Someone is happy with November. Nissan did some serious catching up in November after a generally difficult year. A gain of 21% leaves them with a YTD loss of 22%, almost exactly where Toyota and Honda are YTD. The question is, does Nissan have a new-found momentum to propell them ahead of the pack, or is it an aberration? There’s no question about Subaru’s tail wind this year; the all-AWD brand is heading for an all-time record year, on track to beating their previous record of 201k units sold in 2006. The (mostly) happy details: Read More >

Note: These are gross monthly sales numbers; Toyota and Honda’s press releases are using Daily Selling Rate (DSR) numbers. Since there were two few selling days in November, that brings up their percentages. TTAC uses only gross monthly numbers.

Toyota and Honda are each on the three percent side of zero; one up, the other down. Toyota brand vehicles eked out a 1% gain, and Lexus a decent 14% bump, thanks to a good start from the hybrid HS. The pattern was similar at Honda, where Acura led with an 11% boost, and the Honda brand was down 5%. The details: Read More >

They say beauty is in the eye of the beholder. Fat Chance! Beauty is sitting in a barclounger leather recliner and watching the world go past at 85 miles an hour. Of course in this 1985 Lincoln Town Car with 45k, the speedometer also happens to give out it’s all too shaky geriatric needle at 85 mph. So anything beyond that I consider ‘warp speed’ as I drive through North Georgia listening to some old time crooners from the Garden State. Speaking of that, did I mention this thing was bought new in two Jerseys? That would be Jersey City, New Jersey. As in Frank Sinatra’s hometown… the king of swing and the purveyor of all things cool. Well, that would actually be Hoboken. But close enough. Driving a Mafia and Spock sized coffin like this Lincoln is definitely a leap to my childhood in North Jersey. A friend of mine’s Dad actually became the head of the Gambino family for a short time. He’s thankfully only been in Federal prison twice so far. Then there was the house that burned down on a lot and remained a charred remnant for twenty years. A healthy reminder of who was in charge of our local government’s services.

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The Brazilian-American Chamber of Commerce reports that Volkswagen AG has announced it plans to build (cue “Dr Evil” voice) 1 million vehicles in Brazil by 2014. To help this grand notion become a reality Volkswagen will invest €2.3 billion (about $3.5b) into the endeavour benefiting its two assembly plants in Anchieta & Taubate and its engine plant in Sao Carlos. Volkswagen aren’t far off this target; this year Volkswagen expects to manufacture 800,000 vehicles in Brazil. Brazil is also Volkswagen’s third largest market after China and Germany, respectively, so there’s plenty of demand for the Wolfsburg Warriors’ offerings, with deliveries to customers up 70% since 2005. If Volkswagen cars are suffering from alleged reliability issues, it doesn’t seem to be bothering our Brazilian friends.
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Bloomberg seems to be down to two informants. More and more Bloomberg stories are attributed to their “two people familiar with the plan.” Again, the familiar duo is the source for Bloomberg’s latest report from death row in Trollhättan, where Saab is quickly running through its last reprieves. Bloomberg’s usually unreliable sources say that GM “may sell parts of its Saab unit to Beijing Automotive Industry Holding Co. and shutter the brand.”

Assets would be tooling, production machinery and the like. There is a GM board meeting today, and we may know more in the evening. If they would ask me (but they won’t) I would tell them that BAIC needs used production machinery like the proverbial hole in the head.
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Japans currency rose to a 14-year high against the dollar last week, prompting fears that the island nation’s exports could be dramatically affected. And no firm stands to lose as much Toyota, which had been operating under the highest assumed exchange rate of any of Japan’s auto exporters. Reuters reports that ToMoCo had pegged the rate at 90 yen to the dollar, some five yen higher than rivals Honda and Nissan. With the Yen trading at 86.29 to the dollar, that assumption could add up to big losses: Toyota reckons that for every one yen drop against the dollar, operating profits will decline some 30b Yen due to the fact that it exports over half of its Japanese-made automobiles, most of which head to market in the US. Aizawa Securities analyst Toshiro Yashinaga explains that Toyota, more than any other Japanese firm, is riding the razor’s edge.

Carmakers that issued big profit warnings last year have set cautious forex assumptions this time, so roughly speaking the current rates are within expectations. But there are views that the dollar could sink even further in 2010, to the 70s (yen), and in that sense Honda and Nissan, which are relatively strong in emerging markets, are in the winning camp

Japan’s government has thus far resisted calls to intervene in the Yen’s exchange rate. As if Toyota’s heavy exposure to the moribund US market weren’t bad enough, exchange rate uncertainty could make Toyota’s second-straight loss even worse than expected when the firm announces its fiscal year-end results in March.

China’s Greatwall is apparently hell-bent on selling their Coolbear MPV in Europe next year. China Car Times reports that Greatwall has received the ECE Whole Vehicle Type Approval (WVTA,) awarded by the UK Vehicle Certification Agency (VCA.) The WVTA testing covers 48 different tests; 13 on active safety, 13 on passive safety and 8 on emissions and environmental protection. Passing the test makes the Coolbear legal to sell all over Europe and in any and all countries that accept the ECE regimen.
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Last weekend we got to know what car you are. Not surprisingly, we have quite a range of personalities in the TTAC parking lot: everything from a MB (Grosser) 600 to a Toyota Echo 2 door. Now we get to know about the big love (or ex) in your life. That’s a bit trickier, especially since mine reads everything here religiously. I thought hard about the Nissan Pao, because its trim size and distinctive and quirky aesthetics certainly work. But the Pao is too underpowered, and strictly a city car. Fun to look at, but no go. So it’s a toss up between a Mini Cooper S and the Fiat 500 Abarth. I have to give the nod to the little Italian, even though Stephanie is more of an Anglophile, for two reasons: The Mini is too common, and the Abarth is an unknown. Stephanie and I fell in love on Thanksgiving weekend 32 years ago, and were married the following January 7th. Hows that for taking a flyer? Just like buying the first hot-rod Fiat 500 that arrives on these shores.

It’s heartbreaking. To see a major company that literally carried a healthy portion of America’s heartland go up in Euro-flames. I remember the beauty of it. The 1990’s minivans that completely obliterated their competition. LH sedans that were state of the art for their time. Cloud cars that had more power and road feel than their American brethren. Neons that were so good that even Toyota was jealous. Believe it or not, I still think the talent base of Chrysler is there. But to get it out…

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Invasive species can impart devastating effects when the indigenous species haven’t evolved the proper defenses. Two Beetles stowed away on a ship bound for the US in 1949. There wasn’t anything remarkable about them that would suggest their future impact on revolutionizing the largest automobile market in the world. But like a pair of termites, they multiplied and steadily chewed their way through the framework of an industry that thought itself invincible. Eventually, the Bugs got forced out by other small foreign critters, but when the hollowed-out Fortress Detroit finally crashed into smithereens, the Beetles’ teeth marks could be seen everywhere. Read More >

Autocar reports that the next-generation of Smart city car is being co-developed by Daimler and Renault. The rear-engined platform is being described as “modular,” with variable wheelbase and track, and will underpin the next Smart ForTwo and ForFour as well as several Renaults. Initially Mercedes will provide three-pot engines with six-speed manual and seven-speed dual-clutch transmissions. Eventually, the two firms will develop a series of 1.8 liter engines to power the ForFour, as well as the new Mercedes A and B classes and future Renault Twingo, Clio, Modus, Mégane and Scenic models. Both firms plan EV and hybrid versions as well, although the firms have not decided which will lead development of these drivetrains… which can’t be a good sign for Tesla which has a Smart electrification contract with Daimler. Equally undecided is whether Nissan will get a version to match up with Toyota’s iQ. In any case, it’s become clear that what began as a unique-platformed, niche brand was going to have to change. By sharing costs, developing a viable four-seater on the same platform and offering advanced drivetrains, Daimler may just be able to pull Smart’s fat from the fire.

Automotive News [sub] is reporting that Toyota will replace or reshape some 3.8m accelerator pedals to reduce the risk of them becoming lodged against floormats. Toyota will also be replacing some floormats as it battles a recent unintended acceleration scare. But far more interesting than the prosaic alterations to pedals and mats is Toyota’s decision to take modifications a step further on certain affected models. AN [sub] explains:

Toyota will install a brake override system on the involved Camry, Avalon, and Lexus ES 350, IS 350 and IS 250 models “as an extra measure of confidence.” The system will shut off engine power if drivers press the accelerator pedal and brake pedal simultaneously.

Oy. More proof that it only takes a few idiots thinking their car is possessed to ruin burnouts for everyone. Well, everyone who owns a slushbox Toyota or Lexus, anyway.

European governments that are lured into propping up GM’s Opel should resist the urge, said former Continental AG Chief Executive Officer Manfred Wennemer to Bloomberg. Why? It will cost them twice.
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As we saw in the last VBW, the Volt’s range-extender still needs some software work. But efforts to to keep the gas engine from acting like a thrashing, disembodied dervish will have to balance the desire for smooth operation and maximum efficiency.  And it’s looking like efficiency in charge sustaining (CS) mode won’t match the hybrid standard-setters. Volt chief powertrain engineer Alex Cattelan breaks the news gently to the true believers at GM-volt.com

You’ve got to understand that all of the decisions that we’ve made around this product are made because its an EV. That is the first and foremost thing that it needs to be. So because it is an EV some of the decisions that we’ve made around engine operation will be different than what Toyota makes in its parallel hybrid. For them they are always operating in hybrid mode so they need to optimize everything for engine operation.

In our case we’re optimizing everything for EV operation and the secondary is certainly going to be better than conventional vehicles, but were not necessarily totally optimizing the system for charge sustaining mode because we don’t want to compromise electric vehicle mode.

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Ratan Tata is unmarried and has no children. So he’s now on the hunt for a successor and because of the lack of Tata scions (Toyota joke here) he’s looking outside of the family. Very far outside the family. NDTV Profit reports that Ratan Tata and Carlos Ghosn had a closed-door meeting in Mumbai a few weeks ago and Ghosn is a likely candidate. After all, Ghosn presided over the launch of the Dacia Logan which was a success in India (not to mention Europe), and now Renault-Nissan are gunning for Tata’s Nano in a link-up with Bajaj. Sounds like Ratan Tata is trying to hire away the enemy general.  But is Ghosn the man to tackle Jaguar-Land Rover? And how would Ghosn’s Nissan-Renault empire cope without him?