by Marty Bernstein | May 15, 2009
Like most of you, I’m sick of the discouraging, depressing, downer news we’ve been getting all week. As much as it is possible, this is a good news edition. GSD&M Idea City Gets Worldwide BMW Biz There were yahoos, yippee’s, hoot’s and...
by Joseph Szczesny | May 15, 2009
General Motors CEO Fritz Henderson said this week that GM no longer has any representation on the board of GMAC. GM sold a majority interest in GMAC to Cerberus Capital Management back in 2006. Last December, GMAC was reorganized in an exchange for $5 billion in...
by Ken Zino | May 15, 2009
General Motors Corporation began contacting about 18% of its dealers today to let them know that their franchise to sell new vehicles would not be renewed. Yesterday in an SEC filing General Motors said it plans to reduce its dealer network from 5,969 stores today to...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 15, 2009
Let’s face it, when you think about passionate car brands, Lexus is not the first to come to mind. Among luxury marques, Ferrari, BMW, possibly Audi will immediately pop into your head. Toyota’s luxury division is all about quality, reliability and,...
by Ken Zino | May 15, 2009
Chrysler LLC today announced this morning that it would begin the process of assigning the “overwhelming majority” of the company’s supplier contracts to the new company established in with Fiat SpA once an asset sale is completed as it emerges from...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 15, 2009
Two decades after it made its modest debut, Toyota’s Lexus division is the solid volume leader in the U.S. luxury market – even though company officials routinely insist they’re not driven to be number one. Lexus has had its setbacks, however,...
by Joseph Szczesny | May 14, 2009
With the U.S. automaker off by nearly half since it hit its stride, earlier in the decade, manufacturers have been slashing their production and sharply reducing production. The hardest makers, Detroit’s Big Three, have or will close more than a score of plants...
by Ken Zino | May 14, 2009
Chrysler LLC this morning filed a motion with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in New York cancelling its U.S. dealer agreements with 789 dealers in 49 states. The only state spared was Alaska. If the court approves, and there is no reason to think it won’t, 2,392...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | May 14, 2009
It has become something of a given, these days, that the hybrid-electric vehicle is the only viable way to deliver significant improvements in fuel economy, at least in the U.S. market. While diesels dominate in Europe, Americans have largely ignored the tremendous...
by Ken Zino | May 14, 2009
Global light vehicle sales will decline 14.7% from 2008 levels to 55.2 million units in 2009, according to R. L. Polk & Company. The study released today also predicts that the automotive markets won’t emerge from the worldwide recession until 2012, later...
by Joseph Szczesny | May 13, 2009
Henrik Fisker, the founder and chief executive officer of Fisker Automotive, said his fledgling auto company could have a smaller, less expensive vehicle with broad appeal ready for market within 29 months if it succeeds in obtaining funding from the U.S. Department...
by Ken Zino | May 13, 2009
Sales of China’s domestically made vehicles set a record high of 1.153 million units in April, up 25% from a year earlier, according to the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM). It was the fifth straight month of sales gains, a new record. The...
