Generally considered to be the slowest sales month of the year, January appears as though it will live up to its poor reputation in 2014.

Results are beginning to pour in, and they paint a rather bleak picture: hampered by the extreme winter weather in some regions, many automakers posted significant declines, including General Motors (down 12%), Ford (down 8%) and Volkswagen’s namesake brand (down 19%).

Still, there were a few bright spots. Buoyed by demand for the Forester, Subaru set a January sales record, while Chrysler saw volume increase by 8 percent and Nissan sales climbed 12 percent.

Below are early sales numbers – check back often over the course of the day, we’ll update the list regularly as automakers continue to report their results.

January’s Numbers

- Acura
- Audi flat at 10,101
- BMW
- Buick down 1% to 13,278
- Cadillac down 13% to 11,386
- Chevrolet down 13% to 119,089
- Chrysler up 2% to 21,113
- Dodge down 19% to 34,905
- Fiat up 29% to 3,222
- Ford down 8% to 148,671
- GMC down 10% to 27,733
- Honda
– Hyundai up 1% to 44,005
- Infiniti up 26% to 8,998
- Jeep up 38% to 41,910
- Jaguar
- Kia
- Land Rover
- Lamborghini
- Lexus
- Lincoln up 43% to 5,973
- Maserati
- Mazda
- Mercedes-Benz
- MINI
- Nissan up 10% to 81,472%
- Ram up 24% to 26,033
- smart
- Subaru up 19% to 33,000
- Toyota
- Volkswagen down 19% to 23,494
- Volvo

Note that last month’s highlights and lowlights listed below are merely a selection of some of the month’s bigger movers.

Highlights (sales up > 40%)
Buick Encore up 570% to 2,366
Chevrolet Corvette up 149% to 2,261
Lincoln MKZ up 368% to 2,122
Nissan Leaf up 93% to 1,252
Subaru Forester up 64 % to 10,771

Lowlights (sales down > 25%)

Ford C-MAX down 48% to 1,418
Volkswagen Passat down 30% to 6,236
Dodge Dart down 29% to 5,051
Chevrolet Malibu down 25% to 11,822

Mercedes-Benz has announced the launch of two new, highly efficient S-Class models.

Building on the previously introduced S400 HYBRID, Mercedes is now rolling out the S300 BlueTEC HYBRID.

Unlike the gas-powered S400 HYBRID, the S300 BlueTEC HYBRID uses a small-displacement 2.2L four-cylinder diesel motor, good for 204 horsepower. The Hybrid sedan also uses a 20 kW electric motor sandwiched between the engine and transmission that provides extra boost during acceleration and can also recoup energy through regenerative braking. Mercedes says the S300 BlueTEC HYBRID can operate in electric-only mode for short periods.

Total torque for the system is a healthy 368 lb-ft.

On the European cycle, the Mercedes S300 BlueTEC HYBRID is good for 53.5mpg.

In addition to the S300 BlueTEC HYBRID, Mercedes is also introducing the S350 BlueTEC 4MATIC, which is essentially an all-wheel drive version of the S350 BlueTEC. Like its two-wheel drive counterpart, the S350 BlueTEC 4MATIC uses a 258 horsepower, 457 lb-ft of torque version of Mercedes’ 3.0L V6 turbo diesel.

Although not a thrifty as the S300 BlueTEC HYBRID, the S350 BlueTEC 4MATIC returns a compact car-like 40mpg on the European cycle.

Both diesel S-Class models can be had in short- and long-wheelbase forms. Pricing for the S300 BlueTEC HYBRID will start from €80,920 ($109,200), while the S350 BlueTEC 4MATIC will carry a base price of €84,728 ($114,365).

Mercedes hasn’t confirmed either model for the United States, but it is thought that the S350 BlueTEC 4MATIC will eventually be sold on these shores.

The National Highway Transportation Safety Authority reportedly expects Toyota to request a waiver that would enable the company to avoid a formal recall for seats that do not meet fabric flammability standards.

The company last week halted sales of affected vehicles, which is said to include tens of thousands of cars and trucks that are currently in dealer inventory. Due to a fabric supplier switch in 2012, many vehicles equipped with seat heaters do not meet the government’s flammability standards.

“We don’t believe that it is a defect issue or a safety-related issue because there has been no occurrence of any problems out in the real world,” Toyota spokesman John Hanson told Automotive News.

The non-compliant heated seats are said to be installed in less than ten perfect of the Camry, Avalon, Corolla, Sienna, Tundra and Tacoma models that have been delivered to dealers.

If the NHTSA accepts Toyota’s request for a waiver, the agency will continue to monitor noncompliance and consider a recall if the seats are later determined to pose a safety risk.

The US government is reportedly preparing to move forward with preliminary regulations for vehicle-to-vehicle communication. The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration is expected to detail its proposals at a news conference today with its acting administrator, David Friedman, along with Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx, according to a Bloomberg report.

The NHTSA has been considering new regulations that would require automakers to eventually integrate such communication systems, however the agency initially missed its self-imposed deadline for announcing a decision.

Vehicle-to-vehicle communication is viewed as a technological jump that could help prevent many automobile accidents and reduce traffic jams. Automakers have argued against mandatory implementation, citing increased costs for building new vehicles.

The NHTSA is already testing the technology in a pilot program with the University of Michigan’s Transportation Research Institute and $25 million in funding, mostly provided by the DOT.

The trials utilize a wireless system similar to Wi-Fi, enabling vehicles to communicate location, speed and heading data to other cars and road infrastructure. Transmitters along the road can alert cars to upcoming congestion, while transmitters on the cars can alert following vehicles when stopping short or drifting out of a lane. The technology complements existing systems, such as automatic braking and adaptive cruise control.

The NHTSA suggests widespread use of the technology could help prevent or mitigate up to 80 percent of collisions caused by non-impaired drivers.

Super Bowl XLVIII wasn’t the only big game in town on Sunday night. While the Denver Broncos duked with out with the Seattle Seahawks on the turf of MetLife Stadium, the world’s automakers were fighting it out on the ad world’s biggest stage.

As with the game itself, there were winners and losers, but most automaker’s put on an all-star performance during the commercial breaks of this year’s Super Bowl. Here’s a roundup of the car commercials that aired during yesterday’s Big Game played in the Big Apple.

Which ad was your favorite? Your least favorite? Did Kia’s Matrix-inspired spot sell you on a $60,000 luxury sedan from the Korean automaker? Did Jaguar’s first-ever Super Bowl commercial make you want to release your inner villain? Is it really true that an engineer gets his wings every time a Volkswagen hits 100,000 miles?

2014 Super Bowl car ad roundup

Kia (K900) – “The Truth”

VW – “Wings”

Jaguar (F-Type coupe) – “Rendezvous”

Chevrolet (Silverado 2500 HD) “Romance”

Ford (Fusion Hybrid) “Nearly Double”

Maserati (Ghibli) “Strike”

Chrysler (200) “America’s Import”

Jeep (Cherokee) “Restlessness”

Hyundai (Genesis) “Dad’s Sixth Sense”

Chevrolet (World Cancer Day) “Life”

Toyota (Highlander) “Joyride”

Honda (Safety) “Hugfest”

Audi (A3) “Doberhuahua”

Hyundai (Elantra) “Nice”

CarMax “Slow Clap”