After intensive study, the automaker and union-funded think tank, the Center For Automotive Research (CAR), came to the conclusion that closing down automotive manufacturing sites is not as catastrophic as originally thought. Nearly half of the 267 U.S. automotive manufacturing plants that had been shuttered since 1979 have come back to life. (Read More…)
Toyota presented today its revised outlook for the fiscal year 2012 (ending March 31, 2012). Only people who inhabitate spaces under rocks gasped when Toyota’s Executive Vice President Satoshi Ozawa announced that Toyota is looking at making only half the money it projected back in August. After a gloomy forecast in June, recovery from the tsunami had progressed faster than thought. Then, the waters in Thailand and the killer yen kept rising. (Read More…)
This whole craze with the leather-trimmed luxury trucks, I’m against it. In my opinion, a real passenger truck is a big steel box with rear-wheel-drive, a floor-shift three-speed manual transmission, an AM radio, and a metal dash. Oh yeah, and it has to be built by a farm-equipment manufacturer. (Read More…)
You’ll probably hear that the Chinese car market grew a tiny bit in November. Don’t believe it. Not true. According to data released today by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) the market for all automobiles dropped 2.42 percent compared to November last year. Not that the sky would be falling: (Read More…)
Judging from the emails I receive, some of you badly want to love the new 2012 Regal GS. In my review of the Buick Regal 2.0T, I noted that its strengths are “subtle,” and therefore unlikely to inspire love at first sight. The GS adds more aggressive styling, 50 horsepower, Brembo front brakes, an upgraded suspension, and better-bolstered seats. Should you prepare to be smitten? (Read More…)
Kevin writes:
Sajeev and Steve:
Q1. Do you like it?
A1. Unequivocally! It’s amazing.
Q2. Are you going to buy it out or extend the lease?
A2. Absof@!%inglutely not.
Q3. Why not – you just said you loved it?!
A3. True, but it’s a constant reminder of the adages (i) never buy a first year vehicle (ii) never lease a car out of warranty and (iii) someone, somewhere, is tired of her sh!t. Well, maybe just the first two.
Audi wants to take on BMW in the European luxury SUV segment. Walter de’ Silva, design boss at the Volkswagen Group, told Automotive News Europe [sub] that Audi will definitely take on the BMW X6 with an Audi Q, and might also field a challenger to the BMW X4. (Read More…)
We went all 20/20 hindsight on the 1970 Motor Trend COTY choice yesterday, and today we’ll be jumping right into the depths of the Malaise Era for the MT gurus’ 1976 choice: the Dodge Aspen/Plymouth Volaré (Read More…)
The National Legal and Policy Center (NLPC) filed a Freedom of Information Act request with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), seeking:
“All records, documents, internal and external documentations between the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration and General Motors between June 1, 2009 and December 1, 2011. These requested records shall include communication regarding the Chevrolet Volt, also known as the Chevy Volt.”
That’s a lot of paper if the request will be granted. (Read More…)
For no immediately obvious reason, Germany’s Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung has a long article today, which says that GM is running out of patience fast with its money-hemorrhaging Opel unit. The paper predicts new negotiations (read firings and plant closures) with the unions – “or worse.” (Read good riddance Opel.) The sound of rattling sabers is all over the article. (Read More…)
Is there any vehicle more emblematic of the Malaise Era than the first-gen Dodge Magnum? Other than the Plymouth Fire Arrow, that is… or the black-bumper MGB… or the Mustang II. Terrible as it is, however, this junked Magnum I found mouldering in a San Jose self-service junkyard still has a certain undeniable presence. (Read More…)
Automotive News Europe [sub] spotted a new trend in Tokyo: Daredevil CEOs:
“On Nov. 27, Toyota boss Akio Toyoda wowed a crowd of spectators in Japan by racing through a lineup of Lexus LFA supercars in the new Toyota 86 sporty coupe. One day later, Honda CEO Takanobu Ito hopped on a Honda MotoGP racing motorcycle and blasted around the company’s Twin Ring Motegi racetrack.” (Read More…)
One of the most closely watched quality indicators in Europe and especially in Germany is the annual TÜV-Report. With German thoroughness, the report tells exactly which cars were naughty or nice. It’s the law: Three years after you buy a new car in Germany, it must be inspected by the Technischer Überwachungsverein. Thereafter, every two years. This is not your run-of-the-mill drive-to-the-gas-station-get-a-sticker exercise. At the TÜV, each car undergoes a thorough and invasive physical. Fail the physical, and it’s back to the shop. Fail again: No inspection sticker, get that POS off the road. No wonder that a date with the TÜV is considered as even less attractive than a meeting with the proctologist. One out of 5 cars fail the test on the first attempt.
Once a year, the TÜV compiles its TÜV-Report, using the actual results of the check. This is no J.D.Power CSI. This is the real world, a report compiled with screwdrivers, flashlights, emission probes, brake testers. Executives at automakers await the report with high anxiety. Bad positions on the list can be career-ending.
The TÜV-Report 2012 will be published on December 16. Some results are already dribbling out, but the list itself remains under wraps. We twisted some arms and finagled an advance copy (your Teutonic old boys network at work.) Let’s see who will be promoted and who should polish his resume. (Read More…)
Yesterday, you had your private tour of the Tokyo Motor Show, and you could not find a more competent and entertaining tour guide than Nissan’s head designer Francois Bancon. (Officially, „Deputy Divisional GM for Product Strategy.”) The former Renault man has seen the world. He was a Frenchman of the first hour at Nissan.
If you want to see the Japanese market through European eyes, then please tag along for part deux of the tour, where Bancon talks about Suzuki, Honda, and Daimler. Listen closely to what Bancon says about Daimler. Renault/Nissan and Daimler have an alliance, and Bancon knows where it is heading
Executive summary for the video-impaired: (Read More…)
Jack Baruth showed you the Alfa-based new Dodge Dart – but what does it mean? For Sergio Marchionne, the little car means a lot. It means the final five percent of Chrysler, to be exact. (Read More…)
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