General Motors Co. was told by a U.S. judge to provide more explanation on why she shouldn’t force it to tell drivers of 2.59 million recalled small cars to “park it” until faulty ignition switches are fixed.U.S. District Judge Nelva Gonzales Ramos, at the end of a hearing yesterday in Corpus Christi, Texas, gave the lawyers for GM until April 9 to submit written arguments. The judge was considering what would be an unprecedented order by a court to instruct GM on how to handle its recall of the

Mercedes-Benz, the world’s third-largest maker of luxury cars, sold more vehicles in a single month than ever before as demand surged for its new compact cars and the top-of-the-line S-Class.Deliveries rose 13 percent in March to 158,523 cars and sport-utility vehicles, contributing to the best first quarter in the brand’s history, the division of Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler AG said on Friday in a statement. The stock rose to the highest in more than six years.Sales growth at Mercedes has e

Imported car sales in South Korea jumped 30.4 percent in March compared with the same period a year ago, helped by more aggressive marketing efforts, a local trade association said Friday.A total of 15,733 new foreign-made cars were sold in the one-month period, compared with 12,063 units a year earlier, the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association said. Annual foreign car sales hit a record high of 156,497 units in 2013. The latest tally showed a 13.6 percent increase in car sale

Ssangyong Motor, run by Indian sport utility vehicle maker Mahindra & Mahindra, said Tuesday that its sales soared 23 percent on-year in March on the back of rising demand for its popular Korando family of off-road vehicles.The carmaker's total sales hit 13,232 units in March, comparedwith 10,761 vehicles sold a year earlier. Domestic sales reached 5,850 units, a 18.8 percent increase from the same one-month period in 2013. Exports, including knockdown kits, were tallied at 7,382 vehicles, a 26.

Hyundai and Kia, the country’s two largest carmakers, operating under Hyundai Motor Group, are out to help their suppliers hire personnel.On Tuesday, the two opened a job fair as part of their ongoing shared growth program to help partner companies hire up to 17,000 new workers this year.A total of 370 partner companies have set up booths at the two-day event being held at Coex in southern Seoul.This year’s fair is particularly significant because it includes businesses that also provide parts a

Development and mass production of eco-friendly cars topped Hyundai Motor Co.’s latest sustainable growth report released Tuesday, which highlights the carmaker’s goals for 2014.The annual report calls for the full-fledged market introduction of the world’s first mass-produced fuel cell electric vehicle and development of environmentally friendly, low-carbon emitting cars.South Korea’s largest carmaker is expected to lease its Tucson fuel cell cars in the United States this year after extensive

Nissan Motor Co. and Daimler AG agreed to create a joint venture for cooperation efforts in their auto operations in Mexico, according to people familiar with the matter.The automakers will each control 50 percent of the venture, which would oversee potential projects, such as joint vehicle production, they said, asking not to be identified because the discussions are private. Talks on specific initiatives are still ongoing between the companies and the Mexican government, they added.Mercedes an

The death toll related to an ignition flaw in eight small-car models that General Motors Co. sold a decade ago is likely to climb, say lawyers and safety advocates.Automakers often make upward revisions to fatality figures related to recalls as they unearth fresh information, while attorneys are racing to line up plaintiffs seeking compensation for alleged wrongful deaths or injury. GM’s liabilities are also poised to rise as lawyers and safety advocates press the biggest U.S. automaker to pay r