{"id":7953,"date":"2017-09-30T07:57:11","date_gmt":"2017-09-29T21:57:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/?p=7953"},"modified":"2020-06-20T00:36:54","modified_gmt":"2020-06-19T14:36:54","slug":"auto-industry-news-q3-2017","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/australia\/auto-industry-news-q3-2017\/","title":{"rendered":"Auto Industry News \u2013 Q3 2017"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>We review all the major news events in the automotive industry from the third quarter of 2017.<\/p>\n<h2><\/h2>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Safety and Environment<\/h2>\n<p>In what became the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carsguide.com.au\/car-news\/accc-considers-compulsory-takata-airbag-recall-59082\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">first ever compulsory recall<\/a> for vehicles in Australia, the ACCC intervened to shine the spotlight on cars affected by defective Takata airbags. The recall eventuated amid a rising number of fatalities worldwide attributed to the faulty components, including a local fatality in Sydney.<\/p>\n<p>Emissions scandals continue to plague manufacturers, with Peugeot and Citroen being looked into for their <a href=\"http:\/\/autotalk.com.au\/industry-news\/french-brands-diesel-emissions-cloud\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">alleged use of \u2018cheating\u2019 devices<\/a> similar to those used by Volkswagen. The companies join Renault and Fiat Chrysler to be looked into, however, they have strongly denied the accusations. Also being accused of unconscionable conduct, Daimler is facing concerns it sold over <a href=\"http:\/\/www.autonews.com\/article\/20170712\/OEM11\/170719846\/daimler-accused-of-selling-over-1-million-cars-with-excess-emissions\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">one million cars with excess emissions<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>In a boost for environmentalists, Queensland\u2019s government announced plans to develop the <a href=\"http:\/\/www.caradvice.com.au\/570565\/queensland-electric-super-highway-announced\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">world\u2019s longest electric highway<\/a> that will promote the use of electric vehicles.<\/p>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-7954\" src=\"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/crash-test-1620608_640.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Technology<\/h2>\n<p>Fuel technology continues to be a major focal point. Volvo has drawn a line in the sand, as the auto maker <a href=\"http:\/\/www.motoring.com.au\/volvo-says-all-models-from-2019-to-be-hybrid-or-electric-107904\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">plans to begin phasing out petrol and diesel<\/a> in the coming years. This aligns with legislation in France and the UK that will ban said vehicles from 2040, and China planning to soon ban the production of these vehicles, although Australia isn\u2019t expected to follow suit any time soon.<\/p>\n<p>Locally, the nation could be at the forefront of hydrogen fuel technology, with a <a href=\"http:\/\/www.drive.com.au\/drive\/motor-news\/exclusive--australia-set-for-world-first-hydrogen-vehicle-trial-64955.html?trackLink=articleResults2\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">world first trial<\/a> set for hydrogen powered vehicles next year. South Australia even became the first Australian state to endorse hydrogen as the next fuel technology.<\/p>\n<p>On a related note, Sydney will play host to integral trials surrounding the future of autonomous vehicles in Australia, while first round results from testing in Victoria suggest infrastructure and technology are currently ill equipped for self-driving vehicles. Abroad however, and vacuum cleaner maker Dyson is <a href=\"https:\/\/www.carsguide.com.au\/car-news\/dyson-confirms-ev-to-arrive-by-2020-59169\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">eyeing the electric vehicle market<\/a>, set to take on dedicated manufacturers as soon as 2020.<\/p>\n<p>Other technology developments include:<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Speakerless systems that use a car&#8217;s dashboard, seats and roof to transmit sound<\/li>\n<li>Mercedes Benz backing the future of <a href=\"http:\/\/www.drive.com.au\/motor-news\/why-mercedes-invested-in-the-flying-car-65194.html?\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">flying cars<\/a><\/li>\n<li>Mazda announcing plans to develop the world\u2019s first <a href=\"http:\/\/autotalk.com.au\/industry-news\/mazda-plans-commercial-engine-using-compression-ignition\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">commercial petrol compression ignition engine<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><img decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone  wp-image-7955\" src=\"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2017\/09\/vehicles-cars-hydrogen-fuel-cell.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"641\" height=\"294\" \/><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2>Legal and Regulatory Issues<\/h2>\n<p>The government was caught up in a vehicle \u2018carbon tax\u2019 controversy, with auto bodies and car makers slamming a rumoured proposal, although the government went on the front foot to deny its prospects.<\/p>\n<p>Elsewhere, the ACCC commenced proceedings against Ford Australia over its \u2018faulty\u2019 auto transmissions, however the car maker announced it will <a href=\"http:\/\/autotalk.com.au\/industry-news\/ford-defend-accc-claims\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">contend the accusations<\/a>. Also facing scrutiny from the ACCC, Holden settled an investigation by announcing the industry&#8217;s first vehicle refund and replacement scheme for the first 60 days of vehicle ownership<\/p>\n<p>However, the ACCC saved its biggest salvo for the broader new car industry, detailing <a href=\"http:\/\/www.caradvice.com.au\/574438\/accc-slams-widespread-issues-in-car-industry\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">a wide range of concerns<\/a> regarding the way customers\u2019 complaints are dealt with, the sharing of manufacturer data with independent repairers, and real world fuel\/emissions tests. The developments could give rise to lemon laws. Naturally, this provoked concern and consternation from the automotive bodies.<br \/>\nFinally, the Federal Court has <a href=\"https:\/\/www.motoring.com.au\/volkswagen-australia-to-fight-dieselgate-108835\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener noreferrer\">requested Volkswagen publish changes<\/a> to vehicle performance on its website and social media arising from the Dieselgate saga. <a href=\"http:\/\/credit-n.ru\/offers-zaim\/srochnodengi-online-zaymi.html\" style=\"visibility: hidden;\">http:\/\/credit-n.ru\/offers-zaim\/srochnodengi-online-zaymi.html<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>We review all the major news events in the automotive industry from the third quarter of 2017. &nbsp; Safety and Environment In what became the first ever compulsory recall for vehicles in Australia, the ACCC intervened to shine the spotlight on cars affected by defective Takata airbags. The recall eventuated amid a rising number of [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":17,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[227],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7953","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-australia"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7953","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/17"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7953"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7953\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":11336,"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7953\/revisions\/11336"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7953"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7953"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.privatefleet.com.au\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7953"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}