Fiat and Chrysler CEO Sergio Marchionne repeated its pleas that European governments should do something about the overcapacity in the region. Being in Shanghai when he said that, he recommended that the Chinese government does the same. The governments likely won’t be enthusiastic about Sergio’s advice.
Said Sergio while the Wall Street Journal took notes: (Read More…)
The boycott of Japanese goods in China, triggered by a dispute over uninhabited islands in the East China Sea, hit Japanese automakers where it hurts most: In the pocket-book. Honda cut its profit forecast for the fiscal year to March to 375 billion yen ($4.7 billion) from its earlier estimate of 470 billion yen ($5.9 billion), Reuters says. (Read More…)
Unions reached a last minute deal with Opel: Plant closures and layoffs are off the table through 2016. This according to information given by works council chief Walter Einenkel to the usually reliable Westdeutsche Allgemeine Zeitung. (Read More…)
Attention pro-protectionists: Protectionism creates problems for one of your most favorite companies. GM wants to bring its new Chevrolet Trax SUVlet to Brazil, but Brazil is giving GM a hard time, says Reuters. (Read More…)
Toyota today announced global production data for September. Worldwide production for Toyota, Daihatsu and Hino was down 5.8 percent in September, which saw Chinese factories closed and sales boycotted. January through September, global production is up 37.6 percent to 7,681,891 units. (Read More…)
Down to the wire, and nothing: German unions had set Opel a deadline until today to come to an agreement about the future of Opel. The unions had offered to forgo a 4.3 percent pay hike and waive future pay raises if Opel extends a moratorium on plant closures through 2016. Today’s deadline passed without an agreement, Reuters says. (Read More…)
Stephen Odell, CEO of Ford Europe, thinks that state aid of ailing carmakers is a dead-end street.
TrueCar, Kelley Blue Book, and Edmunds have submitted their sales projections for October. They agree (as far as they supply numbers) that the market should be up by more than ten percent in October, that Ford and GM will underperform, that Chrysler will continue to be strong, and that Volkswagen and Toyota will continue delivering stellar growth numbers. (Read More…)
As expected, Ford is closing an UK plant. Unexpectedly, Ford is closing another one right with it, bringing EU plant closings to three in two days. Ford is closing its Ford Transit plant in Southampton, and it is closing the stamping plant in Dagenham with it, says Automobilwoche [sub]. (Read More…)
Playboy photographer Scott Hooper (of “Sex and the Automobile” fame) is planning a major oeuvre, a big coffee table book of sexy cars and sexy ladies, planned to be “the culmination of Hooper’s lifelong love of gorgeous women and exquisite cars.” Being in Las Vegas and being known in the business, Hooper has no shortage of gorgeous women. He has a shortage of sexy cars. And this is where you come in. (Read More…)
Ford is expected to announce the closure of its van factory in Southampton, England, Reuters says. British shop stewards have been summoned to an emergency meeting at Ford’s European headquarters in Basildon, Essex, today. (Read More…)
Mercedes wants to double its passenger car sales within the next eight years. By 2020, Mercedes wants to raise its sales to more than 2.6 million units annually, from 1.3 million this year. This is what Daimler CEO wrote in a letter to all employees. Automobilwoche [sub] has a copy.
(Read More…)
Volkswagen’s ultracompact Up! is taking Japan by storm. Three weeks after its Oct. 1 release, orders for the up! have exceeded 3,000 units, The Nikkei[sub] writes. (Read More…)
Sales of Japanese cars in China dropped 40 percent in September as a result of the islands rumpus. The shares of Nissan, Toyota and Honda shares lost about 10 percent of their value. Chinese state-owned enterprises lost much more. (Read More…)
There is a shiny new car factory in Chattanooga, Tennessee. People enjoy working at this Volkswagen factory. The factory is airy, there is a lot of space inside and outside the factory for expansion. However, it will be a while until it will make more than the Passat. The people in Tennessee had hopes for Audi moving in here. Instead, Audi decided on going to Mexico. When the new Golf MkVII comes to America, it will be made in Mexico. There is no other car in sight for Chattanooga. Why is the factory, one of the best specimens in Volkswagen’s vast global collection, losing out on new jobs? The Chattanooga Times Free Press thinks it knows the reason: Lack of free trade agreements. (Read More…)
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