Three years ago yesterday, on a Jalopnik-TTAC joint podcast, a certain Robert Farago foresaw the rise of a “hybrid aesthetic” in automotive design. In order to break into the consumer psyche, went his logic, a hybrid car must look unmistakably like… a hybrid. Fast forward to 2009 and the new Honda Insight seems to confirm that looking like a hybrid means looking like a Toyota Prius. Chevy’s Volt might someday become the third member of the Prian party, while the forthcoming Lexus HS250h looks to be a Prius rebadge of GM-level laziness. If hybrids are the cars of the future, are we doomed to inherit a world of identical, beetle-shaped rides?
The chief engineer on GM’s Volt project may have admitted that the new Chevy Cruze isn’t “pretty,” but it still has to be a big deal for GM. Korean-built Cruze was recently launched in China, with the star of the show Prison Break as its spokesman. The interesting part is that, according to Automotive News [sub] “the actor is famous in China even though the series has never aired officially in the mainland, a sign of how entrenched intellectual property theft is in China.” If that’s not an auspicious start, it’s hard to say what is. Angus Mackenzie of Motor Trend got to tool around in a China-spec Cruze at the launch, and the best he gives it is “good in parts.” His unconvincing conclusion is that “the good news is the basics are there. Now GM must sweat the details.” Oh boy.
The folks at Mashable love to measure buzz, twits and general internet exposure, and they’ve come up with a few graphs that show how the automakers are weathering the current unpleasantness. And they show that (by the numbers, anyway) Ford is the most new-media savvy of the American automakers. Which means that on the straightforward (and questionably effective) metrics, Ford comes out on top. Most Twitter followers. Most Twitter updates. Most Youtube video tags. Most Flickr photos. Stop me if you’re getting too excited. But despite the huge numerical advantages that Ford boasts in the YouTwitosphere, the most interesting fact is that Ford is the least-covered automaker in actual news stories but most-covered in blog posts. Which means a lot of Ford’s measurable popularity might be attributable to the lack of bad news about it in the mainstream media. Not taking a bailout probably helped, too. Either way, you can’t help but wonder what the benefit really is of most of this “new marketing.”
American-owned supplier firms, not so much. Automotive News [sub] reports that Fiat’s plans to replace Chrysler’s entire “car lineup” with its own models creates an opportunity for Italian supplier firms to steal business from their American competitors. You know, the ones which would have created a “death ripple” in the American economy if Detroit were not bailed out way back in December. Chrysler’s last merger was “a catalyst to bring more German suppliers to North America,” says Michele Vannini, North American head of Italian engine maker VM Motori S.p.A. “The same thing can happen for Italian suppliers with Fiat and Chrysler.”
The NY Times is reporting that President Obama will announce new emissions standards tomorrow that are aimed at ending the discrepancy between Californian and national emissions standards. The federal effort will combine California’s emissions standards with the Corporate Average Fuel Economy standard, creating a unified national benchmark. This will force OEMs to clean up emissions by 30 percent by 2016, while preventing California from moving the goalposts again, say industry officials. The upshot? By 2016 car offerings must average 42mpg while trucks will face a 26.2mpg average requirement.
The Freep‘s Mark Phelan has a new paean to the Chevy Volt mule’s electric grunt, saying the Cruze bodied tech-tester has “immediate torque for acceleration most sporty small cars would envy.” As GM prepares to build the first run of Volt-bodied test mules starting in mid-June, it’s bumping up the media presence of its last best hope by offering flacks like Phelan another test drive. And this time around the Volt’s “sporty acceleration” tops the talking points. “The test vehicle ran with smooth, quiet power,” reports Phelan, “but driving it felt reassuringly like getting behind the wheel of any new car.” Which conveniently is “a key goal for the Volt program,” according to GM EV Maestro Frank Weber. Another “key goal?” Making it look good enough to draw interest at its $35K price point.
Putting the “continuous” in “continuous improvement,” Toyota plans on replacing 40 percent of its senior managers and half the board members while reorganizing its North American business according to the Financial Times. Akio Toyoda takes over as president of his grandfather’s company next month and clearly wants to set a new tone at the top. “Some people are calling this a revolution or even a coup d’état,” says Koji Endo, a Credit Suisse analyst. “The size of the [financial] loss is huge. Somebody has to take responsibility for that.” Toyoda reportedly wants to bring back former senior executive Yoshimi Inaba, to revive its US operations. That effort could include unifying Toyota’s California-based US sales operation and Kentucky-based manufacturing unit under a single management structure, possibly based in New York. Under outgoing president Katsuaki Watanabe’s leadership, Toyota lost nearly $5 billion last fiscal year despite commencing an $8.22 billion cost-cutting campaign. Toyota lost $7.87 billion last quarter, beating out even GM for the title of biggest loser.
What’s been going through my head is 2 trade-offs: Cayman S with or without PDK (with Chrono Plus either way) and BMW M3 Coupe with or without DKG. Beyond the obvious (cost but better 0-60 for PDK/DKG vs. more driving experience on a stick…), what are folks taking into consideration when making that trade-off? Would love to hear people opinions…
Commentator stephada picked PDK when he recently bought a Carrera, but our man Shoemaker was disappointed by the system. Twice. Lack of consensus? Whatever shall we do? More importantly, what say y’all?
Rick Haglund at MLive wonders aloud if the Chrysler treatment would be an option if it were a Chinese firm assuming the Fiat position. He’s been talking to pundits working on closer Michigan-China business ties, and they claim that a tie-up with a Chinese firm would be better for Chrysler than the Fiat deal already in progress. “They’re not putting in any cash, which is what Chrysler needs,” argues former AMC Chairman Gerald Meyer. And there’s no doubt that Chinese firms have cash. But, “there’s a xenophobia that’s clearly there,” argues Tom Watkins. And he’s right.
With an estimated 44k vehicles sitting on the lots of the 789 lame-duck Chrysler dealers, Mother Pentastar is going all-out to move metal. Although record incentives have already failed to make rain, the DetN reports that ChryCo will be sending “millions” of $1K vouchers to previous customers. Chrysler marketing seems not to have heard of the “fool me once” adage. The move shows that “recognizing the value of our customers has never been more important,” say the spokesfolks. “Chrysler is open for business and welcomes the opportunity to remind its customers just how valuable they are.” And isn’t it nice to know that the Treasury agrees? Too bad everyone’s waiting for a clunker-culling bill to buy. And who knows if/whenthat will happen. Anyway, will a grand tempt current owners? More to the point, what dumped Chrysler dealer would turn down $1K off a listed price to anyone at this point? Or do you haggle a dealer’s shirt off and then bring out the $1K coupon after you’ve broken the poor bastard’s spirit? Color me terrified of the crippling depression that must afflict anyone spending time at a ChryCo shop.
Toyota’s third-generation Prius hybrid launches in Japan on Monday, with a European rollout scheduled for July, and already they firm has amassed 75k pre-orders worldwide. Of course, Toyota won’t confirm the number, which originated in a Nikkei report printed in Automotive News [sub]. Honda’s Insight has already become Japan’s top-selling car, the first hybrid to hold such a title. And all this despite oil and gas prices that are significantly weaker than a year ago. But, as GM is currently proving, pre-orders can sometimes be more trouble than they’re worth.
Ford is basking in its “last man standing” status this week as it holds its annual shareholder meeting. Automotive News[sub] reports that Ford expects to break even or turn a profit by 2011 without the help of government bridge loans. So confident are stockholders in the success of Ford’s current strategy that they have voted down reforms that would wrest voting control from Ford family preferred stockholders for the fifth time in as many years. This despite a $14.7 billion loss last year, and a $1.43 billion loss in Q1 of 2009. The good news? Ford has restructured its debt, reached a deal with the UAW’s VEBA fund, raised $1.6 billion in its recent stock offering, and its retail market share has “stabilized.” But there’s still plenty of work to be done.
Well, the worm has turned properly on government intervention in the auto industry, as General Motors now seems to fear a government takeover more than bankruptcy. Too bad the choice isn’t either-or. Recent 10-Q filings with the SEC indicate that GM accepts the inevitability of a Chapter 11 filing, but describes the ramifications of a possible government ownership stake with fear and horror. “In the future we may also become subject to new and additional government regulations regarding various aspects of our business as a result of the U.S. government’s ownership in (and financing of) our business. These regulations could make it more difficult for us to compete with other companies that are not subject to similar regulations,” figure GM’s professional worrywarts. These still waters of paranoia run deep.
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