Briefs

GM to build electric Cadillac

DETROIT (AP):General Motors confirmed Wednesday that it will build a luxury version of its Chevrolet Volt hybrid.

The company said it is moving forward with the Cadillac ELR, which will run on electricity and carry a four-cylinder gasolene engine to generate power when the batteries run out of juice.

The car looks similar to the Cadillac CTS sedan, but has a sleeker, more angular appearance. It's based on the Cadillac Converj, a concept car that was unveiled at the Detroit auto show in 2009 as GM was heading into bankruptcy protection.

Don Butler, Cadillac's vice-president of marketing, promised that the car would have a striking design and the fun of luxury coupe driving.

The company would not reveal details on how far the ELR can travel on electricity, how it will perform or how much it will cost, saying that development of the car is still under way.

Cadillac sales are up 9.5 per cent so far this year, lagging just behind the overall US auto sales increase of 10.9 per cent, according to Autodata Corp. But the GM luxury brand faltered in July, with sales off 25.5 per cent from a year earlier.

GM announced earlier this month that it will add two new models to help revive the Cadillac line-up next year, a full-sized front-wheel-drive car called the XTS and a smaller rear-wheel-drive performance car named the ATS.

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Goodyear names new president

AKRON, Ohio (AP): Goodyear Tire & Rubber Co has named company veteran Stephen McClellan as president of its North American tyre business unit.

McClellan, 45, replaces Curt Andersson, who plans to pursue other professional interests, the Akron, Ohio, tyre company said.

McClellan joined Goodyear in 1988 and was named to his current position as president of Goodyear's North American consumer tire business in 2008. He will continue to lead that business until a replacement is named, Goodyear said.

In early trading, Goodyear shares fell US$1.26, or 9.5 per cent, to $12.08.

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Honda plant for Mexico

DETROIT (AP): Honda Motor Co plans to build an US$800 million factory in Mexico to make small cars for customers in North America, the company said last Friday.

The plant, near Celaya, Guanajuato, north of Mexico City, is expected to open in 2014 and will employ 3,200 workers from the region, Honda said in a statement. It will make up to 200,000 subcompact cars and engines per year, the company said.

"With growing demand for fuel-efficient vehicles, this plant will increase Honda's ability to meet customer needs for subcompact vehicles from within North America," Tetsuo Iwamura, president of American Honda, said in a statement.

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Jobs coming

WEST POINT, Ga. (AP): Suppliers for the Kia Motors plant in West Point say they're considering expanding their workforces in preparation for the automaker's plan to construct the Optima sedan.

The LaGrange Daily News reports (http://bit.ly/nVkuYl) that the Georgia plant is scheduled to begin producing the 2012 model-year Optima later this year. Kia began hiring employees in April in anticipation for the new vehicle.

Authorities say the plant, near the Georgia-Alabama line, is expected to reach a workforce of about 3,000 this year.

Ron Wilson, the human-resource manager for Daehan Solution in West Point, said the company hired workers earlier this year, and it plans to examine its workforce after the Optima's launch to see whether more employees are needed.

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China's July auto sales up

BEIJING (AP): China's auto sales rose 6.7 per cent in July but growth was well below the double-digit surge of the past two years, an industry group said Wednesday.

Some 1.01 million passenger cars were bought in July in the world's biggest auto market by vehicle sales, according to the government-authorised China Association of Automobile Manufacturers. Total sales of commercial and passenger vehicles rose 2.2 per cent from a year ago to 1.3 million units.

Chinese auto sales soared in 2009 and 2010, driven by subsidies and tax cuts meant to help the industry rebound from the global crisis. Sales rose 32 per cent last year to 18 million vehicles.

But that growth has faded due to the end of incentives, higher fuel prices and efforts by some cities to curb pollution and traffic congestion by restricting ownership.

In May, passenger-vehicle sales fell for the first time in two years, declining nearly nine per cent from the same month last year.

The slowdown could be a setback for global automakers looking to China to drive sales amid weak demand in the United States and Europe.