Installation is being carried out by Mercedes-Benz Thailand (MBT), which said that the charging stations would serve both hotel fleet vehicles as well as hotel guests.

The Thai market for electric vehicles is on an upward trend, Michael Grewe, president and chief executive officer, said on Monday.

“Three major factors that contribute to robust growth of the market are supportive policies from the Thai government, including excise tax privileges and investment incentives offered to carmakers; product offerings that agree with Thailand’s market conditions and lifestyles of the people, and the strong supply chain of the Thai automotive industry; and most importantly, the expanding network of charging stations, which assures prospective users of electric vehicles that access to the infrastructure is conveniently available through their journeys,” he explained.

Frank Steinacher, vice president of sales and marketing, added that 40 per cent of Mercedes-Benz cars sold in Thailand were now plug-ins.

“By building an extensive network of charging stations, we can meet the demands of customers based on their lifestyle and behavioural changes towards electric driving. The customers will, for instance, expect a greater variety of convenient charging points in addition to charging in their home garage, at Mercedes-Benz authorised dealers, or shopping centres,” he said.

The expansion will result in the provision of around 200 electric-vehicle charging stations from Mercedes-Benz, including at 32 authorised dealers nationwide and leading hotels and shopping centres, the vice president said.

Highlights will include the new X4 xDrive20d M Sport, the open-top and electric i8 Roadster, and the stylish M2 Edition Black Shadow, said a company press release on Friday.

BMW Thailand said the event will also showcase the Concept X7 iPerformance, a preview of BMW’s largest Sports Activity Vehicle yet.

“We are writing a new chapter in the success story of BMW Thailand with a new array of BMW vehicles that boast cutting-edge innovations, distinctive designs and track-worthy performance,” Christian Wiedmann, president, BMW Group Thailand said in the release.

“The BMW Xpo has always been a celebration of the latest and greatest that we have to offer, and we aim to build upon this legacy with a broader range of premium innovations and state-of-the-art connectivity technology for Thai motorists,” he added.

The company also announced official pricing and the availability of pre-orders at 19 authorised Ford dealerships.

The Mustang 5.0-litre V8 GT Coupe Performance Pack is priced at Bt4,799,000 and the Mustang 2.3-liter EcoBoost Coupe Performance Pack, Bt3,599,000.

The car is powered by a 5.0-litre V8 engine or 2.3-litre EcoBoost engine, with a 10-speed automatic transmission, upgrades include a 12-inch LCD Digital Cluster and new front splitter for improved handling and fuel economy.

The most advanced Mustang yet, it also comes equipped with Track Apps displaying performance metrics, limited-slip differential, 19-inch low-gloss ebony black-painted aluminium wheels and Brembo brakes in GT models.

First unveiled in 1964 in New York, the Mustang was an instant hit with 22,000 orders placed on the first day.

Now an enduring part of automotive and pop culture, the car has appeared in nearly 3,000 feature films and TV shows and has more Facebook followers than any other car in the world, Ford said.

An official at the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency’s white collar crime unit said officers were investigating whether the company covered up vehicle defects and had confiscated documents and other materials.

He declined to give further details but Yonhap news agency said a team of 30 investigators were involved. There was no immediate comment from BMW Korea.

“We will conduct a thorough investigation to reveal the truth,” Yonhap quoted a police official as saying.

The move came after reports more than 40 BMW vehicles have burst into flames so far this year, with some parking lots refusing to accept the cars because of fears they could catch fire.

South Korea this month temporarily banned from the streets BMW cars that had not yet passed safety checks and dozens of BMW owners filed complaints seeking a criminal investigation into the firm, its local unit and their nine top officials.

BMW Korea last month started recalling 106,000 vehicles with an exhaust gas recirculation module, which it says caused the recent fires. The recall applies to 42 models, all with diesel engines.

The company is facing a series of legal actions over the issue in the country, and has said the problem was “not Korea specific”.

In South Korea, six out of 10 imported cars are from Germany, with BMW selling nearly 39,000 in the first six months of this year, according to the Korea Automobile Importers and Distributors Association.

Full details of the initial public offering will be published on September 20, Aston Martin said in a statement, with reports noting that the company could be valued up to £5.0 billion ($6.4 billion, 5.5 billion euros).

“Today’s announcement represents a key milestone in the history of the company, which is reporting strong financial results and increased global demand for its award-winning sports cars,” Aston Martin chief executive Andy Palmer said in the statement.

The century-old carmaker, based in Gaydon in central England, is controlled by Italian private equity fund Investindustrial and Kuwaiti investors.

German carmaker Daimler will meanwhile keep its near 5.0-percent stake in the group, Aston Martin said.

Founded in London in 1913, Aston Martin rose to fame thanks largely to its DB5 sports car, a favourite of early Bond actor Sean Connery.

The deal, which reportedly values Uber at about $72 billion, aims at “advancing and bringing to market autonomous ride-sharing as a mobility service at scale,” Toyota said in a statement.

Technology from both companies will be integrated into purpose-built Toyota vehicles and deployed on Uber’s ride-sharing platform, with the first pilot rollout set for 2021.

“The deal is the first of its kind for Uber and signals our commitment to bringing world-class technologies to the Uber network,” said CEO Dara Khosrowshahi.

The agreement came as the smartphone-summoned ride service is throttling back its solo effort to develop autonomous vehicle technology.

Uber suspended its self-driving car program after a crash killed a woman pushing a bicycle in a street in Arizona in March.

Last month, the San-Francisco-based firm took a tentative step toward restarting the program, putting self-driving cars back on the road in “manual mode,” with a driver at the wheel at all times.

The testing will enable Uber to gather data on different scenarios that will be recreated in computer simulations, and also develop more accurate mapping for the vehicles.

Uber is among a number of technology and car companies racing toward what some say is an inevitable future in which vehicles drive themselves.

The statement said the “mass-produced autonomous vehicles” would be owned and operated by “mutually agreed-upon third-party autonomous fleet operators.”

Nissan Motor Thailand Co Ltd said the agreement signed at the MEA’s Ploenchit Road office in Bangkok laid out a commitment to ensuring drivers have access to charging stations at home, at work and on the road.

It described the system as “a new way of thinking about transportation that will drive the electrification of Thailand”.

The MEA and Nissan will prepared service tools and manuals for charging systems, conduct technical training, and develop charging equipment and an electric fee-payment system.

The MEA will handle the electrical and related equipment at charging stations “to ensure Nissan’s customers confident and system safety” and train Nissan Thailand staff.

The collaboration is in line with the government’s Energy Efficiency Plan, which envisions 1.2 million plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) and battery electric vehicles (BEVs) on Thai roads by 2036.

The MEA has also launched the “MEA EV Application 2.0” for smartphones, which enables searches for the nearest charging station, advance booking for chargers, remote control of the charger and information on charging history and energy-savings rates.

Apart from being able to measure the capabilities of mechanics and service quality of employees, the event also helps Hyundai to develop personnel and raise service quality, executives said.

Winners of the competition will represent Thailand in the Hyundai Global CX (customer experience) Championship in South Korea.

More than 30 pre-owned cars from Aston Martin, Maserati, McLaren, Bentley, Rolls-Royce and others worth over Bt500 million, as well as pre-owned Azimuth yachts, will be on sale.

Apart from special pricing, the cars and yachts also come with special promotions, said Dr Sanhavuth Thamchuanviriya, MGC’s managing director.

Speaking at the launch of the |S-Class Coupe and Cabriolet, Grewe said Thailand has established itself as a major auto-producing country |and the government has supported eco-friendly vehicles with excise tax reductions.

“Right now Mercedes-Benz is offering PHEVs (Plugin Hybrid Electric Vehicles) which can either be charged or operates without being charged since it also has an engine,” he said. “But for EVs, charging is mandatory.”

Grewe said EV owners would charge their vehicles at home or at the office, and there needs to be a special infrastructure to serve these vehicles.

During the first 7 months of this year, Mercedes-Benz sold more than 8,600 vehicles in Thailand, an increase of 9 per cent compared to the same period last year. Sales of hybrids and plug-ins from Mercedes grew by 40 per cent during this period, while sales of AMG models surged by 250 per cent, thanks to local assembly and the appointment of special AMG dealers.

Mercedes-Benz is currently building a battery plant in Thailand, which is scheduled for operations in 2019 . The facility will supply batteries to all hybrid vehicles assembled by the German auto maker here. It is the company’s 6th battery production base worldwide. Meanwhile, Nissan says it will officially launch the LEAF EV in Thailand within the current fiscal year, although the car was first shown to public at the end of last year.

Nissan Motor Thailand Co Ltd president Antoine Barthes said last week that before the launch of LEAF, th compay must be sure that all supporting services are in place.

“It may seem like we are postponing the launch of the LEAF, but actually behind the scenes we are working very hard to get the whole EV ownership experience package ready,” he said.

According to Barthes, driving an EV is more than changing a car, but it will result in a new lifestyle, similar to the effect of smartphones.