First, The Wall Street Journal reports that forthcoming European CO2 regs are casting a pall over Ford's sale of Jaguar and Land Rover. The European Union has announced its intention to reduce the new car CO2 levels by roughly 20% by 2012. As the British brands don't have more-fuel-efficient cars to offset their less-efficient models (i.e. all of them), potential suitors are worried that the new regs will price the automakers out of existence. Using that logic, Just-auto [sub] reports Management consultants Arthur D Little fancy Jag more than Landie. "While we do not foresee near- or mid-term legislation that would actually ban high footprint SUVs (chiefly due to the European job losses that would result) legislation will inevitably toughen. We consider this to threaten over half Land Rover's volume – only Range Rover and Defender are relatively secure… There is no alchemy involved in a Jaguar turnaround; good financial performance can be achieved through realigning the strategy with the brand values, leading to a lower volume (50-60,000 units a year), high gross margin business producing premium sporting saloons and grand tourers." Sounds like a plan to us.

A survey by Vansunited claims bus drivers are the rudest drivers in the UK. According to The Argus, the company “dedicated to helping van dealers find van customers” asked 2300 vanistas to name “the least considerate [motorists] when it came to pedestrians and other drivers.” One fifth of those surveyed fingered bus drivers for "foul language, tailgating, being cut-up and similar reckless behaviour.” The managing director of the Brighton and Hove Bus and Coach Company rebuffed the findings. "The survey was carried out by van drivers so it would have been biased from the outset.” [NB: In the UK, the term “white van man” has long been synonymous for aggressive driving and inconsiderate parking. There's even a minigame based on the stereotype.]

China's "you wanna do business here you gotta hire my nephew" policy towards foreign automakers is inadvertently bringing Chrysler and Fiat into close proximity. Forbes informs us that Fiat has just signed a letter of intent with China's Chery to build cars in [Homer Simpson's favorite Chinese town] Wuhu by 2009. In its normatively optimistic press release, Fiat claims the factory will produce 175k units in the first year, and double that the next. The deal follows Chrysler arrangement with Chery to produce a small car for the U.S. market. All of which takes us back to '88, when Fiat was going to sell Chrysler minivans in Europe and Chrysler was going to sell Alfa Romeos in America. Could the Chinese hook-up mean Fiat's long-awaited return stateside could come via a Chinese-made Alfa sports car sold through Chrysler dealerships? Now there's a thought. 

In a move somewhat akin to herding ADHD cats, the UAW is making a move to unionize bloggers. USA Today quotes Gerry Colby, president of the National Writers Union, a local of the United Auto Workers: "Bloggers are on our radar screen right now for approaching and recruiting into the union. We're trying to develop strategies to reach bloggers and encourage them to join." This might be a hard sell; most bloggers are independent, few are paid and even fewer make a living blogging. While some bloggers see union organization as a way to get health insurance discounts or conduct collective bargaining, others aren't that enthralled with the idea. Sounding almost like he's blogging for TTAC, Committee to Protect Bloggers' founder Curt Hopkins summed up many bloggers' feelings. "The reason I like blogging is that it's very anarchistic. I can do whatever I want whenever I want, and oh my God, you're not going to tell me what to do."

Automotive Fleet Magazine has opened the polls for their 2008 Automotive Fleet Fleet Car and Truck of the Year awards. The nominees include 64 car and 37 light truck models ranging from Audi to Volvo. Voting, which is limited to professional fleet managers, runs through October 15. Nominees are to be considered based on cost, maintenance, reliability and overall operating expense. Last year the Chevrolet Impala and Ford F-150 scooped the honors. If sales are any indication, the two models look set to score a hat trick. In the first six months of '07, fleets claimed 80k Impalas (54% of production) and 67k F-150s (21% of production). Percentagewise, the Dodge Charger and Magnum beat both models, with 56 and 60 percent of production siphoned-off for group sales. Despite the anti-fleet excuse message's new status as Detroit's explanationdu jour for lackluster sales, we know for a fact that many mid-level managers embedded within The Big 2.8 are pulling for their vehicles to snatch the gong.  

The Detroit News gives us the inside dope on Nissan's latest gadget, which allows drivers to pay even less attention to their driving than they do currently. Nissan's engineers have developed a system that combines radar sensors with a computer to "make a car that judges dangers on its own" and lifts the gas pedal to warn the driver of possible collisions. If the driver takes his foot off the accelerator in response, the car will brake to a stop. However, if the driver keeps his foot on the gas, the car will continue to go. So now, that person on the cell phone in the car in front of you suddenly has to wake up and make a split-second assessment: is the car giving a false alarm and can they keep going, or is something happening that requires the car to stop? Nissan also has a lane departure prevention system that "swivels a car back into its lane if it swerves off" which will be offered later this year on the Infinti EX. Wouldn't it just be easier to pay attention to what's going on around you?

Last week, Ford exceeded Wall Street’s expectations by reporting a profit. A profit! As in, the American automaker took in more money than they spent! Pundits unfamiliar with the fact that Ford carries around so much debt it makes Atlas' planetary burden seem like a small backpack, oblivious to the missing ten foot pole marks on Ford dealers' inventory, hailed the news as a sign that the only Way Fordward is up. You know you need to worry when the CEO himself feels obliged to warn stockholders and camp followers that billion dollar losses lie directly ahead. And indeed they do. 

Germany's famed Autobahn turns 75 today. Deutsche Welle recalls how the first 20-kilometer stretch between Cologne and Bonn was opened to the public on August 6, 1932. The new highway had some very specific rules, many of which still apply. The Kölnische Zeitung newspaper wrote on Aug. 5, 1932: "Due to a specific police order, every other traffic, such as pedestrians, carts, bicyclists, motorcyclists and horse carriage, is prohibited to drive on the street." Today, the Autobahn stretches 12,400km. Despite the widespread belief that you can drive on the autobahn as fast as you dare, most sections have posted speed limits. As for the "de-restricted" segments, environmental groups have been calling for the imposition of speed limits since the '60's. Thanks to global wamring concerns, those voices have gathered new strength. Despite the country's cultural attachment to "fun, fun, fun on the autobahn," it's only a matter of time before the adrenal anachronism is "harmonized" with European law. 

The contract negotiations between the Detroit automakers and The United Autoworkers Union (UAW) continue apace. The employers are adamant: they need union concessions to survive. BIG concessions. Citing a $25/hour labor cost differential between their operations and those of the transplants, The Big 2.8 claim their salvation depends on taking food from union workers' table negotiating large pay and benefit cuts. But would such concession from the carmakers' "partners" actually bail them out of hot water? 

Just two days following the formal takeover of Chrysler by new owners Cerberus Capital Management, the Three Headed Dog is already rolling heads, despite its earlier promises to keep the management team intact. The Detroit News reports that Chrysler Group CEO Tom LaSorda is on his way down with a demotion to president, while chief operating officer and long-time Chrysler veteran Eric Ridenour is heading for the door. Taking the CEO slot is none other than former Home Depot chairman Robert Nardelli, an autocrat best known for improving the hardware retailer's efficiencies while damaging employee morale before bailing out at the beginning of this year with a controversial $210 million golden parachute.  Time will tell whether Nardelli, who also turned around GE's once-ailing Power Systems turbine manufacturing business under Jack Welch, will make a successful transition from moving pallets of mallets to minivans "engineered beautifully."  Stay tuned.

Jacques Nasser, the man who gave us the dubious marriage of Ford, Land Rover, and Jaguar that resulted in the now defunct Premium Auto Group,want to buy Jaguar and Land Rover. The Times reports that Nasser is visiting the factories to "woo trade unions" in an attempt to get support for his bid. Gentleman Jac's partnering with One Equity Partners, JPMorgan Chase's private equity firm. Fearing the old "strip and flip," union leaders have asked the Government to block any sale to an equity firm. Whoever ends up with the not-so-dynamic duo, the union wants Ford to "agree that if they are going to sell Jaguar and Land Rover they ensure there is a long-term commitment to keeping production, research and development and stamping at existing facilities."

The Daily Mail reports that London's Congestion Charge (CC) is quickly morphing into a pollution tax. Mayor "Red" Ken Livingston is set to modify The City's congestion fees, levying up to £6,500 a year on drivers living within the charging zone who helm larger (i.e. more CO2-emitting) vehicles. Visitors to central London piloting SUVs, minivans or full-size luxury cars will be hit with a £25 a day fee. Mr. Livingston, a man known to keep taxis waiting for hours at taxpayer's expense, has little sympathy for people who "can afford to choose from pretty much the whole of the mainstream car market but have chosen to buy one of the most polluting vehicles." More surprisingly, The Mail says that after a 33 percent decline in traffic levels, the congestion charge now only accounts for eight percent traffic reduction compared to pre-CC levels.

FXstreet.com reports that Japan imported 3.8% less vehicles in July vs. July of last year. While the slump is hardly unsurprising given the general downturn in the Japanese automotive market, examining the actual numbers is a bit of an eye-opener. We're talking about a total of just 16,968 units (down from last July's 17,636), the majority of them high end luxury cars. Saying that, VW led the pack, selling 3996 vehicles in Japan (down 13.3%). Mass marketeer FoMoCo found 444 for its cars (down 19.1%). Renault brought up the rear with 306 vehicles (up 2.7%). Contrast that stat with the country's automotive exports. In June, Japan's domestic automakers sent 202,523 vehicles stateside. 

Davisenterprise.com is reporting a strange (if entirely theoretical) wrinkle in the potential for plug-in electric hybrids: power generation. Pacific Gas & Electric Co. is "readying a program" whereby the utility company could draw power from plug-in hybrids plugged into the power grid. The first suggestion: if the cars were equipped with solar panels they could sell power back to the power company. OK, right, second idea: tap into the connected cars to smooth-out power generation during spikes in demand. Kyle Aarons, project manager in PG&E's Clean Air Transportation Department (doesn't it do that by itself?) explains: "Let's say a bunch of people switch on their lights all at once and so demand for electricity spikes up in a very short amount of time. Instead of having one of our power plants ramp up a little bit or opening the gate a little bit more on a dam, we can maybe use energy from (the cars') batteries to just, sort of, meet that little spike and then allow our power plants to ramp up more evenly, and it's more cost-effective when we do it that way.” Aarons promises that the electric company would put the power back, and admits this system "likely wouldn't be available for several years." 

The American pickup truck wars have become a series of increasingly pitched battles. Even as the pickup market tanks, the main players have regrouped, refreshed and rejoined the fight. As we await the new Dodge Ram pickup, a major candidate for the "I coulda been a contender" award, questions must be asked. Does the current Ram have what it takes to hold the fort against the [ostensibly] reliable Toyota Tundra, the built-like-a-rock Chevy Silverado and the tough luxury Ford F-150? What battles will the new Dodge Ram have to win?