by Ken Zino | Feb 27, 2010
Edolphus Towns (D-NY) said yesterday that a review of documents obtained under subpoena from a former lawyer at Toyota indicate that Toyota “deliberately withheld records” it was legally required to produce in response to discovery orders in litigation. Where these...
by Ken Zino | Feb 26, 2010
Consumers Union, the publisher of Consumer Reports- a long standing endorser of Toyota quality – is now calling for changes to strengthen what it calls the “U.S. car safety net.” This new emphasis on safety comes about as its April Auto issue is published...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Feb 26, 2010
Just what impact the safety scandal at Toyota will have on the rest of the automotive market is uncertain, but the Japanese maker’s arch-rival, Honda, is working to ensure it won’t be tainted, as well. “Product quality is extremely important to us,” asserted Honda CEO...
by Joseph Szczesny | Feb 26, 2010
Lear Corporation has just reported that it is part of an investigation into anti-competitive practices among automotive electrical and electronic component suppliers by the European Commission. The EU Commission said it was investigating several suppliers, but so far,...
by Ken Zino | Feb 26, 2010
Workers at Honda Manufacturing of Indiana have produced the 100,000 Civic model since the plant opened in the fall of 2008. The compact and fuel efficient Civic was the sixth best selling vehicle in the U.S. in January 2010, and was up 12% in sales for the month when...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Feb 26, 2010
The seemingly daily coverage of Toyota’s safety problems has put a focus on the issue of recalls. Since the beginning of the year, the Japanese maker has announced safety campaigns to handle a variety of problems, from sticky accelerator pedals to malfunctioning...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Feb 25, 2010
Porsche is offering us a sneak peek at the all-new version of its big SUV, and among the other notable features of the 2011 Porsche Cayenne, which will make its formal debut at next week’s Geneva Motor Show, is the fact that it will offer the German performance car...
by Ken Zino | Feb 25, 2010
Chrysler is conducting what it deems is a “safety improvement campaign” – and not a safety recall – covering model year 2005-2006 Dodge Caravan, Grand Caravan, and Chrysler Town & Country Vehicles. More than 312,000 minivans in 27 states are affected...
by Ken Zino | Feb 25, 2010
February new-vehicle retail sales are expected to increase marginally compared with February 2009, according to the latest Power forecast. February retail sales are now projected to come in at 561,500 units, which means a seasonally adjusted annualized rate (SAAR) of...
by Ken Zino | Feb 25, 2010
Magna Steyr, an operating unit of Magna International Inc., announced today that it acquired Karmann Japan Co. Ltd., a subsidiary of bankrupt Wilhelm Karmann GmbH, the convertible system and custom body assembly supplier. Magna International concurrently reported that...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Feb 25, 2010
Throughout a blistering afternoon that could have broken a weaker man, Akio Toyoda, often described as the “reluctant” President and CEO of embattled Toyota Motor Co., retained a sense of cool as he stared down the members of a Congressional committee investigating...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Feb 24, 2010
Concerns about potential antitrust violations led the FBI to raid the U.S. offices of three major Japanese suppliers, though it is unclear if still other manufacturers are involved in the investigation. Among the company’s targeted were Denso Corporation, one of the...
