Cars

The Peugeot 308 has been voted the Slovenian Car of 2023 ahead of the Opel Astra and the Toyota Corolla Cross.

The winner, selected in a vote by Slovenian automotive journalists and readers, was announced at a ceremony at the caravan maker Adria Mobil in Novo Mesto on 15 January.

New car sales in Slovenia fell by 14% last year after recovering by 3% in 2021 following a 27% drop in 2020, the year worst affected by Covid-19. Of the 46,339 cars registered in the country for the first time last year, 9,170 were electric vehicles, a rise of 12% on the year before, data from the Chamber of Commerce shows.

Tesla sold a record 1.3 million vehicles last year, but the number fell short of CEO Elon Musk's pledge to grow the company's sales by 50 percent nearly every year.

The 2022 figure topped the prior record of 936,000 vehicles delivered in 2021, but it was shy of the 1.4 million needed to reach the company's 50 percent growth target.

Tesla said it delivered 1.31 million electric vehicles in 2022, a record for the U.S. automaker and a 40 percent jump from a year earlier, but still below its own and Wall Street expectations.

The Elon Musk-led company has set a long-term goal of increasing its shipments by an average of 50 percent annually.

Türkiye's global technology brand, TOGG, unloaded its first car in the C-SUV segment, which it defines as a "smart device."

Within the scope of the ceremony held on Oct. 29 with the participation of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, the opening of TOGG's production facilities in Gemlik has taken place.

German carmaker Mercedes-Benz is expected to sell its Russian assets to a local investor, the Russian ministry of industry and trade said yesterday, becoming the latest automaker to exit since Moscow sent troops to Ukraine.

"Mercedes-Benz intends to sell its shares in Russian subsidiaries to a local investor," Avtodom, the ministry said in a Telegram statement.

German carmaker BMW will invest $1.7 billion in the production of electric vehicles in the United States.     

The plan includes $1 billion towards expanding the company's Spartanburg US manufacturing plant and $700 million for a new battery assembly facility, BMW said in a statement.    

Japanese automaker Nissan will sell its Russian assets, including a factory in Saint Petersburg, to the Russian government, the Ministry of Industry and Trade in Moscow said yesterday.

The announcement comes after Nissan suspended production at the plant in Russia's second city in March, shortly after Moscow sent troops to Ukraine.

The offer includes a collectible Mustang Ford

A sporty Ford Escort that was once Princess Diana's runabout sold at auction for 737,000 pounds ($866,000) on Aug. 27, a few days before the 25th anniversary of her death.

The modest car, with just 24,961 miles (40,000 km) on the clock, went under the hammer at Silverstone Auctions in Warwickshire in central England.