After a lot of he loves me, he loves me not, GM and Peugeot PSA finally took their fledgling 7 percent relationship a few concrete steps forward. At least on paper. GM and PSA will not just buy new parts together. They will share platforms, the key to make joint purchasing work. The timing of this announcement, coinciding with a bailout by the French government, however is a bit unfortunate. (Read More…)
Europe’s car crisis found 4,300 new victims: As expected, union representatives at Ford’s Genk plant in Belgium were told this morning that the plant will be closed. 4,300 workers will be out of a job. (Read More…)
If you’re like most Americans, you either drive an SUV or want one. Don’t believe me? One in three vehicles sold on our shores in the past 12 months was an SUV or crossover, despite skyrocketing fuel prices. Of course, those fuel prices mean the demographic of the SUV smorgasbord has shifted from gas-guzzling truck-based […]
The French government will provide multi-billion euro guarantees to GM’s alliance-partner PSA Peugeot-Citroen via PSA’s banking arm, Reuters says. Don’t bet on it happening: There is already opposition from Germany, and wait until Brussels officially hears of the deal. (Read More…)
For the first time, I am worried that gasoline is at the end of its life cycle. Gas pumps already have landed in the museum. (Read More…)
The violent anti-Japanese demonstrations in China appear to be over, and intestinal complications aside, it seems to be safe again to eat sushi in Beijing or Shanghai. State-owned media however is trying its utmost to keep the matter on the front burner, so to speak, in a very insidious way. (Read More…)
One thing about the East Bay is that you see a lot of donks there. Last time I visited the area in which I had all my earliest formative automotive experiences, I spotted this ’69 Buick sedan sporting 22″ wire wheels in a local yard. (Read More…)
Chinese upstart carmaker BYD isn’t as lucky as it used to be. Its sales and stock price are deep in the Chinese squat toilet. However, it is outdoing itself in the gadget dept. BYD, the company that brought us the remote controlled car, now brings us the watch that opens your car’s doors and starts it. Call it keyless entry that goes with the times. (Read More…)
man(ual) in milwaukee (yes really) writes:
hey ho –
i’d like to learn how to drive a manual transmission, and i’d like to learn all the tricks. i hear you can roll it down a hill and pop the clutch to start it, i’ve heard you can shift gears without pushing in the clutch at a certain rpm – are these things true? what other cool things can you do with a manual transmission? (Read More…)
The EU sent a warning shot across the bow of protectionist France. Brussels refused France’s request to monitor car imports from South Korea. According to the Wall Street Journal, import surveillance could have been Europe’s first step toward blocking or reversing tariff cuts instated by a free trade deal between the EU and Korea. (Read More…)
“The rich are becoming richer in Brazil,” GM South American chief Jaime Ardila told Reuters, Therefore, “it’s time to start thinking about bringing Cadillac to Brazil.” The Caddys will be very expensive. “We wouldn’t consider producing Cadillacs here, because of the low volume,” Ardilla said, but we may consider importing the brand.” Imported cars carry high customs duty, fallout of a protectionist policy in Brazil that was applauded by carmakers in Brazil, GM among them. (Read More…)
Tomorrow, GM’s sick French partner PSA Peugeot Citroen will publish quarterly sales. They are expected to be très dégoûtant, and will set off a chain reaction: The credit rating agencies will put PSA’s already alarming rating down a notch further to near-dead status. Its captive financing arm BPF, a bank in its own right, will go down with the mothership. The bank’s rating is not allowed to stay more than two notches above the parent. This will drag the bank into junk bond territory, and borrowing costs will explode. The French government is here to help – for a price. (Read More…)
According to Bloomberg, Volkswagen CEO Martin Winterkorn claimed that “Brazil is very much a cornerstone” in VW’s push to become the world’s largest car maker by 2018.
Herr Winterkorn is in São Paulo for the largest and most important Auto Show in Latin America. Striving to make the most of this unique opportunity, the Brazilian press was all over VW’s CEO. He didn’t disappoint. He announced investments of 4.4 billion dollars to expand VW’s model line and modernize their factories in Brazil until 2016.
Well, they better! (Read More…)
After trips to Iran, Japan, Russia, wealthy America, Puerto Rico and California, let’s just go crazy and have a look at the entire world.
Yawn? That’s fine. You can discover the best-selling models in 169 additional countries and territories in my blog. But you won’t know which of the Ford Focus or Toyota Corolla holds the title of world’s most popular car. Unless you have a look at the Top 150 best-selling models worldwide for the month of August 2012…
Back to our 8 months, year-to-date Top 170 world best-sellers ranking.
Focus?
Corolla?
Today, BMW confirmed what you could read here last week: The Bavarians will build a BMW factory in Brazil. BMW submitted an investment plan to the Brazilian government, BMW says. (Read More…)
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