This week's gossip from the automotive industry has news of the uncertain future of the roadster segment, the moment Mercedes-Benz boss learnt about Nico Rosberg's retirement and the speed of development in the automotive industry.
The uncertain future of the roadster segment
The success of the roadster segment is becoming increasingly difficult to guarantee, according to BMW sales and marketing boss Ian Robertson.
“That’s why we’re extending our roadster lifecycles and looking at joint ventures, such as [the one with] Toyota,” he said. The two firms are working on a collaborative Z5 and Supra project.
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The moment Mercedes-Benz boss learnt about Nico Rosberg's retirement
Mercedes-Benz boss Dieter Zetsche has revealed to Autocar the moment he discovered that Nico Rosberg was retiring from Formula 1.
“I was stepping out of the shower and my phone was ringing,” Zetsche explained. “And I saw it was Toto [Wolff, Mercedes F1 boss] and I thought: ‘Oh, again, something with Lewis!’ But then I got the news. And I did not expect that, I must say.”
He added: “Of course, it would have been easier and more pleasant for us to have two world champions in our team for the season to come. Now we need a new driver and that’s how life works. And so I was not insulted or totally disappointed. I respected his decision.”
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The speed of development in the automotive industry
Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi chief Carlos Ghosn expects that the pace of new technology in the automotive industry will be a shock.
“We will see more change in the automotive industry in the next 10 years than we have in the last 50 years,” he said. “The future for the automotive industry depends so much on interaction with so many partners. The biggest unknown is the speed at which all these technologies are going to come to the mass market.”
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