As India gears up for its festive season, a surge in enthusiasm is evident among car enthusiasts eager to drive their dream vehicles. This period, rich in cultural celebrations, traditionally sees a spike in consumer sentiment, making it a pivotal time for the automotive industry.

Festive Season Fuels Indians' Dreams

The electric vehicles have become quite popular as people look for environment friendly alternatives and now some firms are planning to cars that are run on fossil fuels into vehicles that are run by batteries. Have a look at this report.

Electric car industry eyes expansion as people look for environment friendly alternatives

German carmaker BMW warned a chip shortage that has plagued the car industry may lead to further lost production, it showed no signs of abating and supply would remain tight in the second half of the year.

World Business Watch: BMW warns on chip shortage, output to suffer on critical supply

Japanese automaker Nissan on Tuesday slammed its former chief Carlos Ghosn for jumping bail, calling his <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/carlos-ghosn-fled-by-bullet-train-japan-vows-to-bolster-borders-272500">escape</a> "extremely regrettable" and vowing continued legal action to hold him accountable.

Ghosn, who faced trial on financial misconduct charges that he denies, fled Japan on December 29 for Lebanon, in an elaborate and apparently carefully planned escape.

Watch:&nbsp;'The Great Escape' of ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn

<div class="videoWrapper trancodeVideo"><iframe allowfullscreen="" autoplay="1" class="includeVideo" frameborder="0" height="350" src="https://www.wionews.com/videos/the-great-escape-of-carlos-ghosn-271595/embed" style="width:100%;max-width:560px;" width="560"></iframe></div>

His bail-jumping has prompted outrage from Japanese officials, but he insists that he would have been unable to receive a fair trial in Japan.&nbsp;

In a statement, Nissan said <a href="https://www.wionews.com/search?q=Former+Nissan+boss+Carlos+Ghosn+reportedly+escaped+Tokyo+on+public+bullet+train">Ghosn's escape</a> "in violation of his bail conditions is an act that defies Japan's judicial system. Nissan finds it extremely regrettable."

Also read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/unexpected-surprise-how-did-nissan-boss-carlos-ghosn-escape-to-lebanon-271401">'Unexpected surprise': How did Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn escape to Lebanon?&nbsp;</a>

The firm said its "robust, thorough internal investigation" had "incontrovertible evidence of various acts of misconduct by Ghosn".

"The company will continue to take appropriate legal action to hold Ghosn accountable for the harm that his misconduct has caused to Nissan," it added.

Ghosn alleges that the <a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/unexpected-surprise-nissan-boss-carlos-ghosn-flees-to-lebanon-japan-calls-it-cowardly-act-271393">charges against him</a> stem from a "coup" inside Nissan by disgruntled executives and local Japanese officials who feared his plans to more closely integrate the Japanese automaker with its alliance partner, French firm Renault.

Ghosn is due to give a press conference in Beirut on Wednesday, where he has said he will provide details about the alleged "coup" against him.

Japanese automaker Nissan on Tuesday slammed its former chief Carlos Ghosn for jumping bail, calling his escape "extremely regrettable" and vowing continued legal action to hold him accountable.

Japanese automaker Nissan on Tuesday slammed its former chief Carlos Ghosn for jumping bail, calling his escape "extremely regrettable" and vowing continued legal action to hold him accountable. Ghosn, who faced trial on financial misconduct charges that he denies, fled Japan on December 29 for Lebanon, in an elaborate and apparently carefully planned escape. Watch: 'The Great Escape' of ex-Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn His bail-jumping has prompted outrage from Japanese officials, but he insists that he would have been unable to receive a fair trial in Japan. In a statement, Nissan said Ghosn's escape "in violation of his bail conditions is an act that defies Japan's judicial system. Nissan finds it extremely regrettable." Also read: 'Unexpected surprise': How did Nissan boss Carlos Ghosn escape to Lebanon? The firm said its "robust, thorough internal investigation" had "incontrovertible evidence of various acts of misconduct by Ghosn". "The company will continue to take appropriate legal action to hold Ghosn accountable for the harm that his misconduct has caused to Nissan," it added. Ghosn alleges that the charges against him stem from a "coup" inside Nissan by disgruntled executives and local Japanese officials who feared his plans to more closely integrate the Japanese automaker with its alliance partner, French firm Renault. Ghosn is due to give a press conference in Beirut on Wednesday, where he has said he will provide details about the alleged "coup" against him.

Ghosn's escape 'extremely regrettable': Nissan

Volkswagen AG&#39;s $14.7 billion settlement of its US diesel emissions cheating scandal cleared another legal hurdle yesterday, as a federal judge gave the automaker preliminary approval to buy back up to 475,000 vehicles. 
 
US District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco set an October 18 hearing for final approval. Preliminary approval means Volkswagen will soon enable owners of the 2.0 liter diesel-powered vehicles to access a website to learn how much they are eligible to receive. 
 
The settlement, announced in June, centers around the largest-ever automotive buy-back offer in the United States. Coupled with possible vehicle repairs and payments to governmental agencies, that component of the settlement carries a $10 billion price tag. 
 
Volkswagen said it continues to work with regulators to get fix approvals. VW told dealers last week that a planned fix could consist of software upgrades and some new catalytic converters. 
 
Volkswagen also plans to offer a new proposal to fix 85,000 polluting 3.0 liter vehicles after regulators rejected an earlier plan, a Justice Department lawyer said on Tuesday. Earlier this month, the California Air Resources Board rejected as insufficient a plan to fix the vehicles, which include VW and Audi luxury cars from model years 2009-2016. 
 
At the hearing, Justice Department lawyer Joshua Van Eaton said the German automaker had been meeting with regulators in recent weeks and planned to offer a new fix proposal in August. 
 
Breyer said he wants another update on the 3.0 liter vehicle talks at an August 25 hearing. 
 
German carmaker set to make hirings to process claims&nbsp; 
 
VW plans to hire between 250 to 300 people in Michigan to process settlement claims and will be overseen full-time by 40 VW Group of America employees. If needed VW could double the number of people it is hiring to process claims, said VW lawyer Sharon Nelles. VW is contracting for storage space to house vehicles it repurchases, she said. 
 
German carmaker admitted in September that it installed secret software that allowed US vehicles to emit up to 40 times legally allowable pollution. 
 
Under the Justice Department deal, VW will provide $2 billion over 10 years to fund programs to promote construction of electric vehicle charging infrastructure and development of zero-emission ride-sharing fleets and other efforts. 
 
VW also agreed to put up $2.7 billion over three years to enable government and tribal agencies to replace old buses or to fund infrastructure to reduce diesel emissions. 
 
Separately, VW reached a settlement with 44 US states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico that will cost at least $600 million, bringing the total to as much as $15.3 billion. 
 
Last week, three states filed new lawsuits, saying that VW violated state environmental laws and seeking hundreds of millions in additional penalties. 
 
(Reuters)&nbsp; 
&nbsp;

The settlement, announced in June, centers around the largest-ever automotive buy-back offer in the United States?

Volkswagen AG's $14.7 billion settlement of its US diesel emissions cheating scandal cleared another legal hurdle yesterday, as a federal judge gave the automaker preliminary approval to buy back up to 475,000 vehicles. US District Judge Charles Breyer in San Francisco set an October 18 hearing for final approval. Preliminary approval means Volkswagen will soon enable owners of the 2.0 liter diesel-powered vehicles to access a website to learn how much they are eligible to receive. The settlement, announced in June, centers around the largest-ever automotive buy-back offer in the United States. Coupled with possible vehicle repairs and payments to governmental agencies, that component of the settlement carries a $10 billion price tag. Volkswagen said it continues to work with regulators to get fix approvals. VW told dealers last week that a planned fix could consist of software upgrades and some new catalytic converters. Volkswagen also plans to offer a new proposal to fix 85,000 polluting 3.0 liter vehicles after regulators rejected an earlier plan, a Justice Department lawyer said on Tuesday. Earlier this month, the California Air Resources Board rejected as insufficient a plan to fix the vehicles, which include VW and Audi luxury cars from model years 2009-2016. At the hearing, Justice Department lawyer Joshua Van Eaton said the German automaker had been meeting with regulators in recent weeks and planned to offer a new fix proposal in August. Breyer said he wants another update on the 3.0 liter vehicle talks at an August 25 hearing. German carmaker set to make hirings to process claims VW plans to hire between 250 to 300 people in Michigan to process settlement claims and will be overseen full-time by 40 VW Group of America employees. If needed VW could double the number of people it is hiring to process claims, said VW lawyer Sharon Nelles. VW is contracting for storage space to house vehicles it repurchases, she said. German carmaker admitted in September that it installed secret software that allowed US vehicles to emit up to 40 times legally allowable pollution. Under the Justice Department deal, VW will provide $2 billion over 10 years to fund programs to promote construction of electric vehicle charging infrastructure and development of zero-emission ride-sharing fleets and other efforts. VW also agreed to put up $2.7 billion over three years to enable government and tribal agencies to replace old buses or to fund infrastructure to reduce diesel emissions. Separately, VW reached a settlement with 44 US states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico that will cost at least $600 million, bringing the total to as much as $15.3 billion. Last week, three states filed new lawsuits, saying that VW violated state environmental laws and seeking hundreds of millions in additional penalties. (Reuters)

VW emission scandal: Car giant clears hurdle with $14.7 billion settlement

UK car dealerships saw the same number of customers over the weekend as before Britons voted for Brexit last week, Britain&#39;s car industry association said on Wednesday, noting that it would not change its forecast for record sales this year. 
 
Car sales hit an all-time high of 2.63 million last year, boosted by cheap finance and easily available credit. 
 
The CEO of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said the pace of sales growth had slowed in recent months but that he was not immediately changing the forecast of about 2.7 million registrations in 2016. 
 
&quot;I wouldn&#39;t want to jump to conclusions on changing forecasts. In essence, the fundamentals of the market are still strong,&quot; Mike Hawes told reporters at a briefing in London. 
 
&quot;As I understand it, footfall in the dealerships over the weekend was pretty much where it should be despite three rugby test matches and six football matches which normally does have an impact.&quot; 
 
At the same briefing, Jaguar Land Rover&#39;s strategy director and Toyota&#39;s Europe CEO said they saw no short-term changes to their investment plans, which are often made years in advance. 
 
Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), which said it was committed to its British plants and a plan to build a new facility in Slovakia, said it could not envisage a harsh response such as high tariffs from EU allies on it or Britain&#39;s other high-end carmakers. 
 
&quot;I can&#39;t imagine any overly punitive measure in the premium end of the business that would cut off that market opportunity,&quot; JLR&#39;s Strategy Director, Adrian Hallmark, said. 
 
&quot;It would be cutting the European nose off to spite its face.&quot; 
 
(Reuters)

Jaguar Land Rover's strategy director said they saw no short-term changes to their investment plans planned in advance

UK car dealerships saw the same number of customers over the weekend as before Britons voted for Brexit last week, Britain's car industry association said on Wednesday, noting that it would not change its forecast for record sales this year. Car sales hit an all-time high of 2.63 million last year, boosted by cheap finance and easily available credit. The CEO of the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders said the pace of sales growth had slowed in recent months but that he was not immediately changing the forecast of about 2.7 million registrations in 2016. "I wouldn't want to jump to conclusions on changing forecasts. In essence, the fundamentals of the market are still strong," Mike Hawes told reporters at a briefing in London. "As I understand it, footfall in the dealerships over the weekend was pretty much where it should be despite three rugby test matches and six football matches which normally does have an impact." At the same briefing, Jaguar Land Rover's strategy director and Toyota's Europe CEO said they saw no short-term changes to their investment plans, which are often made years in advance. Jaguar Land Rover (JLR), which said it was committed to its British plants and a plan to build a new facility in Slovakia, said it could not envisage a harsh response such as high tariffs from EU allies on it or Britain's other high-end carmakers. "I can't imagine any overly punitive measure in the premium end of the business that would cut off that market opportunity," JLR's Strategy Director, Adrian Hallmark, said. "It would be cutting the European nose off to spite its face." (Reuters)

UK car industry: demand not hit by Brexit vote yet, forecast unchanged

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