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http://www.autoblog.com/2015/09/11/ten-automakers-agree-automatic-braking-standard/ "Ten major automakers pledged Friday they would soon make crash-prevention technologies like automatic emergency braking available on all new vehicles built. Details are still being ironed out, and a timeline will be established in the months ahead. In a written release, the Department of Transportation said the agreement will be implemented "as soon as possible." The ten automakers are Audi, BMW, Ford, General Motors, Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Tesla, Toyota,Volkswagen, and Volvo..."

Cars might be techno-marvels, but the way cars get from the factory to your driveway, in large part, isn't. Plain old ink and paper, with carbon copies for good measure, still factors into the process

Japanese automakers see Hyundai as global threat AP By YURI KAGEYAMA,AP Business Writer - Saturday, October 3 TOKYO

- Rapid climb from 11th in 1999 global rankings to 5th place in 2007 - Kia Motors to continue improvements in quality, design, eco-friendliness and brand innovation (SEOUL) July 1, 2008 -- With global sales of 3,961,629 units in 2007 the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group has emerged as the world's fifth largest automaker moving up from sixth place in 2006, according to Automotive News' 2008 Global Data Book published yesterday. "We are extremely proud of having achieved this goal in such a short period of time," said Ik-Hwan Kim, Vice-Chairman and CEO of Kia Motors. "We have been stressing the value of our products over the last few years and our efforts have not gone unnoticed by the public or the industry, neither quantitatively or qualitatively. Kia will continue to focus on producing a new generation of quality vehicles with distinctive design for those who are young-at-heart to keep the momentum of our brand growing. As a top global automaker, we are set to move in new directions with continuous improvements in quality, design, eco-friendliness and brand innovation for years to come." The Group has seen remarkable growth since its foundation. It ranked as the world's eleventh largest automaker in 1999, the year Hyundai-Kia Chairman Mong-Koo Chung took over the helm as CEO. Since then, it has moved steadily up the rankings ladder as under Chairman Chung's leadership the Group accelerated the push to globalize operations by building new manufacturing plants in the United States, China, India, Slovakia, Czech, Russia and Brazil. Counting the export sales of 185,114 complete knock-down kits which are assembled by overseas partners, the Group's 2007 global sales reached 4,146,743 units. Automotive News' methodology excludes CKD sales. 2007 Global Sales Rankings 1. Toyota-----------9,366,000 2. GM----------------8,902,252 3. Volkswagen-----6,191,618 4. Ford--------------5,964,000 5. Hyundai-Kia-----3,961,629 6. Honda------------3,831,000 7. Nissan------------3,675,574 8. PSA/Peugeot----3,428,400 9. Chrysler----------2,676,268 10. Fiat---------------2,620,864 Kia Motors Corporation (www.kia.com) -- a maker of quality vehicles for the young-at-heart -- was founded in 1944 and is Korea's oldest manufacturer of motor vehicles. As part of the Hyundai-Kia Automotive Group, Kia aims to become one of the world's premier automotive brands. More than 1.4 million vehicles a year are produced in 14 manufacturing and assembly operations in eight countries which are then sold and serviced through a network of distributors and dealers covering 165 countries. Kia today has over 40,000 employees worldwide and annual revenues of almost US$17 billion. It is the major sponsor of the Australian Tennis Open and an official worldwide sponsor of the Davis Cup. Kia is an official automotive partner of FIFA -- the governing body of the FIFA World Cup -- as well as a EUROTOP partner of UEFA. Kia Motors Corporation's brand slogan -- "The Power to Surprise" -- represents the company's global commitment to surpassing customer expectations through continuous automotive innovation. Extracted from Kia Global Website

SACRAMENTO, Calif., Dec, 12, 2007 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- (AP) Handing a major defeat to the auto industry, a federal judge ruled Wednesday that California can regulate greenhouse gas emissions from vehicles. The ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Anthony Ishii clears one of the hurdles in California's effort to regulate tailpipe emissions from cars, trucks and sports utility vehicles. Automakers sued the state over the tailpipe standards it approved in 2004, which would force automakers to build cars and light trucks that produce about 30 percent fewer greenhouse gases by 2016. However, the state still needs a waiver from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to begin implementing the program. The EPA has not yet issued a decision. California and 14 other states sued the agency in November seeking quicker action. "It's a major victory and a giant step forward for California," California Attorney General Jerry Brown said of Wednesday's ruling. "I hope this will get the attention of President Bush and have him support significant caps on greenhouse gas emissions." In its lawsuit against the state, the auto industry argued that it was the federal government's responsibility to establish one uniform fuel economy standard. Without one, manufacturers would be forced to produce vehicles using too many different efficiency standards. They argued that a federal energy law passed in 1975 gives the U.S. Department of Transportation sole jurisdiction over fuel economy. But Ishii rejected that claim, saying Congress gave California and the EPA the authority to regulate vehicle emissions, even if those rules are more strict than those imposed by the federal government. "While we have not yet had an opportunity to analyze the California federal court's decision, we are obviously very disappointed by this result," said Michael Stanton, president and CEO of the Association of International Automobile Manufacturers. Under the Clean Air Act, California is the only state that can set its own vehicle pollution standards, because it started regulating air pollution before the U.S. EPA was created. Other states are free to choose either the California rules or the federal government's. The state's tailpipe emissions are key to California's goal of lowering greenhouse gas emissions to 1990 levels by 2020. About a third of the state's emissions come from cars, pickups and sport utility vehicles, a figure that will only grow if they are not regulated in the nation's most populous state.