Sergio  Marchionne accuses Volkswagen of exploiting the European crisis to gain market share by offering aggressive discounts, the New York Times writes.  “It’s a bloodbath of pricing and it’s a bloodbath on margins,” the Fiat and Chrysler CEO told the paper. (Read More…)

Tycho de Feyter, who blogs about Chinese cars in Carnewschina.com, is very much concerned about the well-being of his Chinese compatriots. So much, that he tracks the overlo9ading of vehicles.  This “slightly overloaded truck” was seen on China’s tropical island province Hainan. The truck carries big sacks of styrofoam to a recycling facility. Not much weight, but the truck could easily be blown away. (Read More…)

Ford announced a second-quarter net profit of $1 billion, which was better than analysts expected. That’s the good news. The bad news is that Ford expects to lose more than $1 billion in Europe this year. Earlier this year, Ford forecast an annual loss of between $500 million and $600 million, Reuters says. (Read More…)

Europe’s second-largest car maker and GM alliance partner PSA Peugeot Citroen ended the first half of the year with its auto division 662 million euro ($800 million) in the reds, Reuters says.   (Read More…)

Mazda released first pictures and a teaser video of its brand-new Mazda 6, known in Japan as the Atenza. According to Automotive News [sub], the car will arrive stateside early next year as a 2014 model, equipped with a 2.5 liter Skyactiv engine. If you want to see and touch the car now, you have to go to Russia. (Read More…)

It is a Japanese tradition. At this time of the month, all Japanese automakers provide their global results for the preceding month and the year. This month is no exception. Honda did set an all-time June record and raised its worldwide production by 66 percent for the first half. Nissan also reports an all-time June record and that global production is up 19 percent January through June. The most watched  numbers come from Japanese juggernaut Toyota. (Read More…)

Today, blogs from Autoblog to Worldcarfans are tripping over themselves, knowing for sure that Opel will launch, as soon as next year, its top-of-the line car, that it will be the Opel Omega, and that it will be based on the Cadillac XTS. (Heck, isn’t that thing based on an Opel-developed Epsilon II anyway?)  The trouble is: It’s all made up. Let’s investigate the making of the Great Lie of the Day. (Read More…)

“Should Opel, Chevy coexist in Europe?” This is what Automotive News [sub] asks today without offering a real answer. Let’s have a look. Then, cast your vote. (Read More…)

GM has shut down all of its eight Brazilian production units near Sao Paulo “to protect the physical integrity of its workers,” the Washington Post says. It appears to be an euphemism that refers to union violence. Reuters has it slightly different and says that production has been shut down “for the day at one of its factories” in order to “not expose workers to possible incitement and provocation.” (Read More…)

Oddly, it all started with a truck

Car counters, pay attention:  Sometime in June (nobody really knows when and where), Toyota made its 200 millionth car. (Read More…)

Whenever the good folks at Daimler hear about European overcapacity, they ask: “Why can’t we have some of it?” Daimler’s compact cars are so popular that the plants in Rastatt, Germany, and Kecskemét , Hungary, are already bursting at the seams, and will even more so once the new A-Class starts shipping in fall.. Therefore, Daimler outsourced A-Class production to Valmet, the Finnish contract manufacturer. (Read More…)

Ford is pointing fingers at supplier TI Automotive who is to blame for last week’s surprise recall of about 11,500 Escape SUVs. The trucks were deemed a fire risk because of a flaw in its fuel lines. Ford told the NHTSA that some of the fuel lines were “mechanically scored” at TI Automotive’s plant in Ashley, Indiana. (Read More…)

Yesterday, we talked about the odd occurrence of Toyota if not saving the hide of GM’s new partner PSA Peugeot Citroen, then at least keeping one of PSA’s plants from being closed. This by having vans made by PSA for the European market, instead of  shipping them from Japan.

When we wrote that, TTAC correspondent th009 rightfully questioned why in the world does Toyota order a van from PSA if they have a Hiace. Correspondent felix offered the explanation that due to its “cab-over configuration, the Hiace won’t meet European frontal impact crash standards.” This sounded like a logical explanation, until from Finland, correspondent Perc offered a resounding “mitää???”, explaining that the Hiace has been a big success in Suomi. Finland has the same safety standards as all on Europe.

So, what is it then? (Read More…)

Pretty soon, car salesmen will chase wreckers with the same fervor as lawyers chase ambulances. Finding a dead car might be their only chance to sell a new one. At least if a survey of nearly 4,000 car owners by AutoMD.com is right. Three in four respondents agreed that buying a vehicle every two to three years is a thing of the past, and 78 percent now say that 10+ years (or until it dies) is the appropriate vehicle lifespan. Is that how you think? (Read More…)

While all eyes are on GM’s hemorrhaging Opel, Ford is said to be even more affected by the European contagion. Ford could have to close at least one plant in Europe, analysts say, with Southampton, England, and Genk, Belgium, in the cross-hairs. (Read More…)