Auto Industry News: Ghosn Goes Public, New UAW President In Trouble, Yet More Takata Recalls, and 1968 Bullitt Mustang Breaks Sales Records

This week’s auto news has more drama than a grade school playground. Carlos Ghosn’s muzzle is officially off and—if his 2.5-hour press conference is any indication—he has a lot to say. New UAW president Rory Gamble is already being investigated by the feds. Takata is recalling even more airbags, thanks to replacing old defective units with new defective units. And the infamous 1968 Bullitt Mustang sells for an eye-watering $3.4 million at Mecum Kissimmee, smashing auction records.

Let’s dig in…

Ghosn Goes Public

Remember last week when we told you guys about Carlos Ghosn, the former Nissan boss held on charges of financial corruption in Japan, who fled the authorities in a musical instrument case like a cartoon character come to life?

Well, the drama continues.

True to his word, Ghosn held a press conference in Beirut on Wednesday to tell his side of the story and shed some light on his time in captivity. The astoundingly long-winded, 2.5-hour event included some interesting claims by the ex-Nissan CEO, including a vehement assurance to clear his name and restore his tarnished reputation. A move his lawyer, Francois Zimeray, says includes a “legitimate and massive counterattack.”

Overall, Ghosn worked super hard throughout the press conference to maintain the narrative that he is a victim in all of this, insisting the accusations against him were falsely cooked up by his colleagues to oust him from the company, due to his close ties with Renault.

In addition to claiming that he “never should have been arrested in the first place,” Ghosn also contends that he was grossly mistreated while in Japanese custody.

Ghosn claims that Japanese authorities put him in solitary confinement, only let him shower once a week, questioned him for up to 7 hours a day with no lawyer present, and ultimately had no intention of giving him a speedy trial. He continued to criticize the Japanese justice system, saying it “violates the most basic principles of humanity” and that he felt like “a hostage” in a country he served for 17 years.

Whether Ghosn’s claims of victimization are true or not, experts say it’s a smart legal strategy, as it “lays the groundwork for possible future visits to states where he’s now vulnerable to detention and extradition,” writes Fortune.

Not So Fast…

However, it looks like neither Nissan nor the Japanese government is prepared to simply take this lying down. The automaker emphasized its commitment to keep pursuing “appropriate legal action” against Ghosn, while Japanese legal officials are calling the escape “illegal by unjust measures,” provoking them to “further tighten” rules concerning bail.

Japanese Justice Minister Masako Mori responded to Ghosn’s press conference, saying the fugitive former Nissan boss has been “propagating both within Japan and internationally false information on Japan’s legal system and its practice,” an action she called “absolutely intolerable.”

Japanese prosecutors haven’t sat idly by waiting for Ghosn to make a move, either. According to CNN, last week an arrest warrant was issued for Ghosn’s wife, Carole, for allegedly providing false testimony last April.

Regardless of next steps, this is shaping up to be one helluva entertaining debacle. Sadly, while Ghosn droned on about his situation in front of the press, he notably avoided talking about the one we all wanted to hear: his cloak-and-dagger escape!

Ah well, I guess we’ll just have to wait for the reported Netflix project in the works to find out what really happened.

New UAW President Already Under Federal Investigation

Meet the new boss, same as the old boss.

Just a skoosh over a month into his official tenure as new UAW president, Rory Gamble reportedly finds himself in hot water. You’ll remember the man he replaced, Gary Jones, abruptly resigned in November amid allegations he embezzled more than $1.5 million in union funds.

According to a report in The Detroit News, Gamble is now under federal investigation for questionable financial dealings between himself, former union VP Jimmy Settles, and one of their highest-paid vendors.

Same Old Song & Dance?

While full details of the investigation are still under wraps, sources confirmed with the publication that the case centers around cash bribes delivered to union officials at a strip club called the Bouzouki Greektown, which is so dumb it hurts to think about for too long. Whose brilliant idea was it to do crimes at an upstanding, totally-not-shady-at-all establishment like a Detroit strip club?

Gamble, who himself has a history of financial problems, denies any wrongdoing, calling the allegations untrue and releasing a statement to The Detroit News in response to the story.

“I would not have accepted the role of president if I couldn’t withstand the scrutiny,” said Gamble. “Our union has suffered enough as a result of corrupt leaders. On my watch, we cannot and will not allow financial improprieties to rob our members of their hard-earned dollars. My sole focus as president is to strengthen the union’s financial controls, oversight and accounting system — and most importantly, to restore the trust of our union members.”

Gamble is the third straight UAW president marred by the far-reaching corruption scandal, leading to federal charges against 13 people and the conviction of 11. It’s yet to be seen whether this investigation will spell the end of Gamble’s short reign over the UAW but one thing’s for sure, the next person in charge needs to be a choir boy with a squeaky-clean record to fully earn back the trust of its members anytime soon.

Takata Recalls MORE Airbags

And then there’s Takata, which continues our theme of “hot mess” in this week’s Auto News. The bankrupt airbag manufacturer enters the final phase of its scheduled recalls (going on for nearly seven years now), this time concerning 10 million additional inflators.

Get this: these airbag components were already recalled and replaced. So, are we talking pure stupidity or pure negligence?

Automotive News explains: “The parts covered by the latest recall were installed in earlier repairs, despite sharing the same basic flaw as the components they were replacing: explosive propellant that can become unstable in hot, humid climates and explode in a crash, spraying vehicle occupants with metal shards. At least 24 deaths and about 300 injuries worldwide have been linked to the lethal airbag defect.” (Emphasis mine.)

Really, Takata? “The components were used because, being newly made, they were seen as a safer alternative to older inflators exposed to years of heat and humidity,” AN goes on to explain. Ah, yes! The old band-aid solution—always a smart move when concerning life-saving technology.

The new round of recalls concerns fourteen brands in total. (You can check the NHTSA’s website to see if your vehicle is affected.) Subaru has already recalled 500,000 vehicles with faulty Takata components in passenger-side front airbags and Honda representatives say their company got a jump-start, calling vehicles back since June, ahead of the NHTSA’s decision.

Around the Circuit

Formula 1 Contract Renewals

Team Red Bull is off to a great start for 2020, locking down star driver and 2019’s third-place finisher Max Verstappen with a new contract that lasts through 2023. While this new deal means security for both Red Bull and Verstappen himself, it has the potential to really impact the future of the F1 driver market, as well.

 

Before the start of 2020, many predicted a wild 2021, with Charles Leclerc and Max Verstappen both on the final year of their current contracts. Fans were anxious to watch a bidding war as teams tried to lock down some top-notch young talent. Rumors swirled that Lewis Hamilton (whose contract expires at the end of 2020) was entertaining a move to Ferrari of all places, with Mercedes eyeing Verstappen or Leclerc.

While it’s unlikely Hamilton would actually ever leave Mercedes, one has to wonder if the six-time champ is up for another 5-year contract. As F1 news points out, “He’d have been an F1 driver for almost 20 years. Even the greats need a break.”

But, who could Mercedes groom to eventually replace him? With Leclerc sticking to Ferrari for another five years and Verstappen hitched to Red Bull, the Silver Arrows will have to eye up someone new to build a future with. As for Ferrari and Red Bull, they have their candidates locked and loaded.

NASCAR Implementing New Pit Stop Procedure at Select Races

The nation’s top auto racing outlet is trying out some potential changes to the pit rules for select Xfinity and Gander Truck Series races ahead of the 2020 season.

Yahoo! Sports explains: “During stage breaks, per the new rules package, the race field will be frozen when cautions come out at all these venues. Teams will then decide to pit for fuel and change two tires on a single stop. On the road courses, teams may either add fuel or pit for four tires per stop.”

Additionally, two full-service pit stops will be required and must be completed during a “designated time period” by the team’s eight-person crew. Restarts will be determined by pit strategy, adding some exciting uncertainty to the race. Read more about how it all works, here.

Whether the experiment works largely depends on NASCAR’s ability to properly execute it, but it’s certainly something that will be interesting to see.

1968 Bullitt Mustang Sells for $3.4 Million at Mecum Kissimmee

Yes, you read that right—$3.4 million! The custom 1968 Mustang GT 390, famously driven by Steve McQueen in the 1968 film Bullitt, crossed the auction block on Sunday after entering the building like a prized boxer on fight night. Probably an apt description, since this model has faced its fair share of hard knocks.

Selling for an incredibly paltry sum of $3,500 in 1974, per a Road & Track magazine ad, the hero car lived its life as a daily driver until a clutch issue at 65,000 miles saw it retired to a barn—for 40 long years. After making rounds the last two years at various global automotive events, the current owner Sean Kiernan finally decided to sell the vehicle at the 2020 Mecum Kissimmee auction.

Opening the bidding at a “ceremonial” $3,500, the muscle car jumped to more than $3 million in sheer minutes, eventually going for a grand total of $3.74 million with auction fees. Mums the word on the lucky buyer, but like all good secrets, it’ll come out eventually.

Other big hero car sales to cross the block were the 1967 Ford Mustang “Eleanor” from Gone in 60 Seconds, selling for $825,000, and the 1966 Superformance Ford GT40 MkII driven by Christian Bale in Ford v Ferrari, selling for $484,000.