Chrysler Cinquecento anyone? According to Reuters [via Automotive News Europe], Fiat is in talks with Chrysler LLC to form a strategic partnership. Automotive News says the deal could give Chrysler access to platforms, engines and transmission. The august publication also suggests the dalliance could lead to Fiat taking an equity stake in Chrysler. FIAT has been on the prowl lately to find a partner. PSA apparently gave the Italians the cold shoulder. Fiat’s CEO Sergio Marchionne had made noises that his company cannot survive alone and is in urgent need of a strong partner. Eh, Sergio! You said “strong” partner! Cosa fai?
Find Reviews by Make:
Posts By: Bertel Schmitt
Definitely infrequent for a few weeks while I’m in Europe, hunting the elusive Euro: An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Berlin – when I’m in Berlin.
Hybrid price war: Toyota plans to lower the Japanese price for the existing Prius hybrid when it releases a redesigned, more efficient version in May, the Nikkei (sub) writes. Japan’s top automaker will continue to sell the existing Prius after the new version’s release in May. Toyota plans to cut the price for the current model to around 2 million yen. Rival Honda is slated to release the Insight hybrid in February, with a starting price of less than 2 million yen. The remodeled Prius will cost 2.5 million yen.
Mazda cutbacks: Mazda will slightly increase plant operating hours in Japan in February and March, but will stick with its plan to cut output through March by 100,000 vehicles or more in addition to the originally planned 73,000-vehicle cutback for the period, the Nikkei (sub) writes. Mazda has started cutting salaries of manager-level employees by up to 10 percent from this month. Its executives already began returning 20 percent of their salaries to the company from December.
(Read More…)
Europe has an abundance of car makers. Apparently, Brussels is preparing the populace for less. As EU business ministers gathered in Brussels to discuss support for the flagging industry, as French manufacturers lobby their government for aid, European Union industry commissioner Guenter Verheugen said some European carmakers face an uncertain future.
“There is no guarantee that all the main European manufacturers can survive the crisis,” Verheugen told BBC radio. Translation: don’t bank on a bail-out. If you get in trouble, you’re on your own. There’s surely BIG trouble ahead; Verheugen forecasts a further 20 percent drop in sales in 2009. He said the industry’s outlook was “to say the least, brutal,” as cash-strapped consumers defer big-ticket purchases.
Definitely infrequent for a few weeks while I’m in Europe, hunting the elusive Euro: An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Berlin – when I’m in Berlin.
Toyota closed on Saturdays: Toyota closed all of its 12 Japanese factories Saturday in response to the worsening global sales slump. Toyota plans to suspend production for a total of three days in January, the Nikkei (sub) says. Toyota will have a total of 11 no-work days in February and March. As a result, its daily production capacity in February and March will fall to 9,000 units, about the half the year-earlier level. Toyota also plans to reduce output by closing all seven vehicle assembly plants in the U.S. and Canada on some days through early April.
Buyers return in Beijing: After disappointing sales in the second half of 2008, China’s auto market is showing signs of life. As the Lunar New Year holiday season approaches, prices have been cut and favorable credit sales policies expanded to lure customers into showrooms, Gasgoo writes. Sales in Beijing’s biggest auto market have jumped over 40 percent compared to the same period last year. Financing is becoming more popular. Currently, only 10 percent of car buyers in China financing vehicles, the rest pays cash.
(Read More…)
In 1999, a French-Brazilian-Lebanese businessman saved a large Japanese automaker from certain bankruptcy. Since then, Carlos Ghosn, cost cutter extraordinaire, wears the dual crowns of the presidency of Renault and Nissan. The Japanese crown is turning into a very heavy burden. According to Tokyo’s Nikkei (sub), Carlos Ghosn, “is facing an even more daunting challenge of securing profits amid the yen’s rise and the deep economic downturn. Ghosn acknowledges that the external environment facing Nissan is far more bleak than in 1999, when Nissan was trying to rise above damages that were largely self-inflicted.” Fixer Ghosn is softening the blow for the announcement that he can mend self-inflicted wounds. But he isn’t godlike – yet – to save Nissan from external damnation. Nissan appears to be in deep, deep kuso. Ghosn is fighting two armies of windmills:
Europe’s industry association ACEA finally got around to counting 2008 car sales, and there are good news and bad news. The good news is that the news from Europe aren’t half as bad as the news from the U.S. The bad news is that European new passenger car sales fell 7.8 percent in 2008, their sharpest fall for 15 years, Reuters reports.
Like in America, the sharpest drops occurred in the last quarter of 2008, with a 19.3 percent fall in new passenger car registrations compared with the year earlier period. In December car sales fell 17.8 percent year on year across the European region (which includes the 27 EU member states as well as the European Free Trade Association countries, but excludes Cyprus and Malta.) December was the second worst month of the year for the region, as after a 25.8 percent year-on-year fall recorded in November. Like in the U.S. the Q4 numbers don’t augur well for a happy 2009.
In the olden days, the headquarter markets got all the new toys first. Joint ventures and subsidiaries abroad had to wait a whole generation, until tooling, machinery, sometimes whole assembly lines were crated up and shipped abroad. Especially in China, this had attracted criticism, as in “we don’t want your hand-me downs.” With computer aided manufacturing and robots, the introduction of new models to other markets was sped up significantly. Now, China can’t complain anymore. This week. Ford China started manufacturing the seventh Generation Fiesta subcompact at their Nanjing plant, only months after the first cars had hit the market in Germany last October. Nanjing is the second plant in the world to build the car. In China, the Fiesta will go on sale late in the first quarter. The Fiesta was shown at the North American International Auto Show in 2007 under the name, “The Verve,” but Americans will have to wait until 2010 before they can buy it domestically. In Europe, they can’t make enough of the little guy.
Definitely infrequent for a few weeks while I’m in Europe, hunting the elusive Euro: An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Berlin – when I’m in Berlin.
Toyota shifting down in NA, again: Toyota will shut down all seven vehicle assembly plants in the U.S. and Canada on some days through early April, as part of an effort to cut growing stockpiles by half, the Nikkei (sub) reports. The number of non-operating days will vary by facility. The production line for the Sienna minivan at the Indiana plant will be stopped for 30 days. Toyota had shut down some production lines in the U.S. for three months starting last August. Toyota hopes to reduce inventories from the current 80-90 days to the desirable level of about 40 days by the end of June.
Nissan shifting down in Japan, again: Nissan will reduce Japanese domestic output by 64,000 vehicles in February and March from its earlier output plan, prompted by an increasingly decelerating global auto demand, the Nikkei (sub) says. The company had already announced reduced production as sales at home and abroad tank. Nissan had decided to dismiss all non-full-time workers by the end of March. Although it has no plans to shed any full-timers, it does intend to reduce their base pay for February by designating some of the days the plants will be idled as non-work days.
Honda shifting down in Japan, again: Honda will cut production in Japan for this fiscal year by 56,000 vehicles on the continued slump in auto sales, the Nikkei (sub) writes. The latest production cutback follows a domestic output reduction by a combined 86,000 vehicles that Honda already had announced. Japan’s second biggest car maker by volume now expects its domestic output to total 1.168 million vehicles in the fiscal year ending March, down 10% on year.
Sorry, it’s a bit infrequent for a few weeks while I’m in Europe hunting the elusive Euro: An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Berlin – when I’m in Berlin.
Take one for the team, Japan style: Department heads at Toyota are asking colleagues in management positions to buy new Toyota cars by the end of the fiscal year to boost the company’s sluggish sales, the Nikkei (sub) says. “The rare request is the result of a voluntary effort among a group of about 2,200 departmental chiefs and other managers. Employees are under no obligation to buy a car, and no specific models appear to have been singled out.” Hitori wa minna no tame, minna wa hitori no tame. Or: one for all, all for one, as they say in Japan.
Daihatsu may have to cut back: Toyota’s Daihatsu may do “a reorganization of its production structure if sales do not recover by March,” the Nikkei (sub) reports. Daihatus’s minicars had been relatively unscathed by the weak sales. Now they begin hurting too.
Chrysler has been – some say desperately – seeking to “sell key assets” for a while. The Nikkei (sub) now says that Chryler might be getting close. The usual “unnamed people with knowledge of the discussions” whispered that Chrysler is talking to Nissan-Renault and the Canadian auto supplier Magna. The topics of the discussion are the Jeep brand and Chrysler’s Belvidere plant. The Jeep brand would go to Renault-Nissan, Magna would take the plant.
The parties aren’t strangers.
Chrysler had announced an alliance with Nissan last April.
As for Magna, the interest probably stems from Magna’s subsidiary Magna Steyr, which is creating more and more auto contract manufacture business. Magna Steyr has produced the Chrysler Voyager from 2002 to 2007, and currently produces the Chrysler 300C, the Jeep Commander and Jeep Grand Cherokee. Magna was one of the bidders for Chrysler when it was sold by Daimler in 2007.
Next to Buddhism and Shinto, there is a third, equally important religion in Japan: “Seken tei wo kinisuru,” or be mindful of ones reputation. Japanese are neat, and polite, and they very much care of what their neighbors think. You don’t see many old and decrepit cars on Japan’s streets. Would be bad for your seken tei. Buying a new ride every few years is just the right thing to do. Make that “was the right thing to do.”
Most of the Japanese are now dead set to hang on to their current car for its dear life. Only if it dies will they set foot into a dealer again. This is the result of a study conducted by The Nikkei (sub) and C-News, a marketing data service operated by Yahoo Japan Value Insight Corp.
The question was simple and straightforward: “What do you plan to do with your current car?” 56.5 percent of the respondents said they would drive it until it breaks down, then buy a new one. Only 10 percent chose “replace it with a new one, as soon as I find a nice model.”
(Read More…)
An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Beijing this week, from Berlin next week,
Chinese Buick: The Buick LaCrosse, set to debut at the North American International Auto Show next week, is a Chinese product. Due to Buick’s popularity in China, the company’s design team there took the lead in remodeling the LaCrosse, Gasgoo writes. Sales of Buicks in China reached 332,000 units in 2007, according to data supplied to IHS Global Insight, a consulting firm. The LaCrosse was the second-best seller there, with 71,500 cars sold. Figures for full-year 2008 year are not available yet. By comparison, GM sold 137,197 Buick branded cars and light trucks in the U.S. in 2008, down 26.4 percent from 2007. The company sold 36,873 LaCrosses in 2008, down 23 percent from 2007. In December alone, LaCrosse sales dipped 59 percent to 1,451 units.
As much as U.S. automakers, especially GM, rely on China to bolster their global sales numbers and to supply cheap parts, Detroit is scared excrementless that the Chinese may apply the Western technology which had been exported to their shores, and sell cheap cars in the U.S. So far, it hasn’t happened. But it’s happening in America’s underbelly and NAFTA partner Mexico. “FAW Group Corp., one of China’s three largest domestic auto manufacturers, has begun selling new cars for as little as $6,550 in Mexico in what is believed to be the first foray by a Chinese auto-maker into North America,” Canada’s Financial Post reports. This being a Canadian paper, they are probably talking Canadian dollars, so in real money, it would be $5550. Or more like $4999. Scary.
A boatload of about 6,000 FAW cars have been brought to Mexico by Grupo Salinas, a specialty retailer. “They’re not all sold,” company spokesman Daniel McCosh said. “The higher-end and the lower-end vehicles are moving better than the mid-priced models.” That Mexican beachhead is troubling news for Detroit.
(Read More…)
China’s Passenger Car Association released their numbers for the year. For China, which was used to double digit growth, they are disappointing. Other markets, such as the U.S. would die for them. China’s full year passenger car sales rose 7.4 percent in 2008, the Association says.
Before we delve into them, be warned about Chinese numbers. China doesn’t have a “light vehicle” category. Vans or minivans, such as the GM-Wuling offerings, are counted as “commercial vehicles,” and are not in China’s passenger vehicle count. Also, to understand the market, one must be aware of China’s wild and woolly joint venture situation where cars of the same brand are made by different and often competing companies, and sold through different dealer networks.
Here are the top 10 Chinese passenger vehicle sales as Gasgoo reports them. These are real sales, not cars dumped on dealer’s lots. These are government numbers, based on cars that have been registered by owners and issued license plates. However, they count factories. They don’t count brands.
1. FAW VW: 498,867 units
2. Shanghai VW: 490,087 units
3. Shanghai GM: 468,642 units
4. FAW Toyota: 365,699 units
5. Chery: 356,092 units
6. Dongfeng Nissan: 350,621 units
7. GAC Honda: 305,997 units
8. Beijing Hyundai: 294,517 units
9. Geely: 230,420 units
10. Changan Ford: 202,797 units
Now for a closer view:
(Read More…)
An overview of what happened in other parts of the world while you were in bed. TTAC provides round-the-clock coverage of everything that has wheels. Or has its wheels coming off. WAS is being filed from Beijing this week, from Berlin next week.
Volkswagen makes its million in China: When Winfried Vahland, VW’s honcho in China, stuck to his guns and a 1m sales target months ago, people rolled their eyes. Well, he made it, Automobilwoche (sub) reports. VW sold 844,491 units in China, Audi contributed119,598, newcomer Skoda sold 59,284 – a total of 1,023,373 units. Growth for 2008 was 12.5 percent, above market trend. With this result, and the slight plus in the home market, VW could be the overall winner for 2008.
Audi sells a million worldwide: Audi defied gravity, motor malaise, and assorted other ailments, and closed out the year 2008 with a plus of 4.1 percent worldwide, for a total of 1,003,400 four-ringed units sold throughout the world. In Asia/Pacific, Audi sold 15.6 percent more for the year. Outlook for 2009 is even better, because in the disastrous December 2008, Audi sold 17.4 percent more than in the same month a year before.
SAIC lets Ssangyong fail: Ssangyong Motor Co. has filed for court receivership after if had failed to secure necessary funds to continue operations, the Nikkei (sub) reports. Ssangyong Motor is 51.3 percent owned by China’s SAIC. They only wanted to help if the unions would make significant concessions. Now they may have to. Ssangyong Motor’s board Friday called on management and the company’s union to closely cooperate on voluntary retirement, paid leave, wage cuts and a halt to certain benefits. Commenting on the filing, Ssangyong union spokesman Choi Hyung-gil said: “The decision is very disappointing. We will discuss how to react.”
Recent Comments