We finally know who’s responsible for shutting down Nissan assembly lines in Japan and the U.S.A. The shortage of a critical computer chip stopped Hitachi from making ECUs, which in turn stopped Nissan from making cars. For days, the identity of the lackadaisical chipmaker had been kept under wraps. Now, the culprit has been unmasked. (Read More…)

The shortage of a critical computer chip that Hitachi desperately needs to supply Nissan with ECUs  now threatens to affect U.S. production. Yesterday, Nissan warned that they will close down Japanese assembly lines. Today, Nissan COO Officer Toshiyuki Shiga said that production in the U.S. may be halted until the chip shortage is solved. (Read More…)

While other countries are still struggling with the electric car in itself, Japan is already in the middle of the big charging station craze. TTAC will continue keeping an eye on these developments. No country is better suited for self serve chargers than Japan, where you can buy anything from a vending machine, from flowers to condoms, from rice to the infamous girls’ panties. According to credible statistics, there are 23 people per vending machine in Japan. Soon, there will be more. Vending machines. (Read More…)

It used to be a common joke in China that makers of refrigerators entered the car business by adding wheels to their refrigerators. (Don’t laugh: GM sold their Frigidaire business in 1979, after 50 years of making refrigerators.) Now, BYD comes full circle. They will enter the home appliance business. (Read More…)

So far, it had been striking workers at Chinese parts suppliers that brought Japanese car makers to their knees, praying for parts needed to re-start the lines. Here is a new  twist: Japan’s Hitachi ran out of chips for ECUs (commonly called “car computers”). And Japanese carmakers are shutting down the lines. (Read More…)

The Toyota acceler-gate provides for extra work for the nation’s sharpest brainiacs – on both sides of the Pacific. In the U.S. , the Academy of Science has been recruited by the NHTSA. Meanwhile in Japan,  Toyota drew on the expertise of Union of Japanese Scientists and Engineers (JUSE). Today,  four experts appointed by JUSE presented the result of their review of Toyota’s quality assurance. In one short sentence: (Read More…)

China’s Changan (joint venture partner of Ford, Suzuki and PSA) wants to draw on British engineering know-how and established a research-and-development center in Nottingham, England. (Read More…)

Two news items are unnerving Japan today: The ruling DPJ party seems to be heading towards a solid defeat at the upper house elections. And Volkswagen has lost all respect for the Japanese competition. The enemy Volkswagen now fears most is – dou shiyou – (Read More…)

Fiat retreated from U.S. shores in 1983, but that doesn’t stop die-hard Fiat fans from keeping their Fix-it-again-Tonys alive, and from congregating once a year. This weekend, the annual convention of the Club Fiat-Lancia Unlimited was held at the Biltmore in Asheville, NC. At their closing dinner, Laura Soave, Head of Fiat North America, made Fiat fans an offer they can hardly refuse: (Read More…)

The Tata Nano still hasn’t caught up with its hype and is, 2 years after its introduction, still battling problems of mass production and spontaneous combustion. Meanwhile, in China, Chery is stamping out its low cost QQ by the hundreds of thousands. The QQ is inseparable from China’s popular culture.

Now, QQ could be thinking of entering Europe through its eastern backdoor Poland. (Read More…)

Wasn’t Ford proud of not having stuffed themselves from the Great American Bailout Buffet? That didn’t stop them from (quietly) asking the Germans for money. And the answer is … (Read More…)

Not two kinds. Not two types. Two. As in what’s sitting in your two car garage. In what must be the eclipse of brazenness, Tesla announced that “on Friday it signed a memorandum of understanding with Japanese automaker Toyota Motor Corp to deliver two electric vehicles to the world’s largest automaker by the end of month.” And then they sent the press release for that momentous event to all wire services, including Reuters. (Read More…)

The monthly Chinese car sales number confusion is finally over. The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers CAAM has spoken their official word on June 2010 motor vehicles sales in the Middle Kingdom. We nearly lost confidence, but again, our patent pending sales oracle has been proven right. A week ago, our oracle said “that the Chinese market will come in at a growth in the low 20 percentile range.“ And what says CAAM? (Read More…)

So far, the strikes in China were just small – but effective – sideshows. Strike at a small, but strategically important supplier, and  whole car factories shut down.  That, however, only led to wage increases at the small, but strategically important supplier. Until last Wednesday. (Read More…)

Tempora mutantur, or in Boy Dylan’s  words, the times they are a-changin’. Last year, luxury cars were pretty much unsalable. This year, they are the hottest commodity. Especially in Germany. Which isn’t doing so well generally. Germany’s car companies on the other hand are working at warp speed. Daimler already had announced their best June ever. What about BMW and Audi? They are doing great. Danke, Euro. Xie xie, China. (Read More…)