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If BMW and Lexus sales continue at their current paces, the Bavarian automaker could topple its Japanese rival and become the best-selling luxury brand in the U.S.

According to Automotive News, BMW and Lexus sales are neck and neck, with BMW selling about 3600 more vehicles than Lexus through the month of May. So far this year, Lexus's sales have collapsed by 37.2 percent compared to the same time period last year, while BMW's sales have declined 30.5 percent. BMW's market share now matches Lexus's at 1.9 percent.

"This year's emphasis is on maintaining our market share and even growing our share," said Jan Ehlen, spokesman for BMW North America. "If this results in remaining in the top spot of the premium market, that would be a nice bonus."

According to Automotive News, BMW has been in the second place spot for eight years straight. Before Lexus achieved its stranglehold on top, it was traditionally held by American automakers; Cadillac dominated from 1946 through 1997, and Lincoln nabbed it in 1998. But so far this year, European luxury makers--including Audi, Porsche, Jaguar, Land Rover, Mercedes-Benz and BMW--have pushed their collective market share up by almost a full percentage compared to last year.

The U.S. has become BMW's biggest market, with 23 percent of its 1.27 millions sales last year coming from the U.S. Germany is its second-biggest market, where it sold 19.6 percent of its vehicles.

John McCandless, a spokesman for Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., dismissed the title of sales leader as superfluous--though he did mention that sales could be boosted by the introductions of the 2010 Lexus IS C and 2010 Lexus HS250h.

"Volumes can vary," he said. "Meeting the needs of our customers is what's important."

BMW just announced that it plans to bring its X1,to the U.S. in 2011. But the biggest news about the compact crossover may be the clean-diesel powerplant option.

The diesel version of the X1 achieves more than 45 miles a gallon while still achieving a top speed of 124 miles per hour, BMW says.

In Europe, where the X1 goes on sale this fall, there will be three diesel versions in addition to the gasoline version. It's yet to be seen whether diesel catches on in the U.S. by then.

Saturn of Raleigh (www.saturnofraleigh.com) and Saturn of Cary (www.saturnofcary.com) are participating in the Customer Assistance to Recycle and Save program, a new program from the federal government that will help consumers pay for new, more fuel efficient cars or trucks from a participating dealer when they trade in a less fuel efficient vehicle. More commonly called "Cash for Clunkers," the program will provide U.S. Government vouchers valued from $3,500 to $4,500 when consumers trade in eligible vehicles and purchase new ones before Nov. 1, 2009 that meet or exceed specified fuel economy improvement standards.

For more information about the "Cash for Clunkers" program, visit www.cars.gov.

"Cash for Clunkers is a great program that will help take old, inefficient vehicles off the road and replace them with new, more fuel-efficient cars," said Bill Shotwell, general manager and owner of Saturn of Raleigh and Saturn of Cary. "Consumers should keep in mind that the window of time to participate in this program is only through November 1 or until the funds run out. Our team is happy to help the local community understand the details of the program and whether their cars qualify as clunkers in this program."

About Saturn of Raleigh:

Saturn of Raleigh is a full-service car dealership that has been serving the Raleigh, N.C., area, including Wake Forest and Rocky Mount, since 1992. Located at 5501 Capital Blvd., Saturn of Raleigh offers a complete line of new and pre-owned cars and trucks, and the staff is committed to serving all automotive needs, from sales and finance to service and parts. For more information about Saturn of Raleigh, visit www.saturnofraleigh.com or call (877) 221-5402.

About Saturn of Cary:

Saturn of Cary is a full-service car dealership that has been serving the residents of Cary, Apex, Morrisville, Holly Springs and other surrounding communities since 1997. Located at 91 Mackenan Drive in Cary, Saturn of Cary offers a complete line of new and pre-owned inventory of cars and trucks. For more information about Saturn of Cary, visit www.saturnofcary.com or call (866) 569-5673.

U.S. auto sales fell 27.7 percent in June, marking the smallest drop for the industry in nine months while dashing hopes that demand would rise to a 2009 high.

Ford Motor Co.'s 10.7 percent slide, its narrowest decline in 16 months, wasn't enough to keep the seasonally adjusted sales rate from slipping to 9.5 million, below analysts' projections of 10 million. June's SAAR retreated to April levels, before the Chrysler and General Motors bankruptcies, and was well below the 13.1 million from June 2008.

Still, the industry is recovering, said Patrick Archambault, an analyst with Goldman Sachs.

"Every single month has been better," he said. "We're in a bit of a holding pattern here for one month, but there's a lot of market drivers that are turning positive that should really help sustain an improvement once you get into the second half" of the year.

Ford fared better than other major automakers. It now stands at No. 2 in U.S. sales through the first half of the year after ceding the spot to Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A. Inc. in 2007. Ford's market share grew to 16.1 percent, ahead of Toyota's 16.0 percent and lagging GM's 19.7 percent.

GM's June sales were down 33.4 percent, and Chrysler Group LLC tumbled 41.9 percent, as both U.S. automakers slashed deliveries to fleets. Toyota slid 31.9 percent for its second-smallest drop of the year. Nissan North America's 23.1 percent decline was its smallest since its last monthly sales gain, in August.

American Honda, the only one of the top six automakers to post a sales gain in June of 2008, slid 29.5 percent last month.

Subaru had the only increase, up 3.4 percent. The Hyundai recorded a 24 percent decline, its weakest performance this year, while affiliate Kia fell 5.1 percent. BMW Group's sales were down 20.3 percent, their smallest slide since January.



Back below 900,000

Industry sales fell to 860,101, after rising above 900,000 in May for the first time this year.

Sales rates have ranged from 9.1 million to 9.9 million so far this year, stuck at 27-year lows. June's results, depressed as they were, managed to reduce the decline for the year to 35.1 percent.

Last month's percentage changes come in comparisons to June 2008, when the industry fell 18.3 percent. The industry's decline accelerated last summer as gasoline prices soared to their highest point on record, with AAA data stretching back to 1974. Sales rates plunged even more dramatically in the fall as the United States fell deeper into a recession that's now in its 20th month.

Car sales fell 31 percent last month, and trucks slid 23.1 percent, gaining some share after last summer's fuel prices curbed their sales.

Ford posted overall increases for its Fusion sedan, Escape crossover, Expedition SUV, Ranger truck and the Volvo brand. Retail sales for F-series trucks also increased from the previous year, the automaker said.

The second quarter was a "breakthrough" for Ford, Jim Farley, group vice president for marketing and communications, said on a conference call. While sales didn't increase, consideration and brand image did, he said.

Ford also benefited from year-ago comparisons that no longer include Jaguar and Land Rover. Monthly sales for those brands have been tallied by their new owner, Tata Motors, since June of last year.

Chrysler clearance

Chrysler said today it would run a July "summer clearance" promotion. The company will offer 0 percent financing for 60 months through GMAC Financial Services on some 2009 models, or up to $4,000 cash. Current Chrysler Group owners also may receive up to $1,000 cash on some 2008 and 2009 models.

Chrysler said it also will add up to $750 to the government's cash-for-guzzlers voucher for its current owners.

Chrysler gave June incentives worth $4,873 per vehicle sold, according to the auto information site Edmunds.com. The industry average was $2,930.

The automaker's fleet sales plunged 95 percent in June, while deliveries to individual customers fell 16 percent. Chrysler emerged from bankruptcy 10 days into the month after eliminating 789 dealerships.

GM's decline included a 49 percent drop in fleet sales. Both it and Chrysler had extended plant shutdowns in June.

Buick and Pontiac brands posted GM's smallest sales declines -- 10.7 percent and 16.4 percent, respectively. On Tuesday, GM said it would offer 0 percent financing for up to 72 months on most of its Pontiac brand and some other vehicles. It entered bankruptcy June 1 and plans to phase out Pontiac next year, along with selling Hummer, Saab and Saturn.

Hope for the second half

June marked the 24th year-over-year monthly decline in 25 months. But analysts still foresee some recovery in the next six months.

Goldman Sachs' Archambault pointed to results of the consumer confidence index measured by the Conference Board, a market information group. It had grown steadily from record-low levels in February, with data stretching back more than 40 years. The consumer confidence index took a small hit in June, but was still double February's levels.

"On a six-month lag basis, consumer confidence has been a strong predictor, so it still points to a back-half recovery," Archambault said.

Analysts forecasting a second-half improvement in sales also say the cash-for-guzzlers legislation President Barack Obama signed last week will improve car-buying interest and perhaps generate sales.

The government may not complete rules for the program until July 23, so consumers who were waiting for the law to pass may stay home for another month, said market analyst Chris Hopson, of IHS Global Insight.

The measure offers vouchers of as much as $4,500 to consumers who scrap gas-guzzling vehicles and buy new ones with better fuel economy. Predictions of the law's effectiveness in boosting sales have been mixed. But Goldman Sachs' Archambault said it should bump sales rates starting in August.

He said: "If all it does is add another 100,000 units to August, that's going to add another 1.2 million units to the SAAR."

Sales of Bayerische Motoren Werke AG’s BMW and Toyota Motor Corp.’s Lexus, the most popular U.S. luxury brands, fell less in June than the previous month as buyers began returning to showrooms.

U.S. sales totaled 16,744 for the BMW brand, a 20 percent drop from a year earlier, and better than the 28 percent decline in May, Munich-based BMW said. Lexus reported selling 16,874 vehicles, a slide of 17 percent, better than the previous month’s 36 percent fall.

Luxury sellers “are seeing a bottom, they think the worst has past,” said Milton Pedraza, chief executive officer of the Luxury Institute LLC, a New York-based consumer-research firm.

Lexus took the lead from BMW in June after the German automaker sold the most vehicles for three months straight. BMW held onto the top spot this year overall, selling 93,563 vehicles, compared to Lexus’s 90,060, challenging Lexus’s nine- year reign as the top seller of luxury autos in the U.S.

Daimler AG’s Mercedes-Benz brand sold 15,155 vehicles for the month, a 23 percent drop that was better than May’s 31 percent fall, Stuttgart, Germany-based Daimler said. The total including the Smart brand was down 26 percent to 16,271 vehicles, better than May’s 33 percent fall, the company said.

‘Still Underwater’

Nissan Motor Co.’s Infiniti sales for June were down 32 percent to 6,304 units, said U.S. Vice President Al Castignetti. That fall was better than May’s 38 percent fall for the Tokyo- based automaker. Honda Motor Co.’s Acura division fell 34 percent to 8,280 vehicles, compared to a 36 percent drop in the previous month for the Tokyo-based automaker’s luxury unit.

Not all luxury brands did better than May. Dearborn, Michigan-based Ford Motor Co.’s Lincoln luxury brand fell 27 percent to 7,137 vehicles, after reporting a 2.4 percent increase in the previous month. The drop was more than double Ford’s overall 11 percent fall.

Detroit-based General Motors Corp.’s luxury division, Cadillac, fell 41 percent to 8,473 vehicles, compared to a 40 percent drop in May, according to a statement.

Growth for luxury segments of the economy will “continue to be slow for the next 12 to 20 months,” said the Luxury Institute’s Pedraza. “People are feeling better, but many are still underwater as the last 12 months have been horrible.”

Hertz Global Holdings Inc. (HTZ) will buy Advantage Rent A Car for $33 million, after the rental-car company's bid won out over another offer for the company.

Advantage, suffering along with the rest of the sector from the weak economy and tight credit, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in December. The company, which posted 2008 revenue of $146 million, has 20 locations, down from 140 at its peak.

Hertz hasn't been immune from those issues, having swung to a big fourth-quarter loss on charges. Revenue also fell 16% to $1.78 billion in the quarter. Just this week, Standard & Poor's Ratings Services lowered Hertz's long-term corporate credit rating two notches deeper into junk.

The car-rental industry has suffered as everyone cuts back on travel. The weak economy and credit crunch also have made it harder for rental-car companies to find buyers for their used automobiles and to secure financing to buy new ones. The industry is lobbying Congress to allow car-rental companies to use Troubled Asset Relief Program funds to finance new auto purchases.

Still, Hertz gains a brand aimed at price-sensitive customers in U.S. leisure destinations, showing how the recession has made it easier for bigger, stronger players to pick up distressed competitors.

The bankruptcy court will hold a hearing Friday, with Hertz expecting a close next Wednesday.

Hertz shares were unchanged in after-hours trading. They ended the regular session up 7.4% at $4.22.

With fewer tourists vacationing on Maui, car rental companies have decreased their fleets - some by double-digit percentages, leaving renters scrambling to find available vehicles.

"We probably won't come (to Maui) until June, if we can get a car over there," said John Farmer, of Portland, Ore., who visits Maui five times a year.

Farmer was planning a March visit but said cars were sold out at his usual rental agency, Alamo Rent A Car. He also couldn't find cars at National Car Rental and Avis Rent A Car. Hertz Rent A Car was offering a rental at $500 a week, which Farmer said was too much to pay so he canceled his trip.

Oahu resident John Naughton and his wife were trying to find a rental car on Maui in February so they could attend a special ceremony in Hana to remember the crew members of the Sarah Joe, a lost boat from Hana that Naughton found years later on a remote atoll.

"Several of us were trying to get over there and get cars. My wife and I had a big problem: We couldn't find cars anywhere," he said.

Naughton said his wife, who works in the travel business, called Hawaiian Airlines, which helped them get a rental from a national chain.

"I never had a problem before," he said.

Terryl Vencl, executive director of the Maui Visitors Bureau, said bureau officials are aware of the rental car shortage and are working on the problem.

"Obviously, visitors need a car in a destination such as Maui.We are hoping that the situation is remedied soon and always stand ready to assist if we can," she said.

Apparently, Maui isn't the only place where the rental car pool has shrunk. Rental car chains said it's also a trend elsewhere.

Alice Pereira, a spokeswoman for Avis and Budget Car Rental, said in an e-mail that, in response to lower demand, the companies have also decreased their fleets "everywhere, not just Maui."

"There's no secret that the economy has had a dramatic impact on tourism to the islands," said Chris Payne, senior manager of corporate communications for the Dollar Thrifty Automotive Group. "With fewer vacationers, we've had no choice but to cut fleet in order to remain profitable and be able to serve customers to the area."

In an e-mail, Payne said Dollar Rent A Car Systems and Thrifty Car Rental decreased their fleets on Maui by a double-digit percentage, but he said he couldn't be more specific because such information is proprietary.

Adjustments to the fleet began in the second quarter of 2008, following and as a direct result of last year's shutdowns of Aloha Airlines and ATA, he said.

Payne compared the drop in business with falling hotel occupancy rates. But unlike hotels that can't "unload" rooms, car rental companies can lower their inventories and are fortunate to be able to make such "nimble adjustments," Payne said.

"If we had not cut fleet consistent with decreased traffic, we would have had to dramatically cut pricing to the point that it would have a negative impact on our business," he wrote.

"Our fleet size is continually adjusted to correlate to customer demand," wrote Laura Bryant, a spokeswoman for Enterprise Rent-A-Car, which also owns National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car. "In addition, we are positioned for - and committed to - future growth in Maui."

Alamo plans to launch service on Molokai in June and hire locally for the operation, said Alamo Vice President and General Manager Paul Kopel.

A Hertz official did not respond to an inquiry last week.

Kim Schauman of Oahu received rides from friends and borrowed cars after she couldn't find a rental car on Maui over the President's Day weekend in February.

"I was really surprised to not be able to find a car to rent on Maui, especially since all reports pointed to lower-than-usual hotel occupancy rates," she said via e-mail.

She said she tried Hotwire.com and searched for cars on Dollar, Hertz and Alamo Web sites, but found nothing. A smaller rental car company, Word of Mouth Rent-A-Car, was also booked, she said.

Schauman found a flight-and-car package with Hawaiian Airlines, but it would cost her $158 plus tax to rent a car for a day. That was too expensive, she said.

Schauman, who is with the nonprofit group Hawai'i Council for the Humanities, was heading to Maui to attend the opening of the exhibit "Key Ingredients: America by Food" at Maui Community College.

"If I had just wanted to travel to Maui for vacation, I probably would have canceled my plans when I couldn't find a car to rent," she said.

Farmer warns that the lack of rental cars could be another hit for Maui's visitor industry, which is already suffering.

"People won't come over if they can't get a car," he said.

Auto retailer CarMax Inc. on Wednesday urged Congress to include used-car buyers in its proposed "cash for clunkers" legislation aimed at jump-starting the auto industry.

Congress is developing legislation that would provide vouchers to consumers who trade in their gas guzzlers and buy more fuel-efficient vehicles. Modeled after successful programs in Europe, the bills before both chambers of Congress are designed to get more gas-sipping cars on the road and boost auto sales, which dropped more than 40 percent among the Big Three carmakers in March.

While used-car buyers are eligible for vouchers under some versions of the proposal, other versions exclude them.

"More people will be able to participate in the program, more jobs will be saved, and more fuel-efficient vehicles will end up on the road by including used vehicles," Tom Folliard, the company's chief executive, said in a news release.

CarMax said its inventory currently includes more than 12,500 vehicles with more than 24 miles per gallon on the highway, which meets the fuel efficiency targets in the some of the legislative proposals.

Congressional leaders have signaled support for some type of car scrappage program and lawmakers are trying to develop a compromise that could win approval in both chambers.

With General Motors Corp. and Chrysler LLC surviving on billions in government aid and few takers at car dealerships, lawmakers have been trying to develop incentives to help the auto industry and respond to environmental groups that want better fuel efficiency in the vehicle fleet.

Analysts have estimated it could boost car sales by 750,000 to 1 million vehicles a year.

But in a recent note Credit Suisse analyst Gary Balter said while he doesn't see a recovery in car sales, either new or used, in the foreseeable future, the proposed legislation could eat into CarMax's sales.

In the Senate, Sens. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., Susan Collins, R-Maine, and Schumer want to give consumers a voucher for $2,500 to $4,500 to buy a new vehicle with better fuel efficiency. The older vehicle eligible for scrapping would need to get less than 18 miles per gallon.

The Senate version, which would apply to automobiles built around the globe, would also provide vouchers of up to $3,000 for used vehicles or credits of up to $3,000 for transit fares.

In the House, Rep. Betty Sutton, D-Ohio, wants to give car shoppers $3,000 to $5,000 when they turn in a vehicle for something more efficient. The program would be limited to cars built in North America and require the new car to get at least 27 miles per gallon.

BMW North America has just released the U.S pricing for the new 2009 BMW Z4. As expected, there is a price increase over the previous Z4 generation, but still significantly lower than the German pricing.

The BMW Z4 is all new for 2010, and the updated roadster will be ready for production later this spring.

BMW gave the Z4 sleeker sheet metal, a folding hard top, and upgraded powertrains, but the biggest change could be to its price tag. Buyers looking for a new Z4 can expect to plunk down $46,575.


That's a big jump from the base $36,700 of the 2008 Z4, which packed less power and less road presence. The 46 large is also exactly the same price as the Z4's nemesis; the Porsche Boxster.

The 2010 model will net you a 258-horsepower inline six capable of hitting 60 mph in 5.8 seconds. The base Bimmer will also come standard with leatherette seating surfaces (upgrading to Kansas leather tacks on another $1,250).

The 306-horsepower, twin-turbo Z4 sDrive35i will cost a whole lot more, with a starting price of $52,475, including destination and handling.



The 2008 Z4 M was a bit cheaper at $50,400 and carried more power, but the 2010 car's higher torque numbers make for an equally-quick droptop, as evidenced by its 5.1 second 0-60 time with the dual-clutch gear box.


Options abound for the Z4, and they're both expensive and confusing. Bundles include a Premium package at $3,900, or $2,800 when also ordering the $2,300 Sport package, which is $1,900 when also going premium.

You can also get a performance 19-inch tire and wheel package for $1,200, but only if you purchase the sDrive35i and the Sport package. A seven-speed dual-clutch gearbox can be had on the 35i for $1,525.

Volt price will depend on gas price, GM says.

Although the conference call was supposed to be all about the progress on designing batteries for the Chevrolet Volt, the issue of the car's price loomed large in observer's minds.

With a potential asking price that's risen from an estimated $30,000 (U.S.) to a loftier $40,000 for the compact four-seater, Bob Kruse, executive director of the program, gave no specifics on its estimated MSRP, but said the price will depend in part on the cost of gas.

"We're not wishing for higher petroleum costs, but the economic viability of what we're doing only gets greater with higher fuel prices," he said. The plan to launch the car in November, 2010, is on schedule. "$1.50 gallon gas is not helping our business case."

The average price of regular gas in the United States was actually $1.96 a gallon earlier this week, according to American government figures.


GM is not sure what the price of the Volt will be, Kruse said, nor has the company established whether it will lease the battery separately from the vehicle itself, as Nissan plans to do with its all-electric vehicle, which is to go on limited sale next year.

"Part of the price will be dependent on fuel costs at the time, which will impact the value equation the Volt provides."

The focus of the update was on the progress of the lithium-ion battery design — as GM has said, once the battery is ready, the Volt will be ready.

It is the advanced battery technology that allows the Volt to promise up to 64 km (40 miles) of electric-only driving; the small internal combustion engine works only to recharge the batteries, instead of stranding the driver, as would have occurred with GM's ill-fated EV1 all-electric vehicle at the end of its range.









"As we've seen with computers, the technology has progressed to the point where they have morphed from large desktop models, down to the size of your Blackberry," said Denise Gray, director of battery systems engineering, while confirming that design work on generations two and three of the Voltec system is happening alongside the production Volt.

"We're looking for the same types of advancements (and cost reductions) in our electronics."

In a Q&A session afterwards with various media, one astute questioner asked at what temperature those promised 64 kilometres of electric-only driving were verified. Turns out, it was the figure achieved in the normal city cycle testing, said Kruse, which is done at 20 degrees Celsius.

So if your winter commute involves regular sub-zero starts and highway driving, the question isn't whether its electric range will decrease, but by how much?















GM was obviously very sensitive about the fact that the battery cells for the first-generation Volt will come from South Korea, courtesy of LG Chem, especially when it is receiving extra money from both state and federal U.S. governments to produce environmentally advanced vehicles in and around Detroit, on top of the federal bailout money it has and will receive to keep it afloat.

The first batch of pre-production prototypes will be produced later this summer, about 80 of them, soon after the world's largest auto battery facility will open near Detroit, said GM.

Overhyped Nano on sale in India

In yet another media-frenzy-generating launch event, Tata Motor officials confirmed that orders will begin being taken in April in India for the Nano, whose super-low starting price of around $2,900 has media outlets around the world breathlessly reporting on the debut of the "world's cheapest car."

Except it's not the world's cheapest car, it's the world's cheapest new car.

Option it up with various luxuries like a right-side rear view mirror, heating and air conditioning, and a cup holder, and that price moves to 172,360 Indian rupees, according to figures available at tatanano.com, or the equivalent of $4,152.

Still, offering any new vehicle at such a low price is a remarkable achievement, even if the lack of airbags and emissions controls would not allow the Nano as is to be sold in most developed markets, and certainly not in regulation-heavy North America.










"The Nano represents the spirit of breaking conventional barriers," said Tata Motors chairman Ratan Tata. "It will provide safe, affordable, four-wheel transportation to families who till now have not been able to own a car." Or at least a new car.

The Nano offers a 35-hp. two-cylinder engine, coupled to a four-speed manual transmission, with a top speed of 105 km/h, for a published estimate of 33 seconds for the small four-seat hatchback to reach 100 km/h.

Plans are in the works to sell an upgraded version of this car to parts of Europe by 2011, the company said; it would a larger 90-hp, three-cylinder engine, available five-speed automatic, dual airbags, ABS and stability control, with a target starting price still under $5,000 (U.S.).

"Driven mainly by the change in demand that we see elsewhere in the world, we suddenly felt we had a product that could be of considerable interest as a low-cost product in western Europe, eastern Europe, the U.K. and even the U.S.," Tata told Reuters at this week's event.










Women's Car of the Year award launched

Female automotive journalists are a relative rarity in this business, but a group of 10 women auto writers from around the world will launch the first Women's Car of the Year award.

The initial group includes two journalists from Canada, as well as India, South Africa, the U.K., Australia and Europe.

"Most awards are chosen by a huge majority of men who tend to view cars differently to women," said Sandy Myhre, the New Zealand-based journalist who initiated the award.

"This award reflects changing times when you consider that today women make the final decision in as much as 85 per cent of all cars sold," according to Myhre.

After noticing that the 2007 World Car of the Year award's 43-member jury of international auto journalists did not contain one woman, Myhre helped organize a Women's COTY program in New Zealand last year, an award which went to the Volkswagen Passat BlueMotion (diesel) wagon.

"Newton-metres [or lb-ft] of torque weren't even considered, but we did look at drivability and sexiness," for those awards, as well as its carbon footprint, family friendliness, value, and, "of course," the range of colours, said Myhre.
Infiniti M to become brand's first hybrid

Playing some serious catch-up to arch-rival Lexus, Infiniti plans to start selling its own hybrid designs in North America next year, starting with its mid-size M sedans, Japan's Nikkei business daily reports.


While the Altima now offers a hybrid option, the hybrid uses leased Toyota hybrid technology, while Nissan, Japan's third-largest auto maker, struggles to come out with its own hybrid designs to rival those of Toyota and Honda.



Other luxury players are starting to jump into the hybrid market as well, with BMW and Mercedes-Benz both planning hybrid SUVs for North America and Europe this year, as well as the Mercedes-Benz S400 BlueHybrid that will compete with Lexus' top-line LS600hl.