by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 28, 2014
Honda profits surged during the July-to-September quarter, but the third-largest Japanese automaker nonetheless lowered its full-year forecast reflecting a variety of potential problems ahead. Helped by a weak yen, Honda Motor Co. reported net earnings of 141.8...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 28, 2014
(This story has been updated with additional comments by GM CEO Mary Barra.) While GM isn’t expected to reveal its next-generation Chevrolet Volt plug-in hybrid until next January, the automaker’s CEO Mary Barra said today. Among other things, the maker plans to...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 27, 2014
The quality of the cars sold on the U.S. market has hit a plateau, and motorists can put the blame on new technologies – especially the infotainment systems that have become increasingly common on today’s models, according to a new study by Consumer Reports. The...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 27, 2014
(c) 2014 TheDetroitBureau.com When Hien Tran died earlier this month in an Orlando, Florida, hospital after a crash in her Honda Accord, she became at least the fourth victim of faulty airbags produced by Japanese supplier Takata. Within weeks, the National Highway...
by Joseph Szczesny | Oct 27, 2014
The ongoing drop of gas prices in the U.S. is confounding experts, delighting consumers and being ignored by U.S. fracking companies, which are helping to push U.S. oil production to record levels. The average price at the pump dropped 18 cents in the past two weeks....
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 27, 2014
Better late than never? That’s apparently the philosophy at Detroit Electric, the ambitious, if struggling, battery-carmaker that has been promising to put the world’s fastest electric sports car into production. First teased at a splashy Motown event in the spring of...
by Michael Strong | Oct 27, 2014
The number of deaths attributable to General Motors’ faulty ignition switch in 2.6 million recalled vehicles has risen to 30. The count has steadily increased since Aug. 1, when the maker acknowledged 13 deaths. The automaker established a victims’ fund, which is...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 24, 2014
It’s a beautiful autumn morning as Mark Trostle leads a group of journalists out to the design department courtyard behind the Chrysler Technology Center. “It’s like Candyland out here,” says the chief designer for Fiat Chrysler Automobile’s Mopar division, as he...
by Michael Strong | Oct 24, 2014
Former Ford PR Chief Jason Vines is alleging that the automaker eavesdropped on his conversations and those of other top executives during his tenure at the company. In his soon-to-be-released book, “What Did Jesus Drive? Crisis PR in Cars, Computers and...
by Michael Strong | Oct 24, 2014
Many executives have incentives tied to the performance of the company they work for, but in Honda’s case, senior executives are being docked some pay after the maker’s subcompact Fit was recalled for the fifth time. The recall involves 425,825 Fit hybrid vehicles and...
by Joseph Szczesny | Oct 24, 2014
The Japanese auto supplier at the center of a massive recall of due to potentially explosive airbags, Takata Corp., is also mired in a criminal price-fixing investigation by the Department of Justice. Four Takata executives pleaded guilty to price-fixing charges...
by Paul A. Eisenstein | Oct 24, 2014
Ford’s third-quarter earnings report is a classic test of whether you want to view the glass as half-empty or half-full. The maker recently warned that it would deliver a substantially lower profits due to problems in Europe and other markets, as well as having to...