charged Monday. Nissan is not under supervision or being monitored, although it is cooperating with the prosecutors’ investigation, according to company spokesman Nicholas Maxfield. Nissan said in a statement that it takes the indictment “extremely seriously.” It promised to strengthen its governance.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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More exclusive than a Ford GT? A Lincoln Continental with suicide doors
More exclusive than a Ford GT? A Lincoln Continental with suicide doorsThe 2019 Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition FullscreenPosted!A link has been posted to your Facebook feed.
The 80th anniversary Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition will be produced in a very limited edition for the 2019 model year — just 80 of them.FullscreenThe car's special feature are coach doors — better known these days as suicide doors — with the rear doors' hinges on the rear of the door rather than the front.FullscreenThe new Continental's electronically controlled doors cannot be opened if the car is moving more than 2 miles per hour. That's because wind can swing suicide doors open and imperil the backseat passenger.FullscreenThere won't be a formal application process, but anyone who wants the vehicles will have to work with a Lincoln dealer to get their hands on one.FullscreenThe Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition will retail for slightly more than $100,000 when it goes on sale in the summer of 2019.FullscreenInside, the Continental's center console will have controls, tray tables, wireless charging and other perks.FullscreenThe suicide-door Continentals will roll off Ford's assembly line in Flat Rock as Black Label Continentals. Ford will then ship the cars to Massachusetts-based Cabot Coach Builders, an aftermarket modification company.FullscreenCabot will cut the vehicles in half, stretch them six inches, fit the suicide doors and build out a custom second row with extra leg room, larger seats and a center console .FullscreenOfficials said the heads-up display that projects on the windshield for the driver will be the first that people can see while wearing polarized sunglasses.Fullscreen”We've always idealized the Continental to have center-opening doors,” said Lincoln design director David Woodhouse.FullscreenLincoln Motor Co. plans to sell the cars exclusively in the U.S. for the first run in 2019.Fullscreen80th Anniversary Lincoln Continental Coach Door Edition.FullscreenLincoln Continental began as a custom luxury vehicle hand-crafted by chief stylist
Eugene T. Gregorie for Edsel Ford in 1939.
Years later, the
1961 Continental introduced the
unique center-opening doors. This is a 1963 model.FullscreenReplay1 of 132 of 133 of 134 of 135 of 136 of 137 of 138 of 139 of 1310 of 1311 of 1312 of 1313 of 13AutoplayShow ThumbnailsShow CaptionsFord Motor Co. will offer a car that's more exclusive than the Ford GT supercar. Sort of. It's a Lincoln Continental with suicide doors.
Ford's luxury arm will sell only 80 Lincoln Continental 80th Anniversary Coach Door Edition vehicles for the 2019 model year. The suicide doors on the cars are so-named because the passenger doors are hinged at the rear rather than the front. They've been largely abandoned because of safety concerns: If the doors are opened at speed, the wind can violently swing the doors open and bring the backseat passenger with them.
However, the new Continental's electronically controlled doors cannot be opened if the car is moving more than 2 miles per hour, Lincoln officials said.
The doors, originally used on horse-drawn carriages, were offered at various times in the Continental's history.
Lincoln marketing manager Trevor Scott said, “It shows a combination of our commitment to the vehicle and the rich history of the brand,”
There won't be a formal application process, but anyone who wants the vehicles will have to work with a Lincoln dealer to get their hands on one. Lincoln will vet each order to ensure the person buying the car intends to keep it — not just resell it for a profit.
Similar restrictions were placed on the Ford GT. Celebrities and car enthusiasts had to prove their bona fides in order to be consider for one of the supercars.
Scott said the vehicles will retail for slightly more than $100,000 when they go on sale next summer. A top-of-the-line Black Label Lincoln Continental retails for $70,000.
The suicide-door Continentals will roll off Ford's assembly line in Flat Rock as Black Label Continentals. Ford will then ship the cars to Massachusetts-based Cabot Coach Builders, an aftermarket modification company.
Cabot will cut the vehicles in half, stretch them 6 inches, fit the suicide doors, and build out a custom second row with extra leg room, larger seats and a center console with controls, tray tables, wireless charging and other perks.
The automaker plans to sell the cars exclusively in the U.S. for the first run in 2019. Lincoln will showcase the vehicle at one of the 2019 auto shows in China, Scott said, and could sell the vehicles there in 2020. The spacious backseat is primed for the Chinese market, where many luxury buyers purchase cars with a longer wheelbase and spacious backseats, because they have chauffeurs.
The specialty vehicle has popped up on the drawing board of Lincoln design director David Woodhouse multiple times since he's been with the company.
“We've always idealized the Continental to have center-opening doors,” Woodhouse said.
The automaker has a penchant for rolling out concept vehicles with eye-catching doors. Before the Lincoln Navigator launched last year, the automaker in 2016 had debuted a concept at the New York auto show that had massive gull-wing doors.
The special-edition Continental is a tribute to the history of the nameplate. The 1961 Continental had center-opening doors, too. And it's one of the vehicles Lincoln holds up as one of its best, historically.
The 2019 model will have a few other perks. Officials said the heads-up display that projects on the windshield for the driver will be the first that people can see while wearing polarized sunglasses.
ithibodeau@detroitnews.com
Twitter: @Ian_Thibodeau
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Nissan board meets, no chairman picked to replace Ghosn
Nissan board meets, no chairman picked to replace GhosnYokohama, Japan – Nissan’s board met Monday but failed to pick a new chairman to replace Carlos Ghosn, who was arrested last month on charges of violating financial regulations, saying more discussion was needed.
Nissan Motor Co. Chief Executive Hiroto Saikawa told reporters that the board approved a special committee of outsiders to strengthen governance at the company. A date for the selection of a chairman was not decided.
“We plan to be cautious in this process, and I do not plan to rush this,” Saikawa said.
The recommendations for beefing up governance are due in March, and Saikawa said he was willing to wait until then to choose a chairman.
The board meeting came amid an unfolding scandal that threatens the Japanese automaker’s two-decade alliance with Renault SA of France and its global brand, and highlights shoddy governance at the manufacturer of the Leaf electric car.
Ghosn and another board member Greg Kelly were formally charged last week with falsifying financial reports in underreporting Ghosn’s income by about 5 billion yen ($44 million) from 2011 to 2015. They were arrested Nov. 19 by Tokyo prosecutors and remain in detention.
A source close to Ghosn’s family says Ghosn is innocent, as the alleged income was never decided upon or paid. Aubrey Harwell, the U.S. lawyer for Kelly, an American, says he is innocent, and that Nissan insiders and outside experts had advised him that the financial reporting was proper.
The chairman must be selected from among the board members. Three outside board members – race-car driver Keiko Ihara, Masakazu Toyoda, an academic, and Jean-Baptiste Duzan, formerly of Renault – are making that decision.
The special committee for governance includes the three outside board members and four other outsiders, including former judge Seiichiro Nishioka.
One candidate for chairman is Saikawa, who was hand-picked by Ghosn to succeed him as chief executive. He has denounced Ghosn and Kelly as the “masterminds” in a scheme to falsify income reports and abuse company money and assets.
Renault has kept Ghosn as chief executive and chairman, saying its investigation has not found wrongdoing in the awarding of Ghosn’s compensation.
Nissan Motor Co.’s allegations also include million-dollar homes in several nations, including France, Japan, Brazil, Lebanon and the Netherlands, purchased by Nissan or a subsidiary and used by Ghosn.
Wrangling over a home in Rio de Janeiro has developed into a court battle in Brazil, with Nissan seeking to block Ghosn’s family from retrieving items.
Ghosn was born in Brazil of Lebanese ancestry and holds French citizenship. He was sent in by Renault in 1999 to turn around Nissan from the brink of bankruptcy.
It’s unclear when Ghosn and Kelly may be released, with Tokyo prosecutors saying they are a flight risk.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.
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Ghosn pay probe shifts to Nissan, CEO Ghosn Saikawa
Ghosn pay probe shifts to Nissan, CEO Ghosn SaikawaIn the uproar over Carlos Ghosn’s alleged financial improprieties, the former chairman of Nissan Motor Co. has received most of the heat. Now, the scrutiny has expanded to the role of the Japanese automaker and its chief executive officer: Hiroto Saikawa.
Tokyo prosecutors on Dec. 10 indicted Nissan, as well as Ghosn, for allegedly misleading investors and the government about how much the company was paying its top executive. For Nissan, a potential $6.2 million fine for filing false financial statements may only be the start of its troubles.
Prosecutors charged Nissan with breaching Japan’s financial instruments and exchange law by under-reporting Ghosn’s compensation by about $43 million. Ghosn has been in custody in a Tokyo jail since his arrest on Nov. 19, with Nissan accusing him of the income-reporting violations and misusing the carmaker’s assets, including Nissan-owned houses. He faces a 10-year prison term if convicted.
The indictments raise questions about Nissan’s corporate governance and cast attention on the leadership of Saikawa, Ghosn’s protg and a longtime board member, so much so that his job may even be on the line, according to analysts and people familiar with the situation inside the company.
“He’s at risk,’’ said Tatsuo Yoshida, an analyst at Sawakami Asset Management in Tokyo and a former Nissan employee. “Prosecutors are certainly scrutinizing the role of Saikawa and other executives.’’
Nissan said Saikawa has “led company-wide efforts to identify and resolve governance and compliance issues” since the start of his tenure. The company, which is scheduled to have a board meeting Monday, also said its three external directors are discussing the creation of a committee to improve governance and oversight of board compensation.
At today’s board meeting, directors may postpone a decision on Ghosn’s successor to focus instead on setting up the governance committee, a person familiar with the matter said.
In the four weeks since Ghosn and his deputy, Greg Kelly, were arrested and jailed, Nissan’s board has drawn criticism for having appointed an ex-race car driver to provide outside oversight and failing to set up an external committee on executive pay.
Ghosn’s legal council says accusations against the executive are flawed because Ghosn never signed written agreements that he was to receive any deferred payments after retirement, according to a statement by the office of his lawyer, Motonari Otsuru.
At first “the prosecutor said this is the result of two bad eggs that we’re going to indict criminally and if we can just surgically remove them, everything will be fine,” said Stephen Givens, a Tokyo-based corporate lawyer. “But that’s not the way it’s turning out to be.”
Nissan last month removed Ghosn as chairman of the board, but the Japanese automaker’s partner and largest shareholder, Renault SA, has voted to keep the jailed executive as its chairman. In a statement, the French company’s board said its legal council will continue to examine the evidence provided by Nissan.
Renault’s decision to keep Ghosn at its helm may escalate tensions with its Japanese partner, which have all but exploded into the open since his shock arrest. Nissan has long been unhappy about what it considers an outsized French role in the partnership, and is seeking to redress perceived imbalances, people familiar with the matter have said.
In a sign of deepening divide between the partners, Renault is pushing Nissan to call a shareholder meeting as soon as possible to discuss the Japanese automaker’s indictment, governance and the French company’s appointees on Nissan’s board, people familiar with the matter said.
The scandal has underscored a pattern of oversight failings at Nissan that could be very costly, if it scares off institutional investors, according to Koji Endo, an analyst at SBI Securities Co. in Tokyo. The stock has lost about 7 percent in four weeks, erasing almost $3 billion in shareholder value.
“For institutional investors who put a priority on compliance and governance, it’s impossible to invest in this kind of company,” Endo said. “That’s obviously going to put downward pressure on the share price.”
Janet Lewis, an analyst at Macquarie Capital Securities, said the alleged irregularities in Nissan’s securities disclosures, as small as the numbers may be, force investors to look more closely at the automaker’s other lapses. Nissan has had to recall more than a million vehicles in the past two years, following revelations unqualified workers were performing safety checks. The latest recall, which came this month, involved improper tests of steering and brakes.
“There was nothing wrong with the cars. It was a problem of process,” Lewis said. “But at a certain point it starts to look like a systemic issue with the checks and balances inside this company.’’
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